Better Off Dead in Deadwood (12 page)

That made me laugh even harder.

He changed out his hand for his lips.

My laughter died in my throat as he fired up my rockets again—all systems go!

He pulled away much too soon and tugged me over to the porch steps, drawing me down next to him. I resisted the urge to tackle him and drag him behind Aunt Zoe’s juniper shrubs.

“So,” he said, “tell me what you found at Cooper’s house that nearly got you in big trouble at my office.”

“Oh, jeez.” I buried my face in my hands. “I almost swallowed my tongue when I opened my eyes and saw the detective standing over me instead of you.”

“You should’ve seen your face.” I could hear the grin in his tone.

I poked him in the ribs. “Thanks for the heads up on that. You could have warned me.”

He caught my hand and laced his fingers through mine. “And say what? ‘Violet, don’t talk about Detective Cooper because he’s standing in my back room looking at a book with old pictures of Mudder Brothers Funeral Parlor.’”

Cooper was looking at old Mudder Brothers’ pics? Why? I’d have to ponder that later.

“Well, something like that certainly would have helped,” I said.

He squeezed my hand. “Tell me what you found.”

I glanced back over my shoulder, making sure neither of my kids was eavesdropping. “A corkboard with Jane’s name pinned on it, surrounded by other names, including mine.”

Doc was silent for a moment, and then said, “You think it’s his case board.”

“Is that what you call it?”

“That’s what they call it on TV.”

“There was something else on it.” I stared out at the dark shadows hovering just beyond the glow of the house lights. “A picture of a barbed hook covered with blood.”

“The murder weapon?”

“That’s my guess.”

I hesitated to tell him the rest, hating to say it aloud, as if giving it voice would make it more real, more dangerous. But I needed to tell someone, and Doc was probably the only one who would believe I hadn’t been imagining things in that autopsy room.

“I’ve seen a hook just like it before, Doc. Only that one wasn’t covered in blood.”

I felt the weight of Doc’s stare. “Where?”

“That night at Mudder Brothers.”

“The albino?” he asked.

I nodded. “He threatened me with it.”

“Shit.”

“Yeah.”

His thumb stroked my palm. “Are you going to tell Cooper?”

“How can I? If I say anything, he’ll know I withheld information from him about that night at the funeral parlor, which will make him wonder what else I’m hiding. I don’t need him sniffing around me any more than he already does.”

“Violet, it isn’t just a bottle you’re concealing this time. It’s a link to Jane’s murder weapon.”

“I know that, but Cooper’s going to wonder how I came to know about Jane’s murder weapon, which means he’ll know I was in that basement room he ordered Harvey and me to stay out of. At the least, he’ll fire me as his real estate agent, which will not win me any favors with my new boss.” And with Ray and Benjamin on the sidelines waiting for me to stumble, I needed to look like I was still running strong.

“What’s the worst that can happen?” Doc asked.

“I could end up in jail for a multitude of charges, including stealing evidence.”

“Stealing evidence?”

“Yeah, there’s that book from the Carhart house that I kept, the one that belonged to Lila.” After the sadistic bitch had tried to use it to lure a demon into impregnating me, I figured I had a right to keep it handy in case something started stirring inside of me. And something had, only in my brain, not my uterus.

“Right,” Doc said, sounding tired. “The book.”

Doc was hiding the book for me in his closet, studying it, watching for more signs of the demon, Kyrkozz, who’d paid a visit to me in my nightmares a couple of weeks ago and warned me to “get out.” If only I knew how to depart from where he was referring, I’d be happy to let the door hit me in the ass on the way out.

“Cooper might be able to help protect you,” Doc said.

“You and I both know from firsthand experience that Cooper’s gun didn’t work on that albino.”

We stared out into the darkness for several silent breaths. The surrounding pine trees muffled the usual ruckus from Deadwood—traffic, music, and laughter. If only they could block out the threatening elements, too.

“What are you going to do?” Doc asked.

“I don’t know. That’s why I needed to talk to you, to help me make sense of what that hook means.”

“I don’t want you to get hurt, Violet.”

Were we talking about my crazy-for-Doc feelings here or a killer albino? I went with the latter, hiding behind a grin. “Me, either. Pain is not really my thing.”

My pocket rang. I fished out my phone, figuring it was Aunt Zoe calling to tell me she was going to be really late—as in after-breakfast late.

Cooper’s name showed on the screen. The detective must have bionic ears.

“It’s Cooper,” I whispered.

“You’d better answer it or he might show up on your doorstep with a search party ready to hunt you down. Again.”

I wrinkled my nose at Doc and pushed the
Answer
button. “Hello?”

“Where’s my Peacemaker?” Cooper asked.

“It’s nice to hear your voice, too, Detective Cooper.”

He huffed. “It’s hard to read in bed without my lamp.”

Cooper read? I imagined all sorts of firearm how-to manuals piled next to him on the nightstand.

“You’re just afraid you won’t be able to shoot the bogeyman. Although with the deadbolt on the
inside
of your closet door, you’re kind of screwed.”

“I’m not laughing, Parker. Where’s my light?”

He sounded extra crotchety tonight, like he’d spent the night getting his chest waxed instead of playing poker with his buddies and drinking beer.

“I hid it in your pantry behind the flour container,” I told him. “I can’t have loaded guns at my open houses.”

“But kitchen fires and garage explosions are okay?”

“I’m not going to dignify that with a response.”

“Reid sends his love,” he said. I could imagine the smirk on his lips right then.

“I didn’t know you snuggled up with Deadwood’s fire captain at night. How cozy for you two.”

“He’s passed out on my couch, wiseass.”

“Does that happen often?” Or did it have something to do with Aunt Zoe seeing another man?

“Nope. Sleep tight, Parker. Tell Doc not to bite. Leave that to your zombie friends.” The line went dead.

I stuffed the phone back in my pocket. “Did you tell Cooper you were coming here?”

“No. But he knows you kept calling me during the game.”

“So Reid was there playing with you guys tonight?”

“Yes. Your fiery past was one of the topics of discussion.”

“You defended my reputation, of course?”

“Of course,” he said in mock seriousness then ruined it by laughing under his breath.

I lifted his hand and bit his knuckle until he pulled away, still laughing.

“Did Reid say anything about Aunt Zoe?” I asked. I doubted he had but wondered nonetheless.

“No. But damn that guy can drink. Cooper mentioned handcuffing him to the couch so he wouldn’t try to drive home.”

Poor Reid. I bet I knew why he’d been drinking so much. Broken hearts were often drowned in bottles.

I heard the back door hinges creak and jumped up, yanking my hand from Doc’s.

“Mom?” Layne said from the other side of the screen door. “I heard voices. What are you doing out here?” He turned on the back porch light.

I shielded my eyes from the brightness. “I’m talking to Doc.”

“What’s he doing here so late?” His tone made it clear he was not thrilled with Doc sitting in the dark with me.

“He’s keeping me company until Aunt Zoe gets home.”

“Why do you need company? You’ve been alone a bunch before.”

Tell me about it.
“Layne, go back to bed. You have school in the morning.”

“I’m not tired.”

“Now, Layne.” He slammed the door.

“Dang it. Now Addy’s probably awake.”

Doc stood. “I should go.”

I’d rather he just held my hand again, but reality had returned, along with the fact that my kids seemed to send Doc running in the other direction.

“I’ll walk you to the gate,” I said.

We strolled through the grass in silence, not touching.

I closed the gate behind him. “Thanks for stopping by.”

“I’ll see you tomorrow.” He took a couple of strides and then stopped and walked back.

“Did you forget something?” I asked, hoping he had. A declaration of his undying love would have been nice. I’d even have settled for a declaration of undying lust with the hope that it would grow into something more.

“What happened to their father?” he asked.

I stepped back in surprise, not expecting a question about Rex, the good-for-nothing asshole who’d left me high and dry shortly after finding out I was pregnant.

“He didn’t want kids.” I gave the short and bittersweet version.

“When did they last see him?”

“Never. He left when I was pregnant and signed away all rights after they were born.”

“Have you heard from him since?”

As a matter of fact, I had recently but not directly. Detective Cooper knew all about it, and while I often hated how tight-lipped he was, this was one of those times I was happy he didn’t share secrets.

It turned out that Rex seemed to be trying to check up on me. It was because of him asking around about me that my business card had ended up in the hand of the decapitated body found in the old cemetery out behind Harvey’s barn a few weeks back. I didn’t know why Rex was suddenly interested in catching up nor did I want to. I wanted the bastard to stay the hell away from my children.

“No, I haven’t,” I answered, which was essentially true since he hadn’t actually contacted me. “And as far as I’m concerned, my children never will either.”

“Mom?” Layne called out again from the back door.

“Damn it.” I growled in my throat.

“Go be with your kids, Violet,” Doc said, walking away backwards. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”

Chapter Seven

Monday, September 3rd

I slept like hell.

Maybe it was the tequila. Or Doc’s questions about Rex. Or Cooper and that damned albino’s hook. Or a pea under my mattress. Whatever the reason, I had sweaty nightmares that merged together into a kaleidoscope of terror until I woke up in the midst of a muffled pillow scream. Then I dragged my tired ass to the shower.

While the hot water poured down my back, one fear that threaded through each scream-queen moment made my chest tight—what if my albino buddy was still alive? What if he’d killed Jane? Him still being alive after I buried a huge pair of scissors in his back, not to mention the whole spontaneous combustion and disappearing in a puff of smoke act, made my questions seem absurd to a rational person … but
what if
?

I put my head under the water, replaying that final scene with the albino, trying to make sense yet again of something that was beyond logic. Wiping the water from my eyes, I gave up and grabbed the shaving cream.

The razor shook in my hands. I took a couple of slow breaths and tried not to lacerate my legs. Scabs weren’t professional—or sexy.

Since the mess at Mudder Brothers, all I’d focused on was the albino’s twin showing up on my doorstep, but maybe I had two albinos waiting for the right moment to upend my world—and one of them itching for payback. If only I knew with whom I was dealing … or what. At least with Ray, I could see him for the snake he was and step on him before he struck.

I shut off the shower and dripped all of the way to my bedroom. Gray clouds filled the sky outside my window. Fall was on its way, along with its much cooler temperatures. I grabbed a calf-length, wispy blue-violet skirt from my closet and a modestly cut matching tunic, avoiding any cleavage display since I had a “career” meeting this morning with my new boss.

My purple boots would have looked great with the skirt and drawn some much-wanted attention from Doc, but Natalie still had them. She’d probably written
Jezebel
all over them with a black permanent marker by now.

After rousing the kids and chop-chopping them to get dressed and brush their teeth, I headed downstairs, lured by the smell of fresh brewed coffee. Aunt Zoe was sitting at the kitchen table staring into her cup like she was reading tea leaves.

“How was your date last night?” I asked, pouring myself some caffeinated breakfast.

“Enlightening,” she said, sarcasm present.

“What happened?” I pulled out the chair across from her.

She scratched at a crumb glued to the table. “I found out he’s in the midst of a divorce.”

“His choice or hers?”

“His.”

“That’s a good thing, isn’t it? He’s moving on.”

“I don’t want to get involved with a man who has been divorced for less than two years.”

I grinned. “You think they’re contagious?”

“I’ve been there, done that, and got my heart broken.”

“When was that?” Was she talking about Reid?

“A long time ago.”

“What happened?”

“He changed his mind.”

No, that couldn’t be Reid. He wasn’t married to anyone.

Aunt Zoe had dated on and off over the years. Maybe the broken heart explained why she’d never settled down with one man.

I opened my mouth to ask her more, but she interrupted with, “How did the open house go?”

An obvious change of subject.

Sipping my coffee, I went along with the change to give her some space for the moment. “We had a nice crowd.”

“Anyone act interested?”

“Yep.” Plenty—interested in Harvey and Cooper and Reid, but not in the house.

“Anything exciting happen?”

Besides some closet-nookie, a fire, and the discovery of Jane’s murder weapon? “Not really.”

Nothing I wanted to burden her with in her current Droopy-the-Dog state, anyway. I took a drink of coffee, searching for a way to return to the subject of men, particularly Reid.

Thunder from the stairwell announced the arrival of both kids at once, their bickering interrupted by an angry screech from Addy before they even stepped foot inside of the kitchen. It was no wonder Doc was keeping his distance. At the moment, I wanted to join him on the sidelines.