Mississippi Blues (16 page)

“Let's go talk to Candy Carter and her mother and see what they'll tell me. If we can beat the Chief to Lindy and Jace, it'll all be good. If we don't it'll be my badge.” Jody stood up. “So let's hustle.”

Trey was already moving. “Quit standing around.”

• • •

Carlene Carter smiled seductively and ran a finger along Trey's cheek. “You again? Change your mind about me? I see you got rid of the uptight blonde. I could tell you didn't want to play in front of her. This time you brought along such a handsome friend.”

Trey ignored the look Jody shot him at the mention of Summer. He'd hoped not to bring her into it.

“I'd like to show you a good time.” She continued to stroke his face. “But it'd be a little too close for comfort.”

He was troubled by the way she touched him. He didn't like it, but didn't want to offend her. He nodded at Jody. “This is Officer Marvell, a friend of mine. He'd like to speak to Candy.”

Jody nodded.

“Hells bells.” Carlene sighed dropped her hand. “Never thought I'd see the day my kid was more popular than me.”

“We'd just like to talk to her, ma'am.” Trey didn't want to think about how easily this woman would sell her daughter to him or any other man who had enough cash.

She laughed, a harsh grating sound. “‘Ma'am'? Honey, I'm not old enough for that particular term of endearment. I don't care to be called by that old lady name. Carlene'll do.”

He gave her the most charming smile he could manage. “I'm sorry … Carlene. Is Candy here?”

She threw her head back and laughed. “I like the way my name sounds coming from you. Bet you only sound better when you're makin' love. Guess I'll just have to use my imagination. Yeah, my kid's home. I'll send her out. If you change your mind about getting to know someone a little more seasoned than your blonde, come on in. You won't regret it.”

Trey shifted. Maybe her clients liked this kind of talk, but it made him feel dirty. He imagined Jody grinning beside him, probably waiting for a chance to rib him later. Were his feelings for Summer so transparent? He hoped not. He'd have to be more careful to mask his emotions. Any involvement between them could only cause them both heartache.

“Before you do that, ma'am, I'd like to ask you about the Chief.” Jody pinned her with a cool stare. “You went to see him? Mind if I ask why?”

She paused for a moment. “That's between me and him. Wait here. I'll send you my kid.”

Jody and Trey exchanged long looks.

Before they could discuss anything, a teenage girl, hair dyed pitch black, eyes rimmed a matching shade with kohl, sauntered up to them. She wore a slip and nothing else. Her dark nipples and areolas showed clearly through the thin material. “Yeah? Carlene said you wanted to talk to me. In spite of what she probably told you, I don't screw for money.”

Jody gave her a kind smile. “We hoped only to ask you about Lindy Bouché.”

“You wanna know somethin' about Lindy, ask her.” Candy jutted out her chin and narrowed her eyes to a thick, black line. “I'm not going to rat her out to a cop.”

Jody frowned and Trey spoke up. “I'm her brother. I would talk to her, only I don't know where she is. We just want to know if you have any idea where she went last night.”

Candy studied him and he could almost see the debate going on in her head. Finally, she made up her mind. “She was talking with Jimmy Ray Hunt. That's all I know.”

“Why, in God's name, would she go anywhere with that lowlife!” What had his sister been thinking to go anywhere with scum like Jimmy Ray Hunt? Everyone knew he was trash. Although he was known to run drugs, guns, and anything else illegal through his bar he'd never been caught.

Candy shrugged. “He wanted to take her home. She was drunk, she might've let him.”

“And you just let her go? Are you crazy?” He wanted to shout, but kept his voice even.

“Trey.” Jody's voice held a warning.

He trembled with rage. What kind of friend did something like that? He caught himself before he said anything else. He had sold out his best friend in the entire world. At least his motives had been honorable, if hurtful.

She stiffened then shrugged. “I'm not her mama or her keeper. I had my own hookup to worry about.”

“My sister hasn't come home since last night.” Trey's voice was raw. “If anything happens to her, I'm holding you personally responsible.”

Jody moved so that he stood between them. “No one's accusing you of anything, Miss Carter. We're concerned for Lindy. An inmate named Jace Hill escaped a couple days ago from Angola. He hasn't come home yet, either. Has Lindy ever mentioned him to you?”

“Nope. Never heard of him.” Candy shrugged again, seemingly unconcerned. “She's probably sleeping off a good night's lovin' somewhere.”

For a moment, Trey was speechless. Then he realized who he looked at. In spite of Candy's protestation that she didn't sell sex for money, he guessed she'd probably been initiated to her mother's profession at about the age of twelve. The girl probably didn't have the first clue about morality. She couldn't be blamed, he supposed. There had been a lot of women in Afghanistan who had done things they never would in ordinary times.

Jody dug a card out of his back pocket and handed it to her. “For Lindy's sake, and that of Jimmy Ray Hunt, I hope you're right. If you hear from her, call me at this number.”

“Sure thing.” Candy stuffed the card between her breasts without looking at it first.

• • •

Jace paced like a caged animal.

Lindy watched him warily. He hadn't harmed her in any way, but tension radiated from him like heat waves off the sun. For several hours, he'd been surly and on edge. He'd left the house for a short time, and when he came back inside, he told her he'd lit the furnace and there would be hot water to bathe and the kitchen stove would work. He didn't want her to turn on the lights, though, and the only illumination came from the moon.

Every bone in her body ached and all she'd done most of the day was sleep on the lumpy sofa. Now her stomach grumbled and she wished Etta were here with her mountains of food. “Do you have any more peanut butter crackers?”

“Yeah. You want a Coke, too?” He stopped pacing long enough to look at her.

“Sure.”

He tossed her a cold can of cola and a pack of crackers. “Ain't much of a meal.”

“It's fine.” She popped open the cola and drank deeply.

“Not like you'd have at home.”

Why was he pressing her? “Not the same food, but I'd be eating alone.”

“Why's that?”

“Because the Chief would be at work and Mother would be in bed.” She fiddled with the pack of crackers, her appetite gone.

“I don't follow.” He folded his arms across his chest.

“Things have changed since you've been … away.” Tears formed at the corner of her eyes and she blinked them away.

“How?” He straddled the end of the couch and stared at her with a cool expression. A faint smile crossed his face. “Are the debs wearing blue instead of white this year?”

“Mother has ovarian cancer. The doctors can't do anything.” Her throat tightened too much for more words to come out.

“I didn't know.” He didn't sound sorry, but he didn't sound happy either.

The tears threatened to fall and she swallowed them. “Yeah.”

“So why doesn't Trey keep you company?” His tone went hostile.

Now it was her turn to stare at him. She didn't think she would ever hear Trey's name out of his mouth again. “A lot changed when you left.”

“You're telling me.”

“With everyone.” She was getting sick of his pity party. “Not just you.”

“My heart's breaking.”

“Trey went into the Marines, to Afghanistan. In fact, we haven't seen him since you left.”

He didn't reply to that. “Do you ever see my mama or Summer?” Longing colored his voice.

“Not your mother. No one sees her. But Summer works at the Curl Up and Dye. I bump into her sometimes.” She played with her crackers.

“Do you have her cut your hair?”

A test. She hesitated. There was no right way to answer this one. If she said yes — a lie — he'd think she had his sister wait on her. If she told the truth and said no, he'd think she thought she was too good. There was no way too win. “Not really.”

“No, I didn't think so.” Spinning on his heel, he went to the window and peered out.

“My friends and I usually go to the mall. Or do our own hair.” There was no way to make this come out right.

He continued to stare out the window. “Yeah.”

She had to make him understand. “Look. I don't have any problem with Summer. She seems really sweet, but my parents … they made Trey leave … ”

The look on his face when he spun around was ugly. “What do you mean? Trey ran off the first chance he got.”

Is that what he really thought? “Who told you that? Summer? You're both wrong. He never wanted to go away. But the Chief packed him up and took him to see the recruiter in Jackson. The next thing I knew, he was gone.” She snapped her fingers. “Just like that.”

“How'd your old man force Trey if he didn't want to go?” He sounded dubious.

“I don't know. The Chief said there were too many bad memories here and Trey needed a fresh start.”

“He probably couldn't face what he did.”

“Did you expect him to lie?” Lindy held his gaze, but he refused to back down. “You know he wouldn't.”

“I expected him to be a friend.”

“Even if that meant lying under oath?” Lindy couldn't believe her guts. She didn't know where her courage came from, but she wasn't going to sit here and let him feel sorry for himself any more. If he got a chance to start over, he was going to blow it.

Jace ran a hand through his long hair. “Hell, I don't know. All I know is I didn't kill Deke Soloman. I thought someone would listen to me.”

“Your mama and sister believed in you.”
So did I.
Back then she had been convinced Jace couldn't have done the crime. But she'd grown to realize there wasn't any other logical explanation.

“Yeah, but they didn't have any power to keep me from going to that hell hole called Angola.” Bitterness oozed out of him so strong she could almost smell it.

“Neither did Trey or the Chief,” she insisted. Trey wouldn't lie, and the Chief might be a hard-ass, but he wouldn't set anyone up to go to prison.

Her words hung between them. She held her breath until he spoke again.

“I didn't do it and I'm going to prove it.” He jutted out his jaw in a fierce angle.

“So, let's do it.” She arched her eyebrows at him. “How do you propose we go about it?”

He almost staggered. “What do you mean?”

“I mean,” she said softly, “let's figure this out and set you free.”

Under his frown she could see hope. “What's in it for you?”

“I'll help you.” Right now, she wasn't going to examine her motives. If she could lend a hand and find the truth, maybe he'd forgive a little bit.

“I need to find out who had a motive to kill Soloman, for starters. I was somebody's flunky. But whose?”

“Who would want to kill him besides you for what he did to your mama?” She met his glare unflinchingly. “If we're going to figure this out, we need to look at all the evidence.”

She got up, went into the kitchen and rummaged in a drawer until she found a piece of paper and a pencil. Coming back into the front room, she said, “Let's make a list of suspects.”

“Don't you get it? There are no other suspects. That's why I took the heat. No one else had a motive to kill Soloman.”

“If you didn't do it, then someone else had to have a reason.” She bit the end of the pencil. “We just have to figure out who and why. Soloman was new in town, right?”

“Yeah. It came out at the trial that he got turned down for a job as a custodian at the school where Mama taught English the same week he … raped her.” Jace looked like he might hurl.

Lindy made a note on her paper, speaking out loud as she did. “Soloman attacked MiLann for revenge?”

“That was her theory. But it doesn't add up. She didn't have anything to do with the school board's decision.” He plunked down on the end of the sofa and looked over her shoulder.

“So, why pick her?” Lindy glanced up at him and their gazes held.

“I don't know,” he said.

“Where was she found? I can't remember,” Lindy admitted.

“Why would you? You were just a kid.”

“That was then. Times change.” She touched her dry lips with the tip of her tongue.

“Yeah.” He looked away. “Mama was found outside the Blue Cat motel. In the alley. A maid spotted her and called the hospital.”

Lindy tapped her pen against her notepad. “How did she get there?”

“Nobody knows. Mama can't remember. She blanked out everything after the party at
LeFleur
. They tried to make her remember at the trial, and it just made her freeze up worse.” He heaved a sigh and stood, stuffing his hands in his pockets.

“So, after your mama was attacked, Soloman was released, right?” Lindy made another note.

“Yeah.” He looked enraged. “The Chief said there wasn't enough evidence to hold him. Mama was so badly beaten she was still in the hospital and couldn't finger him in a lineup.”

“What about physical evidence?”

“There is none.”

“What?” The pen slipped out of her fingers, and Jace bent to pick it up.

“The rape kit was lost.” He said it as flatly as if he said the wind was blowing.