Page 62 of The Perfect Hosts
“And to think thirty years later, you’re back in Nightjar and ended up saving my life,” Wes says, shaking his head in disbelief.
“Technically, it was Sheriff Colson who saved your life,” Jamie counters.
“No, it was you,” Wes insists. “If you hadn’t shown up at the house when you did, who knows what would have happened to me, to Madeline.”
“I guess we can call it even now,” Jamie says.
“I don’t think it works like that,” Wes says. “Do you? I owe you, Jamie. I will always owe you. You saved me, but more importantly, you saved my wife and baby, and that means I’ll always be there for you, just like I know you’ll be here for me.”
“You don’t owe me anything,” Jamie says firmly.
“You met my dad, right, Jamie?” Wes asks, and Jamie is thrown by the shift in topic.
Jamie had met the elder Drake, but wants to keep the conversation on Johanna’s death so he lies. “Your dad?” Jamie says. “No, I don’t think so. We lived here for such a short time, I didn’t get the chance to meet a lot of people.”
“He visited you in the hospital. After. He wanted to see the boy his son found in a ditch.”
“I don’t remember,” Jamie says. “I was really in no condition to remember much of anything.”
“He was shocked by how you looked,” Wes says. “The extent of your injuries. And he felt so sorry for your mom. He wanted to help you both.”
“What do you mean?” Jamie is almost afraid of the answer.
“Your mom wanted to get out of Nightjar. Moving is expensive. My dad wanted to see you both have a fresh start after something so traumatic.”
“Your dad paid for us to move?” Jamie says in disbelief. His mother never said anything.
“He did,” Wes says. “He also created a little college scholarship fund. It went to a young man who lived in San Antonio who has gone on to a very successful career in law enforcement.”
Jamie can’t breathe. Wes Drake’s father paid for his college tuition? He thought he had earned that scholarship fair and square.
“It appears my father and my wife had a lot in common,” Wes says. “Taking care of strays and all. Now, come on,” Wes says, patting Jamie on the back. He takes Jamie’s empty water bottle and stows it in his saddlebag. “We need to go back now. It will be dark soon. Oh, and say hi to your boss for me. Linton Sykes and I go way back. In fact, I owe him a phone call, and I’ll be sure to mention what a good job you’re doing here, Jamie.”
Wes heads back toward the ponderosa pines, and Jamie follows behind, his pulse pounding in his head. Though Wes said he only recently realized who Jamie is, Jamie is convinced that Wes has known all along. The more Jamie learns about Wes Drake, the more he’s sure he’s behind the barn explosion. Now he has to prove it.
Chapter 30
Madeline
Carrying the flannel shirt, Madeline stops by the stables to see Trent. She knew he would never steal from them, never betray them like that. She doesn’t trust Lucy, and she doesn’t trust Mellie, so Madeline needs to get him safely away from here, at least for the time being. She tells him that Wes wants him to drive over to Spearfish and deliver the gelding to a family there.
“Right now?” Trent asks. “I’m not leaving you here all alone with that lot.” He nods toward the house.
“Please,” Madeline says, unable to meet his eyes. “I’ve got it under control, and I really think it’s for the best.”
“No way,” Trent says, shaking his head. “With all that’s been going on, you need an extra pair of eyes around here. I’m staying. Just holler, and I’ll come running. Got it?” Madeline gives a reluctant nod.
She returns to the house to find Mellie in the dining room and covertly watches as she runs her hand across the $25,000 walnut-and-resin dining room table, examining the artwork. Mellie, who earlier had been limping around with shoulders hunched as if in pain, has suddenly gotten the spring back in her step. She walks around the room, turning on and off the gas fireplace, then pauses at the built-in liquor cabinet. Mellie looks over her shoulder, and Madeline ducks out of sightbefore peeking around the doorjamb to see the girl picking up a bottle of Pappy Van Winkle bourbon—the expensive stuff. Mellie quickly grabs a shot glass, pours a finger and tosses it back, then pours another. After downing it, she wipes the rim of the glass with her shirt—Madeline’s shirt—and returns it to the shelf.
Strange, Madeline thinks, for someone who is pregnant. She wants to confront her but doesn’t. She’s not afraid of Mellie, exactly, but the young woman unsettles her, and the uneasiness at having her in their house continues to grow, but Madeline doesn’t quite know how to get rid of her. Whenever she broaches the subject, Mellie assures her she has something in the works and will be leaving soon.
Madeline quietly retreats to the home office and takes a seat in front of the computer. She tries all the major social media sites but finds nothing. She then types Mellie’s name into Google, and an entry for a Millie Bauer appears. Not who she’s looking for. Mellie could be short for Melanie so she tries it, and this time dozens of pages of results pop up. She clicks on the Images tab and begins to sort through the photos. Finally, she finds a picture that matches the Mellie she knows.
Madeline clicks on the link, and it takes her to a newspaper article from what looks like a small-town paper in West Virginia with the headlineValedictorian to attend Dartmouth College.So Mellie was the valedictorian of her class. But how did she end up in Nightjar rather than the hallowed halls of Dartmouth?
The article is brief and ends with a quote. “I’m so proud of my daughter, and I can’t wait to see what the future holds for her.” The quote is attributed to a Veronica Bauer. Madeline has to reread the sentence two more times. Is Veronica Bauer Mellie’s mother? Hadn’t Mellie told her in the ambulance that her mother died when she was little? Madeline examines the accompanying photo closely. It shows a woman with her arm around Mellie, and the caption reads “Mellie and VeronicaBauer.”The woman is a carbon copy of Mellie, though about thirty years older. This is Mellie’s mother, Madeline is sure of it. So why did she lie?
“You are never going to believe this,” Wes says, coming into the office. Madeline quickly clicks out of Google and turns in her chair.