Page 10 of Where Secrets Lie

“Have you told anyone around here that you used to drink?”

Hez shrugged. “It’s not exactly a secret. And I’ve started going to an AA group, so anyone who shows up there would know. But I don’t think I’ve ever mentioned that the Mondavi cab used to be my favorite wine.”

“So how did someone discover that? Or was it a coincidence?”

“Probably not a coincidence. I’m guessing there’s a mention of Mondavi cab somewhere in the police file on Ella’s death. We always used to have a bottle or two in the kitchen.” A new connection clicked in Hez’s head. “That also explains the candy. We found Justin’s peanut butter cups with Simon after he was kidnapped last year. That was the candy Ella was trying to get to when she drowned. That would have been in the police file too.”

“Have you talked to Jane?”

“I called her yesterday, but I’ll stop by today to mention the candy connection.”

Wispy cowlicks waving in the breeze, Cody lunged toward a group of seagulls gathered around a trash can blown over by the storm. The birds squawked and flapped away—and Cody instantly grabbed whatever they’d been eating.

“Leave it!” Hez yanked at the leash as Cody frantically gobbled garbage. “Leaveitleaveitleaveitleaveit!”

Cody ate even faster, deftly managing to avoid dropping any morsels as Hez dragged him away from his feast. Cody managed to swallow past the constriction of his collar, then looked up at Hez with a triumphant grin.

Hez sighed. “Know a good vet?”

Blake chuckled. “You know I do.” He and his mother ran an animal sanctuary near Gulf Shores, and they had one of the best veterinarians living at the park. She also happened to be the love of Blake’s life who’d recently returned to town.

Hez shook his head. “You’d better not throw up on the police chief’s handmade rugs.” Cody gave him another grin and went back to scanning the beach for targets of opportunity.

They ran in silence for a few minutes. Gray waves crashed on the shore, and gulls cried overhead as they rode the gusty sea breeze. Hez kept Cody on a very short leash. Hez felt bad for dumping his worries on his cousin when Blake was dealing with his own problems at the animal park.

“I’m not sure I get it,” Blake said. “Why would someone do this? I mean, if Beckett’s cronies are still after you and they got into your kitchen, wouldn’t they poison your food or something? Or at least leave a threatening note? What’s the pointof breaking into your apartment just to leave an empty wine bottle in your trash?”

Those same questions had nagged at Hez ever since Savannah walked out with the bottle. “I don’t know—but I’m going to find out.”

Chapter 6

Hez appeared clear-eyed and sober, and he patted the bench beside him overlooking the sparkling Bon Secour Bay. Maybe his drinking had been a fluke. Savannah sat beside him, feeling the warmth of his body on the chill winter day. She threw the last crumbs of her beignet to the gulls and ordered Marley, her black Aussie, and Cody to leave them be.

The two dogs were becoming best friends, and they made a strange sight together. Marley with his trim athletic build that was all Australian shepherd and Cody, who looked like no other dog she’d ever seen. He seemed to be made out of leftover parts from random breeds: Chihuahua legs, Great Dane ears, greyhound body, and an elegant—but crooked—Chesapeake Bay tail.

The gulls stopped their squawking long enough to gobble up her offering before demanding more. She opened her hands to show them. “All gone. You’ll have to find someone else.” The nearest gull pinned her with a black-eyed stare before fluttering off to a group of teenagers fishing out on the pier. “There’s Jane.”

“I asked her to meet us here. I want to talk to her about the mole in her office. Someone planted that bottle in my trash.”

That unbelievable story again. Savannah’s mood deflated, and she laced her fingers together. She couldn’t help him if he wouldn’t admit to the truth. She pinned a smile back in place as the police chief, Jane Dixon, reached them. Even when she was in uniform, it was hard to miss her resemblance to a younger version of Reese Witherspoon but with chin-length light brown hair. Even at barely five-two, Jane was a force to be reckoned with.

Jane carried a cooler and set it on the grass beside the bench. The dogs sniffed the container before dashing off after a butterfly. “I brought fish to feed Pete.”

As if he’d heard his name, a brown pelican flew down to join her. She crooned to him as she tossed him fish. “People are used to me doing this every day and won’t think anything about it. You want to talk about a mole in my office?”

Hez leaned back and extended his arm across the park bench behind Savannah. “The file on Ella’s death probably mentions her love of Justin’s peanut butter cups. It’s not something Savannah and I talk about. That detail had to come from the file. And someone put an empty Mondavi cab bottle in my trash. I think there has to be a mention of that in the file too.”

With the last of the fish gone, Jane shut the cooler lid and wiped her hands on the grass. “I reviewed the file after your text. I found a mention of the peanut butter cups, but there was nothing about that brand of wine.”

“You’re certain? I don’t know how else anyone would know I used to drink that brand. I haven’t had any type of alcohol in over a year. I want to find out who planted it. And why.”

Jane’s hazel eyes were blank and professional. “I’m taking the idea of a mole very seriously, and I’ll continue to dig to findhim or her.” She gave a polite nod. “I’d better get back to work. Thanks for the information.”

Savannah tried to analyze Jane’s just-the-facts demeanor. She hadn’t dismissed Hez’s assertion that a mole had planted the bottle, but she hadn’t tried to encourage it either. Maybe she thought it was as crazy as Savannah did. Her breaths grew shallow and her palms were slick at the thought of pushing him about this, but she had to. She couldn’t tuck her head under her wing like the gull at her feet. She loved Hez too much to ignore the danger.

Hez shifted on the bench and withdrew his arm. “Well, that was disappointing.”

Savannah curled her fingers into her palm. “She’ll keep digging.” She put her hand on his knee. “I love you, Hez, and I’m committed to you. You know that, right?”

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