Twilight at Blueberry Barrens (Sunset Cove #3)(29)
Kate let the rich earth dribble out of her hand. If only there was some way to heal the pain in Emma’s heart. “A clone means just alike. Were your mommy’s eyes hazel too?”
Emma nodded. “We have Grandma’s hazel eyes and cowlick.” She smoothed the top of her head in a self-conscious gesture.
“No one is exactly anyone else’s clone. It’s just an expression.” Kate brushed the dirt from her hands. “Phoebe will never be exactly like your dad, and you won’t be exactly like your mom. You’re you, totally unique and special just like God made you. You’ll have different experiences than your dad did, and you’ll want to do things that he never did.”
“Then why are you doing what your mom did?”
Out of the mouths of babes. Kate stood and dusted the dirt from her hands. “Sometimes it takes a while to figure out your own way in the world.”
“Uncle Drake says you should decorate houses. He likes the cottage.”
Kate shot a glance at Drake, whose face had reddened. “I had fun doing it.” She helped Emma up. “Run along to the house and get me a bowl. Maybe we can find enough blueberries to make a cobbler.”
“Can I help you make it?”
“I wouldn’t have it any other way.” Once the little girl was out of earshot, she shaded her eyes with her hand and eyed Drake. “What’s wrong? You seem ready to kick something.”
He finished the last of the candy bar and wadded up the wrapper in his fist. “You’re going to need to keep a close eye on the girls.”
“I already am. Has something happened?” She turned and started for the house.
He fell into step beside her. “I found out Melissa was having an affair with a very evil man. I don’t know if she was the target or if Heath was, but I’m not sure Wang is finished with the family. Once I start digging into this more, the danger may increase.”
She stopped and stared up at him. “Then maybe you’d better let it be. You can’t bring your brother back, and getting yourself killed would land the girls into foster care. They are the priority right now.”
The muscles in his jaw flexed. “I intend to see justice for my brother. I just need you to do your job and take care of the girls.” He stalked off ahead of her in long strides. Moments later the front door slammed.
She blinked. What had just happened?
*
Twilight touched the red fields with gold and purple. The darkness made it easy to blend into the fields as he lay flat among the blueberry plants. He fiddled with his binoculars until he could see clearly through the living room window.
A woman passed in front of his vision, and his fingers tightened on the binoculars. Kate Mason. The lighter in his pocket begged to be used. He could fire the cottage and be done with all of them. One hand fumbled for the lighter until sanity prevailed. He wanted to get back to the bright lights and bars of Boston. He missed his favorite watering hole and the comforting darkness in the alleys of the city. The vastness of this place left him unsettled.
He watched as Newham pulled the smaller of the girls onto his lap and let her eat his ice cream. He focused on the woman again. Lingering on the soft roundness of her shape, he grinned. She was a looker for sure. He’d managed to hack into the sheriff department’s files, and there was little evidence on the deaths.
He swung the binoculars back to Newham. Most likely the man would have to be eliminated, if only to get him out of the way. But first he had to retrace his steps and find his journal, or he’d be in big trouble.
The kids might be collateral damage, too, but he hoped not. He didn’t like the idea of hurting kids, never had. Some might call it his Achilles’ heel, but he liked to think he was a pragmatic man.
*
The golden moonlight turned the red fields a faint orange shade as Drake walked Kate home. Immersed in watching a Disney DVD he’d popped in after dinner, the girls hadn’t wanted to come, but he’d insisted. Their lagging steps proclaimed their displeasure.
Kate had left on a porch light, but the yard was dark. He peered up the light pole. “You need to replace your yard light.”
“I know. I don’t have a ladder tall enough to reach it, but I’ll call someone when I get a chance.”
“When I get a chance” was code for when she had the money. He’d get it done tomorrow. With all the events of the past few weeks, he didn’t think it was safe to ignore. He said nothing though and watched her dig in her ridiculously oversize purse for her keys. The bag was made from a quilted fabric in a bright-purple print that didn’t seem her type of thing.
“Big bag you’ve got there.”
She glanced down at it. “Hideous, isn’t it? My mother bought it for my birthday a couple of years ago. I think she got it at a garage sale, and I didn’t have the heart to tell her I hated it. And then I suddenly didn’t hate it when I couldn’t find anything else big enough. I like to be prepared, and it’s hard to find something lightweight and big.”
“Where does your mom live?”
She looked away and lowered her voice. “She’s in prison. Kidnapping and manslaughter. She kidnapped my half sister who then died from an asthma attack. And she helped cover up a murder my uncle committed. It occurred a long time ago, back when I was five, but only came to light a few years back. My uncle’s in prison too. Well, he was. He escaped last week.” She grimaced. “Nice family I’ve got, huh?”