Killer Moves: The 4th Jolene Jackson Mystery (Jolene Jackson Mysteries) by Paula Boyd
Authors: Paula Boyd
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this sounds, but if I have to add being her fulltime caretaker to my list of things to do right now, I will go totally and completely insane. The stupid estate thing had me ready to combust before I found out about all of this,” I said, waving my hand around the lab. “And did I mention that I had a run-in with the jackass consultant who’s running the toxic waste project? Or that my ranch manager ran me down on a four-wheeler and tried to shoot me? Of course, then he took me up to see the house, but I froze and couldn’t go in, and now the attorneys tell me I have be living there by tomorrow because of some stupid reason in the stupid trust papers that I never read.” The tears were coming, but I was trying really hard to stop them. “I just don’t know how I can handle everything, Jerry, I really don’t…I can’t…I just can’t.”
Jerry stepped toward me, looped an arm around my shoulder and pulled me to him. “One thing at a time, Jo. One thing at a time.” He held me for a few long seconds. “Let’s go have a chat with your mother then we’ll decide what to do.”
Chapter 11
I’d left the Tahoe parked at the gas station and had ridden with Jerry in his new truck—a black shiny tricked-out four-door with those sneaky incognito blue lights—that had arrived while I was gone. He’d told me it was coming, but with the litany of other things on my mind, I’d forgotten until I saw it at the morgue. It gave us something to talk about in the sixty seconds to the parking lot other than what was once again on the agenda—dealing with my mother.
In light of the earlier incidents—and my roles in both—Jerry had gone in alone to see Lucille. That was a relief on a number of levels, at least for me. Not so much for the sheriff, who was striding toward the truck with a scowl. Apparently things had gone as they usually did with Lucille—poorly.
He climbed in and closed the door, giving me that familiar look of dismay. “Apparently, I have a mole on the inside. At least until tomorrow afternoon. I told her we would both be back to discuss what to do next.”
“You think she’s safe until then?”
He nodded. “We took a walk down the hall and every person within earshot now knows her future son-in-law is the Bowman County Sheriff. That should keep her out of immediate danger tonight, but we need to have a plan for tomorrow.”
“Yes,” I said, adding yet another heavy sigh with it. “She seems like she’s doing very well, but I can’t just take her home and leave her alone. And if I have to stay there with her twenty-four-seven, I’ll have to kill her myself. And besides that I have to—” My cell phone rang, so I picked it up from the console, looked at the ID and said, “Deal with all the estate crap.”
“You don’t have to answer it,” Jerry said, watching me not rush to answer. “However, the attorney probably wouldn’t be calling this late unless it was important.”
“Yes, and that is exactly why I don’t want to answer it.” But I did. “Hey, Ed, what’s up?”
“Jolene, this is Grant. I just had an email come in from Doctor Waverman. It was sent earlier today, but I just now got it.” I rolled my eyes. “Let me guess…oh, hell, I can’t guess and I don’t want to. What does he want?”
“The equipment he needs for the second phase of work became available sooner than expected and he wants to start in the morning. He’ll be onsite at seven.”
“Okay, and?”
“He can’t do anything unless you approve. You took the contract to review this afternoon, remember?”
“Yes, I remember, now, dammit.”
Grant chuckled. “Rough day?”
“It was a rough day before I got to your office. It became amazingly worse after I left.” I sensed he was about to ask questions or offer condolences, so I said, “Trust me, you don’t want to know.”
“Perhaps, but it might still be prudent. Still, that’s for another time. For now, we need to keep the
Jerry stepped toward me, looped an arm around my shoulder and pulled me to him. “One thing at a time, Jo. One thing at a time.” He held me for a few long seconds. “Let’s go have a chat with your mother then we’ll decide what to do.”
Chapter 11
I’d left the Tahoe parked at the gas station and had ridden with Jerry in his new truck—a black shiny tricked-out four-door with those sneaky incognito blue lights—that had arrived while I was gone. He’d told me it was coming, but with the litany of other things on my mind, I’d forgotten until I saw it at the morgue. It gave us something to talk about in the sixty seconds to the parking lot other than what was once again on the agenda—dealing with my mother.
In light of the earlier incidents—and my roles in both—Jerry had gone in alone to see Lucille. That was a relief on a number of levels, at least for me. Not so much for the sheriff, who was striding toward the truck with a scowl. Apparently things had gone as they usually did with Lucille—poorly.
He climbed in and closed the door, giving me that familiar look of dismay. “Apparently, I have a mole on the inside. At least until tomorrow afternoon. I told her we would both be back to discuss what to do next.”
“You think she’s safe until then?”
He nodded. “We took a walk down the hall and every person within earshot now knows her future son-in-law is the Bowman County Sheriff. That should keep her out of immediate danger tonight, but we need to have a plan for tomorrow.”
“Yes,” I said, adding yet another heavy sigh with it. “She seems like she’s doing very well, but I can’t just take her home and leave her alone. And if I have to stay there with her twenty-four-seven, I’ll have to kill her myself. And besides that I have to—” My cell phone rang, so I picked it up from the console, looked at the ID and said, “Deal with all the estate crap.”
“You don’t have to answer it,” Jerry said, watching me not rush to answer. “However, the attorney probably wouldn’t be calling this late unless it was important.”
“Yes, and that is exactly why I don’t want to answer it.” But I did. “Hey, Ed, what’s up?”
“Jolene, this is Grant. I just had an email come in from Doctor Waverman. It was sent earlier today, but I just now got it.” I rolled my eyes. “Let me guess…oh, hell, I can’t guess and I don’t want to. What does he want?”
“The equipment he needs for the second phase of work became available sooner than expected and he wants to start in the morning. He’ll be onsite at seven.”
“Okay, and?”
“He can’t do anything unless you approve. You took the contract to review this afternoon, remember?”
“Yes, I remember, now, dammit.”
Grant chuckled. “Rough day?”
“It was a rough day before I got to your office. It became amazingly worse after I left.” I sensed he was about to ask questions or offer condolences, so I said, “Trust me, you don’t want to know.”
“Perhaps, but it might still be prudent. Still, that’s for another time. For now, we need to keep the
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