“Have you called my office?” Tamsyn asked.
“Not yet,” his father said. “This is where it gets tricky because I can’t prove anything.”
“What do you mean?” Noir asked. “You have an image of someone on the property. That’s conclusive evidence.”
“Tamsyn, I’m trusting you to be a member of this family for a few moments, and not a cop. Can you do that?” Carter cocked his head. “If you can’t, now is the time to excuse yourself.”
“That’s a lot to ask of me, Carter.” She leaned back and glanced at the ceiling. Carter had always been a fair and reasonable man. There had to be something so compelling that he was asking for her to suspend her duties as an officer. “State the bare bones and I’ll tell you if I need you to stop.”
“That’s fair enough.” Carter nodded.
Noir folded his arms across his chest and glared.
“Whoever trespassed obviously didn’t know where all the new cameras were, so we only see them coming onto the property. We don’t even see them leaving. But when I went to the area in question and did a search, I found something. Someone dug up the earth and planted something on my property. I know without a doubt it wasn’t there before. I didn’t look too deep, but it will make this family—specifically, my wife—look suspect. The thing is, I don’t know if it’s a bona fide clue to something that could possibly give Tamsyn answers. If it is, it could lead to something really bad for this family because of where it was found and that means someone is fucking with us.”
“That’s cryptic.” Tamsyn held Noir’s stare. A million things ran through her head, but it landed on one thing.
His eyes grew wide with recognition of what his father’s words could mean. It all had to come back to her mother; otherwise, Carter wouldn’t have included her at all.
“Would you like me to be more specific?” Carter asked. “Because I’m not sure I want to do that sitting here.”
“No. I think this is a good place to stop,” Tamsyn said. “I need to chew on that for a moment before I decide what to do next.”
“You’re joking, right?” Noir rested his elbows on the table. “You’re not going to ask probing questions? Get more details? Ask for specifics?”
“I need to consider the position I’m being put in.” Tamsyn lifted her glass and sipped. “I have too much information as it is. I should act as a police officer. So, if I do start asking those questions, no one is going to like what I do next. I need to roll this around in my mind for a moment and decide if I can do what your father is asking and set aside my responsibilities as a cop. That’s no easy task.”
“Why don’t we enjoy this wine, eat some cheese, and then go back to the winery. I’m willing to share everything with both of you, but Tamsyn, right now, this is not a police matter. It’s something I stumbled upon.”
“Whether you stumbled upon it or not, I will decide what is actually a police matter and what we can keep private,” Tamsyn said. “I’ll wait to hold my judgment until I get a good look at what you uncovered.”
“I was afraid you were going to say that,” his father said. “But it’s a risk I’m willing to take.” He nodded. “I believe I owe it to you to give you the first look.”
“I hate being in the dark.” Noir downed half his drink. “How bad is it?”
“By itself, it’s not horrible. But I don’t think this will end here,” Carter said. “I believe someone is out to get your mother, and this is only the beginning.”
“It’s not the first time someone has come at Weezer,” Tamsyn said. “She’s always managed to come out on top.”
“My mother is inherently a good person. She’s done some dumb things in the past, but it’s all been about protecting her family. People don’t see her decisions the same way we do. They see the lies and manipulations,” Noir said. “I can’t say that some of them haven’t hurt. However, I can’t imagine that anyone would come at her so hard as to… well, I don’t know because my father isn’t telling us everything.”
“Let me put it to you this way, son. No good deed goes unpunished.” His dad cocked a brow. “And when your mom and I do one, everyone thinks we have an ulterior motive. This one had a ripple effect that no one understands. Much like what I did for Talbot and her mother and it’s about to bite this family in ways that we’ve never seen before.”
Tamsyn
Tamsyn stood at the edge of the River Winery property. The moonlight cut through the darkness like a big flashlight shining bright. Puffy white snowflakes floated from the sky, dancing in front of her eyes.
“What the fuck, Carter.” Tamsyn rubbed her chest where it met her neck. As a little girl, her mom would let her try on the feather pendant necklace. Her mother would tell her how beautiful it looked on her and how one day it would be hers, when the time was right. When her father claimed her as his own.
Tamsyn’s fingertips burned. “What’s under that pile of leaves and dirt? And don’t tell me you didn’t look, because I can tell you did.”
“It’s fresh and it wasn’t there a week ago.” Carter pulled his jacket tight. His nonanswer didn’t help Tamsyn’s growing concern. Or calm her racing pulse.
She took three steps back. “I don’t want anyone coming any closer.” She paced out the size of what appeared to be a shallow grave, noting where it had been disturbed, indicating someone had peered inside, but the recent snowfall helped cover those tracks. “I need some honest answers, Carter.” She glanced between Noir and his father.
Noir stood four feet to her left. He hadn’t moved since they arrived. His hands were stuffed in his pockets, his forehead crinkled.
“I don’t have any,” Carter said.
