AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Nicole scooted closer to him. “You’re shivering, Danny. You need to go inside.”
“No. Where’s the money coming from? Did Ray say?”
“He said the DEA’s handling it. Drug dealer money.”
“When’s the drop?”
“Tonight at midnight.”
Daniel stood on tottering legs. “I need your help. I need to go there, and I don’t think I can drive.”
Nicole stared up at him, her face filled with a mixture of compassion and something else—he couldn’t be sure what. She sighed. “You had a fever of one hundred and three last night. You haven’t eaten in two or three days. You need to lie down.”
Daniel started walking. “I’ll take a taxi to the church and pick up my car.” He stumbled, kept going, not caring if she could hear or followed. “He could already be dead. They could hand over the money and never see him again.”
Nicole fell into step next to him. Her hand went to his elbow. “He’s not, Danny. He left some marbles in a closet. He’s leaving clues.”
Daniel stared at the sidewalk, afraid she’d see the fear in his eyes. “We went to Wal-Mart for some supplies. He never asks for anything. I told him he could pick out one thing. He picked out marbles. I asked him why marbles. He said a lady gave him some marbles once. He thought it might have been his grandmother. He wasn’t sure because he never saw her again. But it was the only present he’d ever received. Ever. I don’t think he even knows for sure when his birthday is.”
Nicole’s hand tightened on his arm. “He’s had a very hard life, Daniel, no doubt about it, but the time he’s spent with you has been good. You’ve given him some good memories.”
Emotion ripped through Daniel. Benny deserved a lot more good memories, and Daniel intended to make sure he had a chance to make them. “He’s never had cake and ice cream, never blown out candles, never ripped the paper off a present. Do you understand what I’m saying?”
“I understand.” Nicole steered him toward the street. “He doesn’t deserve this. No child does. We’ll get him back.”
“We?”
She nodded. “The car’s right here. I’ll drive you.”
“Just take me to my car at the church.”
“No. We’re in this together.”
“Together?”
“Danny, I don’t know what tomorrow will bring, but for tonight, we’re in it together.”
It wasn’t the declaration he needed, but he’d take it. For tonight.
Chapter Twenty-nine
The Dodge Farm
Dickinson County, Kansas
Esperanza twisted closer to the knot hole in the barn wall so she could hear what the sheriff’s deputy said to Uncle Ezra. She squinted through the hole, hoping Uncle Ezra couldn’t see her spying on him. She wanted to hear. Maybe the sheriff had come to help them—finally. Too bad Estrella couldn’t be out here with her, but her twin sister had to make supper, leaving Esperanza to finish cleaning the stalls. Uncle Ezra looked as if he were mad and trying not to show it. He nodded his head and waved his hands around a lot.
“No, sir. No, sir. What lame brained idiot called you, anyway?” Uncle Ezra’s voice got louder and louder. Esperanza didn’t have to strain to hear now. “I take good care of the animals around here.”
Sure, he did. Leaving the horses out in a pasture when a dry fall had caused the grass to shrivel up early. They could only forge so much. Momma said Esperanza should be happy Uncle Ezra took them in when they had no place to go. Esperanza disagreed. She’d wanted to stay in the station wagon and keep going so far awayPapicould never find them.
Besides, Uncle Ezra didn’t look like Momma’s brother. Not at all. Esperanza couldn’t see anything about him that seemed familiar. And sometimes at night, when she got up to go to the bathroom, she’d seen Uncle Ezra going into Momma’s bedroom. The memory made her stomach do funny things. She tried not to think about it, but she didn’t want to think about the sheriff’s deputy and Uncle Ezra arguing about the horses, either.
“Sir, I’d like to take a look at those horses, if you don’t mind.” The sheriff’s deputy’s voice was real low and deep. Like a preacher’s voice. He kept looking around as if he were checking the place out.
Esperanza wished she could talk to him for a few seconds so she could ask him why he was so worried about the horses and never asked how Uncle Ezra and Momma took care of the kids. Esperanza didn’t need taking care of any more, but little Frankie did. Nobody asked if they were getting enough to eat. Nobody asked about the things going on in the house. Not even her teachers at school or church. People seemed to care more about animals than kids sometimes.
Uncle Ezra was really getting worked up now. “Yes, I do mind. You got a search warrant, Deputy? Unless you have a legitimate reason to be on my property, I want you to get off. Now.”
