“Where’s Rader?” Fowler asked, next to her now. He glanced at her arm where the glow from the headlights reflected in the fresh blood.
“He’s inside.” She turned to the trailer. “Anthony Harris had a gun. He was going to kill me, I think. Then Eudora showed up, and she took it from him. She shot me.” She suddenly stared at the leaking wound as if she only just noticed it.
“Get in the car,” Fowler ordered, “and stay there. I’m calling backup and going in.”
Rory nodded and watched him rush toward the trailer. She put her right hand over the injury and applied pressure. Maybe Fowler was one of the good guys after all. Not the brightest detective, it seemed. But…
But what if he went in there and killed Chance? Then there would be no one to confirm Rory’s story. For all she knew, the guy in prison could be dead already.
She rushed toward that porch, practically jumped the steps. At the door she took a breath. Listened.
“You should put the weapon down, Mrs. Harris.”
Chance’s voice.
Renewed fear surged through Rory’s veins. She fought it back and eased through the door.
“Drop the gun, Mrs. Harris,” Fowler said. “And let’s talk about this.”
Rory couldn’t see any of them. They were all at the far end of that narrow hall.
She slipped across the living room and into the kitchen.
“Eudora, put the gun down,” Anthony pleaded. “We’ve done too much already. It’s time to let it go.”
A clunk echoed, and suddenly there was a rush of movement. Eudora was crying. Anthony was trying to soothe her.
Footsteps sounded at the front door. The backup Fowler called had arrived.
Chance suddenly appeared in the kitchen. He was okay. Rory hugged him, the move sending a flash of pain through her arm. Thank God it was over.
The uniformed officers rushed past them. Fowler’s voice sounded above the other noise as he read Mr. and Mrs. Harris their rights.
“Let’s get you to the ER,” Chance said, his arm around her waist and ushering her toward the door.
Rory didn’t say a word. She was just glad to be going. Thankful to walk away alive.
And with the truth.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Friday, July 10
Rental Home
Pine Island Circle
Scottsboro, 10:30 a.m.
Rory walked out onto the deck with her coffee. Thank goodness there was a morning breeze. That Southern summer weather had kicked in full throttle with a healthy surge into the upper nineties.
She sat down, cradled her mug and savored the hot liquid caffeine. It had been just over three weeks since the investigation had burst wide open. Since then, the headlines in every newspaper across the state had heralded her a hero for fighting for the truth. But the truth was, Chance was the hero. The Colby Agency was the hero. She had said as much in the one interview she had granted.
It still stunned her each morning when she woke up and remembered all that had happened since her release from prison. Between Rick Hill and Anthony Harris, they had gotten the full story. All Anthony had wanted was for his wife to be happy. In the final weeks before the wedding, he’d grown more and more desperate. Having had too many drinks at Pete’s bachelor party, he’d said as much to Shane. Blabbed on about how he wished Rory would just go away for good. Shane had decided he would take care of the problem and then blackmailthe Harris family. After all, Anthony and Eudora had never treated Shane’s mother right. It was time to even that score.
Shane and his partner had been playing their sick games for several years. Pick an isolated house without a security system, take what they wanted, have a little fun and get out. They were good at it—rarely made mistakes. The way they treated the victims, particularly the two women at Henagar just showed the sheer depth of their evil.
The hit on Rory and Pete’s wedding night was different—it was personal and escalated to a whole new level of depravity. Shane wanted Rory—just once. He’d been lusting after her for months—maybe just to have what belonged to his cousin. Desperate to help his wife, Pete had fought his captor. The struggle left him bleeding out on the floor. Shane and Rick had freaked out and taken off without finishing the job—killing Rory.
