Chapter 25
Paradise sprang toward Doris, but Blake moved her aside. “Let me check her. Call for a nurse.”
Paradise pressed the button to summon the nurse and stepped to the side. Drew hovered nearby. Doris couldn’t be dead. And
why would she be expecting her? There’d been no mention of her being interrogated in the police files. Had she kept quiet
for years about something important?
The nurse ran in and joined Blake at Doris’s side. She administered smelling salts, and Doris coughed, then opened her eyes
and pushed the vial away. “You trying to kill me, girl? Help me up,” she commanded Blake.
He supported her back and eased her into a sitting position. “Take it easy.”
“This has happened before,” the nurse whispered. “Her heart.”
Regret squeezed Paradise’s chest. “Should we leave?”
Doris’s hand shot out and clamped around Paradise’s forearm in a surprisingly forceful grip.
“No. I’ve been waiting to see you, Paradise.
This old ticker will hold on a little while longer.
I’m ninety-five, and when the good Lord calls me home, I’m ready to go.
I’m tired of this crazy world anyway.” She released Paradise and patted the cushion beside her.
“You sit right here. Blake, you could start coffee. I don’t have much of a kitchen, but it’s enough. ”
“I’m on it.” He walked to the minuscule kitchen, and the nurse brushed past him to exit the apartment.
Doris stared at Drew. “You look like Paradise. Are you Andrew James?”
Drew nodded. “You knew about me?”
“Shoot, Becky told me everything in that bright head of hers. She was a remarkable woman, your mama. I loved her like a daughter.
She and Granger’s deaths about took me to my grave too.” Doris patted the sofa cushion again. “Sit in the chair there where
I can see your face, Andrew James.”
Drew looked confused but did as he was told.
The aroma of coffee began to overlay that of vanilla and lemon furniture polish. Blake returned with a glass of water that
he handed to Doris. She thanked him and took a sip. “How’s your mama, Blake?”
“She’s great. Busy of course. She’ll have my hide when she finds out I came to see you without her. The boys will too.” He
moved to sit beside Paradise.
She took his hand, relishing the rough calluses on his fingers and palms. She should have talked to him and Jenna about Doris
as soon as her name came up. Paradise’s pulse thrummed along her veins at the thought of what they might learn from her.
Doris’s attention went back to Drew. “How’d you find your way here, boy?”
“I’m a police detective in Atlanta, and I knew I was adopted so I’d been looking for my birth parents. Paradise and I both
had our ancestry done and I emailed her. We met a few weeks ago, and it feels like we’ve always been brother and sister.”
Heat spread through Paradise’s chest at the warmth in his tone. Any fears she had about him turning his back on her once this was all over vanished. Their tie was strong and unbreakable. “Why did you say you’d been waiting for me to come?”
Doris’s eyes turned back to examine Paradise’s face. “You’re not a wallflower of a woman. I can see you’re strong, and you’re
with Blake, aren’t you?”
“I am.” Was Doris stalling? Paradise turned her left hand so the emerald engagement ring winked in the sunlight streaming
through the window. “We’re engaged.” The words were sweeter than chocolate on her tongue.
Doris clapped her hands. “That’s lovely, just lovely.”
“You thought I’d come eventually. Why?”
“I’d promised to keep Becky’s secret about your brother until you came asking me for more information. She thought that might
never happen, but even as a girl, you were the inquisitive sort—always sitting and staring at bugs and squirrels, examining
tree trunks and flowers.”
“I’m a wildlife vet now, so my curiosity about animals morphed into something useful. What do you know about Drew’s father?”
She could reveal they knew Ben’s identity, but they might get more information if they let her talk.
Doris nodded in approval. “Drew is a great nickname. His name was Benjamin Collins. Yes, that Collins family. His mama found out he was having an affair and threatened to cut him off from the family money, but he might
have divorced his wife anyway. Becky found out he was married, though, and broke up with him. I think Benjamin really loved
Becky. And to be honest, it was right that he went back to his wife and honored his marriage. He already had a daughter he
needed to raise. More children came along too.”
This was nothing new and Paradise chafed at the lack of earth-shattering news she’d hoped to find here. “It’s an old story, isn’t it?”
“Not so old once he found your mama again. I think I know why she was killed, and I think I know who arranged it.”
Paradise could barely breathe with the intensity of Doris’s expression. Was that sympathy in her faded blue eyes? “What are you saying?”
“Your mama was pregnant. Benjamin was the father.”
“No.” Paradise licked her lips and shook her head, but she felt the weight of the truth in Doris’s words. “How could she know?
I mean, she and my dad weren’t separated or anything.”
“Your dad was overseas for a business trip when the baby was conceived. It was right after Benjamin came into her life again.
She was distraught but determined to be with him. I had my misgivings.”
Drew pulled his chair closer to her and sat with his knees nearly touching hers. “Who do you think killed her?”
“Benjamin said he was leaving his wife so he and Becky could be together, but I never trusted him. He wouldn’t sully his own
hands with murder, but he might hire someone to get him out of a difficult situation.”
The news created a tsunami of emotion crashing into Paradise, and she hugged herself. “Did my dad know?”
Doris shook her head. “Becky told him she was leaving him for Benjamin, but I don’t think she told Granger about the baby.
It would have been cruel to tell him. He begged her to go to marriage counseling before deciding to leave, but her mind was
set. I don’t believe she ever got over Benjamin.”
Drew’s expression betrayed nothing. “You think my father hired someone to kill her to get out of a sticky situation? Do you
have any evidence?”
“I saw the person who went into the house that day.”
The words were dropped so casually, it took a moment for Paradise to process the information. “You recognized him?”
“I did. He worked for my husband before he died, and he always seemed the sneaky sort. I have good instincts about people.
When he was a teenager, there was a rash of break-ins all over town. He was running with a bad crowd back then, and I always
thought he was involved in those robberies. I watched him from the window when he went to the door the morning of the murders.
He had something in his hand that he gave to you, Paradise, and you let him in. I saw him run from the house later that night
too. It was before the murders, but he had been back inside.”
Paradise remembered someone coming from the cable company. “What’s his name?”
“Warren Gibson.”
Paradise and Blake gasped at the same time.
“Who’s Warren Gibson?” Drew asked, glancing from Paradise to Blake and back again.
“He works for The Sanctuary,” Blake said.
“He’s my vet tech.” Since Warren was new, Paradise hadn’t gotten to know him well. She’d always thought he was shy, but he
probably lived in fear that she’d remember him giving her the music box. “Did you tell the police about him and about the
pregnancy?”
“I told them about Warren but not about the pregnancy. I know I should have, but I couldn’t bring myself to betray your mama’s
confidence. I hoped if I pointed them toward Warren, he would lead to the killer.”
Paradise exchanged a glance with Drew. There’d been nothing in the files about an interview with Warren.
Blake parked the van in The Sanctuary lot. “I’ll find Warren.” He expected Paradise to object, but she nodded and opened her door. “He should still be in the clinic. We can all go.”
Drew climbed out of the back seat and went to stand with Paradise. “You okay, Sis?”
“Just shocked. I can’t believe Mom was pregnant and I never noticed.”
“You were a kid. We both lost a sibling that day and never knew it.”
The door to his mom’s house opened, and Isaac and Levi came running to greet them. “You were gone forever,” Isaac said, his
brows drawn together.
Blake took a moment to scoop him up while Paradise hugged Levi. “I’m sorry, buddy. I can’t play right now. I need to talk
to Warren.” His little brother smelled of banana.
Isaac clung to Blake’s neck. “He’s not here.”
“He left already?” Paradise asked. “It’s just after lunch.”
Blake’s mother opened the front door and stepped out. Her smile faded when her gaze landed on Blake. “Is something wrong?”
“Isaac said Warren left already, and we wanted to talk to him.”
His mom frowned. “It was very abrupt. I’d taken the boys to see King Julien, and we were talking about how the lemur was doing.
I got your text saying you’d been visiting with Doris and wanted to talk to him when you were done. He said he wasn’t feeling
well, then dashed off for his car. A stomach bug, I suspect.”
“It’s more than that.” Blake jerked his head toward Levi. “Little pitchers.”
She nodded. “Hey, boys, I noticed the GoodPops were frozen. You can each have two.”
“Yay!” Isaac outran his brother in the race for the door, and they tussled at the entry before they disappeared inside the
house.
“What’s going on?” his mother demanded.
“Doris said Warren was the cableman who handed me The Phantom of the Opera music box.” Paradise went over all they’d learned from Doris. “And someone shot Bea in the head. She was still alive when
the paramedics took her, but she might not make it.”
Mom put her hand to her mouth. “Poor Bea. And Doris never said a word to me in all these years. Pregnant. I was not expecting
that.”
“She said she told the police about Warren,” Drew said. “But I’ve been over all those files several times and there aren’t
interview notes. It either slipped through the cracks, or someone took it out of the file. I’ve begun to suspect someone in
the sheriff’s department has removed evidence. It could have been Gerald Davis all those years ago or someone who works there
now.”
“Who in the sheriff’s department would want to hide Warren’s involvement twenty years ago? And why?” Blake would like to suspect
his nemesis, Creed Greene, but he had no reason to think the obnoxious detective had that old murder on his radar. Could it
be that Sheriff Davis was ordered to hide evidence as a favor to the Collins family? Or maybe he wanted to hide his involvement
with Ben Collins. Ben could have been paying him to protect Becky.
“I assume you have Warren’s address?” Drew asked. “We could try to intercept him.” He turned to Blake’s mom. “How long has
he been gone?”
“About an hour.”
They’d stopped to grab food in Pelican Harbor before heading back to the refuge. Blake doubted an hour’s head start was enough for the man to clean out his apartment and escape town. Unless he headed out without taking his belongings. “Could you grab Warren’s address for us, Mom?”
“You bet. It will be in the employee files. I think he lives in Foley. You can head that direction and I can text it to you.”
His mother hurried toward the office.
“I’m going to make a pit stop while she gets it.” Drew headed toward the restroom.
Blake linked arms with Paradise. She’d been quiet and withdrawn since talking with Doris. “You doing okay?”
She leaned against him. “Talking to Doris brought back some sweet memories. I used to be at her house all the time. Mom once
said Doris gave her the unconditional love she’d never felt from her own mother. I never understood her comment about how
cruel my grandmother was until I found out about Drew. I wish I’d stayed in touch with Doris. Maybe I wouldn’t have felt so
alone.”
“You’ll never be alone again.” He pressed a kiss on top of her head and picked up her left hand. “That ring sure is pretty
on your hand.”
She splayed her fingers. “I love it. Abby and your mom are going to go with me to look at dresses after the governor’s visit.
I verified that Chet’s caters food, so we’re good there.”
“You’re not wasting any time with the wedding plans.”
“August will be here before we know it.”
True enough. His phone dinged with a message, and he glanced at it. “Warren lives in Foley, on the same street as the library.”
He spotted Drew and motioned for him to hurry up. “Here comes your brother. Let’s get going. Maybe we can intercept Warren.”
They got in the truck. “Anyone want to put odds on whether Warren headed out of town without getting his belongings from his apartment?” Blake asked.
“I think he’s still there,” Paradise said.
“He’s gone,” Drew said. “His reaction was a dead giveaway that he’s involved.”
Blake started the truck and pulled out of the lot. “What if Sheriff Davis is behind the cover-up?”
“I’d sure like to see all the files on Ben’s murder and his wife’s death and how they might be connected to the Alden murders,
but Pascagoula PD is dragging their feet on it,” Drew said. “Police departments are often loath to share information.”
“Speaking of the sheriff, we should ask about Bea once we see if Warren is around,” Paradise said.
“I have an idea,” Blake said. “The library director probably wouldn’t mind checking to see if his car is parked there.” He
handed his phone to Paradise. “Text her and ask.”
“I’m on it.” She tapped out a message and sent it off. An answer came back immediately. “She’s going outside to see if his
car is in the driveway.”
He increased his speed and turned right onto Route 98. He suspected Drew would win their wager, but he hoped he was wrong.
His phone dinged with a message.
“His car is there!” Paradise pumped her fist. “I win!”
“As long as he doesn’t jet out before we get there,” Drew said.
The traffic wasn’t helping. There was no way to pass, and Blake was stuck behind a slow-moving cement truck. He drummed his
fingers on the steering wheel and resisted the impulse to lay on the horn. It wasn’t the driver’s fault his vehicle lumbered
along like a turtle.
He finally reached 59 and got lucky enough to catch the light for his left-hand turn. Route 59 this time of year was always busy. Tourists packed the roads and slowed the traffic to a crawl.
“Almost there.” Paradise gasped and pointed. “Wait, there he goes!”
Blake barely caught a glimpse of the blue Toyota Warren drove. He watched for a place to turn around. “Keep an eye on him.
He’s in a blue Toyota Corolla, Drew.”
“He saw us,” Paradise said. “When he spotted us, his eyes went wide and panicked, and he sped up.”
Drew twisted in the back seat. “I don’t see the car. Did he turn off?”
If Warren had seen them, he’d probably taken steps to vanish and selected an unlikely route. Blake turned around at the next
light and went back south. But Warren had slipped out of the net.