Mom straightened her shoulders and took a fortifying gulp of her Bloody Mary. Gibson’s foot was jiggling where it crossed his knee at the ankle.
“What the hell are you all up to?” Scarlett demanded. She wasn’t a fan of being left out.
“This doesn’t leave this room,” I insisted.
“You’re starting to make me nervous, Jonah,” Devlin admitted.
Shelby squeezed my hand. “I got this,” she said. “Okay, it all started when I asked June to take a road trip with me…”
Ten minutes later, the room was dead silent except for the slurp of Bloody Mary glasses emptying.
“So Callie’s alive?” Scarlett asked finally in an uncharacteristically soft voice.
“As of last year, yes,” Mom said carefully. “And I told Sheriff Tucker all of this after they found you this morning, Shelby.”
“What about the report? The dental records matched?” Leah Mae asked, leaning in.
“We suspect the report was doctored,” June spoke up.
“This is a lot to take in,” Devlin said.
“I’m gonna need like six more Bloody Marys,” Jameson said.
“So Dad didn’t… hurt her.” Scarlett stared down at her plate of forgotten waffles.
“Your father saved her life,” Mom said softly.
“You think it was the judge that did that to her?” Cassidy asked. I could see the cop in her warring with the girl who’d lost a summer friend.
“It’s the only thing that makes sense,” Shelby said. “Callie was adamant about not going home. He’s in a position of power. He had access to Christian’s sealed file. I’m sure he’s got people willing to do dirty work for him. And he loses big if Callie comes strolling back into town telling the truth. He could kiss that federal judgeship goodbye. It’s better for him if she stays dead.”
“The important thing to remember is, everything is circumstantial right now. We have to be patient and let law enforcement do their job,” I insisted, remembering the sheriff’s warning.
“Oh, ’cause they’ve done such a bang-up job so far?” Scarlett snapped. “No offense, Cass. I’m just processing a whole lotta feelings right now.”
“Understood.” Cassidy nodded.
“Sheriff Tucker believes us. This is more than anyone has known about the case since Callie disappeared,” I reminded them. “We’ll nail him for it somehow.”
“And when we do, maybe Callie can come back,” Mom said softly.
“Speaking from a place of not nearly enough vodka for this,” Jayme began, “I’m going to strongly encourage you all to listen to Jonah. Do not interfere with this investigation in any way. If you see Judge Kendall buying sticky buns downtown, you paste a nice-as-fucking-pie smile on your face. Because if any one of you acts up and tips him off, I swear to my red Ferragamos that I will personally destroy your life. This man has gotten away with actual murder—allegedly. And it’s possible he went after Shelby through that boy—allegedly. If one of you fucks up and he stays free, his next alleged victim is on you.” She pointed a sharp, red nail around the room, making eye contact with everyone.
“Yes, ma’am,” we chorused. Jayme was a terrifying woman. I was very glad she was on our side.
“On that note,” I announced, rising from my chair. “I’m taking Shelby home.”
I held my hand out to her and helped her up. I heard her whimper of pain and knew we’d pushed our luck. She was going to bed and not getting up until I said it was okay.
I slipped my arm around her waist, a show of affection to everyone else but a stabilization for her.
She paused. “Oh, Scarlett? We need to talk about some real estate options,” she said.
“Oh yeah?” My sister perked up.
“Yeah,” I agreed. “Shelby and I are staying in town, permanently. We’re gonna need a bigger house.”
“Billy Ray needs more space,” Shelby said, beaming up at me.
“And Shelby’s gonna need dedicated office space.”
I knew we were battered and bruised and there were emotional scars that would take a long time to heal. But looking into her eyes right now, I felt our future stretch on in front of us. Her monster was going to jail. And soon, the shadow that had fallen over the Bodines would be lifted forever.
“Let’s go get our puppy,” I told her as she leaned into me.
“Where is he?” she asked.
“Millie Waggle has him and Katherine,” I told her.
The door to the dining room opened, and Sheriff Tucker stepped in alone. He didn’t look happy.
“Sheriff Tucker,” Jayme said, standing up to position herself between my family and the law. “What can we do for you?”