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When Heath arrived, Toby and Travis grabbed their case of pop and Dela slipped Travis forty dollars. The two left, saying bye to Heath and hurrying to Travis’s pickup.
“What was their hurry?” Heath asked, studying the muted movie on the television.
“I expect Travis didn’t want you to lecture him.” She wandered into the kitchen. “Did you get any dinner?”
“No.” Heath went into his room and came back out in a t-shirt, jogging pants, and bare feet.
Dela slapped some turkey between two slices of bread she’d slathered with mayonnaise. On a plate with the sandwich, she put chips and a spoonful of potato salad. Placing the food in front of Heath she turned to the fridge and grabbed a beer.
“Looks good. What did you call me about?” He picked up half the sandwich and bit.
“Travis talked to Natalie’s neighbor.”
“How did he know who the neighbor was and why was he talking to her?” Heath put the sandwich down and stared at her.
“I sent him to talk to her. I didn’t know her name and didn’t have her phone number.” She held up her hand when he opened his mouth. “I didn’t go. And I was pretty sure Travis would be safe talking to the neighbor. She was the one who gave me all the information when I was looking for Natalie.”
He settled back in his chair and picked up the sandwich. “Go on. What did he learn?”
Dela went on to tell him about Natalie driving away in Alex’s truck on the night it rammed her. “And according to Leah, the neighbor, Natalie hasn’t returned since last night. Did anyone check around the vehicle to make sure she wasn’t lying dead or injured nearby?”
“Yes, the State Police combed the area for any survivor. She wasn’t there. They also checked the hospital.” Heath raised his beer but didn’t drink. “Why would Natalie want to kill you? She must have killed Athena and she believes you know that. Why else would she ram Alex’s pickup into your car?”
“But I didn’t know she killed Athena until today. The only way she would think I’m a threat is if she knew Harper was talking to me.” Dela feared for the child. “Is Alex still at the police station?”
“I had to let him go. Without him confessing, we don’t have enough evidence to hold him.” Heath chugged the beer and picked up the other half of the sandwich.
She could tell he was frustrated that they hadn’t found any conclusive evidence.
“Do you think Harper is safe with him?”
“All he talked about was getting home to Harper so she wouldn’t be worried. I don’t think he’d hurt her.”
“That’s good to know. But he’d hurt someone who was or would hurt her?” Dela wondered if that was the line of questioning Heath should take with the man.
Heath nodded. “I would guarantee if he saw or thought someone was hurting the child, he wouldn’t hesitate to hurt them.”
“Harper also talks about Natalie as if the two are close. You don’t suppose Natalie and Alex planned to kill Athena to get Harper?” Dela thought about what Natalie had said about Athena’s feelings for the child. “Natalie couldn’t believe that Athena complained about Harper. I think Harper is the key to all of this.” Dela sat for a moment watching Mugshot lick his paw and then Heath eating his potato salad. “What must Harper’s real parents be going through if people who aren’t even related to her biologically love her so much?”
Dela looked at the clock. “It’s midnight. We need to go to bed and see if Quinn has been able to find Harper’s parents in the morning.”
She rose to clear the table and her phone rang. Travis.
“Travis, are you in trouble?” she asked. Her mind flashed to thoughts of Gus starting his revenge on her.
“No. Toby and I went back to town. We bought groceries for Leah and took them to her.”
Travis had always had a good heart. He took after his mother and not his abusive father. “Why are you calling to tell me this now?”
“Because she was telling me more about her neighbor. Natalie told her a month ago that by Christmas she would be married and have a happy family. No more working at the casino. She’d be a stay-at-home mom.”
“That means she was thinking about getting rid of Athena,” Dela said, watching as Heath put the dishes in the sink.
“Not really. Leah said Natalie said the boyfriend’s wife was going to get a lot of money and move away. Then she would be able to marry.” Travis sounded confused. “What is all of this about?”
“Best you don’t know. Are you still at Leah’s?” Dela worried the young mother could be in trouble if she said something to Natalie when she returned.
There was a pause. “Yeah.”
“Stay there. On the couch, not in her bed, and bring her to the tribal police station in the morning so she can tell all of this to Heath or Jacob.” Dela felt this was good information.
“Okay. What time should we have her at the police station?”
Dela relayed to Heath what Travis said.
Heath stood close to her and said, “Tell him to have her there by nine. And if Natalie comes back, they aren’t to approach her. Just call and let you or me know.”
“Did you hear that?” Dela asked.
“Yes. I have to call Mom and let her know where I am. She’ll be worried.” Travis ended the call.
“Travis is a good kid, but he can’t befriend every down-on-their-luck person he meets,” Heath said, turning out the kitchen light and urging Dela down the hall to the bedrooms.
“You will wake me in the morning and then call after you talk to Leah?” Dela asked, standing at her bedroom door.
“Yes. I need my sleep. I suggest you get some rest, too.” He kissed her and opened her door before pivoting and entering his room.
Dela undressed, took off her prosthesis, and went to bed. But sleep didn’t come. She had too many things racing around in her mind to drift off.
She finally turned the light on and made a list of everything she knew and who she’d heard it from. It was after 3 a.m. when she finally turned off the light and slept.
♠ ♣ ♥ ♦
Dela swat at the bug that was tickling her face. Someone chuckled. Her heavy eyelids didn’t want to open. She tried to wake and force them up but her muscles all felt heavy and didn’t want to work.
“Dela, you wanted me to wake you up.” Heath’s voice penetrated the sludge in her mind. Loud sniffing echoed in her ear before a wide wet thing covered her cheek.
The sound of paper rustling, had her forcing her eyes open.
“This is why you don’t want to wake up,” Heath said.
He was a blurry image as she peered up at him.
“Stay asleep. I’ll tell your mom you were up late and to let you sleep.” Heath leaned down, kissed her forehead, and called Mugshot out of the room.
♠ ♣ ♥ ♦
Dela walked out into the living room at eleven and found her mom sitting on the couch watching a talk show and crocheting. The house smelled of cinnamon, cardamon, and yeast. “Did you make cinnamon buns?” Dela detoured into the kitchen.
“Yes. I needed to keep busy while you slept.” Mom entered the kitchen and topped off the cup in her hand with coffee and then filled a clean cup. She set the cups on the table.
Dela put two still warm buns on a plate and sat.
“Were you hurting? Is that why you didn’t sleep well?” Mom asked, picking up her cup and sipping.
“No. It was the case Heath is working on. I couldn’t sleep because things were bouncing around in my head, so I wrote them down and then it was late. I actually feel like I could take this brace off today.” Dela didn’t mention she’d taken it off last night and fell asleep easier.
“What are these?” Mom asked, picking up the sketches she and Toby had made.
“It’s a tree. A family tree I’m making for Grandfather Thunder to give to him on his eighty-fifth birthday.” Dela smiled at her mom. She was proud of the idea and the way she and Travis would build the wall decoration.
“Why do you think Silas would want a family tree?”
Her tone had Dela looking up from the sketch and into her mom’s face. Mom didn’t think the idea was a good one.
“Don’t you think it would make him smile to see all of his family from as far back as Rosie can find to now on his wall for him to look at every day?” Dela wondered if her mom knew about Dory, Theodore Thunder. And if she did, was he Dela’s father? But she didn’t want to come out and ask. Not when it was clear her mother didn’t like the idea of her poking around in the Thunder family tree.
“If he wants to see his family he can go to the cemetery or to the homes of the ones who are alive.” Mom shuffled the pages together and stacked them away from her. “You know how he likes to talk. A tree hanging on the wall with names won’t make him as happy as you taking him to visit relatives.”
“I don’t have time to drive him all around. I just thought this would be a nice present. Travis and Toby are going to carve the tree and I’ll have metal plates engraved with names and dates. It will be beautiful.” She didn’t want her mom to put a stop to this project. Now that she had it set in her mind, Mom wasn’t going to end it before she even got started.
“You know, he has some people in his family he wishes to not be associated with. If you put those names on the inscription, he won’t like it.” Mom’s eyes were downcast, not letting Dela see what she was really thinking or feeling.
“You would know those people. Maybe I could put them out to the side as if they don’t matter but are still there?” Dela wasn’t going to give in until Mom said what she really wanted to say.
Her phone rang. Dela rose and walked into her bedroom to answer it. “Hello?”
“Dela, it’s me, Travis. Leah’s talked to Heath and I’m taking her and the baby home. Do you need me to come stay with you?”
“No. My mom is here. But I would love it if your mom would come visit. Could you call her and mention it? Talking to her about the wedding would be a nice distraction.”
“Sure thing. Talk to you later.”
Dela wondered if she would be intruding if she called Heath. Wondering if he was any closer to finding out anything, she decided to at least leave a message and let him know she was awake and curious.
“You’re up,” Heath answered her call.
“Yes. Was Leah helpful to your investigation?”
“Very. She gave us lots of good information to use when we find and question Natalie.”
“She’s still missing?” Dela wondered where the woman could be. “Are you checking with relatives and friends?”
“Yes. Jacob has been calling everyone we can find who is related to her, and Quinn got her phone records and is calling the people on her contacts. She called Alex every day and sometimes more than once.”
“We know they were having a relationship from what Harper has told me.” Dela heard her mom moving around in the hallway. “Do you know if Quinn learned any more about my caller?”
“No more than he told you last night. The calls are coming from a burner phone and he is trying to get a record of the calls the phone has made.” Heath said something to someone else. “I have to go. If your mom needs to leave you call someone to come stay with you.”
“I know. I hope you find Natalie today.”
“Me, too. I’ll let you know when I think I’ll be home.”
“Okay.” Dela ended the call as her mom opened the door and walked in.
“Has Heath learned anything more about your hit and run?” Mom asked.
“They found the pickup that they think hit me. I’m sure by the end of the day forensics will know more.” Dela shoved her phone in her sweatshirt pocket and moved to the door, making her mom step into the hall.
“If they found the vehicle that hit you, they know who did it?” She insisted as they walked back to the living room.
“It’s not that easy. The vehicle belonged to someone who has an alibi.” Dela didn’t want to talk about this with her mom. If she slipped about the second threat her mom would never go home.
“But they can get fingerprints.”
“Only if the person driving the vehicle wasn’t wearing gloves,” Dela said, sitting in her recliner.
“Why would a drunk be wearing gloves?” Mom stood in front of her chair, peering down at Dela. She felt like a teenager again being interrogated about coming home late.
“I don’t know. It’s just something that would keep them from getting fingerprints.” Dela grabbed the remote. “Want to watch a movie?”
“Don’t change the subject. What do you know about the person who hit your car? Did you make another enemy?”
Dela groaned inwardly. Mom didn’t need to know all of Dela’s enemies. She’d never get any sleep. “No. I’m just giving you the facts about why it takes a while to find out who was driving the pickup.”
There was a knock on the door. Mom moved to the door and opened it.
“Flowers for Dela Alvaro,” a voice said.
“Thank you. I’ll take them,” Mom said and the door closed. “What a lovely potted plant. You don’t see chrysanthemums much this time of year.” She set the flowers on the table beside Dela’s chair and plucked the small envelope stuck in a plastic pitchfork out. “Who do you think these are from? They don’t speak of love or friendship,” Mom said, handing Dela the card.
“I won’t know until I read the card.” She opened the flap on the tiny envelope and pulled the card out. SORRY TO HEAR YOU DIDN’T DIE was typed on the card.
“That is an awful joke!” Mom tried to grab the card out of Dela’s grasp.
“No! I need to give this to Heath or Quinn. It might be a clue to who sent the flowers.” Dela put the card back in the envelope and stuck it back on the plastic pitchfork. “Move these to the dining room table, please. I’m going to text Heath and Quinn. Someone needs to go talk to the florist where they came from.”
“Oh! I just remembered. Chrysanthemum is one of the flowers that represent death or goodbye.” Mom stared at her with wide eyes. “How awful for someone to do that.”
Dela wrote up a text and sent it to both Heath and Quinn in the same conversation. She didn’t want to deal with answering them both in separate texts.
Her phone rang. Heath.
“How did the flowers get delivered?” he asked.
“Mom answered the door. Do you want to talk to her?” Dela motioned for her mom to walk over to her.
“Yes.”
“Here Mom. Heath wants to know who delivered the flowers.” She handed her phone to Mom.
“Hello, Heath.” Her mom nodded. “Yes. I answered the door. It was an older man. There was a dark brown small van parked in the driveway behind my car. No. No writing on the van. The florist? Just a minute.” Mom crossed the living room to the dining room and read off the florist’s name on the envelope. “Yes, that’s all I know. Why would anyone do such a mean thing?”
She listened, her gaze on Dela. “I understand. Thank you for being frank with me. My daughter wouldn’t answer my questions. Yes. I’ll be here when you get home. Thank you.” Mom held the phone toward Dela. “It’s making a beeping noise.”
Dela grabbed the phone and answered a call from Quinn. She answered all of his questions which were the same as Heath’s, as she’d listened intently as her mom had given Heath the answers.