A Justified Murder, page 25
“Uh,” Jack said, looking at them. The magnetic poles of the earth didn’t have a stronger attraction than those kids did to one another. However, Britney did glance at Jack in question. She seemed to say, Three girls and just two boys?
Jack turned and nearly ran out of the school.
At home, the adults weren’t sure the girls would show up that evening. After all, they were still grounded from the last time they’d escaped. The parents had been bawled out by Jack, the sheriff, and the fire chief.
But the boys had been so sure they’d come that they prepared for a party. Jack drove them to the grocery and loaded up on disgustingly unhealthy food and drinks. At home, the boys calmly sat down in front of the big TV to wait.
The adults talked about what they were doing. Would the killer know? Guess? Put it all together? They had no answer.
At 5:00 p.m., the girls showed up—and behind them came most of the senior class.
“I didn’t expect this,” Sara said in horror.
When Jack’s mother, Heather, arrived, Sara hugged her in gratitude.
“I’ve been through three teenagers,” she said, “so I know what it’s like. Go. Do whatever. I’ll take care of them. Here! Yes, you, Jason Lombard. Do not stand on the furniture.”
Sara practically ran into the sanctuary of her library. Minutes later, Jack and Kate arrived and in front of them were the three girls. Their smiles were now sulks.
“We need to—” Madison said.
Jack cut her off. “If you complain, it will take longer. But if you answer our questions quickly, then you can go. Your choice.”
The girls sat down, mouths closed. Sara and Kate sat across from them.
“We want to know more about your time with Janet Beeson,” Sara said.
“She found me after I took my mother’s pills,” Britney said. The music was so loud they could hear it through the thick walls of the house.
“Tell us more about what led up to your attempt at...?” Kate’s voice was full of caring.
The girls had their heads turned toward the music. Martyrs had suffered less than them.
Jack was standing and he leaned toward them. “If you don’t talk to us, I’ll take you out the back way and drive you home.” He narrowed his eyes. “And you’ll never see my cousins again.”
The girls snapped their heads around to face him.
“We had a fight,” Madison said.
“Why? Over what?” Kate asked.
The girls tightened their lips and said nothing.
Jack got his truck keys out of his pocket.
“We vowed to never speak of it again,” Ashley said.
“Break that vow. Now,” Jack said.
“They texted horrible things to me.” Britney’s eyes filled with tears. “I told you. They said I was fat and ugly and not up to their standards and my dad is poor and my mother smokes cigarettes. They said I should end my life.” She put her hands over her face.
“We did not do that,” Ashley said. “We’ve told her and told her that we didn’t do it, but she won’t believe us.”
“But it’s all true. I am fat. My mother does smoke. My dad—”
“Then who sent them?” Sara asked.
Britney said, “They were from their phones.”
Kate looked at the other girls. “Did you ever lose your phones? Even for just a day?”
The girls stared at her like she’d asked if they’d forgotten to attach their arms.
“Then who did write those texts?” Jack asked. “Who dislikes you that much?”
The girls looked at one another, then back at him. “Jessica Williams. She is our main enemy.”
Jack ran his hand over his face. “As opposed to minor ones, I guess. Why did you declare her to be at the top?”
“She used to be one of us,” Madison said.
“But she stole Maddy’s boyfriend.”
“And of course the boy had nothing to do with it,” Sara said.
Their expressions showed that they didn’t understand what she meant.
“How did you get back at her?” Kate asked.
The girls said nothing.
“I’m guessing you posted naked photos of her,” Sara said.
“She deserved it!” Ashley said. “She—” The looks of the adults made her shut up.
“How did you know it was us?” Madison demanded.
“Somebody told us,” Kate said. “Okay, so Britney, you assumed they were going to do the same thing to you.”
The girl nodded.
“And you didn’t want to be thrown out and ripped apart,” Sara said.
“No.”
“And Janet Beeson saw you on Facebook taking the pills?”
Again, Britney nodded.
“After Janet found you, what happened?” Sara asked. “How did you get back together?”
“Our parents met with us,” Ashley said.
“Glad to hear that your parents are at least somewhat involved with you three,” Jack said.
Ashley spoke. “My mom told us that she had three best friends in high school and they separated because of silly arguments. She said she still missed them so she wanted us to stay friends forever.”
“Our moms made us swear to forget the past and move on,” Madison said. “We promised to never speak of it again, even when we were alone.”
Britney said, “I still don’t know who else could have told me I should kill myself.” She cut her eyes at the other girls.
“It was not me,” Madison said fiercely.
“Or me,” Ashley said. “I told you that—”
Britney cut her off. “I forgive you both.”
“Forgive us? But we never—”
“I think it was probably a fourth party that did it,” Sara said.
The girls looked confused. “There are only three of us.”
“And it was no party!” Britney said.
Sara coughed to cover a laugh. “I think you can go back inside.”
The girls stood up and started firing questions.
“Are Mike and Max really going to move to Lachlan?”
“They don’t have girlfriends, do they? We asked but they wouldn’t answer.”
“The coach said he’d give his right—” Madison looked at Sara. “He’d really like for the boys to be on our school’s football team.”
“No one knows the answer to any of that,” Jack said. “Go back in there and in forty-five minutes I’ll drive you home. And I’m going to talk to your parents. Again.”
“That isn’t fair,” Ashley said. “We gave you information. We helped you.”
“Yeah?” Jack asked. “What exactly did you tell us that we didn’t already know?”
“That...” Madison was unable to give an answer to his question.
“I think Jack is right,” Britney said.
“You always think Jack is right,” Ashley said. “Did you tell him about the brides magazines you bought?”
“And how you write Mrs. Jackson Wyatt everywhere?”
“And—”
“Out!” Jack shouted and the girls left the room. He firmly shut the door behind them. “I feel sick.”
Eighteen
HEATHER HELPED THEM get rid of the kids. “Did you find out what you wanted to?”
Kate said, “We have no idea what you mean. If you’re referring to the Beeson murder, that case is closed.”
“Yes, of course,” Heather said. “If I know nothing, I can’t tell anything.”
“Mom!” Jack said.
“Don’t worry, my dear son. I’m sure you’re just helping your cousins by shelling out two months’ salary. By the way, if you don’t keep those boys occupied, they’ll get into trouble.”
“I think I can handle a couple of kids,” Jack said.
“That’s what everyone thought about you.” Laughing, Heather left the house.
The boys had gone to Jack’s room so the three were alone.
“You didn’t leave your spare truck keys in your room, did you?” Sara asked.
“Locked them in Kate’s jewelry drawer and I put the key back where she hid it.”
“You did what?”
“How about the door into the garage?” Sara asked.
“Bolted from the outside and I put the alarm on. They open a door and we’ll hear it.”
Kate was still glaring at Jack. “How did you find the key to my jewelry drawer? And when did you search for it?”
“When I needed a hiding place for the truck keys.” He yawned. “Anyone else ready for bed?” He smiled at Kate invitingly.
Her eyes flashed anger. “I’m staying with Max.”
“Then can I have your bed?” he shot back.
“Much as I enjoy hearing the foreplay of you two,” Sara said, “I’m done in. Good night.” She went to her bedroom and closed the door.
For a moment Jack and Kate stared at each other. Arguing wasn’t as much fun without an appreciative audience.
In just a few days they had become used to each other’s routines. Twenty minutes later they were in their separate beds and asleep.
Kate was the last one to get up the next morning. She put on black trousers and a lovely Elaine Cross top, and she was careful with her makeup.
“You’re going to work today?” Jack asked when he saw her.
“As long as Tayla is in jail, I don’t think they want me there.”
“Then why...?” Enlightenment hit him. “For the boys? You’re all dressed up to impress a couple of kids?”
“Ah. The jealousy of Jack Wyatt. Legendary. It—”
Sara spoke up. Loudly. “Do you think Janet had anything to do with those nasty text messages sent to the girls?”
“Just to one of them, wasn’t it?” Kate got out cereal and a bowl.
“Easier to hack that way,” Jack mumbled. He was still looking at Kate.
She took the stool next to him. “I don’t know anything about hacking but I see it done on TV. I’m sure there’s a way.”
“How doesn’t matter.” Sara put a full plate of eggs, bacon, and toast before Jack. “What’s important is if she did it.”
“I don’t see it,” Kate said. “That was a really, deeply nasty thing to do. To try to get someone to kill themselves? Because of a kid mimicking you?”
“Kyle said she took away his children because they painted WITCH on her garage,” Jack said.
“And how could she do that?” Sara asked. “Was she there in the courtroom? Did she bribe the judge? It all seems too farfetched to be real.”
“Besides,” Kate said, “everyone liked her. You heard the praise about her. She had a good effect on people’s lives.”
“It doesn’t matter,” Sara said. “Good or bad means nothing.”
Jack and Kate looked at her.
“We’ve all met rotten people. In my long life I’ve met—” She waved her hand. “You aren’t allowed to kill them, no matter what they do to you. They can beat you, steal all you have, whatever. People can do horrible things to you but you can’t kill them. You can’t even get them back by doing what they did to you. If they steal from you, that doesn’t give you the right to steal from them.”
“So Janet had no right to...?” Kate began.
“I mean that whoever killed Janet shouldn’t have done it.”
“But we do need a motive,” Jack said.
Sara picked up a notebook off the kitchen desk. MOTIVE, she wrote at the top. “Tayla may be protecting her niece.”
“Gil didn’t want Janet helping his son’s mother.”
They looked at Kate. “It’s possible that Janet did something to the teen girls.”
“And maybe to Kyle Nesbitt,” Jack said.
“That’s four motives for murder,” Sara said. “Not sure who would have done it for the girls.”
“Britney’s dad,” Jack said. “I would have if it was my kid.”
“That would mean that her parents knew,” Kate said.
Sara was looking at the paper. “Did just one person know—if any of this is true, that is? Or did all of them know?”
“Maybe three of them killed her,” Kate whispered. “Like in Murder on the Orient Express.”
“So Tayla is taking the blame for a lot of people?” Jack asked.
“I wonder...” Sara said.
“What?”
“If there are others.”
“Four motives and multiple suspects aren’t enough for you?” Jack asked.
“Remember the woman with the crochet story?” Sara asked. “She came after we’d called the guards. They said she was really upset and wanted to tell us how good Janet had been to her.”
“At the memorial service several people sang her praises,” Kate said. “Janet the good.”
Jack pushed his empty plate away. “Too bad we can’t talk to them and see if they would tell the real truth. If there is an alternate truth to all this, that is.”
They were silent as they thought about this. If they went around town asking questions, whoever had killed Chet—and probably Janet—would know.
Sara sighed. “There was a problem with a hairdresser. Maybe Kate and I could get our hair done and ask about Janet. We’ll make it sound like gossip and nothing else.”
Jack snorted. “I’m sure you’ll be told, ‘I hated her enough to kill her. Please put me on your list of suspects.’”
“So how do we get them to tell what they know?” Sara asked.
“Numbers!” Kate said loudly. “In the sexual harassment cases, no woman wanted to stand up by herself and say, ‘He did that to me.’”
“Because she wouldn’t be believed,” Sara said. “For all our ‘enlightened’ age, if a woman says a man assaulted her, people will say it was her fault. She wore a tank top in 1986 so of course the man went after her. Not his fault. Hers!”
Jack and Kate waited for her soapbox tirade to finish.
“Sorry, just my opinion. You were saying?”
Kate continued. “That there’s strength in numbers. If we could get them together, and one said a bit, then another—”
“Would say more,” Sara said.
“So how do you get a passel of women together without setting off alarms?” Jack asked. “Advertise a murder evening? Put on a grand ball?”
Kate gave a little smile. “If only we knew someone who had something everyone wanted.”
Jack seemed to understand and they looked at Sara.
She backed away. “Oh no, you don’t. There will not be another open house! The town has seen every inch of where I live. There are photos of my bathroom online. The caption says—”
Kate grabbed one of Sara’s novels from the bookcase and waved it around.
“Oh,” Sara said. “You mean a book club, don’t you? One of those things where they ask me questions. What computer do I use? I say that I write by hand. Then a woman will start telling me that I could use a computer if I’d just have confidence in myself. Then another one says she’ll help me...” She looked defeated. “Couldn’t I just slice open a vein and bleed a quart or two?”
“You’d be given crackers afterward and they’re not keto,” Jack said.
Sara sighed. “Please not a book club.”
Kate’s face didn’t soften. “We’ll have an invitation-only book club and a reading of—”
Sara gasped. “Read from my own book?! I can’t—”
Frowning, Kate got louder. “We will promise whatever we have to to get them here, then we’ll drill them about Janet Beeson. No reading, no questions.”
Sara’s face lost twenty years of accelerated age. “Yeah? We talk about murder? I don’t have to read a scene I wrote thirty years ago, then explain why I wrote it, and by the way, what do I do about writer’s block—which they assume I have often?”
“Nope. None of that.”
Sara stood up. “I’m going to make a pitcher of strawberry iced tea. Anybody want some?”
“I’ll take a beer,” Jack said. “And some of the leftover junk from the kids.”
“It’s too early in the morning for beer,” Kate said. “And besides, it’s bad for the boys to see.”
“You dressed up for them, but I can’t—” He broke off because Sara and Kate were staring at each other. “What?”
“The boys can deliver the invitations,” Kate said.
“We’ll dress them up.”
“Jack’s clothes should fit but they may be a bit small,” Kate said.
“Small?” he sputtered. “Like hell they are. I can deliver the damned notes. We don’t need—”
“Need what?” the twins asked as they entered the kitchen. They had bed-tousled hair, no shirts on, and low-riding jeans. They looked like tall angels come to life.
Jack saw the smiles on the faces of the women and stood up. “Get dressed, you brats.”
When no one moved, Jack half pushed the boys down the hall. The giggles of the women echoed behind him.
* * *
It took them less than an hour to make out invitations to a book club for that afternoon. Tea with Sara Medlar, it read.
“It’s very short notice,” Kate said, “and it’s a weeknight, but I still think they’ll come.”
“Unless they get suspicious,” Sara said.
“Or more likely that will make them come,” Jack said.
Sara and Kate looked up at him. He was wearing a shirt with a collar and black dress trousers.
“Where are you going?”
“The bank.” Jack’s face seemed to go pink.
Kate and Sara stared at him. They didn’t believe him.
Jack sighed. “Okay. No bank. I thought I’d go see Leland.”
Sara turned to Kate.
“Ten minutes,” she said. “Meet you at the MINI.”
“I don’t think—” Jack began.
