Tangle of Strings Read online

  He jumped out of his patrol car and darted across the street. “Here, let me help you inside.” He held the door open for the woman, and then entered the convenience store behind her. “Are you okay?”

  “I’m better off than he is.” She jutted her chin at Tyrone.

  Eli chuckled. “He got what he deserves, no doubt about it. I saw for myself just how capable you are of protecting yourself, but for my own peace of mind, I’ll wait outside and walk you to your car.”

  She nodded. “I’d appreciate that.”

  Eli stepped back outside. He’d have a difficult time telling the Bell brothers apart if not for their hairstyles and Tyrone’s two gold front teeth. Both were short, lean, and scrappy. Tyrone preferred cornrows while Willie wore his hair in a low tapered Afro. They were always dressed in Nike athletic apparel—black running pants and Dri-FIT shirts with short sleeves, despite the weather, to show off their bulging biceps.

  Taking Tyrone by the arm, he dragged him out of the way of the door so other customers could enter. “I’d say that woman taught you a good and proper lesson.”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Tyrone said through clenched teeth, his face still pinched in pain.

  “As a matter of fact, I do. I witnessed the whole thing from across the street.” Eli gestured at his patrol car. “What’s wrong with you, harassing an innocent woman like that?”

  “You need to get your eyes checked, pig. She came onto me. Didn’t she, Willie?”

  His brother offered a one-shoulder shrug in response. “S’up, Eli,” he said, with an upward head nod. “I ain’t seen you in a while.”

  “I was just thinking the same thing about you, Willie. I’d heard rumors the two of you had split town. It’s unfortunate for the innocent, law-abiding citizens of Prospect that you’re still here.”

  Tyrone puffed out his chest. “Sorry to disappoint you, bruh. But you can’t get rid of us that easy.”

  The woman exited the store with a Diet Coke and a pack of Lance Toast Chee Crackers. “I’m parked right there,” she said to Eli, pointing out a red late-model Beetle two spaces over. “You don’t need to walk with me.”

  “In that case, I’ll watch from here.” He tipped his hat at her. “You have a nice day, now. And sorry for the trouble.” He kept his eyes on her while she made her way to her car. Once she had driven off, Eli turned back to the Bell brothers. “Y’all run along now. Go find yourselves somewhere else to hang out. If I catch you around here again, I’ll charge you with loitering.”

  “We’re leaving anyway, bruh,” Tyrone said, shuffling backward down the sidewalk. “Oh wait.” He stopped walking. “I forgot to ask. How’s Annie? My sister’s all tore up about her accident yesterday.”

  Why the little prick? How dare he mention Annie’s name. Eli wondered whether Tyrone was taunting him to get a rise out of him, or whether he was making some kind of threat against his family. Anger surged through his body, but he gritted his teeth and forced himself to remain calm. The worst thing he could do was let Tyrone see that he’d gotten to him. “Annie’s fine. Thanks for asking,” he said, and strolled across the street to his patrol car.

  He drove straight back to the station where he spent the next hour combing through the recent reports on the Bell brothers. They’d been charged with a handful of misdemeanors apiece, most relating to dealing drugs and illegal firearms. In addition, there were the assault charges brought against Willie by a former girlfriend and the armed robbery Tyrone was questioned about. Somehow, someway, they’d managed to avoid jail time. Eli suspected they were up to their scrawny little necks in all of the above and a hell of a lot more.

  “Watch out, you slimy bastard,” Eli said to Tyrone’s mug shot on the computer monitor. “I’m coming after you. And when I catch you, I’m gonna put you in jail for a very long time.”

  NINE

  Annie

  Mike was waiting in Annie’s room when she returned from having her CT scan.

  “Eli tracked your belongings down for you.” He raised his arms, holding her bag in one hand and her Chuck Taylors in the other. He removed her cell phone from the pocket of his scrubs. “Believe it or not, your phone survived the accident.”

  She took the phone from him. “It still has some battery left,” she said, thumbing through the texts, none of them from Cooper. She set the phone on the bed table. “Where’s Faith?”

  “Bitsy’s not feeling well. She went to pick her up from school.”

  Annie wrinkled her brow. “I hope it’s nothing serious.”

  “Nah.” Mike waved away her concern. “Just a tummy ache. She had a playdate yesterday afternoon followed by a sleepover last night. Remember, she’s never spent the night out before. And on a school night… It was probably too much for her. I’m sure she’s gonna want to come see you though.”

  Annie caught sight of her reflection in the mirror over the sink. Her face was pale with dark circles under her eyes. Never mind the bandage covering most of her forehead. She looked like a mummy. “Do you think she should? I don’t want to scare her.”

  “I’m not worried about Bitsy. She’s tougher than we give her credit for.”

  Annie smiled. “True.” She’d grown to think of the spirited seven-year-old as her little sister. “Did Faith tell you about the little talk we had earlier? About Thea.”

  “She mentioned it.”

  “I don’t see why she’s so worried. My life has been different from most girls my age, Mike. I can take care of myself. It’s not fair for Faith to start picking my friends for me. I haven’t had many friends, actually. And Thea is a good person.”

  Mike moved to the edge of his seat. “I think maybe you misunderstood, honey. Eli knows Thea’s family. He’s had several run-ins with her older brothers. Faith wanted you to be aware of the situation, to warn you that the Bell home might not be safe. She doesn’t have anything against Thea. Faith loves you very much. She doesn’t want to see anything happen to you. She’s overprotective. And I can’t say I blame her after everything Bitsy has been through, being abused by her father and the kidnapping last summer.”

  “That makes sense, I guess.” Annie’s chin quivered and her eyes filled with tears. She looked away. Why had she automatically assumed the worst of Faith, who had never been anything but supportive of her? And why did she burst into tears at the smallest things these days? It was all Cooper’s fault. Why didn’t he just go ahead and break up with her? Blowing her off with the silent treatment wasn’t Cooper’s style. Or maybe it was and she didn’t know him as well as she thought she did. “Am I going to need surgery on my shoulder?”

  “More than likely. You have a fractured clavicle, aka your collarbone. The bones are displaced, which means the orthopedist will need to use a plate and screws to hold them together while they heal. The CT scan will show if there is any other damage to the ligaments in that area.” Mike removed a tissue from the box on the bed table and handed it to her. “I don’t want you to worry. We have the best orthopedist in town on the case. Faith and I will see you through this. Before you know it, your shoulder will be as good as new.”

  Annie blew her nose. “That’s good, I guess.”

  Standing, Mike went to the computer cart in the corner. His fingers flew across the keyboard as he accessed her chart. “Your vitals are strong. I see they’ve altered your meds a little. How’s your pain, on a scale of one to ten?”

  “Seven. I’m more aware of my shoulder than I was earlier.”

  He walked back to the bed and sat down gently beside Annie. “Do you remember being in the emergency room last night?”

  Annie suddenly found it difficult to breathe. What he really wants to know is whether I remember him questioning me about being pregnant. In a shaky voice, she replied, “It’s all kind of blurry.”

  “I’m not sure if you remember it, but I asked you if there was any chance you might be pregnant. Before I order X-rays for my patients, I’m required to ask women of childbearin
g years that question. When you responded yes, we checked the hormone levels in your blood. You are, in fact, pregnant. Do you have any idea how far along you might be?”

  Her heart pounded against her ribs. “It only happened once, on New Year’s Eve. We got carried away. It scared both of us, and we haven’t done it again since. Did you tell Faith?”

  “You asked me not to. I’ll let you tell her when you’re ready,” Mike said, smoothing out the blanket. “I’m sure this comes as a shock to you, honey, an unexpected bend in the road. But you can count on Faith and me to support you. Together, we will explore your options and come up with a solution that works best for you.”

  Annie rolled her eyes. “What options? I’m going to have a baby. Just like my mother. Knocked up and washed up before I’m twenty. In my case, before I’m even eligible to vote.”

  “It’s my responsibility, as a doctor and your legal guardian, to point out your options. Adoption and abortion are among them. I see teenage mothers in the ER every day. These young mothers are still girls. Children having children. Healthwise, they are usually as bad off as their babies. You and Cooper have your whole lives ahead of you. You need to consider what is best for your future.”

  “Leave Cooper out of it!”

  Mike jerked his head back at the anger in her voice. “I’m sorry. You mentioned New Year’s Eve. I just assumed the baby is his.”

  Annie’s face beamed red. “Of course the baby is his. Whose else would it be?” Blinking away the tears, she stared up at the bank of monitors over her head. “Never mind, Mike. I need to let this sink in before I worry about Cooper. It’s my body, not his.”

  “Which is why we need to take one thing at a time. Let’s deal with the shoulder first. Then, after you’ve been home for a couple of days and are feeling more like yourself, we’ll tell Faith. She loves you, you know. As do Sam and Jackie.”

  Annie brought her good hand to her bandaged forehead. “I forgot about Jackie. She’s gonna freak. Promise me you won’t tell her, Mike. Or Cooper or Sam or anybody. No one can know about this until I decide what to do. Please!”

  “Shh, now.” He rubbed her knee beneath the blanket. “You can trust me. I won’t say a word until you’re ready to talk about it with the others.”

  She sniffled. “Thank you.”

  The door banged open and Bitsy came skipping into the room. Annie winced in pain when the little girl leapt onto the bed and snuggled up to her.

  Faith rushed to her side. “Bitsy, honey, you need to be gentle with Annie. She’s got a lot of boo-boos.”

  “She’s fine.” Annie kissed the top of Bitsy’s head. “But you need to lie still, kiddo. Okay?”

  “Okay,” Bitsy said, stretching her body out as straight and rigid as a two-by-four. “What happened to your head, Annie? Mama said you had an accident. Did you fall down the stairs at school? A girl in the other second grade class fell down the stairs at my school and broke her arm. Is your arm broken?” Bitsy’s hazel eyes searched for Annie’s.

  Annie smiled. She loved this kid. If only she could go back to being seven years old again, to have someone else taking care of her, when all she had to worry about was what doll she wanted to play with. Only Annie had never owned any dolls. And she’d never really had anyone to take care of her. Aside from her father. And he’d tried. They’d gotten along as best they could. While he wasn’t as smart or educated or capable as Mike, he’d been every bit as loving. But her father was no stand-in for the mother she dreamed of. The other kids at the different schools she’d attended all had mothers. She’d never understood why she was different from them. She prayed every night for her mother to return. Would she look and act like the other mothers? The mothers wearing yoga clothes and big sunglasses, driving SUVs as big as the yachts docked at the marinas where her father worked. The mothers who came to read to her class during lunchtime. The mothers who packed the auditorium for musicals and plays and awards ceremonies.

  Annie hugged Bitsy tight. “It’s my shoulder, Bitsy. Not my arm. And I didn’t fall down the stairs. I was in a car accident.”

  Bitsy’s mouth formed an O. “Did you run a red light and hit another car?”

  “No, squirt. Come here.” Mike lifted the tiny girl off the bed and cradled her in his arms. “The accident wasn’t Annie’s fault. It was just one of those things that sometimes happens. But it’s nothing for you to worry about. Okay?” He tickled her until she squealed, “Okay.” He covered her mouth with his hand until she quieted down.

  “Annie looks like she could use a nap,” Faith said. “How about we go down to the cafeteria for an ice cream cone?”

  Bitsy flung her arms in the air. “Yay. Can we bring one back for Annie?”

  TEN

  Heidi

  Heidi was rolling out biscuits on the kitchen island—prepping for a seated dinner for fifty people, a thirtieth wedding anniversary celebration for one of her new clients—when Hugh called. “Can you get away for a few minutes? I have something I want to show you.” The excitement in his voice caught her attention.

  “Now? I’m up to my elbows in biscuit dough.” She scratched her nose with the back of her hand, leaving behind a smudge of flour. “I don’t mean to sound ungrateful. I love my kitchen, which is really your kitchen, of course, but preparing for an event takes twice as long as it would in a commercial kitchen.”

  “I may have the solution to your problem,” he said.

  “Please tell me you’re considering installing another oven in my apartment.”

  He chuckled. “No. What I want to show you is better. It won’t take long. Thirty minutes tops.”

  Her interest piqued, she set the rolling pin down and flicked on the oven light, peeking inside at the cake layers that were just beginning to rise. “Can you give me an hour?”

  “I’ll text you the address,” he said, and ended the call.

  Heidi had made a string of bad choices when it came to men. But so far, everything indicated that Hugh was a keeper. He was the one positive thing that had happened to her since she’d moved back to South Carolina from California. Reconciling with her daughter hadn’t been as easy as she’d hoped, and her catering was taking off slower than she’d planned. Although she had several weddings on the horizon, her business did not compare to the success she’d experienced in Beverly Hills where her clients booked their events months, sometimes a year, in advance. She was proud of her resume. But no one in the Lowcountry seemed to care about the glitzy over-the-top affairs she’d arranged in Hollywood. She needed a presence in Charleston—a storefront on one of the prominent streets where she offered specialty items and gourmet takeout in the front with a commercial kitchen for catering in the back. But she needed to act soon. Her savings account was dwindling, taking her self-esteem with it.

  Hugh was waiting for her in front of the converted warehouse with a man at least a foot taller and twenty years younger than he was. Based on the awkward manner in which he introduced himself, Heidi thought the realtor as green as the first blades of grass in the springtime. But Ken Cook spoke of Charleston architecture and the commercial real estate market with confidence and expertise. After reciting the history of the building and offering a brief overview of the neighborhood, he unlocked the front door, stepping aside for them to enter the mid-nineteenth-century cotton warehouse.

  The concrete floors were made to look old, but the wooden ceilings, exposed beams, and brick walls were original. Heidi took in the natural light streaming through the windows. “It reminds me of Sam’s place in Prospect—Captain Sweeney’s Seafood. Only their showroom is cold and sterile with white walls and subway tile. It works for seafood but I prefer this warm and cozy feeling for my business.”

  Ken led them to the kitchen in the back. “The appliances are top-of-the-line commercial grade. As you can see, they’re practically new.”

  Heidi ran her fingers across the stainless steel countertops and peeked inside the commercial-sized ovens. “How did you stumble upon
this place?” she asked Hugh.

  “A client friend of mine is in the market for retail space—either women’s clothing or shoes, I can’t remember which. He asked me to check out the plumbing and electrical.” Hugh spread his arms wide. “Removing all this was not cost effective for his purposes, even if he resold the appliances and fixtures.”

  Heidi turned to Ken. “What was here before, a restaurant?”

  He nodded. “A Thai franchise owned by a group on the West Coast. The food wasn’t bad but the local staff mismanaged the place.”

  “And how much are they asking?” Heidi asked.

  Ken produced a glossy flyer that outlined the specifics. When she saw the price, Heidi shut her green eyes tight, and then opened them wide again. “Whoa! This is way out of my league.” She handed the flyer back to him. “I’m sorry, but we’re wasting your time.”

  He held up his hand, refusing to take the flyer. “Keep it. The building has been on the market for several months and the owner is motivated to sell. The whole second floor is unfinished. You could convert it into office or living space. The rent might help compensate for the price. Would you like to see it?”

  Heidi considered the convenience of living and working in the same building, and the money she could save on the pricey rent she paid Hugh. She mentally calculated the amount she would need for the deposit and the balance she would have to borrow from the bank. Even if she made a low-ball offer and the seller accepted, she would still fall far short. “I don’t think so. Not today.”

  Ken removed his cell phone from his pocket. “I’ll tell you what. I’m going to step outside and make a phone call. Why don’t you take your time and look around. Give it some thought.” Before Heidi could object, he turned his back on them and left the kitchen.