No Alibi by Valerie Hansen

Author:Valerie Hansen
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Steeple Hill
Published: 2009-02-15T00:00:00+00:00

Logan Malloy did not come to Smith’s house alone. By the time Julie Ann wheeled into his driveway, the pastor and his wife, Becky, were both waiting.

Becky ran to Julie Ann and gave her a sisterly hug. “Oh, honey, we heard about the shooting. What a terrible thing. Are you all right?”

“I’m a lot better than Smith is,” she said, circling the SUV to join him and Logan.

“She’s right about that.” Smith led the way toward his covered front porch. “Let’s go inside so I can put on a clean shirt and get washed up. Then I’ll tell you everything.”

He hadn’t intended to conduct a strategy meeting but since that was how it was turning out, he invited everyone to gather around the dining room table, share his pizza and listen to the whole story. He’d known little about Logan’s past other than he had not always been a pastor. Now that they had discussed the events surrounding the shooting, however, Smith was amazed at the other man’s calm expertise.

When Logan concluded his opinion by saying, “I think you should both back off and let the sheriff handle it,” Smith could see that Julie Ann was far from convinced.

“I don’t think Ms. Jones is in agreement,” Smith remarked, smiling at her to soften his criticism. “She’s already told me she intends to investigate on her own.”

Logan frowned. “That would be very unsafe and also unwise. The judge determines what evidence is shown to the jury, and if there is a connection, any efforts on your part could disqualify you and ruin everything.”

Smith thought the pastor’s words might have had the desired effect until Logan’s wife, Becky, chimed in with, “Oh, hush. That was the same thing you told me when I was having problems with Aunt Effie and that all turned out okay.”

Her husband gave her a sobering look. “Only because Effie wasn’t really a criminal and your father wasn’t out to get you, Becky. This situation is totally different. Julie Ann and Smith are facing real bullets and it seems to me that staying out of it as much as possible is the only sensible course of action.”

“Out of it?” Julie Ann sounded irate. “How much can we stay out of anything when trouble is chasing us all over the Ozarks? Smith didn’t tell you about the bullet holes in the window of my shop or how my tires were flattened. And all that happened first.”

Logan steepled his fingers, looking thoughtful before he said, “All right. Tell you what I’ll do. I personally think Harlan is straight. Just in case, however, I’ll have some of my old friends in law enforcement look into the justice system here. I may not be able to share that information with you, but I will be able to better advise you.”

Julie Ann eyed Smith. “Do you really think he’ll be able to stay on the jury? I mean, what about his injury?”

“I can serve with my arm in a sling,” Smith said. “As long as I’m not taking the pain pills I don’t think it will disqualify me.

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