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She nodded, unsure if this was a trap. Even if it was, she couldn’t give herself away. Her best bet was to agree for now and figure it out later. “All right. I can do that.”
“Report only to me.”
“Of course.” As she walked away, she sighed. Asked to investigate her own crime. Now she could pin it on whomever she wanted. What she truly wanted was to get Dorcas out of the way, but she’d settle for setting up Byron. Eunice would fall with him. Then plans could be made for destroying Dorcas. One enemy at a time, she’d watch them all fall. A frisson of discomfort floated through her stomach, but she reminded herself that it was them or her.
Chapter Fifteen
Malachi shoved the slip of paper with Ezekiel James’ phone number on it into his pocket as he ascended the steps to his parents’ house. His real parents. The ones who had taken him in when nobody else wanted him. The people who had made sure he got a college degree. He wouldn’t be calling the man who gave him life. Not now. Not ever.
His father came to the door, a wide smile on his face. “This is a pleasant surprise. Thought you said you couldn’t make it to Sunday dinner.”
“My plans changed, so here I am. Hope Mom doesn’t mind the extra person.”
Dad held the door wide and Malachi stepped inside and joined the others around the dining room table. His foster siblings ranged in age from seventeen to thirty-seven. And every single one of them knew God had blessed them when he’d placed them with the Lubach family. After a few minutes of catching up, Mom came in with the first of the dishes. “Help me set this food out on the table, would ya, hon.” She smiled in his direction, and he hurried into the kitchen to help. “Are you dating anyone?”
He chuckled. “I haven’t settled down with a nice young woman since you asked me a week ago.”
“What about that dinner date you had?”
“I had a meal with a colleague. It wasn’t a date.”
“Keep telling yourself that if you like.” She lifted the green bean casserole and pointed to the sweet potatoes. “You get that one. Maybe you should ring her. Women like it when a guy they like calls.”
“And what excuse would I have to call her?”
“Tell her you wanted to hear her voice. She’ll melt.”
“Ma, you’re trouble.” After setting down the dish, he kissed her on the cheek then took his spot at the table. He should’ve known she didn’t need help, just wanted to meddle in his love life. A flash of Jill brought a smile to his lips. Yes, she’d been meddling for a long time. His first love moving to Hawaii had wounded his mom more than it had him. Which proved they weren’t meant to be.
Maybe he should give Cate a ring. She was on his mind far more than was normal for someone he barely knew. More than Jill ever had been. And he wouldn’t mind hearing her voice, his foster mother was right about that. He pictured her as she’d been the morning they’d hiked to the bear den together. The vulnerability she’d shown when she’d had the asthma attack, combined with her strength of spirit and determination to find the person responsible for harming the bears drew him to her. They were kindred spirits. Both fighting for vulnerable creatures who needed their protection.
Keisha elbowed him. “You got a girlfriend?”
“No. I do not have a girlfriend.”
Taylor grinned. “Nobody believes you. Definitely sounds like there’s a girl.”
He laughed at his brother.
“What’s her name?” Keisha asked.
He shook his head.
“Might as well tell us.” Ben sat seconds before their father took his seat at the head of the table and they all joined hands as he asked the blessing on the meal. Saved by the prayer.
Malachi filled his plate and listened to the conversations buzzing around the table. He didn’t need his birth family. His blessings were all about him. They were abundant, and they were real. Seeing Becky had messed with his head, making him want answers to questions that didn’t matter. Why did she leave him behind? Why didn’t she love him enough to stay? But none of that mattered. God had a plan, and it all worked out for the best. Yet, whenever his thoughts wandered back to that day at the shelter when he’d realized she was gone, he couldn’t prevent the squeezing in his heart. She’d broken his eight-year-old heart, and even now at thirty-two, he couldn’t revisit the memory without reliving that pain.
Becky watched as Reece went inside his cabin alone. She knew he liked to rest around this time every day. It was hit or miss whether he would fall asleep or not. Dorcas and Eunice were at the stream doing laundry, so this was Becky’s chance. If she could grab his cell phone, she might be able to do a little unauthorized snooping.
The kind that would help her and Malachi. Maybe even Clarence, but before she could commit to him, she had to find out if there was any chance for her and Zeke. Which meant finding Ezekiel and asking him if he intended to return to Jade.
The door to the camper creaked as she pushed it open. The overpowering aroma of diapers left in a garbage can too long greeted her, and dust motes floated in the late afternoon sun. She’d nearly made it to the table where his cell phone sat when his voice stopped her dead in her tracks.
He was lying on the couch facing the door. “You have new information for me?”
Forcing down the bile forming in the back of her throat, Becky blinked repeatedly.
“Did you hear my question, woman?”
