Thirty-Five and a Half Conspiracies
Page 41

“So this came from J.R.?”
“Most likely. But even better, Betty—that’s the assistant’s name—thinks she’s seen the guy who threatened Ted. He showed up at the office a few times without an appointment, and even though her boss never seemed happy to see the guy, he’d always change his schedule to accommodate him. He stopped coming after a while, but that’s when the blocked calls started. The great thing is that Betty swears she remembers what he looks like. So I talked to a detective in the state police department, and he’s agreed to have Betty meet with a sketch artist today. With any luck, we can identify the guy. The detective and I are going to take Betty’s evidence and the sketch to someone higher up in the secretary of state’s office. We have an appointment at nine tomorrow morning.”
“Wow,” I murmured, stunned. “That’s good news, right?”
“It’s great news.”
“Can you trust the state police detective? What if he’s friends with Joe?”
“He can’t stand Joe. He was more than happy to jump on board when he heard about Joe’s role in getting me fired and arresting you on trumped-up charges. He’s determined to take out Joe, J.R., and my boss.”
“Mason. This is too good to be true.”
“I know, and I confess, it almost seems too easy.”
Threads of anxiety wrapped tight around my chest. He was right. He’d searched for months for evidence to use against J.R. without finding anything, and this was happening so fast. It almost seemed too perfect. “Do you think it’s a trap?”
“No …” He sighed. “I don’t know. I don’t see how it could be a trap, but I’m more worried it’s a distraction. Like what I’m looking for is so close they’re throwing me this bone to get me off the right track.”
“So what’s the right track?”
“Damned if I know.” He groaned. “I’m probably just being paranoid.”
“I don’t think so. You have great instincts, Mason. I think you should listen to them.” Even when they told him I was keeping things from him. “Do you think you’re safe up there?”
“I can’t stop looking, Rose. All I can do is be careful, and I promise you that I will be.”
“I’m just scared.” My voice broke. “I don’t want to lose you.”
“And I’m not going anywhere, okay?”
“Okay.”
“But that being said, I need to stay up here in Little Rock tonight. I have that meeting in the morning, and I need to spend the night gathering my thoughts into a convincing argument. I’d feel a whole lot better about leaving you alone if you and Muffy would go stay with my mom.”
I took a breath. “Actually, there’s something else I need to talk to you about.”
“Okay,” he said in a gentle tone, obviously noticing my hesitation. “What is it?”
“It’s about Neely Kate. She and Ronnie are still havin’ a rough patch, and it’s worse than ever.”
“What’s goin’ on?”
I glanced toward the door, then moved closer to the sink. “I need you to promise that you won’t take what I tell you and use it to press any kind of charges.”
That perked up his attention. “Is Neely Kate in some kind of trouble?”
“More like Ronnie.”
“Ronnie?”
“Yes. I need your word.”
“In case you hadn’t noticed, I’m currently out of a job.”
“And the key word there is currently.”
“Rose, Neely Kate’s cousin just broke into a safe on private property at my suggestion. I think I can overlook some minor infraction by our friend.”
“That’s just it. I’m not sure it’s minor. Well, I’m not sure he’s done anything at all, but Witt insinuated that he’s involved in something shady.”
“Maybe you better start from the beginning.”
I told him what Witt had said about Ronnie’s poker buddies shifting their loyalty from Skeeter to Mick Gentry.
Mason heaved a sigh. “It kills me that you’re being forced into this world. Last July you didn’t even know who Skeeter Malcolm was. Now you’ve been forced to listen to me talk about all kinds of criminal turf wars, and you know a whole lot more than most law-abiding citizens. I just hate that you’re exposed to all of this.”
I felt guilty about hiding things from Mason, but as soon as he, Skeeter, and I were safe, the Lady in Black could become a distant memory. Maybe I would finally confess as we bounced our great-grandkids on our knees.
“I’m a big girl, Mason. And I’m more worried about Ronnie. Witt said he’s getting all kinds of pressure from his buddies to do something illegal, and they’re takin’ Mick Gentry’s side. That’s gonna be nothin’ but trouble.” Then I told him about his strange behavior with Neely Kate—how he’d forbidden her to go to the courthouse, how he’d left her alone in the house, and how he kept calling in sick.
“You don’t know that you’re the real excuse for his behavior,” Mason said. “If his men are loyal to Gentry, then they might have it out for me. And if Ronnie knows that, it would be natural for him to want to protect his wife.”
“He didn’t have any problem with her comin’ out to the farm to see you on Saturday. And if he’s really that worried, why on earth would he leave her? You’d think he’d want to stay to protect her.”