Ever Present Danger (29 page)

Jewel smiled. “Okay, doll. By the way, if I haven’t said so before, I’m really pleased with your work, and I’m getting positive comments from our customers.”

“Thanks,” Ivy said. “I enjoy what I’m doing.”
And it’s about the only thing in my life that feels normal
.

Brandon Jones bent down and kissed Kelsey on the forehead, then turned and started to tiptoe out of the bedroom.

“Be careful on the river,” Kelsey Jones said sleepily.

Brandon went back and sat on the side of the bed. “I didn’t mean to wake you. I’m about to head out for my rafting trip. Buzz insisted on picking me up so you wouldn’t be stranded without a car.”

“Thoughtful of him.”

“Honey, look. I know how uncomfortable you are about me
being with Buzz, but you have nothing to worry about. We’re just a couple of crazy outdoorsmen who want to take advantage of every opportunity nature throws our way. The Phantom River is running full from the spring runoff, and it’s going to be a blast shooting the rapids.”

“Well, have a blast with your
quiet time
on the way to Durango. I’m sure it’ll be a wonderful opportunity for prayer and worship, what with Buzz being so spiritual and all. The way he uses the Lord’s name should evoke all sorts of spiritual thoughts.”

“The Lord and I will do fine today, Kel. I’ll see you this evening. Have a great time at the Griffiths’ with Montana. I’m really glad he’s warmed up to you. He’s such a cute kid.”

Kelsey smiled. “He really is. One of these days I’ll have him over and make
cimmamon
pancakes.”

“Or maybe some
spasketti
and meatballs.” Brandon held her gaze and felt his heart lighten.

“Be safe, okay?” Kelsey slipped her hand into his. “I worry more about you and Mother Nature than I do you and Buzz. Just don’t forget she’s a powerful lady. Treat her with respect.”

Brandon stroked her cheek. “Always. See you tonight.”

Flint Carter sat in the conference room with Special Agent Nick Sanchez and Lieutenant Bobby Knolls, comparing notes.

“All right, then,” Nick said. “If we’re going to pursue the angle that the shooting was intended for just one of the victims, we need to dig into their backgrounds and put everything under a microscope. I want to know where they bought their clothes, what they had for breakfast, what brand of dental floss they used, and if they had a conflict with
anyone
—even the paperboy.”

Bobby blew a pink bubble that quickly disappeared into his mouth. “We’ve already done that. It didn’t reveal anything.”

“Well, it’s time to go deeper, Lieutenant. This Pete Barton was a piece of work. He was arrogant. A gambler. And a rounder. Maybe one of the ladies he jumped in the sack with had a jealous
husband or boyfriend. Didn’t the Griffith girl used to date him in high school?”

Flint nodded. “Yeah, but I don’t see what that has to do with anything. Ivy moved away and didn’t see him for ten years.”

“I saw her background check,” Nick said. “This girl’s no stranger to trouble, and she just moved back here. And you know what they say: ‘Birds of a feather flock together.’ Maybe she knows something about Barton she’s not telling us.”

Flint combed his fingers through his hair. “I think you’re way off on this one. Ivy got mixed up in drugs, yes, but that was years ago. She wasn’t convicted of anything. And she’s been clean for three years. She’s just trying to raise her young son. According to her and her parents, any association with Pete Barton ended when they went off to college.”

“She sat with him at the reunion,” Nick said. “She must’ve felt some bond with him.”

“Reunions are for old times’ sake. What are you driving at?”

Nick smirked. “Her
old times’ sake
friends are all dead—and she isn’t. Maybe Griffith hired the shooter. Maybe she had a bone to pick with Pete. She could’ve hired the hit—told the shooter not to leave witnesses behind.”

“That’s unlikely,” Flint said. “For one thing, she’s working as a waitress and doesn’t have a nickel to her name. For another she’s not the type.”

“They never are. Think about it: She just happened to wander onto the murder scene just minutes after the shooting?” Nick looked at Bobby and then at Flint. “Could’ve been staged to make her look innocent.”

“We considered that,” Flint said. “But Ivy seemed genuinely traumatized.”

“Ziwicki didn’t. And his alibi isn’t airtight.”

“Pretty darned close. And he tested negative for blood or gunpowder residue. Come on, Nick, you’re grasping at straws.”

“Hey, that’s how I solve cases. Let no straw go ungrasped.”

Flint looked out the window at the sun peeking over the top of Jacob’s Peak. “So what do you want us to do?”

“Bring Griffith and Ziwicki back in for questioning. I want to explore this angle some more.”

Ivy walked out the back door of Jewel’s Café at five after two, neither surprised nor pleased when she saw Bill Ziwicki’s van parked in the alley. She pretended not to notice and walked around the side of the building. A few seconds later, she heard footsteps running in her direction. She stopped and turned around, her hand on her hip.

“Bill, I told you I need space to deal with things. I don’t want to see you right now.”

“I was hopin’ you’d come to your senses,” he said. “It’s nuts to throw away what we’ve got goin’ just because you’re confused about guilt.”

“I’m not confused about
guilt
. I’m guilty. What I’m confused about is the right course of action.”

“Let me help you decide, Ivy. There’s just too much at stake.”

“I told you, we’re coming from two different perspectives.”

“Did you ever think that maybe you need to hear both sides of the issue before you do somethin’ you’ll be sorry for?”

Ivy shook her head. “I’m guilty, Bill. You’re going to have to accept that.”

“So does that mean you’re gonna kick yourself for the rest of your life over somethin’ you never meant to happen and can’t change?”

Ivy put her hands to her temples. “I can’t do this. I need time to think. If only Lu were still here. She could get me back on track.”

“Maybe Lu isn’t what you need at all. Maybe Lu’s the one who fed you all this religious junk in the first place.”

“How dare you say that when you don’t know anything about her!”

“All I know is what I see: a beautiful young woman with a ton of love to give who’s about to make a crazy decision that’s gonna
rob her of a future. If you go to the sheriff, your life’s over. You know that?”

“Maybe not. The judge might go easy on me.”

“And what if he doesn’t? What if he agrees that your silence contributed to all four murders? Is that the legacy you wanna leave Montana? Or your folks? Are you really willin’ to take the rap for Joe’s death when Mr. Hadley already settled the score?”

Ivy put her hands to her ears. “Stop. I can’t listen to this right now.”

Bill looked over her shoulder, and then pulled one of her hands away from her ear. “Your mother just pulled up out front. I’m beggin’ you, don’t go to the sheriff and admit anything. Take some time and think it through. You’ve held on to this secret for ten years. A few more days or weeks isn’t gonna matter.”

Ivy felt her mind shut down, and she just wanted to run.

“Okay?” Bill said.

“Okay, but I need you to give me space to think. Please…don’t come around anymore. I’ll let you know when I’ve decided what to do.”

Ivy walked briskly toward the front of Jewel’s Café and saw her mother parked there. She walked over and got in the passenger side.

“Did you have a bad day?” Carolyn Griffith said.

“Not really. I’m just tired.”

“I heard you come in. It wasn’t late.”

Ivy nodded. “I know. I couldn’t sleep.”

“Did you make plans to go out with Bill this afternoon?”

“Actually, I didn’t. I thought I’d spend it with Montana and Kelsey.”

Carolyn sighed and glanced over at her. “Unfortunately, Flint called a few minutes ago. He wants you to go down to the sheriff’s office and answer a few more questions.”

“About what?”

“I don’t know, honey. He said it was routine, that every possible angle they explore evokes more questions. I told him I’d drive you there after work.”

Ivy sat in the interrogation room across from Lieutenant Bobby Knolls, her hands folded on the table, and hoped she was the only one who could hear her heart pounding.

“Thanks for agreein’ to talk with us,” Bobby said. “I’d like to ask you some questions about Pete Barton. Some of them are personal, and I apologize ahead of time for havin’ to ask. But every detail’s important, so I need you to answer honestly, even if you think it’s none of my business.”

Ivy nodded.

“What was your relationship with Pete Barton?”

“We dated our senior year of high school, and I wore his ring.”

“So you dated each other exclusively?”

“Yes.”

“So as far as you know, Pete wasn’t seein’ anybody else?”

“That’s right.”

“Was your relationship physically intimate?”

Ivy felt the color flood her face. “Eventually. Why do you need to know that?”

“Just bear with me. So you probably knew Pete as well as anybody did. Is that accurate?”

“Yes.”

“Did he ever mention havin’ a conflict with anyone?”

“Pete got along with everybody.”

“Even Bill Ziwicki?”

“Pete, Reg, and Denny all teased Bill, but they also let him eat lunch with us. That’s more than anyone else did.”

“Is that yes or a no?”

“Yes.”

“Why do you suppose popular jocks like Pete, Reg, and Denny would bother to include an outcast like Bill?”

Ivy shrugged. “We all felt sorry for Bill. His acne was really bad.”
Please don’t ask about the drugs
.

“Were all of you on good terms with Bill when you graduated?”

“Sure.”

“What about the ‘fab four’—were you guys on good terms with each other?”

“The best. Going off to separate colleges was hard.”

“Is that why you and Pete broke up?”

“Neither of us wanted a long-distance relationship. Why are you asking me this?”

Bobby held up his palm. “Just answer the questions, please. Had you had any contact with Pete Barton, Reg Morrison, Denny Richards, or Bill Ziwicki from the time you moved away from Jacob’s Ear until you returned home?”

“No.”

“Did you contact any of those people when you returned home?”

“No. Pete came to see me when he heard I was back. Reg and Denny were in town the weekend before the reunion and asked me to have coffee with them.”

“What about Bill? Did you contact him?”

“No, we bumped into each other the Saturday before my friend Lu’s burial. My son and I were walking back to the parking lot from the cemetery at Woodlands Community Church when Bill’s cleaning van pulled up.”

“To the cemetery?”

“No, the church. He cleans there on Saturdays. He recognized me and we talked for a few minutes. He reminded me about the class reunion and wanted me to go.”

“As his date?”

“No, I told him I was meeting the guys there.”

“Did you have any contact with him again before the reunion?”

“Well, he sent me flowers when Lu died,” Ivy said. “That was really touching. He called me a couple times after that, and we got sort of reacquainted. Bill’s really changed a lot. We all have.”

“What did Pete think of you and Bill seeing each other?”

“We weren’t seeing each other. Bill called a couple times.”

“So Bill and Pete weren’t fighting over you?”

Ivy rolled her eyes. “Absolutely not. Like I told you, Pete and I weren’t the least bit interested in each other.”

“Yet you sat with him at the reunion.”

“I sat with Pete, Reg, and Denny at the reunion. And two other guys from the basketball team—and their wives.”

“Were you angry with Pete for not asking you to go as his date?”

Ivy breathed in slowly and exhaled. “No. Pete and I weren’t attracted to each other that way anymore.”

“Whose idea was it for the four of you to sit together at the reunion?”

“Pete’s. He wanted the fab four to be together again.”

“Why’d he pick the other two couples to join you? Why not Bill Ziwicki?”

Ivy shrugged. “I didn’t ask him. It didn’t really matter to me who we sat with. He had already filled the table before I got there.”

“So you came alone?”

“Yes.”

“Kendra Clawson recalled that you arrived with Bill Ziwicki.”

“Not on purpose. We rode up the elevator at the same time.”

“You came in separate vehicles.”

What are you implying?
“Yes.”