“Rose.” Her voice was tight. “What are you doing sneaking around Joe’s house?”

Muffy sat back on her haunches and released a slow growl. My little dog was obviously a good judge of character, but she’d also given me an alibi.

“I took Muffy for a walk, and she took off running for Joe’s house.”

Hilary stood at the bottom of the steps, a foil-covered square casserole dish in her hand, a leather handbag slung from the crook of her elbow. “Have you never heard of a leash?”

I started toward the steps. “She usually sticks close to me, but she must have realized this was Joe’s house.” When Hilary’s eyes narrowed with disapproval, I couldn’t help adding, “She’s still very fond of Joe. When we were together, he treated her like she was his dog too.”

“Then maybe Joe should petition for joint custody.”

“Like he’s going to do with you for your baby?” The words were out of my mouth before I even considered them. But the hurt in her eyes made me instantly contrite. I walked down a couple of steps. “Look, Hilary. I’m sorry. That was a terrible thing to say.”

She lifted her chin, not even acknowledging my apology. “What are you doing here, Rose Gardner?”

“I told you.”

“That’s a lie and we both know it.”

I was sick to death of lying, so I didn’t bother to contradict her.

“You have Mason Deveraux. He’s a good man. Why can’t he be enough?” The pleading in her voice wrenched at something inside me. “You aren’t with Joe. Why can’t you leave him alone?”

“We’re just friends.”

Hate filled her eyes. “He will never be just friends with you.”

I wasn’t sure how to answer that. Though I hoped it wasn’t true, I knew there was a chance it might be.

“You need to leave him alone so he can move on.”

“With you?” I asked. “I’m not having this conversation again.” I tried to move off the steps to the ground, but she blocked my path.

Her eyes narrowed. “Don’t mess with me, Rose Gardner. If you think I’m a bitch now, you’ll wither like a hothouse rose before I’m done with you.” Her glare hardened. “Pun intended.”

I put my hands on my hips. “Are you threatenin’ me?”

“I’m sorry.” She put a hand on her chest. “Did I not make my threat clear enough?”

I shook my head. “I’m not afraid of you.”

“You should be. I’m ruthless.”

“Are you done now? For someone who wants me to leave, you sure are doin’ your darnedest to keep me here.”

“I just want to make sure I’ve gotten my point across.”

“Perfectly.”

Hilary took a step to the side. “You be careful walking home. I sure would hate for you to twist your ankle all alone out in those fields.”

Muffy released another low growl, followed by a cloud of noxious fumes. Hilary frantically waved her hand in front of her face, and for once, I was thankful for my dog’s quirk.

“Good God!” Hilary mumbled, blinking rapidly. “What is wrong with your dog?”

“There’s nothing wrong with Muffy,” I said with more sass than was usual for me. “She’s just an excellent judge of character.” I strode past Hilary, heading home.

I resisted the urge to look back at her, ruminating over our conversation instead. Did she have it in her to make good on her threat?

I wasn’t sure I wanted to find out, but now that I’d found my backbone, I wasn’t about to back down. If Hilary wanted a war, it was time to prepare myself for battle.

Chapter Fourteen

I pulled into a parking spot on the side of the Veterans Hall at 6:51. Neely Kate’s car was already in the lot and I wondered if I’d get in trouble for being late. It had taken me a while to gather my Lady in Black clothes.

I walked into the hall and spotted Neely Kate right away. Her granny was next to her and now sported pale blue hair. I wondered if she and Miss Mildred frequented the same hairdresser.

As I approached, Neely Kate and her grandmother were starting to set up miniature stuffed animal key chains around their Bingo cards. My friend glanced up and gave me a soft smile. She was still wearing the jeans and flannel shirt she’d worn earlier today, but her red and puffy eyes told me she’d done some major crying after I dropped her off at the doctor’s office. “Granny saved you a seat.” She pointed to the chair on the other side of her grandmother.

I waved to her grandmother. “Hi, Mrs. Rivers. Thanks for letting me play with you.” Neely Kate had told me that her grandmother was particular about who sat close to her. She firmly believed bad luck could seep from someone nearby and mess up her Bingo juju.

She obviously didn’t know about my usual misfortunes, or she would have banned me from the hall, let alone the table.

Mrs. Rivers waved her hand and resumed her task as Neely Kate walked around the table to greet me.

“How’d your doctor’s appointment go?” I asked, worried. “Is everything okay?”

“It was a routine appointment. You know how those things are.” She waved her hand to dismiss any further discussion, but I could tell something was off. “Granny says she has to sit between us. That the strength of our friendship will mess with her luck. She has to separate us.”