Читать книгу One Man To Protect Them - Suzanne Cox - Страница 7

THE OUTBOARD MOTOR reverberated through the night air, and he wondered if the entire world could hear it. He always wondered that, but no one ever seemed to notice him. Luke steered toward the opposite side of the Mississippi. When the bank came into sight he slowed and nosed the boat into a tributary that emptied into the river. He went upstream a few hundred feet to a sandy spot then bumped ashore and tied off to a nearby tree. He didn’t bother with a flashlight. He didn’t need light to get where he was going. He preferred it to be darker—in fact, he wished there were clouds to cover the moon’s glow. After ten minutes, the path he was following opened into a clearing with a wooden shack in the middle. A thin stream of light shone from under the door. He climbed the steps and knocked. Hearing a low voice answer, he went inside, wishing it didn’t feel so natural, so normal.

“Damned mess we got now.”

Joseph Bergeron sat in a metal folding chair in the dim glow of the light bulb hanging from the ceiling, a red plastic cup on the card table in front of him within easy reach. He grabbed the cup and spit, his lower lip bulged slightly with freshly ground tobacco.

Luke dropped into the metal chair across from him and it gave a squeaky protest. “I told you to leave the reporter alone, that he wouldn’t disappear so easily.”

“You think I gave the okay for this? Hell, I’m not that stupid. I’d at least have gotten everything he had on us before I did away with him.” Joseph rested his arms on the table. “And I would have known better than to get that idiot Duke Swayze to tend to business.”

“He’s a member of the Militia and he doesn’t mind doing a piece of work. Why wouldn’t you use him?”

“Come on, he’s crazy as a Betsy bug. Look at what we’ve got now. They found how many bodies at his place?”

“Four.” Luke tried to stay calm. The memory of that day made him sick, and also brought to mind that damned goddess of a vet, the woman he was doing his best to forget.

“Right, four. Now doesn’t that make your job a lot harder?”

“Yeah, it does. But if you didn’t tell him to do this, who did? I doubt he came up with the idea on his own.”

Joseph watched him, and Luke met his stare without faltering. He’d had enough practice at this. Besides, the Militia trusted him.

“There are others who didn’t want that reporter to get away from here with whatever he might have found. We’re working on a big project with another Militia group. We don’t need this kind of attention. We haven’t brought you in on this yet.” Joseph scrutinized him for several seconds. “Maybe later.”

Luke dipped his head slightly in agreement. Okay, they didn’t trust him that much. These things took time.

“Do you think you’ll be able to get ole Duke off?” Joseph asked.

“I don’t know. He’s not much help, spouting off crazy stuff every time the police question him, but I’ll do what I can.”

Joseph tapped the table before getting to his feet. “We’ll take care of things on our end. We like having you in the community helping us.”

“Glad to do it. I only wish I could do more.”

Joseph went to the door, cracked it open and checked outside.

“You’re doing what we need right now.” He glanced at Luke. “Give me five minutes then leave.” The man closed the door and was gone.

Luke sank deeper into the chair. What kind of project were they planning? He had a hunch who they were working with, but he couldn’t get deeper into the ring of secrecy that surrounded the Acadian Loyalists, not yet. The Militia made their base camp across the river from Cypress Landing. Their members were scattered around the area. Some were like him, businesspeople doing whatever job they could to aid the cause, but keeping their affiliation hidden. Others, such as Duke Swayze, were open with their zealous beliefs. The leadership had a use for each. He stretched to switch off the light, letting his vision get accustomed to the dark. His watch gave an eerie glow, reading one in the morning. Ten minutes had passed and he had another meeting to make on the other side of town.

FIFTEEN BASEBALL PLAYERS, all about ten years old, fidgeted in front of him. When most kids were playing soccer or enjoying the first few months of school with absolutely no other activities, those truly dedicated to this sport started a new season. Luke hadn’t been able to help pick the team a few days ago, but his coaching partner, Pete Fontenot, appeared to have done a nice job. They’d gotten several of the best players in the area. He knew because he’d coached both seasons for two years. The fact that his usual coaching partner was a sheriff’s deputy had been a stroke of luck for him. Joseph Bergeron had been pleased when Luke and Pete had started coaching together…as soon as he stopped laughing. “You’re good, Taylor, really good,” the man had said. And he was, but he worked hard at being good. It kept him alive.

As Pete told them their practice and game schedule, Luke waited quietly beside him. Five of the boys on this team had been with them in the spring. At the rear of the group he spotted Elliot Casio. He was big for his age and Luke was glad to see him. After his parents died, the boy hadn’t been sure if he and his little brother would stay in Cypress Landing. Elliot was a polite kid and bit of a star in the league, but Luke was positive he dealt with mean-spirited comments at school, especially from kids whose parents were deeply ingrained in the Militia. Elliot’s parents had adopted him and his brother and their racial origin was mixed—white, black, American-Indian, Asian. But the Casios had been doing an excellent job raising them, and the community, at least the real community and not the Militia, never gave their race a second thought. They were the Casio kids, the end. Unfortunately he’d been assigned to the case of the drunken idiot, a Militia member, who’d caused the crash that killed Caitland and Robert. Luke would have loved to see him in jail for vehicular manslaughter, but the evidence that the guy had been drunk disappeared and there was no case to be won or lost. It wasn’t his fault…but the kids’ aunt obviously thought so.

He whipped his head around, looking toward the fence where the parents sat in lawn chairs waiting for practice to begin. He didn’t breathe, then he took a gasp of air and let it go. Pete glanced at him in mid-sentence but kept talking. Sitting in a chair next to Pete’s wife was the object of several recent late-night dreams, Elliot and Garrett Casio’s aunt.

Pete finished his speech, and Luke realized it was time to start the practice. He made a mental note not to let Jayden Miller distract him as he instructed the boys on what positions they’d be playing.

A FEW HOURS LATER, Luke waited at the front of his sprawling single-story house. It was way more than he’d expected when he arrived in Cypress Landing. It wasn’t a restored antebellum like a lot of the homes in the area, but its wide porch with huge columns and multiple French doors across the front made it a nice mix of old South and old Acadian. He passed money to the pizza-delivery boy and, with Pete’s help, hauled the boxes to his patio, spreading them onto several tables he’d arranged poolside. The late sun still had plenty of summer heat left in it, and the boys were enjoying what would probably be their last swim of the year.

“So, this is tradition for you, huh?”

Jayden appeared beside him, dropping a piece of pizza onto her paper plate.

“I guess. We do it every season.”

“A heated pool, too. The public-defender business must be booming—or were you an ambulance chaser before you came here?”

He glared at her. Nearly everyone in town knew this house had been repossessed by the bank because the owner had gone to jail on a drug conviction, which explained how he had acquired such a nice home.

“I defended a guy and got him off. He started a business selling solar panels. He came and put this system in to heat my pool for free.”

She didn’t respond immediately, but picked at her slice. General bedlam surrounded them, fifteen boys yelling over the pizza as their parents tried to talk loud enough to be heard. Gradually the noise faded to a low hum. He noted the dark circles under her sea-blue eyes.

“I’m being rude, aren’t I?” she asked.

“Yes, you are, but I get that periodically.”

She shook her head. “My mom would have a stroke if she knew I’d talked to you like that. She says what happened with my sister isn’t your fault.”

Luke grinned. “If you promise to be nice, I won’t tell her.”

“So you know my mother. I should have guessed. She makes it a point to meet everyone in town.”

“And she comes to most of the games.”

Jayden took a bite of pizza and chewed for a minute, washing it down with a drink of soda from the can she’d set on the table next to them. “I didn’t think of that, but I should have.”

“She also cuts my hair.” He fingered the slight curl above his ear. “I’m due for a cut, too. I haven’t been to her since before…” He stopped himself, not intending to lead the conversation to that topic.

She must have noticed the flash of panic on his face because her lips swept into a slight smile. “Since before the accident, it’s okay. We don’t shy away from discussing it, especially since we didn’t feel like justice was done.”

Swallowing the groan that rose in his throat, he wished for the millionth time he hadn’t been assigned to represent the guy who’d caused the Casios’ crash.

“Your sister and her husband were good people and I hated that it turned out like it did, but I had no control over what happened to the evidence.”

“It’s still kind of hard to stomach.”

“I don’t like it any better than you.”

She eyed him skeptically, then turned her attention to her soda.

“I’ve heard rumors that you get a lot of people off using questionable tactics.”

Luke didn’t want to guess what gossip around town had fueled her anger with that statement. “I imagine a few people think that. I do my job and I do it well because I owe it to the client.”

“No matter what they’ve done.”

“I don’t get to pick and choose.”

“I guess not.”

“Elliot and Garrett are good boys, and I wouldn’t have done anything to hurt them, if I’d had a choice. I hope they know it. The sheriff’s office should take better care of their evidence.”

“You’re right about that. And don’t worry, the boys don’t hold what happened against you.”

“So you’re the only one.”

She shrugged. “Guess so.”

They watched the kids playing back in the pool. For now he could forget his purpose here and enjoy being part of the community. He found himself thinking again that if his life were different, Cypress Landing would be the kind of place he’d want to stay, to marry, to raise a family. Too bad his life wouldn’t ever be like that.

“So, my mom cuts your hair.” Jayden studied him as she tapped her empty plate.

“Yep, I met her a week after I moved here, and she informed me I needed a haircut and told me to be at her place at four that afternoon. I’ve been going ever since.”

Jayden laughed aloud. A sound that made his body hum.

“Leave it to her to get the business of a good-looking man when he comes to town.”

Luke’s grin widened. Did she realize what she’d said?

“So you think I’m good-looking, huh?”

No, she hadn’t realized, until now. She colored a light shade of pink and her eyes darted downward, refusing to meet his.

“I’ve got to throw this away.” Nearly stumbling in her haste to leave, she tossed the paper plate in the garbage then hurriedly pulled an empty chair next to Leigh Fontenot. Jayden Miller thought he was good-looking. He tried not to puff out his chest and grin as he sauntered to the edge of the pool to join Pete.

“What do you think of Elliot’s coach?” Leigh Fontenot tilted her head expectantly toward Jayden, awaiting her reply.

“You know I like Pete. I told you that when you first dated him and when he proposed, and when I came home for your wedding, and fifty other times.”

Jayden ignored Leigh and tried to get comfortable in the lawn chair, but knew she never would. Not because the chair was too firm, but because she wanted to melt into the concrete beneath her feet. She’d admitted to a man she fully intended to dislike, that she thought he was attractive. A fact he’d probably heard from most of the women he’d come in contact with. Since he was Elliot’s coach, she couldn’t completely dislike him, but she had no business getting silly over him.

“Jayden.” Fingers snapped in front of her. “I’m talking to you, okay?”

She focused on Leigh. “I’m listening.”

“What did I say?”

“Fine, I wasn’t listening, but I am now.”

Her friend laughed. “Don’t worry. Luke has that effect on most women, maybe all women. And he’s the coach I wanted your opinion of, not Pete. But I’m sure you knew that.”

Jayden squirmed again, sliding lower in the chair. “I don’t have an opinion of him. I just met him, except of course he makes his living setting criminals free. I don’t know how Pete can coach with him.”

Leigh feigned shock. “And here I thought he was responsible for defending people who couldn’t afford to pay for their own council.”

“Well that, too, but don’t forget he’s the one who let Caitland and Robert’s killer go.” Jayden couldn’t let that rest, not yet.

“Come on, Jayden, it wasn’t like that. After the police report and lab work went missing, there was no case.”

“And I’m to believe he didn’t have anything to do with those things mysteriously disappearing.”

“Of course he didn’t. Luke’s a nice guy. He and Pete have agreed to disagree on a few cases, but in the end, he’s only doing his job.”

“And what a paycheck he must be getting to afford this place, the pool, the property, the barn.” Jayden swung her arm, indicating their surroundings.

Leigh made a face. “Remember, this is your nephew’s baseball coach we’re discussing. Besides, this house had been repossessed by the bank because the guy who owned it went to jail for drugs. Luke happened along at the right time to buy it, cheap.”

Jayden murmured, unconvinced. She wanted Leigh to stop defending him. As long as she could continue to dislike him, and continue to hold him responsible for the injustice of her sister’s killer being set free, she could ignore the rush of excitement she felt every time she saw him. Luke had way too much sex appeal. Through half-closed eyes she studied him while he laughed with Pete and the boys by the pool. What she honestly meant was that he had way too much sex appeal to ever be interested in her. This was a man she couldn’t trust, but she also couldn’t deny being attracted to him. Guys like Luke went for women with perfect makeup and stylishly clipped hair, probably even big hair. One of the single moms in tight-fitting shorts and an even tighter tank top joined the men, her hand sliding along Luke’s bicep as she talked. Luke listened attentively, and Jayden sighed. Yep, big hair and even bigger…

“She never quits. See that, Jayden?”

Glancing at Leigh, she pretended not to know what her friend meant. “See what?”

“Karen Singley has been chasing Luke since the day he came to Cypress Landing. You’d think she’d get the message. If he hasn’t asked her out in two years, well, he ain’t gonna.”

Jayden smothered a giggle. “I guess I can depend on you to let me know if I’m ever making a fool of myself over a man, Leigh.”

“Of course I will. Not that I’ll ever have to. You aren’t the type to do that, at least not anymore. I guess that one time you learned your lesson.”

Jayden clutched the side of the chair. She concentrated on the other end of the pool, this time not seeing Luke or Pete. Leigh touched her hand, but she had to ignore her for a moment longer, had to nail the lid on the nightmares that surrounded her last months in this town years ago.

“I’m sorry, Jaybird.”

Jayden nodded. She might have gotten angry if the comment had come from someone else, but not from Leigh, who’d been her constant support through their teenage years.

“I’m expecting uncomfortable moments now that I’m at the scene of the crime.”

“You don’t expect your best friend to trigger them. And there was no crime, either. No one thinks that.”

“Everyone thinks that, but I know what you meant and you’re right. I’ve learned plenty of lessons.”

Leigh gazed past her, eyebrows arching. “Here’s one lesson you won’t want to miss.” She inclined her head, and Jayden turned to see Pete and Luke stripping off their shirts to leap in the pool with the kids.

“I’ll tell you, my Pete is a looker—and he’s the only man I’m interested in—but Luke’s awesome, don’t you think?”

That was the understatement of the century. Pete was muscularly slim, like a model you might see in a men’s magazine. Luke’s body was much thicker, though not bulky, and tanned to perfection. She imagined his bare chest had captured the attention of every female here, but she couldn’t stop ogling him long enough to verify that. He tossed a water gun to one of the boys, then went under. When he surfaced, rivulets of water streamed down his face and he thrust the wet hair away from his forehead. His gaze locked with hers, and she felt herself blushing like a teenager. She hoped it was the sun. A slow smile curved his lips and he winked at her. A foam ball flew through the air, hitting him above the ear and he spun to attack the offender.

“Jayden, he winked at you. Did I miss something in the last few days?”

She still couldn’t stop contemplating the spot where he’d been and she racked her brain for a cure to calm her galloping heart. “No, he’s being ridiculous because I’m not fawning over him like I imagine half the women in town are.”

“He’s gone from that spot, in case you hadn’t noticed.” Her friend wore a wide grin. “You’re right. The single women, and a few married ones, are on the prowl for him. But Luke has never been ridiculous and he’s damned sure never winked at a female during one of his pool parties.”

Jayden poked Leigh’s leg. “Don’t get matchmaking ideas. I could never be with a man I don’t respect and I don’t have a high opinion of a guy who’s going to work hard to put Duke Swayze back on the street after he killed Eric Walsh.”

Her friend let loose a slow breath. “It is kind of difficult to get past the idea of him doing that, even though it’s what he’s paid to do. He doesn’t get to pick his clients. But the idea of Swayze killing Eric and getting off makes me sick to my stomach. Are they certain it was Eric’s body?”

“They did find his watch on one of the bodies.”

Leigh shivered. “That’s gruesome.”

Jayden stretched her legs and tried to relax. “Let’s change the subject, okay? Tell me what’s been happening in Cypress Landing for the past ten years or so.”

Leigh snorted and launched into an account of their high school classmates, while Jayden made the appropriate replies. Raising the boys and rebuilding her life here were of vital importance to her. People in town would expect her to make mistakes, to fail, but she wouldn’t. She watched her two little men bouncing in the water. They were good kids. She couldn’t mess up, not this time.