Peace in Flames: A Peace Series Novella

by Caroline Andrus

  Apparently, Valerie was more exhausted than she’d realized. Soon after Westley and Inigo Montoya clashed swords her eyes fell closed and when they next opened the morning sun was streaming into the room. She was lying across the length of the couch with the blanket draped over her body; her mother was gone.

  She could hear quiet voices from the kitchen and she strained her ears to make out the words.

  "...airlifted... hospital," she heard her dad say.

  "...degree....survive?" That was her mother.

  Valerie squeezed her eyes closed and tried to concentrate. The voices were a jumble of sounds now, followed by nothing but the sound of coffee poured into mugs and set down at the table.

  Wide-awake, she sat up on the couch and pushed the blanket aside. Quietly, she crept to the kitchen doorway. Her parents were both seated at the table, side by side, holding hands.

  Valerie frowned. "What's going on?" she asked softly.

  Her parents regarded her with tired eyes.

  "Honey..." her dad began. "Did... did you see anything last night? Before you called me. Did you see anyone go into the barn?"

  She shook her head. "No. Why, what's going on? Mom said it was just an old barn. That it should have been torn down ages ago."

  Her mom had tears in her eyes. She slowly shook her head.

  Her dad took a gulp of coffee. "I'm sorry honey, there... there was someone in the barn."

  Valerie suddenly felt cold and weak. The blood rushed from her face and she stumbled into a chair. "What?" she whispered. "Who?"

  "A girl from your school."

  "Who?" she demanded.

  "Katie Harder," her dad said softly.

  "But she's okay, right? She's going to be all right?"

  Her parents exchanged a look.

  "She's going to be okay!" She has to be.

  "Sweetie," her mom said. She paused to sniffle. "Her burns are pretty severe. She was airlifted to Billings. They don't know if she's going to make it."

  "You're sure you didn't see anything else around the barn before the fire?"

  Valerie felt completely numb. The last she'd seen Katie was, what, an hour before Liam spotted the barn on fire? She had gone off with.... Chris.

  Effing Chris Burkeholder. It all came back to him.

  "There's something else," he dad said. She snapped to attention, did they have Chris in custody? Was he going to pay for what he'd done?

  "What was the last name of that boy you went to the dance with last week?"

  Her heart leaped into her throat. "Sloan," she said slowly. "Liam Sloan. Why?"

  "It could be nothing," her mom said.

  "They found a lighter in the barn. It has his last name engraved into it."

  "He didn't do it," Valerie said quickly. "He was with me the whole time."

  "Honey, how did his lighter end up in that barn then?"

  "He lost it last week. The night of the dance."

  Her parents silently regarded one another as her words sunk in.

  "The night of the bus depot fire," her dad said.

  Valerie felt like she was going to be sick. Now she knew what Chris meant when he said he'd make them pay.

  Chris was framing Liam for the fires.

  Valerie excused herself and on shaky legs ran to her bedroom. She pushed the door closed and slid to the floor. She leaned back, her head against the door and her eyes closed. She tried to catch her breath as she processed the facts. Chris was framing Liam, and in doing so had sent Katie to the hospital, and she might not survive.

  This was all her fault.

  She needed help. She pulled her phone from her pocket stared at her contact list. Her finger hovered over the screen. Finally, she tapped Liam's name and shot him a quick text, asking if he was okay. She stared at the screen, willing a response to come. When it didn't she clicked back to her contacts. She needed to talk to someone. Someone not in Peace. Someone who wouldn't ask too many questions.

  She tapped her brother’s name and sent a message.

  VALERIE: What would you do if you knew something important, but telling anyone would reveal a big secret about yourself.

  She glanced at the time, it was early in Montana and even earlier for her brother who was on California time. Maybe he was already awake, or her text would wake him.

  MATT: That's a deep question for so early in the morning.

  VALERIE: Please Matty.

  MATT: How important is this secret?

  VALERIE: Very.

  MATT: Then you have to ask yourself if the pros of telling outweigh the cons.

  VALERIE: What if telling someone would get a friend out of trouble. Big trouble. Trouble the friend doesn't deserve to be in.

  MATT: Then I would tell.

  She sighed and stared at the words on her screen. She should tell.

  VALERIE: Even if telling meant that people would never look at you the same?

  MATT: I'll never look at you differently.

  She smiled at his message. He said that, but she wondered if it was really true.

  VALERIE: Thanks.

  MATT: No prob. I'm here if you need to talk.

  Sighing, she stood and crossed the room to her bed. She flopped down on her stomach and buried her face in her pillow. She didn't know what to do. What if she told and they didn't believe her. What if they still blamed Liam. How was she going to get him out of this?

  She let her eyes drift closed, her mind spinning with the events of the past week. The next thing she knew, her mom was gently shaking her awake, asking if she wanted lunch. It took her a moment to fully awaken, and then the events of last night hit her like a semi. The thought of food made her queasy, or maybe she was just that hungry. She told her mom she'd be down soon.

  Sitting up, she spotted her phone on the bed nearby, the light blinking. She snatched the phone and checked her notifications. She had a text from JoJo. Her heart sank, still no word from Liam. She opened JoJo's message and read.

  JOJO: OMG I JUST HEARD ABOUT KATIE AND LIAM. CALL ME ASAP!

  Valerie's fingers hovered over the screen. How did she respond to that?

  VALERIE: My parents told me this morning. I'll call you after I eat something.

  JOJO: OMW.

  Despite the misery that had become her life, Valerie smiled. Of course JoJo was on her way. With news like this, she was surprised her friend hadn't been beating down her bedroom door the moment she heard.

  By the time Valerie entered the kitchen JoJo had already let herself in and was seated at the table waiting for her.

  "You have company," her mom said with a wry smile. She set a plate of reheated lasagna on the table and Valerie slid into the seat. Her mom turned to JoJo. "Would you like some?"

  JoJo grinned. "Yes, please."

  Somehow, Valerie managed to clear the plate her mother had set before her. She still felt sick, but she knew that was from the stress. The girls loaded their plates in the dishwasher and retreated to Valerie's room.

  "There's no way Liam started that fire, right?" JoJo said as soon as the bedroom door was shut behind them.

  Valerie shook her head. She collapsed onto her bed and folded her legs beneath her. She grabbed her old stuffed kangaroo and clutched it in her lap for comfort.

  "It's got to be his lighter though, right? Unless his mom is an arsonist!"

  Valerie listened in silence as JoJo paced around her bedroom, voicing her theories. Finally, she couldn't take it anymore. "I have something I need to tell you."

  "What is it?" JoJo quit talking and stared at Valerie. "Hey, are you okay? You don't look so good." She took a seat on the bed beside Valerie.

  "I lied." All at once the truth was spilling out. "I didn't get drunk after the dance with Liam. I.. I came home and... and Chris pulled up and grabbed me and..." She fought back tears.

  "What?" JoJo demanded. She was on her feet now, her hands fisted at her sides. "Did he hurt you? Do I need to kick his ass?"

  "He tried, but he didn't.... " She
took a deep breath and tried again. "He took me to the bus depot. He tried to... force me, but Liam was walking by and heard me. He kicked Chris' ass and took me to his house. I didn't want to go home, in case Chris tried to find me there."

  JoJo shook her head, her eyes narrowed in anger. "Why didn't you tell me?"

  Valerie stared at her kangaroo and shrugged. "I was ashamed," she whispered.

  "Damnit, Valerie! You didn't do anything wrong. That douche canoe did! We can not let him get away with this."

  "That's not even the worst part," she mumbled. She squeezed her eyes shut; tears threatened to spill over.

  "There's something worse than what Chris did to you?"

  Valerie nodded. "Liam lost his lighter that night during his fight with Chris in the bus depot."

  "Wait. That was the night the bus depot was torched."

  Valerie nodded. "And his lighter was found in the barn."

  JoJo blinked, then everything clicked. "He's trying to frame Liam."

  Valerie nodded. "All the evidence points to Liam right now. It's my word against Chris'."

  JoJo’s face cycled through a series of emotions; pissed, thoughtful, then determined. "We need a confession. It sounds like all of the evidence is circumstantial, but we still need a confession to clear Liam’s name and make Chris pay for what he’s done."

  "Exactly. I need your help."

  Valerie was nervous. No. She was more than nervous, she was terrified. She was about to face her attacker one on one.

  She checked her phone. Still no text or call from Liam. She'd been anxious to hear from him all day. It was now nearly dinner time and still radio silence. Her worst fears were playing out in her mind. Liam, locked in a prison cell somewhere in Billings. She shuddered.

  Sliding the phone back into her purse, she stepped out of her car and waited for Chris to arrive. Casually, she leaned against the side of the vehicle and glanced over her shoulder. Hers was the only vehicle in the abandoned parking lot of the old bus depot. Coming back to the scene of the first crime seemed fitting. It felt right to try and end things where they really began.

  Her eyes fell upon the charred building. The police tape was still up, though pieces of it were now torn and dancing in the wind. She hoped nobody had been stupid enough to enter the building since the fire.

  The sound of Chris’ truck drew her attention away from the building. Her blood ran cold as the vehicle tore around the corner and into the parking lot. He pulled his truck to a screeching stop nearby and climbed out.

  "Finally come to your senses?" He crossed his arms and leaned against the side of his truck. Smirking, his eyes traced every curve of her body.

  Valerie took a steadying breath. She could do this; she had to do this. For Liam; for Katie; for herself.

  "I have." She took a step forward and pressed her shaking hands into her thighs.

  "I knew you would. That new kid never should have messed with us."

  She forced a smile. "Yeah...right. Although, those fires... I didn't know he had it in him. That was pretty epic."

  Chris scoffed.

  "What?" She tilted her head to the side as if she were clueless.

  "You think those fires were epic?" He raised his eyebrows, the smirk still on his lips.

  She nodded. "It's too bad he's probably going to prison for it. I mean, they were seriously intense."

  "In a good way?" he hedged.

  She nodded.

  The smirk fell from his face. "You honestly think that wuss set those fires?"

  She played dumb. Chris was playing right into her hands. He was exactly where she needed him to be. "Well... yeah. I mean, all the evidence points to him. Who else could have done it?"

  A slow smile crept onto his face. "Starting a fire like those takes balls."

  “Agreed." She tossed her hair over her shoulder in what she hoped was a flirtatious gesture.

  He stepped closer to her. "You want in on a secret?"

  She smiled at him. His close proximity made her sweat and she wiped her palms on her jeans. "Sure."

  "Liam didn't start those fires. I did."

  She gasped. "You did not."

  He beamed. "I promise you, I did."

  "Then why was his lighter found in the barn?"

  "That loser dropped it in the bus depot last week. I used it to torch the depot, and again in the barn."

  "He dropped it... last week?"

  "Yeah. When he interrupted us after the dance."

  She had all the evidence she needed. The time for playing dumb was over. "You mean when you kidnapped me from my front porch, dragged me into the bus depot, and tried to rape me? That night?"

  His smile was gone now, instantly replaced with a scowl. "Rape is a harsh word, Val."

  "When someone says no and you force yourself on them anyway, that's called rape.'

  "Damnit, Val, quiet down." Chris scanned the area, on guard for anyone who might have heard her outburst. "We both know I didn't rape you."

  Confronting Chris was empowering. She was no longer scared, now she was angry. "The only reason you didn't rape me was because Liam was walking by and heard me screaming."

  A flash of dark fury crossed his face. "That punk has gotten in my way one too many times. When he interrupted us and dropped that lighter, I knew what I had to do. Now that he's out of the picture there's nothing standing between you and me."

  The smirk was back on his face.

  Valerie shook her head. He was cocky and arrogant and she couldn't wait to watch him burn. But first, she had to ask one more question.

  "Why Katie?"

  He looked confused. "What do you mean?"

  "I get that you tried to frame Liam with the fires. But why torch the barn with Katie inside?"

  He rolled his eyes. "I didn't know she was inside when I lit the fire. I left her in the barn and went to take a leak. When I got back I didn’t see her, so I figured she'd gone back to the party. How was I supposed to know the dumb bitch was so wasted she'd passed out in one of the old horse stalls? God, I'm not a murderer." He rolled his eyes.

  He was a sociopath. She couldn't believe how blasé he was being about this. One of their classmates was barely clinging to life and he was rolling his damn eyes. She shook her head. "Goodbye, Chris." She turned and reached for her door handle.

  "Not so fast." Before she could pull open the door, his hand was on her wrist. His fingers dug painfully into her skin through the sleeve of her sweater. She gasped and stared down at his fist before looking up to his face. The dark glint in his eyes terrified her. She inhaled sharply, her heart racing.

  "Get your damn hands off her."

  The new voice startled Chris into complying. He released her wrist and Valerie stumbled back a step.

  JoJo was circling around the front of Valerie's car.

  "Where the hell did you come from?" Chris demanded.

  JoJo smirked. "Do you honestly think Valerie would face you alone after what you did last week? Oh, hell no, buddy. You better be glad her brother isn't in town."

  Valerie watched Chris' eyes grow wide. Matt had been on the varsity football team when Chris was a sophomore on the JV team. She knew that he, and most of the other JV players, had idolized her brother. Part of her wondered if that was why he had fixated on her, despite her disinterest in him.

  "Don't bother trying anything, either," JoJo said. She held up her phone, giving it a little wave with a twist of her wrist. "I've already texted Dray. He's on the way."

  Chris smirked again. "What makes you think Deputy Dray Palmer scares me? It's your word against mine." He leaned against the side of Valerie's car, his casual posture letting the girls know how unfazed he was by their threat.

  "Oh, I think we can be very convincing," JoJo said. She winked at Chris, and Valerie felt confident her friend had been able to record his entire confession.

  The sound of a police siren grew closer and she knew Dray would be there shortly. She half expected Chris to try to make a run f
or it. But why would he? Though he wasn't a Harrington by name, he was by blood and had the trademark Harrington cocky attitude and belief that nothing could hurt him. She couldn't wait to see his face when he was hauled off in the back of Dray's squad car.

  She only hoped that Liam could forgive her for getting him into this mess.

  Dray pulled into the lot, the lights on his squad car flashing. He left the lights on and killed the engine before stepping out of the car.

  "JoJo, Valerie," he said by way of greeting, nodding at each girl. "Chris." His tone was harsher now. Dray was a cousin of Chris' and probably the only decent Harrington man around. He knew what the Harrington men were capable of and had no problem taking them down. After all, he'd done it before.

  "Hey Dray," Chris said. He flashed his most charming smile.

  Dray didn't fall for it. He wore the practiced expression of an on duty police deputy.

  "You've got something to show me, JoJo?"

  JoJo grinned at Chris and stepped toward Dray, holding her phone out. Dray accepted the device, tapped the screen, and watched. His expression grew dourer with each passing moment.

  Valerie turned her attention to Chris. His cocky grin slowly faded and his smug expression was replaced with one of fear. Good. He deserved to know what it felt like.

  Dray passed the phone back to JoJo and pulled out his cuffs. "Mr. Burkeholder, I'm going to need you to turn around and place your hands on the hood of the vehicle."

  Chris' jaw dropped. "Seriously, Dray? You've got to be kidding me."

  "Don't make me add resisting arrest to your charges."

  Chris did as Dray instructed, but not before first shooing daggers at Valerie. If looks could kill, she'd be six feet under.

  Valerie stood with her arms crossed as Chris was read his rights and loaded into the back of the cruiser. Watching Dray drive away, she took a deep breath and let it out. She suddenly felt a hundred pounds lighter. Dray had Chris' confession; he couldn't hurt her or anyone else again.