Page 13 of Jacob Michaels Is Not Jacob Michaels

“Mrs. Wagner.” Lucas shook his head at her when he saw my expression.

“I ain’t meaning to upset ya’ none, Robbie.” Oma reached over to pat my hand. “I know ya’ been away for a minute. The Midwest is littered with them meth-houses. It’s a disease…well, maybe a cancer. It’s been spreading.”

“Let’s just…let’s not talk about it.”

Oma shrugged. Lucas patted my hand again. I felt guiltier than I had before. If this woman got labeled as some junkie when that wasn’t the case at all, I’d never have forgiven myself, even if she had tried to attack me while in wolf form. If that was what happened at all. Maybe I really was in a mental hospital somewhere half out of my mind, waiting for some drugs or therapy to do their job. All things considered, I didn’t know if I was crazier for wanting to confess to the previous night’s events or because I didn’t doubt that those things happened.

“All right.” Sheriff Dennard coming in through the backdoor once again, looking official and concerned snapped me out of my reverie. “They’re going to take her away, Esther Jean. Your plans to get out in the garden won’t be completely ruined.”

“Stuff it, Dennard.”

“Mrs. Wagner.” Lucas couldn’t help but grin.

Sheriff Dennard wasn’t amused.

“Esther Jean…”

“Yes, Wesley?” She waggled her head.

That was fair. Sheriff Dennard hadn’t shown proper respect to an older lady of the community by calling her “Mrs. Wagner” or “ma’am,” so why the hell should Oma have to use his title?

“I’m the Sheriff of this county.”

“I’m the owner of this house.” Oma started to stand, but I reached out and put a hand on her shoulder, pushing her back into her seat. Of course, that didn’t slow her mouth. “And I ain’t got nothin’ to do with Miss Naked as a Jay Bird out there, anyway.”

“Oh, calm down.” Sheriff Dennard waved her off. “I didn’t say nothin’ about this even being anyone’s fault.”

“Damn right you didn’t.” Oma nodded once. “And you better not, either.”

“I don’t think none of y’all hurt her.” He grumbled. “I wouldn’t be standing here being nice if I thought y’all were responsible for what happened to her.”

Regardless of how it made me morally feel, Sheriff Dennard’s statement made me feel physically relieved.

“But you know that there might be more questions later on.” He reached into his breast pocket for a small notebook and a pen. “I know she just stumbled up into the yard looking like that and then…Robert?...you eased her to the ground and she just…well, she died.”

He was reading from the notes he’d made in his little notebook when he had first arrived and asked what happened.

“Yessir.” I nodded. “She wasn’t alive long after she came into the yard.”

Oma threw her hands up in a “are we done now?” fashion.

“And, Lucas?” Sheriff Dennard glanced up at him. “You came running up after?”

“Yessir.”

“Esther Jean, you were cowering on the steps of the backdoor here?”

“Look here, Wesley—”

“The…woman…frightened Oma, I guess from sneaking up behind her like that, Sheriff Dennard,” I interjected to avoid another round of fighting. “Lucas and I were coming back from a walk by the lake when I saw the woman stumbling up to Oma. I ran up to help Oma—obviously, the woman being naked and stumbling around wasn’t exactly normal—and then when I pulled the woman away, saw her condition, and eased her to the ground when she collapsed, she just…died.”

“All right.” He shrugged.

“Jesus.” Oma huffed.

Sheriff Dennard shot her a look. “What were y’all doing walking down by the lake?”

Lucas and I glanced at each other.