Chapter Nine
Rain started to fall two steps after they were inside of the house.
Once again Liam took charge of carrying Clem.
If Blake hadn’t called ahead to let Lola know they were coming, she was sure the older woman would have been shocked quiet at the sudden appearance of the big man holding their small kiddo.
Instead, she greeted them all at the door with a tight hug for Blake, a soft back rub for the sleeping Clem, and a little pat on Liam’s arm. It wasn’t until Clem had been settled in her room and all three adults were standing around the living room that Lola and Liam were officially introduced.
“I would have liked meeting you under better circumstances, but I have to say, Sheriff, I’m sure glad you were around.” Lola reached out for Blake’s hand. “When Blake called me earlier to tell me about what happened... I, well, I’m just really glad everything worked out the way it did.”
Liam gave her a small smile. He waved his hand a little as if swatting away the nice.
“I didn’t do much,” he said. “Blake here is the one that did all the work. I just showed up at the end.”
They all knew that wasn’t true—Liam had put a stop to the madness—but it was late, and they weren’t there to rehash what had happened.
Lola wasn’t letting him go that fast though.
While Blake and Clem had eaten takeout at the sheriff’s department, Liam hadn’t had one bite.
Once Lola realized he had an empty stomach, her Southern manners refused to let him leave.
“I’m making you an egg-and-bacon scramble,” she announced. “Unless you really want to fight me on it, why don’t the two of you go take the weight off your poor feet?” Lola caught Blake’s eye. “The chairs are ready.”
The sheriff raised his eyebrow at that.
“The chairs?”
Blake led the way back outside to the front porch.
She motioned to the random assortment of outdoor chairs lined up next to the railing.
There were two adult-sized and one miniature chair, covered in rainbows.
Around those were a few wayward dinosaur figurines, an empty can of Play-Doh, two bottles of bubbles, and a smattering of shoes lined haphazardly along the wall.
“We’re a family who really likes to watch the rain,” Blake explained. She eyed the slight chaos that was around the chairs. “And apparently a family who forgets to clean the front porch. Sorry for the mess.”
Liam settled into one of the chairs. He laughed.
Blake followed suit and settled in the chair next to him. The rain was still falling outside, but it was a soft shower. Soothing. Cool. Relaxing. At least as much as it could be considering the last few hours.
“It’s not mess,” he said. “It’s breadcrumbs.”
“Breadcrumbs?” Blake parroted.
She watched as the corner of Liam’s lip turned up ever so slightly.
“A buddy of mine used to say the thing he missed the most about home while we were deployed were the breadcrumbs. You know, the little things people leave around their homes that prove a family lives there.” He laughed.
“He used to talk about the hair ties his daughter and wife would leave lying around everywhere. The cats would find them, eat them, and then cough them up, making a mess. He’d say he’d get up in the middle of the night for some water, and if he could make it to the fridge without stepping on one or the other, it was a win.
Things like that. A chipped bowl no one ever throws away, discarded socks in random places, toys and books and the pen you can never find when you need it, but it’s always in the way when you don’t.
His family called that breadcrumbs. You follow them, you’ll find a family. ”
It was the most Liam had ever said to her in one go.
Which made the idea of breadcrumbs even more endearing to her.
“Breadcrumbs,” she repeated. “I like that. It’s a more charming way to call something messy, that’s for sure. Though I’m not sure Lola would take breadcrumbs as a good excuse to skip cleaning day. That might be pushing my luck.” Blake smiled at the thought. Liam caught it.
“You two seem really close. Lola, I mean. She lives here with you full time?”
Blake nodded.
“That’s how we got close, to be honest,” she admitted.
“She’s technically my stepmom. My dad married her after I’d already left town, so I’d only met her a few times before coming back to Seven Roads.
” Blake hesitated. She didn’t want to unload any more sad family stories, so instead of detailing what had led Lola to move in with her, she decided to be brief.
“She already had a good relationship with the kids and came to live with us to help out.”
“Did your dad come too?”
It was a reasonable question. He didn’t know that there had been a falling-out between her father and Blake when she was younger. He didn’t know about the falling-out that had happened again after Beth’s death.
So Blake didn’t answer that in detail either.
“No. He lives in Alabama.”
Whether he wanted to know more or simply took the hint, Liam accepted her answer as enough. Blake capitalized on that and switched back to an earlier subject.
“You texted Darius asking about Missy’s laptop right after we got here, right? Did he respond yet?”
Missy having a laptop the day she died had indeed been news to Liam.
After admitting he had never seen it, he’d sent a few messages to Darius after parking in her driveway.
He’d buttoned up about it right after, focusing on getting Clem in the house.
Blake had momentarily forgotten about the news the moment she had seen Lola’s worried gaze.
And when they were tucking Clem in?
All Blake had been thinking about was how hard the girl had cried against her.
Now she had the space to backtrack, though the excitement from the morning at working a case had dulled.
Blake wouldn’t admit it, but she was exhausted.
Physically and emotionally. Once Liam was done eating, she was going to check on Bruce and then probably lie down next to Clem on her bed for comfort.
Hers more than Clem’s, if she was being honest.
Liam pulled his cell phone out but didn’t check it. He nodded.
“He just confirmed that none of us saw a laptop,” he said. “I told him we’d talk about it after we talk to the McClennan cousins tomorrow. We’ll see if it was an oversight on our part.”
“What do you think the alternative could be?”
The question popped out before she could stop it. Liam’s expression went impassive.
“Sorry,” she said. “Old habit.”
Blake returned her gaze to the rain past the railing.
She was surprised when Liam didn’t skip a beat in answering her.
“I don’t think Missy jumped off that bridge voluntarily. I think something might have happened to get her there. That laptop might be the missing thing that either proves my hunch or finally puts it to rest.”
Resolution, calm and clear, came through every word.
It was still strong as he snorted.
“It’s been like pulling teeth to try to piece together Missy’s last day. I’ve never run into so much resistance from an entire town.”
Blake knew that feeling.
“That’s an old Seven Roads habit right there,” she said. “If one person thinks you’re in the wrong, it won’t be long before the whole town thinks it too. Especially if that one happens to be someone like Mr. Clearwater.”
Liam turned to her. She gave him an apologetic look.
“Cassandra said you had his fans all up in arms by asking questions after the case closed.”
He grumbled.
“I’ll never understand how a retired businessman has so many folks sticking up for him. You’d think he was a celebrity or something.”
“He might as well be one,” Blake said. “Jobs are a big deal here. Some of those guys had been working at the tractor supply straight from high school up until retirement.” She became angry again.
“You know, Ray and Chase McClennan’s fathers were like that.
They started working at the tractor supply alongside Mr. Clearwater when they were all in their twenties.
They managed to retire before he shut down the business.
He kept them and their families fed and clothed for their entire lives basically. That’s where the loyalty comes from.”
That was also why Missy had taken the general public’s criticism for her father’s decision to sell the business. No one would go up against the elder Clearwater since they would potentially have to deal with those older folks who had been through thick and thin with her daddy.
It hadn’t been fair to Missy.
“I wonder how they’ll act when they find out what their kids did.”
Blake shrugged.
“Not every parent will go to bat for their kids. They might come down harder on them than even you could. I don’t know much about their dynamic, but I bet, regardless, they’ll all be loud about it.”
The door behind them opened right in time to stop their conversation. Lola presented Liam with her scramble bowl with a flourish. That flourish extended in part to Blake when she handed her a bag of little cookies.
“You earned it,” she said, all smiles.
Blake let out a breath and returned the affection.
A year ago, she had barely known Lola. Now she couldn’t imagine her not being around.
Blake’s gaze fell onto the man next to her.
A week ago, he hadn’t even been on her radar. Now? Would Blake be okay not seeing him again?
Blake decided not to think about any of that yet.
Instead, she listened to the rain with the sheriff at her side.