“What’s going on?”

I will lie for him. I will tell them the drugs are mine. I was the one working with Christian. Not my son.

“Jewelann … do you mind if I call you that?” she asks.

“It’s my name.”

The smile she flashes me is oddly sympathetic. “You might want to take a seat there with Eli.”

“I’m fine standing. What’s going on?”

She sighs. Eli looks stricken. He’s shaking a little. I put both my hands on his shoulders, squeezing gently, and feel him settle.

“Have you heard from your husband?”

“I have not.” My chin goes up. “To be honest, I believe he’s left us. I’m not sure I expect to hear from him again.”

The detective sighs again and presses a fingertip between her closed eyes. “Mrs. Jordan—”

“They found a body,” Eli cuts in. “Bones. They found a skeleton in the backyard.”

CHAPTER
35

“JEWELANN? FRED, GET one of those ammonia capsules. No, don’t bother with the EMTs yet, I think she just … hey,” the detective says as I swim back up out of the darkness that had hit me over the head. “Hey, there. You okay?”

I shake my head, quelling a gag. I don’t remember her sitting me onto the kitchen chair or pushing my head between my knees. Everything became a red, hazy blur, and now I’m staring at this woman in my kitchen while my son sobs quietly across the table from me, but I don’t know how I got there or what’s going on.

“They found a body?” I manage to say.

“Apparently, your husband contracted a company to excavate and remediate that failing septic tank. They’re the ones that discovered the remains.” Her face is kind, but her eyes pin mine.

“Christian did it.”

“Christian Campbell,” Detective Anderson says after a second. “Your tenant. He buried the body in the yard?”

For a moment I consider agreeing with her. It won’t stick, of course, but I could seriously mess up his life for a while. That would spill over onto Eli, though, so I can’t do it.

“No … oh, no, I mean he called the septic people. He was working on fixing up the carriage house and he said he was going to have them come out because I didn’t have the money … because we were bartering services for rent …”

“I see. You had no idea the men were coming to excavate and replace the tank?”

“No. Did they dig up my garden?” I shake my head. My mind races, whirls. It’s all I can think about, the ruin of the plants I tended so carefully. “They dug up my garden, didn’t they? It’ll all be ruined …”

Detective Anderson bends in front of me so her face is level with mine. “Jewelann. I need you to focus for me, okay? I know this is a shock. If you know where your husband is, I need you to tell me. You might want to protect him, but—”