Chapters (50)
- COVER
- PRAISE FOR TITLES BY MIRANDA JAMES
- ALSO BY MIRANDA JAMES
- TITLE PAGE
- COPYRIGHT
- DEDICATION
- ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
- ONE
- TWO
- THREE
- FOUR
- FIVE
- SIX
- SEVEN
- EIGHT
- NINE
- TEN
- ELEVEN
- TWELVE
- THIRTEEN
- FOURTEEN
- FIFTEEN
- SIXTEEN
- SEVENTEEN
- EIGHTEEN
- NINETEEN
- TWENTY
- TWENTY-ONE
- TWENTY-TWO
- TWENTY-THREE
- TWENTY-FOUR
- TWENTY-FIVE
- TWENTY-SIX
- TWENTY-SEVEN
- TWENTY-EIGHT
- TWENTY-NINE
- THIRTY
- THIRTY-ONE
- THIRTY-TWO
- THIRTY-THREE
- THIRTY-FOUR
- THIRTY-FIVE
- THIRTY-SIX
- THIRTY-SEVEN
- THIRTY-EIGHT
- THIRTY-NINE
- FORTY
- AFTERWORD
- LETTER TO THE READER
- SPECIAL EXCERPT FROM BLESS HER DEAD LITTLE HEART
“I’m sorry.” I sat across from her and put down my briefcase. “I really don’t believe there will be any kind of violence. Kanesha and another officer will be here, but I don’t expect there will be much of a scene.” I doubted that Eugene carried a weapon. Besides he wouldn’t be expecting anything but good news about a fee for the library appearance.
Teresa sighed. “I hope you’re right, Charlie. I told Marcella Marter exactly what you wanted. She tried to press me for details but I said that I couldn’t discuss it any further, that she and her mother really needed to meet with us this morning.”
“Thank you. I appreciate your trust, and I promise you this will all be over soon.” I couldn’t tell her that our plans for the big event would have to be canceled, but she would learn that soon enough. “Once we get in the conference room, I’ll take over. You just be on the alert, okay?”
Teresa looked dubious at that bit of instruction. “If you say so.” She glanced past me at the doorway.
“Good morning.”
I turned to see Kanesha, accompanied by Deputy Bates. “Morning, Officers. Let me show you to the conference room.” There was a closet inside the room, where staff kept supplies for meetings, such as bottled water, soft drinks, and so on. It was large enough for two people to wait in comfortably until they were needed—in this case, to make an arrest.
Kanesha and Bates followed me to the room, and I showed them the closet. I explained to Kanesha what I had asked Bronwyn to do, and she nodded. “Good idea. Another deputy will enter the library ten minutes after the Marters arrive. He’ll be on hand to assist, and they won’t realize he’s here.”
I felt jittery. “I hate the waiting part. I just want it all to be over.”
Bates grinned. “Amateur status.” From his tone I could tell he was teasing, but he was right. I wasn’t used to this kind of setup, and the professionals were.
I left them in the conference room and went back to Teresa’s office. By then it was nearly nine fifteen. I hoped the Marters would be on time. I itched to tell Teresa the truth, but I knew it was probably better not to. I could trust in her courage and good sense to react properly when the time came.
Teresa pretended to work on a document on the computer while I sat across from her and tried to keep calm. The minutes seemed to drag by, but at nine thirty-two Bronwyn brought Mrs. Cartwright and Marcella Marter to Teresa’s office.