For the past ten days, Spring Creek had been abuzz with rumors about who shot Webb Porter and why. Gossipmongers were having a heyday. Not only were they picking apart every detail they’d heard about Webb’s shooting, but they were reveling in speculation about an especially juicy tidbit—Reed Conway’s alibi. The socially prominent citizens were shocked and appalled by Eleanor Porter’s association with such a man, but even they were talking about the affair, albeit behind closed doors.

How could such a thing have happened? The girl had been raised with high moral standards, taught her place in this world and shown by her mother’s example what a lady should be. To think that she had given herself to the likes of Reed Conway. The very thought was enough to turn a person’s stomach. It would be impossible to look at Ella without knowing she was now contaminated. Such disappointment. It broke one’s heart to think that someone so dear could turn out so badly. But of course, she was adopted, which meant her bloodlines might not be pure.

The perfect plan to shoot Webb and frame Reed hadn’t been so perfect after all. But how could anyone have known that Reed would not only have an alibi, but his alibi would be that he’d been having sex with Webb’s daughter at the time. This kind of mistake couldn’t be made again. With Webb home from the hospital only today, he was already pushing Frank Nelson to reopen the Junior Blalock murder case. Finally the police were listening to Mark Leamon’s insistence that Junior’s real murderer was trying to frame Reed. Of course, most people didn’t believe a word in Reed’s defense, but most people weren’t the problem. The problem was that Webb now had serious doubts about Reed’s guilt.

Before Frank reopened the Blalock case, another crime must be be committed—one in which Reed would be implicated. And there couldn’t be any mistakes. Everything had to be carefully planned down to the last detail. There was no time to waste. Spring Creek was about to have one of their most prominent, well-liked citizens murdered. Brutally killed by Reed Conway.

“I won’t have that man in my house!” Carolyn’s face contorted with rage. “I absolutely forbid it.”

“Calm yourself,” Webb said, his tone impatient. “If seeing Reed will upset you, then go upstairs to your room and stay there. I’ve invited him here, along with Mark and Frank Nelson. If I helped convict an innocent man fifteen years ago, then I think it’s high time I corrected that mistake.”

“Just because Ella has forsaken everything for which this family stands, it doesn’t mean that you have to do an about-face when it comes to Reed Conway.” Carolyn wheeled herself to her husband’s side, where he reclined on the sofa in his den. “Just because Reed didn’t shoot you doesn’t mean he didn’t kill Junior Blalock. And it certainly doesn’t mean there’s a conspiracy to frame Reed.”

“Carolyn, I know that you’re upset about Ella’s involvement with Reed, but—”

“I don’t want her name spoken. I can’t bear to think of how she has disgraced us. She’s as bad as Cybil. But at least my sister has had the decency not to publicly announce that she’s been sleeping with white trash.” Carolyn sighed. “I shall never be able to forgive her.”

“You don’t have a maternal bone in your body, do you?” Webb glared at his wife. “I despise you for the way you’ve treated Ella since the night I was shot and you found out about her affair with Reed. He wouldn’t be my choice of a man for her either, but by God, there’s nothing that girl could ever do that would make me stop loving her.”

“I’ve never understood why it has always been so easy for you to love her, a child that isn’t even ours, when you can’t love me, your own wife.”

“Is that what this is really all about?” Webb readjusted himself to a more comfortable position on the sofa. His wound was healing nicely, but he was still in some pain. “I’ve tried to convince myself for years now that even you couldn’t be jealous of your own child, but you are. You resent Ella because you know how much I love her.”

“I’ve been a devoted mother to that child.” Carolyn curled her hands into tight fists and held them in her lap. “And I have loved her. But now…”

“Now what?” Webb bellowed his question. “Now that she’s done something that displeases you, you’ve disowned her, kicked her out of our house, told her that unless she ends her relationship with Reed, you’ll never speak to her again.”

Heat rose up Webb’s neck and suffused his face. There had been numerous times during the years he had been trapped in this farce of a marriage that he’d wanted to strangle Carolyn, but never more than at that precise moment.

Webb leaned toward Carolyn, stared at her, and grasped the arms of her wheelchair. “When Ella and Reed come here today, I want you to welcome our daughter with open arms.”

“I can’t do that.”

“Then get yourself upstairs and stay there until my guests have left.” Webb glowered at his wife—his poor, pitiful, crippled wife. What had he ever done to deserve a life sentence, chained to Carolyn for as long as he lived? “And I’m warning you, woman, if my daughter isn’t welcome here, then neither am I. Is that what you want—to be left alone in this house, with only Viola to keep you company?”

“What I want is a loving husband and a dutiful child,” Carolyn said. “I thought at least I had the dutiful child, but it seems I was wrong on that count.”

Carolyn met Webb’s stare, and the two gazes locked in mortal combat. Finally Carolyn glanced down at Webb’s hands, still clutching the arms of her wheelchair. “If you’d be so good as to release me, I’ll leave you to wait for you guests.”

The minute Webb released his hold on the wheelchair, Carolyn glided toward the door, but stopped abruptly. Without glancing back, she said, “Please, tell Ella that I would like for her to come home.”

Webb cursed under his breath as he watched his wife disappear into the hallway. Damned infuriating woman. Why didn’t Carolyn appreciate how fortunate she was to have a daughter like Ella, who had been a dutiful child all her life? Until recently Ella had always bent over backward to please Carolyn, as well as to please him. And now he felt a bit guilty at having allowed Ella to devote so much of herself to Carolyn and him, as if she thought it her duty to repay them for having adopted her. If she knew the truth about her parentage, she would realize that he was the one who owed her. He had loved her the first moment he held her in his arms, and over the years, she had come to mean everything to him. She had been the joy of his life and had made him so proud when she decided to follow in his footsteps and become a lawyer.

There was nothing Ella could ever do that could make him stop loving her—not even having an affair with Reed Conway. As an elected official, the fact that his daughter was embroiled in a public scandal certainly created reelection problems. As a father, he worried that Ella would wind up hurt and disappointed. Webb felt certain that Reed was simply using Ella—using her to not only punish Webb, but to help himself by getting Ella to rally the local powers-that-be to prove he wasn’t Junior Blalock’s murderer. His baby girl was in danger of getting her heart broken and there wasn’t a damn thing he could do about it. If he thought threatening Reed would do any good, then he’d have warned him off. But if there was one thing he’d learned about Reed Conway, it was that the man couldn’t be intimidated.

“Will you please stand still?” Ella said. “I’ll never get this thing tied right.”

Reed pulled away, snatched off the silk tie, and tossed it on the bed. “I’m not a suit-and-tie man. You’re wasting your time trying to make a silk purse out of this”—he tapped his index finger on his chest—“sow’s ear.”

“Today is very important. I think you should look your best.”

“Babe, no matter what you do to improve my appearance, your daddy isn’t going to approve of me.” Reed grasped Ella’s shoulders. He glanced down at the tan dress slacks and navy blue button-down shirt. “That’s what this makeover is all about, isn’t it? You want me to make a favorable impression on your old man.”

“My father is willing to meet you halfway. The least you can do is—”

“I’m meeting him halfway, too. I’m willing to put aside the fact that he’s the man who prosecuted me for Junior’s murder, the man who convinced a jury that I was guilty.” Reed tightened his hold on Ella. “Back then, I was convinced that he had killed Junior and that was the reason he was so damned and determined to put me away.”

Ella stared at him in disbelief. “You can’t mean that you actually thought my father killed Junior. Why? What reason would he have had?”

Reed realized that he couldn’t tell Ella about his suspicions—that his mother and her father had once had an affair and that his sister Regina was Webb’s biological child.

Reed shook his head. “He hated Junior, just like everybody who knew the son of a bitch.”

“I understand,” Ella said. “At one time, I wondered if perhaps your mother had killed him, but then I realized Judy wouldn’t have let you go to prison for a crime she’d committed. No mother would do something so terrible to her own child.”

Reed pulled her into his arms. “You’re thinking about your mother now, aren’t you?” He stroked her back. “Ah, babe, I never meant to be the cause of a rift between you and your mother. But I guess we should have known that finding out about us would put her in a tailspin. She’s got to be embarrassed that you announced to the whole world that we were together when Webb was shot. But I can’t believe she kicked you out of your own home or that your father let her.”

“Daddy told me to stay, but I couldn’t, not with Mother feeling the way she does. Besides, I’ve always had my own room over at Aunt Cybil and Uncle Jeff Henry’s. It’s no problem for me to stay with them until Mother cools off. I’ll deal with her and her embarrassment later. For now, my main concern is convincing Frank Nelson you’re innocent and that he must find out who really killed Junior.”

Ella looked at Reed, her gaze soft and loving. Every time she gazed at him that way, all hell broke loose inside him. The woman did crazy things to him. He wanted to take her to bed again and make love to her until they were both exhausted. Every male instinct within him wanted to possess her completely, but at the same time was determined to protect her.

“Whoever killed Junior is dangerous,” Reed said. “Not just to me, but to anyone who gets in the way. Maybe, for the time being, until this person is caught, you should stay away from me.”

Ella kissed him. “You might as well ask me to stop breathing. If you haven’t figured it out by now, Reed Conway, I’m hopelessly in love with you.”

“Ah, Ella…babe…” His mouth devoured hers as her confession echoed inside his head. I’m hopelessly in love with you. He didn’t deserve this woman, but he couldn’t give her up. Not even for her own good.

A rapping at the door gained their attention. They broke apart instantly, each breathless and smiling.

When he opened the door, he discovered his lawyer standing there. Mark looked him up and down, inspecting his new clothes that Ella had bought for him.

“Good choice in attire,” Mark said. “Needs a tie, though.”

“Come on in,” Reed said. “We’re almost ready.”

Mark followed Reed into the one-room apartment over the garage; then, when he saw Ella, he nodded and smiled. Reed went over to the bed, picked up the striped tie, put it around his neck, and stuffed it under his collar.

“Want to give tying this thing another try?”

“It would be my pleasure,” Ella replied.

“Roy, I’ve got to go over to Hopewell and pick up some parts from the junkyard there,” Briley Joe said. “Think you can hold down the fort while I’m gone?”

“Sure thing,” Roy said, pleased that Briley Joe trusted him to take care of business on Saturday evening, a busy time at the garage.

“If you run into any trouble, call me on my cell phone. The number is written down on that yellow pad on the desk in the office. Otherwise, I’ll see you in a couple of hours.”

“Don’t you worry none about me.” Roy grinned.

Roy strutted around, proud as a peacock that Briley Joe trusted him to run things all by himself. Once the boss left, he met each new customer with a grin. He washed windshields, filled up gas tanks, and even checked the oil for one nice lady. And he made correct change for the people who paid cash, not making one mistake. By sunset things had begun to settle down enough so that he felt he could stop working long enough to drink a Coke. He rummaged around in his overalls pocket for some quarters to use in the cola machine.

Briley Joe should be back soon, sometime in the next thirty minutes. He’d take over then and tell Roy he could go on home. Of course, if Reed was here, he would brag on Roy and tell him what a good job he’d done. Briley Joe was okay, but Reed was a nicer man. He actually took the time to talk to Roy, to make him feel like he mattered. Not many people did that.

He knew he was slow and that some people made fun of him. But Miss Ella had told him once that those people were the ones to be pitied because they were just plain ignorant. He sure did like Miss Ella. She was the finest, bestest person in the world.

People were talking about Reed and her, some of them saying ugly things. But the way Roy figured it, Reed and Miss Ella belonged together. They were both his friends and he sure hoped they’d invite him to their wedding.

Roy inserted the coins into the cola machine, and just as he grasped his canned drink, he heard something in the garage, back in the work station. Briley Joe had closed up before he left, but he hadn’t locked the side door, in case Roy needed to get in there for some reason. Was it possible Reed was back already? He’d figured that the big meeting over at Senator Porter’s would take longer than this, but who else would be pilfering around in the garage.

Roy thought he’d better check and see, just in case some kids had gotten inside and planned to steal something. Of course, it might be a stray dog or cat. If that was the case, then he’d have to find the poor thing something to eat. He still had part of a sandwich left in his lunch box.

Roy walked around to the side door, which was open just a crack. It had been shut earlier, when Briley Joe left, hadn’t it? Maybe not. He opened the door, but couldn’t see a darn thing. Whoever or whatever was in there was feeling there way around in the dark. Must be a dog or a cat hunting for food.

But suddenly Roy saw a small light in the far corner, near the row of red tool boxes. It had to be a flashlight. That meant it wasn’t an animal. Probably kids looking to steal something. He’d just scare them off. No need to call the police and get anybody in trouble.

“Hey, you in there,” Roy called loudly as he stepped inside the garage. “I know you’re there, so you’d better come on out. If you don’t give me no problems, I won’t call the police.”

The flashlight went out, but no one answered. Roy could hear somebody moving around and he saw a shadow. He moved farther inside, then turned halfway around, searching for the wall switch.

“I’m going to turn on the light,” Roy warned. “You’d best be hightailing it out of here before I see you.” He’d just keep his back turned and give the kid a chance to leave on his own.

Roy heard a rattling sound, as if whoever was in there with him had gotten into one of the tool boxes. “You’d best not be stealing nothing.” Roy hated to do it, but he didn’t have much choice. He’d have to turn on the light and expose the thief.

He reached for the switch, but before his finger made contact, somebody hit him on the head. Hard. His head throbbed something awful. When Roy lifted his hand to rub his head, he felt something sticky. He was bleeding.

A second blow followed the first, then a third. The big, stupid retard fell to his knees, crying. A fourth blow knocked him out. Just one more to be sure he doesn’t get up.

It was regrettable that Roy Moses had heard something and come to investigate. If he’d stayed out front where he belonged, it wouldn’t have been necessary to resort to violence. Maybe he wasn’t dead. But of course, it didn’t really matter. The man was an inferior creature Mentally deficient.

Drop the wrench. You’re wearing gloves so there will be no fingerprints except Briley Joe’s and Reed’s. Too bad Reed has an alibi.

Hurry. Get what you came here for and leave. No one saw you on the walk over here, and even if they did, they wouldn’t know it was you. With the big meeting at the Porter house going on right now, you don’t have time to waste. Once the Blalock case is reopened, it’s only a matter of time until the truth comes out. You can’t let that happen. Do what you must do to protect yourself.