had she told Kate?
Well, that didn’t matter. She could deny everything Kate said. But it had all gone wrong. She’d thought her plan to lay the blame on Parker was perfect, but it had unraveled. And then Kate had taken one look at the photograph of Alexis and known she was Josie’s child.
Anger propelled Penny back across the narrow room. Fine place this was for a Brighton—holed up in a cheap hotel room, on the run from the police, instead of living the life of luxury that was hers by right.
There were so many people to blame that she didn’t know where to start. Her parents. The child she’d thought would guarantee her proper place in the world. All those self-righteous people from school. If they’d never gotten together again at that reunion, would any of this have happened?
Still, she’d known all along that things might turn sour. She’d taken what precautions she could. There was the car no one would trace to Penny Brighton Kessler, the change in her appearance. She ruffled her fingers through short curls. She’d always wondered what she’d look like as a redhead.
Cash was the problem. The amount she’d had hidden away wasn’t enough. It wouldn’t get her out of the country, or set her up properly in the way she ought to live.
The anger burned again—sharper, more focused now. Mason Grant had money. And Mason was as responsible as anyone. Ten years ago he’d ignored her and then had an affair with Josie, as stupid as she was naive.
Well, it was time Mason repaid her for taking care of his kid all these years. And if she could arrange for that, and hurt interfering Jennifer Pappas in the process, so much the better. If Jennifer hadn’t tipped Kate and Parker off to her—
If, if, if. She forced down the fury that threatened to choke her. She couldn’t let it get the better of her. No more acting on impulse. She’d plan this carefully, and this time she’d wind up set for life.
The child was the key. Her parents had cut her off without a cent, but they loved Alexis, and would love her even when they knew she wasn’t really their grandchild. She’d never get her hands on the trust fund they’d talked of setting up for Alexis, not when she was on the run, but if dear old Momma and Daddy thought Alexis was in danger, they’d come up with the cash.
And Mason? Well, she had to admit that he was the unknown factor in all of this. Would he go straight to the police? Or would he try to keep his secret?
If so, he should be willing enough to pay for the privilege. And if not, if he had some bizarre idea of being a father to the child he’d never known about, so much the better. If she controlled Alexis, they’d all dance to her tune.
She wanted to move. Act. Drive to that expensive boarding school where her parents kept the kid and take her away.
Too dangerous. The police could be watching the school, thinking she’d do just that.
She had to be patient. She’d start laying the groundwork—show Mason just how much he had to lose if he didn’t cooperate with her.
He was vulnerable in spite of his wealth, in spite of the chain of sporting-goods stores that bore his name. The child, his precious reputation, the attachment he’d been forming with Jennifer since the reunion, these were his weaknesses.
She’d make him pay. The taste of revenge was sweet in her mouth. She’d make them all pay before she was done.
THREE
Jennifer checked the supplies in the art room for the after-school program in the church education wing, trying to focus on something other than the news about Penny and the child who might be Josie’s. And on Mason’s reaction to that news.
It was no use. She’d just counted the stacks of construction paper four times, and the amount still hadn’t registered. She may as well give in to the temptation to speculate on the news like everyone else.
They’d all been upset. After all, their little group had known Penny and Josie better than most people. Despite the police’s attempt at discretion, rumors were all over town, most of them garbled versions of what they’d heard at the pizzeria.
Everyone was upset. So why did Mason’s reaction bother her?
The classroom door opened, and Pastor Rogers poked his head in. “Am I disturbing you?”
She smiled. “Not unless counting construction paper is more important than I think it is. Come in.”
“I won’t be a minute. Is everything going all right?” Robert Rogers gave her the warm, interested smile that drew people to Magnolia Christian Church and kept them coming back again and again. Showing Christ’s love wasn’t just a credo to Rob Rogers; it was an all-encompassing way of life.
“I’m doing fine, thanks to your willingness to give me a chance.”
Affection for the big, burly minister warmed her heart. He hadn’t changed much in ten years—maybe another gray hair or two, maybe an extra pound or so around the middle, that was all.
He shook his head. “You’re an asset to the staff, Jennifer. I knew you would be. You don’t have to keep thanking me for doing something that was good for all of us.”
She flushed slightly. The praise was welcome, but they both knew that he’d taken a chance in hiring her. Other people might not be as quick to accept her innocence as he had been.
“Well, I just wanted to see—” He started to turn away, then turned back, slapping his head. “Honestly, I’ll have to start putting sticky notes on my sleeve. I came down here to tell you that Mason Grant called. He’s on his way over with some equipment he said he’s donating to the after-school program.”
“That’s great.” She’d see Mason, and she’d realize that there was nothing unusual about his reaction.
“I told him you’d meet him at the gym door. I hope that’s okay.” He beamed. “I’m sure we have you to thank for this donation. Mason hasn’t shown any interest in the program in the past.”
She shrugged. “I asked him, that was all. I’m sure he’d have responded the same way to anyone else from the church.”
Or was she? Mason’s faith, or lack of it, was a mystery to her, like so much else about his life.
“Must go.” Pastor Rob raised his hand in a gesture vaguely reminiscent of a benediction. “I have a worship committee meeting and I’m probably late already.” He hurried out, perpetually late but always forgiven because people knew that when he was there, they had his undivided love and attention.
She gave the room another glance. It wasn’t easy to make the switch from the preschoolers who occupied it in the morning’s nursery school to the elementary and middle school kids who swarmed in for the after-school program, but she and her volunteers had it down to an art by this time.
She hurried out into the hallway, passing the colorful murals she’d added to the cement block walls. Fanciful animals, two by two, marched all the way down one wall, headed for the ark at the end where Noah waited for them. On the opposite side, images of Jesus’s miracles filled in the walls between the classroom doors.
The gym was in the basement of the old education building, which had
