Free The Right Call by Kathy Herman Page B

married?
    “The weather’s gorgeous.” Vanessa looked up at the bluebird sky, her shiny dark hair falling down to the middle of her back. “I’m so glad I’ve got you for the summer.”
    “You’ve got me, all right.” He smiled. “Will you look at that view?”
    Beyond the rolling green terrain of the park, the spring foothills were cloaked in blue-white haze, the Great Smoky Mountains barely visible in the distance.
    He drank in the beauty for a moment, then walked over and stood under the tree. He handed Carter to Vanessa and took the quilt and spread it on the ground.
    Vanessa set Carter on the blanket and sat next to him. How did she get her figure back to almost perfect after gaining thirty pounds when she was pregnant?
    Ethan sat cross-legged facing Vanessa and watched Carter dump the contents of his toolbox on the blanket.
    “Did you ask your uncle if you could get off at six?” Vanessa’s clear blue eyes were provocative.
    “I did. No problem. I just need to go in every morning at six.”
    “You’re really going to work twelve-hour days?”
    He took her hand. “Sure, I need the money. You know what it’s costing me to go to college. I’ll be paying for it the rest of my life.”
    “I’m saving a fortune by taking online classes,” Vanessa said. “I’m just glad I didn’t have to quit. I need my teaching degree so I can take care of this little scamp.”
    Ethan looked at the beautiful baby on the blanket. Reddish hair. Bright blue eyes. Angelic smile. He looked like his mother and not at all like Professor Nicholson. He shuddered to think how different each of their lives would be had Vanessa allowed Nicholson to pressure her into getting an abortion.
    “So you start working Monday?”
    “Yes, we’re going to lay the foundations for Misty Meadows.”
    “Will you be working with the same crew?”
    Ethan stroked her hair. “Just Stedman Reeves. Everyone else is new.”
    “He’s the guy you worked with last summer, right?”
    “Uh-huh. Uncle Ralph asked him to take me under his wing, and we really hit it off. I’m looking forward to finding out what he’s been up to.”

Chapter 9
    Early Saturday evening, Brill and Trent sat across from a frazzled Cynthia Davison at the oblong table in the second interview room. Her flight had been grounded overnight in Dallas due to bad weather. And it had taken her until noon to book another flight, which just added to her fragility.
    Brill glanced at her watch and hoped no one heard her stomach rumbling. “Ms. Davison, would you like something to drink? We’re not quite finished, but we’ll wrap this up as quickly as we can.”
    “I don’t want anything to drink. I want to know why my son was gunned down on the sidewalk.” Cynthia dabbed her eyes. “What kind of community is this?”
    “A very nervous one,” Brill said. “No one will rest until your son’s killer is caught. We just have a few more questions. The gentleman you were in New York with, Chance Brouchard. What kind of relationship did he have with Tal?”
    “None. Chance hadn’t met Tal yet. That was supposed to happen this summer.” Cynthia pushed her wilted hair out of her face. “They were so much alike. I was hoping Chance would be the father figure Tal deserved. Win was such a bully.”
    “Have you spoken to your ex-husband?”
    “I spoke. It’s hard to say if Win heard a word I said. He’s too busy feeling sorry for himself. That’s just like him, though. He’ll be consumed with losing his namesake and he won’t even realize that he isn’t the only person who’s lost something precious.”
    Brill folded her hands on the table. “Tell me about your relationship with Tal.”
    “We were close. I raised him by myself.” Cynthia put her fist to her mouth and choked back the emotion. “I thought I would die when he went off to college. I felt so alone. So unneeded. I struggled with depression and saw a counselor. He said I needed to fill the void with something