Tabitha froze in the kitchen, her gaze locking with Charline’s as the older woman called the Sunflower County sheriff’s office. Once DeWayne had promised to assist Roger, Charline sank into a chair. She dropped the phone to her side. “Help is on the way.”
“Someone was there, at the cabin,” Tabitha said. She’d clearly heard the crashing of a door, though she hadn’t been able to decipher Roger’s last words.
“Yes, I think someone Roger wasn’t expecting arrived.” Charline redialed the phone several times but there was no answer.
Tabitha knew that Roger wouldn’t respond. Whatever he was caught up in, he couldn’t talk on the phone. “Do you know where Roger is? Where is this cabin?”
Charline had gone pasty white. “He doesn’t want you there.”
“Please.” Tabitha thought her chest would crack open from the pressure of her emotions. “I have to help him.”
“You can’t. If you put yourself in danger, it will only backfire on Roger. He was clear, Tabitha. He said not to allow you to go to him.”
“He said Trudy wasn’t at the cabin. So where is she?”
Charline shook her head. “Hannah and Antoine were there. He said he allowed them to take him prisoner so he could find Trudy. Apparently, he somehow got the upper hand of them. Until…” She didn’t finish.
Tabitha sank into a kitchen chair. “He’s put himself at great risk. I can’t let him do this alone. She’s my sister. He’s doing this for me.”
“And Trudy is his employee. Don’t discount the fact that Hannah is his mother, and it seems she’s likely to blame for all of this. Hannah won’t hurt Roger. As awful as she is, she won’t harm her son.” Charline’s eyes blazed. “Especially if Roger is, as you suspect, Micah’s child. I do believe Micah Malone was the only person Hannah has ever truly loved.”
Charline’s words allowed Tabitha to get a grip on her emotions. She nodded slowly. “What you say makes sense.”
“If you go there and confront Hannah or Antoine, and if Roger is in their power, you may provoke them to harm him. Antoine has no kind feelings toward Roger. I’m sure he views all of us as barriers to what he hopes to achieve—getting his hands on Hannah’s money. She’s always been a fool about men and their motivations.”
“And now Roger is with her.”
“If anyone can bring her around, it’s Roger. I know how difficult it is, but you have to give him the room to convince her. If anyone can make her see reason, it’s him. And he deserves this opportunity. Hannah may end up in prison, but Roger needs to know that he did all he could to help her. Just like you need to know you turned over every rock to find your sister.”
Charline was right. As difficult as it was going to be, she had to heed Roger’s request. Even if she died a little inside worrying about him and Trudy. She put her palms on the table and tried for a smile. “This is why so many famous songwriters explore the dangers of love. I’ve never felt such emotional pain.”
Charline sighed. “Your feelings for Roger have grown deep and true, it seems.”
“I don’t know what I really feel, except this all-consuming panic at the idea he might be hurt. The same panic I feel for my sister.”
Charline’s smile was slow and rueful. “To love is to risk pain. Many songwriters have plowed that field.” Her expression was pensive. “Maybe one day soon Samuel, Roger, and I can hear you perform some of the songs you’ve written.”
Tabitha didn’t hide her surprise. “I didn’t expect that from you. I came here with a lie on my lips. Now you want to encourage my songwriting.”
“I know. It doesn’t make logical sense, but whatever lies you told, they were told for love. You didn’t know if you could trust us to help you or if we might have been behind your sister’s disappearance. I understand the subterfuge.”
“Thank you.” Even though she was still desperately worried about Trudy and Roger, Tabitha felt as if a stone had been lifted from her heart. “I still need to go to that cabin. Please.”
“I’m sorry. My nephew asks very little of me. This is one time I intend to make sure I deliver for him. And for you and your sister. You have to put some trust in Roger, in his abilities.”
“It’s not that I don’t trust him, but he isn’t the kind of man to shoot another.”
“I know. But give him a chance. Why don’t you see if you can find out more about Antoine Fresca? My gut tells me that he’s the dangerous element. The more we know, the better prepared we’ll be.”
“You’re right, but I’d rather go to the cabin.”
“Let’s wait to see what Budgie and DeWayne discover.”
It wasn’t the plan Tabitha wanted, but she knew Charline was acting in Roger’s best interest. “Let me see what else I can find out about Antoine. Maybe he has an Achilles’ Heel we can use against him.”
“I’ll get my laptop for you,” Charline offered. “Roger keeps trying to drag me into the information age, but I resist. You can put it to good use.”
“Thank you.”
Tabitha pushed her reluctant body up the steps and to her room. More than anything she wanted to take action, to go to the cabin where Roger was facing danger alone. Trudy wasn’t there, but maybe there was evidence that would lead them to her. Staying at Long plantation, working a keyboard, was the last thing she wanted to do.
When Charline delivered the computer, Tabitha took it and sat at a small table by a window that gave a view of the newly sprouted fields. The whirls of rows created a patchwork of brown and green. Lovely. She took a breath and went to work, checking financial companies, searching for any evidence of Antoine’s background.
Roger crouched in the tall grass behind the cabin. He’d cut his mother’s bonds before he darted out the backdoor. No matter what she might have done, she was still his mother. He couldn’t leave her tied in a chair when he didn’t know who was breaking into the cabin or what they intended to do. He circled around the cabin to the parked rental car. When he got there, he wasn’t surprised to find that Antoine was missing. Someone had set him free. The ropes remained in the trampled grass.
“Damn.” Roger needed only ten minutes with Antoine to make him talk, and now that had been taken from him. He had to assume that whoever had freed Antoine was working with the dapper crook and Hannah. So his mother would not be harmed. She’d played him yet again. He could release his worry for her and concentrate on finding Trudy.
Hidden behind the car, he scouted the area. The intruder had arrived in a silver sedan he didn’t recognize and he was positioned where he couldn’t see the license plates. Roger looked in the window of his mother’s car and saw the keys dangling from the ignition. Antoine had been in such a hurry, he’d failed to take the keys. It was a slim chance, but Roger had to take it. He opened the door, slid behind the wheel, and drove off. Luckily he knew where he was and could navigate the twists and turns of the lakeside road. He was also aware that there was only one road in and out of the cabin until it joined a paved road—County Road 409. All was not lost.
At the junction of 409, he found a wooded drive that was almost hidden. He took the time to back into it, gritting his teeth at the sound of the branches digging into the paint of the expensive car. There was no help for it. When he was certain he couldn’t be seen from the road, he killed the engine. He had a clear, unobstructed view of the only road out of the cabin. And he knew what vehicle would be passing—the silver sedan he’d seen parked at the old cabin.
Soon, he could pick up his mother’s trail. She would lead him to Trudy one way or the other. And he would discover who was helping Hannah and Antoine—crucial information. All he had to do was wait. And fret. Because he knew that Tabitha and his aunt and uncle would be worried sick.
It took only a few moments for Tabitha to familiarize herself with the laptop. T&S Financials was her first search. The company was only a few years old, and it was headquartered in Switzerland. While there was a website and list of services, the site was strangely empty. That gave Tabitha some concern. She argued with herself that Antoine claimed to be an international player, so it wasn’t uncommon to have a business located in Switzerland. But she also understood that a lot of companies hiding things had foreign locations. The more she dug into T&S, the less certain she was that it was a legitimate company at all. It seemed more like a ghost company.
When she checked Antoine’s resume, she found he’d been involved with financial organizations in the states and Europe. He also had an impressive background in agricultural investment and development. Which meant he might have more information about the G9-14 cotton that Trudy had been poking into. It lined him up perfectly to be the culprit behind Trudy’s disappearance and Lisa East’s death.
Tabitha had to wonder if Hannah was aware of the web of lies he’d spun. Perhaps she was complicit or maybe just a dupe. If that were the case, Roger was in terrible danger. Trying to save his mother might cost his own life—if Hannah didn’t want to be saved.
For nearly two hours Tabitha worked the Internet to find everything she could on Antoine and Hannah. Where Antoine was found in financial news—all in recent years--Hannah was mentioned in a number of international gossip columns for her party-girl and scandalous ways. She traveled among the upper echelons of international jetsetters. There were photos of her at the opening of plays in London, tennis matches at Wimbledon, and gaming tables in Monaco—always with a handsome man on her arm. She was a very conspicuous society woman. And most recently with Antoine. It was a lifestyle of glitter and lack of substance, as far as Tabitha could tell. For all of her high living, her life seemed terribly empty. Much as Tabitha’s heart felt.
At last Charline tapped on her door. When Tabitha answered, she stood in the hallway. “DeWayne is working with the Coahoma County deputies and he went to the cabin. It’s empty.”
Tabitha felt as if a mule had kicked her in the stomach. “What?”
“There’s no one there. But the good news is that there’s no sign of foul play. No blood, no indication that anyone was roughed up.”
“But we heard someone breach the cabin.” Tabitha was confused.
“There is no indication of anything untoward. No sign that anyone was held prisoner there. It was absolutely empty.”
“Where is Roger then?”
Charline inhaled deeply. “I don’t know. The deputies don’t know. They’re scouring the place, but DeWayne doesn’t think there’s anything to find there.” She braced against the door frame. “And now I wish I’d listened to you and gone to the cabin. But it’s too late for that.”
The ringing of the doorbell startled Charline. “Samuel has gone into town to talk with the lawyer and I gave Nancy the day off. Let me get that.”
“I’ll come with you.” Tabitha was eager for any distraction, and with so much going on, she wanted to be sure Charline was safe.
The two women hurried down the stairs and Charline opened the front door. Tabitha recognized the new arrival, the beautiful Lily Kennedy.
“Why, Lily. What brings you to Long Hall?” Charline was surprised and didn’t hide it.
“I need to speak with Roger.” The tall, slender blonde stepped into the foyer. She smiled at Tabitha and held out her hand as she made introductions. “I’m Lily Kennedy.” Tabitha shook hands with the young woman.
“Roger isn’t here, Lily. Can I help you?”
“Do you know where he is?” Her smile faltered as she asked. “It’s very important that I talk to him.”
“He can’t be reached right now. Can I help you?” Charline was kind but firm.
Lily shook her head. “No. You’re going to think me a complete fool.”
“What’s going on?” Charline asked. “Maybe Tabitha and I can help.”
Lilly looked down and sighed. “I feel like a fool. Dirk is off the radar and I was hoping Roger might know where he is. Dirk has taken to disappearing, and it’s gotten under my skin. I know I’m spoiled, but we’re planning a wedding. Roger didn’t mention… Could you tell me where he is? Maybe he’s heard from Dirk.”
“Roger’s away on business, and we haven’t heard from Dirk. Not recently. We haven’t seen Dirk in a few weeks. Or at least I haven’t. We’ve missed him.” Charline was trying not to show how flustered she was. “Would you like some tea or coffee?”
“No, thank you. And I apologize for just dropping by. I’m afraid I interrupted a psychic reading or something.” She gave Tabitha a knowing look. “I’d really like to have you stop by my parents’ place if you have time this week. You have quite the reputation around the county.”
“Of course.” Tabitha would figure a way out of the session at a later date.
“Are you busy now?” Lily asked. “You could come over now.”
“I’m afraid I am busy.” Tabitha forced a smile. “Later in the week would be much better.”
Lily pulled a card from her purse. “Here’s my number. Call me, please. I’m so excited about this. I’m getting married this summer, and I’d love to see what my Grandmother Charlotte has to say about Dirk. She passed away about five years ago, and she was smart as a tack. I’m sure she’s watching over me and will have some good advice. And if Roger has any idea where Dirk might be, please ask him to call. That man of mine, it’s like trying to put on a cat ballet. We have a date with the wedding planner and I think Dirk has deliberately ditched the meeting. Typical man. He acts like planning the wedding is worse than pulling teeth.”
“These Delta men are spoiled,” Charline agreed. “They’re used to us taking care of all the little details and life just magically happens for them.”
“Very true. They don’t know how lucky they are.” Lily smiled at Tabitha. “We love our men, but they can test our patience. Nice to meet you, Tabitha. I hope you do find time to visit with my family.”
“Sure thing.”
Lily gave a wave as she left. In a moment she was roaring down the driveway in her cute blue sports car.
“She’s a lovely young woman from a sterling family,” Charline said, “and she’s going to have her hands full with Dirk. I doubt he’ll ever settle down completely.”
Tabitha didn’t know how much Charline knew about Dirk’s carousing—and dating her sister—so she said nothing. Roger would handle that situation when he came home and when Trudy was found.
“I’m going to try for a nap,” Tabitha said. She had a long night ahead of her, and if she expected to learn anything, she needed to be alert.
“Good idea. If anything changes, I’ll wake you.” Charline gave her arm a squeeze. “This will work out right in the end. I feel it.”
Blast and be damned. I should have stuck with Roger. From all the reports, he’s managed to get himself in a pinch with that ogre of a mother and her sidekick. I don’t know what Hannah and Antoine are up to, but it can’t be good. While Tabitha entered Long Hall under false pretenses, her heart was in the right place. I can’t say the same for Hannah and Antoine. There’s something very off about those two. They’re deep into this cotton business, and what a wall of subterfuge they’ve thrown up. This doesn’t parse. They’re always showing up where the next crisis is about to happen. And yet when they had the chance to rid themselves of Roger, they didn’t. Maternal tenderness? It hardly seems to fit Hannah.
The lovely Tabitha is distressed about Charline’s recent news regarding Roger’s disappearance. She’s holding it together, and because she has to follow through on her plans tonight to meet her date, she needs to get some shut eye. She’s been up far too long—and she’ll need her wits about her. Let me see if I can nudge her toward the bed. She’s giving me that look—the one that says, yes, I know you are a wise cat but I am stubborn. But yes, she is stretching out on the bed.
I’ll wait until she nods off and then I need to run to the agricultural office. I have to find the reports on that cotton. There’s something we missed. There has to be. If I can find that, Tabitha will be armed tonight when she meets up with Alan Dotsun. Perhaps he is just a man looking for a dinner date. Or perhaps he’s someone who knows more about G9-14. Without Roger here to protect Tabitha, it’s all up to me. And Pluto. And we won’t let Tabitha down. That’s one vow I will make and keep.