His coin heavy in my pocket
Our oak tree beckons
From the far side of the river
Limbs swaying in an Elysian breeze
He had cried when he read it. He did more than cry—he came completely unstrung. He shouted and cursed and punched the wall so hard he broke three bones in his hand. Then he drank until he passed out. Mama worried that he might “do something desperate,” so she came over and took charge of him for a week.
Maybe he should have done something desperate. Maybe he should do it now.
He discovered that he had been driving toward Eslava Branch for the last several minutes. He gunned the engine and headed for the curve that claimed Marie’s life. He accelerated into it and let the truck drift off the road between two houses. He crashed through underbrush, startled several ducks into flight, and hit the water with an enormous spray and splash.
Water gushed through the vents, cool and relentless. It soaked his feet, his calves, his thighs, his belly, his chest. Dim green-brown replaced the bright sunlight outside. He closed his eyes and pictured Marie waiting for him under the huge oak where they’d first kissed, her hair blown by a heavenly breeze.
Something smashed through the door window. The last air bubbled out of the truck as strong hands reached in. Theygrabbed Michael and dragged him through the window frame and to the surface.
Michael choked and gasped as his rescuers pulled him to shore. He finally got a look at them as they dropped him on the muddy bank: Hez Webster and Augusta Richards.
Richards went to retrieve handcuffs from a utility belt she’d left lying by the water. Hez leaned over Michael, face dripping. “You’re not getting off that easy.”
Chapter 41
Savannah tried to move her head and couldn’t. There was something on her neck. Her senses began to return with the scent of mud and grass and the sounds around her. Was that a siren? Pain filtered in and her memories with it.
Simon.
She opened her eyes and winced at the lights flashing on top of an ambulance. Hez’s worried face swam into view, and she reached for his hand. “Michael has Simon!” She tried to sit.
“Whoa, whoa.” He pressed her back. “The paramedics are going to take you to the hospital. And we’ve got Simon.” He gestured to her other side.
She cast her glance that way since she couldn’t move her neck. Simon hovered on his haunches beside her on her right side. “I’m okay, Aunt Savannah. You’re not supposed to move.” His blue eyes studied her face. “You’re going to have a shiner for the wedding.” He rose. “I’m going to go pack the rest of my stuff. I’ll be right back. Don’t leave without me.”
She touched her puffy face. A shiner? At least they were all alive. “We won’t go anywhere without you.” When Simon walked toward the house, she reached for Hez’s hand. “Where’s Michael?”
His hand touched her hair gently. “In custody for Jess’s murder. They caught Jimbo too.”
She closed her eyes a moment as her chest contracted with pain. Jess would still be here, ready to be her maid of honor at the wedding. Instead, Simon was an orphan, and Savannah would never see her again. No, that wasn’t true. Jess was safe with Jesus, and the knowledge they’d be together again someday meant everything.
Hez’s lips touched hers. “I’m sorry, babe. I know it hurts to realize her own father killed her.”
She opened her eyes. “How do they know it was him?”
“I was with Augusta on her way to make the arrest. Your dad’s file had a picture of Michael standing next to a truck. Augusta had it examined to see what was in the back of the vehicle, and it contained boxes of industrial explosives—a very powerful and rare type. When they went through the evidence baggies Ed retrieved, they found residue from the same type of explosive on fragments of my car. That's enough for an arrest warrant. They should find more evidence once they search his home and business.”
“He was after you.”
“Yes. We think he was determined to stop me from interfering with his elaborate plans to destroy TGU and your family.”
“Jess was part of it, all of it. His desire for revenge had infected her too. She believed he loved her, but she never stopped to think about how a father’s love didn’t include putting her in danger and sending her on a path of deceit and destruction. My father is no better. He modeled selfishness and a drive for control and wealth that made it easy for Michael.”
His hand cupped her unharmed cheek. “I think Michael really loved your mother. Losing her warped him, and he never recovered from it. He tried to kill himself at the same spot Marie died, but Augusta and I stopped him. To tell you the truth, I feel sorry for him. I’m thankful I didn’t have to watch you live with another man.”
Her heart swelled with love and gratitude. “You are the strongest man I’ve ever met. You saw how you needed to change, and you did it. You came here determined to restore our relationship, and I’m thankful you’re the kind of man who wasn’t puffed up with pride like my dad and Michael. You were willing to do whatever it took to restore our marriage.” She reached up and cupped his face with her palms. “I’m so blessed you’re mine.”
His smile turned even more tender. “This is all you, babe. The thought of that fierce heart of yours never really let go of me. I hit bottom and knew I had to have it back—have you back. You forgave me, and not many women would have been so generous. Who would have thought we could slog through all this to get to where we are now? And we’ll have a son soon.”
“We’ll be able to adopt Simon?”
