Lili sat as still as a mannequin seated in a department store display window. Only her eyes showed any life. They burned. Shot flaming arrows of rage. Her clothes were filthy and her hair a mess. She never took her gaze away from the woman incarcerated at the opposite end of a row of four jail cells. Not even when Brick stepped into the hallway.
The witch came to her feet with a screech. She wore a thick white towel wrapped around the same white sundress she’d worn when he saw her earlier this afternoon. Her formerly styled hair was a damp rat’s nest and she had mascara running down her cheeks.
“This is all your fault, Callahan,” she screamed. “Your security sucks. I’m going to sue you for everything you own.”
Brick looked from the witch to Liliana, whose stare remained locked and loaded, then to Zach. “Sheriff?”
“I’m hoping you can play peacemaker here. It’s in everybody’s best interests if we settle this without getting the governor any more involved than he already is.”
“The governor?”
The witch gave her wet hair a toss. “He’s a personal friend.”
This just kept getting better and better. “Would someone please explain what happened?”
“Despite all your assurances that it wouldn’t happen, not to mention the exorbitant amount of money I paid for privacy, those two women trespassed and wouldn’t leave.”
Two women. Patsy. Brick turned to Zach. “Where’s Patsy?”
“Had too much of a catfight going on in here, so I put her in the breakroom with the dog.”
Brick had most of what must have happened figured out. Odds were that Patsy and Liliana had come across an injured dog and taken him to the river camp, looking for help. The witch, being the witch, must have given them a hard time. How she’d ended up drenched he couldn’t discern from the information he’d been given.
“Catfight!” the witch exclaimed, shifting her fury to Zach. “Listen, mister, you’re already on thin ice here. You disrespect me one more time and I’ll have your badge.”
Brick had opened his mouth to ask Zach to step into the front office so they could speak without interruption when Patsy’s perky voice drifted from that direction. “Sheriff, may I speak with you, please?”
Without a word to the witch, Zach returned to the front office. Patsy stood in the breakroom door. “Great news. Nic says our four-footed friend should recover in a week or two. She’s done what she can here, and now she intends to take her to Lori’s office and finish treating her there.” She glanced toward Gabe, who was stretching to peer into the back room, and asked, “Gabe, will you take her?”
“Of course.” Gabe Callahan looked at his brother. “Matt, can I use your truck?”
Matt handed over the keys. “Don’t worry about bringing it back. There’s room for everybody in Mark’s truck.”
“Okay, Nic and I will see you back at the lake.”
Patsy glanced from one Callahan man to another and beamed a smile. “Well, who do we have here? Callahans, obviously. Brick is the spitting image of … hmm … all of you. My goodness, you’re a fine-looking bunch of men.”
Getting his first good look at Patsy, Brick stopped short. She had a cut on her cheekbone, a tear in her shirt, and her jeans were filthy. “Patsy. What happened to you? Did the dog do that?”
“Oh, heavens, no. The dog was sweet as can be, even when she was in pain. Lili carried her halfway down a mountain and she didn’t complain once.” Wrinkling her nose, she added, “That’s more than I can say about your other visitors, Brick. Look.”
She pushed up her sleeve to reveal a ring of bruises around her arm and Brick’s temper went cold. Quietly, he asked, “Who did that?”
Patsy hooked a thumb toward the back room. “Ms. Precious in there’s muscleman bruised my arm, but she’s the one who pushed me down the mountain.”
“I did not push you down a mountain!” the witch shrieked. “You quit saying that or I’ll sue you for slander.”
“You must have a whole truckload of lawyers, sweetcheeks,” Patsy fired back, her tone remaining cheerful. “You throw that threat around often enough.”
“I need a beer,” Zach Turner mumbled softly. “Ms. Font—”
“Do not use my name!” demanded the witch.
The front door opened and three more women slipped inside—Annabelle, Aunt Torie, and Celeste, who carried an Angel’s Rest shopping bag. “Zach, I have the items you requested from our boutique.”
“Thank you, Celeste.” Zach’s mouth lifted in a rueful smile as he surveyed the now-crowded front office space. “Maybe I didn’t make it clear enough just which Callahans I needed?”
Torie offered up a shameless grin. “You know our family, Sheriff. One for all and all for one. Just be glad we didn’t bring Branch.”
“Maddie drew the short straw. She stayed home with him and the kids,” Annabelle added. “So, what happened?”
“That’s what I’d like to know,” Brick said testily.
Celeste reached into the shopping bag. “I brought our newest T-shirt design for you, Patsy. I know you told Zach you didn’t need anything, but it’s a sample, so I won’t put it out on the rack. You’ll be doing me a favor if you’ll wear it. Presales, you know.”
“Why, thank you, Celeste.” Patsy held up the shirt and said, “It’s darling. I don’t believe I’ve ever worn angel wings before.” She winked at Brick and added, “I’ve always been more devilish.”
“Excuse me!” shouted the witch. “What is going on out there? Where is my lawyer? I demand to speak with my lawyer! He’s going to hear of this cruel and unusual punishment. Leaving me in wet clothes is against my constitutional rights.”
Zach rolled his eyes, took the package Celeste offered, and disappeared into the back room. Keys jangled, hinges squeaked, and a moment later the sheriff escorted the witch past the crowd and down the hallway to the department’s shower and locker room. “You can’t lock the door, but I’ll ensure your privacy, ma’am. You have my word on it.”
When the door closed behind her, Zach stood in front of it, arms crossed, head down and shaking slowly back and forth.
Annabelle and Torie shared a round-eyed look. Annabelle asked, “Was that—”
“Don’t say her name!” Brick and Zach exclaimed at the same time.
“Don’t think it’s gonna matter,” the deputy said. “A tourist recognized her and snapped some pictures. They’re already trending on Twitter.”
Zach mouthed a series of curses that would have earned a scolding from Celeste if he’d given them voice.
His patience razor thin as he saw his financial security go up in tweets, Brick said, “Would somebody please tell me what happened?”
“I will,” Patsy said. “But part of it is Lili’s story to tell. Zach, would you let Lili out of her jail cell so we can talk?”
Zach shook his head. “No way. Only one of them out at a time. I don’t trust either one of them to act like an adult.”
Patsy clicked her tongue. “Really, Zach. Don’t you think you’re being a little harsh? Liliana was provoked.”
“How?” asked every Callahan in the room.
“Fine.” Zach sighed. “Y’all can all go back. The other cell doors are open. Make yourselves comfortable. Maybe you can get Liliana to explain in such a way that I can understand what went down. So far, I’m clueless.”
Brick held out his hand and wiggled his fingers. “Gimme the key, Sheriff. And your first-aid kit. I’ll lock myself in with her. Did you notice the scratches on her neck? She needs first aid. I don’t doubt the witch could give her rabies.”
As Zach handed over the requested items to Brick, Patsy led the Callahans into the back section of the sheriff’s office.
Upon seeing the newcomers, Liliana’s eyes went wide and she went from a slouch to sitting with perfect posture on the metal bench. Patsy introduced Lili as an old friend of Brick’s from Norman, and then the Callahan family introduced themselves.
Brick entered Lili’s jail cell, sat beside her, and with a tender touch began to clean the scratches on her neck. Taking care to maintain a calm note to his voice, he demanded, “Somebody start talking.”
“It all started with me, I’m afraid,” Patsy said.
Brick wasn’t one bit surprised by that.
“I relayed some news to Lili that she found particularly disturbing. Afterward, we both needed to move around, so I suggested a hike down toward Stardance River Camp, Brick. We never intended to actually trespass. But then we found Sugar.”
While Brick dabbed antibiotic cream gently at Liliana’s scratches, Patsy explained about finding the injured dog and their lack of options in seeking care for her. “Even half-starved, she’s still a big dog, Brick. Lili carried her all the way down the mountain. Then out of nowhere, Mr. Big and Brawny was pointing a gun at us. I didn’t care for that one bit, and I’m afraid I caused a bit of a ruckus.”
Brick paused in his ministrations and glanced over at Patsy. “Ruckus?”
Liliana drawled, “She was carrying a walking stick. She hit him with it. Between his legs. Put him down.”
All five men in the room winced.
Patsy lifted her chin. “Just the fact that somebody wears the word ‘Security’ on his jacket doesn’t give him the right to point a gun at a girl when all she is doing is asking for a little help.”
Torie Callahan crossed her legs, rested her elbow on her knee, her chin in her palm, and leaned forward. “So how did Ms. Hollywood end up soaking wet and in the calaboose?”
Patsy smiled at Lili. “Do you want to pick up the story there, Liliana?”
Lili shrugged. “I don’t know if should say anything without a lawyer present.”
In the middle of dabbing at one particularly deep scratch, Brick said, “A lawyer? Do you really think you’ll need one?”
“I’m in jail, aren’t I?”
“What did you do, Lili?”
Patsy clicked her tongue. “She lost her temper.”
“Why? If the security man was down … did the witch kick the dog or something?”
“Ms. Hollywood claimed to be afraid of Sugar, which is ridiculous. The poor thing could barely move, much less attack. But what set her off was the exception she took to my response to having a gun pointed at me. When she came after me, Liliana set Sugar down and stepped in. It was quite something to see, I will tell you.”
“She had no business putting her hands on you.” Liliana’s eyes went stormy once again. “She’s at least forty years younger than you. I don’t care if she’s the Queen of Hollywood or the Queen of Sheba, she had no right to lay a hand on you. Just because she slaps people in the movies and on TV doesn’t give her the right to do it in real life.”
“She slapped you?” Mark Callahan asked Patsy.
“That’s how you got the cut on your face?” Brick added.
“Yes. She got me once, but that was only because I was watching the security guy and Liliana was slow because her arms were full of dog. After Lili took care of Sugar, she made sure Queenie didn’t get anywhere near me.”
“So you were defending Patsy,” Brick said.
“She was. And that she-devil is persistent. I’ll give her that. Like the Energizer Bunny of wackos. She kept coming back and coming back and coming back for more.” Patsy lowered her voice and added, “I think she’s on something. Zach should have her tested. She’s also cranky because her boyfriend didn’t show up when he promised. While we waited for Zach to arrive, one of the servers told me that she’d been on the warpath until someone told her a hiker had been spotted on the mountain. She thought her fellow was surprising her. Instead, it was us.”
“I know about this chick,” Torie said. “She starred in her first movie the year I traded in my long-range lens for a Callahan. She was already a piece of work back then.”
Matt explained to Patsy and Lili, “My wife was a paparazzo back in the day.”
“You were?” Patsy asked. “How fascinating. I’d love to hear more about it. Who did you—”
“I’d like to hear the rest of this story first,” Brick interrupted. He finished doctoring Liliana’s scratches. “She came after you with her claws?”
“Yes.” Her tone sour with disgust, Lili added, “She fought like a girl.”
“Pitiful. You ought to ask Nic to give you a distemper shot, just in case.” As Lili laughed softly, he lifted her hands to examine them. “You have scrapes on your knuckles. Did you pop her?”
“Yes. Twice.” Lili looked down at her hand. “I don’t regret it. She deserved it. I can’t stand bullies.”
“How did she get wet?”
Lili’s lips twitched. “I pushed her into the river.”
“You, Liliana Howe…”—he kissed the bruised knuckles of first one hand and then the other—“… are my hero.”
From the corner of his eye, Brick saw Annabelle and Torie exchange glances, and he knew that he’d be in for an inquisition. When Annabelle elbowed his dad, Brick figured said inquisition would be sooner rather than later. So he was happy to see Zach move to stand in the doorway.
Hopefully, Brick asked, “Do any of you ladies have any makeup with you?”
The five women looked at one another and shook their heads. Celeste said, “I should have dropped by the spa to pick some things up when I gathered the items from our boutique. It would have been easy to do.”
Zach sighed. “Some days this job truly sucks.”
Patsy smiled helpfully. “One of our Alleycats sells Mary Kay. She always has her sample kit with her. Would you like me to call her?”
“Yes, please. Ask how quickly she could get here.” Zach rubbed the back of his neck and explained, “My guest knows this has hit social media.”
“Crap,” Brick muttered.
“No. Believe it or not, I think it’s a good thing. She hasn’t tossed around the word ‘lawyer’ in at least five minutes.” He glanced at Brick. “She wants to know where your limo is.”
Brick checked his watch. “If her masseuse’s plane was on time, it should be twenty minutes or so away from town now.”
“Call him. Tell him to come here and park across the street.” Zach glanced toward his deputy. “See whose cars are parked there. Need two spaces. Track ’em down and sweet-talk them into moving them. Then, cone it.”
“We’re parked there, Zach,” Matt Callahan said.
“Finally. Something goes right.”
The deputy scowled at his boss. “What about your black eye, Zach? You gonna let her get away with that?”
“I’ll let her blacken the other one if she’ll leave me and my town alone. The governor called a second time.” Glancing at Brick, he added, “I sure hope you get a better brand of clientele up at your fancy camp next time.”
“You and me, too, brother.”
Patsy finished her phone call and said, “Marilyn is on her way with her kit, Sheriff.”
Zach closed his eyes. “Thank you.”
When he returned to the front part of the office, Torie spoke into the sudden silence. “Well, now. This has simply been too much fun. It always amazes me just how entertaining Eternity Springs proves to be each time we visit. So, Liliana, you knew our Brick back before he earned his nickname?”
She glanced at Brick. “Yes. He and my brother were friends.”
“Are friends,” Brick said more than a little grumpily. “You’ve heard me talk about Derek.”
Annabelle snapped her fingers. “Yes. The doctor, isn’t he?”
“Heart surgeon.”
“So, Liliana.” Torie Callahan’s eyes gleamed as she leaned forward. “Tell us something about Mark Christopher that he won’t have told us and his parents didn’t know about.”
Lili blinked in surprise, then glanced for a second time toward Brick. He knew the futility of fighting when the Callahan wives took to interrogation.
His uncle Matt, God bless him, made an effort. “Come on, girls. Give the woman a break.”
“Ignore them,” Annabelle said to Lili. “Believe me when I tell you that Brick has this coming. In spades. You wouldn’t believe all the grief he’s given us over the years.”
A glimmer of amusement lit Liliana’s eyes. “Actually, I probably would. Hmm…” She pursed her lips and considered. “You probably haven’t heard about the time he didn’t get around to studying for a calculus test because a baseball game went into extra innings. Lots of extra innings. So rather than pull an all-nighter, he went home and raided his mother’s spice cabinet and made a sneezing powder. He made sure to be the first person in the classroom before his calculus class, and he spread the powder on all the desks—including the teacher’s. He threw pinches of it in the air all around the room and tossed some onto the blades of the fan.”
The men in the room started to grin. “A chip off the old block, for sure,” Luke observed.
“So what happened with the test?”
Brick lifted his head toward the ceiling at the memory. “I flunked it. Lili’s brother was pissed at me because I hit into a double play and we lost the game, and he could do calculus in his sleep, so he ratted me out to the teacher. Everybody else got an extra day to study. I had to take the exam that day.”
“Without wiping off your desk, as I recall,” Lili said.
Brick shot her a narrow-eyed look. “You were three years behind me. You weren’t in that class, were you?”
“I took algebra and geometry in middle school. I’ve always been good at math.”
“Figures.” He scowled at her; then it melted into a grin. “Sure were some red, runny noses in that classroom. The teacher included. Fun times. Fun times. Almost worth bombing the test.”
“Genetics are an interesting thing,” Luke observed. “I seem to recall a sneezing-powder incident in grade school.”
“Only because Branch always bragged about putting it into the vents at school,” Mark fired back.
“So you’re telling me three generations of Callahans played sneezing-powder pranks?” Annabelle asked. She turned to Torie and said, “We need to be frightened. Very frightened.”
Torie nodded sagely. “Seriously strong genes. So, Liliana, tell us another one.”
“Enough,” Brick insisted. “Shouldn’t you all go home and check on your kids? It’s really not fair of you to leave Maddie with the burden of all of those children—and Branch—all by herself after a long drive from Texas.”
“Hey, she drew the short straw,” Annabelle said.
“And she sure wouldn’t rush home,” Torie added.
“Dad?” Brick pleaded.
Mark Callahan simply smirked, but Celeste took pity on Brick. Rising, she said, “I happen to own a building across the street, and the angle of the second-floor windows provides an excellent view of this office’s front door and the parking spot for the limo.”
“That’s tempting,” Torie said.
Luke pushed to his feet. “Oh, give the boy a break. He doesn’t need our help or our interference. I’m getting hungry. Let’s go home and put the steaks on.”
“I’m not a boy,” Brick protested, pouting like a … well … a boy.
Luke continued, “Brick, bring your young woman to supper tonight.”
“Oh, I’m not—” Lili began.
“She’s not—” Brick said at the same time.
Matt interrupted, saying, “Celeste, I hope you and Patsy will join us, too.”
“Thank you, dear, but I already have plans,” Celeste said, showing her familiar winsome smile.
“Me, too,” Patsy added. “Lili is free, though.”
“I am not. I’m in jail!”
“Zach is going to spring you as soon as the Wicked Witch of the West Coast leaves,” Brick said. “You might as well tell them you’ll come, Liliana. They won’t give up.”
“I thought you were the one whose head was hard as a brick.”
“Genetics,” Torie and Annabelle said simultaneously.
From the front room came the sounds of a new arrival, interrupting the debate. A woman’s crisp, businesslike voice said, “Patsy said you have an emergency?”
“You can’t even begin to guess,” Zach said.
With the makeup source on-site, Brick began to hope that the worst part of today’s event might be over. When Zach announced that the limo had arrived and the Callahans took their leave, a wave of relief washed over him. He might not survive today financially, but at least the immediate turmoil was almost behind him.
Or so he thought.
Looking naturally beautiful and wearing a flattering sundress in a red poppy print with matching heeled sandals, Brick’s nightmare swept into the back room. Brick expected her to announce her immediate departure from River Camp and demand a refund of her rental fees. Instead, she requested changes to the following day’s menu before giving Liliana a scathing once-over look. “I trust I will never see you again?”
“Count on it,” Lili responded. “As long as you leave my friends alone, that is.”
The actress turned on her high heels and glided out of the room.
Crowd noise buzzed in the street. Brick heard people call her name and request to have pictures taken with her. He heard her famous laugh. “Life throws some strange curveballs along the way, doesn’t it?”
He was totally unprepared when Liliana’s eyes filled up with tears and silently overflowed. “Hey, now. Hold on a minute. What’s this about? Lili-fair, don’t cry. Why are you crying?”
“Curveballs,” she said, then leaned her head against his shoulder. The tears continued to fall.
Brick felt a little panicked. This wasn’t like the Liliana he knew. “Talk to me, sweetheart. I don’t understand.”
“I can’t. I promised. Oh, Brick, my heart is broken.”
“Why, Lili-fair? Why?”
Movement in the doorway caught his attention. Patsy stood watching Liliana with a sympathetic expression on her face. He asked, “Patsy?”
“You can tell him, Lili. Brick will keep our secret and he has a nice broad shoulder for those tears. I’m catching a ride back to Stardance Ranch with Marilyn. You’ll bring Lili home, Brick?”
“Sure.”
For the next few minutes, he held her, rocked her, patted her back, and smoothed his hand down her silky blond hair, shushing her, murmuring soothing words, offering what comfort he could. After Patsy’s comment and seeing the look on her face, he had a bad feeling about what Liliana had to tell him.
Zach came to check on them and Brick waved him away. He left, returned with a box of tissues he fitted between the bars of the cell, and said, “Office is all yours. My deputy and I are going to Murphy’s. Don’t worry about the phone. It’s forwarded to my cell.”
“Thanks, Zach.”
Brick set the tissue box on Lili’s lap and she grabbed a handful, wiped her eyes, blew her nose, and finally managed to dry her tears. “Talk to me, Liliana.”
“I’m sorry. It just all hit me. I was so sad and so angry and I just lost it. Today was one of those days.”
“What happened?”
First she explained how the camo-clad security guy had marched them into camp at gunpoint. “You’d have thought we were at some Central American drug kingpin’s hideout.”
“That chaps me,” Brick said. “There’s absolutely no reason to pull a gun on two women and a dog. He’s private security she brought with her, but I’m gonna find a way to get rid of him. I’m probably liable for anything he does.”
“He marched us over to … that woman … and before we even got a word out, she launched into attack mode. I’ve never seen anything like it, Brick. She said horrible, ugly things. Unnecessary things. Patsy may be right about her being on something at the time.”
“Wouldn’t surprise me one bit.”
Lili’s mouth twisted in a crooked smile. “However, the situation only escalated because Patsy went all Southern Belle on her and blessed her heart. Patsy’s mistake was reaching out to pat her cheek. That’s when it got physical and it was my turn to go ballistic. I was already so upset because of what Patsy told me, and then the dog was hurt and mewling and the dog and Patsy sort of got mixed up inside my head. I was so angry. Beyond furious. When that woman shoved Patsy to the ground … well … I lost it. I went after her. Threw a punch or two and shoved her into the river.”
Brick had plenty more questions, but he focused on the central one. “What had Patsy told you?”
Liliana drew in a deep breath, shuddered, and teared up again. Brick handed her another tissue and she, in fits and starts, told him about Patsy’s diagnosis and decision to forego treatment. “Oh, baby, that’s terrible news. I’m so sorry.”
“I love her.”
“I know you do. She’s a lovable woman.”
“I don’t want to lose her. I want her to fight. I want her to get treatment, and I realize I only want that because I’m a selfish person. That makes me mad at myself. I mean, how hypocritical am I? I won’t fight for myself, and my fight is only for a job, not my life. And I want her to fight when her odds of winning are long and the battle would tie her down and make her sick on many of the days she has left.”
“Don’t beat yourself up, Lili-fair. What you’re feeling is natural.”
She shrugged and leaned her head back against the wall, her eyes shut. “What a lousy day.”
He laced his fingers through hers and brought them to his mouth for a kiss. “Did you catch any fish?”
Her mouth quirked. “Yeah. We both did.”
“And you saved a dog.”
“True.
“So not all bad, right?”
“Not all bad. Did you see the dog?”
“No.”
“She’s really pretty. Looks like a golden retriever to me. If no one claims her, I think Patsy would like to. Those two bonded. But she worries about it being fair to Sugar, she’s named her Sugar, because of … well … she doesn’t have much…”—Liliana’s voice broke on the word—“… time.”
“I think Sugar is meant for Patsy. Believe me, Lili-fair, I’ve lived in Eternity Springs long enough to become a believer where the dog population of this town is concerned. Have you heard the story about how a stray dog literally saved Uncle Gabe’s life and brought him and Nic together?”
“No.”
“Ask him about it. He loves to tell the story. And then there’s Bismarck. He is truly a miracle dog. Saved Gabby and Flynn Brogan from pirates. And when Chase Timberlake was in a bad place after his…”
Brick’s voice trailed off when he heard footsteps and the sound of hushed giggles in the outer room. What now? If Annabelle and Torie came back for more nosy interference he might just be the one who blew.
But the people who peeked into the holding cell section of the sheriff’s office were strangers.
With cell phone cameras.