Thirty-Four and a Half Predicaments Bonus Chapters: Rose Gardner Mystery Read Online Free Page B

his eyes but was quickly replaced by a steely resolve. “You’re talkin’ about going to the sheriff’s department and confrontin’ the chief deputy sheriff. That’s crazy, Neely Kate!”
    “Are you calling me crazy?”
    “No! I’m saying what you’re fixin’ to do is crazy!”
    “That’s the same thing, Ronnie!”
    He groaned. “If you do this, you’re liable to get arrested too. Did you stop and consider that? What if you were still pregnant? Would you have put our babies in danger?”
    I gasped and jerked out of his grasp as his words sunk deep into my heart like a white-hot poker. Tears stung my eyes as I thought back on all the things I had done while I was pregnant.
    Ronnie went stock-still when he realized what he’d said.
    My chin trembled. “But I’m not pregnant, am I? So I can do all kinds of things I couldn’t do before I killed our babies.” I hurried around him, heading straight for my car.
    By the time he’d gathered his wits and followed, I was climbing into the driver’s seat.
    “Neely Kate!”
    I ignored him. I was tired of dwelling on something that I had no control over. My babies were gone. No amount of crying or coddling were gonna bring them back. But my best friend in the whole world was behind bars for ridiculous charges and there was something I could do about that.
    It was nearly 8:30 p.m. when I pulled in the Fenton County sheriff’s parking lot. Joe should have gone home by now, but there was no way in heaven he would arrest the woman he claimed to love, then go home and kick back with a beer and his TV.
    I stomped through the door, right up to the receptionist’s window. “I’m here to see Joe Simmons.”
    She glanced up from her magazine, sighing with irritation. “Chief Deputy Simmons is busy with important county business. If you have a complaint, fill out one of these forms.” She shoved a clipboard through the window opening. As if she could get rid of me that easy.
    “Chief Deputy Simmons better get his hiney out here within thirty seconds or there’ll be hell to pay!” I said, my voice growing louder with every word.
    The receptionist pursed her lips. “Ma’am, just fill out the form and someone will get back to you.”
    A door opened and a deputy walked out, paying attention to his phone instead of the commotion in the reception area. I rushed over and grabbed the doorknob before it closed, then slipped in through the opening.
    “Miss!” the receptionist shouted.
    The deputy realized his mistake and turned around and ran after me, but I was faster.
    “Joe Simmons! You get your sorry ass out here and face me!”
    There were only a few deputies sitting at desks in the open office area. They looked up in disbelief as I made a beeline to the back of the building.
    “Joe!” I shouted. “You chicken shit! Get out here and talk to me!” I found his office at the far end of the floor—the placard on the door read Joe Simmons, Chief Deputy Sheriff plain as day.
    “You can’t just barge in here, miss,” a deputy hollered as he reached for my arm.
    I ducked to the side. “Don’t think you can hide in your office, Joe Simmons!” I shouted, getting more and more pissed by the minute.
    The deputy got a grip on my arm and started to drag me back to the front.
    “You can’t face me, can you?” I shouted, digging in my feet and resisting the deputy’s pull. “What did I expect from a coward?”
    The deputies around me wore a variety of expressions. One looked downright pissed, but the deputy who’d gotten stuck doing Joe’s dirty business of hauling me out of the building looked sympathetic. “I know you’re upset—” he started to say.
    But his platitude was interrupted when Joe’s door flew open. He filled the doorway, his face red with rage. “Let her go,” he barked.
    The deputy holding my arm stopped. “But sir—”
    “ I said, let her go .” He didn’t raise his voice, but there was no need. The authority in his tone was enough to