I'll Be There Part 25

"I know just what you need." The older lady walked over to an old-fas.h.i.+oned pie safe that sat along one of the walls of the roomy kitchen. She pulled out a dark brown bottle and returned to the table with it. "I keep a bit of rum, for cooking of course," she winked, "and for times like this."

Bless the old lady. She poured two fingers in a juice gla.s.s and slid it over to Jenny who downed it in one swallow. Her eyes watered and her throat burned as it went down, but she didn't care.

"Easy, there."

"Sorry." Jenny set the gla.s.s on the Formica table. Miss Estelee surprised her by pouring a bit more in the gla.s.s before she capped the bottle.

"No apologies necessary."

"Are we alone?" This time when she lifted her gla.s.s, she sipped.

"That young man's been prowlin' around here all afternoon. I don't mind saying watching him nearly drove me batty."

"Where is he now?"

"I'm not sure."

Jenny pinned Miss Estelee with a look.

"All right, I sent him out for milk."

Jenny took another sip. There was one thing she needed to know. "Miss Estelee, you said you knew Cord."

The woman stood and stirred something on the stove. "As I recall, I said I had seen him in town."

"No. You said you had known him before and after."

"I can't say as it really matters who he is. He kept you safe and showed you other, um, possibilities, I suppose you could say."

Maybe it was the liquor taking the edge off her raw emotions, but Jenny didn't react sharply to that remark. Instead, she said, "Please don't tell me he was the love of my life you predicted I'd find. If that's the case, I'm not sure I can face what's coming."

Miss Estelee pulled the gla.s.s across the table and out of Jenny's reach. "I have something to say to you, Jenny, and I want you to listen carefully and remember it when you get to wherever it is you're going."

When she was sure she had Jenny's full attention, she folded her hands on the table and continued.

"People enter our lives and leave. Sure, it can be painful when they go. A woman as old as me knows the truth of that." She tapped her chest with a crooked finger. "But as you grow older and experience that pain over and over, you come to understand that people who matter leave an imprint on your heart and become part of you. Though they may not be with you physically, they are a part of you. Their influence shapes you into the person you are. And in that way, they will be with you forever."

She got a faraway look in her eye. "All you have to do is look inside yourself to call them up, and they're right there with you to keep you company when you get lonely or times get hard."

Jenny bit her upper lip as tears sprang to her eyes. "How can it be the same?"

Miss Estelee leaned forward and covered her hand. "It ain't the same, honey, but the comfort in this sure knowledge makes life tolerable."

She nodded, tears misting her eyes as well, patted Jenny's hand and leaned back. She went to the stove. "Now then, let's get some food in that stomach. No tellin' when you'll have another home-cooked meal to warm you on a cold night like this."

Food was the last thing on Jenny's mind tonight, but she ate. When she looked at the empty plate before her, she couldn't have said what had been in it.

"Why don't you go rest yourself in the parlor? I've got a nice fire built in the stove, and I put out some books for you to look at. There's even a record in the phonograph if you want to listen to some music."

Jenny stood.

"I'll bring you a nice piece of cake once your supper's settled."

Listless, she wandered around the parlor. Not interested in reading, she stopped at the old-fas.h.i.+oned record player. Not sure how the thing worked, she turned a k.n.o.b that got the record spinning then lifted the arm and set it on the end of the record farthest from the center. A scratching sound emitted from the speakers, and then smooth jazz piano, ba.s.s, and drums filled the room. Jenny settled into a nearby chair and, kicking off her shoes, curled her feet under her legs.

The next thing she knew, warm hands cradled her hand and warm lips caressed her knuckles, the back of her hand, her wrist. She opened her eyes. Cord. He'd knelt beside her chair. His dark hair had fallen forward hiding his expression from her.

He looked at her then, his eyes like black chips in his deep-set eyes. "Sorry. I didn't mean to wake you, but I couldn't resist touching you."

He kissed the inside of her wrist, her heart beating strong against his lips. The record had stopped playing. It was much darker in the room now, with only one lamp on in the corner.

"I must have been asleep for awhile."

"A few hours." He kissed her palm. "Can I get you anything? Do anything for you?"

She rolled her head to the side, still resting it against the high-back chair. "Tell me your real name."

He looked away then. "Jenny..."

She leaned forward and turned his face back to hers. "Tell me."

"Nicholas McCall."

"Nicholas." She tried it out to see how it felt on her tongue. It felt strange and out of place, like he had seemed to her when they first met on the side of the mountain.

"Nick."

She nodded. "Where are you from?"

"Somewhere in the Southern Appalachians."

She laughed. "So at least the part about you being from the mountains was true."

"I wish I could say I didn't like lying to you, but I never thought about it. You get so used to it after you've been in the program awhile, it becomes your reality."

"How long have you been in the program?"

"A little more than three years."

She looked away and chewed her lower lip. "Why do you live alone like you do?"

He shook his head. "That was my choice."

"Why?" She asked the question, but already knew the answer.

He stood and walked over to the record player. "I didn't want to endanger anymore lives."

The sound of the jazz piano filled the room again. "So, what you told me about how you got your scars was true?"

"Yes."

The torture encapsulated in the sound of that short, simple word tore at her heart. She tried to imagine knowing or caring about the victims who had suffered from the criminals she was helping put away. That would be so much worse.

"So, in the end, you got the bad guys? They went to jail?"

Cord nodded, still not looking at her.

She stood and walked over to him. "Do you dance, Nick?"

He didn't speak, but his arms closed around her, and he pulled her close. Jenny looped an arm around his shoulder, but pulled back. In the time they had left, she wanted to imprint the memory of his face on her heart, a picture to look at on the long nights to come. Surely it would take a hundred lifetimes to feel this way again.

"I'm sorry I reacted the way I did when you told me you were in the program," she said.

"You had a right to be upset."

"I wasn't upset that you were in the program. Not really. It's just this whole ordeal. It's all so unbearable."

He sighed and rested his forehead on hers. "Letting you go will be the hardest thing I've ever had to do."

"I've been thinking of all that time we were both right here, in and around Angel Ridge, and didn't find each other."

"I wasn't exactly here. My cabin's forty-five minutes away."

"I saw you in town from time to time." She pressed her cheek to his. "A woman notices a dark mysterious stranger in such a small town when she's used to seeing the same faces day after day."

"I wish I could say I noticed you, but I tried not to make eye contact with anyone."

That gave her pause. "Is that how it'll be for me?"

"It doesn't have to be. I didn't want to invite questions; didn't want to form personal connections with anyone."

"That's only because you and I didn't cross paths."

"You do have a way about you that wears a person down," he said against her neck.

Jenny groaned when they heard someone knocking at the door. "What time is it?"

"Late." Cord was instantly alert and reaching for the gun at the back of his waistband. "Miss Estelee went to bed already."

"I don't think you'll need that. Guys with guns don't usually knock on doors. Besides, the door is never locked. If they intended to do us harm, they'd just come on in."

Cord positioned Jenny behind him, and keeping close to the wall, opened the door to a closet near the foyer. "Get in."

Whoever was outside knocked again.

"Ask who it is," Jenny whispered, her hand on Cord's back.

"Who is it?" Cord said while unsuccessfully trying to guide her into the closet.

"Fuzz Rhoton."

"He works with the Grady. Remember? His property is behind Miss Estelee's."

"Right. I still want you to stay out of sight until I see what he wants."

Jenny held up her hands in surrender. "All right. I'll stay out of sight in the parlor. He's probably just checking to make sure everything's all right."

When she was out of sight, Cord opened the door.

"h.e.l.lo. I'm Fuzz Rhoton. You must be Goins. The sheriff told me about you."

"That's right."

"Good to meet you."

Cord didn't return the sentiment. Jenny chewed on a fingernail. This was crazy. She'd known Fuzz for years. She was sure he knew what was going on. Grady had said he'd been helping out with securing the town after they brought her in. Strange though. He hadn't been with the men Grady had at Cole's farm.

"Mind if I come in?"

"Miss Estelee has already turned in, and I was about to do the same."

"The sheriff sent me over. He was going to come himself to stay with Jenny, but something came up and he sent me instead."

"The sheriff didn't say anything about staying here tonight."

Jenny stepped into the foyer. "Actually, he did, this afternoon after I'd finished teleconferencing with the Attorney General's Office."

"h.e.l.lo, Jenny," Fuzz said as he stepped inside past Cord.

Cord backed up, keeping himself between her and Fuzz. "Hi, Fuzz." She rubbed her arms. "Someone shut the door. It's freezing outside!" she said with a smile, but neither man moved to do as she asked. An alarm went off inside her head. Fuzz seemed a little tense. The way Cord was acting was probably making him nervous. She shook her head and moved to close the door herself.

Cord grabbed her arm backing her into the parlor. "You should know better than to walk in front of an open door."

"Sorry! I'm sure there's no one out this time of night."

Fuzz chuckled and shut the door. "True. We roll up the sidewalks at nine around here."

Jenny laughed. Cord was not amused.

"There's no need for you to be here, Rhoton. As you can see, everything is fine."

"Well, that's just it. There's been a change of plans. Kennedy sent me to pick up Jenny and bring her to the station."

The hair stood up on the back of Jenny's neck. "Why?"

"He's decided to relocate you tonight."

Jenny had to grab the back of a chair to keep from falling when her knees buckled.