Silver River Secrets. Linda Lee Hope

give my proposal some thought.” He plucked a business card from a holder on the desk and handed it to her.

      Lacey tucked the card into her purse. “All right. I’ll think about it overnight and give you a final answer tomorrow.”

      * * *

      RORY DROVE DOWN Main Street on his way to Dalton Properties. He usually worked afternoons, but this morning A.J. wanted him to attend a meeting with potential buyers for several houses they’d acquired at auction. He’d rather be at the shop, of course, but for now, he juggled both jobs. One of these days, though...

      While waiting at a red light, he idly looked around. Lots of people out and about already. His gaze landed on a familiar car parked in front of the Silver River Sentinel’s office. A white Camaro convertible. Lacey’s car. Had to be. There wouldn’t be two cars like that in town.

      Just then, she stepped out the office door. Behind her was Elton Watts. They stood talking for a moment, and then Lacey turned away and approached her car. At the same time, the light changed, and Rory drove through the intersection.

      He wondered what business she had with Elton. Probably placing an ad to sell some of her grandmother’s stuff. Or maybe she’d just stopped in to say hello. Naw, that wasn’t like her. As far as he knew, when she came to town she confined her visiting to her grandmother.

      * * *

      A COUPLE HOURS LATER, after the meeting was over and the last buyer had left the conference room, A.J. turned to Rory. “That went well. Those old houses will soon be replaced by a new subdivision.” He scooped up some papers from the table. “Speaking of old houses, anything new on the Whitfield place?”

      Rory followed A.J. from the room and into the hallway. “As a matter of fact, I saw Remy yesterday...”

      “Hey, fast work.”

      “And I made her the offer. Which she turned down.”

      A.J. stopped at the door to his office and turned. “I told you you’d be wasting your time.”

      Rory held up a hand. “I’m not giving up. Lacey was there, too, of course, and she was being very protective of her grandmother. Once she’s gone, I’ll try again.”

      “Huh. I’m not going to hold my breath waiting for that deal to go through.”

      * * *

      AFTER LUNCH IN the Riverview dining room, Lacey and Gram took a walk. They followed the paved path that meandered through the grounds, past flower gardens and picnic tables and benches.

      Lacey wanted to enjoy the outing, but she was preoccupied. And she couldn’t discuss Elton’s job offer or the matter of her mother’s journal with her grandmother. Gram would encourage her to take Elton’s offer, and she wouldn’t approve of Lacey’s having read the journal.

      Rory’s image popped into Lacey’s mind. If only she could confide in him. When they were in high school, they shared everything, from their day-to-day problems to their hopes and dreams. But of course she could never confide in him now.

      They reached the river and followed the path along the bank. The water flowed steadily along, sparkling in the sunlight. On the opposite side, farmland stretched to the foothills, and beyond stood the mountains.

      “Let’s stop awhile.” Lacey pointed to a wrought-iron bench under a stand of cottonwood trees.

      “All right.”

      After positioning Gram’s wheelchair beside the bench, Lacey sat. She leaned back and rested her hands in her lap, relishing the soft breeze cooling her cheeks. Still, her problems kept her tense.

      “As long as I can visit the river now and then,” Gram said, “I feel at home. Your mother loved the water, too.”

      Lacey let a few moments elapse and then said, “I, ah, read some of Mother’s journal last night...”

      She expected an angry outburst from Gram, but none came. She cast her a cautious glance. “Don’t you want to know what she wrote about?”

      “No, I don’t.” Gram clamped her jaw shut and folded her arms. “Like I told you, a journal is private.”

      “I’m going to tell you anyway, because I have some questions.”

      Gram shifted in her chair so that she faced Lacey. Her eyes were angry. “Is that why you brought me here? To make me a captive audience?”

      Lacey spread her hands. “Please, bear with me, just a little.”

      “All right, say what’s on your mind and get it over with.”

      Lacey took a deep breath. “She wrote about the amethyst necklace Grandfather gave her, the one that belonged to his mother. And how upset she was when she lost it at the restaurant.”

      Silence, except for the shushing sound of the flowing water and the twittering birds perched in a nearby tree.

      “And that someone found it—she didn’t write his name—and planned to return it to her on...on that day.”

      “So?”

      “So was Al Jr. the one who found it? Was that why he came that day? The necklace wasn’t mentioned at the trial. The prosecutor wanted everyone to believe Al came to see Mother when no one else was home.” Lacey looked down at her hands. Talking about her mother’s adultery—supposed adultery—always made her uncomfortable.

      “I knew she lost the necklace at work, but she never said anything to me about anyone finding it.”

      “Did the police ever see the journal?”

      “No. Although I would see her writing in it, she never left it around for anyone to read. Months after she passed away, I found it behind some books on the shelves in the living room, by the fireplace. Like I told you, I didn’t read it. I put it with the rest of her things that I’d been gathering up.”

      “Did you ever see the necklace again after that day?”

      “No.”

      “It wasn’t found on Al. That surely would have come up in the trial. So what happened to it?”

      Gram pressed her lips together and shook her head. “I don’t know, but let’s say Al did return the necklace. Then I’m guessing that after your father shot Al, he took it.”

      “But it wasn’t found on Dad, either, when he was arrested. We would have heard about it in the trial.”

      “He probably pawned the necklace before the police caught up with him.”

      “Pawned it? Why would he do that?”

      “Oh, come on, Lacey, you know your father always needed money to pay his gambling debts.”

      Lacey bit her lip. Gram was right. She’d heard her mother and father arguing about his gambling often enough, and her mother had mentioned the problem in her journal.