04 Dead to Rights by J A Jance

Author:J A Jance [Jance, J A]
Format: epub
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

ELEVEN

THE NEXT half hour or so was a blur of frantic activity. The whole house buzzed with cops while Joanna fielded a concerned call from Marianne Maculyea, whom Jenny had also called, reassuring her that everything was fine, that help had arrived, and that Hannah Green was being taken into custody. When it was time for Ernie Carpenter to lead a handcuffed Hannah Green out to the waiting patrol car, they came through the living room, where Joanna and Jenny were sitting on the couch.

Hannah stopped in front of them. “Them dogs of yours is real nice,” she said to Jenny.

Jenny nodded. “Thank you,” she murmured.

Then Hannah looked at Joanna. For a few seconds their eyes met. There was such an air of hopelessness about her—such beaten-down defeat—that Joanna couldn’t help feeling sorry for the woman. Even at Joanna’s worst, in those bleak days right after Andy’s death, she hadn’t been nearly as lost as Hannah Green. One important difference was that Joanna Brady had been blessed with something to live for—she’d had Jenny. Hannah Green had nothing.

“Thanks for lettin’ me get that load off my chest,” Hannah said. “Needed to tell somebody. Guess I been needin’ to for years.”

“You’re welcome,” Joanna said.

“Come on now,” Ernie Carpenter urged, taking Hannah by the elbow and propelling her forward. “We’ve got to get moving.”

Joanna walked them outside. When she came back into the house, she could smell something burning. Out in the kitchen, the pot with the potatoes in it had burned dry. “Damn!” she exclaimed, dashing for the kitchen. “There goes dinner.”

Dick Voland followed her into the kitchen and then stood leaning against the kitchen counter as she rinsed what was left of the scorched potatoes and rescued the pork chops from being burned to a crisp.

“This is a nice place you’ve got here,” Voland observed, looking around the efficient but spacious kitchen.

“Thank you,” Joanna said. “You’ve never been here before, have you?” Voland shook his head. “Well,” Joanna said, “I can’t take any credit for it. My in-laws are the ones who did the kitchen remodel.”

Voland nodded. “It is a long way out of town.”

Joanna stopped stirring the gravy and stared up at her chief deputy. She didn’t have to be psychic to know where he was going on this one. “It’s not that far,” she said.

“But what if Jenny hadn’t been smart enough to call me and let me know what was happening? What would you have done then?”

Joanna went back to the gravy. “I would have thought of something,” she said. “Actually, I don’t think we were ever in any real danger. It may have been scary at the time, but Hannah Green wasn’t armed. She didn’t try to do either Jenny or me any harm.”

“But she could have,” Voland countered. “And so could any other crazy who might choose to show up here.”

“What are you saying?”

Voland shrugged. “With a house like this, on some acreage with your own well, you could probably sell it in a minute. Maybe buy something in town.

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