Nine #3
“Not really. To be honest I didn’t approve.
” Ellen grimaced. “I didn’t really know him, but he was so much older than she was, and from a rich family.
I warned Anna that he might be using her, but she claimed they were in love.
Soon Anna was spending all her free time with him, and, well, Nancy and I pretty much turned our backs on her.
” Ellen covered her face with her hands.
“I can’t believe she died so young. We should have been nicer to her… ”
“It’s okay, I’m sure my mom knew you cared.” Nina glanced at him, then leaned over to pat Ellen’s knee. “Please don’t be upset.”
Ellen swiped at her damp eyes. “The story gets worse,” she said in a hoarse tone.
“Anna came to me crying one day, because she learned Douglas was engaged to be married. And when she confronted him, he promised to break off his engagement. Only the next thing she knew, Doug was gone. His mother claimed he’d moved out to live with his new fiancée.
” Ellen bit her lip. “Anna was crushed. She honestly believed he loved her. And she confided in me about her pregnancy. I told her he was using her as a sidepiece and that she should have known better to get involved with him. Next thing I know, Anna dropped out of school.” Ellen frowned.
“I wonder if she found out about her cancer after she had you.” Nina realized that Ellen figured that was what had killed her.
“That happened to another friend of mine. I feel terrible, now. More than ever. I was such a lousy friend, I didn’t go visit her. ”
Anna had told Ellen about being pregnant. That was interesting. Jackson could see the shock in Nina’s eyes as the realization hit her, too.
“I’m sorry,” Ellen said after a moment. “I guess I’ve been feeling bad about this for years. Seeing you, looking so much like her, brought it all back.”
“It’s okay.” Nina’s smile was strained. “I appreciate your candor. And truly, you shouldn’t blame yourself. If my mother was sick, she should have told you and Nancy, rather than keeping the information to herself.”
“I still should have been there for her.” Ellen’s expression was full of self-reproach. “I should have been a better friend.”
“I don’t blame you,” Nina said softly. “You were young, just kids. It’s not your fault.”
Jackson wondered if Ellen would feel worse if she knew Anna had been murdered.
Ellen offered a watery smile. “You’re very sweet. Just like your mother.”
“Thanks for meeting with us.” Nina rose to her feet. “We won’t take up any more of your time. You’ve been very helpful.”
“I’m glad.” Ellen stood and followed them to the door. “Have a good rest of your day.”
“You, too.” Nina gave her a quick hug, before following Jackson outside. She grabbed his arm when they were on the front porch.
“We found him,” she said in a low voice. “Douglas Tillman has to be my biological father.”
“Sounds like it,” he agreed. He stood for a moment, watching her. “Although that doesn’t really explain why your mother was murdered. You’d think if the issue was that he was engaged to be married, anyone going after Anna would make sure you were eliminated from the equation, too.”
“Yeah, unless they didn’t know about me until after my mother showed up on their doorstep.
” Nina frowned, gazing off at something in the distance.
“It seems incredible to think that the solution to not paying child support to my mother, or keeping the news of her pregnancy quiet to protect the family name or some such nonsense, would be cold-blooded murder.”
“People have been killed for less.” He lightly touched her arm. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah.” Nina sighed. “My mother shouldn’t have gotten involved with an older guy, especially when she was only seventeen. Yet it also makes me mad to know Douglas used her naiveté to his advantage.”
Jackson was forced to agree. Not to mention Douglas shouldn’t have been sleeping with a high school senior. Anna may have lied about her age, but that didn’t excuse his taking advantage of the situation.
“Let’s get back to the rental property.” Using the key fob, he unlocked the SUV. Then noticed a black truck cruising toward them.
“Get down!” He shoved Nina toward the front of the SUV, the only solid cover they had as he pulled his sidearm.
The driver’s-side window lowered, revealing a man dressed in black, his face covered by a mask holding a gun. The passenger fired several shots toward him. He returned fire, ducking down behind the SUV beside Nina. The gunfire sounded incredibly loud. Nina called 911.
He popped up to take another shot, but the truck careened away. He stared after it, frustrated beyond reason when he noticed there was no license plate.
This was the third black truck in the past twenty-four hours.
The windshield on this truck was intact, so it wasn’t the same truck that had found them before.
And the fact that this guy was basically waiting for them to appear forced him to acknowledge that the gunmen expected Nina to find Ellen Carter.
The danger must be related to her mother’s cold case murder after all.