Page 77 of Buried Too Deep

Alice leaned against his shoulder. “Me too. Now. Then, I was desperate to get out.”

“And law enforcement was no help?” Cora guessed.

Alice’s mouth twisted bitterly. “Jarred was from a wealthy family. He could get away with anything. And then one day, when Jarred was in town, this man knocked on the door. It was your father. He claimed to be doing a political poll. I was instantly suspicious until he surreptitiously showed me the letter from my parents as he was going on about the candidate up for reelection. The letter said that I was to listen to this man. He’d get me out and I’d get a new ID. A new life. I’d move east. So I listened to him.”

“No affair?” Cora asked, hopeful.

“No affair. Your dad’s plan was simple. I was to pack up one backpack’s worth of things I’d need and leave the pack in the woods behind our house. He gave me some powder to put into Jarred’s coffee so that he’d go to sleep and I could sneak out. Then I was to wait for your father in the woods.”

“But something went wrong?” Phin asked.

Alice sighed. “Yes. Somebody snitched. Probably one of the ranch hands. After my parents’ attempt to take me home with them, Jarred had me watched. I don’t think that Jarred knew your father was trying to help me escape. I think he honestly thought I was cheating on him. He beat me so badly that I was unconscious. I missed the pickup, and your father came knocking again the first time that Jarred left the property, a few days later. He took one look at my face and told me to come now. Not to worry about a backpack. He had me lie down in the back of his car and he drove. We stopped at the gun store on the way out of town and he bought the ammo. He already had a rifle. Then he stopped at a drugstore and bought bandages. Unfortunately, he didn’t see Jarred lurking.”

“Your husband was following you?” Cora guessed.

“He was. Your dad drove me to a hunting cabin he’d rented. He told me stories about Louisiana, about you and your brother, Cora. About your mother. He kept talking to keep me relaxed because I was still in bad shape. He hadn’t even gotten the car stopped in front of the cabin when Jarred started shooting, but your dad was so calm. He stopped the car, took that rifle, told me to keep my head down, and fired one shot. Jarred was dead.”

“Which put Alice in a bad place,” Richard said. “If she disappeared then, she’d be suspected for his murder. Her face would be everywhere and cops would be looking for her. Starting over would have been even harder.”

“So your father created an alibi for me. Jarred had already told everyone that I was cheating on him. So your father just used that. He took me to a tiny little roadside motel outside Salt Lake City and left for a few hours. When he came back, I had an alibi. I was supposedly with a man in a fancy hotel in downtown Salt Lake. I think our local sheriff doubted the story because I was so beaten up, but the alibi was so solid, he didn’t have much of a choice. Jarred’s family insisted I’d done it, but the hotel manager in Salt Lake City swore I was there. I don’t know how your father got him to swear that I was there. I was cleared, which meant I could leave Idaho as a free woman—with an inheritance. I got the ranch and everything that went with it, much to the consternation of Jarred’s family. Everyone thought I was a whore, but I didn’t care. I just wanted out. I sold the ranch and moved east.”

“You and your parents came to Baton Rouge,” Phin said. “Why here?”

Alice smiled genuinely for the first time. “Cora’s father made Louisiana sound so wonderful. We stayed in that roadside hotel overnight, so that I was recovered enough to walk unassisted the next day. He just kept talking to me. That’s when he showed me the photo of his family. He called your mother once. I could hear how much he loved her. He told her he was in Baton Rouge with a client, and that sounded like a nice place. I didn’t know he was from New Orleans, but I knew it was somewhere in the south because of his accent. I honestly just liked the sound of Baton Rouge. My parents had used all the money they got from the insurance on their house that burned down to pay for your father to hide me, but by then I had the money from the ranch, so we got a place together. I changed my name from Bergeron to my maiden name, which was Smith. I didn’t change it again until I married Richard.” She shrugged. “That’s all.”

That’s all? Cora’s mind was spinning. “I don’t even know what to ask.”

“I do,” Phin said. “What about Jarred’s parents? You said they were influential. Jack Elliot was killed only two weeks after he killed your husband. Could they have found out about what Jack did and killed him?”

Cora sucked in a breath. Good question.

Alice flinched. “I never considered that. I didn’t know he was dead until two weeks ago. I suppose it’s possible, but I don’t know how you’d find out. They both died ten years ago. But they left me alone after I moved and they didn’t fight my inheriting everything from Jarred. They tried to, because they said I was cheating on their son, but your father had given me something else—photos of my injuries. I hadn’t had any of those before. Every time I went to the hospital, any records were somehow ‘lost.’ But your father gave me photos from when he’d rescued me. I showed them to his parents and said that I’d go public. That their reputation would be ruined. I’d already reported Jarred to the local police and nothing had happened, but I’d go to a big newspaper and tell them. Jarred’s folks were furious, but their reputation was important to them, so they let me go. I told them that if anyone in my new town got wind of who I’d been in Idaho, I’d bring out that photo. Your father had told me to put it in a safe-deposit box, which I did. He was a good man, your father. I’m alive today because of him. I’m so sorry about what happened to him.”

Phin nodded. “Mrs. VanPatten, how did your parents find out about Cora’s father to begin with? It’s not like he would have advertised in the newspaper.”

Another good question, Cora thought, glad that she’d asked Phin to come along.

“I don’t know,” Alice said. “I asked once, and my father changed the subject.”

“Does he still live nearby?” Cora asked.

Alice shook her head. “He died five years ago. Mom’s gone, too. I only asked him that one time. I realized that if anyone found out what he’d done, he could be in a lot of trouble. He’d risked a lot for me. So I…let it go.”

Cora understood but wished Alice had pushed a little harder for the truth. “Thank you for telling me. I wasn’t prepared to learn that my father had this other life, but at least he was helping people who needed it.” A sliver of doubt entered her mind. “He did just help people who needed it, didn’t he?”

“I don’t know,” Alice said honestly. “He didn’t seem like he was the kind of man to do illegal things for bad people, but I don’t know.”

“Did your father leave any papers behind?” Phin pressed. “Anything we can use to learn more about what Cora’s father was doing? It’s likely that if he offered this same service to other people, someone killed him for it. Ever since his body was discovered, Cora hasn’t been safe.”

Alice shook her head. “Richard and I wondered if my father left any explanations when he died. We’ve been through all the papers he left behind at least twice, and we’ve found nothing. My father was big on shredding and burning sensitive documents.”

“What did your father do for a living?”

“He was a lawyer. He practiced family law until the day he died. He believed in the law until it didn’t protect me. He was jaded after that. He did a lot of pro bono work for women who’d been in my shoes.”

Cora managed a smile. “It was worth a try.”

“Did Cora’s father work alone?” Phin asked. “Did your parents maybe deal with someone other than Cora’s father? It seems like a lot of details for one man to manage.”

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