Trouble in Mudbug (Ghost-in-Law, #1)(79)

“I already told you I didn’t shoot at anyone.” Harold’s voice grew louder. “I would never risk shooting someone in broad daylight, and why the hell would I shoot you?”

“Well, someone shot at her,” Hank argued. “I have the proof under these bandages.”

“Which is why you should damned well stay away from that slut. I don’t know what kind of crap she’s into that has people shooting at her, and I really don’t give a damn, but you need to stay away from her. I put my ass on the line over that piece of marsh, and I will not see it fall into the hands of some pseudo-hippy scientist.”

“How exactly did you put your ass on the line?” Hank asked.

“Stop pretending you don’t know,” Harold said. “Left to nature, Helena would have outlived me by a good fifty years just to spite me.”

There was complete silence for a moment. Then Hank said, “Are you telling me you killed my mother?” His voice registered his disbelief, and once again, Maryse wondered just how dumb Hank really was. She glanced over at Helena, but the ghost stood stock still, her expression completely blank.

“You killed my mother?” Hank repeated.

“Oh, good God, Hank. Grow up.” The disgust was evident in Harold’s voice. “Your mother was a royal pain in both our asses. She thrived off being hateful, and no one is sorry to see her go, least of all me. So I slipped some rat poison into her coffee, so what?”

Maryse frowned. Helena had said she’d died after drinking brandy, not coffee.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” Harold continued to complain. “The woman cast you out of her life years ago. Why would you give a shit what I did?”

“She didn’t cast me out,” Hank said. “She paid me to leave. She’s been paying me to stay gone. A monthly transfer to a bank account in New Orleans.”

Maryse’s jaw dropped, and she stared at Helena.

“Uh-oh,” Helena said, and bolted through an exterior wall, making following her an impossibility.

Coward. But Maryse would deal with Helena later. Right now, she needed all the damaging evidence she could get on Harold.

“What do you mean she paid you to stay away?” Harold asked.

“She said I wasn’t going to ruin Maryse’s life, and as long as I kept out of town and didn’t contact her, she’d keep making the payments.”

“Well, why didn’t you divorce her before you left, or in absentia, or something?”

“I’m no attorney. I figured Maryse could get a divorce even if I was gone. I had no idea we were still married. Mom said to leave right then and never contact Maryse or anyone else in Mudbug again. And I kept that promise until I saw Mom’s obituary and called you.”

“Moron! It never occurred to you that if Helena kept you married to Maryse, she intended even then to leave that land to her? There is no way you’re my son. You’re too stupid for words.”

“I think this conversation is over,” Hank said. “Get out of my room.”

“Oh, this is far from over,” Harold threatened.

“Yes, it is. The land will transfer to me in a couple of days. I’ll lease it out and give you a cut of the money, but you have to get out of my sight. I would never have been part of any of this. And if anything happens to Maryse, I will disappear and leave you with nothing.”

“I’ve already told you I had nothing to do with shooting at that tramp,” Harold raged.

“And her cabin exploding,” Hank pointed out. “Rumor has it the device was military issue, and we all know who was special forces.”

“Oh, for Christ’s sake, I lied. I was a mess cook. I’ve never even shot a gun after basic training. Are you happy now?” “If Maryse is alive in two days, I will be. Are we clear?”

Maryse looked for a place to hide. Either Harold was going to stomp out of the hospital and figure out how to shoot a gun again or throttle Hank right there in his hospital bed. Either way, she didn’t want to get caught eavesdropping in the hallway.

There was an empty room across the hall, so Maryse slipped inside, leaving the door cracked a tiny bit so that she could see Hank’s room. A couple of seconds later, Harold stormed out of the room, his face beet red.

Unbelievable. Hank Henry had finally grown a set of balls. If she didn’t have it on tape, she wouldn’t believe it herself. She waited until Harold had rounded the corner before easing out into the hall and slipping into Hank’s room. He looked up in surprise as she entered. Then a guilty look crossed his face.

“You heard everything, didn’t you?” he asked.

“Yeah.”

He sighed and stared at the ceiling. “I’m really sorry, Maryse. Sorry for everything. Me being a shitty husband and leaving you high and dry. My dad causing you all this trouble, and my mom putting you in this position to begin with. If I hadn’t married you, none of this would be happening.”

Maryse felt her heart begin to pound in her chest. She wanted to yell at him or maybe throw something large and heavy, but as she studied his face, she realized that for the first time since she’d known him, Hank Henry was actually being sincere. Before she could think better of it, she crossed the room and sat on the edge of his bed.

“Why did you marry me, Hank? Was it all some big joke or some ploy to make your mother think you’d grown up? And why me? I’d never done anything to you.”