Clay's stepsister had been his savior and his worst enemy. She hotly defended him against anyone who implied that he'd ever done anything wrong. Her loyalty and Jed Fowler's was what had kept him out of jail this long. But Madeline was also one of the people who wouldn't give up searching, wouldn't let anyone forget. Thanks to her--and the Vincellis, of course--suspicion swirled around Clay constantly, and probably always would, whether he went to trial or not. "In what way can she help?"
"She's planning to post a notice in the paper, offering a reward for any information leading to the arrest of the man who shot you."
"Who's putting up the reward?"
"Kennedy."
Clay studied her. "What do Kennedy's parents have to say about that?"
"We didn't ask them. We don't care. You're family to Kennedy now."
Clay shook his head. "He'll do anything for you."
She finally smiled. "Yes, but he's doing this for you."
"So my defense team consists of an ex-assistant district attorney with a new baby, my overwrought mother, a stepsister who can't know the real truth and a cop I got fired."
"So far."
He stretched his neck. "That's quite a team."
She regarded him steadily. "It's better than you make it sound. Allie's definitely an asset."
"Too bad you have to fire her," he said.
Grace rubbed a finger over her bottom lip. "I know it's risky to include her, but--"
He leaned forward. "Risky? It's idiotic! Are you trying to beat the charges or put me away for good?" Clay had more pressing reasons to get her off the case--but he didn't want to tell Grace just how much he cared about Allie.
"Clay, she'll keep digging whether we join forces with her or not. After Mom and Madeline left last night, she told me about the note someone left at the cabin, and that she found Jed's baseball cap nearby."
" Jed's? That has to be a mistake."
"It's not."
"But Jed wouldn't shoot me. And he'd have no reason to leave Allie that note."
"Allie thinks it's a setup."
"What would anyone have to gain by implicating Jed?"
"It's a way to obfuscate the truth, a way to send anyone who's trying to track down the real offender on a wild-goose chase. And whoever doesn't like you probably doesn't like Jed, either. So he's expendable. After all, his insistence that our dear old stepdad didn't come home that night is what's stood between you and prosecution all these years."
"That and the fact that they have no physical evidence," Clay pointed out dryly.
"At this stage, it's not about evidence. It's about an old grudge."
Sobering, Clay moved closer to the table. He'd lose his mind if they sent him to prison. He could take almost anything, but he couldn't take being locked up. "I know."
"Allie thinks, and I agree, that our opponents might be trying to lean on Jed, to tell him they won't go after him for attempted murder or some other charge if he'll testify against you."
Clay frowned. He wasn't sure why Jed Fowler had been such a good friend to them, but the mechanic had to know more about the night Barker died than he'd ever said. Otherwise, he wouldn't have tried to confess when they dug up Butch's bones, which Clay had purposely relocated after he'd moved Barker's body to the cellar. "We've never had a close relationship with Jed. We don't even know why he's stood by us. Which makes him a question mark. We can't predict what he'll do."
She toyed with the pen she'd dropped a moment earlier. "Allie said something else that concerns me."
"What's that?" Clay was growing more agitated. He'd expected to be up against the circumstantial evidence he already knew about. He'd had no idea there'd be more. Whoever was out to get him was going to great lengths to insure he went away for life.
"She asked Mom if Jed's ever seen her with another man."
A jolt of alarm brought Clay to his feet. "Why would she ask that?"
"She believes Jed's secretly admired Mom for years."
"We've guessed as much."
"True. But listen to this. She thinks we'll be okay--unless Jed's become disaffected with her for some reason."
Clay paced the small room. "Is she suggesting that's already happened?"
"No, but she's wondering about it."
Muttering another curse, Clay shook his head. Little did Allie know Irene had been seeing another man-- her own father. She was going to get hurt. He could feel it coming and chafed at his helplessness to stop it. "This just gets better and better, doesn't it?"
The jingle of her cell phone woke Allie from a deep sleep. She fumbled through her bedding, searching for it, and nearly knocked the lamp off her nightstand. It wasn't until she heard her daughter running toward her, the ring growing louder, that she realized she'd left it out in the kitchen and Whitney was bringing it to her.
Rubbing her eyes, she rolled over as her daughter reached the side of her bed, saw that it was broad daylight and panicked. "Oh, no! Are we late?"
"For what?" Whitney asked.
"For school!"
Her daughter laughed. "It's Saturday, silly. I don't have school on Saturday."
"Right. Thank goodness." Taking the phone, Allie slumped back onto her pillows and covered the mouthpiece while she asked Whitney what she was doing.
"Watching cartoons," Whitney said and ran into the living room.
Allie watched her go, relieved to see that she seemed to be adjusting to the move, then put the phone to her ear. "Hello?"
"Allie?"
It was her mother. Which came as no surprise. Since she'd moved out, Evelyn checked in with her often and brought more furniture each time. "Hi, what's up?"
"Why didn't you wake me when you picked up Whitney last night?"
"I didn't want to disturb you."
"I wouldn't have minded."
"There wasn't any need."
"But it would've given us a chance to talk."
Her father had been at home. Allie hadn't been eager to wake anyone. "We can talk now, can't we?"
"I guess," she said. "How are things over there? Do you have enough to eat?"
"We're fine."
"Maybe we should go out today and get some groceries--a few staples. Then I won't have to worry so much about you. It might take a while to find work, you know."
Allie considered the job she'd just accepted. She knew her mother wouldn't be pleased to hear that she was helping with Clay's defense, but she didn't see any point in trying to hide it.