Sneaking Suspicions (The Tharon Trace Mysteries Book 1) (21 page)

Tharon and the boys ran to the dog and dropped down in the middle of the aisle, smothering him with love and affection.  Tears streamed down Tharon’s face as she hugged and stroked her dog’s neck.

Shep whimpered, whined and yowled with love, and happiness—and maybe a little scolding at Tharon for not being there when he needed her.  She threw her arms around his neck, taking care to not squeeze him too tightly where he was bandaged.  For the first time in her life she wept tears of pure joy.

Dana wondered if her make-up was streaming down her cheeks, but she didn’t care, her heart was full.  She looked around the chapel and nearly everyone wiped tears from their faces.

Max pulled out a handkerchief and mopped his face too.  “You couldn’t give a guy a heads up about something like this?”

Dana squeezed his arm. “Max, you’re an old softie after all.”

Grinning happily, Dana watched as Tharon led Shep to the front of the chapel and sat down on the step with him on the bride’s side.  Helm and Kaid sat on either side of her beaming with happiness.

The music started again and Dana locked eyes with Simon.  Her heart pounded in her chest.  When she’d resolved a few short days ago to get a life, she’d never dreamed it could hold this much joy.

She tugged on Max’s arm. “Let’s hurry, before he changes his mind.”

CHAPTER 37

Tharon sat at the main table with the bride and groom.  Shep lay on the floor at her feet.  She slipped her dress shoes off and searched out Shep every few minutes to scratch behind his ears with her toes.  Helm and Kaid sat on either side of her.  Her cheeks ached from her near constant grin.

Dana and Simon got up to dance and Dana paused to whisper in Tharon’s ear.  “I’m sorry about keeping it a secret that Shep was alive.  I didn’t want to tell anyone until I was sure he was going to survive.”

Tharon swallowed the bite of cake in her mouth.  Her brown eyes sparkled with happiness. “That’s okay.  It was the best surprise I ever got.  Thank you for taking him to get better.”

Tharon looked around the fellowship hall and smiled at the decorations Maisy had put together so quickly.  Small pine wreaths circled white candles on each table.  She let Tharon sprinkle translucent glitter and blue ribbon curls around the pine needles and cones with some sprinkled on the white table cloths.  Maisy told her, “It will be the dickens to get the glitter out of the cloth but you just wait, it will look wonderful.”

Maisy had been right.  With the glow of the afternoon sun streaming through the high windows, and the flickering, battery operated, faux candles; it looked like sparkling diamonds shimmered at each table.

At the youth table in the back of the room, Cody Miller, Veronica and Tracy sat with the Edwards twins and Sarah Felger.  Cody had his back to her and when he got up, he turned and winked at her.

She grinned at him.

Everett pointed at her and said something which made everyone at the table, except Eddie, Sarah and Cody, laugh.

Tharon looked down at her plate.  She didn’t want to let them make her feel so worthless.  Why did she still care what they thought of her?  Her fingers absently touched her short hair and she wondered if she looked grotesque.  The adults told her she was pretty, but she wondered if they were just saying that because that’s what grownups do.

Helm reached over and held her hand under the table.  “What’s wrong now?”

She smiled at him.  “I was remembering how all this started.  I just don’t understand why I can’t be friends with you and Kaid and with Tracy and Veronica.”

Helm and Kaid both looked at Veronica across the room.  She brightened and grinned at Kaid, who said, “I don’t get why you want to be friends with them at all.”

Tharon shrugged and picked up her fork to push a crumb around her plate. “I sure don’t want to be enemies with them.  Besides I never wanted to hurt anyone’s feelings.  I just don’t see a way back to friends.  I’d settle for them ignoring me.  I don’t do well in conflicts.”

Kaid stabbed a piece of cake with his fork and said, “I think you do pretty good in a conflict.  I’m sure Marty and Officer Brandt would agree.”  When his comment failed to produce a smile, he said, “We could make the first move and go talk with them.”

Tharon wrestled with what she wanted to suggest.  Even though it twisted her into knots she knew it was the right thing to do.  “Maybe if you two asked them to dance, it might ease the tension between us.”

Helm frowned. “I don’t want to dance with Tracy.”

Kaid screwed up his face. “Well I don’t want to dance with her either.  Yuck.”

Cody walked up behind Tharon and tapped her shoulder. “Hey, Dork, would you like to dance?”

She slipped her dress shoes back on and smiled. “I’d love to, Nerd, but I’m warning you, I’ve never danced before.”

Cody offered her his arm. “No problem, I’m wearing steel-toed dress shoes.”

She looked at him with a raised eyebrow and laughed when she realized he was teasing her.  She took his arm and followed him to the dance floor.

He held her right hand and wrapped his other arm around her waist.  They circled and twirled around the floor.

Shep tagged along until he heard Tom whistle softly for him; he limped over to his master and lay down at his feet.

Tharon watched Cody’s feet, but kept stepping on his toes.  “You might need steel-toed shoes with me.”

He tipped her chin up to look at him.  “Stop thinking about it.  Don’t watch your feet, just keep looking at my ugly mug and follow my lead.”

Tharon did as he said and soon their movements became more fluid.  Her face broke into a wide smile.  “You don’t have an ugly mug.”  She tilted her head and looked up at his face.  His square jaw and strong chin were like his father’s, but he had his mother’s full lips and wide smile.  She noticed his smug grin and added, “For a nerd.”

He pulled her tight and spun her quickly around the floor until she was dizzy.  “Are you ever going to stop calling me a nerd?”

She laughed. “As soon as you stop calling me a dork.”

He slowed their circular motion.  “Fair enough,
Tharon
.  How come you got your hair cut?”

Her face warmed. “We were hiding in the woods and Helm was in bad shape.  We needed to start a fire and there wasn’t any dry kindling so I cut off my braids and Kaid used them to start the fire.”

He frowned at Kaid. “I can’t believe he asked you to do that.”

She shook her head.  “No one asked me.  I just did it.  I don’t think Helm would have lived if we didn’t get a fire going.”  She touched the back of her hair. “Does it look that bad?”

Cody tilted her head up and said, “No, it doesn’t look bad.  You look pretty.  It’s just a different look for you.”

She winced. “Pretty is a different look for me?  Thanks.”  Kaid and Helm walked to the youth table and she tried to focus on Cody’s face which turned bright red.

“That’s not what I meant.  I always thought you looked cute.”

It was her turn to blush.  “Let’s change the subject.  That was nice of you and your dad to take care of our animals while we were...gone.”

He squeezed her closer and his voice thickened. “I was worried about you.  We all were.”

Tharon hesitated. “Even your sister?”

Cody shrugged. “In her way, she was.”

Kaid asked Sarah Felger to dance.  Helm danced with Veronica.  Eddie stood and held a hand out to Tracy, leaving Everett to sit and scowl at Tharon.  She didn’t think Everett would ever stop hating her.

Cody was still talking. “You know with our dads in the militia, if you and your mom ever need anything, you can call me.  I want to help you if you need me.”

She smiled up at him.  “Do you think we might have to put in the spring crops by ourselves?”

He shrugged. “Who knows?  If we do, we’ll help each other.  Right?”

She locked eyes with Helm and tried to ignore the tug at her heart. “Right,” she said absently.

Cody followed her line of sight and shook his head.  “Come on, I’m going to show you just what a good friend I am.”  He twirled her across the floor and tapped Helm’s shoulder.  “How about letting me switch partners.  Come on, Roni, let’s show them what a waltz looks like.”

In a smooth motion Cody deftly switched partners leaving Tharon in Helm’s arms.  As he waltzed his sister away Veronica snapped at him, “How many times do I have to tell you not to call me Roni.”

Helm rested his hands on Tharon’s waist and she held onto his shoulders as they managed a circling side-step.  She was clumsier than when she danced with Cody, but she felt more comfortable with Helm.

Helm cleared his throat. “Did Veronica tell you why I said I didn’t want to be Tracy’s boyfriend?”

Tharon had almost forgotten the boyfriend fiasco.  Almost.  She shrugged her shoulders. “She said you think of Tracy as a sister.”

He dipped his head to look into her eyes.  “Did she say anything else?”

She lowered her eyelashes. “Just that you liked someone else and you wouldn’t tell her who.”

Helm inhaled nervously. “Ever since I saw you climb your dad’s apple trees when you were seven years old, and then when I saw you in my dad’s store shopping for the Felger fam—”

She touched her finger to his lips. “Please don’t say anything more.  No one is supposed to know about that.”

She searched for the right thing to say.  She felt the bond between them, but the whole boyfriend scheme still left a sour taste in her mouth.  Besides, she just got them both back.  What he wanted to say might cause a rift in her friendship with Kaid.  And what if being more than friends didn’t work out?  Maisy used to tell her you can go from a friend to something more, but it was hard to go from something more back to a friend.

She looked deep into his hazel eyes. “You and Kaid are both my friends and I don’t want things to be weird between us.  After everything that happened last week, I couldn’t bear losing either of you as friends.  Besides, I’m only twelve and my dad won’t let me date until I’m sixteen.”

He grinned and twirled her around as best he could with the walking cast. “Fair enough.  But in four years we’re going to finish this conversation.”

Tharon laughed and hung onto his shoulders. “You’ll be sick of me by then.”

He kissed her forehead. “That’ll never happen.  I’ll always be your friend.”

She smiled up at him. “I’ll always be your friend too.”

Tharon smiled at Sarah dancing with Kaid.  When they circled close enough, Sarah said, “I’m so glad you weren’t hurt.  I was praying for all of you.  I’m happy you are all safe at home.”

Tharon returned her warm smile. “Thanks, it’s good to be home.”

But always at the edge of her mind was the knowledge that Marty was still out there and she had no doubt he intended to make good his promise to kill her.  She also worried that someone wanted to abduct her.  She still couldn’t figure out who wanted
her
and why?

CHAPTER 38

The hotel was much nicer than Simon had expected, but the wedding, the reception and the two hour drive to Indianapolis wore Dana out.  She slipped into slumber soon after taking her pain meds.

He watched her even breathing and peaceful face and wondered if he’d made a mistake, insisting they get married right away.  Was he being selfish marrying her, with the threat of secession and the increase of government troop activities on the state border mounting each day?  Just like him, she had lost her entire family—parents, grandparents and siblings—to the influenza pandemic.

He’d waded through his grief, often working until exhaustion to keep from thinking about his lost wife and daughters.  Out of concern for him, the county hired Dana as his driver and partner, tasked unofficially with easing his burdens and helping him accomplish his duties.

At first he resented being assigned a babysitter, but as they worked side by side, he found comfort in Dana’s quiet strength.  Their common loss forged a bond between them.

He remembered the time they were on the way to meet with the Health and Safety Commission on the dangers of abandoned houses and the threats posed by looters.

As they waited at a red light, a young family with two daughters crossed the street in front of them.  Something about the older daughter reminded him of his daughter, Cathy.  He pulled out his phone and looked at the date.  A wave of palpable grief swept over him.

Dana must have noticed.  She never said a word to him.  She picked up her phone, “Penni, please call the commission and let them know the Sheriff is running about an hour late.  Find out if they want to wait or reschedule and call
me
with what they want to do.”

After that she drove him out to the country to the top of a hill where you could see for miles in all directions.  They got out of the car and waded a half dozen yards into a wheat field.  A warm summer breeze blew over the field, rippling the heavy laden stalks in waves.  Dana inhaled deeply, her face bathed in the amber setting sun.  “I love it here.  It’s so open and free.  It helps me remember, there
is
still beauty in the world.”

That was the moment he started to fall in love with her.  Everyone else he knew looked at him with pity.  Dana treated him with understanding and compassion.  She never asked him about his family, but when he was ready to talk, she quietly listened.  She helped him work through his grief without ever seeming to do anything except be there for him.

As she stood in the sunlight that evening he had asked, “So how long have you and Penni had a signal worked out to let her know when I need to be ‘running late’?”

Dana chewed on her lower lip and looked down at her boots.  “Too obvious?”

“Not too much.  So how long?”

She sighed, “Since day one.  Penni worked it out.  I’ve never used it before, honest.  You just looked like you needed this.”

Simon breathed deeply and soaked up the warm breeze and fading sunlight.  He drank in the scent of grain; the gentle murmur of the rustling wheat.  “I did need this.  Thanks.  I just got caught off guard when I realized today would have been Cathy’s ninth birthday.  She’s been gone two years now.”

Dana’s voice was soft when she spoke, “I thought it might be something like that.”

Simon tilted his head as he looked at her.  “How is it you got hired?  I just realized, I don’t recall interviewing you.”

Dana said, “I wondered about that when I got hired.  I think Penni pushed all the paper work through.  She’s the only one I spoke to.  You may be the Sheriff, but I think she’s the one who runs the department.”

Simon smiled at the memory as he watched his sleeping bride.  He thought he might just have to give Penni another raise, if she hadn’t already given herself one.

He kept telling himself their marriage meant Dana wouldn’t be left alone during her recovery, but that excuse rang hollow, even to his ears.  They could have hired a nurse.  They could have set her up with someone to stay with her, but something snapped in him when he saw Brandt leering at her—he was jealous.

When he found out Brandt tried to kill her, he nearly dispatched him to the great beyond on the spot.  Had it not been for Max, Tom Trace and Matt Harris, he might have.  He shuddered with shame at the rage that had filled him and almost driven him to something that went against everything he stood for and believed in.

Dana stirred and started to stretch.

Simon caught her arm before she pulled her stitches out and sat next to her on the edge of the bed.  He kissed the palm of her hand.  “How are you feeling?”

She purred, “Oh, I’m feeling gooood.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Are you sure the pain meds don’t have you too out of it?  I don’t want to take advantage of you.”

Her deep throaty chuckle stirred his desire as she said, “I believe I consented today to giving you all the advantages you want.”

His eyes crinkled with affection. “I’ve never seen you act like this.  When we make love the first time, I want you to be able to remember it.”

She sat up and plunged her fingers into his thinning blond hair.  She pulled his face close to hers. “You’ve never seen me like this because you’ve seldom seen me happy.”  She kissed him, softly at first, then deeper.  When their lips parted she said, “This is my first time to make love. Ever.  So I promise you, I’ll remember it.”

He cradled her face in his hands.  “I didn’t know you were a virgin.”

Her face blushed crimson.  “It’s not something you bring up in casual conversation with your boss.”

A war of emotions stormed through Simon.  He closed his eyes and shook his head. “I
have
been selfish, pushing you to marry me so quickly.  Do you want to slow things down and, I don’t know, go on some dates first?”

She sat back and looked him in the eyes.  “Simon Ellis, are you in love with me?”

His features softened.  “Yes, deeply.”  He cradled her face and kissed her softly.

“I have loved you almost from the first day I met you.  I have longed for this night.  You can’t know how much it means to me to be your wife; to be able to share our lives—” her voice caught with emotion.  She took a deep breath, “—to not be alone anymore.  We can date if you want.  That might be fun.  But right now, all I want is to show you how completely I love you.”

She searched his eyes, as if willing him to understand the depth of her love. “I promise you, I’m not a naive child.  I decided when I was a child that I wanted to wait until marriage.  I have saved myself for you, for this night.”

Dana touched the side of his face with her palm. “I will make you happy.  I love you, Simon.”

Simon eased her gently back on the pillows.  He kissed her just below her ear.  His kisses cascaded down to the nape of her neck.

His phone rang on the bedside table next to their heads.  They both jumped with a start and Simon answered it out of habit.  He barked into the phone, “Ellis.”

Max’s voice was solemn.  “Sheriff, I hate to bother you, but Officer Brandt was killed today in his room at St. Joe hospital.”

Simon rolled to Dana’s side and laid on his back next to her as he talked into the phone.  “How could that happen?”

Dana exhaled loudly, folded her arms over her chest and crossed her ankles.

Simon shifted the phone and took her hand in his, intertwining his fingers with hers.

She smiled and closed her eyes.

Simon heard the strain in Max’s voice.  “The guard was called to help with a security breach at the end of the hall.  He was gone three minutes tops; just long enough for someone to inject a fatal dose of potassium into Brandt’s IV.”

Dana snored softly.

Simon frowned, “Did you get a chance to interrogate him?”

“I got a call after the reception that he was out of the burn unit and able to talk.  I was on my way over to question him, but he was killed before I got there.”

“Who knew you were going to talk to him?”

“On our end?  Nobody.  In Fort Wayne, it’s hard to say.”  Max paused. “The nursing staff knew.  They were to call me when he was able to talk.  I’m not sure who they called in Fort Wayne.”

Simon rubbed his head.  “See if you can find out.  Find out what you can about that security breach too.  Whoever killed Brandt has just became our best lead to finding out who ordered Brandt to take Tharon.  I’ve got a meeting tomorrow morning to fill in the gaps on Wil Silar.  Any luck on finding Marty Phillips?”

Max hesitated. “I think I found out where he got his face sewn up.  There was a fire at an after-hours clinic in Auburn last weekend.  The doctor and nurse died in the fire.  Yesterday they ruled it a homicide.  It turns out both of them had their throats cut before they burned.”

Simon sighed. “We’re running out of leads and evidence.  Double up your efforts on finding Marty.  He’s our best shot at finding whoever is behind all of this.  Without a solid witness, we have no way to prove what the government is up to.”

“Right,” Max cleared his throat.  “Sheriff, I just wanted to tell you how happy Lucy and I are for you and Dana.”

Simon smiled at Dana’s gentle snoring.  “Thanks, but next time you need something, text me unless it’s urgent.”

Simon disconnected.  He reached across Dana to turn out the light.  She snuggled into his side and he wrapped his arms around her.  He sighed with a blend of frustration and contentment, pulled the blanket up over them both, and settled down to sleep.  Within moments he joined his bride in gentle snores.