“Oh, I’ve already forgotten. You know how it is at my age.”
“I thought you might say that.” When I say the words, her eyes sharpen. “Is your son Eugene around? I’d like to speak with him.”
“No.” Her one-word answer is final.
“I thought you might say that too.” I take out the piece of paper from my notepad and open it up for her. “Would you mind explaining to me why his fingerprints were found at a crime scene in town yesterday at the exact time you called us to the farthest part of our patrol area?”
She glances down at the paper, but when she looks up, her eyes won’t meet mine. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Come on out, Eugene. I can see your boots behind the front door,” I call out, and there’s a long pause before the old wooden door creaks.
I wait, and her son, who is older than me, quietly creeps out and moves to stand behind her rocking chair. She puts a protective hand in front of him like this almost ninety-year-old woman is going to somehow keep him from the law.
“I’d like you to get off my property,” Betsy says and squares her shoulders.
“Mrs. Blair—” I check my watch and shake my head. “If I have to call Judge Banks for a warrant it will pull him off the golf course, and you and I both know that won’t end well.”
She huffs her irritation and presses her lips together before she turns her glare on me. “That girl is nothing but trouble.”
“Mama,” Eugene begins, but she waves him off.
“As soon as she moved to town things started to change. Young ladies shouldn’t have hair that color. It’s unnatural.”
I’m trying with every inch of my body not to lose my cool, but I need to do this right if I’m going to get to the bottom of it. “You’re talking about Juno Folke?” I ask politely but scribble in my notebook that Betsy Blair is an old cunt.
“Of course I am.” She waves a hand like Juno is right in front of her. “It’s indecent, the length of her shorts, and how she flirts with all the good men in town. Like yourself, Sheriff. I’ve seen the way she tries to tempt you.”
“Mama,” Eugene tries to interject, but Mrs. Blair isn’t having it.
“Oh shut up,” she snaps and tries to hit him, but he easily dodges her slow smack. “If you would have worn gloves like I told you none of this would have happened.”
“So it was you that put Eugene up to this?” I look between them, and Eugene shakes his head as Mrs. Blair rolls her eyes.
“You think my boy could come up with his own ideas?” she scoffs. “Now she’ll never make good on her promise.” Betsy Blair turns to her son, and the look of disappointment is almost painful. “I had one chance to marry you off, and look what you did. You’re a fool and don’t deserve her anyway.”
“Mrs. Blair,” I say to get her attention and wait until she looks at me. “Who is it that put you up to vandalizing Miss Folke’s place of business?”
“Well, Paula Peterson, of course.” She says it like I’m an idiot, and right now I might be.
I grab my radio and call for backup from Terrance as I pull out my handcuffs. “Eugene, I’m gonna need you to step aside. I need to secure you and your mom.”
“Okay,” he says softly, resigned to his fate. I can’t imagine what it was like growing up with a mother like Betsy Blair, but if he’s choosing jail time over her, things must be awful.
After I cuff Eugene to a chair on the porch, I walk over to Betsy. “You’re really going to cuff an old lady like me?” She looks pissed, but I don’t give a shit.
“I honestly don’t know what you’re capable of,” I tell her as I click the cuffs in place.
As soon as they’re secure I call Juno, but it goes straight to voicemail. I send Luca a text asking him where the fuck he is and how far he is from the house. When I rode past the Peterson house earlier, I didn’t see Paula’s car. Now I’m wondering where the fuck she is and what the fuck she’s up to.
When my text to Luca doesn’t go through, I curse and try to call Juno again. Once again it goes straight to voicemail, and I want to squeeze my phone into a million pieces. In the distance I hear sirens. Terrance must have sent a patrol car out on red alert. With help on the way, I hop in my car and race toward town.
I just hope I’m not too late for whatever it is Paula has planned.
10
Juno
“You’re not mad at me?” I’m sitting on the kitchen counter swinging my legs back and forth as I talk to Lux on the phone. She’s my best friend and has helped me through the darkest times in my life. I love her and don’t want to damage our friendship because I’m with her brother.
“Are you kidding me? We’re going to be sisters! This is awesome. Why would I be mad?” She says, and I didn’t realize how worried I was until the relief washes over me.
“I don’t know. I didn’t tell you about my crush, so I know this might be coming out of nowhere.”
“I saw the way my brother looked at you when he thought no one was around. Not to mention how his mood would change.” She laughs. “I never thought this day would come, but I think the oddest thing about all of this will be finally seeing Cooper with a woman.”
I bite my lip because I’m kind of happy about that fact. We live in a small town, and the last thing I want is to be around other women he’s dated. Even with Paula, Cooper told me they’d only gone to a dance together in high school, and I’m still annoyed. Nothing ever happened with them, not even a goodnight kiss, and I don’t want to hear about it.
“I think the whole town is going to be shocked that straight-laced Cooper is dating the girl with ever-changing hair and a nose ring.” Maybe I’m wrong, but that’s my immediate thought.
Honestly, I don’t think anyone knows Cooper better than I do. If people knew what he says behind closed doors they’d fall over dead. My body heats, thinking about all the dirty things he says in my ear while he’s inside me.
“They’ll be happy,” Lux says, pulling my mind out of the gutter. “They love Cooper and want him to be happy. I know you don’t believe it, but that town loves you too, Juno.”
I don’t tell her about the brick going through the front of my store because I don’t want her to worry. Someone around here clearly doesn't like me, but I do believe her. After that party they threw for me at the diner, I'm starting to get it. I think my fear of not belonging has held me back in a lot of ways, even with Cooper. He thought I didn’t like Pink Springs and was sure I’d try and leave one day, when in reality it’s the only place I’ve ever felt at home.
“You two should come up soon so we can do wedding stuff. This is going to be perfect.” She lets out another squeal and then we laugh.
We talk a bit longer before saying our goodbyes, and I jump down from the kitchen counter. I run my hand along the cool stone and think about how much time I’ve spent in this house. It’s crazy that it's now going to be my home. Cooper made it very clear that we’d already lost a couple months and he’s not spending another night without me in his bed.