She walked into the kitchen and studied the leftover coffee in the pot. She made a face and decided to brew more. Her single-serve coffee maker had died, and she had opted to go back with a plain, old-fashioned brew type. At moments like this she regretted that decision. It would be so easy to pop a pod in and prepare just one cup.
She rinsed the carafe and added enough water for two cups. The mug Bent had used this morning sat on the counter. She smiled. Though he didn’t stay here every night—he had his own place and the horses to see after—he stayed often. Sometimes she stayed with him at his place. At some point they were going to have to figure out the details of their relationship, like where they were going to live—ifthey were going to live together—but there was no hurry. Why change a routine that was working just fine?
After pouring the water into the reservoir and preparing the basket, she set the machine to brew. Deciding to make Fayetteville her home again had been a big decision. One she did not regret in any way. Not one little bit did she miss the busy streets of Memphis. Or the insanity of the caseload as deputy chief of Special Operations with the department there. Nope. Not at all. Her sisters were here. They were settled and happy, and Vera wanted the same. Maybe relationship decisions were harder to make when you were older. She was forty now. However difficult to take such a scary leap, the time had come, and she recognized it. Or maybe she just didn’t want to be the only Boyett sister who wasn’t in a committed relationship.
Vera was ready for her life to be a bit more settled now and moving forward. The time felt right. Basically the only real question that remained was the choice as to where they were going from here. The house hopping wasn’t something she wanted to do forever, but it was not such a big deal.
Or perhaps she was in a bigger hurry than she realized to settle into something permanent beyond what roof was over her head. Eric Jones,her dear friend and former colleague back in Memphis, had gotten married. In truth the run-in with the serial killer known as the Messenger last spring had put her in a bit of a tailspin emotionally. She supposed a near-death experience could do that sort of thing.
Her cell sounded off before she could go any further down that path or fill her mug. She retraced her steps back to her office and picked up her cell.Luna.Vera’s first thought was that maybe she had gone into labor, but it was too early for that, wasn’t it? Her sister had more than a month to go. But things happened. Babies came early all the time, she reminded herself.
Worry twisted through her as she accepted the call. “Hey, Luna. Everything okay?”
If she was completely honest with herself, worry was her first reaction to a ringing phone or an unexpected knock on the door these days. It was the curse of the Boyett sisters. Every unexpected call came with loads of troubling scenarios attached. After what the three of them had been through, it was actually a miracle total panic attacks didn’t accompany every single unexpected event. Vera reminded herself to breathe. It was just a phone call, not a disaster notification.
Probably. Maybe.
“Vee, you have to come to my house right now.”
Okay, so this could very well be in the ballpark of a disaster. On the bright side, hopefully not a catastrophic-level one.
“What’s going on, Lu?” Vera braced for whatever was coming. Couldn’t be that bad. Luna was the good sister. She never did bad things or managed to find herself in trouble.
“Please, Vee, just come right now. Hurry!”
The call ended. Vera stared at the screen. Okay. There was no denying the very likely possibility now. Some sort of disaster, for sure.
Vera rushed up the stairs, untying her robe as she went. That was the other thing about working from home: She didn’t have to get dressed for the day unless she wanted to. Evidently, she should have this day. Just her luck.
She ripped off the robe and nightshirt and quickly dragged on jeans, a bra, and a black tee. When in a hurry, you could never go wrong with a black tee. She grabbed her sneakers and tugged them on, hopping on one foot at a time as she made her way toward the stairs.
At the front door she grabbed her keys and shoulder bag, and she was gone.
Andrews Farm
Boonshill Road, 11:30 a.m.
A frown creased Vera’s forehead as she parked next to Luna’s mother-in-law’s sedan. Luna hadn’t mentioned having company. Vera shut off the engine and grabbed her bag. She looped the strap over her shoulder as she got out. Jackie Andrews was not exactly one of her favorite people. Vera couldn’t shake the idea that the woman thought her son was too good for Luna. The very notion thoroughly pissed Vera off. But she didn’t get to choose her little sister’s husband or his family. Was the mother-in-law the reason for the urgency Vera had heard in Luna’s voice? She had never uttered a negative word about Jackie, but there was always a certain tension in her tone whenever Luna spoke of the annoying woman.
Then again, Vera and Eve had both decided that being pregnant had made their little sister more persnickety than usual. And that was saying something.
Be nice, Vee.
As Vera climbed the steps of the new—designed to look old—farmhouse, Luna rushed out onto the porch. Her face was pale, her eyes red, and if possible, her protruding belly looked bigger than it had on Sunday, when she and Jerome had held their first annual Labor Day barbecue in their new home. Dear old Jackie had been in rare form. Not a single aspect of Luna’s preparations had met the “mother-in-law test.” Vera mentally rolled her eyes. Life was just too short for that nonsense.
Vera pushed all else aside and smiled. “Hey, Luna, what’s—”
“You have to help me, Vee.” Luna grabbed Vera by the arm and pulled her toward the door.
A quick study of her sister’s face told Vera this was bad. Really bad. Luna’s movements almost appeared robotic. Stilted and distressed. Her facial expression was a sort of blank beyond the paleness of her skin. Vera had never seen her like this. Not even when their father died. Had she and Jackie quarreled? More likely Jackie had spewed her venom, and Luna had taken it like a repentant dog. Anger stirred in Vera. If that turned out to be the case, she would tell the older woman what’s what. She had no business upsetting Luna, considering she was only weeks from delivering the first grandchild.
Not that Jackie Andrews ever thought of anyone else. At least not in Vera’s limited knowledge of and experience with the overbearing woman.
Luna pushed the door open with those same stiff movements. Vera couldn’t help staring at her as they crossed the threshold into the front center hall. What in the world had happened to upset her so? She wore a pair of faded denim overalls with a white tee. A couple of old paint stains told Vera her little sister was working on the nursery.
“Luna.” Vera pulled her sister to a stop and searched her face again. “What in the world is going on? Where’s Jackie? Has she done something that upset you?”
Luna only stared at Vera as if she’d lapsed into a coma. Vera glanced around, opened her mouth to call out to the other woman, then froze, her fingers clenching on her sister’s arms harder than she’d intended. Luna didn’t seem to notice.
