“What do you know about Lula?” I asked.

“Lula Baker who works at the tavern? I heard she was back. I planned to come in tonight to see her.”

The way he said it made me think she was one of his many conquests in the area. Like Max, Marco was too handsome for his own good, with his blond hair, blue-green eyes, and his roguish looks. I’d taken him to dinner to celebrate his release from the hospital, and judging from the half a dozen women who’d greeted him with starry eyes, Marco Roland was a popular man with the ladies. No wonder he and Max were such good friends.

“Don’t waste your gas money,” I said. “She’s gone.”

“Already?” he asked in dismay.

“Yeah, except I don’t think she left on her own, Marco.”

“Well, she usually hitches a ride,” he said. “Her car’s shit. I told her once to have Wyatt look at it, but she claimed it was fine. I’m pretty sure she had one of the Grisham boys look at it.”

I wondered why she hadn’t asked Wyatt. Was it money? She couldn’t have many expenses living where she did, and a car was a necessity in these parts. Had she been sending all her money to her mother? “If she hitched a ride, I’m not sure it was voluntary, or at least she left in a hurry.”

“What makes you say that?”

“I dropped by her house, which is a generous description of where she lives.”

“I take it she wasn’t there?” After I described what I’d found, he asked, “What exactly are you askin’ for, Carly?”

“I’m askin’ you which deputy I should call. We both know that a good many of them are corrupt. I want someone who will really look into this.”

“Then your answer is none of ’em,” he said. “But not for the reason you think. Lula’s got a history of runnin’ off, and she hasn’t even been gone twenty-four hours, let alone the forty-eight we tend to wait.”

“I’m telling you, Marco. She didn’t run off. She told me last night that she needed her job at least until the spring when her mother gets out of prison.”

“That doesn’t mean nothin’, Carly. Not with Lula.”

“She told me something else. Something I promised to keep secret. But it makes me believe she wouldn’t leave. And on top of that, Todd Bingham was watching her like a hawk last night. Was there bad blood between them?”

“Not that I know of, and from what I saw about six months ago, I’d say it was more like hot blood.”

“What did you see?”

“Seriously, Carly?” he groaned good-naturedly. “I never took you as the kind of girl who’d want to know the details of other people’s sex lives.”

“They were havin’ sex? You’re sure you didn’t misconstrue it?”

“He had her pinned to the brick wall behind the tavern, drivin’ her home, if you know what I mean, his bare ass shinin’ in the moonlight. She seemed to be enjoyin’ every minute of it, so I turned tail and ran back inside for another beer. When she came back in about five minutes later, she had the look of a satisfied woman.”

My face heated. “I could have done without that image.”

“Hey, you asked if I was sure.”

I had, and now adrenaline zipped through my blood. So they had been an item of some kind, even if it was just for one night, and if she was about five months pregnant, it very well could be his child. Had Bingham kidnapped her so he could keep his kid? Or…

I couldn’t help thinking about Rose. She was carrying the baby of the local crime lord, and he hadn’t exactly celebrated the news. What if Bingham hadn’t taken it well?

Lula had told me herself that Bingham made people disappear. And now Lula was gone.

Except she’d been adamant about keeping her pregnancy secret, and I didn’t feel I could break her trust and tell Marco. Not without knowing more about the situation.

“Marco,” I pleaded, not above begging. “Will you please have someone look into this? I have a really bad feeling.”

After a moment of silence, he sighed and said, “I can’t turn it over to anyone, because no one will look into it. Not now, and likely not even after forty-eight hours. She’s just run off too many times before.”

Just when I was about to thank him for his time and hang up, he added, “But I’ll help you.”

His response caught me by surprise. “You’re still on medical leave.”

“That’s right, which means this won’t be an official investigation. It’ll just be two friends checkin’ on her.”

“Thank you, Marco!”

“Don’t thank me yet,” he said. “For now, I’m only committin’ to checkin’ her house.”

Something I’d already done, although he was bound to notice more than I would.

“We’ll figure out where to go from there,” he continued, “if we go somewhere from there. How soon can you meet me at Lula’s house?”

I glanced around the kitchen. I’d only put half the food away and still had to make Hank’s dinner. Or did I? After Hank’s release from the hospital, Wyatt and I had agreed to share the responsibility of taking care of him. Surely he could do his part.

I mentally added up how long it would take me to finish with the groceries, grab my work shirt, and drive to Lula’s. “About thirty minutes. Do you need directions?”

“Nah,” he said, “I ain’t never been to her house, but I know the turnoff. I’ll meet you in a half hour.”

I hung up the phone and called the garage, my stomach clenching at the thought of talking to Wyatt. I prayed that his employee, Junior, answered instead.

Of course, luck was against me.

“Drummond Auto Repair and Towing,” Wyatt answered.

My breath caught in my throat. Why did I have to like him so much? Why did my body react to him like it had never reacted to anyone else? Why couldn’t he be more forthcoming?

“Wyatt, it’s Carly.”

I heard him exhale in relief. “I’m glad you called. I was givin’ you some space, but I planned to come see you tonight.”

“Were you coming to tell me your secrets?” I asked, my voice stiff.

He hesitated. “Carly…”

“I’m not calling about me,” I said. “Hank and I just got back from Greeneville, and I don’t have time to make him dinner before I leave. Can you come to Hank’s and make sure he eats something healthy? He had Popeyes for lunch, so he really needs to eat something on his diet.”

“Yeah, but I still want to see you.”

“Don’t be coming to the tavern expecting to talk to me,” I said. “It’s Friday night and we’ll be busy. And unless you’re planning on sharing at least one of your secrets, don’t bother talking to me when you get to Hank’s either.”

“I need a little time, Carly, if you’d just—”

I had no idea what else he planned to say, since I hung up. I had bigger issues to contend with than my love life. I needed to focus on what had happened to Lula, because I was sure it was nothing good.

Chapter Nine