Thirty-Six and a Half Motives
Page 85

“Granny?”
“In the kitchen.”
We walked through a room that looked be a makeshift mud room, filled with muddy rain boots and coats. It was also full of an array of gardening tools—a few rakes and shovels, a hoe, and a pitchfork.
Neely Kate glanced over her shoulder. “Home protection.”
“From zombies?” Jed whispered to me with a smirk.
“I heard that,” Neely Kate said dryly.
We entered a small kitchen, the counters stacked high with dirty dishes and pots. A small round table covered with a lace tablecloth was pushed close to the wall, and three empty mismatched wooden chairs were gathered around it. A fourth chair was occupied by Neely Kate’s grandmother, who wore a brightly colored turban on her head.
She held her hands out when she saw us. “Welcome to your future.”
“We’re not here for a reading, Granny,” Neely Kate said, looking back at us and gesturing to the chairs.
Jed’s eyes widened, and I couldn’t say I blamed him. I had my doubts one of those rickety chairs would hold his bulky frame.
Neely Kate plopped onto the chair next to her grandmother. “Jed, you sit in the corner. I need Rose over here.” She pointed to the chair between them. When he hesitated, she grumped, “Oh, have a seat, you big baby.”
I couldn’t say I blamed her poor attitude, and I also understood why she was so eager to stay with me out at my farm. Five minutes in this place would make me grumpy, too.
Jed scooted between the table and the wall, his legs bumping the edge, pushing it toward Neely Kate’s granny. He shot my friend a look that said she was a dead woman when we left.
Neely Kate just chuckled.
“You did that on purpose,” I whispered.
“Paybacks bite you in the keister. We’ll see if he ever suggests I’m incapable of a little light burglary again.”
This obviously had something to do with their visit to the Pelgers’s office, but I knew better than to ask now.
Neely Kate’s grandmother stood, and her gazed flitted around the table before coming to rest on Jed. “And who might you be?”
“Granny,” Neely Kate said, “this is Jed.”
“Jed what?”
Jed gave her a wary smile. “Jed Carlisle, ma’am.”
“Well, Jed Carlisle, this is your lucky day. I’m gonna tell you your future.”
Jed’s eyes flew wide open. “That’s not necessary ma’am.”
“Nonsense,” she said, moving over to her stove and grabbing a worn red tea kettle. She hobbled over to the sink and pushed a pan out of the way to fill the pot. “Have you ever had your tea leaves read before?”
“No, ma’am.”
She glanced over her shoulder and smiled. “Then today really is your lucky day. I’ll even do it at a discount price.”
“You’ll do it for free, Granny,” Neely Kate said, shooting her a warning look.
“You don’t need to do it at all,” Jed insisted.
Granny shot Neely Kate a frown before putting the kettle on the stove. “Of course I’ll do it for free. My introductory special.”
It was obvious Jed did not want to know his future. I found it amusing considering all the dangerous situations I’d seen him navigate without so much as breaking a sweat, not to mention the fact that I’d told him his changeable future many times.
But whatever his reason, I decided to help him out. Lord knew he’d helped me plenty. “Ms. Rivers, can you read my tea leaves instead?”
The older woman moved closer, putting her gnarled hand on my cheek. “No, your future is too uncertain.”
Neely Kate looked alarmed. “What does that mean, Granny?”
Her grandmother’s back stiffened. “It means just what I said.” She picked up a tea cup and rinsed it in the sink.
“Why would her future be uncertain?” Neely Kate asked.
The older woman put the cup and saucer on the table. “Because she’s a seer. All seers’ futures are unclear because they carry the futures of so many others.”
I shot a questioning look at Neely Kate, but she shook her head.
“I didn’t tell her,” she said.
Neely Kate’s granny laughed. “She didn’t have to tell me. I can see it in your aura.”
“Granny, we’re not here for you to read either of their futures. I’m here because I need to ask you a few questions about Momma.”
The older woman’s smile fell, and she suddenly looked nervous. “Oh.”
“Momma was seeing someone before she left. Do you know anything about him?”
She waved her hand in dismissal, but she wouldn’t look her granddaughter in the eyes. “That kid in the band.”
“No, Granny. She was seeing someone else.”
Her grandmother froze. “What makes you say that?”
I cast a glance at Jed to see if he’d picked up on her strange behavior. His previous anxiety was gone, replaced with the face he used to face Skeeter’s adversaries in meetings.
“I found out some information about Momma . . . before she left,” Neely Kate said. “She was pregnant. You always told me she got pregnant later.”
Her grandmother sat in her chair and covered Neely Kate’s hands with her own. “You don’t know what you’re messin’ with, baby girl. You need to leave this alone.”
“What are you talkin’ about?” Neely Kate asked.
“You just accept that fool boy as your father and go on with your life.”
“Momma never told me who my father was. She always said it didn’t matter.”
Her grandmother nodded, but I saw the fear in her eyes. “This is the one time your Momma and I agree on somethin’, and given what a rarity that is, you should listen.”
“No, Granny. I need to know.”
Anger flashed in the older woman’s eyes. “No, you don’t! You just let sleepin’ dogs lie, Neely Kate Rivers. Your very life depends on it!”
We were all silent for a moment before Neely Kate said in a calm, clear voice. “I know that J.R. Simmons is my father.”
Her grandmother shook her head violently. “No, Neely Kate. No.”
“Yes, Granny,” she continued. “It’s true. Now I need you to tell me what you know.” Neely Kate grew impatient when her grandmother didn’t answer. “Granny!”