“So, then what happened?” I ask, steering the conversation back to the point.
“No one knows who ratted Mack out, but the chief of police showed up at the Bradley house the day after the necklace was stolen, asked Mack to open the glove compartment of his truck, andbam!There the necklace was.” Ginny shrugged. “Not the smartest idea to leave it there, if you ask me.”
“Sounds like a set-up if you ask me,” Rose muttered.
My sister reads a ton of mystery novels, so she would know. I can’t help but agree with her.
“Mack admitted to taking the necklace, though,” Ginny says. “The chief of police, who, I should mention, is also Tricia’s dad, let him off easy. Lucky for Mack, he was only seventeen, so a minor. He was also different back then.”
“Different how?” I ask.
“Charming. Happy-go-lucky. Not sure if you’ve noticed, but he’s sort of…how should I put this…” Ginny pauses, as if searching for the right word.
“Surly,” Rose suggests, flipping her gaze to me.
“Yeah, that’s it.” Ginny nods.“Anyway, he admitted his guilt and returned the necklace to the jeweler, who agreed not to take it any further as long as Mack completed one hundred hours of community service. Mack happily obliged, and that was that.”
“Okay,” I say. “None of that explains Mack’s and Tricia’s responses to each other last week. It was hostile, to put it mildly—at least on her end.”
“Of course it was.” Ginny nods knowingly. “There’s nothingmildbetween Mack and Tricia, and this is where the story gets good. Those two started dating shortly after necklace-gate. They were together our senior year, and then well after high school. Mack stayed close to home here, working as an apprentice electrician, and Tricia went to school in Green Bay. Everyone thought they were going to get married and live happily ever after. Tricia talked about it all the time. She was counting down the days to the proposal. But then”—Ginny pauses and leans forward—“they broke up. Mack fled town, and word circulated that Tricia had found him in bed with another woman.”
Rose and I both sit back in our chairs. This hits close to home. We have it on good authority that Nelson has cheated on Noli. Noli refuses to believe it, but Rose and I do.
“So his reputation was basically gutted after this all went down,” Ginny continues.
“He’s been blacklisted ever since, from what I’ve been able to tell,” Inez supplies.
“Did he have anything to say for himself?” I ask Ginny.
“That’s just it. You’d think he’d try to refute the claim or make an excuse. Defend himself. Something. But Mack turned inward. He got quiet and aloof.”
“Surly,” Rose and I say together.
“Most people think he’s a prisoner to his own guilt. That’s why he never fights Tricia on things around town. He takes a wide berth, like he’s trying not to run into her, but when they inevitably collide, he ends up fleeing. Just like all those years ago. He hasn’t dated anyone since. He’s a certified bachelor.”
Rose lets out a low whistle.
Holland’s words about Mack making his bed and lying in it ring in my ears alongside Darla’s. His own family has given up on Mack. That makes me sad.
“You’re both Team Tricia, then?” I ask.
Ginny shrugs. “There isn’t any other team to be on, is there?”
Inez avoids my gaze. Rose picks up on her shiftiness too and zeroes in on the café owner, channeling her best mystery novel amateur sleuth. “You look like you have other thoughts on the matter.”
Inez gives a wry grin. “I’ve heard the legend of Mack Bradley’s demise since I came to town, but I don’t know. I hate judging someone for their past. I mean, I get it. Cheating on your long-time girlfriend is terrible. But is that what happened?” We all look at him, and Mack must sense our gaze, because he glances up.
I wave like an awkward elephant, and Mack furrows his brow.
We turn back to the table, and Inez lowers her voice. “Mack has been nothing but helpful as I launched this place. He brought all my electrical up to code in this building, and he gave me a steep discount. He’s also always willing to swing by when I have an issue—like today.” She nods at the counter. “All I’m saying is that he seems like a genuinely decent guy. I don’t think I’m the only one who thinks so either.”
I mull that over. “Interesting.”
“Just my two cents. I’ve got to get back to work.” Inez heads behind the counter, where Mack waves her over.
We’re silent for a second, watching the pair, and then Ginny clasps her hands together. “Anyway. Make of that what you will.”
“Thanks for filling us in on…everything,” Rose says, and I nod, my gaze still on Mack.
