"Yes."

"I thought of something. Nick couldn't have walked out of there."

"We had already thought of that. The main road is busy enough so that he would have been seen."

"So either he's still in the woods. Or he hitched a ride. Or-"

Nick's handsome face flashed across the screen. This shot was from the wedding album, too. He also looked happy. Maybe to be getting married. Or being Nick, maybe from squeezing one of the bridesmaids.

Tierney didn't let me finish. "That's right. But don't think about that stuff. We're hoping to find him."

"Alive, you mean."

"That's the plan. It looks like he was in your car."

"Are you sure?"

"We found traces."

"Well, actually, he was in my car. He stopped me yesterday-was it only yesterday?-and pretended to give me a ticket. He got into the passenger seat briefly."

"What?"

"He-"

"I heard you, actually. That's so far removed from procedure that it caught me by surprise."

"I told him it wasn't the way to do it. But it might explain why you'd find a strand or two of his hair and maybe fingerprints."

"Maybe."

"Lots of people ride in my car: Jack, Lilith, the dogs. . . ."

"We didn't find fingerprints from anyone else in the system. We're not expecting to find your friends or pets in AFIS."

"Well, yeah. What about Margaret? Is she still at the hospital?"

"They sent her home when Pepper went into surgery. She's probably still sleeping."

"What happened?"

"According to Officer DeJong, who was guarding the room, around eleven o'clock, Margaret decided to walk up and down the corridor, to stretch her legs. Pepper was sleeping. While she was gone, DeJong heard a thump and opened the door. Apparently Pepper had gotten out of bed and then fallen. Luckily he was able to press the help button and a doctor and a nurse got there in seconds. He was pretty shook up."

I didn't ask if Tierney had slept. Something told me he hadn't. "Wait a minute, if there's no sign of Nick, who authorized the surgery? Was Pepper awake?"

He paused. "I believe her parents are on their way from Florida or wherever they retired to. They must have okayed it."

Pepper's parents? Things were dire indeed.

Tierney interrupted my thoughts. "Think positive. I'll try to keep you informed about Pepper. I know that she's the one you're close to."

After he disconnected, I stared at the screen. A trailer for a coming movie. I thought about Tierney's words. Pepper was my friend. And Nick had been in my life for years, too. I even cared about him in a weird way. Had he actually left his wife to die and me at the mercy of a would-be killer?

Jack interrupted my thoughts. "Pepper's parents. Whoa. This is out of control. What about Little Nick?"

"Let's hope his own parents are going to be all right."

"Both of them."

"Both of them."

I knew one thing for sure and that was that Pepper would not want her child to live with the same man who had left her bruised every week as a child.

I could have used a great big Jack-hug at that low moment, but he had turned his attention back to Little Nick.

That left me to worry about Pepper. Why had she gotten out of bed? What had she remembered?

14.

No matter how long the dress you wore to the homecoming dance stays in your closet, it cannot make you eighteen again or bring back the night. Find a new home for it!

Sally was right. Sometimes the best thing when you can't help is to keep going. The To Do list I'd written the night before seemed so innocent now. It didn't have Grieve for friend. It didn't have Save Little Nick from evil grandparents . It did have two closet appointments and a trip to the library, a bit of dog training, and routine business development and office chores. Somehow, none of that held much interest for me at that moment. But still it was something to do as the hospital had said only family visitors for Pepper, bizarre in this case.

Jack also had a full day ahead of him.

He declined Sally's offer and took Little Nick to the bike shop with him.

"What if he cries and disturbs your customers?" I still had trouble adjusting to the bike shop as day care.

"They can find another bike shop. Babies are part of society. The little dude likes it there. People have to learn to-"

"Okay, okay. I guess he'll be all right there. It's not like a typical nursery, that's all."

"Why not? We have music and bright colors on the bikes and nice things to look at. Plenty of objects to help develop his muscle control. He'll be more than all right. It's not like he's walking yet. He wants someone to smile and play a bit. Did you see him smile at me?"

"Fine. I concede defeat."

I helped Jack cart out the mountain of gear and jiggled Little Nick on my hip as he set up the car seat in the Mini. Little Nick looked around for Jack and reached for him, but I didn't take it personally. The kid was making a wise choice. Jack double-checked the car seat that Sally had dropped off and tucked the gurgling baby into it. I thought the boys looked pretty happy as they headed off to business. Was it my imagination or did Little Nick smile at me, too?

Whatever. It felt good, even as I felt a wave of fear for him and what his future might hold.

Jack's ancient Mini was only big enough for the boys, so I checked with my insurance and called the car rental company they recommended. I sat tight until that office could drop off my replacement vehicle.

Unfortunately that gave me a lot of time to think about Pepper and what had happened. It wasn't enough time to have any of it make sense.

Harry opened the door and blinked at me in surprise. "I didn't expect you."

I blinked back at him. "But didn't we make an appointment?"

He glanced behind him. "We did, Charlotte honey, but I've been watching television and isn't that your friend who-?"

"It is. And I have to keep busy or I'll go nuts. The only thing is that if something . . . dramatic happens, I may have to leave."

"Naturally, you would have to. We'd understand completely. Some events take precedence."

Of course, the Beauchamps would understand. I lowered my voice. "Did Lorelei see the news? That would be terribly upsetting for her so soon after your daughter's accident."

He shook his head. "Don't worry about that, honey. She never watches the news. Never listens to the radio. Doesn't want to know. Just wants silence. She won't even have music playing."

"Maybe that's a good thing today. Considering."

"I suppose you're right, but it is terrible about Pepper Monahan. I remember her as a child, too. I'm sure I first met her at your mama's place. I can't believe her husband would do such a wicked thing."

"If Nick did it," I said as evenly as I could. "We don't know exactly what happened yet."

"Humph. Well, let's hope she makes it through her surgery. Then maybe she can tell the police what he did. I hope she has a guardian angel because she's been dealin' with a devil."

I had to think that this outburst was very unlike Harry, who was usually the most courtly of southern gentlemen. Well, for all I know of the species anyway.

"Do you think Lorelei will be up to seeing me? Is she . . . ?"

"Yes, honey, she sure is. She's up and she's dressed and lookin' gorgeous. We're finishing our coffee. Care to join us for a minute? Since it's a beautiful day, we thought we'd have our breakfast in the conservatory."

For sure coffee was a better start for me than champagne cocktails. I followed Harry, sniffing the aroma as we went. The conservatory had even more glass than the rest of the house, but it had only two plants. I wasn't sure, but I thought the ficus looked like it might be silk. Never mind. Who am I to talk? I don't even have a single plant in my sunniest window.

Lorelei was stretched out on a chaise, ignoring a plate with a muffin and some apple slices and a few grapes on a small side table. She seemed puzzled by their presence.

"I just made a fresh pot of coffee, Charlotte honey," Harry said.

"It smells heavenly," I said.

"That's our house blend. I do a mix of Kona and Guatemalan and a hint of dark roast, in case we need a boost."

"I need a boost for sure."

"Well then, I'll bring it in the biggest mug we have."

I wasn't sure if one mug would be enough to get me back to normal, but if it tasted half as good as it smelled, I'd be happy.

Lorelei was lovely in a casual printed silk tunic, the background color the pale corn silk of her hair and a lovely azure blue as a contrast color. Her hair was pulled back in a loose knot. She had on slim chinos, and her feet were bare. It was a very unstudied look, perhaps the Beauchamp version of casual country, but I knew better than to believe anyone looked that good by happenstance. However depressed she might be, Lorelei still kept up her appearance: fresh soft highlights in her hair, a well-kept pedicure, eyebrows recently done, too. Good, very subtle jewelry, pale brushed gold earrings winked in her ears.

"Maybe today's the day," I said, taking a seat on a matching chair.

I hadn't done a great job with my wardrobe that day. For one of the rare times in my life, I'd grabbed the first thing I saw in the morning. I was lucky both shoes were from the same pair.

"Maybe." She smiled.

"I have an idea." My main job was to get this show on the road. Otherwise, I'd be dropping by every day to stare at the water with them. The Beauchamps might pay thousands of dollars of services without a blink, but that didn't mean I could take advantage of them with a clear conscience. She raised one of her pale sculptured eyebrows.

I said, "Seven closets seem a bit overwhelming for me."

She nodded. "You could be right."

"So why don't we start with one and take it from there? This is something you want to do to improve your life, not to bring stress."

"I think that's a good idea."

"Good. You should pick the one you'd like to begin with."

She actually frowned, two tiny lines marring the perfect forehead.

I soldiered on. "Would you like to start with the one that's giving you the most trouble?"

She shook her head. "That's my main closet. It's the largest one. You've seen it. No, I'm not up for that."

"Fair enough. Is there another one that you'd like to try?"

"Well, darlin', we could always do-" Harry had arrived back with a pot of fresh coffee and their largest mug, which was about the size of my smallest cup.

Lorelei whirled, a move that was anything but languid. She said, "No, we can't."

"Of course not. I shouldn't have suggested it."

I felt a bit like Alice in Wonderland trying to figure out the coming reactions of the Queen of Hearts. As Harry poured my coffee, I decided that the closet he shouldn't have suggested must have been Anabel's.

"How about the one with the Christmas decorations?" Harry was determined to be helpful. But I could have told him that one wasn't going to fly.

"Not Christmas." Lorelei folded her arms in front of her. "Not Christmas. Too many memories."

"Christmas would be too difficult. I agree. Do you have one closet specifically for winter clothing?" I said, keeping my voice cheerful.

"Two actually," Lorelei said with a twitch at the corner of her mouth. "Harry spoils me, you know."

I did know. I wondered how much of her behavior was acting spoiled for the fun of it and how much was genuine misery. Of the two, Harry seemed to be the most heartbroken by Anabel's death.

"We could start with one of those. Make space for new purchases in the fall. What do you think?" I asked.

"Perhaps that could work. We can see."

An awkward silence hung in the air. Harry broke it up. "How is your mama, Charlotte?"

Getting past the idea that anyone would ever think of Esme as "my mama," I grinned.