Chapter 23
Paradise stood in nearly knee-high grass with her hand in Blake’s and stared out over the rolling plot of land. “It’s beautiful,
Blake.” She pointed out a knoll covered with native azaleas. “That reminds me of what the naturalist William Bartram thought
when he first visited Alabama. ‘Fire in the hills.’”
He watched her face light up as she checked out their future homesite. The sun sparked on the red highlights in her hair until
it almost matched the eye-popping golds and reds in the blooms.
She pointed to the hillside. “What if we put the house there? It would have a great view of the refuge in the distance. How
many acres are here?”
“A little over one. I like the setting. We’d have room to spread out here. It backs up to the African safari enclosure, so
there wouldn’t be too much danger if a giraffe managed to knock down a fence. Not that it would ever happen, but I’d rather
have the safari area there than, say, a tiger enclosure.” Neither of them had gotten on the zip line since he’d had to be
rescued during the storm and flood. The hyenas had nearly gotten him.
She nodded and shaded her eyes with her hand. “The zip line doesn’t pass over our plot either, which is good. We won’t be on display.”
He tugged on her hand. “Let’s walk up to the top of the knoll and check out our view.” He led her to where rocky soil choked
out most of the grass, and they wandered to the hill with azaleas all around them. He pointed out cows grazing in the distance.
“It’s almost as gorgeous as you are.” He folded her in his arms, and she wrapped her arms around his neck. Her kiss tasted
of promise and fidelity, and he wanted to relish it. So he did.
Her cheeks were pink when she pulled away. “I was looking online at floor plans last night. Do you like this?” She took out
her phone and handed it to him, then stood close to point to the screen. “We’ll need to stay on budget, and while this one
isn’t huge, it’s got three bedrooms, enough for the boys to come stay and enough for kids down the road. I did some research,
and a simple roofline helps to keep costs down. Plus this design has the plumbing close together so it cuts down on costs.”
He flipped through the pictures. “I can see us on the porch watching the wildlife. And it reminds me of a shotgun house, and
I like those.”
“I do too! Very classic for this area.” Her voice grew animated as she pointed out the kitchen. “I think I’d like painted
cabinets, maybe in gray or blue. And high ceilings and wood floors if we can afford them.”
He didn’t want to deny her anything, but he was touched that she planned to keep an eye on the bottom line. The park was doing
fine financially now, and his mother had raised his salary way more than he thought she should have. She’d assured him the
park could afford to pay him a living wage now.
He handed her back her phone. “I like it. I’ll start looking for a builder, but we really should set the date.
We’ll need some time to pull together the plans.
It’s not my area of expertise, but I’ll help all I can.
Do you know what venue you’d like? How about August?
I think I can manage to wait until then. ” He chuckled when she blushed.
“I’d like a simple wedding with family and friends. We could put up a couple of tents in the backyard. I’d love to hear the
animals wish us a happy wedding. We can order BBQ from Chet’s along with sides, then have finger desserts. A happy day where
we celebrate with people we love.” She smiled. “But I still want a white dress.”
“And I want to see you in one. You’ll want Drew to walk you down the aisle? I’ll ask Hez to be my best man.”
“Would it be crazy to ask your mom to be my matron of honor?”
His throat tightened. “She’d be honored, babe. And would it be stupid to have both my brothers bring down the rings?”
“They might even be happy to fling flowers around. I know Isaac would.”
She wasn’t wrong. He grinned at the thought of his little brother tossing out handfuls of flowers. Neither of them had been
to enough weddings that they would think that only girls did that job. “They love you, and I know they’ll want to be part
of everything.” He wrapped her close. “Are you ready for the chaos?”
She kissed him. “I exult in it already.”
Paradise’s tummy was still warm with the chicken noodle soup and the brownie she’d had for lunch.
She sat on the front porch with the diary from her childhood and listened to the monkeys’ chatter in the distance.
The subtly spicy scent of Jenna’s bed of carnations filled her head, and the warm July breeze lifted her hair.
The screen door opened and Jenna stepped out. “There you are. Blake called from town and asked if we needed anything. He said
you hadn’t answered his text so he was making sure you were all right.” She held up Paradise’s phone and a hair tie. “I found
these in the kitchen.”
Paradise patted the spot beside her on the porch swing, then took the items and laid them on the cushion beside her. “Got
time to sit a minute?”
“Of course.” Jenna settled beside her and gave the swing a gentle push with one foot. “Any surprises in the diary?”
“I haven’t started. The past few days have been a roller coaster, and I wanted to catch my breath first.”
“I don’t blame you. Lots of ups and downs.”
“Big ups.” Paradise held Jenna’s gaze. “We haven’t had a minute together alone, and I wanted to tell you how much this emerald
means to me. You’re the glue that holds this family together, Jenna. I want you to know how thankful I am for the man you
raised and the little guys you’re still shepherding. You’re a wonderful example of what a mother should be. You have made
me feel as loved and accepted as if you were my own mom.” Her voice went hoarse, and she cleared her throat of the tears trying
to clog what she wanted to say.
Jenna’s blue eyes filled with tears. “Oh, honey, you’ve always been special to me. I mourn the years we lost with you, but
God says he’ll restore what the locusts have eaten. And here we are. You’re back with us about to make a new life with Blake.”
“And with you and the boys. I don’t think I could have healed without having you in my life.” Paradise embraced Jenna. When she released her, they were both crying. “Thank you for everything. I’m not taking your son—I’m joining your herd.”
Jenna wiped her eyes. “I’m so happy, Paradise. You can always come to me with anything, even if it’s a complaint against Blake.
I’ll be the wingman for both of you.”
“I’ll remember that.” Paradise’s phone sounded with a text, and she picked it up. “It’s Blake. He’s still at the grocery store
and wants to know what’s for dessert.”
Jenna chuckled. “Tell him to bring home ice cream and I’ll make apple pie. Frank is coming over too.”
Paradise typed a quick message back. “I’m going to need all your recipes. The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach.”
She lifted the phone. “And his text just proved it.”
“You don’t have to worry. You’ve had the key to Blake’s heart since he was sixteen.” Jenna stood. “I’d better get started
on that pie.” When Paradise started to join her, she held up her hand. “You have time to learn the recipe. See if there’s
anything important in that diary. If nothing else it’s a trip down memory lane with your parents.”
Maybe that’s what Paradise was afraid of. She picked up the diary and opened the latch, then flipped through the pages. Most
of them were mundane gushings of her eight-year-old self. She lingered over the details of her ninth birthday party and smiled
when she remembered Abby at that age. How amazing that they were still friends. Her pulse rose as the date grew closer to
the murders.
A dried leaf marked the spot of the page dated January 25, 2005, and her mouth went dry as she read her childish handwriting.
I saw a yellow car outside when I came home from school. I asked Mommy who was here, and she said no one. She ran to the door to see the car and went outside. She asked me if a woman was driving it. I didn’t see. She said maybe it was Pam. I don’t know anyone named Pam. I don’t know why she is mad.
Paradise tried to remember that day and the car, but she couldn’t. Had the yellow car been the missing Barracuda? If that
car had been parked in front of their house, who had driven it? Maybe whoever had killed Ben had come straight here to kill
Mom. She flipped to the next page, February 2, the day of the murders.
I love my music box. Mommy is mad I got it though. She asked if I saw the car bring it. I didn’t see anyone bring it, but
the cable guy said it was on the porch. Why does she keep talking about the yellow car? I don’t know why she yelled. I didn’t
steal it.
The music box had shown up a second time as a way to rattle her when Roger Dillard was trying to coerce Jenna to sell the
property, but they’d never addressed where it had come from in the first place. Just who had left it on the doorstep the day
of the murders? Someone had known she loved The Phantom of the Opera. That narrowed the possible pool to family and a couple of friends.
She fingered the pages of the diary and forced herself to turn to the next one, the final entry. It was dated the day of the
murders as well.
Mommy said sorry. She said it didn’t matter who left it. It was nice. I wish I could say thank you though. But she looked scared. Why would she be scared? It’s just a music box.
Unease rippled down her back. Had her mother feared the killer had left it? It wouldn’t have been unusual for her to mention
to Ben that her daughter loved The Phantom of the Opera. Maybe someone close to Ben had left it. Paradise rubbed her head. Maybe she was seeing connections that didn’t exist.