Page 129 of The Change
Nessa glanced over at her. “Fine,” she said, and Harriett cackledin triumph. But when she pulled up in front of Harriett’s house a few minutes later, they found a familiar Mercedes parked in the driveway. Chase Osborne leaned against the trunk, looking pasty and hungover.
“Ugh,” Harriett grumbled at the sight of her guest. “I had a feeling he’d show up. His conscience always briefly kicks in after he does something shitty.”
“Are you going to kill him?” Nessa asked.
“No,” Harriett replied, as though the result wouldn’t be worth the effort. “If I killed people for being morons, I would have murdered Chase years ago.” She opened the door and slid out. “But I’ll give you a shout if I need any help with a body.”
After Nessa drove off, Harriett greeted Chase with all the enthusiasm she would have shown a chin hair. When they’d first met in their twenties, he’d seemed like such a fascinating mystery. Unfortunately, it hadn’t taken long to solve it. By the time they were married, Harriett had realized that everything he did was completely predictable. He valued money, sex, status, and food—in that order. Chase was a very simple creature.
“What in the hell is going on here?” he asked her. “When I pulled up about thirty minutes ago, there were policemen in the garden, and all of them were screaming. Then ambulances arrived and rushed them away.”
“Did any of them go near the compost heap?” Harriett asked.
“Not that I know of,” Chase said.
“Then I forgive you. Go home.”
“I don’t understand. Are you saying this is all my fault somehow?”
“I know you narced on me, Chase. That’s pretty despicable, even by your standards.”
Either he’d invested in acting lessons or Chase was genuinely shocked by the accusation. “What are you talking about?” he asked.
“I’ve spent the last couple of hours in a cell at the Mattauk police station. The chief of police told me that you personally informed him I was selling mushrooms out of my home.”
“What? I didn’t—” He went pale. “That guy was the chief of police?”
“How did that fact escape you?” Harriett asked.
“He wasn’t in uniform!” Chase said. “He was wearing shorts and a polo shirt! I wouldn’t turn you in to the police. Do you think I’m that stupid?”
“Yes,” she said honestly.
“I was drunk, and I was talking to Jackson—”
“Jackson Dunn?” Of course. It was starting to make perfect sense.
“He’s the reason I’m out here on the island. He invited me to stay for Labor Day weekend. Last night, he had a small party. Just a few of the boys. I was talking to Jackson and another guy when your name came up—and the weed problem on the Pointe. Jackson said you had a way with plants, and I may have made a joke about you growing crazy shit in your garden. I never thought anyone there would use the information against you. It’s not like Jackson and his friends are upstanding citizens. In fact—” He paused, looking terrified.
“Tell me,” Harriett ordered.
“That’s why I came to see you. Last night Jackson asked if I’d be interested in a girl for tonight.”
“A girl?”
Chase had suddenly gone pale. “I was drunk,” he said. “But I got the sense that he was talking about something sketchy.”
“What did you say?” Harriett asked.
“I said okay.”
“You saidokay?”
“I was drunk, and he’s the man who pays my fucking bills, Harriett. I have a baby on the way, I can’t—” He stopped.
“Congratulations,” Harriett said, surprised that she felt nothing. It seemed that wound had healed nicely. “You’ve successfully passed your DNA to a new generation.”
“I’m sorry. That’s not how I meant to tell you.”
