'Yes, she and Birdie were going to stay the night with Happy. Help take care of the baby. Cousin Lulu's upstairs watching a movie.'
She didn't add that the lady had commented that murders were much more interesting on TV than in real life, and had settled back with a bowl of popcorn and a bottle of Dixie beer.
'Why don't you go on up with her, Cy?' Tucker suggested. 'She likes company.'
'Can I take the pup with me?' He hauled Useless out from the dog's spot beneath the table.
'Sure.' Caroline smiled. 'Don't let Cousin Lulu give him too much beer.'
'No, ma'am. 'Night, Mr. Tucker.'
' 'Night, Cy.' He touched the boy's arm. 'Thanks for helping out.'
'I'd do anything for you, Mr. Tucker.' The words came out in a rush. Then Cy colored deep and hurried from the room.
'Devotion like that's a precious gift.' Caroline ladled out soup. 'You'll be careful with him, won't you?'
'I'm going to try.' Tucker rubbed a hand over his rough chin. He hadn't shaved, though he'd showered twice. 'I guess I wish he wouldn't look at me like I was Hercules, Plato, and Clark Kent all rolled into one.'
Caroline set the bowl in front of him, brushed a hand through his hair. 'It's tough being a hero.'
'It's tougher trying to be one when you haven't got the makings.'
'Oh, I think you'll surprise yourself.' Smiling, she sat beside him. 'I made you soup.'
'So I see.' He took her hand. 'You sure are handy to have around, Caroline.'
'I've been pretty busy surprising myself lately. I'm glad you didn't know me before, Tucker.'
'Before doesn't mean diddly.'
'This from a man who'll-at the drop of a hat-tell me stories about people who've been dead for a hundred years.'
'That's different.' He started to eat, more to please her than because he was hungry. After the first few spoonfuls, he discovered he was ravenous. 'What happened before matters because it shapes things. But who you were a year ago isn't as important as who you are now.'
'I like the way you think. Tucker?'
'Hmmm.'
'Do you want me to stay tonight?'
His gaze came back to hers, fastened there with a wealth of feeling and need. 'I want you to stay.'
With a nod, she rose. 'Let me fix you a sandwich.'
Teddy was back. Josie knew he was expected since she'd spent the evening in Burns's bed and the FBI agent had told her so. The idea of having a pathologist and a special agent to juggle had eased her hurt and anger at Tucker's words.
She'd decided she wouldn't speak to her brother for a day or two-at least until he'd apologized in person rather than sending Dwayne scrambling after her as proxy.
She was still brooding over it the following afternoon. While the rest of Innocence was reeling in shock over the latest murder, Josie sat at the counter of the Chat 'N Chew, freshening her lipstick in her new purse mirror. Teddy had promised to join her for lunch as soon as he'd finished his preliminary examination of the body.
'Earleen.' Pouting, Josie tilted the mirror back to fluff at her hair. 'Do you think I'm a cold-hearted woman?'
'Cold-hearted?' Earleen leaned on the counter and flexed her aching feet. 'Kinda hard to be hot-blooded and cold-hearted all at once.'
Pleased, Josie smiled. 'That's true. Being honest about things and not pretending otherwise doesn't make you cold. Why, it makes you true to yourself, don't you think?'
'That's a fact.'
Using the mirror, Josie scanned the diner without turning around. Several of the booths were occupied. Beneath the crooning of Reba Mclntire from the juke, the conversation was all about Darleen.
'You know, half the people in here didn't have a minute's use for Darleen while she was alive.' Josie snapped the mirror closed. 'Now that she's dead, they can't say enough.'
'That's human nature,' Earleen declared. 'It's like one of them artists whose paintings ain't worth shit while he's alive to paint 'em, then once he kills himself or gets hit by a truck, people fall all over themselves to pay a fortune for them. Human nature.'
Josie appreciated the analogy. 'So Darleen's worth more dead than she was alive.'
While she might have agreed, Earleen was superstitious enough not to speak ill of the dead. 'It's Junior I'm sorry for. And that dear little boy.' With a sigh, Earleen reached back to take an order off the shelf. 'And Happy and Singleton, too. The living's who suffers.'
While Earleen walked off to serve a customer, Josie murmured in agreement. She dug through her purse for her atomizer of perfume, then squirted scent liberally on her wrists and throat.
When Carl walked in, the conversation died, then picked up again in murmurs. Josie patted the stool beside her.
'Come on over here and sit. You look worn out.'
'Thank you, Josie, but I can't. Just come by to get some food to take back to the office.'
'What can I get for you, Carl?' Earleen popped back behind the counter, hoping to exchange food for news.
'I need a half dozen hamburgers. Maybe a quart of your potato salad and some cole slaw. Make it a gallon of iced tea.'
'How're you going to want them burgers?'
'Make them all medium, Earleen, and load 'em.'
Josie picked up her Diet Coke. 'Y'all must be busy as one-armed paperhangers down at the office if you can't even break for lunch.'
'We are that, Josie.' He was so tired himself he could have slept standing up. Belatedly, he remembered to take off his hat. 'County sheriff and a couple of his boys're down. Agent Burns has had that fax machine clicking all morning. It's hot enough in that office to smoke a ham.'
'With all of you working so hard, you must have some clues.'
'We got a thing or two.' He glanced over as Earleen turned expectantly from the grill. 'Now, I can't tell you what we got, official like. But y'all know Darleen was killed like the others. We gotta figure it was the same person using the same weapon.'
'It ain't right,' Earleen said. 'We got some psychopathic killer running loose, and not a woman in the county can feel safe.'
'No, it ain't right. But we're going to stop him. You can take that to the bank.'
'Matthew says serial killers're different.' Josie sucked on the straw. 'He says they can look and act just like regular people. It makes them hard to catch.'
'We'll catch this one.' He leaned closer. 'I figure I should tell you, Josie, since you'll be finding out soon anyway. Looks like Darleen was killed right there, right by the pond.'
'Sweet Jesus.' Earleen was torn between excitement and terror. 'You mean to say he did it over to Sweetwater?'
'We got reason to think so. I don't mean to scare you, Josie, but you want to be mighty careful.'
She took a cigarette from the pack on the counter and her fingers shook lightly. 'I will be, Carl. You can take
Slowly, she blew out a stream of smoke. And she intended to find out exactly what they knew the minute she could get Teddy alone.
There were reporters camped out in her yard. Caroline had stopped answering the phone. Invariably, it was another inquisitive newsman or -woman on the other end. To distract herself, she took out the scrapbook she'd found in her grandmother's trunk.
Caroline could see most of her own life on those pages. Her parents' wedding announcement clipped from the Philadelphia and Greenville papers. The studied, professional photographs taken at the wedding where her mother had worn an heirloom bridal gown-from the Waverly side. The card announcing the birth of Caroline Louisa
