Gabe was grabbing a burger at Wharton’s when he overheard one of the men in the booth behind him mention Mitch’s name. He wasn’t in the habit of eavesdropping on conversations, but he couldn’t help it since the tone of the remark had been derogatory. He put his burger down. Though he didn’t turn around, he did tune in.
“Well, I’m not buying it,” another man responded. “Mitch Franklin is one of the most honorable men in this town. He’d never cheat a customer. And look at what he’s doing for downtown. Main Street’s going to be revitalized once he’s through with the renovations. It’s already showing more signs of life than it’s shown in years.”
“You can thank Ronnie Sullivan for that,” the other man said. “He bought that old hardware store and got things started.”
“And Raylene Rollins opened her boutique not long after that,” a third voice added.
“But she and Mitch bought up all those other neglected properties and are fixing them up,” Mitch’s defender argued. “We’re already hearing from a few businesses that are interested in locating downtown.”
By now Gabe had recognized that the man who was standing up for his cousin was Howard Lewis, the mayor, one of the town’s biggest boosters and a proponent of improving the economy of Serenity. After a glance over his shoulder Gabe still couldn’t put a name to the other two.
“If you ask me, whoever’s been spreading those lies has an ax to grind with Mitch,” Howard said. “I’d say it was Ed Morrow, but I thought he’d learned his lesson when he tried it before and most of the town sided with Lynn and Mitch.”
“I can’t name my source, but it wasn’t Ed,” the first man revealed.
“That leaves Ernesto Hernandez then,” Howard said, his voice filled with disgust.
“Makes sense,” the more neutral of the other men said. “I did hear that Mitch tore up the contract he had to do some renovations for Ernesto. I imagine Hernandez didn’t like that one bit. This sure sounds like payback. Walter, you should know better than to listen to anyone like that.”
“I’m not confirming that my source was Hernandez, but it sounded like he had the facts to back up what he was saying,” Walter said defiantly. “I believe him. I think somebody ought to take a long, hard look at what Franklin’s up to on Main Street. And we all remember that cousin of his, Gabe. The kid was nothing but trouble, and now he’s back here and in the thick of that whole scam.”
“Walter!” Howard said, casting a warning glance at him. Clearly he’d caught sight of Gabe in the next booth.
Walter, however, didn’t take the hint. “Who knows how many shortcuts they’re taking with building materials and such?” he continued. “The whole dang thing could fall down a year from now.”
That brought Gabe out of his seat. Temper barely leashed, he moved swiftly to stand beside their table. He put his hands down and leaned in. First he directed a look at Howard. “Mr. Mayor. Nice to see you,” he said pleasantly.
Howard looked even more uncomfortable. “Son, no need to get worked up,” he told Gabe, clearly hoping to avoid a scene, no matter how justified he might think Gabe was in causing one. “Walter here didn’t mean anything by what he was saying. And you must have heard me tell him he was way off base.”
“I did hear what you said, and I appreciate that,” Gabe replied, then turned his attention to the man who’d just been identified as Walter. “But this gentlemen just suggested my cousin and I might be doing something illegal by skirting around regulations or using questionable materials.” He looked the man in the eye. “That is what you were saying, isn’t it?”
“It’s what I heard,” he said, his face bright red now.
Gabe gave him an incredulous look. “And you heard this from a man who cheated on his wife and then tried to hire my cousin to renovate his mistress’s house, correct? Did he mention he kept asking for changes and upgrades, then wanted Mitch to shave his costs down to nothing? That’s the kind of man you find believable? What do you suppose that says about you?”
Walter clearly wasn’t ready to give up yet. “He said he had proof,” he countered, a triumphant note in his voice.
“Did you see any? Because if you did, it was phony. Mitch doesn’t cut corners. Neither do I. And if I find out you’re spreading those lies, I’ll encourage Mitch to sue you for slander.” He gave him a hard look. “But first I might forget that I’m no longer the town troublemaker and deal with you myself.”
“Your gripe’s with Hernandez, not me,” Walter responded, though he looked shaken by the threat of a lawsuit or worse, just as Gabe had intended.
“Oh, believe me, I’ll deal with him,” Gabe said readily. “But you’re the one doing his dirty work by spreading it all over town, so right now I’m concentrating on you. Are we clear?”
“He won’t be saying another word about this,” Howard promised. “I’ll see to it.”
“I can speak for myself,” Walter said belligerently.
“Then do it,” Howard said. “Or I’ll encourage Mitch to sue you myself. I’m not sure I’ll even bother with discouraging Gabe from getting even, either.”
The two men locked gazes, but it was Walter who blinked first. “Not another word,” he said grudgingly.
Though Gabe didn’t entirely buy that this would be the end of it, he gave a nod of satisfaction, then turned to Howard. “Thanks for backing me up and for defending Mitch.”
“No problem,” Howard said, clearly relieved to have the matter settled without a single punch being thrown. “And just so you know, this project of Mitch’s has my full support. The town manager’s, too. Main Street’s already looking better than I ever imagined it could.”
“It’ll look even better when we’re done,” Gabe said, appreciative of the vote of confidence.
His appetite gone, he tossed some bills on his own table and left without touching the rest of his burger. Mitch needed to hear about this, but maybe not till after Gabe could have a few words with Ernesto Hernandez.
* * *
The carpet in Ernesto’s fancy suite of offices was a light beige. Coming into the suite from a sudden downpour that had left him soaked, Gabe took a certain amount of delight in tracking mud across that pristine carpet as he headed for Ernesto’s office. He waved off the secretary who jumped up and tried to block his path.
“This won’t take long,” Gabe told her, pushing open the office door without bothering to knock.
Ernesto had removed his jacket, but that was his only concession to being all alone in his office. He was in another one of those stiff fancy shirts, a silk tie knotted at his throat. Gabe harbored a strong desire to tighten that knot until it made the man squirm. Instead, he took a seat across from Ernesto, settling in as if he had all the time in the world. He couldn’t help hoping that his rain-soaked clothes would ruin the fancy upholstery.
“How’re you doing, Ernesto?” he inquired casually.
Ernesto’s eyes narrowed. His secretary hovered uncertainly in the doorway. Apparently aware that anything Gabe was likely to say wouldn’t be anything he’d want the woman to hear, Ernesto waved her off.
“It’s okay. I’ll handle this,” he said tightly. “Close the door.”
“Are you sure?” she asked worriedly.
Ernesto nodded, his gaze never leaving Gabe. “Okay, what do you want?” he demanded when they were alone.
“I want you to stop spreading lies about Mitch,” Gabe said, his voice quiet but unyielding.
“No idea what you’re talking about.”
“Yet another lie,” Gabe said. “But I can refresh your memory if you like. You’ve been telling people that he’s cutting corners, using faulty materials.”
Ernesto shrugged. “I might have mentioned to a couple of friends that I had my suspicions about the quality of his work. If that happened to get around town, that’s on them.”
Gabe stood up, then leaned down until he was just inches from Ernesto’s face. Adding this latest offense to everything Ernesto had done to Adelia made him want desperately to plant his fist squarely in Ernesto’s smug face. Only the thought of Adelia’s reaction and the reminder that this man was the father of her children kept him from acting on the impulse.
“First of all, I think I can safely say that you have no friends in this town, not after what you did to Adelia and your kids. Second, the instant those deliberate lies came out of your mouth, you were guilty of slander. The law has reasonably stiff penalties for that. I think my next stop will be Helen Decatur-Whitney’s office to check into just how long you might rot in jail if we pursue charges.”
For the first time a tiny hint of panic flickered in Ernesto’s eyes. “Who’s going to believe a man who was in trouble with the law as much as you were in this town?” he said with pure bravado.
Gabe allowed himself a faint smile. “There’s not a thing on my record but a string of warnings about fighting back against some bullies who were talking about my mom. I may have mishandled things back then, but I was standing up for someone I care about, the same way I’m doing right now. And if you know anything at all about those incidents, you probably also know that I know how to use my fists when I’m worked up. Right this second, I’m getting pretty worked up.”
“Are you threatening me?”
“I suppose you could test me and find out for sure,” Gabe said.
Suddenly a smirk settled on Ernesto’s face. “I wonder how much time you’ll be spending around my ex-wife and my kids once a judge hears about this. Two can play at this game.”
Having Adelia and the kids dragged into this fight nearly got the best of Gabe. He wanted desperately to wipe that smug look off Ernesto’s face, but once again he restrained himself. He knew nothing good would come of it.
“I thought that might shut you up,” Ernesto said, obviously pleased with himself.
“It is only out of respect for Adelia that I’m not wiping the floor with you right this second,” Gabe told him. “But don’t push me too far, Ernesto. And stop with the mudslinging about Mitch. If I hear one more word that’s attributed to you, we’ll both see you in court.”
He walked out of the office without looking back, aware that the secretary went rushing in, probably to make sure her boss was still in one piece.
He was just exiting the building when a patrol car pulled up out front. Carter Rollins gestured for him to come over, then nodded in the direction of the building.
“Everything okay in there?”
“Ernesto’s pretty face is untouched, if that’s what you’re asking.”
“Too bad,” Carter muttered, then regarded him sternly. “You did not just hear those words come out of my mouth.”
Gabe bit back a grin. “Never heard a thing. I imagine I can thank his secretary for alerting you that trouble was on the horizon.”
“She said you’d stormed in without an appointment and she’d heard raised voices. I decided given the complicated dynamics of the situation, I’d better check it out myself.”
Gabe’s expression sobered. “I threatened him,” he told Carter.
“I do not need to hear that,” the Serenity police chief said.
“Yes, you do. You also need to understand why.” He explained about the campaign Ernesto had been waging to undermine Mitch’s reputation. “My next stop is Helen’s office. I want her to be aware of this, too. I don’t know that Mitch will want to take action, but I need to know what the options are.” He nodded toward the building. “And just so you know the whole ugly story, since he wasn’t real happy with me, Ernesto threatened to find a way to keep me away from Adelia and his kids.”
Carter groaned. “Gabe, I know you’re in the right here, especially since you gave him a warning and didn’t lay a hand on him, but watch yourself. I wouldn’t put anything past him. Ernesto may not have many supporters around here, but the courts have to be above that. If a judge sees you as a threat, he’ll have no choice but to order you to steer clear of the kids. He probably can’t do the same when it comes to Adelia, but you know what it would do to her. If she’s forced to make a choice, you’ll lose.”
Gabe sighed. “I know that. I’m just praying it won’t get to that point.”
“Warn her, okay? Ernesto’s unpredictable and he’s angry. You don’t want Adelia to be blindsided by any of this.”
“Got it,” Gabe said. “Thanks, Carter.”
“I’ll have your back as long as you don’t cross any lines. Understood?”
Gabe nodded. “Understood.”
For the first time ever in this town, he felt as if he wasn’t totally alone when it came to standing up to a bully. And when it came right down to it, that’s what Ernesto was, nothing more than a grown-up version of the sort of thugs Gabe had seen far too much of as a kid.
* * *
Gabe’s conversations with Helen and with Mitch to fill them in went reasonably well. Helen was ready to start legal proceedings right away, but Gabe told her to hold off, that it was Mitch’s call whether he wanted to go that route.
To his surprise, Mitch laughed off Ernesto’s underhanded campaign against him. “Gabe, people in this town know me. He’s not going to be able to say a thing that will hurt my reputation. All I have to do is say, ‘Consider the source.’”
Gabe thought he was being naive. “That kind of talk is insidious. Once he plants the idea that you do shoddy work, if a single shingle falls off a roof anywhere in town, people will start to wonder.”
Mitch’s expression sobered at that. “Okay, you may be right. It is dangerous to let his lies circulate without fighting back, but a lawsuit might be overkill. I’ll just have Helen send some kind of cease and desist letter just to let him know that I’m taking the matter seriously. That ought to put him on notice to shut his mouth.” He held Gabe’s gaze. “Will that suit you?”
Gabe nodded. “I just saw red when I overheard Walter in Wharton’s. Who knows how many other people heard him?”
“They also heard the mayor standing up for me. And you,” Mitch reminded him. He smiled. “Thanks for that, by the way. As for Howard, he’s respected in this town. He’s been reelected time and again. He may be a figurehead for all intents and purposes, but his faith in my work will carry a lot of weight.”
“I suppose.”
“I’m not worried,” Mitch insisted. “You need to let it go for now. Take off and go over to Adelia’s. You need to fill her in sooner rather than later.”
Because he knew both Mitch and Carter were right, Gabe agreed. “I’ll make up for all the time I missed this afternoon,” he promised.
“Not to worry,” Mitch said. “You were on company business.” To Gabe’s shock, Mitch pulled him into a bear hug. “Thanks for standing up for me, Gabe.”
“Hey, it’s what family does.”
“I didn’t, not back when you needed someone on your side,” Mitch said.
“We agreed that’s in the past,” Gabe told him.
At Adelia’s a few minutes later, he found Tomas sitting glumly in the middle of his bedroom, awaiting Gabe’s arrival. He glanced up when Gabe walked in.
“Hey, buddy,” Gabe greeted him. “Something wrong?”
“You’re late. I thought you weren’t coming.”
“I told you I’d be here, didn’t I?” Gabe said, sitting on the floor beside him. “I’ll always keep my word.”
“Like I believe that,” Tomas said. “Nobody does.”
Gabe had a sick feeling he was being tarred for someone else’s neglect. He had a pretty good idea who that might be.
“Somebody let you down?” he asked. “Besides me, that is?”
“My dad said he was going to get me today and play catch with me in the park.”
“He didn’t show up?”
Tomas shook his head, fighting tears. “I called him when he wasn’t here when he said he would be. He said he didn’t have time, that he had a lot of important work to do. It’s what he always says,” Tomas said in a resigned tone.
Gabe muttered a harsh curse in his head but refrained from saying a word against Ernesto aloud. “I’m sure he does have a pretty busy schedule at work,” he suggested instead.
Tomas brushed impatiently at the tears on his cheeks. “He’s not at work. I called there first. He’s with that lady, the one he picked over Mom. I heard her telling him to hurry up and get off the phone.”
“I’m sorry,” Gabe said, unable to think of a single comforting thing he could possibly say, much less any defense he could offer for Ernesto’s behavior.
“It’s not like it’s the first time,” Tomas said. “I should be used to it, huh?”
His plaintive words took Gabe straight back to his own childhood when he’d struggled time and again to prepare himself to be let down by his mom.
“It’s not the kind of thing you should have to get used to,” he told Tomas honestly. “But the truth is that sometimes adults make choices kids don’t understand. It is hard, but one of the important lessons of life we need to learn is that we have to find some way to accept that people we love have flaws. It takes a real grown-up to understand that. Do you think you can try? Personally I think you’re pretty mature for a kid your age.”
Tomas sat a little taller. “I can try,” he said.
“Good for you. Now, are you going to help me get this room painted?”
For the first time the boy’s eyes lit up. “I get to help?”
Gabe wasn’t sure how much help Tomas would be, but he nodded. “Put on some really old clothes, so you don’t ruin what you’re wearing, and you can help,” he confirmed. “And later on, if it’s okay with your mom, I’ll take you to the park and we can play catch.”
“Cool,” Tomas said, racing over to dig through a box of things still packed from the move. “Mom says these are ready to be turned into dust cloths,” he said, holding up a pair of shorts that looked practically threadbare and a faded T-shirt.
“Those look perfect to me,” Gabe said.
When Tomas ran off to the bathroom to change, Gabe drew in a deep breath. As sleazy as Gabe thought Ernesto was, he still couldn’t grasp how he could so easily dismiss the needs of a great kid like his son. Gabe might not be the best person to make up for a dad’s attention, but he sure as heck intended to try.
* * *
Adelia waited until dinner was over, Gabe and Tomas had returned from their game of catch and all the kids had gone upstairs to bed before she walked across the kitchen to Gabe and kissed him firmly on the lips. Shock and a quick flash of desire lit his eyes.
“What was that about?” he asked, his expression incredulous.
“To thank you for the way you handled Tomas earlier this afternoon.”
“You were here? I thought you were still at work.”
“I would have been, but Selena called me and told me what Ernesto had pulled and that Tomas was really upset. By the time Raylene could get in to cover for me and I got home, you were with him.”
“Why didn’t you say something?”
“Because you were already saying all the right things,” she told him. “And, to be honest, it made me cry.”
Gabe looked dismayed. “I made you cry?”
“You were so sweet, exactly the kind of man my son should have as a father. Instead, he has this thoughtless, careless jerk in his life, a man who will always put his own needs ahead of his son’s.”
Gabe seemed uncomfortable with her praise. “You might not feel that way when you’ve heard about what I’ve been up to today,” he suggested direly.
“Gabe, you put a smile back on my son’s face and made him feel as if he matters. You took him to the park for a game of catch, when I know you must be beat. I can’t think of a thing you could tell me that would negate that.”
“Don’t be so sure,” he said and described what had apparently been quite the confrontation with Ernesto.
Adelia heard him out. “Of course you had to stand up for Mitch,” she said.
“That’s not all of it, though.”
She stood silently as he described Ernesto’s reaction.
“He threatened to go to court to keep me away from you and the kids,” he concluded.
Adelia laughed. “It’s all bluster,” she said. “He wouldn’t dare set foot in that courtroom again. The judge wasn’t any happier than Helen that I let him off as easily as I did when we divorced. He’s not going to listen to anything Ernesto has to say, especially when it comes to throwing mud on someone who’s been as great with my kids as you’ve been. Don’t you get it, Gabe? You’re everything that Ernesto’s not. That’s why he’s so upset.”
“He could complicate things for us,” Gabe countered.
“Not a chance,” Adelia insisted. “You don’t know him like I do. It took me a very long time, but I finally realized that despite the way he behaved when it came to honoring our wedding vows, Ernesto craves respect. He liked the image he presented of being this terrific family man with a big house and four kids who excelled in school and a wife who was involved in all sorts of community activities. He didn’t give two hoots about us, but he did like what it said about him. We mattered to him just a tiny bit more than his designer suits and his Rolex watch.”
“But the whole blasted town knows now that it was a lie, that your kids are great because of you, that you were the person to be admired.”
Adelia didn’t even try to deny it. In fact, the knowledge satisfied her need to feel a sense of pride in the way she’d lived her life despite Ernesto’s philandering. “But he’s not going to want to have any of that mud slung in his face again. He won’t risk it by attacking you.”
“He’s already attacking Mitch,” Gabe countered.
“Not the same thing, at least as he sees it. That’s all about business. This would be personal, and he wouldn’t come out smelling like a rose. More like a pile of manure.”
Gabe regarded her with surprise, then shook his head and chuckled. “You really do see him clearly now, don’t you?”
“If I didn’t, shame on me,” she said, then cautioned, “That doesn’t mean I want my kids disillusioned about him, at least not until they figure out what he’s all about on their own. I think Tomas made that discovery today.” Sadness settled over her. “His awakening came a little sooner than I might have liked, though.”
“I’m sorry if I contributed to that,” Gabe apologized.
“Don’t go there. I meant what I said before. You said all the right things. You put a smile back on his face.” She grinned then. “How’d the painting go, by the way?”
He gave her a rueful look. “The painting went great,” he claimed. “The cleanup, not so much.”
“So you’re saying my son probably doesn’t have a career as a housepainter in store.”
“Not unless someone’s after a decor that looks as if it was painted by Jackson Pollock. Tomas can splatter with the great modern artists of all time.”
“Maybe I’ll get him some canvases and some washable paints for his birthday and nudge him in that direction,” she said, laughing. “Though personally I prefer to know what I’m looking at when I see a painting.”
“Oh, you will when you see his,” Gabe said. “Chaos.”
She let her gaze linger on his face. “You just did it again,” she said.
“What?”
“Put a smile on someone’s face after a difficult day. Thank you for that.”
He ran his thumb over her lips, lingered at the upturned corner of her mouth. “Glad to help. I wonder if I can do the same thing without words.”
Even before he lowered his mouth to claim hers, Adelia murmured, “I’ll bet you can.”
In fact, just as she’d anticipated, Gabe turned out to be very good at silent communication, too.