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  "I just need to know your feelings for her."

  "She's a great gal. Phillip, I don't know what this has to do with anything. We kissed the night of the wedding. She got drunk. I took her home, and I stayed. She and I are friends."

  "With benefits?" Phillips said under his breath as he put his hat back on his head and adjusted it so that the brim was low on his forehead.

  "Are you kidding me? You drove out here to pick a fight with me over Lydia?"

  "Everyone knows I would do anything to protect Lydia."

  "Yeah, but stopping her from having her own life, that goes a little too far."

  He could see Phillip's jaw tighten and his lip twitched. "I'm not stopping her. I'm asking questions."

  "And if I didn't break the law then I don't see why you're out here asking."

  "What about you and Ella?"

  Gerald didn't even have to think about that one before he laughed out loud. "Ella's over me about the same way Lydia is over you," he said, and then wished he hadn't. "Sorry, man."

  Phillip tucked his thumbs into the front pockets of his jeans and rocked back on his heels.

  "I know how Lydia feels about me. Talk about a woman who can hold on to a mad for a long time—she's your girl. If you're sleeping with her, I just want to know."

  Gerald took another long pull from his bottle. "First of all, if I were sleeping with Lydia, it wouldn't be any of your business. Second of all, if she knew you even asked and I discussed it, she'd cut off both of our appendages. And third, no, I'm not sleeping with her. I took a friend home and stayed on the couch. I didn't have my truck in town anyway." He saw some relief come back to Phillip's face. "And if you're looking for more good news, I tried to stir something up days later, and Lydia isn't interested. I'm a friend. She doesn't want anything to do with me in that way."

  "Thanks for that."

  "Don't you think you should move on, too? I mean, it doesn't seem like she's warming up to the idea of you being around so much."

  Now Phillip smiled and made a move toward the beer on the step. "She's been mad for a very long time. I keep thinking she'll get over it." Phillip twisted off the top to the bottle, tucking the cap in his shirt pocket, and took a long sip. "That's good."

  "Why don't we sit in my new chairs and talk a bit."

  Phillip nodded, and they each sat in one of the new chairs Gerald had bought to someday sit out by a fire. He wondered what kind of feelings Phillip Smythe must be harboring to drive out to his place to ensure he wasn't sleeping with Lydia. There had been a rumor that they'd had a thing once, Phillip and Lydia, but he didn't remember it. All he could remember was Phillip being anywhere Lydia was, and Lydia trying to go the opposite direction.

  Before long, they were two beers in, talking about the Bridal Mecca, his brother Dane and his wife Gia's trip to Lucca coming up in the next week and the fact that Eric was looking to expand the house for more kids.

  "Time seems to fly by when you add a wife and kids to the mix," Phillip said as he finished off his beer.

  "I never thought my brothers would be fathers. Especially Eric. But now, I can't think of anyone who would be a better fit for the job."

  Phillip smiled at the thought, and then shifted in his chair as his phone rang and he pulled it from his pocket.

  "Smythe," he said as he set his empty beer bottle on the ground next to his chair.

  Gerald noted the change in Phillip's expression as he listened to the caller. He watched as Phillip shifted a glance toward the trucks and then cranked his head as if to look at Gerald's truck.

  "No other descriptions?" he asked and nodded. "I'll be back in about forty. Get Price moving on a team."

  Phillip disconnected the call and stood as he slipped the phone back into his pocket. "This thing have a bathroom?" He nodded toward the trailer.

  "Sure, but man, this is the country. Step around back. No one will care," Gerald said with a hint of humor to try and lighten the mood.

  "I'm an indoor kind of guy."

  "Yeah. Yeah. Go ahead. Just inside. You can't miss it."

  Gerald watched as Phillip took off his hat before he entered the trailer, and it was easy to see he was checking out the interior. He'd wished he'd had time to clean it up more before having had his first visitor. Then again, once he was done fixing it up, he could have Phillip out again to show him what he'd done.

  A few minutes later, Phillip walked out of the trailer and put his hat back on his head. "Thanks for the beer."

  "Something brewing in town?" Gerald asked since the phone call seemed to have put Phillip into a strange mood.

  "Yeah. You know the McCarrey family?"

  Gerald thought for a moment. "Connor McCarrey was a few years older than me in school. He lives in town and has a family. That's all I know."

  "Yeah." Phillip walked to his truck and pulled open the door. Again, he gave a scan over Gerald's truck. "I'll see you around. Thanks for the beer, and if you don't mind, don't let Lydia know I was poking for information."

  "I don't have a death wish," Gerald joked, but Phillip only nodded, still preoccupied with whatever had transpired when he’d gotten that call.

  Chapter 10

  Each rut and every bump on that dirt road from the ranch into town had its own story, Gerald thought as the dirt road gave way to the pavement. They'd each put a truck in the ditch more than once when they were learning to drive. The roads that went into the fields had stories of their own too, he mused as he came to the first stoplight in town.

  He'd cross a set of railroad tracks, and the town would begin to emerge in front of him, and the fields and ranches would seem distant until he headed back home.

  It was a pain in the ass when he had to drive forty-five minutes to get a part he thought he had for a job. It had been the way of life as long as he'd known it. At least they had satellite radio now to keep them company.

  Gerald noticed the police car that had pulled out of the 7-11 parking lot and gotten behind him, but he wasn't speeding and his plates were current. He turned up his radio a little more and enjoyed the cruise through town.

  It was a beautiful summer day, and the people were walking the quaint stores on Main Street and enjoying ice cream. He'd arrived in town at lunchtime, and the people in their work clothes were headed to restaurants.

  Life was much different here than it was on the ranch, but both sides were appealing.

  As he turned down the next street, he noticed the police officer was still following him. He only became suspicious when he turned down the next street, and so did the officer.

  Did this have something to do with Lydia and Smythe? If the man was going to scare him away from Lydia, he had another thing coming. Lydia had let Gerald know how things were. He didn't need some love-crazed cop pulling rank on him and sending his flunkies after him every time he drove into town.

  And, if that was what was going on, Phillip Smythe was going to get an earful.

  Gerald pulled into the parking lot of the hardware store and parked his truck on the outer edge of the parking lot, as he could swear they were beginning to make parking spaces much smaller. As he turned off the engine, he noticed the officer pulling in the lot behind him, blocking him in.

  The officer stepped out of her car, hand on the butt of her gun, and walked toward his truck as he opened the door to climb out.

  "Did I do something wrong?" Gerald asked as he exited his truck. "Was I speeding? Did I go through a stoplight or a sign?"

  "This is your truck?" she asked scanning him with her eyes from head to toe.

  "Since I was sixteen. Two-hundred-thousand miles on it. All mine."

  "It has some front bumper damage to it."

  "Sure it does. I live on a ranch. It's towed every kind of equipment you could think of. I feed the cattle from the bed, and they run into it. It's met a tree trunk or two over the years. It's not pretty, but it's a good truck."

  "I need to see your license and registration," she said sternly, her han
d still resting on her gun.

  Gerald reached for his back pocket to pull out his wallet and the officer held up a hand. "Slow."

  Christ, this wasn't what he needed. This was harassment, he thought as he pulled his wallet from his pocket and retrieved his license.

  He handed it to the officer who kept one eye on him and his license. "Gerald Walker."

  "That's me."

  "Related to Jake Walker?"

  "Cousin."

  "Eric?"

  "Brother."

  She nodded slowly. "Do you have a weapon in your truck? A gun?"

  "No, ma'am."

  "Why don't you pull out your registration for me as well," she commanded.

  He wanted to argue, or even better, walk into the store and get what he needed, but he'd been raised to respect the law, even if he was pretty sure the law was getting back at him for spending the night at Lydia's.

  Gerald walked to the opposite side of the truck, the officer standing at the back of his truck keeping an eye on him at all times. He pulled the registration from the glove compartment and handed it to her.

  "Stay right here. I'll be back in a moment," she directed as she walked back to her car.

  Gerald leaned up against the side of the truck trying to keep his eyes low and not make contact with the people going in and out of the store watching him. This was embarrassing. He'd done nothing wrong. Maybe he should call Phillip and tell him to lay off. Lydia told him no, that was all he needed. This had gone too far.

  The officer stepped out of her car and walked back toward him with the items he'd handed her in her hand.

  "You check out."

  "Good. I was getting nervous. Now, will you tell me what I did?"

  "Your truck matches the description in an abduction. A twelve-year-old girl was taken from the mall."

  He felt the blood drain from his head. "In a truck like mine?"

  She nodded slowly. "You know anything about that?"

  "No. No, but I hope they find her," he said honestly. "Who is it?"

  "Abby McCarrey. You know her?"

  Gerald felt the sickness rise in his throat. That was why Phillip asked him about the family. That was why he was looking around yesterday after he'd gotten the call.

  "I went to school with her dad. I don't know Abby. By the way, I was with Smythe when he got the call on the case. I wasn't in town when it happened."

  By the look on her face, he decided she already knew that, but she'd pulled him over anyway.

  "If I were you, I'd head over and get that on record. Your truck is a match for the description that Abby's friends gave us. Six-foot-two, brown hair, and dark eyes—that's a match too."

  "Red, beat-up pickup and a man of my description match a quarter of the men in this town, in all of Georgia for that matter."

  "Sure does. So I'd talk to Smythe and get that alibi written down. I'm not the only one looking for an old red pickup with front end damage."

  She walked back to her car and drove away, but Gerald stood there trying to breathe. Some rat bastard kidnapped a kid. First and foremost, that was making him sick wondering where she was and what had happened to her. Secondly, he was a suspect. No matter what happened, or who he'd try and persuade differently when word got out what they were looking for, eyes were still going to turn to him.

  He was going to go to the station and have a word with Phillip, but first, he was going to go pick up Ella and take her with him.

  Chapter 11

  Gerald could hear every breath Ella took in the seat next to him as he drove to the police station. She was good and pissed, and she had a right to be. He'd all but forced her to go with him, nearly having to drag her physically from her office, and all because he wouldn't tell her what was going on.

  What if she didn't believe him? What if he'd pissed her off enough in the past week or two to make her want to help put him in jail? He couldn't chance it. She'd know what was going on when they talked to Smythe.

  Gerald caught her glare when he pulled into the parking lot. "You're turning me in to the police for something?" she asked.

  "I need you to go in here with me and talk to Phillip."

  "I've seen you talk to the man. You don't need my help. Just because you've got something going on with the woman who hates him, it doesn't include me."

  "It's something else." He'd hardly heard the snide remark with the blood pounding in his ears. "Just come in with me, please."

  His voice sounded pathetic to him, and it must have resonated with her too by the look that formed on her face.

  "Okay. What's going on, Gerald?"

  "Let's go in."

  * * *

  Gerald was panicked, Ella thought as she watched him climb from the truck and head straight for the doors of the station. Something had happened. It wasn't like Gerald Walker to get spooked, and he was spooked.

  The door closed before Ella even made it to the front of the building. When she pulled it open, she could see Gerald disappear into Smythe's office.

  "I'm here to give you a statement." She heard his voice echo through the lobby as she walked into the station.

  Phillip's eyes darted to her as she walked through his door.

  "You brought legal counsel? What do you need legal counsel for?"

  "I'm legal counsel?" she asked looking at Gerald. "That's why you dragged me over here?"

  Phillip clicked his tongue against his teeth. "So you're not here on your own accord? Mr. Walker forced you to come here?"

  "Well…" she stammered as Gerald held up a finger.

  "You know damn good and well why I have her here with me," Gerald said. "You have a beef with me, and you have your force hunting me down when you know I'm not guilty of anything but spending the night at Lydia's."

  Ella heard her own gasp as she choked on her breath. She could feel the tears stinging in her eyes, and they were unwarranted. There was no reason she should care who he slept with, but hearing it come from his mouth hurt.

  "I'm not petty enough to send my deputies after you over something like that, and you know it," Phillip said as he stood from behind his desk. "Your truck matches the one we're looking for."

  Ella stepped between the men. "Let's stop right here." She turned to Gerald. "You have me here so you can confess?"

  "Hell no!" His voice was loud and shot through the room. It must have stirred someone in the lobby because she saw Phillip's hand rise as if to stop someone from coming toward them. "I didn't do anything, and he knows it. I was with him when he got the call."

  She turned to Phillip. "What call?"

  "Abby McCarrey disappeared yesterday afternoon. Witness, her nine-year-old sister, and a friend described the truck and the man. He's a fit for all of it."

  "You know better than to think it would be Gerald," she argued.

  Phillip hooked his thumbs into his front pockets. "I had a deputy that went after his cousin and shot his brother and burned his house down because he was insane. Not everyone is cut and dry."

  "Well he is," she continued. "You know that. I know that. And I'll bet if you ask the McCarrey's, they know that, too."

  "And how many kids are abducted by uncles, teachers, and parents? He's as much a suspect as anyone."

  She could see Gerald's hands ball into fists at his side, so she moved toward the desk, resting her hands on it and leaning in toward Phillip.

  "Then my client is here to make a statement and secure his alibi."

  Phillip gave her a slow nod. "I think that's a good idea."

  * * *

  Phillip had left the office to secure a room to get his statement in. Gerald was no criminal, and he refused to have anyone, even Phillip Smythe, think he was.

  Ella paced in front of him, biting on her thumb. She'd come to his defense even if she didn't know why she was there. She believed in him, and that came through when she spoke to Phillip.

  "Thank you," he said, breaking the suffocating silence between them. "I should have told you why I ne
eded your help, but I was in a hurry to get this over with."

  "I would always help you. You know that."

  Well, he'd hoped for that.

  Ella turned and held up a finger as if in thought. "You spent the night at Lydia's?"

  He'd like to punch Phillip for Ella getting that information, but he remembered it was him that said it out loud.

  "I took her home after the wedding reception since she'd had too much to drink. I slept on the couch since it was late."

  "The couch?" Ella crossed her arms and stared at him with eyes that could slice skin.

  "Believe what you want to believe. Lydia is my friend and only my friend."

  "I saw you two making out on the bench outside Pearl's bridal shop. That wasn't just a friendly kiss. That was hurry home and jump in bed if we can make it out of the car making out."

  Gerald ran his fingers over his brow. "You saw that?"

  "Yeah."

  "And that's why you were cleaning?"

  She dropped her arms, and Gerald took a step back. He knew what was coming.

  "It's your business," she spat out.

  "Yeah? Then stop asking about it."

  "Do you want my help here or not?"

  Gerald let out a breath and relaxed his shoulders. "Yes. I need your help. I didn't do anything wrong. I also didn't sleep with Lydia. I slept on the couch because it was late, and she was drunk. I wasn't at the mall yesterday, and I didn't abduct any kid either."

  "I know," she said softly.

  "Which part?"

  "I know it all. I believe you, and I know Phillip does too."

  "Point is, I didn't do this, but someone did. That little girl is still missing, so it's not about me in the end, it's about her. Once I'm out of here, I'm going to help look for her. I know this area better than anyone."

  They both turned when they saw Phillip standing in the door. "No need. They found her—safe," he added, and Gerald thought he might just burst into tears.

  When he turned and looked at Ella, her eyes had gone wet.