Cooper's Deale Part 8

"Everything okay up there?"

"Jeff's mad at me." Tommy slowly pulled the rope for his breakfast, the pulley squealing in protest.

"How come?"

"aCause I won't tell him the secret."

Addy caught her breath. Rushing to the tree, she scrambled to the top. "Tommy, you promised you wouldn't say anything to anyone, including Jeff. Remember?"

"But, Addy, Jeff is my best friend. And he won't bring me any more comic books if I don't."

"I'll bring you lots of comic books, Tommy, but you can't let Jeff know anything about the man you found. You can't tell anyone, ever, unless I say it's okay. Please, Tommy. This is very important. You have to promise me."

"Oh, all right," Tommy said, taking a bite of his pancake. "I promise. But I don't want Jeff to be mad at me no more."

"Don't worry. I'll talk to Jeff."

As she hugged Tommy, she noticed movement along the tree line near the house. Liberty and Karen were talking in the shadows.

"Tommy, where are your binoculars?"

"In there." Tommy gestured inside and continued to eat.

Addy found them lying on the table and focused on the spot she had last seen the two women. Karen held something in her hand that she couldn't quite make out. What in the world could they be saying? Eventually they broke off, and Liberty headed toward the house while Karen continued along the trees. Back on the ground, Addy met Liberty in the yard.

"Am I too late for breakfast?" she asked.

"No. Fern and Chauncey are already eating. What were you and Karen talking about? I didn't realize you knew each other."

"Who?" Liberty paled.

"Officer Kaczarowski. I saw you two talking in the woods. What's she doing out here this early?"

"Oh, her, uh, well, we don't know each other. I just met her on my walk. She said she was investigating some murder that happened down by the inlet. Addy, you didn't tell me anything about a murder."

A knot formed in Addy's stomach. "Well, no. That's because it doesn't have anything to do with us. It just happened to occur on our land, that's all. And I don't want to get mixed up in it."

"I see. And how do you know Officer Kaza, Kazro, Karen?"

Addy wasn't sure she wanted to admit to knowing Karen at all, let alone how she knew her.

"Oh, come on, now, Addy. You're blushing. Is there more to you and the good deputy than meets the eye?"

"Absolutely not." Addy was fl.u.s.tered that the truth was obviously so evident on her face. "It was a long time ago, and besides, it's over."

At that moment, Karen appeared from out of the trees carrying a plastic garbage bag.

"Good morning, Addy." Karen could see the remnants of a blush on Addy's face, and her temper flared. Angry, she glared at Liberty.

"Good morning, Officer." Liberty stepped forward. "We were just talking about you, and I told Addy I b.u.mped into you on my walk."

Karen was tempted to put the agent on the hot seat. She didn't like the way Liberty stood so close to Addy they almost touched. The intimate contact had to flagrantly violate an ethical code somewhere.

"Addy saw us talking in the woods," Liberty hastily added.

"I'm new to town and surprised that such a thing could happen in such a small community. Is this type of crime common in Deale, Deputy? Is it safe to be here?"

Karen narrowed her gaze. Liberty was getting on her last nerve, and the smug expression she now wore irritated the h.e.l.l out of her.

"Quite safe, I a.s.sure you. We haven't had a capital crime in this area in ages. Of course, if you're afraid-"

"Hardly," Liberty stated flatly.

Addy had the odd feeling that she had stepped into the middle of something between the two physically similar women-athletic, with dark hair and healthy suntans. And both were deadly attractive, a combination Addy found difficult to resist.

"I'd be happy to escort you home at night," Karen continued.

"It's no trouble at all. I'm used to helping defenseless women."

Addy felt Liberty bristle beside her. She didn't know Liberty that well, but she knew Karen well enough to recognize her taunting. For some reason, these two didn't like each other, and she realized that it might be because of her. Having two women fight over her was so romantic.

"Well," Addy cheerfully said, "we were just about to sit down to breakfast, Officer. Would you care to join us?"

"I'd love to." Karen gave Liberty a smug smile. "Let me put this in the car."

Addy gazed at the bag. "Did you find something?"

"I'm not sure, but I'm taking it in anyway. Be right back."

Liberty took Addy's arm and, once inside, pulled out her chair, sat beside her, and leaned in suggestively.

"I'm starving," she said to Addy, a glimmer in her eyes.

Nervous, Addy smiled, glancing at Fern and Chauncey, who were busily eating and reading the morning paper. Fern looked up when Karen sat down.

"Deputy," she said, "according to the morning paper, there are no suspects in the murder. Is that true, or are you keeping mum on the subject?"

"Unfortunately, Miss Bush, it's true. We're still investigating, though, and I'm sure we'll find whoever did it soon."

"Well, I hope we can keep the publicity to a minimum." Fern sniffed. "Lord knows what it would do to tourism if it got out. We sure don't want to make a federal case out of it."

Karen gazed at Liberty. "In fact, the feds are already involved." Liberty's head nearly snapped off when she jerked her neck. "A couple of agents visited yesterday. They're interested in what Scott Vinson was investigating when he died."

Addy almost spilled the coffee she was pouring into Liberty's cup. The FBI was in Deale. Her hands began to shake and her heart skipped erratically. They weren't local people. They would want to know about everyone in the area and where they were that night. Karen had deflected the scrutiny away from Tommy, but now they would come with all their advanced equipment and questions. She had to keep them away from Tommy.

"Hey, let me take that." Liberty held Addy's arm, placing the pot on the table. "You're trembling. Are you cold, or is it me?"

Liberty's wolfish leer made Addy tingle. Her skin burned where Liberty touched her and her blood ran hot through her body. She wasn't sure whether she was trembling because she was afraid or because Liberty was so near.

"There is a chill in the air this morning," Karen observed, looking like she would like to reach across the table and remove Liberty's hand from Addy's arm permanently. "How long did you say you were going to be in town, Liberty?"

"Oh, for a while." She gazed up at Addy. "I'm beginning to like the scenery, a lot."

"Well, there's a lot to see in Deale, Miss McDonald," Fern said. "I lead a small group of birdwatchers along the sh.o.r.e and into the woods. Perhaps you'd care to join us?"

"I love birds," Liberty said, her attention still fixed on Addy.

"They're so soft, and delicate, and I especially love to hear them sing."

Fern chuckled. "I knew I liked you."

"There's a pet store in town," Karen snidely suggested.

"Why don't you go buy one? I hear the shops down by the docks have especially colorful ones."

"Down by the docks?" Fern asked. "There aren't any pet stores there, Deputy. And certainly no birds of particular interest, except for some common seagulls. Besides, the docks are a disgraceful part of town, Miss McDonald. Women of questionable character loiter there, if you know what I mean."

"Si." Chauncey spoke up for the first time.

"I prefer my birds wild and free." Liberty stared at Karen.

"I've never had to pay for them."

"My cousin owns a pet shop," Fern added. "I'm sure she could get you any bird you like at a reasonable price."

"I don't believe your cousin has pigeons for sale, Miss Bush," Karen added.

"Okay," Addy said. She was feeling uncomfortable with Karen and Liberty's conversation and began to clear the table.

Only Fern and Chauncey remained oblivious to the tension in the room, and Addy realized she should defuse the situation before it erupted.

"I'd best be getting to work anyway." Karen rose from her chair. "Addy, can I talk to you a minute?"

Addy glanced at Liberty, who made no move to leave the room.

"In the kitchen?" Karen suggested.

Once there, Addy placed a stack of dirty dishes by the sink and waited for Karen to speak.

"You better be careful about that one in there." Karen pointed her chin to the dining room and Liberty. "She's not someone you should be fooling around with."

Addy's anger bubbled up at the suggestion that she was fooling around with Liberty-not that she hadn't considered it.

But Karen telling her what to do especially galled her.

"It's really none of your business, Officer, whom I choose to fool around with. What right do you have to tell me that, after what you did?"

"Oh, geez, not that again." Karen sagged against the counter.

"Forget I said anything. Addy, I'd really like to move on. I was hoping you'd agree to have dinner with me soon. Nothing more than that. Just a chance to sit down over a meal and talk. I'd like to be friends again. Please?"

Karen's plaintive expression moved Addy, and for a brief, aching moment she wanted to alleviate Karen's discomfort. It wouldn't hurt to have dinner with her, one time. The attraction was still there, and she wished she could recapture what they'd had before. She wanted to trust again. Still, she hesitated, unwilling to give in too easily.

"Well, why don't you give me a call next week?"

Karen smiled. "I will. Thanks, Addy."

The kitchen suddenly felt too small, and Addy resisted her body's overwhelming desire to press into Karen's. After saying a quick good-bye, Karen closed the kitchen door behind her, waved h.e.l.lo to Tommy, then disappeared around the corner of the house.

Addy wanted to run after her, call her back and tell her she also wanted to be friends, to be more than friends. But her feet wouldn't move, and neither would her mind. She was stuck in time, and she needed to find a way to the future.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN.

Clarence burst through the back door, his expression as wild as the Atlantic during a hurricane.

"The feds are in town, the feds are in town," he shouted as he stormed to the kitchen and tossed the groceries onto the counter. "What're we gonna do, Frank?"

"Are you sure?" Abel stepped timidly from the living room, a cigarette dangling from his lips. "How do you know?"

"It's all over town, everybody's talking about it." Clarence slammed the door and locked it. "They're probably investigating the murder, Frank. They're gonna figure out sooner or later what happened."

"Shut up and quit running around like a moron." Frank tossed his beer can into the trash and sat at the table. "n.o.body's gonna figure out nothin' if you keep your mouth shut and stop acting guilty."

"I'm not taking the rap alone," Clarence roared, the tendons red and prominent on his thick neck. "We're all in this together. If I go down, we all go down."

The room went silent. The only sound was the blinds tapping at the window as they blew gently in the wind. Frank rose from his chair and limped to within inches of Clarence's face.

"You don't want to threaten me, Clarence," he said calmly.

"That would not be the smart thing to do."

They stood glaring at each other, until Clarence blinked.

"That reporter was small fish compared to what I have in mind." Frank took another beer out of the refrigerator. "Our main goal is to inflict as much damage on Washington as we can. I want to scare the s.h.i.t out of them, and if a few bureaucrats get taken out in the process, so much the better. If I can put together a big enough explosive to get their attention, then maybe some justice will get done."

"You can get your revenge if you want to," Clarence muttered, "but I don't want to go to prison for this."

"I told you. Nothin's gonna happen if you keep your mouth shut. They have no reason to suspect us unless you go and do something stupid. But just in case, I'm gonna put this equipment away for a while until things quiet down. I'm not in any hurry."

Frank gazed out the window to the inlet beyond. He wondered why the feds would be in Deale, if what Clarence said was true.

They wouldn't be out here just to investigate a murder. Something else had tipped them off, but how did they know he was up to something? They might not realize it was him specifically, but they were aware something was going on. How? He reviewed everything he'd done up to this point but could think of nothing to draw attention. They'd burned the parts he hadn't been able to use. No traces of anything were left.