I took a deep breath and decided to play out the scenario and hope Leslie gave me an opening. “You see where he was, not with me, right?” I sneered at Sherry. “What he sees in that, I just don’t get.”
“You little tramp. I’m twice the woman you’d ever think to be.” Sherry was hot. Apparently she hadn’t gotten the memo. If I hadn’t been playing with life and death, this could have been a little bit fun.
“Whatever. You couldn’t keep Greg, then you couldn’t keep Kent satisfied. No wonder he went looking.” I watched Leslie nod in agreement.
“That’s why she killed him.” Leslie pulled out a piece of folded-up notebook paper. “It says so right here. She was tired of his philandering and had to stop him, one way or the other.”
“You were going to set up Sherry,” I whispered, understanding why Leslie was here and why she’d left the bank wide open. Any law enforcement type worth his salt would be safeguarding the bank, which gave her plenty of time to fake Sherry’s suicide.
“I sent her that text, thinking she would be arrested when they found his body, but your boyfriend ignored her visit. This plan would have worked, too, but when I got her tied up, the hero had to walk in to save the day.” Leslie rubbed her face with her free hand, the note flapping with the motion. “Now, how will I explain away the rest of you?”
“You could let me go.” My words surprised even me. “I wouldn’t tell anyone. Sherry deserves this, and well, I guess Greg made his bed, so he can sleep in it.”
“Nice try, but I can’t let you go. You’d tell that cute little barista-part-time-cop.” Leslie leaned forward. “The girls say he’s quite the playboy.”
Before I could respond, Leslie grunted and her eyes widened as she began to shake, then drop to the ground. Toby stood behind her, a stun gun in his hand. When she fell, he ran toward her, kicking the gun aside. He rolled the incapacitated Leslie onto her side and handcuffed her. When he pulled her to a sitting position, he said, “Reformed playboy.”
I fumbled with the fabric belts she’d used to tie Greg’s hands behind his back while Toby freed Sherry. Once I untied the knot, Greg pulled me into a hug. “I was so worried about you. The woman was crazy.”
“She just wanted the person who hurt her friend to pay for his crime. In a way, I get her.” I took a deep breath of the musky smell of Greg. “I’m glad this is over.”
“Wait, I thought you were mad at him.” Sherry pointed a finger at me. “You wanted to help her kill me.”
“Wouldn’t have been the worst idea,” I mumbled. Greg shot me a look.
“Jill was keeping Leslie busy until Toby could get here.” He considered his deputy. “Why are you here and not at the bank?”
“Tim’s at the bank. He called in Mrs. LaRue and she’s down there now, figuring out if Leslie did any damage.” Toby grinned. “When I saw your truck at Vintage Duds and listened to Jill’s message, I figured I’d better get over here and save you. I just thought Jill would have been the one beating you down.”
“Thanks for the vote of confidence.” With Greg’s arm around me, I felt like I could do anything. I laid my head on his shoulder, thankful the night had turned out as well as it had. If Toby hadn’t checked his messages, or if Leslie had shot without trying to figure out a new plan, the night could have turned out very differently.
“I never doubted you,” Greg whispered in my ear.
I checked my watch and smiled. “We still have time to make the dress rehearsal.”
CHAPTER 24
I’d just started pulling the tables and chairs into a conference setting when Greg arrived. He took a table I’d been struggling with and moved it with ease. “You get the chairs, I’ll move the tables.”
“Fine, go all Tarzan on me.” I arranged a few chairs, then looked at him. “I don’t remember inviting you to the meeting. You here for a purpose?”
“Bill actually asked me to come and talk about the neighborhood watch program we’re thinking about setting up for the businesses. That way I don’t always have to be the one rescuing you.”
I pointed my finger at him. “I rescued you this time.”
“Children, don’t fight.” Aunt Jackie brought over a rag to wash down the tables, again. “Greg, I wanted to thank you for helping Mary get her money back. You really are a blessing.”
“No problem. When the guy figured out that Mary’s transaction was the only one we could pin on him, he started talking like the whole thing was a mistake and his commitment to customer service was so important.” Greg moved the final table and then arranged the last of the chairs around it. “Are you going to have enough spots? There must have been thirty people at the meeting Sherry hosted.”
“You never know when to shut up, do you?” I smiled and put my arm around him. “Actually, Sasha called every business and got a head count. We have more than enough chairs.”