“What are you going to do now? Because Sean won’t go away. He might try to burn down your house next.” Daisy glanced around. “Although he might be doing you a favor there.”
“That’s for me and Corbin to worry about.” Edna stood. “You’ve got your answer, so you might as well leave, but don’t go thinking you’re better off than me. He wants the land the Chickadee is sitting on, and he’ll go around us if he has to.”
“Thanks for the warning.” Cordelia followed Edna to the front door and faced her on the stoop. “And since we saved your life tonight, I hope you’ll remember that before starting any more rumors about Daisy and the pastor.”
Edna shrugged. “I can’t do nothing about that. We already gave our statement to the sheriff, and now that Honey’s out, he’s going to come calling again. Corbin saw the pastor in the gas station parking lot, where the pastor stopped to fill up before heading out to the Chickadee. Corbin gave him a bottle of wine and told him to split it with Daisy. The pastor didn’t even try to deny where he was headed. It’s all on camera, so it’s not on me to retract the statement.”
Daisy clutched Cordelia’s wrist. “Corbin gave him the wine?”
“Yeah.” Edna gave Daisy a funny look. “Someone had givenit to him, but he doesn’t drink red wine, so he gave it to the pastor, mainly just to goad him about stepping out on his wife. That’s how we know he was at the Chickadee that night.”
“Who gave Corbin the wine?” Cordelia asked, heart racing.
“I don’t know, and I don’t much care.” Edna stared at her nails, making it clear she considered their questions a waste of time.
Both Cordelia and Daisy were at a loss for words. This was the closest they’d come to finding out who killed the pastor, and it was still so far out of reach. When they just stood there, slack-jawed, Edna rolled her eyes and shut the door in their faces.
So much for their tentative truce.
Daisy began to stutter, but Cordelia jerked her chin to the neighbors, who quickly fled from their front window, their curtains still waving. The last thing they needed was to get the town’s tongues wagging. They could try to get some answers out of Corbin later, but Cordelia’s more pressing priority was getting them all out from under Sean’s thumb. And to do that, she was going to need help from someone other than the sheriff’s office. It wasn’t safe.
“I’m going to take you home.” Cordelia kept her voice low as she unlocked her car. “I need you, Arline, and Belinda Sue to cancel all your appointments tonight and hole up together in someone’s room, don’t care whose, until I get back.”
“Where are you going?” Daisy asked.
“To do something I probably should’ve done a while ago.” Cordelia had trust issues, there was no denying it, but she should’ve been up front with Archer from the start about the palytoxin. Now that all the pieces were falling into place, she could see she’d made a serious error in not giving him all the information when he asked.
They drove home in silence, with Daisy gnawing the color off her bottom lip and shooting worried glances at Cordelia. At the Chickadee, Daisy didn’t move from the car. “I think you ought to let us come with you. Safety in numbers.”
“I’m not putting myself in danger,” Cordelia said. “Just do like I asked. I should be home within a few hours. If I’m not, then feel free to come looking for me.”
“I’ll hold you to it.” Daisy finally opened the passenger door and stepped out. “And in case I don’t tell you enough, you’re filling Miss Penelope’s shoes just fine.”
A small smile touched Cordelia’s lips. “Thanks for that.”
She didn’t think she’d ever live up to her Great-Aunt Penelope, but it touched her that Daisy cared enough to say so anyway. Once Daisy had stepped inside Belinda Sue’s room and closed the door behind her, Cordelia headed to Archer’s office, where she was sure she’d find him working late. This time without the gimmicks or costumes, but for a real honest conversation. Something different for the two of them.
Cordelia parked her car in front of his office window, and just as she predicted, a light remained on. The only one in the building. Blowing out her breath, she approached his door and knocked. When his thick, gruff voice invited her in, her knees wobbled a bit. This would change things between them. He might be angry she hadn’t come to him sooner, but with Sean probably coming to on a lonely patch of deserted road in the brush country, she didn’t have time to continue playing games or acting like she had everything under control.
As soon as Archer saw her, he jumped to his feet, but he didn’t approach her. He just kept his distance and eyed her warily. God, she’d forgotten how much he appealed to her, against her better judgment. How could a preacher’s son have been so clearly born for sin?
“Hey,” Cordelia said, then cringed. She’d never addressed anyone as “Hey” in her life. “Do you have a minute to talk?”
“I suppose.” Archer ran a hand through his hair, sending the dark curls cascading across his deeply tanned forehead. He pulled out the chair across from his desk. “Have a seat.”
As soon as her rear hit the cushion and she sank into the soft leather, she realized that placed her eye level with his chest. The spot was meant to be a clear disadvantage to anyone opposing him, but it put her at a disadvantage for another reason. The way his muscles stretched the fabric of his button-down shirt should’ve been considered an illegal distraction. She tried, and failed, to keep her gaze above his neck.
His knowing look was the only thing that managed to get her back on track. She cleared her throat. “I haven’t been completely honest with you.”
“Really?” He sat back in his chair. “What a surprise. That you’re actually admitting it.”
Ignoring him, she moved past the barb, not letting her temper with him get the better of her. For once. “What do you know about palytoxin?”
“I failed chemistry class.”
“That’s funny. I would’ve thought you did just fine with chemistry.”
His eyes darkened as his gaze dropped to her lips. “Maybe I missed my calling.”
