“I hate to say it, but yes.”
I took his hand in mine. A fissure of electricity flowed up my arm.
“Whatever you find out, I’ll be here to help you. I’m your”—friend? Person of interest?—“friend who you happened to have kissed a couple of times.”
He laughed. “And very good kisses they were.”
Warmth flamed on my cheeks. “They were. But you’ve got this.”
Rufus brought my hand to his mouth and kissed my knuckles. His lips left a dot of heat on my flesh, and a shiver zipped down my spine.
“Come. Let’s do this.”
“Yeah,” Lady added. “Let’s kick this moment in the teeth!”
I clicked my tongue. “I couldn’t have said it any better myself.”
The climb up the stairs was the slowest of my life, I swear. Every time I brought my leg up, it weighed a thousand pounds. Meaning it didn’t want to move—at all.
But eventually I was standing at the door, realizing that whoever was on the other side, they might know who Rufus was. He’d finally know the truth. It was a relief and worry at the same time. On the one hand, I wouldn’t be burdened with the knowledge anymore. On theotherother hand, this meant I would have to tell Rufus what he’d done to me so long ago. Memories would be drudged up—for both of us.
He might think that I betrayed him by not confessing everything in the first place. Was it a betrayal? No. I had to make sure that he wasn’t going to hurt me or anyone else. I’d kept this secret to save my own heart and mind. And frankly, for this new Rufus to know what the old one had done—well, it might break him.
Rufus rang the doorbell, and I heard feet shuffling toward the door. A moment later it swung open and Willard Gandy, in his Dickies short-sleeved coveralls, stood there, mouth gaping in a wide smile.
He took Rufus’s hand. “John, good to see you. Thank you for coming on such short notice.” He smiled at me. “Clem, glad you’re here.”
“Thank you.”
Willard motioned for us to come inside. He asked us to sit down and turned to me. “Clem, how’re you holding up? I heard about what happened to Crystal and what you saw.”
I rolled my eyes. “There wasn’t a premonition.”
He smiled kindly. “I know better than to think that.”
“But it should be me asking you how you’re doing,” I said. “You had dinner with Crystal and her mother.”
Willard rubbed his chin. “I tell you, Bailey’s pretty tore up about the whole thing. I went to see her the other day, and it’s just about wrecked her. Crystal was her only daughter, you know.”
I shook my head. “No, I didn’t realize that.”
“Yeah.” He nodded and spoke to Rufus. “She’s in the bathroom. Should be out in a minute.”
She? I wondered who it could be.
Willard sat on the edge of the couch and rubbed his legs. “But I tell you, it’s just awful to think about. I know lots of folks didn’t like Crystal, but to do that to her—it’s just a shame. I’d ask what’s this world is coming to, but I know the answer.”
I glanced over at Rufus, who sat back on a chair, arms crossed and eyes alert. He looked ready to pounce, or at least ready to greet whoever was in the bathroom.
“Willard,” I said slowly, “you wouldn’t happen to know of anyone who wanted to harm Crystal, do you? I’ve spoken to her ex-boyfriend and even to Sykes Laffoon, who she was with the night before, but I can’t seem to figure out who else could have had an interaction with her. Well, other than Leola Vass, that is. But I haven’t had a chance to talk to her.”
“You have now.”
Leola’s voice boomed from behind me. When I looked, she stood in the doorway, wiping her hands on the bathroom towel. She tossed it over one shoulder and sauntered forward.
My mind couldn’t put two and two together. It was all a mess in my head. Leola Vass was here. Rufus was supposed to meet someone who may or may not know his true identity.
Oh, that someone was Leola Vass.
