Burn (The Sinclair Falls Novels Book 1)

by Shae Mallak

  “Good afternoon,” Jonah greeted them. Hobbs shook his hand again, once again failing to offer me the same gesture. Was it a paranormal thing, snubbing women? If it were, why would he have a female partner? Maybe it was just me, then.

  “Greg mentioned on the phone something about new evidence?” Cutler said, striking straight to the point. I couldn’t fault her for being efficient, although her people skills were a bit lacking.

  “Yes,” Jonah nodded, walking around the desk again and sitting in Dad’s chair. He picked up my phone and held it out to me to play the voicemail for them. I moved to the side of the desk and dialed as Hobbs and Cutler came to stand opposite Jonah, making a little circle around the desk. I set the phone in the center and let the voicemail play on speaker for Hobbs and Cutler to hear.

  “Interesting,” Hobbs mused when it was done.

  “It’s hardly evidence for a murder case,” Cutler frowned at us. I scowled back at her, reflexively moving to Jonah’s side of the desk.

  “What’s all this?” Hobbs asked, gesturing to the array of papers between us, ignoring his partners remark.

  “Proof,” Jonah replied. “He was starting to try to fix it—really fix it this time,” he said, showing them some of the documents he showed Greg and me. “This changes things,” Jonah pointed out. “Knowing he was trying to get straight—it changes things.”

  “Meaning?” Cutler prompted.

  “Meaning,” Jonah sighed. “It wasn’t just a gambling night gone bad or something,” he said. Cutler and Hobbs both raised their eyebrows at him curiously. “Oh please, don’t look so surprised,” he scoffed. “You were both thinking it. But this proves there was more to it than that.”

  “Perhaps,” Hobbs said carefully.

  “If Dad was trying to change,” I spoke up, “There were probably at least a few people who were going to lose a really good customer,” I pointed out. “Maybe they got mad,” I suggested.

  “If—if,” Cutler emphasized, “Aberdeen was really going to change his stripes, there are plenty of other sops in Sinclair Falls to gamble their money away. It’s not a motive for murder, especially not when Jonah already paid the man’s debts. They’re already paid and satisfied. No,” she shook her head. “The only one who has anything to lose from Aberdeen jumping on the bandwagon is you, Jonah,” she said seriously.

  “What?” I gaped at her.

  Was she really implying that Jonah killed my dad? He would never—but he just told you he’d killed before, a nasty little voice reminded me.

  But he wouldn’t hurt me—and hurting my dad would hurt me. Jonah would know that. What could Jonah possibly get from my Dad’s death? If anything, the contract proved Jonah would only want Dad alive, right? With Dad dead, Jonah never got his money back and the deal was null and void. I read the thing myself!

  “I don’t see how that—“ I started to protest.

  “If Aberdeen was going to contest the contract,” Cutler said, pointing to one of the law documents, “You," she moved her finger to Jonah, “lose her,” she pointed to me. “Correct me if I’m wrong,” Cutler said evenly, “But you would do anything to keep that from happening.”

  I hated that her logic made sense and I hated that I had no good rebuttal. Based on Jonah’s silence, it was safe to say he didn’t have a good response to her accusation either.

  “Thank you, Carson,” Hobbs said finally, “For showing us what you found.”

  “You’ll probably want to have a look around the rest of the office,” Jonah said with measured calm. “There’s stuff tucked away everywhere; I didn’t go through everything.”

  “Thank you,” Hobbs nodded again. “We’ll have our team go through it all. They’ll want access to all his belongings,” Hobbs shifted his gaze to me. “Could we see his bedroom while we’re here?” he asked.

  “Oh, uh, yeah,” I nodded. I hadn’t been in there myself, but sure, let them stomp all over my parent’s possessions. “I’ll, uh, show you the way, then,” I said quietly.

  Jonah laid a hand on my shoulder. “I can show them, Ev,” he whispered. “It’s okay.” I nodded. It was hard enough being in the office. I couldn’t face all the memories from that room on top of it, not with Mom’s memories haunting it as well. Too much sadness in that room.

  “This way,” Jonah said to the officers. He bent and kissed the top of my head then stepped around the desk to show them both down the hall. I followed quietly behind them into the hallway, watching them go to the closed bedroom door and disappear inside.

  More tears threatened to spill so I turned and fled in the opposite direction. So much for facing it head on and not avoiding it all. They'd have to take my statement some other time; I couldn't stay up there while the police sniffed around Dad's stuff. I was being a coward but I honestly didn't care.

  Greg and the twins were in the living room, curled together on the sofa watching TV when I came down. I sank into a cushion and wrapped my arms around Addis. He was too big to crawl into my lap but he let me snuggle with him while I quietly cried and they watched Sunday cartoons.

  TWENTY-TWO

  It only took ten minutes for half a dozen more people to show up at the house, joining Hobbs and Cutler's search through Dad’s belongings. Greg wisely suggested taking the twins somewhere out of everyone’s way.

  “We can get something to eat or go to the park or something,” he said. “Do something besides sit around here.” I wholeheartedly agreed.

  “Can we go swimming?” Ava asked, giving us both her best pleading puppy-dog eyes. Addis immediately jumped on board the idea.

  “Yeah!” he echoed. “Let’s go swimming!”

  “City pool’s closed on Sundays,” I pointed out, not happy about having to burst their bubble. I loved seeing them both smiling, even if it was over something as silly and mundane as swimming.

  “Jonah has a pool at his place,” Greg said with a shrug. “I’m sure he wouldn’t care if we borrowed it. It’d be private and his security system is top notch, so he might even let you out of his sight for an hour or two,” he said with a smirk in my direction.

  “Yeah!” Addis and Ava both shouted happily. “A private pool!”

  “I bet he has all kinds of awesome stuff,” Addis grinned.

  “Which you will not touch without permission,” I warned them both in my Mom voice. “If he lets you in at all.”

  “Maybe if we ask reeeally nice,” Ava smiled brightly. I rolled my eyes. It was hard to resist Ava.

  “You can ask,” I said, gesturing upstairs where Jonah was watching over the police rummaging through the house.

  “But you have to come too!” Addis insisted, grabbing my hand and pulling me after them as they hurried upstairs to find Jonah. I stumbled behind them, their excitement infectious.

  Jonah was in the office again talking with Hobbs, both of them frowning at each other and talking in hushed but angry tones. I hesitated to approach them but Addis and Ava hopped right over, bouncing on their toes around him and singing his name.

  “Awfully happy kids, all things considered,” Hobbs grunted, eyeing the twins.

  “They heard Jonah has a pool,” I offered as explanation. Jonah chuckled.

  “Did they now?” he smirked. “I didn’t actually hear a question,” he prompted. “Or even a please.”

  “Please, please, please!” they both pleaded. “Can we use your pool!?”

  “I promise I won’t touch your stuff!” Addis added.

  “It’d be good to let them blow off some steam,” Greg put in helpfully. “And it’s private and secure,” he added, glancing at me pointedly. “Besides, they need to get away from all—" he gestured around us, indicating the slightly-organized chaos that followed Hobbs and Cutler into the house.

  “It’s actually a good idea,” Jonah agreed. The twins squealed in delight upon getting the answer they wanted then skipped out of the room to get their pool gear. “I can meet you guys there this evening for dinner,” he suggested. “After thi
s lot leave,” he hooked a thumb at Hobbs. “You—“ he pointed at Greg. “Don’t let them out of your sight.”

  “Wouldn’t dream of it,” Greg grinned, then followed after the twins, leaving me in the office with Jonah and the police.

  “We still need official statements from both of you,” Hobbs reminded. “Tomorrow might be a better time," he said, glancing around the room.

  “Yes,” Jonah nodded. “Tomorrow morning work?” he asked. Hobbs agreed and nodded in parting at both of us then moved across the room to talk to a couple of officers sifting through a couple filing cabinets. “Is that okay with you?” Jonah asked me.

  “What?” I blinked at him dumbly.

  “Spending the afternoon at my place,” he prompted. “Or would you rather stay here at the house?”

  “No,” I shook my head. “I think Greg is right, we need to get away from this and blow off some steam. Act a little normal in the midst of this mess.”

  “I agree,” Jonah replied. “I’ll take care of everything here,” he promised. “I’ll get you the key to the house and the codes so you can get in—just lock the door behind you when you arrive and reset the alarm panel for ‘at home’.”

  “Uh…” I wasn’t exactly terrible with technology but security systems were definitely foreign to me. I could hit a wrong button and have the rest of the city’s police at his door and holding guns in my face.

  Jonah laughed at my hesitancy. “I’ll write it down for you,” he offered. He found a piece of paper in the desk and wrote down the instructions and codes—“When you get there, shred this in the document shredder under the desk in my office,” he told me.

  “Uh…” I hesitated again.

  “Greg can show you where it’s at,” he smiled. He folded the sheet of paper and handed it to me. “One more thing,” he said with a serious face. “Try to relax,” he said. “Maybe have a little fun?”

  “I’ll do my best,” I replied. “No promises.”

  “See you tonight then—don’t forget your phone,” he said, reaching over and handing me the cell phone from where I left it in the middle of the desk earlier. His thumb activated the screen and it lit up showing three missed text messages from Trent. The only part I could read from the latest was -I miss u. I saw Jonah see them and winced when his gaze shot up to mine.

  “It’s not—“ I began. He pushed the phone into my hand with a dark look on his face. Why was it whenever things were going semi-nice between us something always ruined it? “Jonah,” I groaned.

  “I’ll see you tonight,” he repeated. It certainly wasn’t the time or place to discuss it but I hated leaving things badly between us…again.

  “Fine,” I sighed, relenting. “We’ll talk tonight then.” I tucked the phone away without looking at the other messages. Trent could wait a little longer. I stepped around the desk and laid my palm against Jonah’s cheek. It was rough from a few days of stubble and impossibly warm. It made me want to curl up against him and never leave his arms. “Promise?” I whispered. He covered my hand with his, holding it against his face for a second then removed it.

  “Don’t forget to shred the pass-codes,” he said, releasing my hand. I suddenly felt colder than I had in days.

  Twenty minutes later, we pulled into the driveway of Jonah's house. "Whoa!" Addis whistled appreciatively at the sleek, contemporary building in front of us. I was admittedly impressed myself; I should've known Jonah had a place in town—an expensive place in the rich part of town. I was fairly certain I recognized his neighbor from a recent movie.

  The house was two stories high and far more grand than the glass cottage—although with plenty of glass walls of its own to brag about. What was with Jonah's obsession with glass? It was like pulling up to a house covered in mirrors, the dark glass reflecting back at us the image of Greg's dirty Jeep and our haggard faces beyond the windshield.

  Greg pulled into the drive and I hopped out, unfolding the sheet of paper Jonah gave me from my pocket and carefully keying in the pass-code. The door slid open silently and I stepped aside for Greg to pull in next to the fancy sports car parked on the other side. And here I was thinking Jonah was modest and humble about his wealth. Hah!

  "Ava! Look!" Addis lit up when he saw the car.

  "Do not touch," I warned him. He pouted but didn't go closer, reluctantly turning away to follow us inside.

  It took me a few minutes to get the door unlocked, juggling keys, the paper with the passwords, and the pool bag full of Addis and Ava's stuff. They packed for a weekend getaway whenever they went swimming—goggles, extra sandals, diving toys, floaties, spare clothes, and an old bottle of sunscreen at the bottom of the bag we never used and never thought to throw out.

  The alarm was beeping furiously when we all finally stumbled inside. Ava and Addis both ran past me into the house at full speed, squealing over everything they saw.

  The alarm panel was a fancy touch screen device on the wall with a flashing red light. I dropped the bag and the keys on the floor and fumbled with the paper with the instructions Jonah wrote to help me find the manual override for his alarm system. Apparently, he usually just used his thumbprint. Of course he would have some fancy-shmancy spy-grade security system. To match the rest of the fancy house, obviously.

  "I better go make sure they don't break something," Greg chuckled, squeezing past me to chase after the twins. I chuckled and consulted the paper again to set the alarm to 'at home' as Jonah said. It took me another ten minutes fumbling through the settings and yelling at the confusing instructions from Jonah—and another round of beeping and disarming—before I was able to finally get it set correctly. "Damn you and your high tech," I moaned, crumpling the paper up in my hand and stuffing it into my pocket.

  I found Greg and the twins by following my ears. Addis and Ava were drooling over Jonah's entertainment system. It was interesting, I thought, that his house in the city was so stock full of luxuries and extra space but he chose to take me to the mountain cottage, which was the exact opposite. There was so much to distract a person in his house—and the pool and entertainment center were just the beginning, I was sure of it. So why take me away to a place where there was nothing to do but stare at each other?

  Well, I guess I really answered my own question—so there would be nothing else for us to do but stare at each other. It certainly would've taken a great deal longer for me to find a reason to interact with Jonah in a place with endless distractions. Taking away the noise of the rest of the world was just an easy way to streamline the process...the process of making me fall in love with him. Not to mention the handy sleeping arrangements in a cottage with only one bed. Not that we ever really got a chance to use it...well, not much.

  But I wasn't in love with Jonah. I couldn't possibly be. It'd been three days. Three measly days! Three horrible days! My life completely flipped over and torn apart and it all started with Jonah and his stupid contract. And yet, there I was feeling bad about messaging Trent. Trent, who was my friend and support for the last several years. Trent who squeezed us into the carpool so the twins could get to school and I could get to work and we could save a penny or two. Trent, who made me smile every morning with his exuberant grin, his way with kids, and his complaints about Jessica. Why should I feel bad about messaging Trent? It was innocent—we were friends! It wasn't even as if Jonah and I were officially anything—

  I knew the thought was a lie the moment I thought it. Of course Jonah and I were something. He was my legal protector, not to mention he loved me—and my family. He bailed my father out of debt and out of Kinney's deadly grip and arranged for care of the twins while I was away. I couldn't ask for a better man than Greg to watch them—even if I was still a little jealous about how much they liked him.

  Despite what I wanted to admit to myself, I felt something every time Jonah and I kissed. Right before the fire, there was that brilliant moment of falling...falling...where? Falling in love? No. It wasn't possible! I couldn't be—

&nb
sp; "Evie!" Ava called over to me. She was halfway down the hallway, trailing after Greg and Addis headed to the pool—I was pretty sure I heard the word 'rooftop' but I couldn't be sure.... "Evie!" she cried again. "Come look!"

  I tried to push away my troubling thoughts to focus on the present—spending time with my brother and sister. I joined Ava in the hallway, expecting her to show me some fancy painting like all the other artwork that hung on Jonah's walls—some I even recognized, which meant they had to be incredibly expensive.

  "What is it, Ava?" I asked, doing my best to sound interested in whatever abstract or weird surrealism I was about to see. She pointed to a framed picture on the wall with a wide grin. When I was closer I realized I recognized those faces. Our faces.