One Foot in the Grave - Denise Grover Swank Page 0,50
was back to square one.
Or was I?
“Meet me at the Dairy Bar,” I said, not giving him a chance to respond.
The glare he shot me told me he didn’t like being bossed around.
Too damn bad.
Chapter Thirteen
I was at the counter ordering a hot fudge sundae when Wyatt pulled into the parking lot. He walked up behind me and slapped cash on the counter to pay for my order before I could get out my wallet.
“I would have gotten something for you, but I realized I didn’t know you well enough to know what you’d like,” I said in a curt tone.
The older teen who handed me the ice cream bowl gave me a confused look. “No need to get me anything. We get to eat ice cream for free.”
I gave him a tight smile, realizing Wyatt had already drifted away, then turned and headed for a picnic table at the edge of the outdoor dining space, away from a couple eating at a table on the other side, not that I needed to be too concerned with them overhearing. They were too wrapped up in each other to take notice.
Wyatt sat across from me, resting his forearms on the table, waiting.
I took a bite of my sundae, then said, “You lied to me.”
“About what?”
“Heather’s going-away party.”
He didn’t show a single sign of remorse at being caught. “I didn’t lie. I just didn’t tell you.”
“Yeah,” I said more calmly than I felt. “You seem to be extraordinarily good at that.”
“You talked to Abby.”
“I did.”
“And Mitzi’s husband won’t let you near her.”
“Was that her husband?” I asked nonchalantly before I took another bite.
“Probably. I don’t know him. Only that she got married.” He paused. “So what are you gonna do now?”
“What can I do?” I said with a shrug. “You gave me two leads and I followed them. Now I’m at a dead end.” I didn’t really believe that, but part of me wanted to see him sweat.
“Seriously? You’re giving up?” he asked, sounding incredulous.
The way he said it pissed me off, but I just shrugged. “This is your problem, Wyatt. Not mine.”
“You were all over Lula’s disappearance,” he snapped. “Chasing every lead. You were like a bulldog.”
My fury spilled over, more of it than had been provoked by his remarks, and I realized I’d been holding on to it for months. “Don’t you dare go there.”
His eyes lit up. “There’s the Carly I know.”
I got to my feet, worried if I stayed here any longer I’d resort to physical violence. “Don’t you pretend like you know me. You don’t know anything about me.”
Except that wasn’t quite true. He knew plenty about me. I just didn’t know him.
“I thought you wanted answers,” he said, lowering his voice. “If you don’t want to help me, fine. But at least get your answers.”
“Fool me once, shame on you,” I said with a sneer. “Fool me twice, shame on me. I don’t believe for one minute that you’re gonna tell me anything. You’re playing me, just like your father plays everyone. Guess you’re more like him than you thought.”
I spun around and stomped toward my car, throwing my ice cream in a trash can with a satisfying thump. As I opened my door, I called out, “Stop following me or I’ll call the sheriff’s department and have you arrested for stalking.”
“Yeah, I bet your new boyfriend would be first in line to put me in handcuffs.”
I nearly corrected him for the umpteenth time, and it was tempting to tell him that Marco was fully aware that Wyatt was tailing me. Instead, I said nothing at all. The less he knew, the better.
I would have loved a minute to pull myself together, but he was watching my every move and I wasn’t about to give him the satisfaction, so I headed straight to the nursing home. Grabbing my reusable shopping bag, I headed inside, continuing on even as I noticed Wyatt pulling into the back lot. I couldn’t say I blamed him for following me. I had no idea what Hank would ask for a blood price, and Wyatt had been foolish to agree to it. Especially if he was going to withhold key information about Heather’s disappearance.
Gladys was sitting at her usual table with her grumpy friend, Roberta. I still wasn’t sure whether they were truly friends, or two people who’d formed an acquaintance over puzzles. Some days they didn’t seem to like each other all that much.