“Now what did I just tell you?”
The third jolt sent her thrashing backward. Her body felt like it was on fire. She fought to keep her eyes open as darkness touched the edges of her vision. Somewhere Jack was wailing. And then Dahlia was gone.
Lars told himself he didn’t really mind working on Friday, even though half the town seemed to be taking the day off. The half that didn’t need to sell things to tourists, that is.
He’d never seen the streets so clogged—it looked like everybody in Texas over the age of sixty had decided to come to Konigsburg for the weekend.
Not that the tourists needed the emergency services of an accountant. Lars checked his calendar—no appointments until next week. He supposed he could use the time to catch up on other work, but somehow the prospect didn’t sound all that appealing.
Mrs. Suarez had left at noon. Lars figured he wouldn’t stay much longer himself. He could pick up Daisy at the bookstore and head out to the county fairgrounds to see what Jess was up to.
What she’d been up to last night had left him with a lot of very pleasant memories that had warmed him through the morning. He had no idea where this thing with Jess Carroll was headed, but he figured he’d worry about that later. He’d had a lifetime of careful planning and look where it had gotten him. He’d earned the right to be slightly irresponsible for a change. Right now, life was good.
The bell on the outer door tinkled around twelve-thirty, and Lars felt like groaning. He’d almost talked himself into leaving for the day.
He opened his office door and leaned out. “Hi. What can I…”
Lorne Haggedorn looked back at him, with a slightly smug grin.
Lars grabbed his cell from his belt and began punching in the number for the police station. Given the number of times he’d had to call them, thanks to Haggedorn, he had it memorized.
“You might want to hold on there,” Haggedorn said mildly. “Hear what I’ve got to say before you jump off the handle.”
Lars paused in mid-punch. Given his choice he’d rather be punching Haggedorn. “I doubt it.”
“You don’t want to hear what your wife’s been doing?” Haggedorn’s grin widened. “Up to you, of course.”
Lars took his hand away from the cell. “My wife? You mean my ex-wife?”
Haggedorn nodded. “Thought that’d get your attention. You want to take this inside your office?”
“We can talk here. Nobody else is around.” Lars clipped his cell back onto his belt. “You work for Sherice?”
“Right. Lorne Halsell, at your service.”
Lars ignored his extended hand. “Let’s see, that’s Haggedorn, Barrymore, and now Halsell. Any of them real?”
Haggedorn/Halsell reached into his pocket and pulled out a battered leather wallet. “My license.”
Lars studied the laminated card for a moment. “You’re a PI?”
“Right. Divorce work, mostly for some people in San Antonio. Your wife’s lawyer looked me up.”
“For what?” Lars handed the card back. “The divorce is final. It’s not like she can do anything else to me.”
“Child custody as I understand it.” Halsell shrugged. “Lawyer said she was trying to get the custody order amended.”
“With what? What are you supposed to find?”
Halsell shrugged again. “Anything I can lay my hands on. She wanted some evidence you were endangering the little girl. Lawyer told me to look at the child care facilities, stuff like that. Also neglect. I guess she figured she might be able to convince some judge that Daddy didn’t spend as much time with her as Mommy would.”
“That’s crazy.” Lars stared at him. But even as he said it, he knew it wasn’t crazy at all. It was Sherice. Pure Sherice. “So what did you tell her?”
Halsell dropped into a chair, smiling again. It was one of the more unpleasant smiles Lars had seen. “Ah, well, that’s where this visit comes in, Mr. Toleffson. On account, I haven’t exactly told her anything yet. But I will. I figured you might want to have some input on that. For a fee, of course.”
Lars unfisted his hands again. “Meaning?”
“Meaning technically I shouldn’t even be here talking to you, but I figured I’d give you a chance to have your say, maybe help decide what goes into that report. I mean, I could write a report that says your little girl’s staying out in some cabin with a woman who cleans houses. Or I could say you’ve got her set up with the manager of a luxury bed and breakfast. All in the way you phrase it, you see?”
“This is total bullshit, Halsell.” Lars leaned back against the edge of Mrs. Suarez’s desk, folding his arms to keep from grabbing the front of Halsell’s shirt. “All I have to do is tell the judge my ex’s PI broke into a private home and assaulted the owner, to say nothing of poisoning the owner’s dog. You’re not in any position to make deals here. In fact, calling the cops is sounding real good again.”
Halsell’s smile disappeared abruptly. “What the hell are you talking about? I never broke into any house. You mean that Carroll woman? I heard she’d been having problems out there by herself. But I never even got past the front porch. All I did was ask her some questions. If she claims anything else, she’s lying.”
The muscles in Lars’s jaw were so tense they were painful. “You gave her a phony name, after you tried to pump me for information. Are you telling me you didn’t do anything else?”
“Sure I did something else,” Halsell snapped. “I was being paid to find out information. I asked around town about that broad and her kid. I checked to see if you’d screwed up anything else with your daughter. And I tried to find out if you were boozing it up or bringing women into the house with the little girl. All the standard stuff. Nothing illegal. Hell, the only questionable thing I’ve done is come here to talk to you. That’s what I get for trying to give you a fair shake.”
Halsell subsided into his chair, doing his best to look injured.
“Oh, get bent, Halsell!” Lars snarled. “You came here hoping I’d buy you off. You don’t give a damn about whether or not I get a fair shake. You’re probably planning ways you can sell me out to Sherice even if I do pay you off.”
“No sir.” Halsell’s mouth became a grim line. “One thing you can say about Lorne Halsell—he stays bought. You pay me off now and I’ll come through for you.”
Lars stared at Halsell, trying his damndest not to snicker. He had other things to think about just now. “I’ll consider it. You have a deadline?”
“I’ll give you a week. Here’s my card.” Halsell got to his feet, digging into his pocket.
Lars glanced down at the printing, then back at Halsell. “You really didn’t break into Jess Carroll’s house? Or poison her dog?”
Halsell gave him a disgusted look. “Call me in a week, Toleffson. Otherwise, I go to your ex-wife. And she strikes me as a real piece of work.”
Lars watched the door close behind Halsell’s back, trying to decide just what he’d learned. He tended to believe the SOB, oddly enough, but if it wasn’t Lorne Halsell at Jess’s place, who was it? Had there really been a threat from Jess’s in-laws? And was she really still in danger?
Logically, she might not be. Maybe Pete had been right in the first place—maybe it was all a remarkably dumb burglar. But something about it made him feel itchy. Someone had given Sweetie the poisoned hamburger. Someone had cut a hole in Jess’s window. Someone had knocked her down trying to get to her son.
More than ever, Lars wanted to talk to Jess Carroll. He flipped the sign on the door to
Closed
and headed for the county fairgrounds.
Chapter Nineteen
Jess stumbled up the aisle, trying to listen for Jack’s cries between the carols blaring from the booths. Somewhere nearby a baby was definitely howling—probably her son. She could get there in a few seconds if she could only get her legs to work again.
She was wide awake in the middle of the worst nightmare she’d ever had. Moving but unable to move, stumbling, her muscles turned to glue. She grabbed hold of the uprights beside the booths, trying to stay upright herself as she pushed forward through the maze of aisles.
If only she could find Docia. Or Janie. Or Lars. Most of all Lars.
“Are you all right, Miss?” someone called after her, but Jess couldn’t slow down to answer him. She couldn’t let Dahlia get Jack to the exit. Once they were outside, she’d never find them.
And Jack would be on his way to Lydia Moreland.
Jess caught her breath in a sob. And then she heard Jack’s wail again, close by. Maybe even in the next aisle.
She turned the corner and saw a row of booths heading toward the red exit sign. And Dahlia, pausing to wrap Jack tighter in his blanket as he howled in fury.
“Stop her,” Jess cried. “Please, somebody stop her! She’s got my baby!”
Dahlia froze and stared back at her. Then she turned and began walking briskly toward the exit turnstile.
“No!” Jess screamed again. “Stop her! Stop her! Please, somebody.” She grabbed hold of the nearest booth, pushing herself forward on legs made out of rubber.
Up ahead a man stepped from behind a booth in front of Dahlia. “Maybe you’d better wait a minute, Miss. Until we get this straightened out.”
“She doesn’t know what she’s talking about. This is my baby. Look at her—she’s drunk. Or crazy.” Dahlia’s voice was clear, no trace of the frightened little girl who’d been leaning on Erik’s arm the day before. On the whole she sounded much more rational than Jess did.
The man at the booth narrowed his eyes at Jess, considering the way she was holding herself up, wobbling slightly. Then he glanced back at Dahlia—ordinary, unpierced Dahlia. Any minute, he’d back up and let her go.
“Get a cop,” Jess cried. “If it’s her baby, she won’t mind. Let the police sort it out. Please!”
The man looked back at Dahlia again. “That makes sense, ma’am. It shouldn’t take the police long to figure out what’s going on. Then you can be on your way.” He gave her a reassuring smile as he reached for his cell phone.
“Can’t let you do that, sorry.” Dahlia pulled the Taser from beneath Jack’s blanket and pressed it against the man’s arm in one smooth movement.
The man dropped to the ground, clutching his arm and moaning. Somewhere in another booth a woman screamed.
Dahlia turned toward the exit again, but now other booth owners and customers had stepped forward, although no one seemed willing to get too close to her.
“Get out of my way and nobody gets hurt.” Dahlia’s voice was calm, but she held the Taser ready at her side.
“You give that baby back,” someone called. “He’s not yours.”
Jess glanced to the side to see a woman she vaguely recognized—maybe the checker at the grocery store or the woman who ran the cash register at the filling station. “He’s not yours,” she called again. “That’s Jess’s baby.”
“On the contrary,” Dahlia snapped. “Finders keepers.” She glanced toward the exit, her mouth curving in a faint smile. “Now move it.” She waved the Taser at the nearest man. The crowd shifted uneasily.
“I called security,” a man at the next booth yelled. “They’re on their way.”
Dahlia’s mouth firmed into a thin line. She started walking toward the exit again, swinging the Taser toward the crowd. Jess stumbled after her, willing her feet to speed up. Her muscles had gone from numbness to agony. She gathered her last bit of strength and lunged, trying to grab Dahlia as she went down.
Dahlia glanced back, then adjusted something on the Taser. “Well, damn. You don’t take orders, do you? Let’s turn this sucker up to max this time.” Jack wailed as the crowd moved back again.
“Leave her alone.” The vaguely familiar voice sounded blessedly calm in the midst of chaos. Jess shifted her glance from Dahlia for a moment.
Erik stood in the space before the exit turnstile.
“Shit.” Dahlia gave him a thin smile. “I should have known you’d show up.”
“Give Jess back her baby,” Erik said quietly. “Then we’ll figure out where to go from there.”
“Go fuck yourself,” Dahlia replied. “Do you know what this kid’s worth?”
“Yeah, I’ve got an idea. But how do you plan to get away with him now? Everybody here knows what’s going on. City cops are on their way. Hell, they’re already here, counting me. Face it, babe, you gambled and lost.”
“Not yet I haven’t.” Dahlia held the Taser in front of her again. “You’re off duty, playing security guard. And I’ve got a top-of-the-line cop Taser. You gonna hit me? Tackle me? Shoot me? With what? You don’t even have a night stick. Plus, I’ve also got this solid-gold baby. You want to take a chance on him getting caught in the middle of this? Now get out of my way.”
Erik raised his hands, moving out of range of the Taser. “Come on, kid, don’t make me hurt you.”
“You don’t hurt me, I won’t hurt you. Just move out of the way.”
Jess pushed herself to her knees behind them. The numbness in her muscles seemed to be wearing off, but the agony wasn’t. She took a breath and started to pull herself to her feet, hanging on to a nearby booth. The booth owner leaned forward and took her arm, helping her up.
“Better stay back,” he murmured. “Let the guard handle it.”
Excellent advice. Jess had no intention of following it, however.
Jack’s wails were the only sounds she could hear. She could see his face, bright red with indignation, over the top of Dahlia’s shoulder. He began to wriggle, trying to get loose from the arm that was probably holding him too tightly.
Jess moved forward almost without thinking. Jack was only a couple of feet away. Her baby was screaming. She had to do something. Now.
Jack saw her at the same moment she reached toward him. He took a breath and then lurched in her direction, still shrieking, pushing his feet against Dahlia’s shoulder, for all the world as if he were in his jumper seat back home.
Dahlia half-turned, Taser in hand. “Goddamn it, woman! What does it take to peel you off?” She swung the Taser toward Jess again at the same moment that Erik’s hand closed down hard on her wrist.
Several things happened at once, although it took Jess a while later to remember the sequence. Dahlia dropped the Taser and jerked around toward Erik, snarling. Jack howled again and managed to wriggle out of her arms. Jess lunged forward one last time and caught him before he hit the ground.
She hugged his struggling body against her shoulder, scooting backward on her rear until she reached the front of the nearest booth.
The woman behind the counter took hold of her shoulder and pulled her through an opening into the enclosed space. “Stay down!” she muttered. “Let the guard get her in custody.”
Jess rubbed Jack’s back, trying to get him to stop wailing, while she peeked around the edge of the counter. “It’s okay,” she murmured. “I’ve got you back now. You’re safe. We’re both safe.” She really hoped she was telling the truth this time.
In the middle of the aisle, Erik struggled with Dahlia, one hand gripping her wrist. He looked like he was trying not to hurt her. Dahlia slashed at him with the other hand, aiming a knee at his groin that Erik managed to divert to his thigh. Then she leaned forward and bit the hand that held her.
“Shit!” Erik spat and backhanded her across the side of her head. She moaned and dropped to her knees.
“Goddamn it, woman,” he snarled, “I didn’t want to do that.” He reached behind him and pulled out his handcuffs as he jerked her arms behind her back.
Jack’s wails were stronger than ever. Yanked out of his playpen by a stranger. Bounced down the aisle in arms that probably held him too tightly. Not to mention having a Taser hidden under his blanket. No way was Jack going to forgive and forget.
Any more than Jess was. She pushed herself to her feet and started toward Dahlia. She wasn’t sure what she was going to do exactly, but she knew it involved violence.
“Jess?”
Docia trotted up the aisle toward her, her glance darting from Erik to Dahlia to Jack screaming in her arms. “Are you okay? Is Jack okay? What the hell is Erik doing?”
Jess sighed, shifting Jack to her other arm. “It’s a long story. I’ll explain as soon as Erik gets the Master Criminal here into the slammer.”
Dahlia looked up at her, her gaze cool. “You might not want to do that just yet.”
Jess moved back to stand beside Docia. “You’ve got something else you want to try?”
“I’ve got information you’d like to hear, believe me.” She turned toward Erik. “And a deal you might want to make.”
“We’ll talk about it later. Right now you’re being booked.” He nodded toward Docia. “Can you take Mrs. Carroll and her baby to the hospital and get them both checked out?”
Docia nodded, eyes wide. “Sure.”
Erik turned back to Dahlia and started toward the exit, his hand on her arm. “You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.…”
She pulled back slightly and shook her head. “Yeah, yeah, yeah. I have the right to have an attorney present during questioning. If I cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed for me. And, yes, I do understand these rights. Now are you sure you don’t want to just talk this over someplace over a cup of coffee? Believe me, I’ve got things you’ll want to hear.”
Erik studied her for a moment, then shrugged. “Nice try, but we’ll be doing this by the book. At least for now.”
Dahlia’s lips curved up in a faint smile. “Okay, ace, your choice. But you may kick yourself later.”
“Wouldn’t be the first time,” Erik muttered as he towed her toward the door.
Lars had just turned onto the highway, heading for the county fairgrounds when his phone buzzed. He hit the speaker button. “Yeah?”
Docia’s voice crackled through static. “Lars, where are you?”
“Heading toward the fairgrounds to see you and Jess. Why?”
“Jess isn’t there. You need to come meet me at the hospital.”
Lars’s stomach filled with ice. “What happened? What’s wrong? Is Jess okay? Is Jack? Where’s Daisy?”
Docia blew out what sounded like an exasperated breath. “Daisy’s with Janie at the shop. Jess and Jack are here, but they’re both all right. You need to come over here right now, though. Come to the ER.”
Lars looped into the driveway at a closed fruit stand, turning the car back toward town. “I’m on my way.”
The Kramer County Regional Hospital was smaller than the name suggested, but the emergency room was still hopping with tourists when he got there. Lars counted four families with children under five, one with a couple of dogs too. Maybe they’d be swinging by Cal’s clinic next.
Docia stood at the side of the admitting desk, trying to stay out of the way of exhausted parents and whining toddlers. She held Jack against her shoulder, but he didn’t sound much happier than the other children in the room.
“Lars.” She let out a sigh, patting Jack on the back. “Thank god you’re here. I need to go back to the fairgrounds and close down the booth. Plus I have to call Pete and get him over to the police station ASAP.”
“Not before you tell me what’s going on.” Lars managed to clamp down on the panic roiling his gut.
“Right.” Docia sighed again. “Here’s the short version. You can get more details later. Dahlia was the one working for Jess’s ex-mother-in-law. She attacked Jess with some kind of stun gun and took Jack from the booth. Jess managed to follow her and the booth owners kept her from getting away until Erik got there and took her into custody. Jack’s okay—the doctor checked him over. Jess is still in one of those cubicles back there, but she was on her feet and walking when we got here, so I think she’s going to be all right. Now, take Jack and go find Jess.”
Lars stared at her. For one of the few times in his life, he could think of absolutely nothing to say beyond “Huh?”
Docia placed Jack in his unresisting arms. “I’m sorry I can’t stay with you. I’ll try to get back as quickly as I can, and I’ve already called Janie. You can take Jess to their house when they release her.”
“Okay.”
“She’ll want to go to the police station, Lars. Don’t let her.” Docia’s eyes were bleak. “There’s nothing she can do there now. They’ll call her later when she needs to come in. Right now she needs to trust Erik. And Pete.”
“Right.” Lars figured sooner or later his brain would start processing all of this information. Right now, it was sliding off him like slime off a catfish. He watched Docia stride away, trying to remember all the things she’d just told him.
Jack squirmed slightly in his arms, making small baby distress sounds, and Lars managed to shake himself back to minimal consciousness.
Jess. He needed to find Jess. Right now.
The nurse at the admitting desk glanced at him. “Who needs help, you or the baby?”
“Where’s Jess Carroll?” he blurted. “I’m here for her.”
The nurse frowned slightly, regarding him through narrowed eyes. “You’re a Toleffson.”
Lars nodded. No use in denying it.
“Which one? I know Dr. Cal. He takes care of my Pekingese.”
“Lars,” he croaked. “Lars Toleffson. The accountant.”
The nurse frowned at him for another moment, then shrugged. “Come on. She’s back here.”
Jess sat on an examining table in one of the ER cubicles. In the moment before she saw him, Lars had time to take in the bruises on her arms and the dust on her face. Her very pale face. She looked like a woman who’d been through hell, and still had a way to go before she made it all the way back. His chest felt painfully tight all of a sudden. “Jess?”
She turned and gave a small cry, extending her arms toward Jack, who was suddenly eager to get loose from Lars’s grasp.
“Baby! Oh, Jack, come to Mommy.”
Lars handed Jack to her, and she wrapped her arms around him, holding him tight against her body. “Jack, oh, Jack.”