Chapter Twenty-Three

And what a show it was. Bella left a message on Jackson’s voice mail telling him she hoped he was okay, and she’d gotten his message with the blood. She wanted to be with him just as much as he wanted her. Now they could be free together. But first, she was being blamed for his murder.

I was very convinced, even though I could see through her body language that she didn’t mean any of it. I didn’t have to believe, though, only he did. She told him where her safe was and that she wanted him to have all the money she’d saved over the years so he could live the good life. She’d sacrifice herself for him.

I almost gagged at the last part, and it looked like Jared wanted to join me at worshipping the porcelain god. But Bella hung up and shook out her hair. “Done!” she said with triumph. “No way will he be able to resist that.”

“And now we take you to jail.” Jared got out the cuffs. He leaned in and puckered his lips, but Bella shoved him back.

“He might be watching right now. You’ll blow the whole thing if he sees you kiss me after I declared my undying love for him. Got it?”

“Yeah,” Jared grumbled as Ben kissed me for good measure.

I followed the two of them out of the house, Ben close on my tail. I figured this had better work, because it was the best idea we could come up with. It protected Bella and caught the bastard at the same time. He really was a bastard, too, if he came out of hiding just to nab all her cash and let her rot in jail for something he’d done.

Jared and Bella left in his squad car with Bella in the back, but they only circled around town before coming back to park his car in my garage. Then we all got into a van Ben had borrowed from his uncle Harlow and headed back over to Bella’s house.

The night was quiet, with only a slight breeze ruffling through the van’s interior. All sorts of high tech stuff took up residence in the back of the minivan. All I can say is thank God for tinted windows. I doubted Jackson would think he was being watched, or even un-self-absorbed enough to look around to see if he was. He thought he had this whole thing in the bag, I was sure. Well, I couldn’t wait to surprise him.

Sure enough, after the clock in the square struck midnight, the loser came creeping up to the back door, upended Bella’s little gnome guy with her key in his feet, and crept into the darkened house. We all waited with bated breath while the microphones inside picked up Jackson chuckling to himself as he dialed out the combination of Bella’s safe in the basement.

We sat in the van across the street, listening and recording as Jackson rummaged around in the safe. Ben, in all his private investigator glory, had rigged her place so the police would have everything they needed to put Jackson in the slammer once we gave it, and him, to them. We hadn’t involved them in the actual capture, though, since Bella had a few things to settle with the Bastard before we handed him over to the fuzz. Things she might not have been able to do if it was an official capture. You understand.

“Bags packed, check,” he said, his voice coming through loud and clear, as if he were standing right next to us. I gave Ben a thumbs-up, and he blushed. “In the trunk, check. Got away with murder though it was completely an accident. Stupid Trev wouldn’t give it over. How was I supposed to know that statue was made of lead? Jackie Sturder is a stupid bitch who will get nothing. Check.” He laughed with glee, and I was hard-pressed not to laugh along with him on that one.

He regressed into mumbling, but then seemed to get hold of himself, recapturing his earlier enthusiasm. “Screwed Bella for being the biggest bitch only second to that Ivy cow, check. Knocked her ass good. Handy little closet in the shop. Ha-ha. And then that picture—man, I’m good.” He laughed with glee again, as I had to forcibly be held back in the cushy bucket seat under my butt. So I guessed that cleared up who’d tried to hurt me besides Mr. Needleheim. Nice. Oh man, did I want a piece of that jackass Jackson.

But Bella was sitting next to me smiling as if it were her birthday, Christmas, and her wedding day all rolled into one. “Keep talking, you piece of shit,” she said, rubbing her hands together like one of the villains in old cartoons.

And he did. What was it with people having to relish all their bad deeds? Personally, if I did something wrong I think I’d try to keep it to myself. Then again, I wasn’t a loony-tune. Or at least I hoped not on the good days.

“Got me some money.” He whistled a little ditty. “Going to go far, far away, and the stupid police here won’t know where I went. Even if they eventually find me, I’m sure I’ll be able to talk my way out. It’ll be my word against Bella’s, and she’s a dumb cu—”

I had to physically restrain Bella after the last word. I will not even think it here much less let Jackson finish saying it. But I did snicker to myself about him thinking we didn’t know where he was, considering we knew his exact location. And how did he think he was going to talk his way out of the mess he’d made in that ugly painted house? The pig’s blood had been easily spotted on those sheets at the lab. The lab techs had also confirmed that the towels left in her shop’s laundry barrel were covered in Trev’s blood, which put one more nail in Jackson’s cage.

The sound of rummaging came through the speaker. How much crap did Bella have in her safe, anyway?

And then Jackson was out the back door.

Ben rocketed out of the van, flying at Jackson before anyone else could blink. “You bastard! Bastard!” Every “bastard” was punctuated by a punch.

There were quite a few “bastards” before Jackson got his feet under him and went after Ben like a bull in an arena. It all happened so fast, I barely had time to blink, though I did try to quell the urge, since I always miss the good stuff when I do.

But then my beautiful Ben went flying as the former football player slammed into his chest. Ben didn’t fare so well as he flew into the back door, bounced, and fell onto a trash can.

Even from where I was sitting, still in the van, I could have sworn I heard the distinct sound of something breaking. Ow! I had to get to him, so I hightailed it across the street.

Jackson, who must have been suicidal at this point, stepped in front of me, blocking the way to Ben.

Idiot! Idiot of the highest order. I would have let him go—allowing Jared to take control of the situation—but Jackson was having none of it.

“You stupid bitch. You think you’re so fucking smart? Well, I’ve got something for you.” And he actually grabbed his crotch. Right in front of me. What the hell! I gave myself about a second to be agog before I used the handy target he’d provided me.

My knee nailed him right in the gonads. I was surprised I didn’t see him choking on his balls, but he was crying and crumbling to the ground right in front of my eyes. I kicked him when he was down, just for good measure, while congratulating myself for finally using a conventional weapon. No cooking oil or silk ties for me this time. Oh, no. I gave him the smackdown with my cow of a body. Score one for me!

Stepping past the crybaby writhing on the ground, I went to Ben, kneeling in front of him. “Where does it hurt?”

“My leg.” He grabbed his calf as a tear leaked out of his eye. Man, was that going to hurt in the morning.

“I’ll have Jared call an ambulance. Okay?”

“Yeah.” My manly man tried to suck it up, but he was hurting something fierce. “I don’t think it’s broken, though.”

“Okay, we’ll fix it.” I gave him a kiss on the forehead, then turned to watch Jared in action.

I’d heard his boots striking the ground and turned at the last moment to see him stalking up to Jackson like a lion on the scent. If Jared weren’t an officer of the law, I wouldn’t have guaranteed Jackson’s survival through this encounter at all.

But before Bella’s boyfriend could tread all the way over Jackson, Bella was there getting a kick in of her own. She repeated that word I wouldn’t think about earlier and nailed him a good one.

“Let me take him,” Officer Jared said, restraining Bella by placing his hands under her elbows. He picked her up, putting her off to the side, where she bellowed like a horse in heat. This was not an image I would ever share with her, but I must say it was refreshing to know she wasn’t perfect, either.

Jared bent down with cuffs in his hand, reading Jackson his rights in a calm, steady voice. I couldn’t imagine keeping myself together like that, but Jared was calm, cool, and collected—Go, Jared!—although I was pretty sure Jackson’s head somehow got banged on the van’s doorframe, just for good measure, as Jared stuffed him into the vehicle.

Ben ended up hobbling to his feet, telling me he wouldn’t need an ambulance after all. It seemed he’d landed on some wood outside the door, the cracking noise having originated there. But he was still sore and thought he’d sprained his ankle.

That I could take care of.