Thirty and a Half Excuses (30 page)

“Wait!”

Exasperated, I turned, putting my hand on my hip. “
What
?’

“Does this mean you’re going to help me?”

Was I? I didn’t owe Jonah Pruitt anything, but if helping him meant preventing the death of the woman in my vision and finding out who killed the other women, how could I refuse? “I’ll help you as best I can. I have to find Bruce Wayne first.”

As I half-ran to my truck, I knew where I needed to go next.

Weston’s Garage.

Chapter Twenty-Three

When I got into the truck, I tore the charger cord out of the package and plugged in my phone. The thing was so dead I’d have to wait a while before I could make a call.

Mason was bound to wonder where I’d disappeared to, not to mention he was probably worried if his secretary hadn’t given him my message. Had he figured out that I’d been kidnapped from the sheriff’s office? I needed to tell him what I’d learned since leaving with Christy that morning.

Bottom line, I had to talk to him, and the sooner the better. But could I risk going to the courthouse? It was either that or call him. If I went to my house to use the home phone, Christy might be at her aunt’s house, waiting for me. I could go back to the nursery, but I honestly didn’t want to deal with Violet again. I also didn’t want to wait for my cell phone to charge. What if Mason had news about Bruce Wayne?

The courthouse it was.

I parked my truck several blocks away. I worried about getting through security since both guards knew me, but Ol’ Matt was on duty, and he greeted me with a big smile. “Second visit today, huh, Rose? Didn’t you leave with Mr. Deveraux this morning? Here to see Neely Kate this time?”

“Nope, I’m here to see Mason Deveraux again. Do you know if he’s come back?”

“I’ve been at this post since you all took off this morning, and I haven’t seen hide nor hair of Mr. Deveraux since.”

My shoulders slumped in defeat. This was the only entrance Mason would have used. “Thanks, Matt.”

“You still wantin’ to come inside?”

“Yeah, I might as well see Neely Kate since I’m here.”

When I walked through the door to the personal property department, I found her sitting at her desk, thumbing through a pile of papers with a bored expression on her face. When she saw me, her face broke into a big grin. “Rose!”

I leaned my hands on the counter. “Can you take a break? I really need to talk.”

Her smile faded. “Of course.” She looked over her shoulder at the girl sitting at the other desk. “I’ll be back soon.”

The girl rolled her eyes.

“You can’t find good help these days,” Neely Kate muttered. I couldn’t help thinking that Jimmy DeWade had probably said the same thing about her before he’d decided to start murdering people.

I would have laughed at the irony, but I was too on edge.

We took the stairs down to the basement and sat at a table next to the vending machines. The basement was chilly, and Neely Kate rubbed her arms. “Rose, you look like you saw a ghost.”

“Close. I saw a murder.”

“
What
?”

I squinted my eyes closed, trying to block out the memory. “I did what you suggested, Neely Kate. I made myself have a vision with Jonah Pruitt, and I saw a woman killed in his kitchen.” I looked up at her, and my voice broke. “She was shot in the head.”

Neely Kate’s mouth formed an O as she stared at me in disbelief for several seconds. “So Jonah Pruitt really is a murderer.”

“No, it was someone else. Jonah doesn’t have anything to do with any of this.”

“But what about Miss Dorothy’s will? Her house?”

“He swears he didn’t know anything about it. He says he found out after she died.”

“And you believe him?”

I took a deep breath. “Yeah, I do.”

She nodded. “That’s good enough for me.”

This was part of what I loved about Neely Kate. She took me at my word without a single doubt.

I told her about the rest of my morning, but I just couldn’t bring myself to tell her about Joe coming home yesterday and confiding his big secret. She’d kill to know, and for all her gossiping ways, I trusted her to keep my secret. But talking about it made it more real. Right now I could pretend it was just a bad dream.

Neely Kate rubbed her arms. “So what are you going to do?”

“I have to help Bruce Wayne.”

“Of course you do, but how are you gonna do it?’

“I’m going out to Weston’s Garage.”

Neely Kate narrowed her gaze. “Do you really think that’s a good idea, Rose? What if Thomas was right? What if Crocker’s guys are pissed at you?”

I wasn’t stupid. The thought of going out there scared me to death, but I didn’t have a choice. I had to see if Bruce Wayne was okay.

“Maybe you should wait for Mason. He seems pretty willing to help you two.”

“Yeah, I know.” What she said made sense, but it seemed wrong to sit around without doing anything.

“I know you.” She leaned forward. “You’re sitting here thinking about going out there anyway despite everything I just said.”

A lump burned my throat. “I can’t just sit here and leave him out there, Neely Kate. What if they kidnapped him? What if they’re hurting him?”

She stared into my eyes. “Rose, you don’t even know if he’s there. For all you know, he’s back home, kicked back in his Lazyboy and smokin’ a reefer.” She grabbed my hand, holding it tightly. “I know you feel responsible for him, but you can’t just strut out there like nothin’ can happen to you. Because
it can
. Just think it through a little bit before you do anything, and then think it through a little more. Okay?”

She was right, and I knew it, even if I felt like I was abandoning Bruce Wayne. Mason had gone to the sheriff’s office to get them to go out to Weston’s Garage. They had a much better chance of helping my friend than I did. But I had to make sure they’d followed through.

Neely Kate pulled me into a hug. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“I’m not going anywhere.” Then I shot her a glare. “But don’t be asking me to try to force any more visions. I don’t ever want to see anything like that again.”

Neely Kate sucked in her lower lip, watching me and struggling with what she wanted to say. She shifted her weight. “Look Rose, remember when I told you I thought your visions were a blessing but you think they’re a curse?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, maybe we’re looking at it all wrong. Maybe they’re not a blessing or a curse, maybe your visions are a responsibility.”

I pressed my lips together in irritation. “What does that mean?”

“You just saw a murder, which had to be shocking, and I’m so, so sorry for that. But you saw Joe’s death, and you changed it.” Her eyes burned with her earnestness. “You have the power to really help people, Rose. You have the power to save them.”

I stood and turned my back to her. I didn’t want that power. “That’s not me, Neely Kate.” Tears swam in my eyes. “I can’t handle that kind of responsibility. I can barely take care of Muffy, and she’s a dog.” I shook my head. “You don’t know what you’re asking me to do.”

She stood behind me and wrapped her arm around my back, resting her head on my shoulder. “I do know, and I’m sorry. You saw someone die. But what if you can stop it? What if you can save her life?”

I leaned my head against hers. “Joe will have a conniption.”

“Like that’s ever stopped you before.”

I sighed. Neely Kate was on a roll. I took a deep breath and braced my shoulders. I’d cried enough. It was time to do something. “Okay.”

“You need to tell Mason.”

I shook my head. “You’re like a ping pong ball. Mason won’t approve of this.”

She gave me a smug smile. “Don’t be so sure of that.”

We took the elevator, and I waved goodbye when she got off on the first floor, staying on so I could go to the second.

Cecelia was at her desk when I got to Mason’s office. She took one look at me and frowned, but she quickly looked down to hide her reaction and kept typing.

I decided being extra nice was the best way to handle her. “Hi, Cecelia. Has Mason come back since I called you?”

She kept her eyes glued to her computer screen. “No.”

“Has he called you since he left?”

Her gaze lifted, and her eyes hardened. “You are not allowed to know about Mr. Deveraux’s official office business.”

“I’m not asking about that. I’m asking if he’s called you.”

She glared at me for a moment. “Yes.”

“And did you give him my message?”

“Yes.”

“And…? Did he say anything?”

She turned back to her work. “No.”

I considered asking her to give me his cell phone number so I could call him from here, but I didn’t want her to hear my conversation. And if I went into his office to make the call, I couldn’t be sure she wouldn’t eavesdrop. I might be getting bolder about my visions, but I wasn’t ready to shout about them from the rooftop.

Matt waved to me when I passed through the security line. “You have a good day, Rose.”

“Thanks, Matt.” I stopped and spun back to face him. “If you see Mr. Deveraux, can you tell him I stopped by his office, and that I’m looking for him?”

“Shouldn’t you tell his secretary?”

Apparently, that was a waste of time. “Everyone knows you’re the most reliable employee in all of Fenton County.”

He waved his hand. “Aren’t you sweet? Of course I’ll tell him. Even if you’re exaggerating.”

“It’s not an exaggeration. It’s the unvarnished truth.”

My phone hadn’t charged by the time I’d got back to my truck. Since I was used to charging it at home, I hadn’t realized it wouldn’t charge when the engine was turned off. I was practically back where I’d started.

I sat behind the steering wheel of my truck, staring at the courthouse. Neely Kate had a good point. If I wanted to save that poor woman, I needed to talk to Jonah again. Whoever was killing the women in Henryetta seemed to be targeting women to whom he was connected. He was getting ready for his revival, but I was sure he’d take a few minutes to talk to me.

The church grounds were bustling with activity when I pulled into the parking lot. A giant tent had been erected, and men were in the process of setting up chairs. We’d delivered extra pots of flowers, and they’d been set around the edges of the tent. I had to admit that the place looked great. Pride warmed my chest as I considered the part we’d played in the transformation.

When I couldn’t find Jonah outside, I went into the church office. Rhonda was sitting at her desk still wearing her long sleeves despite the fact it was ninety degrees outside and the church wasn’t very cold. She grimaced when I entered the room, looking down her nose and puckering her mouth in disapproval.

Why did secretaries hate me so much?

“Rhonda, I need to talk to Jonah.”

Her face puckered even more. “That’s
Reverend Pruitt
to you. And he’s busy.”

“This is important.”

She picked up a stack of papers and tapped them on the desk. “Nothing is more important than the Lord’s work. He’s preparing for the service tonight.”

“If you’ll just tell him I’m here—”

“I’ll be sure to tell him you stopped by, Miss Gardner. Good day.”

Even though Jonah’s door was closed, he might be inside. I considered ignoring Rhonda and just going in. She wouldn’t reach me before I got the door open, although I wouldn’t put it past her to tackle me when she
did
reach me. I decided to make a round through the church to look for him, and if he still didn’t turn up, I’d come back and storm the door. The element of surprise would be on my side.

I left the office and headed for the sanctuary, thinking it might be a quiet place to sort through my thoughts and come up with a plan. Jonah must have been thinking the same thing because I found him sitting on the steps to the altar, his forehead resting in his hand. He didn’t hear me until I was several feet away.

He looked up at me with a tear-stained face. “This is all my fault, Rose. All those women are dead because of me.”

I sat on the step next to him. “It isn’t your fault, but I think you’re right. Someone is killing them because of you.”

He released a moan and leaned over his knees.

“Can you think of anyone who has a grudge against you? Either here or back in Homer?”

He rubbed his mouth with his fingertips. “I don’t know, Rose. My church isn’t exactly conservative. I’ve ruffled a few feathers along the way.”

“I’m gonna need specifics, Jonah. Anyone in particular come to mind?”

“I don’t know.”

“Think. This might help Bruce Wayne too.” I gasped, an idea coming to me. “Could you have upset one of the guys in your troubled youth group? Could they be killing these women to try and make it look like you killed them?”

“Why would they do that? I give them a safe place to come and talk.” Jonah’s head rose, and he took in a deep breath. “Wait, there was an incident that turned ugly.”

“What happened?”

“About three weeks ago, Sly, one of the older guys, a mentor, showed up to a meeting drunk. I told him that he was a negative influence on the teens, and he had to leave. He wasn’t very happy with my request and started to throw chairs around.” Jonah sighed. “I tried my best to calm him down, but I finally had to resort to calling the police. Sly went even crazier. He was shouting about how everything had turned to crap when Daniel Crocker got locked away.” He lifted his eyebrows with a shy grin. “Only he didn’t say crap.”

“I bet.”

“The police threw him in jail for destruction of property. I didn’t press charges but he got into trouble with his parole officer. He blamed me for it, and I haven’t seen him since.”

“Was it the bald guy with the snake tattoos?”

He nodded.

This was good. A solid lead I could actually take to Mason. “If it happened a few weeks ago that was right before Miss Laura died. The only problem is how would Sly know about the deaths in Homer. Did you know him there?”

“No. And even if I did, no one—and I mean no one—pieced those murders together. Maybe it’s just a coincidence.”

“Do you really believe that?”