I’LL BE WATCHING YOU Page 30

  ‘My father is willing to meet you halfway. The least you can do is—’

  ‘I’m meeting him halfway, too. I’m willing to put aside the fact that he’s the man who prosecuted me for Junior’s murder, the man who convinced a jury that I was guilty.’ Reed tightened his hold on Ella. ‘Back then, I was convinced that he had killed Junior and that was the reason he was so damned and determined to put me away.’

  Ella stared at him in disbelief. ‘You can’t mean that you actually thought my father killed Junior. Why? What reason would he have had?’

  Reed realized that he couldn’t tell Ella about his suspicions – that his mother and her father had once had an affair and that his sister Regina was Webb’s biological child.

  Reed shook his head. ‘He hated Junior, just like everybody who knew the son of a bitch.’

  ‘I understand,’ Ella said. ‘At one time, I wondered if perhaps your mother had killed him, but then I realized Judy wouldn’t have let you go to prison for a crime she’d committed. No mother would do something so terrible to her own child.’

  Reed pulled her into his arms. ‘You’re thinking about your mother now, aren’t you?’ He stroked her back. ‘Ah, babe, I never meant to be the cause of a rift between you and your mother. But I guess we should have known that finding out about us would put her in a tailspin. She’s got to be embarrassed that you announced to the whole world that we were together when Webb was shot. But I can’t believe she kicked you out of your own home, or that your father let her.’

  ‘Daddy told me to stay, but I couldn’t, not with Mother feeling the way she does. Besides, I’ve always had my own room over at Aunt Cybil and Uncle Jeff Henry’s. It’s no problem for me to stay with them until Mother cools off. I’ll deal with her and her embarrassment later. For now, my main concern is convincing Frank Nelson you’re innocent and that he must find out who really killed Junior.’

  Ella looked at Reed, her gaze soft and loving. Every time she gazed at him that way, all hell broke loose inside him. The woman did crazy things to him. He wanted to take her to bed again and make love to her until they were both exhausted. Every male instinct within him wanted to possess her completely, but at the same time was determined to protect her.

  ‘Whoever killed Junior is dangerous,’ Reed said. ‘Not just to me, but to anyone who gets in the way. Maybe, for the time being, until this person is caught, you should stay away from me.’

  Ella kissed him. ‘You might as well ask me to stop breathing. If you haven’t figured it out by now, Reed Conway, I’m hopelessly in love with you.’

  ‘Ah, Ella … babe …’ His mouth devoured hers as her confession echoed inside his head. I’m hopelessly in love with you. He didn’t deserve this woman, but he couldn’t give her up. Not even for her own good.

  A rapping at the door gained their attention. They broke apart instantly, each breathless and smiling.

  When he opened the door, he discovered his lawyer standing there. Mark looked him up and down, inspecting his new clothes that Ella had bought for him.

  ‘Good choice in attire,’ Mark said. ‘Needs a tie, though.’

  ‘Come on in,’ Reed said. ‘We’re almost ready.’

  Mark followed Reed into the one-room apartment over the garage; then, when he saw Ella, he nodded and smiled. Reed went over to the bed, picked up the striped tie, put it around his neck and stuffed it under his collar.

  ‘Want to give tying this thing another try?’

  ‘It would be my pleasure,’ Ella replied.

  ‘Roy, I’ve got to go over to Hopewell and pick up some parts from the junkyard there,’ Briley Joe said. ‘Think you can hold down the fort while I’m gone?’

  ‘Sure thing,’ Roy said, pleased that Briley Joe trusted him to take care of business on Saturday evening, a busy time at the garage.

  ‘If you run into any trouble, call me on my cell phone. The number is written down on that yellow pad on the desk in the office. Otherwise, I’ll see you in a couple of hours.’

  ‘Don’t you worry none about me.’ Roy grinned.

  Roy strutted around, proud as a peacock that Briley Joe trusted him to run things all by himself. Once the boss left, he met each new customer with a grin. He washed windshields, filled up gas tanks and even checked the oil for one nice lady. And he made correct change for the people who paid cash, not making one mistake. By sunset things had begun to settle down enough so that he felt he could stop working long enough to drink a Coke. He rummaged around in his overalls pocket for some quarters to use in the cola machine.

  Briley Joe should be back soon, sometime in the next thirty minutes. He’d take over then and tell Roy he could go on home. Of course, if Reed was here, he would brag on Roy and tell him what a good job he’d done. Briley Joe was okay, but Reed was a nicer man. He actually took the time to talk to Roy, to make him feel like he mattered. Not many people did that.

  He knew he was slow and that some people made fun of him. But Miss Ella had told him once that those people were the ones to be pitied because they were just plain ignorant. He sure did like Miss Ella. She was the finest, bestest person in the world.

  People were talking about Reed and her, some of them saying ugly things. But the way Roy figured it. Reed and Miss Ella belonged together. They were both his friends and he sure hoped they’d invite him to their wedding.

  Roy inserted the coins into the cola machine and, just as he grasped his canned drink, he heard something in the garage, back in the work station. Briley Joe had closed up before he left, but he hadn’t locked the side door, in case Roy needed to get in there for some reason. Was it possible Reed was back already? He’d figured that the big meeting over at Senator Porter’s would take longer than this, but who else would be pilfering around in the garage.

  Roy thought he’d better check and see, just in case some kids had gotten inside and planned to steal something. Of course, it might be a stray dog or cat. If that was the case, then he’d have to find the poor thing something to eat. He still had part of a sandwich left in his lunch box.

  Roy walked around to the side door, which was open just a crack. It had been shut earlier, when Briley Joe left, hadn’t it? Maybe not. He opened the door, but couldn’t see a darn thing. Whoever or whatever was in there was feeling their way around in the dark. Must be a dog or a cat hunting for food.

  But suddenly Roy saw a small light in the far corner, near the row of red tool boxes. It had to be a flashlight. That meant it wasn’t an animal. Probably kids looking to steal something. He’d just scare them off. No need to call the police and get anybody in trouble.

  ‘Hey, you in there,’ Roy called loudly as he stepped inside the garage. ‘I know you’re there, so you’d better come on out. If you don’t give me no problems, I won’t call the police.’

  The flashlight went out, but no one answered. Roy could hear somebody moving around and he saw a shadow. He moved farther inside, then turned halfway around, searching for the wall switch.

  ‘I’m going to turn on the light,’ Roy warned. ‘You’d best be hightailing it out of here before I see you.’ He’d just keep his back turned and give the kid a chance to leave on his own.

  Roy heard a rattling sound, as if whoever was in there with him had gotten into one of the tool boxes. ‘You’d best not be stealing nothing.’ Roy hated to do it, but he didn’t have much choice. He’d have to turn on the light and expose the thief.

  He reached for the switch, but before his finger made contact, somebody hit him on the head. Hard. His head throbbed something awful. When Roy lifted his hand to rub his head, he felt something sticky. He was bleeding.

  A second blow followed the first, then a third. The big, stupid retard fell to his knees, crying. A fourth blow knocked him out. Just one more to be sure he doesn’t get up.

  It was regrettable that Roy Moses had heard something and come to investigate. If he’d stayed out front where he belonged, it wouldn’t have been necessary to resort to violence. Maybe he was
n’t dead. But of course, it didn’t really matter. The man was an inferior creature. Mentally deficient.

  Drop the wrench. You’re wearing gloves so there will be no fingerprints except Briley Joe’s and Reed’s. Too bad Reed has an alibi.

  Hurry. Get what you came here for and leave. No one saw you on the walk over here, and even if they did, they wouldn’t know it was you. With the big meeting at the Porter house going on right now, you don’t have time to waste. Once the Blalock case is reopened, it’s only a matter of time until the truth comes out. You can’t let that happen. Do what you must do to protect yourself.

  26

  ‘It’s not going to be easy investigating a murder that happened fifteen years ago,’ Frank Nelson said. ‘Some of Junior’s buddies are either dead or in the pen.’ Frank cut his eyes toward Reed, giving him a quick glance, then refocused his attention on Webb. ‘And let’s face it, half this town had reason to hate Junior.’

  ‘Including members of my family,’ Webb admitted.

  ‘Are you sure you want to—’

  Webb interrupted Frank mid-sentence. ‘No, I don’t want to go there, but if we’re going to prove Reed didn’t murder his stepfather, then a lot of ugly truths are bound to come out – some secrets that I’d rather stay hidden.’

  ‘Daddy, what are you talking about?’ Ella glanced up from her seat on the sofa beside Reed and stared at Webb.

  The last thing he wanted was for Ella to know that he had feet of clay, that the father she idolized was a mere mortal, a man who had committed more than his share of sins. But if there was any hope of finding out who, if not Reed, killed Junior Blalock, then Webb had to be honest – not only with Frank Nelson, but with Ella.

  ‘Unless it becomes necessary, I’d rather Carolyn not know about this.’ Webb paced back and forth in front of the fireplace, nervous tension propelling his movements. ‘If it becomes public knowledge, I’ll tell her myself.’

  Ella rose from the sofa, walked over to Webb, and put her arm around his waist. ‘Are you saying that someone in our family—’

  ‘Yes, I’m saying that several people in the family had motives.’

  ‘Who?’ Ella asked.

  ‘Me, for one,’ Webb admitted. ‘Jeff Henry for another. And even Cybil.’

  Ella’s gasp pierced him like an arrow, causing deep pain. She slipped her arm from around his waist and stepped in front of him, her gaze directed at his face. ‘But you didn’t kill Junior, and I can’t believe that—’

  ‘No, I didn’t kill Junior, but I wanted to,’ Webb said. ‘I wanted to do what Reed did – beat Junior half to death. That son of a bitch made Judy’s life a living hell. And if I’d known he tried to rape Regina …’ Webb slammed his right fist into the palm of his left hand.

  Ella stared at her father and he at her. Webb realized that his daughter had never seen this side of him, a man capable of violence. She eased backward, several feet away from him.

  ‘What about Uncle Jeff Henry and Aunt Cybil? Why would they have a reason to kill Junior?’

  Reed shot up off the sofa. ‘Isn’t there some other way to do this?’

  Reed hadn’t said, ‘without hurting Ella,’ but the implication was there. Webb understood only too well the desire to protect her. But it seemed rather odd for another man to be as protective of his daughter as he was. However, if Reed truly cared about Ella, then it would be only natural.

  Webb shook his head. ‘Cybil had an affair with Junior, and Jeff Henry knew about it. And I knew about it.’

  Ella closed her eyes, as if trying to blot out the truth. Reed went to her and put his arm around her. She opened her eyes and looked at Reed. Webb glanced away. He’d seen the look of love in his daughter’s eyes.

  ‘Why didn’t you mention this to the police fifteen years ago?’ Mark Leamon, who sat in the leather chair beside the bookshelves, glanced from Webb to Frank Nelson.

  ‘I don’t think Jeff Henry or Cybil is capable of murder,’ Webb said. ‘Besides, fifteen years ago I was convinced that Reed killed Junior.’

  ‘What motive did you have to kill Junior?’ Mark asked. ‘Was it because of Judy?’

  Webb nodded.

  ‘Why did you care so much about what was happening to your in-laws’ housekeeper and her daughter?’ Mark stood as he spoke and, when Webb didn’t respond immediately, Mark questioned him further. ‘Were you personally involved with Judy Conway?’

  ‘Yes.’ Webb couldn’t look at anyone in the room. He stared down at the floor. What would Ella think of him when she knew the truth? ‘Judy and I had an affair years ago.’

  With his arm still securely around Ella’s waist, Reed glared at Webb. ‘Are you Regina’s father?’

  Ella gasped silently, but the expression on her face said it all. Webb looked at her, hoping she could forgive him. ‘Yes.’

  ‘Daddy!’

  ‘Damn son of a bitch!’ Reed cursed under his breath.

  ‘How could you have fathered a child and never claimed her?’ Ella asked. ‘Couldn’t you have at least acknowledged her?’

  ‘No, of course he couldn’t,’ Reed said. ‘Admitting that he had fathered an illegitimate child would have ruined his reputation and ended his political career.’

  ‘The decision was Judy’s as well as mine,’ Webb told them. ‘She knew that I couldn’t leave Carolyn – not ever. Judy loved me enough to want to protect me and, fool that I was, I let her.’

  ‘You’re not the man I thought you were if you were capable of abandoning your own child.’ Ella pulled away from Reed and went to her father, her presence demanding that he look at her. ‘Tell me that you’ve done something over the years to take care of Regina.’

  ‘I have,’ Webb said. ‘But not enough. Nothing I’ve done could even begin to make it up to her for growing up without a father and for having endured a stepfather like Junior Blalock.’

  ‘Just what have you done for Regina?’ Reed demanded.

  ‘He got her a job with me, for one thing,’ Mark Leamon said. ‘And I suspect that he arranged the college scholarship Regina received. Am I right?’

  ‘I did everything that Judy would allow me to do,’ Webb said, then reached out for Ella. He sighed with relief when she allowed him to take her hand. ‘I would have liked for you to have grown up with your sister, for the two of you to have lived together. My greatest regret is that she couldn’t be a part of our family. But Judy and I did what we thought was best for everyone.’

  ‘Oh, Daddy, how terrible for both of you.’ Ella wrapped her arms around her father.

  Suddenly, a ringing noise distracted Webb, and for a few seconds he didn’t recognize the sound. Then, when he heard Frank Nelson talking, he realized that Frank had received a call on his cell phone.

  Webb smiled weakly at Ella. ‘There are things about my marriage to your mother that—’

  Ella placed her index finger over her father’s lips. ‘I know you and Mother love each other, but I understand that Mother’s paralysis has been as difficult for you as for her.’

  Frank cleared his throat. ‘Sorry to interrupt, but there’s something y’all need to know.’

  Four sets of eyes focused on Spring Creek’s chief of police. Webb’s gut instincts told him that the news wasn’t good.

  ‘What’s wrong?’ Webb asked.

  ‘There’s been a murder,’ Frank said. He looked directly at Reed. ‘Over at Conway’s Garage.’

  ‘Briley Joe?’ The color drained from Reed’s face.

  ‘Nope,’ Frank said. ‘Briley Joe found the body. Seems he’d left Roy Moses at the garage to tend to things while he went over to the junkyard in Hopewell, and when he got back about fifteen minutes ago he discovered Roy’s body in the garage.’

  ‘Roy’s dead?’ Ella grasped her father’s hand tightly.

  ‘Seems that way.’ Frank shook his head. ‘Poor old fellow. Somebody beat him repeatedly in the head with a twelve-inch Crescent wrench.’

  ‘Oh, Lord!’ Tears glistened in Ella’s
eyes.

  ‘Who would want to hurt Roy?’ Reed asked.

  ‘I’ve got to get on over there,’ Frank said. ‘We think we may have a witness who saw somebody leaving the garage about half an hour before Briley Joe got back.’

  ‘I should go with you,’ Reed said. ‘Briley Joe’s bound to be pretty shook up.’

  ‘Let us know what you find out,’ Webb said. ‘I was rather fond of Roy. Simple-minded fellow, but a real sweet man. Anybody who’d hurt him would have to be downright mean.’

  Her father had asked her to stay, to come home to live, but Ella had declined, saying she’d rather give her mother a while longer to come to terms with her relationship with Reed. She had fixed coffee for them and shared two cups of Irish Creme decaf while they’d discussed Roy Moses’s murder. Neither could believe that anyone would hurt such a dear, kind man.

  Ella stood at the back door with her father. She leaned over and kissed him. ‘I’ll tell Uncle Jeff Henry and Aunt Cybil about Roy. Call me if Frank lets you know anything tonight.’

  Webb clamped his hand down on her shoulder. ‘We need to talk more about my relationship with Judy, and about the fact that Regina is my child.’

  ‘Yes, we do,’ she agreed. ‘But not tonight.’ She felt as sorry for her father as she did for Judy and Regina. And her poor mother. ‘You do realize that sooner or later, you’ll have to tell Mother.’

  Webb nodded. ‘Ella, about your mother …’

  ‘You don’t have to tell me that you love her. I know—’

  ‘No, you don’t know. That’s the problem. I’ve let you believe that Carolyn and I are devoted to each other, but that’s not true. I haven’t loved your mother in a long time. The truth is that I had asked her for a divorce the very day she had her riding accident.’

  ‘You don’t love Mother?’ Ella couldn’t believe what she’d just heard. All her life her parents had presented a picture of marital happiness. She didn’t think she’d ever heard them arguing, at least not about anything serious. And all this time, her father hadn’t loved her mother.