“Why don’t you guys call it a day? I’m sure Stacy and Anna picked your brain all afternoon about the construction.” Wyatt placed his hand on Jeremy’s shoulder as he watched the ladies head toward the house.
“Is she all right, Wyatt? I mean, is she in some kind of trouble?” Anthony asked and Wyatt looked at Jeremy then Anthony before he glanced toward the women as they headed for the porch.
“It’s not my place to say, but thanks for your concern.”
“She seems real nice and Anna and Stacy talk about her a lot,” Anthony added.
“Yeah, they’ve been friends for many years. All three of them went through a lot of hard times back in New York.”
“Well, Pearl is an amazing place. You let us know if you need anything. We’d get here in a flash, Wyatt,” Anthony offered, and Wyatt smiled.
“Thanks.”
Jeremy folded up the blueprints and got into the truck as Anthony got behind the wheel and they headed out of the Triple C.
They were quiet as Anthony drove the truck.
“She was real pretty wasn’t she, Anthony?” Jeremy asked as he looked out across the open land and wondered about Millie.
“She sure was. Seemed real sweet and timid, though.”
Jeremy nodded his head in agreement.
“Did you hear what Anna and Stacy said to her back there? The part about him not finding her here?” Anthony asked.
“Sure did. Kind of makes me wonder if she’s running from trouble.”
“Well, if she is, there’s no safer place than Pearl. Not with so many deputies and cowboys looking out for women and children.”
Just then, they passed by Marie Lamorte’s place.
“At least she’s staying with Anna and Stacy,” Anthony stated.
“She’s not staying with them. She’s staying in that cottage on Marie’s ranch.”
Anthony turned toward his brother with a scowl on his face.
“All alone? Marie and Ron are away, right?”
“Yep.”
“Well, maybe we’ll be sure to stop in and see Millie just to make sure she’s okay.”
Jeremy smiled. He was all for that. Any chance to get another gander at Millie would make his day.
Chapter 5
“So let me understand this correctly, Millie. Detective Flynn said he couldn’t do anything and that it might be wise to take the vacation while he checks things out unofficially?” Wyatt asked as they all sat around the porch. It was Anna, Stacy, Wyatt, Ben, Charlie, Eric, and Max.
Millie nodded.
“I got the phone call on my way home from the awards dinner. He sounded so close by. It gave me the chills and my gut instinct was to run, but I didn’t. I called Flynn and he said he would check things out. He confirmed that Frank was released early on good behavior and under the personal recommendation of his therapist. I waited out the weekend and then…”
Millie took a deep breath and tried to control her emotions. The thought that Stewart made her boss fire her still irked her.
“Then what? What happened?” Anna asked.
“I got fired Monday morning over the phone.”