him I would love to hear stories about Seth. He’d seemed disinterested, to say the least. Then, to my surprise, Ricky had shown up at the tavern after Jerry’s funeral, ready to tell me everything I wanted to know. We’d sat on a bench outside, staring at the parking lot across the street where Seth had died. I told Ricky what I remembered about that night and what I’d learned about Seth’s plot to bring down the men who’d killed his mother with tainted drugs, and he shared stories about the boy he’d grown up with.
“Yeah,” I said, then put a hand on his shoulder. “Don’t worry. I’m so grateful for everything you told me about him. Miss Georgia was telling me a bit about Mary and Barb. It’s nice to hear more about Hank’s family.” That much was true, plus Ricky had been through enough. I didn’t want him getting wrapped up in this mess.
He made a face. “Miss Georgia couldn’t stand Seth’s momma. So Seth couldn’t stand her.”
“Really?” I peered back at the church as I dropped my hand, trying to reconcile the woman I’d just talked to with the picture Ricky was painting. “She seemed so nice.”
“She can be as sweet as sugar. Then she goes and talks about you behind your back. She’s probably in there gossipin’ about you right now.”
I frowned. I supposed she probably would talk about me to someone—I’d definitely be telling Marco if someone started asking questions about my past—but I hoped she wasn’t as two-faced as Seth claimed.
“There’s nothing I can do about that,” I said with a shrug. “You know, I’m still available to talk anytime you want. But I’m not staying with Hank right now. If you need me for the next few weeks, I’ll be at Marco’s.”
He nodded.
I started to walk to my car, but he called after me, “If you want to find out more about Seth’s mom, you should talk to Michelle Abernathy. They were good friends.”
I stared at him in disbelief. Georgia hadn’t mentioned that. “Do you know if her husband worked for Hank?”
“I don’t know about him, but I know Michelle used to. Her and Barb mentioned it before.”
“I’m not sure if she’d talk to me,” I said. “She doesn’t know me from Adam.”
“I can tell her you want to talk to her about Barb and Seth,” he said.
I felt guilty asking him to do that, especially when Marco had given me her contact information, but she’d be more likely to talk with an introduction. Besides, this way I wouldn’t have to put Marco’s job at risk.
Ricky pulled his phone out of his pocket. “I’ll send her a text and let you know what she says.”
“I’d appreciate that.”
“No problem,” he said, already typing. His voice turned gruff. “You helped my brother.”
But not his mother. She was still in jail awaiting trial for the murder of his brother’s abuser.
“You know you can call me anytime you need help,” I said in a low tone. “For any reason.”
He finished tapping on his phone and looked up at me. “I know, Miss Carly. Trust me, I know.” His phone vibrated, and he glanced down at the screen. “She says she can meet you in fifteen minutes.”
“Really?”
“She says she’s at the Bluebird Café on the square. Does that work?”
“Yeah. Of course.”
He sent her a quick message, then smiled at me. “Done.”
“Thanks, Ricky. I owe you.”
He grinned. “I’ll collect sometime.”
As he headed back to his group, his friends teased him, asking if he’d gotten my number.
Back in my car, I sent Marco a couple of texts, telling him I’d talked to Georgia and Ricky, and was on my way to meet Michelle at the Bluebird Café. He didn’t respond, and I wondered if he was still tied up with the teen he was trying to help. I hoped he’d answer before I headed back to Drum, otherwise I’d never see his response. The service usually kicked out about five miles outside of the Ewing city limits.
The restaurant was on the town square, and I lucked into a parking space close by. I was a few minutes early, but there was a middle-aged woman in a blue shirt sitting at a table with a cup of coffee and two pieces of pie.
She glanced up when she heard me walking toward her. “You snooze, you lose.”
I stared at her in confusion. “Michelle?”
Lifting her fork, she said, “I got the last pieces of lemon meringue and peach cobbler.” She gestured to the