'Well, whoever this Mr. Jones was that spent the night in room nineteen, he got away this morning, and so did the woman who spent the night with him.'
Carolyn grinned at Pete while she continued checking Elizabeth's groceries. 'Yeah, well, I heard that Landry had a way with the ladies. Good-looking guy...uh...from what I could tell from his pictures in the paper. I remember something coming out during the trial that Kenny Stanton's wife said Landry was after her hot and heavy.'
'Kenny Stanton's wife is a real looker. Can't blame Landry for giving it a try.' Pete laughed, tipped his hat to Carolyn and Elizabeth, then walked toward the door, his disposable coffee cup in his hand.
'Do y'all know who the woman was with Landry?' Carolyn called out just as Pete opened the door.
'Got no idea, and the only description is sketchy. A brunette.' 'Probably some hooker, if he was at the Sweet Rest.'
'Yeah, more than likely.'
Elizabeth watched the patrolman get into his car and drive away. Turning to the checker, she forced a smile. 'Is this Landry man in trouble with the law?' 'Child, Reece Landry's been in trouble with the law all his life.' Carolyn began sacking Elizabeth's groceries. 'But he's an escaped convict now. He was convicted of murdering his own father, but he escaped on his way up to Arrendale less than a week ago.'
'Why would he come back here?' Elizabeth picked up amusement in the woman's mind and heard words like
'I'd say he's a fool.' Carolyn handed Elizabeth two sacks, then picked up the third. 'I'll help you to your car with this one.'
'Thanks.'
Carolyn followed Elizabeth toward the door. 'Reece Landry claimed he was innocent, and a few folks around here believed him. He wasn't old B.K. Stanton's legitimate son, if you know what I mean.'
Elizabeth opened the door. 'Weren't there any other suspects?'
'Plenty, but the sheriff didn't follow through on anything once they arrested the man the Stanton family wanted out of the way.' Carolyn followed Elizabeth to the T-Bird and handed her the third sack after Elizabeth placed the others on the back floorboard. 'If you come through this way again, stop by.'
'I'll do that.' Elizabeth slid behind the wheel of Sam's antique T-Bird, turned and waved at Carolyn.
Her round cheeks rosy from the winter wind, Carolyn waved back as she curved her lips into a friendly smile. Elizabeth had the oddest sensation that Carolyn knew she was somehow connected to Reece Landry, and like Flossie, Carolyn hoped that Elizabeth truly cared about Reece.
Elizabeth drove the car to the edge of the parking area where a pay telephone was located. Glancing back toward the market, she saw that Carolyn had returned inside. Elizabeth rummaged in her purse for a quarter.
Dialing the operator, she gave Sam's phone number and asked that the charges be reversed. Within seconds Sam came on the line.
'Are you in Newell?' he asked.
'I'm at a minimarket outside town at a pay phone,' Elizabeth told him.
'Where's Landry?'
'We're in separate cars. He's taken the Jeep on out to a summer house in Spruce Pine. He thinks it's a safe place to hide out while we're searching for the real murderer.'
'Are you all right, Elizabeth?'
She smiled, knowing full well that Sam wanted to ask about his precious '65 Thunderbird. 'I'm fine and so is your car. It could get muddy when I drive out to the cottage. The place is located on a dirt road.'
'Give it up, kiddo, and go home. I promise I'll do everything I can to help Landry.'
'I want you to come to Newell, today, and meet us at the cottage. We have to form some sort of strategy. Reece is confused and not thinking straight or he never would have come back here. A woman at the motel recognized him and called the sheriff this morning.'
'What motel?' Sam asked.
'The motel where Reece and I stayed last night.'
'My God, Elizabeth, tell me you're not sleeping with that man!'
'I'm not sleeping with Reece.' She grinned, remembering waking this morning in Reece's arms. 'Well, I did sleep with him last night, but-'
'I'll kill him!'
'Calm down, Sam. We just shared the same bed. I'm still as pure as the driven snow.'
'This is no joking matter. Landry may not have killed his father, but he's no saint. As a matter of fact, he's a real bad boy and has the reputation to prove it.'
Elizabeth sighed. Sam should know better than to try to convince her to do anything she didn't want to do. 'I'm not leaving him.'
'What's going on, Elizabeth? Really?'
'I think I may be falling in love with Reece.'
Sam groaned. 'Do you think he loves you?'
'No,' Elizabeth admitted. 'Reece doesn't know what love is, but he will. He needs me, Sam. Even Aunt Margaret says I'm his only hope, that no one else can save him from himself.'
'Why do you need Aunt Margaret to read Landry's mind, to see into his future? Isn't your crystal ball working?'
'Now who's trying to be funny?' Elizabeth asked. 'I can't see into Reece's future. I haven't picked up any images about what's going to happen to him. And I told you I can't get inside his head, except every once in a while. When he lets me.'
'Well, I'll be damned. A mind you can't read and a future you can't predict. You really are taking him on faith, aren't you?'
'I care so much about Reece, about what happens to him. He's lived a very hard life. He deserves some happiness.'
'Look, kiddo, you've got yourself involved in this man's problems and you're sexually attracted to him. But don't just assume you're falling in love with him.' Sam cleared his throat. 'Sexual attraction isn't love, and neither is caring about someone. You could easily be mistaking your desire to set things right in Landry's life with love.'
'I know.' Elizabeth realized far better than Sam did that she was totally confused where her feelings for Reece Landry were concerned. 'That's why I said that I think I'm failing in love with him. I've never been in love before, and I'm not sure.'
'Take things slow and easy.'
'Sam, please fly out of Atlanta as soon as you can. We really need your help. I'll give you the directions to the cottage.'
'Even if Landry is innocent, we may not be able to prove it,' Sam told her. 'Have you ever considered that possibility? Are you willing to stay on the run for the rest of your life?'
'Reece is innocent, and together the three of us are going to prove it.'
'Have you told Landry that you're involving me in this, that I'm coming to Newell?'
'No, not yet. Why?'
'Because he may not like the idea of me trying to help him,' Sam said. 'I don't think Landry trusts me any more than I trust him.'
'Well, that's plain stupid. You trust me and Reece trusts me, and I trust both of you, so it stands to reason that the two of you should trust each other.'
'Yeah, sure. Now give me the directions to that summer house.'
Elizabeth gave him the details and wished him a safe trip.
'Kiddo, you be careful.'
'I will, Sam. I promise.'
She replaced the telephone slowly, her hand lingering on the cool plastic. She'd loved Sam all her life. He was her brother, her uncle, her father figure and her friend. She wanted Sam to like Reece, to trust him. And she wanted Reece to feel the same way about Sam.
Reece paced back and forth on the front porch of the Burtons' summer house, the February sun warming him as surely as the winter wind chilled him. Where the hell is she? he wondered. She'd had more than enough time to
