Midnight Secrets (36 page)

A glance at her watch told her she was going to be late if she didn’t get a move on. Gibby’s house was only a few miles away, but the rain might slow her down. She hurriedly finished dressing and then ran down the staircase. Just as she reached the bottom step, she spotted Zach getting out of his patrol car.

Straightening her shoulders, she composed herself as she went to the door to let him in. She would invite him to come with her to Gibby’s. If her aunt had significant information, then Zach needed to hear it, too. And she would apologize again. Knowing she had hurt him was tearing her apart.

She opened the door before he could ring the bell. “I’m glad you’re here. I wanted to—”

The grim set of his face barely gave a warning of impending bad news. “I’m here in an official capacity.”

“What do you mean?”

“It’s Gibby. Someone broke into her house last night.” He paused and softened his voice. “I’m sorry, Savannah. She’s looks to be in bad shape.”

The hospital in Midnight was more of a clinic than anything else. Though it had a half dozen beds and three full-time doctors, most people with life-threatening injuries or illnesses were transferred to County General in Mobile. Zach figured that’s where Gibby would end up.

The small waiting room was empty with the exception of him and Savannah. The uncomfortable plastic chair squeaked as he shifted his weight. Savannah paced back and forth in front of him. The worry and guilt etched on her face diminished his anger. Seeing Savannah hurting was a hell of a lot worse than anything she could do to him.

The doctors were still working on her aunt. So far, no one had updated them. The extent of her injuries was unknown but Zach had seen her before the ambulance arrived. No one deserved to be beaten like that, least of all a little elderly woman who’d never hurt anyone in her life. Her house had been cordoned off and his deputies were standing guard. As soon as he talked to the doctor, Zach planned to go back to the house and cover every square inch for evidence.

Savannah had been customarily calm until she’d gotten a glimpse of Gibby’s battered face through the small window of the emergency room door. Her gasp of distress had slashed at his self-righteous anger, bringing things into perspective. Finding out who’d hurt an elderly woman was his priority, not his bruised ego.

Abruptly stopping her pacing, she stood in front of him and whispered her words like a confession. “This is my fault.”

He’d known that was coming. He wasn’t about to let Savannah take the blame for the sick bastard who’d done this. “No, it’s not. First, we don’t even know if this is related to your parents. It could be a burglary gone wrong. She may have surprised the guy when she came in last night.”

Silent, she dropped down into the chair beside him. They both knew it wasn’t a burglary gone wrong. He’d stayed up most of the night reading through her grandfather’s letters. Daniel Wilde had no proof of his suspicions, but the vague references he’d made of threats to Savannah and her sisters if Daniel didn’t drop his questions struck a strong chord in Zach’s gut.

The letters, the dead animal at Savannah’s doorstep, and now Gibby’s injuries didn’t exactly scream conspiracy and cover-up, but he’d trusted in his instincts too long to ignore them now.

Had Savannah’s questions stirred up a hornet’s nest? If her parents were indeed murdered, was the killer still out there or was this just someone’s fear that the truth would come out?

“And even if this is related to your parents’ deaths, the asshole who did this is responsible. You had every right to ask questions if you thought there was a cover-up.”

Before she could say it, he added, “Telling me about it wouldn’t have prevented what happened to Gibby. There’s no way we could have predicted he’d go after her.”

The woman beside him swallowed hard and then gave him a heart-wrenchingly sad smile. “Thank you, Zach, for trying to make me feel better. I don’t deserve it.”

Zach’s fists clenched to keep from reaching out to hold her. When she turned away with a soft sob, he said to hell with it and put his hand on her shoulder. “Savannah … don’t.”

“Miss Wilde?”

They went to their feet. Zach’s chest tightened when Savannah grabbed for his hand. He squeezed it gently as they waited to hear the news.

The on-call doctor didn’t look old enough to be out of high school, much less a full-fledged physician. Looks were deceiving. Zach had dealt with the doctor several times and knew him to be competent.

“Your aunt is going to be fine. She’s got some facial lacerations from her fall, a severely bruised nose, a couple of bruised ribs and a sprained wrist. I was afraid of a broken hip, but it’s bruised, not fractured. I’d like to keep her here for a couple of days to monitor her.”

Savannah slumped against Zach in relief. “Thank you, Doctor. She looked so hurt, I was afraid—”

Frowning, Zach zeroed in on one word. “Fall? Is that what she told you? That she fell?”

“Yes. She regained consciousness a few moments ago. Said she tripped on the carpet at the top of the stairs and that’s the last thing she remembered.”

Savannah gasped. “I can’t believe she’s alive. Those steps are so steep. I told her that—”

Zach interrupted. “She said nothing about an intruder?”

“No. We’ve not pressured her to talk. She’s still groggy and in some pain. You can see her as soon as we get her into a room, but I’d advise against questioning her too much and getting her agitated.”

While Savannah asked a few more questions, Zach thought back over what he found when he’d arrived at Gibby’s house. The back door had been unlocked, the bed unmade, and she had been wearing a nightgown, indicating she had either been about to get into bed or had possibly even been asleep when the assailant entered. No way in hell did he believe she had tripped on carpet and fallen. Had she forgotten what happened or was she too afraid to say?

Zach nodded his thanks to the doctor, who walked away with the promise that a nurse would come and get Savannah when Gibby was in a private room.

The relief on Savannah’s face said she bought the story of a fall; she hadn’t seen Gibby’s house.

“She didn’t fall, Savannah.”

“Are you sure? She said—”

“I don’t care what she said. The back door was unlocked and she was either in bed or getting ready for bed when this went down. Don’t tell me an eighty-year-old woman is going to leave her back door unlocked and go to bed. Not even in Midnight, Alabama.”

“She could have forgotten to lock the door, Zach. Her memory might not—”

“Agreed. However, I’ve not seen any indication that she has memory problems. Have you?”

“No. You’re right. I was just hoping a fall was all it was.”

“You and I need to talk. I read through the letters. I need to know what you’ve learned.”

A multitude of emotions whirled through Savannah. She wished she could take a moment and put her thoughts together but knew that would have to come later. If Gibby’s injury was in any way related to her investigation of her parents’ death, there was no time for the slow, methodical thinking she preferred.

“Give me five minutes to see my aunt and then let’s go over to her house.”

“While you do that, I’m calling a couple of friends of mine, Brody James and Logan Wright. They run a private security company in Mobile. I want Gibby guarded 24/7 and I don’t have the manpower to spare.”

An ache that had nothing to do with today’s events swept through her. Zach, ever the protector and defender—the boy she had fallen in love with still had the same strength and honor as before. Had her hurt blinded her to that fact? Was that why she hadn’t told him about the letters from the beginning? Guilt sliced at her conscience with the decisive precision of a machete. He had tried to exonerate her, telling her that this wasn’t her fault. She wasn’t so sure. If they’d been working together all this time, could Gibby’s assault have been prevented?

Savannah pulled her cellphone from her purse. “While you do that, I’m going to call Sammie and Bri. They were coming here this weekend anyway, but they need to know about Gibby.”

His expression stoic and grim, Zach nodded and pulled his cellphone from his pocket. Was his serious, businesslike demeanor because he was in chief-of-police mode or something else? Had her selfishness and lack of trust destroyed what she was only now realizing she wanted above all else?

The Wilde house was strangely silent. Zach and Savannah sat at the kitchen table, both lost in their own thoughts.

After a thorough search of the inside and outside of Gibby’s house, Zach was convinced of a break-in. The rain overnight had washed away any telltale prints outside, but a large muddy footprint in the kitchen gave him an idea of the size of the man. Problem was, there were a hell of a lot of men in Midnight with a 10½ shoe size.

Another giveaway had been the back door. The lock was so damn flimsy, a two-year-old could have broken in, but the wood surrounding the latch had fresh gouges and scratches. Someone had jimmied the lock.

Savannah had walked through the house with him and didn’t believe anything had been stolen. Gibby would have to confirm that, but the house was neat and seemingly untouched. The television and DVD player in the living room and laptop computer in the small study beside the kitchen were out in the open and would’ve been easy to carry out. Gibby’s purse lay on the hallway table with her wallet, cash, and credit cards intact. This had been no burglary.

Brody James was now at the hospital guarding Gibby’s room. Had Gibby’s attacker meant to kill the elderly woman or just scare the hell out of her? Zach believed the former. She’d been pushed down an entire flight of stairs. It was a miracle she wasn’t dead. And when the bastard learned she wasn’t dead, would he be back to finish the job? Brody James would make sure that didn’t happen.

Before they’d left the hospital, he and Savannah had briefly visited Gibby. Seeing the usually cheerful and spry woman so beaten up and hurt had infuriated Zach. Whoever had done this wouldn’t get away with it. He’d make sure of it.

Gibby had been so out of it, she’d barely recognized Savannah. He hoped like hell she would remember something when he talked with her again.

He glanced over at Savannah, who looked both worried and furious. While he wanted to reassure her, Zach held himself back. The blow she’d dealt him last night still stung. He had to push it aside for right now, though. Nothing was more important than learning the truth.

“Okay, let’s go over what you know,” Zach said.

Her huff of exasperation was reassuring. He hadn’t liked seeing the fear and sadness in her eyes. Anger was a much healthier emotion.

“You act as if I’ve known about this forever, Zach. I found the letters last week. All I’ve done so far is talk to Gibby, read the newspaper accounts of the events, and ask a few vague questions at Faye’s Diner, which was the biggest bust of all. I learned nothing. And I’ve talked to a few of Mama and Daddy’s friends about when they were alive. The one person that I thought could really tell me something was Harlan Mosby. Unfortunately, I got to the hospital too late.”

“That’s why you went to Mobile?”

She grimaced. “That was the main reason but I really did drop a load of stuff off at the Salvation Army.”

“So the night before you go to talk to Harlan about his investigation of your parents’ death, he conveniently dies.”

She nodded. “Exactly what I thought. The doctor swore his death was imminent … completely expected. He practically laughed in my face when I suggested someone might have killed him.”

Zach already knew that Harlan’s body had been cremated. Proving that someone had assisted Harlan into going on to the next life would be impossible.

“You said you’ve talked to your parents’ friends. Did you learn anything from them?”

“No. Since I didn’t want to arouse anyone’s suspicions, I tried to keep my questions more of a conversation than a questioning. Subtlety yielded zero results.”

“Since someone tried to kill your aunt, I’d say it did produce one result.”

She wilted in front of him like a scorched flower. His remark had been a low blow and he knew it. He’d said it to intentionally hurt her and immediately felt like shit. “I’m sorry, Savannah, I—”

The hurt in her eyes disappeared and was replaced by determination. “Fine. You’re right. I screwed up. But here’s the thing—why go after Gibby? Why not come after me? I’m the one asking the questions, not her.”

“Maybe he thinks she knows something.”

She nodded. “Exactly.”

The light bulb came on and Zach cursed himself for not thinking of it before. Last night at the dinner party, Gibby had, very loudly, told Savannah she had thought of something she needed to tell her that would aid in her investigation. Anyone in the house could have heard her.

Zach grabbed the notepad she had in front of her. “Name everyone who was there last night and their relationship to your parents.”

While she jotted down the names, Zach stood and, without giving it much thought, opened the fridge and took out a pitcher of lemonade. Holding it up, he said, “Want some?”

A small smile curved her lips. “Yes. Thanks.”

“What’s so amusing?”

“Nothing, really. I just like the way you make yourself at home.”

He poured two glasses and set them on the table. “Get used to it.”