Page 19 of Where Secrets Lie

Hez breathed a sigh of relief. “That’s great news! I—” His phone rang and Hope’s number appeared on the screen. “I’m sorry. I should take this. Can I step outside for five minutes?”

The doctor waved her hand at the door. “We’re done. Just make a follow-up appointment at the desk before you leave.”

Hez took the call as he walked out of the office. “Hey, Hope. What’s up?”

Her voice was grim. “Beckett Harrison was just found dead in his cell.”

Chapter 11

Savannah crumpled the peat moss into the raised flower bed the gardeners had constructed for her in the garden outside her new office window and worked it into the soil. The aroma took her back to gardening in this very spot with her great-grandpa when she was a child. Sunshine peeked through the overstory of tupelo and oak trees around the perimeter of the garden space and warmed her arms from the cool breeze. The azaleas waiting to be planted should thrive in the shady garden.

She stood and studied the old school whose future was now in her hands. Tupelo Grove University’s fading grandeur with its weedy lawns and old buildings was still beautiful. The towering oaks festooned with moss and the tupelo trees on the quad were her favorite sight. From here she could see the brick paths she’d walked as a student herself. Old Boo Radley would be sleeping on the grass by the pond this time of day. It was up to her to save it all.

She spotted Hez coming her way, and her automatic smile faltered at his somber expression. “What’s wrong?”

He thrust his hands into the pockets of his khaki pants. “I thought I’d find you in your office.”

“It seemed fitting to revive my great-grandpa’s azalea garden.” She yanked off her gardening gloves and gestured to the stone bench flanked by boxwoods. “There’s no one else out here. What’s happened?”

He perched on the edge of the bench and pulled her down beside him, then took her hand. “I got a call from Hope. Beckett was found dead in his cell.”

She caught her breath. “Murdered?”

“Hope doesn’t have the autopsy back yet, but it looks suspicious. He was found hanging in his cell, but he didn’t seem suicidal and bruises marked his hands and arms consistent with a struggle.”

She clung to his hand and tried not to imagine the grisly details. “Any suspects?”

“I asked Hope the same thing, but she said not yet. Deke Willard was in his cell and nowhere close to Beckett, but Deke could have arranged for someone else to do it. And a couple of other Willards were in jail in Bay Minette. They stick together, so any one of them could have done it.”

Conflicting emotions struggled for dominance as Savannah tried to make sense of it all. She’d once thought she and Beckett might have a future together, and some of the better memories of their long friendship still lingered. He’d tried to kill them, but thinking about his last moments in that cold cell made her shudder.

The breeze blew auburn strands of hair across her eyes, and she brushed them away. “Do you think his murder was more than just making sure he didn’t testify against Deke?”

“It could have been more. Like I told you and Jess, I’m not convinced the smuggling has stopped. And there’s still themole in the Pelican Harbor PD. I’ll talk to Jane and Augusta about it tomorrow. I’ve got a lot to catch up on with work.”

The mention of the mole turned Savannah’s concern to that wine bottle in Hez’s garbage. “You saw the neurologist this morning, didn’t you? What did the CT scan show?” She’d wanted to go with him for the report, but he hated it when she hovered.

His blue eyes flickered, and he glanced away. “Um, there was a spot on my brain. The doctor called it a hematoma. It was there on the earlier scan as well, but they missed it.”

She listened to his explanation of the doctor’s watch-and-wait approach. “No bike riding, Hez.” His rueful smile came, and she grabbed his arm. “I’m serious. No biking, no running. If your blood pressure goes up, it could make that thing bleed more.”

“I’d better go then, because your stress is raising my blood pressure right now.” He squeezed her hand, and his eyes crinkled in a wider smile. “You’re even more beautiful when you’re agitated.” A finger brushed her cheek. “Your eyes are spitting fire, and your cheeks are flushed.”

She inhaled and tamped down her emotion. “So that’s the cause of some memory loss?”

“The doctor didn’t think so. It wasn’t in the right place to cause that.”

What did that mean about the bottle in the trash then? Had Hez lied to her about drinking it and throwing away the bottle, or could he be dealing with memory loss from some other cause?

She squelched the impulse to question him about the wine again. Hez was a grown man, not a child. She didn’t need toharp on the matter or tell him what to do. Now wasn’t the time to ask about counseling either. He had enough on his plate. “I suppose you’d better get to work.”

He slipped both arms around her and pulled her against his chest. “I’ve got a few minutes. How’s it feel to be TGU’s president?”

“A little terrifying. I’m gulping water from a fire hose trying to learn everything at once. I don’t know what my dad and the trustees were thinking to have a complete newb take over.”

He twirled a lock of her hair around his finger. “You’ll pick up what you need to know. You have the most important skills for this job—love for TGU and the students, great attention to detail, and an aptitude for learning and networking with who can help. You’re bringing a fresh perspective to the job too.”

She relaxed into his embrace and inhaled the familiar scent of his spicy cologne. “You always say the right things. I picked up the phone once this morning to call and resign.”

---