Chapter 13 #2
What would she do when she realized he’d already been hanging around the service center to protect her? He’d face that when it came.
“Can one of your other workers run the service center for a while?” Cain asked. “Then you can hire me to help out.”
“Yes. In fact, I’ve been trying to get Earl to promote Derek Johnson. Take some of the work off himself. He just keeps saying the man’s not ready.” Her tone said she wasn’t happy with that evaluation. “You’ve met him. What do you think?”
“From what I’ve seen, Johnson’s competent, confident and careful. Exactly what a businessperson needs to be. No matter the line of work.”
“I agree. So, it’s settled.” Betsy nodded as she picked up the empty pizza boxes. “I’ll call him tomorrow. Tell him as of Monday, he’s in charge of the service center.”
Cain liked the way Betsy made decisions. “Be sure to tell him I’ll be around to help out on a part-time basis, too. Whatever he thinks I can handle, I’ll be glad to do.”
Shooting him a side-eye, she tossed the empty boxes in the trash. “You, JB and the police department are set on this plan, right down to you being around every so often. Right?”
“Yep.” He grabbed the note with Phillip’s name on it from the table and crumpled it into his pocket.
“Just remember, I’ll pull the plug if I think my customers are in danger.”
“Yep.”
He’d expect nothing else. That’s exactly what JB had made top priority for the police department’s plan. As for himself, he planned to make Betsy’s safety his top priority.
“Or my employees,” she said.
“Understood.”
Waiting at the conference room doorway, he leaned against the doorjamb while she finished straightening chairs. Closing blinds. Refilling the coffee tray with sugar and cream and stirs, cups and lids and assorted coffee pods. When she finally walked in his direction, a flame of heat hit his core.
Suddenly she looked at him with a touch of fear in her eyes. “Or my family. Me I risk. Family never.” She bit her bottom lip to stop the quiver in her chin. “Promise me. Promise…”
Everything inside him crumbled. Why had he ever left Crayton? Left Betsy? She’d always been too honest and upright for her own good. Standing here in front of him, begging for her family, only reaffirmed nothing had changed on that front.
Shadow hadn’t lied about the cartel giving him assignments to watch her at Joanie’s, but he had to be wrong about her being a willing part of whatever was going on. Now it was Cain’s job to keep her from stumbling into something she knew nothing about.
“I promise, Betsy. I’ll do everything within my power to keep everyone safe.” He pushed an errant strand of hair back behind her ear, then cupped her chin in his hand. “Especially you.”
She didn’t pull away, just looked up into his eyes as her lips slipped a sliver-of-hope apart.
Slowly, he lowered his head and lightly kissed her lips.
She barely returned the offer before she broke contact and clicked off the conference room lights as she walked into the main area of the dealership.
“What’s the matter, Betsy? Afraid you might learn to like me?”
Following her as she locked up for the day, he made sure to watch her ritual. Noticed a few things he’d have done differently. Maybe he’d gradually mention some security improvements. Not today though.
Walking beside her across the parking lot gave him a chance to ask her some business questions. Most were easy and relaxed things about the business. Some had her making a detour to show him something specific.
Finally, as they headed back across the lot to where she always parked by the back door, she clicked the start button on her key fob. “Heat should at least take the chill off before we get there.”
“That’s one thing I regret not having.” He glanced at his seven-year-old truck. Might not be new, but it was paid-in-full. Had a lot of miles on it though. He’d used it a few times on assignments besides a couple road trips to Alaska to visit his dad. “Might have to think about an upgrade soon.”
Betsy smiled. “I know someone who can get you a good deal on a brand new, top of the line RAM or F-150.” Betsy smiled as she swept her arm around the dealership as if she were a car-show model pointing out the features on the newest line.
He laughed. “I bet you can.”
“Extended cab. Upgraded rims. Any color you want. I’ll even throw in the price of the remote start.”
“I’ll take a raincheck on that. Once I sell the house, I may just take you up on a new one.
” Raising his hands in surrender, he realized just how much he’d missed the joking way he and Betsy used to banter with each other.
His gut tightened… Or was this a bribe cleverly mingled in with the conversation?
“By the way, if I have any more questions about this plan, who should I contact? You? JB? Deputy Evans? Officer Kennett?”
“I’ll get back for sure with you on that,” he said. “For now, just make sure you’ve got all our numbers on speed dial. If you can’t reach one of us, then push the next button until you do.”
“Sounds good. See you next week.” She clicked the unlock button on the driver’s side door.
Resting his hand on the handle, he paused instead of opening the door. “I just wanted to say how proud I am of you. You’ve got a nice business here, Betsy.”
“Thank you. I work hard to give the community what they need.” She raised her eyebrows. “Keeping the bills paid isn’t always easy, but I’ve been able to expand every year.”
“That’s a feat unto itself. Before I left town after high school, I remember this being maybe a third of this size. One of my last memories, as I was on my way out of town, was watching them bulldoze down the car lot’s sign. They’d already flattened the building on the lot next door.”
“A week later the new sign was installed. Lots bigger. Huge spotlights on it and” —she rolled her eyes— “the dealership’s name had changed to Big Papa Carrington’s Dealership. BPC for short. The next month he held a massive used car sale. You should have seen it.”
“Wouldn’t have mattered to me. I wasn’t in the market for a new car. I was in the market for getting the heck out of Crayton.”
“Oh, but there’s more. A few weeks after that, BPC announced they’d signed a franchise agreement with one automotive company. And that the modernized, cutting-edge service center would be opening soon.”
Cain’s interest was peaking. How had that small car lot become such a thriving business so fast? The franchises weren’t cheap.
“Interesting. Did he have a backer?”
“Not that anyone has ever been able to prove.”
“The Carringtons never struck me as wealthy. Of course, you never know what’s in a person’s bank account.”
“True, but he seemed to be working hard to grow the business,” she said.
“Such as?”
Betsy raised her eyebrow once more. “The next month he held the first annual picnic, with free food and drinks and statewide advertising. Early October, he started his annual fall chili festival, complete with campaigning politicians to work the crowd and speak.”
Cain would bet money Big Papa hadn’t paid a dime for any of the food or drink. Probably made a deal with one of the political parties. “Let me guess. Only politicians he agreed with were invited to attend.”
She nodded. “Representative Shorestone led the way each and every year.”
“He and Carrington have always been friends, as I recall.”
“Business partners for a long time, too. Even after Joanie’s dad, Mr. Dash, their other partner, was killed.”
Cain only vaguely remembered the crime. “That was just a few years after the three of them had pooled their money to open the car lot, right?”
“Yeah. Happened in broad daylight, right there at the original lot’s location across town.” She sucked in a deep breath and blew out a long sigh. “Papa C and Representative Shorestone decided to relocate after that. I heard the whole story from Joanie.”
“Did they ever catch the killer?”
“No. In fact, a few years later it was declared a cold case.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. It was hard on Joanie and her mom when he was killed. A little over a year later my own dad was killed. So when we moved here permanently, Joanie and I naturally bonded as friends.” Betsy voice softened into sad, and her chin briefly quivered.
Cain gauged how much to ask, how hard to push for answers. “Did they ever look into why it went cold?”
“Sounded like there weren’t many clues. No security cameras. No witnesses. No fingerprints. Big Papa had been out of town on vacation, and Shorestone worked a full-time job eight-to-five Monday thru Friday. That left Mr. Dash alone to watch the lot that day.”
Still standing by the car, Cain felt the wind pick up and the chill deepen. He opened the car door so she could get into the heat from the idling car.
“When did you buy the dealership?” he asked.
Her expression morphed into a serious mode as she glanced at the Peyton’s Automotives sign at the entrance. Then she slid into the driver’s seat and clicked her seatbelt in place.
“I didn’t buy the business.” Tossing her hat and gloves next to her purse on the passenger side, she sighed. “It was a wedding gift from Big Papa Carrington to me. Not to Phillip. Not to both of us. Can you believe that? Ninety-five percent of the dealership signed over to only me.”
To say Cain was stunned was far from strong enough for what he felt in his gut. “That’s a really nice gift.”
“Yeah. I’ve always wondered why.” She questioningly stared at him, then she turned and for a long, long moment she stared at the Peyton’s sign. “Maybe we’ll talk about that sometime.”
She pulled the door closed. Clicked the lock. Drove away.
The glow from the illuminated Peyton’s sign lit the area where he’d parked. And as he walked toward his truck, he felt himself staring at the sign, also. Peyton was Betsy’s maiden name.
Ever since he’d returned to town, he’d wondered at the name on the sign.
Now he knew…except he still didn’t really know.
Sometimes women took back their maiden names after their marriage ended.
But to change the name of a well-established auto dealership was confusing.
Stunned was definitely not a strong enough word.
What if Shadow’s warning was right? Even partially right? What if Betsy was more than what she seemed? Damn, there was that nagging doubt again. Peyton’s… Peyton’s. Why Peyton’s?