Page 73 of Grounded
“But what if the man hasn’t exactly asked?”
“Maybe he has. If you’re talking about Jake, I think that’s why he brought Camille here. To see what she thinks of us and what we think of her.”
Annie pulled her knees up under her chin. “I worry about him,” she said.
Beulah leaned back, considering her words carefully. The sun’s warmth felt life giving to her, as if she could soak up that energy and have more of her own. How could she tell Annie what she saw in Jake’s face? Both of them were too frightened to recognize it because of what it might mean. Providence guided Annie back here just when Jake was about to make the biggest decision of his life. It was no accident. But it was not for her to uncover it.What will be, will be.
“Time will tell,” Beulah said, closing the subject. The sound of gravel crunching in the distance grew louder. “I believe Jeb is here.”
Beulah held Annie’s arm so she could walk a little faster over the uneven ground. The policeman parked his gray car next to the gate.
“Jeb Harris, you’re looking more and more like your daddy every day!” Beulah exclaimed.
“Mrs. Campbell, I take that as a compliment, although my hairline is receding a little faster than his. I think it’s the job.”
Beulah could hear the pride in her own voice when she said, “This is my granddaughter, Annie Taylor.”
“Nice to meet you.” Harris stuck out his hand.
“Come on in, Jeb. We’ve got some coffee or iced tea.”
“Coffee sounds good.” He held the door while she managed the step into the house with Annie’s help.
“I heard you had a knee operation. You doing better now?”
“Little better every day. Annie’s been staying with me before she goes back to New York. Annie, if you’ll get the coffee, I’ll show Jeb the picture.”
“I just got your voice mail this morning. I’ve been down in Eastern Kentucky with a big operation. It’s taking a lot of our manpower.”
Jeb looked at the picture and took out a small notepad from his shirt pocket. He wrote down the license plate numbers.
“I’ll drive by on my way out. What makes you suspicious?”
Annie placed a mug full of coffee on the table next to Jeb. “We think there’s something very strange about her story. Her name is Stella Hawkins but she’s vague about her background. She paid Grandma in cash up front, so there’s no bank account that we know of, and we noticed a sensor at the entrance to her driveway. One day when we dropped off food, she seemed high on something. She keeps her windows covered and she’s made it clear she wants no one around,” Annie said.
“And,” Beulah interrupted, “Joe Gibson has spotted her out in the creek twice before daylight, dumping something out of a five-gallon bucket. We’re wondering if she’s making drugs and using the creek to get rid of the evidence. We don’t want our cows poisoned.”
Annie studied his face, unsure if he thought they were crazy or if there might be something to be concerned about.
“It’s possible. There have been reports of animals being poisoned from meth ingredients being dumped. We’ll try running the plates first and see if anything comes up. Have you noticed more traffic on your road lately?”
Annie looked at Beulah for an answer. “Not really, but we’re usually in bed by nine-thirty.”
Jeb nodded. “We’ll see what we find out, but I have to be honest. We’re pretty shorthanded right now. But if you notice anything else, give me a call.”
Chapter Thirty-Two
Annie sat on the polyester couch, her legs comfortably stretched across it, a sketch pad in her lap. With the pictures, she was working on another drawing. There were a few details she wanted to get right. The work relaxed her. It was as if all her troubles floated away while she created, making something out of nothing and then changing it after it was formed. The more she practiced, the better she would be, she thought, studying her work from the mantel where she perched it for viewing a few feet away.
She heard a car in the driveway. When she got to the back door, Jake was stepping onto the porch.
“It’s you,” she said through the screen door.
“It is me,” he teased. “Were you expecting someone else?”
“No one, I heard a car …” Her voice fell away. Why did she feel like an adolescent all of a sudden?
“Can I come in?” he asked, his eyes wide in question.
