Chapter 30

Chapter Thirty

T he kids were exhausted by dinnertime. With their late night the day before and Uncle Albert and Witt keeping them busy on the farm, despite their short respite in the afternoon, they were practically falling asleep on their dinner plates.

Neely Kate and I got everyone bathed and tucked into bed. Muffy claimed her usual spot with Hope. Aunt Bessie and Uncle Albert, who weren't used to all the excitement, called it an early night, leaving me, Neely Kate, and Witt to watch TV in the living room.

I'd been checking my phone all day, hoping to get updates from Joe, but he'd barely answered my texts throughout the day, except to send me mugshots of two men, asking if I'd seen them in any of my visions, specifically the one of Austin. They didn't look familiar, and I told him so.

Jed had been just as quiet with Neely Kate, but around ten p.m., he called her. She got up and started to walk out of the room as she answered, but then stopped. "Yeah, they're here. Hold on." She sat on the arm of the sofa and put her phone on speaker. "Okay, they're listening."

"Joe's about to make a couple of arrests," Jed said.

I sat up straighter. "What? Who?"

"Joe and I have been doing our individual digging, and all the evidence points to Derby Sloan and his right-hand man, John Ballister. Sloan owns a gun the same caliber as the one used in the murders. Joe should get the ballistics report within the next few days, but Sloan and his buddy don't have an alibi during the window when the forensic pathologist says the murders took place. In addition, Joe has witnesses that say Sloan was pissed at Harvey and Noah and had threatened to kill them."

"What about Jeremiah?" I asked.

"Joe hasn't directly tied Sloan to his murder yet, but with the other charges, that will give him time to build a case. We do know that Jeremiah had been to Sloan's bar, so there's every likelihood that the dealer roped him into his scheme too."

"Was Sloan lookin' for the paper Darlene gave Rose?" Neely Kate asked.

"Joe thinks so," Jed said. "He thinks the name on the paper has something to do with the dealer who roped the two guys in, and Jeremiah's friends said he'd recently started selling pot, so we think that's how he ties into this. Sloan was wanting revenge, and he wanted to eliminate the source of his competition. Only the men he murdered didn't know enough to help Sloan find the guy."

"Why did they call the paper a package?"

"Because the paper was only one part of what he was lookin' for. Harvey took the paper with the name and bank number, and Noah took a paper with the supplier's sources. Hugo had a third part that I can't tell you about, but he said he and the other two guys took them from the dealer's motel room after he started getting pissed at them. They thought they could use it as leverage."

"Sounds like it just got them killed," Witt said.

"Maybe, maybe not," Jed said. "Joe's hopin' to get Ballister to rat Sloan out to protect himself, so hopefully we'll find out how Jeremiah plays into this."

"So that means it's over?" Neely Kate asked in a hopeful tone.

"As soon as those two guys are in jail, y'all are free to come home." He paused. "You can even make your doctor's appointment tomorrow morning if you leave early enough."

Relief washed over Neely Kate's face, chased by worry.

"And Ashley can go to school," I said, hoping to change the subject in case Neely Kate was considering canceling. "I think she's worried she's going to fall behind."

"Like that could ever happen," Neely Kate said with a wave of her hand.

"Joe was heading out to make the arrests," Jed continued, "so I don't see why not. He's had eyes on Sloan for the past few hours while he was securing the search and arrest warrants. I'm sure he'll call you when he thinks it's safe."

"That's great news," Witt said. "Do you want me to drive with the girls and the kids tomorrow, or leave earlier to open the shop?"

"They should be fine goin' on their own," Jed said, "but I'll let you know if I hear otherwise."

I blew out a sigh of relief. My kids would be safe. The danger had passed.

"Is there anything else you need Rose and Witt to know?" Neely Kate asked. "Because if not, I'm going to take you off speaker and head to the front porch so we can talk privately."

"That's all," Jed said. "Other than thank you, Witt . I owe you for protectin' my family."

"Neely Kate's like a sister to me, and Daisy…" His voice broke, and he cleared his throat. "I would never let anything happen to them." He nodded to me. "Rose and her kids too."

"I know. There are very few people I'd trust with them. Just you and Joe. That's it."

Their exchange made me think of James. At one time, Jed would have trusted James with his family, but that had changed years ago, and I couldn't help thinking about how much James had lost. His lifelong friendship with Jed. His daughter. And, for a while, his freedom. As far as I knew, he was alone, and I couldn't help feeling sad for him. There was a part of him that wanted to be loved and needed, even if he refused to admit it to anyone. Despite everything that had happened, I hoped he would find that again someday.

"What about Dermot?" I asked, but Neely Kate had already taken him off speaker and was headed out the front door.

Witt sank back into the sofa cushions, relief washing over his face. "That's all good news."

"The best." But while my kids were safe, the sister I hadn't known I had might not be, and I had no idea what to do about it.

"As long as we get the all-clear before dawn, I'll take off early and probably won't be here when you get up," Witt said. "I need to go home and get a uniform before I open the shop at seven."

"Don't worry about us." I gave him a warm smile. "We'll be fine. Thank you for taking the day off to stand guard."

"Are you kiddin'? I had the best day," he said with a huge grin. "Your uncle was showing us everything about the farm. I think he wishes he had someone to pass it on to."

"I suppose we could keep it for Mikey or Ashley if they're interested in it one day," I said, my mind racing. "Uncle Albert did the same for my farm until I found out my birth mother had bequeathed it to me." I shook my head. "But what are we talkin' about? Uncle Albert's got years left in him."

"Maybe so, but he told me he's gettin' too old to run the farm on his own." But something in his gaze suggested there was more to it.

I cocked my head. "What aren't you sayin', Witt Rivers?"

"Uncle Albert asked if I'd be interested in taking over the farm." He held up his hands. "He's not giving it to me, so don't go worrying about that. I'd just run it for him, and if I love it, then he says he'll sell me part of it so I can have a farm of my own."

I stared at him in disbelief. "You don't know the first thing about farming. How do you know you'll even like it?"

"When I wasn't gettin' in trouble in my youth, I worked on the farm on the land adjacent to Granny's place," he said with a wicked grin. "I learned to do plenty."

"I stand corrected," I said, trying to wrap my head around it. "But what about the mechanic shop?"

"It's Jed's, and while I'm good at it, I don't love it, you know?" He paused. "I want to do something I love."

"I understand that," I said. "I feel the same way about my landscaping business. Violet was the one who wanted the nursery, and part of me did too, but my heart was in the landscaping." I looked him in the eyes. "I get it."

The corners of his mouth tilted up, and his eyes were glassy. "I knew you would."

"How do you think Neely Kate and Jed will react?"

"Jed won't love it, but he'll understand. Neely Kate, on the other hand…" He made a face.

"She might be upset at first, but she'll understand too. I know she will."

"I hope so." He paused. "She has Jed and Daisy, and this new baby they think I don't know about. They're doin'a piss-poor job of keepin' it secret." He released a chuckle. "She doesn't need me anymore."

It was then I realized that Witt had spent most of his adolescent and adult life being there for his cousin because after her mother had dumped her at her grandmother's house when she was twelve and had been surrounded by a passel of cousins, Witt and her granny had been her only true constants.

"She'll always need you to some extent," I said. "But you also no longer need to hold yourself back on her account."

He laughed. "Who's gonna play bodyguard when y'all get into trouble again?"

"Trust me," I said with a grin. "I'm gonna try hard to make sure we stay out of trouble."

His eyes twinkled with mischief. "I think that's like askin' a rooster not to crow."

"You could be right, but we'll be okay, Witt. Live your life. Neely Kate's gonna be okay."

He pressed his lips together and nodded.

"You've been takin' care of Neely Kate all this time," I said softly. "But who's been takin' care of you?"

His eyes widened with surprise, then he got to his feet. "I've been takin' care of myself for as long as I remember. At this point, I'm doin' just fine on my own."

He walked out of the room before I could respond. I'd watched him grow from an irresponsible kid into a dependable, honorable man. Witt deserved to be happy. I hoped he'd found that here, or wherever life took him.

I went upstairs and got ready for bed. Just as I was about to walk into my room, my phone vibrated with a call from Joe.

"Joe," I said in relief as I answered, grateful to hear his voice and hoping he had good news. "Tell me this is over."

"This is over, darlin'."

I sank my back against the hallway wall and closed my eyes. "Thank God."

"We arrested Derby Sloan and his muscle, John Ballister. They'll be arraigned tomorrow, but I doubt the judge will grant them bail. Or if he does, it will be so high, they won't be able to post it."

"So we can come home tomorrow?"

"You can come home tomorrow."

"Thank you," I said breathlessly. "I miss you."

"I miss you too, and I miss our kids. The house is too quiet without you. At least what little time I was there last night."

"Ashley will want to go to school, so we'll leave early enough that I can drop her and Mikey off. Then I'll take the kids to daycare and get to work cleaning up the office."

"We could hire a crew to do that," Joe said. "I hate that it hadn't occurred to me already."

"We can't afford it," I said. "Besides, Neely Kate and I have a system, and it'll be easier to do it on my own than try to tell someone else how to do it."

He chuckled. "If you say so."

We were silent for a moment before I asked, "Did you find the dealer who had recruited those men?"

"No, he'd already taken off before we got there. He was obviously spooked by the murders of his new hires. The hotel manager said he checked out on Saturday."

"Do you think he's still around?"

"No, I suspect he's on his way back to Texas."

"Speaking of Texas…" I let my voice trail off. The topic of my possible sister was a conversation best had in person. "I have something to tell you about my visions, but I'd rather do it face to face."

"Is it bad?" he asked, sounding concerned.

"No, it's just…" I paused. "It's about my father. Like I said, it'll be better done face to face."

He was silent for a moment. "Are you okay?"

My heart swelled with love. "I think so. I'll be more okay after we come home."

"Let me know when you leave tomorrow. Maybe I can drop by the office and spend a little time with you after the arraignment."

"Neely Kate has her appointment at 9:30, and who knows how long she'll be gone, so there's a chance we might even get some time alone."

"I like the sound of that," he said in a low, sexy voice.

"And you can watch me sort through files."

He laughed. "And maybe you'll even let me help sort through some of them."

"Maybe." He laughed again, and I said, "Will you be working much later tonight?"

"No. I have some paperwork that needs to be tackled, but I'm beat. I'm about to head home and get some sleep." He paused. "The bed's sure gonna be lonely without you."

"I'll make up for it tomorrow night," I said. "Maybe we can get the kids in bed early."

"Deal." That single word held a promise that made me tingle with anticipation.