Thirty-Five and a Half Conspiracies (7 page)

I
ended
up falling asleep in bed before Mason and Muffy came back inside, so it wasn’t until the next morning, over breakfast, that I filled Mason in on what Neely Kate had discovered. “She says she’d recognize the courier again if she saw him. Do you think Randy could get some mugshots for her to look at?”

“I’ll ask him. Now what’s going on with the safe?”

“She thought her cousin would be able to open it last night, but I haven’t heard from her. He might not have been available.”

“Let me know as soon as you hear,” he said. “And I think I’ll text Neely Kate to see if she has Nita’s phone number. I have a few follow-up questions. I was thinking I’d drive up to Little Rock to find out what happened before our meeting Friday night. I need to know how it got turned on its head. It must have taken quite a bit of finagling to get the meeting switched up like that, especially that quickly, so I’m hoping the speed of it led to sloppiness. Maybe there’s something there that will help implicate J.R.” He paused. “I’m also going to see if I can come up with anything about Glenn Stout. It’s probably a wild goose chase, but I’ll already be there.”

I stood and took my plate to the sink. “Sounds like a good idea.” I was worried about him being up there by himself. Little Rock was only two hours away, but two hours would seem pretty cotton-picking far if he found himself in mortal danger. Still, he had a shot at getting some helpful information, and we needed all the support we could get.

Mason grabbed his plate and followed me. “But I don’t want to leave you.”

“I’ll be fine, Mason.” I took his plate and turned on the water. “In fact, I’m meeting Neely Kate for lunch.”

He took the plate from my hands and put it in the sink, then turned off the water and spun me around to face him, my bottom against the counter. “I’m not sure that’s a good idea. Carter Hale himself said you should lie low. We have no idea why your bail was posted. You need to be careful until we find out.”

“You both need to stop worryin’. If the person who did it wished me ill, they would have been waiting for me when I got out. They’re gonna leave me alone.”

His frown told me he wasn’t so convinced. “What about J.R.? He could pull something else.”

I reached up on my tiptoes and kissed him. “Neely Kate and I will be in public. I’ll be perfectly safe.”

He pursed his lips but remained silent.

I gave him a soft smile. “Do you have any idea how much I love you?”

His mouth tipped into a wicked smile. “Your demonstration this morning was a good indication.”

“I felt bad about falling asleep before you came to bed last night. What were you and Muffy doin’ out in the barn?”

“Just looking around.”

“For hours?”

“I thought Dora might have hidden something out there.” He released a huge sigh and ran a hand through his hair. “It was more than I was getting accomplished on my computer.”

“No luck with Crane Industries?”

“No.”

Muffy jumped up on my legs, and I picked her up and rubbed behind her ears, surprised she was gas-free. “Your daddy’s headin’ to Little Rock and leavin’ us for the day. You gonna keep me company when I get back from lunch?”

Something flickered in Mason’s eyes.

“What?”

“You just called me her daddy.”

“Oh.” I blinked. “Do you not like that?”

“I love it.” He stroked Muffy’s head. “It makes us a real family.”

“We
are
a real family, aren’t we?” As though to show her agreement, Muffy reached up and licked his hand. “See? She loves you.”

Mason wrapped his arm around my back and held me close, Muffy pressed between us.

“Mason, if we don’t … if I go to prison—”

“Rose. Stop.”

I looked up at him. “Will you promise to take care of Muffy?”

“Of course. I love this little dog.” His intense eyes bored into mine. “But you’re not going to prison.”

“I know I’m not,” I said, mostly to appease him, “but it’s like life insurance. You know, just in case.” I set Muffy down, then reached up and pressed my palm to his cheek, soaking in the sight of him. “I want to have another vision of you.”

Worry wavered in his eyes. “Do you think that’s a good idea given how the last one turned out?”

“You’re going two hours away from me. I need to make sure you’re gonna be safe.”

“Okay.”

Keeping my hand on his cheek, I closed my eyes and thought about what he’d be doing tomorrow night. A restaurant appeared in my mind’s eye. The vision was from Mason’s perspective, and I was sitting across the table from my future self. The me in the vision was dressed fancy—my hair was up, and I had on a slinky wine-colored dress. Love and pure joy swelled through Mason, filling every part of me as I beamed at Vision Rose in the warm candlelit atmosphere. The vision quickly faded, and I said, “You’re going out to dinner with me tomorrow.”

I opened my eyes, and a smile slowly spread across his face. “That sounds perfect.”

The emotions I felt from the vision lingered. “It wasn’t a regular vision, Mason.”

His concern was back. “Did something bad happen?”

I shook my head. “No. The opposite. Something good. I rarely have strong emotions in a vision—it’s only happened a few times—but this one …” Tears filled my eyes.

“Rose?” His hand cupped my face as his eyes searched mine. “What happened?”

“Nothing happened, it’s just … I could feel how much you love me.”

His face lit up, and he gave me a soft kiss, his lips lingering on mine for a long moment before he pulled away. “Then you know I’d do anything for you.”

I nodded, still feeling emotional.

“I’m going to take off soon, but I hope to be back by eight or nine tonight. Check in with me today, okay?”

“I will. You too.”

He kissed me again and smiled. “I love you, Rose.”

His words seemed so small in comparison to the emotions that had rushed through me in the vision, as if they were the tiny tip of an enormous iceberg. “I love you too.”

We left at the same time, and Muffy let us know her disapproval from the living room window. Before we got into our separate cars, Mason gave me a long, deep kiss.

When I got into town, my first task was picking up a burner phone at Walmart. I sat in my truck to set it up, then sent Jed a text. I also sent one to Skeeter.

Call and text me at this number. LB

I drove to the nursery next, steeling my back as I climbed out of my car. I had no idea what kind of reaction to expect from my sister. Lately, she was as mercurial as the Arkansas weather.

Anna, the new sales clerk, was watering houseplants. She gave me a blank stare when I walked into the nursery.

“Is Violet here?”

“No.”

When she didn’t volunteer more, I asked, “Do you know where she is or when she’ll be back?”

“Yes.”

“Okay …” I groaned. I could have forced the issue. I was her boss, after all, but I didn’t feel like having a confrontation right now, particularly not with an almost-stranger. I pulled out my real cell phone and called my sister. When she answered, I said, “Vi, I’m at the shop. Where are you?”

“I’m out.”

“I can see that. Will you be back soon?”

“Uh … not for a bit.” She sounded distracted.

“Okay. I guess I’ll see you later.”

“Okay.”

Violet was usually much coyer when she was hiding something, so I had to wonder what she was doing. Then it hit me. Hilary wanted Violet to decorate her baby’s nursery. I wasn’t sure why it bothered me so much. I’d given my sister my blessing. Maybe it was because the men who were colluding with Hilary had turned on me.

“I guess I’ll be goin’,” I said, heading for the door.

Anna didn’t say anything, and I suddenly got irritated. Why was I being made to feel like an intruder in my own business? “You don’t like me very much, do you?”

Her mouth dropped open, but she quickly recovered. “I’m not sure what you’re talkin’ about, Miss Rose.”

I considered pressing the issue, but I didn’t see much of a point. “Look, whatever you’ve heard about me is probably an exaggeration or an outright lie. I didn’t steal my sister’s inheritance and force her to work for me. And I’m not a badge bunny. Or whatever crazy rumor you’ve heard about me.”

She lifted her eyebrows in surprise. “I hadn’t heard any of those things, but I’ll keep that in mind should I hear them in the future.”

I left, wondering why it bothered me so much that this one woman didn’t like me. I was used to people treating me badly and thinking I was strange. Then again, maybe that was why it upset me. I didn’t want to go back to the way things once were—to being a dumping ground for silent disapproval. The new me wouldn’t take it. Still, I didn’t need to settle things with Anna right now. There would be time to sort it out later.

My lunch date with Neely Kate wasn’t for another hour, so I decided to drop by the landscaping office and check on Bruce Wayne. I parked my truck in front of our storefront. The front door opened just as I was walking toward it.

Kate Simmons walked out, and when she saw me, a sly grin spread across her face. “Just the person I was hoping to see.” She was wearing a canvas jacket, a tight pair of jeans, and army boots. Her dark hair was cut into a bob that barely brushed her shoulders and her previous blue streaks were now purple. If she was going for a look that was the antithesis of the rich and socially elite Simmonses, she had definitely achieved it.

I resisted the urge to turn tail and hide. “What can I do for you, Kate?”

“I think it’s the other way around, Rosie.”

My eyes widened.

“What?” she asked, shifting her weight to the side and pulling on a strand of her violet-streaked hair. “You don’t like the nickname?”

I crossed my arms. “What do you want?”

“What’s with the hostility? I was just checking on you. Making sure you survived your time in the big house.”

I shook my head. “You know, for someone who claims to want me to get back with her brother, you’re awfully adversarial.”

She gave me a coy grin. “Maybe it’s because you insist on sleepin’ with the wrong man.”

“Even if I
were
interested in your brother, that’s
never
gonna happen given the fact that he had me arrested.”

She tsked and shook her head. “I told you to mind your P’s and Q’s.”

“If that was your way of warning me I was about to be arrested, you suck at communicating.”

Kate laughed. “I like you.” She tilted her head and looked me up and down. “You’re this perfect combination of the innocent girl next door and the girl who won’t take shit. No wonder Joe likes you.”

I groaned. “As you can see, I’ve survived, at least for the three weeks until my trial. After that, your daddy’s puttin’ me away, which is the sort of thing that puts a damper on a relationship. So, again, I can only tell you that it’s never. Gonna. Happen. Now if you don’t mind, I have work to do.” I started to head for the office.

“Chin up, Rose Petal. One of the things you’re seeking is closer than you think. Practically under your nose.”

I spun around and put my hands on my hips. “Do you always talk in riddles? What in Sam Hill are you talkin’ about?”

She laughed and took several steps backward. “Think bigger and wider than this backward county.”

“If you think it’s so backward, what are you still doin’ here?”

She took another backward step and held out her hands. “What? You want me to miss the show that’s about to unfold? Not a chance. It’s a perfect storm that’s been brewing for years, and it’s all about to come to a head.” Grinning from ear to ear, she shook her head. “No, I wouldn’t miss this for the
world
.” Then she turned around and walked toward the courthouse, whistling a happy tune.

“What was that all about?” Bruce Wayne asked in the now-open door to our office.

I kept my eye on her as she walked away. “I have no idea.”

I didn’t have time to mess with Joe’s sister and her cryptic messages. I had bigger issues on my list.

“Welcome back.”

I turned around to face him. “It’s good to be back. Even if it’s only for a short time.”

His face fell. “Mason’ll figure something out.”

“And maybe Carter Hale,” I added.

“Hale’s only doin’ this for Skeeter, but he’s still pretty good. I feel better that he took your case.”

“Strangely enough, so do I.” I motioned for him to go back inside. “Let’s get in out of the cold.”

We headed into the cozy office, and I immediately felt less anxious. With our second-hand furniture and desks made out of doors, the office was far from fancy, but it was warm and welcoming. Other than the farm, it was my favorite place to be. “Have you seen Neely Kate since Friday?”

“Only at the courthouse yesterday. She said Ronnie took another day off yesterday and insisted she stay home with him.”

I frowned. “That’s weird. He’s not usually demanding.”

“Yeah. Something’s not right there.”

I shrugged off my coat and threw it on my desk before sitting in my chair. “Mason is going to Little Rock today to try and pin down how he got fired. We’re hoping he can find a link to J.R. Simmons there because we keep running into dead ends here. Have you heard anything about J.R. taking part in the criminal world in Fenton County?”

“If someone like J.R. had an active role, don’t you think people would be talkin’?”

“True.” I leaned back in my chair. “Maybe he’s getting Mick to do all the work for him. If he gets Mick to take over Skeeter’s kingdom and kill Mason, he won’t have to get his hands dirty.”

“
Kill
Mason?”

I told him about my vision, and he looked pale. “So what’s Mason gonna do?”

“Nothing.” Fear rose up, trying to choke me again, but I smothered it back into submission. “He says he’s bein’ careful, but if they want him dead and he’s not in hiding, things are gonna get ugly. At least he’s wearin’ a gun, although the thought of Mason being involved in a shootout scares the bejiggers out of me.” I took a breath to try to calm my nerves. “I think he’s safer in Little Rock today than he is here, where …” We both knew what could happen here. Still, I was proud of myself for not breaking down while I discussed the possibility of my boyfriend’s murder. “The question is why would J.R.
want
criminal ties to Fenton County? Twenty-five years ago he invested in the Atchison plant, but was he already in at the time, or was it a new venture?”