Chapter Twelve #2
She shoved at the end of the mattress, almost knocking him off-balance, and he had no choice but to let her assist. She noted that he was sweaty, as if he’d overexerted himself. He must have gone on an intense bike ride. His T-shirt was damp from his neck to his waist, clinging to every muscle.
Together, they carried the mattress through the open barn door and toward the wooden pallets.
He let it fall with a heavy flop. She stepped back and dusted off her hands.
He glanced around the space, his brows raised.
His gaze scanned the dresser, microwave, and minifridge before cutting back to her.
“You did this?”
“Yes. I didn’t get a chance to tell you.”
“Thank you.”
She removed the plastic from the mattress. “Was it Billy’s birthday yesterday?”
He seemed surprised by the question. “No, why?”
“Your mother told me it was. She talked me into going out to cheer her up.”
Wade didn’t say anything.
“Do you mind if I ask what happened to him?”
“Do you mind if I ask what happened to you?”
“What do you mean?” she asked, though she knew.
“You prowl around here like a scared rabbit.”
“Rabbits don’t prowl.”
“You keep a loaded shotgun on hand, you have a fake name, and you wear a goddamned disguise.”
She sputtered with indignation. “A disguise? I don’t even dye my hair.”
“You cover it with a hat, and you try to hide that body in baggy clothes.” His eyes dragged over her from head to toe. “It doesn’t work, you know. You’re still hot, even like that. Your face is stunning.”
Meredith crossed her arms over her chest. “I asked you about your brother’s death because it’s important, at least to Wynona. It’s an obstacle to her sobriety. But apparently you’d rather insult me than talk about it.”
“I was complimenting you, Meadows. If you don’t like it, take your sexy ass out of here and stop begging for my attention.”
“Fuck you, Hendricks.”
“Anywhere, anytime.”
She flipped him the bird on the way out of the barn.
His mother was right. He was rude, overbearing, and arrogant.
His judgmental tone was infuriating. The worst thing about him was that she still wanted to shove him against the nearest flat surface and press her lips to his.
She could silence him with a kiss, easily.
He’d made it clear that he was eager to oblige. But that didn’t mean he respected her.
She curled her hands into fists as she stormed away. He always showered after his bike ride, so she avoided the house. She couldn’t smell his cedar-sage soap without imagining his wet, naked body and getting weak-kneed.
He was just a man, she told herself. Yes, he was an attractive man, with strong hands and a quick mind.
He could play the perfect gentleman when he wanted to, and he could make her laugh like a maniac.
He had well-muscled thighs, from all that bike riding, and broad shoulders that made a woman want to hang on tight.
He was genetically gifted. So what? She’d known smart, handsome men before. Tripp Gilley had a pretty face and a clever way with words. Falling for him had been the worst mistake of her life.
Hooking up with Wade could be even more disastrous. She was too vulnerable in his presence, too tempted to throw caution to the wind. If she wasn’t careful, she’d spill all of her secrets to him, and he’d break her heart.
She detoured into the garden to pull weeds.
She yanked them out by the roots, her teeth gritted, until sweat trickled down her back.
When it was safe to return to the house, because Wade had left for work, she went inside for a cool drink.
Wynona was sitting at the table with a coffee mug.
She looked every bit of her age today, with dark circles under her eyes, tangled hair, and an unhealthy pallor.
Meredith washed her hands at the sink before grabbing a soda from the fridge. She popped the top off and took a sip. Her annoyance at Wade had transferred to Wynona, who had orchestrated last night’s debacle. The woman had abandoned her at the restaurant and drugged her to the gills.
“Wade’s pissed,” Meredith said.
“What else is new?”
Meredith decided not to hold back. “I’m pissed, too. I woke up on the couch, and I don’t remember how I got there.”
“Wade carried you inside.”
“He told me.”
“He was very concerned for your welfare.”
She groaned in embarrassment.
“I thought you liked him.”
“I never said that.”
“Actually, you did.”
Meredith sat down across from her. “When?”
“Last night, when he put you on the couch. You said ‘Stay with me, Wade. I like you. You’re not like him.’”
Her cheeks flared with heat.
“You were laughing fit to bust when I got home, too.”
Meredith didn’t want to explain that awkward scene. Some stories weren’t appropriate for a mother’s ears. Frowning, she changed the subject. “I asked him what happened to Billy. He wouldn’t answer. So I’m asking you.”
Wynona sipped her coffee without comment.
Meredith wasn’t going to let her off the hook this time.
She might be the help, but she was nobody’s doormat.
“Nona, you lied to me about Billy’s birthday.
You knew I wouldn’t give you a ride to the bar, so you talked me into going out to dinner.
You used me and ditched me. Now you owe me the truth. ”
Her blue eyes narrowed with pique. “You’re overstepping.”
“No, I’m not. We’re friends, and you need to deal with this. You need to try to mend fences with Wade.”
She pursed her lips tightly. “That’s impossible.”
“Tell me why. I’ll listen.”
Wynona hesitated. She couldn’t refuse outright because she valued Meredith’s friendship. More importantly, she valued the work Meredith did around the ranch. They’d built a business together, and Wynona couldn’t run it on her own.
“What happened?” Meredith prodded gently.
Wynona sighed in defeat. “Billy was going through a rough patch in the weeks before he died. He called me one night after he got in a bar fight and lost. The other guy took it too far. Beat him up pretty bad.”
“What was the fight about?”
“A woman, naturally. Billy had a crush on a waitress named Natalie, and he was trying to impress her by acting tough.”
“Wade has mentioned Natalie before.”
“They were both interested in her, but she preferred Wade, like all the others. Billy was very depressed about it. He accused Wade of stealing his girlfriends and following him around in his patrol car.”
“Was that true?”
Wynona shrugged. “I don’t know. Wade might have had cause to follow Billy around. Even so, Billy felt targeted unfairly. He said that Wade was using his power as a police officer to harass him and interfere in his life.”
Meredith assumed that there was more to this story. She doubted that Wade would abuse his authority just to annoy his brother. She felt the urge to defend him. Instead she stayed quiet and let Wynona continue.
“Billy grew up in Wade’s shadow. Wade was the star athlete, the straight-A student, the outstanding police officer.
People were constantly telling Billy to be more like Wade.
The comparisons bothered Billy. He excelled at one thing.
Misbehaving.” Wynona cleared her throat.
“A month after the fight, he died of a gunshot wound to the head.”
Meredith drew in a shocked breath. “Who shot him?”
“They called it an accidental discharge. He was showing the gun to a friend.”
“Oh my God,” Meredith said. She reached out to cover Wynona’s hand with her own. “That’s awful. I’m so sorry.”
“I don’t believe it was an accident.”
“What do you mean?”
“Wade was the first responder at the scene. His father is the town sheriff. They can make anything look like an accident.”
Meredith stared at her in disbelief.
“Billy wasn’t happy. He threatened to commit suicide several times when he lived with me, but I didn’t think he was serious, and I never told anyone.” Her face crumpled as she spoke. “I was afraid they’d take him away from me.”
Meredith got out of her chair and wrapped her arms around Wynona. “I’m sorry, Nona. I’m so sorry.”
Wynona didn’t break down into noisy sobs. She was too dignified for that, or too good at repressing her emotions. She shed a few silent, stoic tears and patted Meredith’s hand. “Now you know why we don’t discuss it.”
Yes, she did. These were the kinds of secrets that kept people sick. Wynona’s guilt would haunt her forever. Wade had his own demons to fight. She couldn’t imagine him covering up a crime, but he refused to talk about his brother’s death. He was clearly traumatized by it.
“I’m going to lie down,” Wynona said. “I don’t feel well.”
Meredith let her go. She’d asked for the truth, and she’d gotten it. Wynona’s truth, anyway. She suspected that Wade’s truth would be entirely different. The situation was even more fraught than she’d figured.
Meredith borrowed the Subaru and drove to the hardware store to purchase some supplies.
Then she continued to the library. A month after she’d arrived in Lost Lake, she’d applied for a library card under a fake name.
She used it to book a thirty-minute computer session.
The Lost Lake branch had ten computers for patrons, all in a quiet workroom.
Meredith huddled at a corner desk and typed the same search terms she’d entered yesterday.
She was afraid to enter her real name. She didn’t know how IP addresses or technology worked, but she had the vague idea that hackers could track specific terms. Searching for Tripp Gilley wouldn’t trigger anything because he was famous.
People searched his name all the time. Her name was another story.
Tripp had enough money to buy the best security staff, and the best hackers. The incognito mode she used at Wynona’s house wouldn’t protect her. She couldn’t afford to draw the notice of a private investigator on Tripp’s payroll.
Maybe he didn’t care about her anymore. Maybe he’d called off his dogs. She hoped so, but she had to proceed with caution. If he found her, he’d kill her. That was what he’d promised to do, and she believed him.
The article she’d seen yesterday came up first. She clicked the link and used a read-aloud app to listen to the text at a low volume.
Meredith A. Rose of Plainview, Kansas, has been reported missing.
Her last known address was in Memphis, Tennessee.
Ms. Rose wrote a short letter to her family over a year ago stating that she was safe, and she intended to dedicate her life to serving a remote religious community in the Ozarks.
Interviews with community members indicate that no one matching her description had joined.
Ms. Rose has not been in contact with friends or relatives since her disappearance.
Ms. Rose may be living under an assumed name and working in the farming or service industry.
Anyone with information regarding Ms. Rose is asked to call…
Meredith listened to the article twice, just to make sure Tripp’s name wasn’t mentioned. No suspicious circumstances were noted. She wondered if the police were involved, and if they’d spoken to Tripp.
Her heart pounded with trepidation as she closed the digital page.
She glanced around the computer room warily.
She didn’t feel safe here. She wouldn’t feel safe anywhere.
The letter she’d written was a ploy to explain her disappearance to her family, and to protect them from Tripp.
He’d threatened to kill them, too. And now he would do everything in his power to make sure she wasn’t found by anyone but him.
Meredith massaged her temples, trying to think. She needed an escape plan. She had nowhere to go, and no way to get there, but she’d saved several thousand dollars. She could buy an old truck and cross the border into Mexico.
She didn’t want to leave Lost Lake, though. She wanted to stand her ground. She’d built a life here. She had a job she enjoyed, and a place to call home. She had Wade.
Although she was reluctant to confide in him or ask for his help, the option appealed to her more than relocating to a foreign country.
Meredith didn’t harbor any illusions about him, however.
He’d made his intentions clear: he was interested in a physical relationship.
She couldn’t count on him for the long term, but he was a good man to have around.
He was a big, strong police officer. He could offer his protection.
She wavered, caught between a rock and a hard place. Staying at the ranch wasn’t the wisest choice. She didn’t want to put Wade or Wynona in danger. Tripp was a violent man with an unlimited number of thugs at his disposal.
Meredith also didn’t think she could cozy up to Wade Hendricks without getting emotionally attached. In some ways, risking her heart was scarier than fleeing to Mexico or facing off with Tripp.
The most practical concern, and a major stumbling block, was that Wade would make a police report as soon as she confided in him.
He was too much of a Boy Scout to do otherwise.
Meredith didn’t trust the police in Lost Lake, or anywhere else.
If Tripp Gilley rolled into town, they’d bend over backward to accommodate him.
Tripp was clever, charming, and famous. She didn’t stand a chance when it was her word against his.
Feeling deflated, she typed in a new set of search terms: BORDER CROSSING STATIONS NEAR ME, and Trucks for Sale in Lost Lake, Texas.