at the mess the three of you have gotten into by lying about being a
witness. If all of you had simply stepped forward and told the truth
before the reporter made you front-page news, your life would have been
far less complicated. The judge wouldn't have insisted that Daniel and
I haul you and Grace and Rebecca to Blackwater. I imagine you and
Grace would already be in Denver.'
'I told you I was the witness, ' she reminded him. 'Grace and Rebecca
are going to Blackwater? ' 'They're on their way now.' She was
flabbergasted. 'Why didn't you tell me earlier? ' 'You were about to
leave your son. You had enough to worry about, ' he said.
'Why does this judge want all three of us? I told you I was the
witness.'
'Yeah, well, so did Grace and Rebecca.'
'But that can't be, ' she nearly shouted.
'All three of you have come forward to tell us that you were there
hiding under the desk.'
'No.'
'Yes, ' he countered.
'No wonder you didn't believe me. You wouldn't let me tell you what
happened. I did try.'
'I didn't want to hear any more lies.' She took a calming breath and
tried not to get angry, for he had every right to doubt her. She had
lied to him in the past.
'Why would Grace and Rebecca say they were there? ' 'You tell me. '
She thought about it a long while before venturing a guess. 'Grace
must feel she has to protect me . . . She knows I'd do the same for
her, but I still don't understand why Rebecca would lie.'
'She didn't lie, Jessie. She is our witness. Now go to sleep. I'm
tired, and I'm not in the mood to argue.' She lay down and rolled to
her side so she could stare at the fire. Her mind was filled with
questions. Cole had sounded so certain Rebecca was the witness, and
she couldn't figure out why.
'Cole? ' 'Now what? ' 'I saw the man on the roof of the building in
Rockford Falls. . . . He killed Mr. York, and I tried to shoot him,
but I dropped the gun.'
'I remember. What about him? ' 'I've seen him before, and I
