Colton's Secret History

by Jennifer D. Bokal

  Would Julia be sent back to the hospital? Or worse, jail?

  The forest thinned and the track widened. Her headlights caught an opening in the tree line and, beyond that, a sliver of road. Turning onto the blacktop, Julia knew that she was out of the woods, at least in the literal sense.

  Yet, there would be consequences—horrible costs—for what she had done.

  As she drove, her pulse slowed. As the road stretched out like a long, gray ribbon, her mind wandered. She’d been horrified and fascinated as Luke had made love to Bridgette Colton. Lips. Arms. Legs. All tangled together.

  In the moment, Julia tried to look away—really, she had. In the end, she was helpless to do anything other than watch.

  The sight had sent her pulse racing. As she drove, Julia knew that she’d felt more than lust at the sight; there was rage, as well. The anger began to smolder until it was the white heat of a flame, and Julia knew that someone was about to get burned.

  * * *

  Sprinting through the forest, Luke hurtled over a felled tree. His toe caught the decaying wood, breaking it into a thousand splinters. Ducking under a low branch, he pressed forward. Thorny bushes reached out, scratching his face and hands as he ran.

  He didn’t care.

  Someone had been in the woods. He wasn’t going to let them escape.

  Behind, he heard Bridgette’s labored breathing as she struggled to keep up. He pushed his legs to go faster, determined to place himself between her and whatever danger might lie ahead.

  The path the car had taken was easy to follow. The tires chewed up the undergrowth and had mowed down dozens of small trees and bushes. He ran up an incline and skidded to a stop. There, in the dying light, lay a dented hubcap.

  Bridgette came up a moment later. Gripping her knees, she bent over to catch her breath. “Who was it? Did you see the car?”

  With a shake of his head, Luke said, “They’re gone now.” Sidestepping to the bottom of the hill, he picked up the metal disk. It told him nothing, yet he held it up for Bridgette to see. Continuing, he said, “But whoever it is, they lost this.”

  Starting up the hill, something else caught his attention. Dropping to a knee, he ran a finger over the damp dirt. Luke rubbed a finger with his thumb. The scent and viscosity were unmistakable. “Motor oil.”

  “My guess,” said Bridgette, from her spot atop the hill. “The car came over this ridge and landed hard. It lost the hubcap and cracked something in the undercarriage.” Luke gaped and said nothing. She added, “Remember, I grew up around a lot of construction sites. And, I am an investigator.”

  Unable to hold back his smile, Luke said, “I guess you are both. Now let’s get out of here. I don’t think whoever it was is coming back, but I don’t want to hang around and find out if they do.”

  “Whoever?” asked Bridgette. Luke reached the top of the ridge. “You don’t think your ex-girlfriend was spying on us again?”

  Luke couldn’t lie to Bridgette. “It could be a random person, but I doubt it was anyone other than Julia.”

  “Which means she saw us while we, well, you know....”

  Luke clenched his teeth together. “I should have showed more restraint, Bridgette. I’m sorry that you were put into that situation.”

  “It’s not like you were alone or I didn’t have some kind of say in the matter.”

  “So, you aren’t mad?”

  “At you?” she asked. Shaking her head, she continued. “Not at all. I am furious with Julia. She’s gone too far this time.”

  Luke said, “I’ll call Reese. It’ll be easy to see if Julia is missing this hubcap.”

  “You’ll have to wait until we get back to town. There’s no cellular coverage at the fishing cabin. Mom’s rules, so we can all unplug and connect.”

  Luke glanced at his phone. “I have three bars,” he said.

  “Are you joking?” Bridgette asked, looking at his screen. “That’s weird. Just don’t tell Mom.”

  He actuated the speaker function before placing the call. Reese answered. “Luke, what’s up?”

  “It’s Julia again.” Luke took a few minutes explaining what had happened with the car on the private road, along with the suspicion that it had been Julia. “I found a hubcap,” Luke said. “Can you check and see if she’s home, and if her wheel’s been damaged.”

  “I’m on it,” said Reese. “Did anyone get hurt?”

  “Spooked is all,” said Luke, leaving out any intimate details of what Julia might’ve seen.

  “I’ll get back to you after paying Julia a second visit,” said Reese.

  “And then what?” Bridgette asked.

  “If her car’s missing a hubcap, I’ll bring her in to the station. If we can prove that it came from her vehicle, she’ll be charged with trespassing, vandalism, and several other minor crimes. Hopefully, it’s enough to convince your ex that she needs to end her obsession.”

  “I appreciate anything you can do,” said Luke, ending the call. Then to Bridgette, he said, “Now, we have to let the police do their job.” He paused. “Speaking of jobs, did you learn anything from my father?”

  Luke and Bridgette retraced their steps. The sky was a deep shade of violet, and lights from the Colton fishing cabin shone through the dark.

  “Do you remember anything about a flood when we were kids?”

  “Sure,” he said. “We were in grade school when it happened. I remember helping my dad with one job or another—gutting buildings, hauling away debris.”

  “It seems like a lot of people were involved in the cleanup, including several of the other victims. With all the older buildings downtown, it’s possible that carcinogens were released into the floodwaters.”

  “It makes sense.”

  Bridgette nodded. “And yet, there’s something I don’t like about that theory. You just said that you were part of a cleanup crew, but you’re healthy. If there was something caustic in the water—say arsenic that was used as a wallpaper base—why are there only half a dozen cases from decades ago? I’d expect to see hundreds.” She continued, “And it does nothing to explain why there are men who weren’t around for the flood and are now getting sick.”

  Luke didn’t have an answer for either of her questions. As they approached the house, his father opened the door. “There you are. When I woke up, you were gone.”

  “We just went for a walk,” said Luke, not willing to share much more with his father.

  “What’s that you have in your hands?” he asked. “Is that a hubcap?”

  Luke opened the rear liftgate and threw the metal disk into his father’s SUV. “Just something we picked up in the woods.”

  “Well, come on in,” said Luke’s dad. “I saw the sandwich fixings and have nice enough manners to wait for you all.”

  Bridgette laughed. “Luke said that you’d have eaten everything before we got back.”

  “Really?” Luke asked with mock indignation. “You’re going to throw me under the bus?”

  “I’ll admit to snacking a little,” said Luke’s father. “But now that you’re here, let’s get some food.”

  Within minutes, everything for a meal had been set on the counter. While throwing away the bag with the condom and cleaning up, Luke took a few moments to think. He’d only been gone from the fishing cabin for an hour—and yet everything had changed.

  He’d made love to Bridgette Colton. And there was no denying his feelings to himself—he had come to care for her once again. No, that wasn’t true. He’d always cared about her. Yet, did sex mean they had a future together?

  Years ago they had created a life. Despite the fact that the pregnancy had ended, Luke liked the idea of Bridgette being the mother to his children.

  And then there were other concerns that were far less pleasant.

  His ex-girlfriend was more determined
than he had ever imagined. Moreover, Bridgette was obviously the target of Julia’s wrath.

  It meant that Bridgette was in danger, not just now, but until she left Braxville.

  Chapter 15

  Dinner at the lake house, cleanup and the ride back to Braxville were all uneventful—something that brought Bridgette a great deal of gratitude. Life had been more problematic than ever since returning home. Now Bridgette had to parse out her feelings for Luke.

  No, that wasn’t true.

  She knew how she felt.

  What she didn’t know was if she wanted to act on those feelings? First, she’d lost a child and then a husband. Was Bridgette ready to try for love again?

  At least she had more anecdotal evidence that the cancer had been caused by something in the flood waters. True, there were holes in her theory, but for the moment it was the most solid one that she had.

  Since Paul Walker had only worked at the hardware store, he couldn’t have been an employee of Colton Construction. It meant that her family’s business was in no way connected to the cluster.

  She was more relieved about that fact than she cared to admit.

  As he had done before, Luke drove his father’s SUV. He returned to Main Street, and from there, Paul would drive himself home.

  Bridgette opened the door and slipped out of the large auto. Luke and his father did the same, and they all stood near the grille of the SUV, headlights illuminating the empty road.

  Wind swirled around the corner, creating a dust devil of leaves and debris. Bridgette shivered with the cold. “Thank you for taking the time to meet with me,” she said. “You’ve been very helpful.”

  Paul said, “Getting cancer changed my life. In some ways, I’m a better man because of everything I went through. I appreciate my family and friends more. I look at every day as a gift. But the illness has taken a physical toll.” With a shake of his head, he continued, “If you can figure out what caused me to get sick, I’d surely appreciate it.”

  “I promised your son that I would do just that,” she said.

  “Well, you kids have a nice evening. Luke, I’ll be in touch.” As Paul rounded to the driver’s side and opened the door, he said, “And, Bridgette, tell your dad I said hello. I kind of miss old Fitz. He used to come by the hardware store back when the construction company wasn’t as big as it is now.” Before she could comment, Paul continued, “And then there was the time when they renovated the mall downtown. Business was slow at the store, so I worked for your dad on that job. A good man but a hard boss.”

  Bridgette could not recall getting from the street to Luke’s apartment. When she finally became aware of her senses, she stood in the middle of his living room. The light from several lamps filled the room. Her head throbbed with each beat of her heart. She was deaf to every sound beyond her rushing pulse and her own breath.

  “What’s the matter?” Luke asked. He had ahold of her arm and led her to the sofa, where he gently guided her to sitting. “Should I call someone? Your mom? One of your sisters? A doctor?”

  His touch was warm. His hand was strong. She said nothing.

  “You okay?” he asked.

  Bridgette was far from okay. “Can you turn off one of the lamps?” she asked. “It’s too bright in here.”

  Luke flipped a switch by the door. Two of the lights went dark. “Better?” he asked.

  “Much.”

  “So,” he began, taking a seat next to her. “What happened?”

  Leaning her head back on the sofa, Bridgette pinched the bridge of her nose. “To be honest, I don’t know.”

  “You were talking to my dad and you turned pale. You were able to walk, when I led you up the stairs. But as the old saying goes, the lights were on, but nobody was home.”

  “That about sums it up, I guess.” Bridgette tried to laugh, but there was nothing funny about her situation. The sound came out as a snort.

  “Let me get you a glass of water.”

  Luke filled a glass with water from the tap. Returning, he set the glass on the coffee table. “Drink,” he said.

  She lifted the cup with a hand that trembled. Water sloshed over the rim and soaked into the sleeve of her sweater. After taking a sip, she set the glass down. “Better,” she said. “Thanks.”

  “Can you tell me what happened out there now? I still think I should call someone,” he said, reaching inside his jacket for his phone.

  “Don’t,” she said, her hand on his wrist. “Your father told me something that was... Oh, I don’t know.”

  “Was it upsetting?” Luke offered.

  “I’m not sure what to call how I feel. What’s the word for upsetting times a thousand? He gave a bit of information that proves a supposition about the cancer clusters.”

  “Does it have to do with the flood?”

  “No,” said Bridgette with a shake of her head.

  “What is it then?”

  Before she could decide what to share or not, her phone rang. She fished it from her pocket and glanced at the screen. It was her coworker, Rachel. “I have to take this,” she said to Luke, while swiping the call open.

  “Rachel, what’s up?”

  “I wanted you to know, I’ve gotten one of the disks open.”

  “And?” Bridgette’s heart hammered against her chest.

  “It looks like the data is password protected. Until we can get around that, we won’t be able to access any of the information. I like to think that I can do everything on a computer, but right now I’m stumped.” She paused. “My recommendation is that we send the disks to the state IT department. They have tech I don’t have at the office.”

  “You only need a password?” Bridgette asked.

  “Finding the right code is a lot harder than only.”

  “I’m on my way,” Bridgette said.

  “What are you going to be able to do?”

  “My mother set up the disks. I might be able to figure out what password she used.”

  “I’ll see you soon.”

  Bridgette ended the call and rose to her feet. Like she was suddenly standing on the deck of a ship in the middle of a storm, the room seemed to pitch to the side. Her vision darkened at the edges. Luke’s strong hand gripped her arm.

  “I’m not asking if you’re okay again. Obviously, you aren’t.” He pulled her toward the sofa. “Sit back down.”

  The floor leveled and Bridgette inhaled, her vision clearing. “I need to go to my office,” she said.

  “Tonight?”

  “Right now.”

  “I’m not letting you leave until we know what’s going on. Your health is more important than your job, Bridgette.”

  “This from a man who does nothing but work,” she said, trying to pull her arm from his grasp. It didn’t work.

  “If you can make a joke, then I guess you are feeling a bit better.” Luke’s grip loosened, but he didn’t let go. “Then again, I know how you’ll be safe.”

  “How’s that?” she asked.

  “I’m going to go with you.”

  Bridgette didn’t have time to argue with him, especially since she suspected that she was suffering from shock. Being escorted by a capable friend made sense.

  “All right,” she said, acquiescing to his demand. “Let’s go.”

  Luke held Bridgette’s arm as they walked down the flight of stairs. Outside, a cool breeze blew droplets of rain. The wind and the water revived her, at least a little, and her thinking cleared.

  “My truck is parked behind the store,” said Luke. “Let’s get it and I’ll drive you.”

  “My office is only a few blocks away. Besides, the walk will do me some good.”

  “Are you finally going to tell me what’s going on?”

  “At the very beginning of the investigation, I had a suspicion,” she said,
walking down the street. “Several of the men who got sick used to work for my father’s company. Then the investigative team learned about the flood, and in a way being exposed to carcinogens in dirty water makes perfect sense.”

  “But then my father mentioned that he worked for Colton Construction,” said Luke.

  “Moreover, three men from the original cancer cluster not only worked for my dad but on the renovation of the downtown mall, as well.”

  “And you were kind of traumatized once you put all of those pieces together,” said Luke.

  “I was able to get all employee information from my mother, who used to be the office manager. The tech was pretty old, so it’s taken some time to get the disks open.”

  “There could be other things that connect all the men in the cluster beyond Colton Construction.”

  “Thanks for trying to make me feel better,” she said as they approached City Hall. At this time of the night the building was locked, and Bridgette swiped her ID over a sensor. The latch clicked and she shouldered the door open. Automatic lights switched on as they walked down the corridor, illuminating their way.

  Her office was on the second floor. The door was unlocked, and she walked in. The old boxy computer still filled the conference table. Rachel wore her hair in a ponytail and sat in front of a monitor. Looking up as Bridgette walked in, she gave a wan smile. “That was quick,” she said.

  “I’m renting an apartment a few blocks away for now.” Stepping aside so Luke could enter the small work space, Bridgette continued, “This is Luke Walker.” She paused, not entirely sure how to categorize their relationship. “A friend.”

  “I know you,” said Rachel, getting out of the chair and giving Luke a wide smile. “You own the hardware store downtown.”

  “I do.”

  Was Rachel flirting with Luke? A hot flash of anger and jealousy sprang up in Bridgette’s chest. She immediately tamped it down. She had more pressing worries than her love life.

  As she slipped into the seat just vacated by her coworker, Bridgette’s mouth went dry. Was she really about to do this? The screen was gray, with silver lettering. The cursor blinked in a field of lighter gray. Password.