Riddles & Rivals (The Bisbee Bachelors’ Club Book 5) by K. Sterling

Author:K. Sterling [Sterling, K.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Bawdy Books
Published: 2021-06-29T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 19

“I never thought I’d say this, but, poor guy,” Baxter said to himself as he dropped so he could check under the bed with his phone’s flashlight.

He finally understood and appreciated why Mercer wanted The Hathaway House leveled and cleared away. And Baxter certainly understood why Mercer hadn’t shared his suspicions about his mother. That would be a hell of a scandal and result in wild speculation and gossip about the Hathaways. Who the hell was it if it wasn’t Teresa Hathaway? Baxter wondered. Mercer’s father, Warren, died when they were teenagers and Baxter remembered him as being cold, entitled, short-tempered... Just like Mercer. But Baxter barely remembered Teresa. She’d attended Mass a few times when they were very young children but those were the only times Baxter saw Mercer’s mother. There were rumors that she was sickly and wanted to leave Warren Hathaway because of what went on in the house but she succumbed to illness when Mercer was in kindergarten.

There was nothing under the bed so Baxter pushed off the rug and hopped to his feet. He thought back and found his first memory of Mercer as he flipped up the bedding and shoved his hands between the mattresses and Baxter’s heart sank.

The Hathaways always took the first row at Mass and Baxter was curious about the pale, scowling boy with the jet black hair. He’d peek over his shoulder now and then and Baxter would wave but he never waved back. Mercer dropped something and slid off the pew to get it and the old woman next to him snatched his ear and pulled him right back into his seat. Baxter never saw Mercer move again, whenever they attended a service together. Even as an adult, Mercer sat with his back straight and never moved a muscle until he was told.

Baxter was beginning to sense that Mercer’s rigidity and his need to control were actually manifestations of trauma and defense mechanisms. He was raised to be obedient and do his duty and Mercer probably felt safest if he was in control. And Baxter couldn’t fathom how damaging it would be for Mercer to learn at such a young age that his mother didn’t love him.

“There has to be something,” he murmured as he flipped through the books on the bedside table. Mercer’s grandmother kept a bible and collections of scriptures and sermons but Baxter didn’t see anything remarkable in any of them so he moved on to her writing desk. The drawers were emptied, save for her calendar and address book. Baxter flipped through the calendar and there were several mentions of Leland, Margaret and Mercer so he decided it would go downstairs. He thought the address book might be useful as well so he tossed them on the bed then squatted to get a better look at the desk’s drawers. He started on the bottom left and used his flashlight to check each one for a false bottom or back. He had just about given

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