She lifted her head from Tate’s chest when Knox came into the room with Willa. Rachel immediately went to her side.
“You can come home with me tonight, Willa.”
Willa shook her head. “If I don’t go back to my home tonight, I never will.”
“I can stay the night with you,” Rachel offered.
“That’s all right. I’m just going to go home and go to bed.” Willa turned her bruised face to Cash then Knox. “I want to apologize. If I hadn’t lied and said Lewis wasn’t harassing me, then maybe he would still be alive. I honestly believed it would make him even more violent if he knew I had told or pressed charges against him.”
“I knew you weren’t telling the truth. I had a talk with him Friday. I thought he would back off after I threatened him with a social services investigation toward his kids,” Knox said.
Willa went even whiter. “What’s going to happen to the kids?”
“A foster home will be found for them. Don’t worry, I’ll make sure they find a good home,” Knox said, picking up his phone on the desk.
“Please, I would never forgive myself if they were hurt because of my actions.”
“Willa, none of this was your fault. Lewis had real problems. You are the victim here,” Knox reassured her.
Willa didn’t seem convinced, but she nodded.
“Come on, Willa. We’ll give you a ride home. Let’s go, Rachel; you’re coming home with us,” Tate said while they left Knox’s office as he talked on the phone.
“No, I’m not. I’m going to Mag’s. You can drop me off to pick up my car.” Rachel wasn’t about to place herself back under her brothers’ thumbs. She still hadn’t forgiven them for how they had talked to her at the party.
“How long are you going to hold a grudge?” Greer spoke up. “You almost got yourself killed because we weren’t keeping a watch over you.”
“I almost got killed because I was at the wrong place at the wrong time.”
“I forgot about the texts. I’ll get them for you when we get to my house,” Willa offered.
“What texts?” Cash asked, frowning.
“Brooke asked Lily if she would pick up some books from Willa. She was busy, so I offered,” Rachel explained.
Cash’s face turned even more forbidding. “I need to talk to Knox before I leave. I’ll see you back at the house tonight.”
“Okay.” Rachel left the Sheriff’s office, her curiosity aroused by the look on Cash’s face. It was plain something was going on that he was keeping from her.
Rachel got into Tate’s truck next to Willa. She had no choice other than to wait until tonight to question him. She took Willa’s hand in hers, trying to help her in the only way she could.
* * *
Cash pulled out his cell phone as he headed to his bike.
“Crash?”
“Yeah, what you need?”
“I want all the information you can pull up on Lewis. He just tried to kill Willa and Rachel. Something sent him over the edge and I want to know what it was. The timing said he went to Willa’s house after work; check out the factory and see if any of the other workers picked up on anything going on with the motherfucker. Text me his address from the employee files, too. I’m going to go check his place out.”
“Will do. I’ll call when I have what you want.” Crash disconnected the call.
Cash started his bike. A minute later, the address he wanted came to his cell. He was going to search Lewis’s home and find out exactly what had sent him over the edge, hoping that he was wrong in what he suspected. No man went that ape shit crazy unless something or someone had pulled his trigger.
* * *
She had to wait to question Cash since he didn’t return to Mag’s house until Friday morning. When he came in looking tired and worn, she was tempted to ask him where he had been, but he didn’t give her the opportunity.
“I’m tired, hungry, and I need a shower. I have just driven over a hundred miles. I would have stopped for the night, but I kept riding to get back here. I expect you to be standing by that door at seven tonight. We made a bet, and you’re keeping it.”
Rachel started to open her mouth to argue but closed it at the anticipatory gleam in his eyes.
“Okay,” Rachel agreed.
He gave her a sharp nod before going down the hall to his bedroom.
“Don’t make me come looking for you. You know I enjoy chasing my women down.”
That hard-ass had read her mind; she had intended to go visit Logan tonight at Mrs. Langley’s. She had spent too many Friday nights there for him not to be able to find her, though.
Mag was sitting in the living room, reading the paper. Rachel had forgotten she was there. Rachel threw her a quelling look when she would have opened her mouth.
“I wasn’t going to say a thing,” Mag denied.
“I bet.” Rachel left the house to go to work at the church store. Fridays were always pretty busy, so Rachel liked to make sure she got there early.
As she opened the door, surprised Lily was running late, the frigid air hit her in a blast and Rachel shivered, pulling on the sweater she had taken from the car. She had meant to call the repairman a couple of days ago and had forgotten. This was beyond ridiculous. She couldn’t understand why Pastor Patterson hadn’t seen to it. His family couldn’t be comfortable living in what felt like an igloo.
Rachel went to the back of the store and put some water in the coffeepot to heat for tea and had just decided to raise one of the rear windows to let in some warm air when she heard the front door open. She went back to the front of the store and didn’t see anyone. A chill ran up her back that didn’t have anything to do with the cold air.
No one had come into the store, which meant someone had gone out. Whoever it was had been in the store when she had come in.
Rachel started going through the store carefully. None of the things there were expensive, all the items second-hand. With an observant eye, Rachel began to itemize the missing items: a few cans of food and some clothes. Several of the books on the shelf were out of order, and she had straightened them just before she had left to go home yesterday.
Going back behind the desk, she called the pastor’s office. He answered on the first ring, and when she explained what she had found, he came immediately to the store.
“Were you able to see anyone?”
“No, I would have never known anyone was here if I hadn’t heard the bell over the door ring. I was out back, opening a window, when I thought someone had come in.”
Pastor Merrick frowned at her. “Why were you opening the window?”
“Because I was freezing. I was trying to let in some warm air.”
“The air conditioner still isn’t fixed in here? The repairman fixed the other unit for the church and house last week. I assumed he had fixed this one also.”
“No, it’s still freezing in here. I’ve been leaving the windows open in the back to let in warm air.”
“I’m sorry, Rachel. I’ll call him immediately,” he apologized.
“I should have mentioned it before now.” She should have told him she had mentioned it to Brooke several times.
“Do you want me to call Knox?”
Rachel thought of the items missing. Whoever had been in the store had been hungry and needing clothes. “No, that’s all right. I’m sure, whoever it was, they were just hungry. They were probably frightened off when I came in early,” Rachel speculated.
“If you’re sure…”
“Yes.” The door opened and Lily came in with a bright smile.
“All right, then. I’ll go call the repairman.”
“What has the both of you looking so serious this morning?” Lily questioned as she stashed her purse under the counter.
“How the repairman hasn’t fixed the air conditioner yet. I’m on my way to give him a call. I’ll talk to you both later.” The pastor excused himself.
“I hope he fixes it soon. It’s like Alask
a in here,” Lily admitted.
“I’m freezing,” Rachel shivered.
She fixed Lily and herself both tea as the customers began coming in. The intruder and the customers kept her thoughts too busy to worry about her date with Cash tonight. She wanted to call it off, and she certainly had no intentions of going through with her promise of a blowjob, but her pride kept her from bowing out of the rest of the bet. Besides, she knew Cash would be able to track her down wherever she hid out.
“What are you doing tonight?” Rachel asked.
“Babysitting for Beth and Razer. They haven’t had a date night since she’s had the babies. How about you?”
“I’m going out on a date with Cash.”
Lily threw her a startled look as she arranged clothes on a rack. “I didn’t know you were seeing him.”
“I’m not; this is our first date.” Rachel blushed, aware of how this made her sound when everyone in the freaking town knew she had lost her virginity to him.
“Where are you going?” Lily asked with a worried frown.
“I figured we would go to a movie or dinner.” Rachel paused in hanging clothes at Lily’s reaction.