The Bourbon Thief(43)

“That’s Mrs. Levi Shelby to you. That’s my husband. We are legally married. I know my mother sent y’all out here. Well, my mother has nothing more to do with me, and I have nothing to do with her. I’m a wife now, not a daughter. And when did the police ever have enough free time they can run errands for ladies with nothing better to do than cause trouble? Are y’all the marriage police?”

“Tamara, get back in the house right this minute,” Levi said, coming slowly to his feet.

“I’ll get in the house when they leave.” She took a step forward and Spears and Miller looked at each other. “I know you think Virginia Maddox is important. I know you think she’s rich. But she’s neither of those things. But I’m both. Red Thread belongs to me now that I’m married. I inherited everything. It’s mine. Not hers. She’s got nothing. No money. No power. You two are the lapdogs for a dead queen. Do I need to call Mayor Bond? My granddaddy was drinking buddies with Governor Hutchings. I’m sure they won’t be happy to hear that two police officers beat up the husband of the richest woman in Kentucky. What do you think the newspapers are going to say about it when word gets out? And you better believe it’s going to get out.”

Levi finally made it to his feet. He grabbed Tamara’s hand and pulled her back behind him where she belonged. He could tell she didn’t like it, but she stayed.

“You heard the lady,” Levi said. “She’s not lying. Everything is hers now that she’s married. You really want to lose your badges over some family drama?”

The officers didn’t look scared, but they didn’t look so smug or certain, either.

Officer Miller spoke first. “There’s been a misunderstanding. We were told Miss Maddox had been kidnapped and was being held against her will. Considering the circumstances, we believed her mother.”

“What circumstances?” Tamara demanded, spitting out the words.

“He means because you’re white and I’m not,” Levi said.

“You look pretty white to me,” Officer Miller said with a smile Levi wanted to slice off his face with a kitchen knife. “Guess looks can be deceiving.”

“My mother is out of her mind,” Tamara said.

“You oughta give her a call, young lady,” Officer Spears said. “Straighten this out before she misinforms anyone else.”

“I’ll call her the second you two drive away.” Tamara was at Levi’s side again. No keeping her behind him.

“Then we’ll be on our way.” Officer Miller tucked his baton back in his belt.

Without another word they ambled to their police cruiser, got inside and drove off. Levi dropped his head down onto the porch ledge and breathed through the last tremors of pain. He would be hurting for a couple days at least, but it could have been so much worse and that’s what scared him. Not the injuries he had, but the ones he could have had.

“Levi?” Andre’s voice penetrated through the haze of pain. “Why don’t you two come in the house, and we’ll get you cleaned up.”

“Coming,” he said, slowly straightening up.

When he reached for Tamara’s hand, he found it shaking. Every part of her was shaking.

“It’s fine, Rotten,” he said, pulling her against him, holding her head against his chest. “They’re gone.”

“They beat you up,” she whispered. “They can’t do that.”

“You married into a black family,” Levi said. “What did you think would happen?”

“Well, you married into the Maddox family. Stuff like that doesn’t happen to us.” Tamara tentatively touched the bleeding wound on his forehead. “They could have killed you,” she whispered.

“Yes, they could have killed me. Don’t ever forget that.”

Tamara stepped back, looked at him and up at Andre.

“If they’d killed you, I’d kill them,” she said, and the way she said it, Levi almost believed her.

“You would have had to stand in line, Miss Tamara,” Andre said and brought his hands around from his back. In his right hand he held a pistol pointed at the ground, a pistol he’d been concealing.

“Jesus Christ,” Levi said, almost collapsing under the weight of his relief that it hadn’t come to that.

“Behave yourself.” Andre glared down at him. “Your aunt will skin you alive if she hears you talking like that.”

“I’m sorry,” Tamara said, still staring up at Andre. “I didn’t mean for this to happen. My mother—”

“I told him to hear you out,” Andre said. “I didn’t tell him to marry you.”

“What was I thinking?” Levi asked.

“The better question is what was you thinking with?”

“We’re gonna have this conversation now? Are we?”

Andre’s eyebrow rose a little higher. A muscle in his jaw twitched. “No, we aren’t. You need a doctor, son?” Andre asked.

“I’ll make it,” Levi said. He took a heavy breath, rubbed the side of his chest.

“Come on,” Andre said. “Gloria will get supper for us.”

Andre left them alone in the backyard. Tamara brought her hands to his face again, searching out his wounds.