Before He Vanished (Winchester, Tn. Book 6)

by Debra Webb

  “Okay, okay.” He waved his hands back and forth. “I get it. But what I don’t understand is why you didn’t answer my call.”

  She frowned and decided on a fib. “You must have called when I was out of the car speaking to the neighbor. I told you we went there first.”

  “Tell me again exactly what you saw inside and what happened from that point.”

  Halle went through the story again. From finding Austen’s body, his car exploding and then the fire. The chase. She repeated all of it without missing an already stated detail.

  Derrick made a few more notes and then heaved a sigh. “I guess that’s it.” He glanced at Liam, who hadn’t moved. “You really think this guy is Andy Clark?”

  She nodded. “I do. Back home, the chief of police is looking into it, as well.” When he still looked skeptical, she went on. “You’d have to see the photos of him as a kid. It’s him. I know it’s him.”

  “Is he the reason no one else could hold on to you?”

  Her gaze shot to the detective’s. “What’re you talking about? Remember, I was married.”

  “Was being the keyword.” Derrick shook his head. “Really, this answers a lot of questions for me. I’ve heard you talk about this case dozens of times. But it wasn’t until I saw you with him that I understood.” He searched her face. “You’ve been in love with him since you were a kid.”

  “We were best friends, Derrick. Of course I loved him.”

  He smirked. “We are not talking about the same thing, Hal.”

  She pushed to her feet. “Can we go now? I have a long drive ahead of me.”

  He got up, put his hand on her arm. “Don’t be angry with me. I’m just jealous.”

  She shook her head. “I’m not angry. Just exhausted and frustrated.”

  “Look.” He glanced at Liam again. “Why don’t the two of you stay at my place tonight? I’ll see what I can dig up on Austen and we can catch up over dinner. How about it?”

  “I really need any help you can give me about Austen.” She braced for an argument. “But we should get going. The chief back home will be expecting to hear from me. My boss will want to know about my investigation so far. After all, this is work for me.” The last part wasn’t entirely true, but he didn’t need to know that.

  “All right. But next time I call, answer.”

  “I promise.”

  Before she could anticipate his move, he hugged her.

  He drew back, held her arms. “Be careful and keep me up to speed on your investigation. We could work together and figure this out.”

  “Thanks, Derrick. I really appreciate it.”

  With a hasty goodbye she walked over to where Liam waited. “We can go.”

  “Good.” He didn’t look at her, just turned and started walking toward where they’d left her car angled across the sidewalk.

  Halle followed.

  She wasn’t really surprised that he seemed more than happy to be getting out of here. She doubted this winemaker had ever chased after a bad guy or climbed out of a burning building. In her line of work she was accustomed to those sorts of intense scenes.

  She could imagine him in the middle of a sprawling vineyard, working with the plants, testing the grapes. Peace and quiet. Beauty for as far as the eye could see.

  This was a completely different world for him.

  She’d taken his quiet, peaceful life and turned it into something painful and uncertain. He would probably hate her before this was over.

  At the moment, she hated herself just a little bit.

  * * *

  HALLE’S ONLY REQUIREMENT for the hotel they selected was that they had room service and good beds. Fortunately, the hotel she’d always adored for their amazing beds and room service was available but there was only one room.

  Great. Just great. As tired as she was, she stepped away from the counter to tell Liam. He’d gotten a call from his sister and had moved away from the registration desk for some privacy.

  “Okay, sis. Don’t worry.” He smiled. “See you soon.” He paused, listening. “Love you, too.”

  When he ended the call, Halle was smiling, too. She couldn’t help it. The sound of his voice, his smile, it made her feel safe and...

  She cleared her head. “They have a room, but only one. There are two beds, however. Do you have a problem sharing a room?” She shrugged. “We could always drive home if you’d rather. Or find another hotel.”

  “No. This is fine. Driving back tonight would be pointless. We need to relax and talk. Anything but be stuck in a car for a couple of hours.”

  “And shower,” she pointed out. Her gaze roved over him. They were both sweaty and smoky and...

  She should get the room.

  He passed her a credit card. “I don’t want you paying for anything else.”

  She shook her head. “You flew all the way from California. Rented a car. I’d say you’ve paid more than your share already.”

  “Hal,” he warned, “I’m paying.”

  She was too startled to argue with him further. Instead she took the credit card and walked back to the counter. This was the first time he’d called her Hal. He’d called her that all the time when they were kids.

  Maybe he’d heard Derrick call her Hal.

  No, she decided, it had come naturally because more memories were coming back whether he told her about them all or not.

  When she’d taken care of the room, they headed for the elevators. To her surprise the hotel boutique was still open.

  “Wait. We need clothes.”

  She grabbed him by the arm and dragged him inside the chic shop.

  “How may I help you?” The clerk grimaced before she could school the expression as she asked the question.

  “I know,” Halle said. “We were in a fire.”

  “Oh, my, I’m certainly glad you’re all right.”

  “Thanks. We need a change of clothes. Underthings. Something to sleep in.” She stared down at her feet. “Shoes if you have them.”

  The woman smiled widely and waved her arm. “I’m certain I have everything you need.”

  Halle wandered through the small women’s section. She found jeans, a sweatshirt, ridiculously overpriced ankle boots. And, thank God, panties and one of those sports bras. She grabbed a nightshirt and she was good to go.

  At the counter, the clerk was already ringing up similar items for Liam. Jeans, a sweatshirt, hiking shoes, tees and boxers. Socks. Oh, she forgot socks. She hurried back to the women’s section and grabbed a pair. Back at the counter, the clerk reached for Halle’s armload.

  “I’ll be paying for my own,” she argued.

  The clerk smiled again. “The gentleman insists on taking care of everything.”

  Halle glared at him. He grinned.

  She was too tired to argue.

  Finally, they were headed to the sixth floor. Halle leaned against the back wall of the elevator and closed her eyes. She tried to remember if she had ever been this tired. Maybe it was all the emotional turmoil making her so exhausted. She should call her mother in case their faces showed up on the news. Later, she decided, after a long, hot shower.

  On the sixth floor, they walked silently to the proper door. Halle slid the key into the lock and waited for the green light. Inside, she tossed her bag onto one of the two beds. “You shower first,” she said.

  “I’m fine. You go first,” he argued, dropping his bag onto the other bed.

  “I’m serious,” she said, “I’m going to take a while and I need to call home.”

  He held up his hands in surrender. “I’ll go first.” He grabbed his bag and disappeared into the bathroom. Seconds later she heard the spray of the shower.

  The room was larger than the average hotel room. Another thing she liked about this hotel. She walked over to the f
loor-to-ceiling windows. She stared out over the sweeping views of the Cumberland River and the city’s skyline. She had been so excited moving to Nashville after college and starting her first job as a reporter. She’d felt like her whole life was coming together in the picturesque city where anything could happen.

  But at night, before she drifted off to sleep, she’d always thought of Andy. Wondered where he was and if he were safe and happy. In high school she’d made up stories about him. She alternated between him being in some foreign country as a spy or climbing mountains somewhere to break records. Sometimes, she decided he was a private investigator, helping lost children find their way back home because he never could.

  She smiled, thought of all the ways she had imagined that they might meet again. In Paris at the Louvre. Or in Washington, DC, at the White House, or maybe in New York, atop the Empire State Building.

  She’d kept a big notebook about him. Sometimes she would go months without writing in it, then she would think of him and write him a letter. It was silly and fantastical but she’d never been able to throw the letters away, or the notebook.

  It was still at home, in the top of her childhood closet. She’d pulled it down for the first time in a while to start writing this anniversary story.

  The pictures. She laughed. She’d put a picture in for each year he’d been gone. She’d also written about the big happenings in the world and the latest fashion and music trends as if he’d been kept in a cave or something.

  She’d had no idea that he was just on the other side of the country, growing grapes.

  The bathroom door opened and the fragrance of lavender soap and steam filled her senses. She turned around and watched as he scrubbed his damp hair with the towel. He wore one of the new cotton tees and boxers. His legs were as well muscled as his arms. She blinked the thought away, grabbed her bag from the bed and hurried across the room.

  “My turn.”

  She hadn’t even called her mom.

  “Should I order room service?”

  She paused at the door. “That would be great. Order me whatever looks good and lots of it.”

  He gave her a two-fingered salute and she backed into the bathroom, shut the door. She liked his hair when it was tousled like that. There were a lot of things she liked about him, like his hands and his eyes. Goodness, those eyes.

  “Get ahold of yourself, girl.”

  While she sorted through her bag and removed tags from her purchases, she called her mom and let her know they were staying the night.

  “Are you sure you’re okay? You sound a little strange.”

  “I’m just tired.” She broke down and told her about the private investigator and the fire. Her mother was, of course, horrified.

  When she’d calmed her down over that event, her mom said, “I’ve been going through more of Nancy’s papers. Chief Brannigan said I could go ahead. But I haven’t found anything unusual or suspicious.”

  “Look for anything related to an attorney named Burke. David Burke.”

  “All right. Let me write down his name.”

  She waited for her mother to do so.

  “Anything else, dear?”

  She suddenly remembered Liam’s question. “Did the Clarks ever have any old friends visit? Maybe from when they lived in Nashville. Could have been someone from the church they attended or business associates?”

  “Funny that you asked. Your father and I talked about that from time to time. You know, before.”

  Before Andy went missing. All their lives were divided into two parts. Before and after he vanished.

  “Did Dad remember anyone?” Halle felt herself holding her breath. The answer could be important. They might find someone else who knew the family from before they moved to Winchester.

  “It was the strangest thing. They never had visitors. Not completely surprising since they had no relatives, just each other and Andy. But they were such social people. Always at church and attending community events. It seemed odd that they had no friends from Nashville who ever visited. Your dad said maybe something happened up there and they cut ties with friends and associates. It happens. Feelings get hurt, people refuse to get past the event.”

  Something like suddenly having a child without ever having been pregnant.

  Halle caught her breath at the thought. “Thanks, Mom. You’ve been very helpful.”

  “Will you be home tomorrow?”

  “I think so. Unless the police need us to stay for some reason related to the fire.” She didn’t mention the explosion. A fire was sufficient worry fodder.

  “Drive safely and give Liam our love.”

  “I will. Love you.”

  Halle placed her phone on the marble counter. No matter how this turned out, Liam would be going back to his home. They were going to miss him desperately. Her heart heavy, she peeled off the smoky clothes and turned on the water.

  The shower was like heaven on earth. Her body had needed the hot water so badly. Her muscles relaxed and she took her time, smoothing the soap over her skin and then shampooing her hair. She was grateful for the toiletry pack that included not only soap, shampoo and the usual, but disposable razors, as well.

  By the time she was finished, her bones felt like rubber. She dried herself, slipped on underwear and the nightshirt and then used the hotel dryer to dry her hair. That part took the longest of all. When she exited the steamy bathroom the delicious aromas of room service had her stomach rumbling.

  “Oh my God, that smells good.” She rushed to the table where the silver service sat. “Why aren’t you eating?”

  “I was waiting for you.” He joined her at the table.

  Ever the gentleman.

  Halle curled her feet under her in her chair while Liam removed the covers from the dishes. Fish, chicken, vegetables. He had ordered all sorts of dishes and they all looked amazing.

  “I thought we’d try a little of everything.”

  A bottle of white wine as well as a bottle of rosé had her licking her lips.

  “I wasn’t sure which one you preferred.” He gestured to the iced-down bottles. “And I didn’t forget dessert.” The final lid revealed a heavenly-looking chocolate cake with fudge icing.

  “I may die right now.” She wanted to taste it all.

  “Eat first.” He placed a linen napkin over his lap and stuck his fork into a tiny, perfectly roasted potato. She watched him eat and it was the sexiest thing she had ever seen. She didn’t fight it. Surrendered to instinct and that was how they ate. No plates, just taking whatever they wanted with a fork or fingers and devouring. They drank the wine and laughed at stories from their respective childhoods. From all the stories he’d told her, she could not wait to meet his sister, Claire.

  By the time they were finished, she was feeling a little tipsy. The food was mostly gone and both bottles were drained. She felt more relaxed than she had in decades. They had discussed the day’s events and Burke and Austen—and Derrick. The man was still convinced she had a thing for Derrick. No way. She’d also told him what her mom had to say about any friends from Nashville the Clarks might have had, which was none who ever appeared at their door. She and Liam agreed that was somewhat unusual considering how social the Clarks had been in Winchester.

  “You know,” she said, after polishing off the last of the wine in her glass, “I wrote you dozens of letters.”

  “Me?”

  She frowned and shook her head. “Andy.” Then she stared at him. “No. You. I mean you. Whatever you believe, I know you’re him.”

  “Okay.” He laughed, his eyes glittering with the soft sound.

  God, his mouth was sexy when he was relaxed. She put her hand to her mouth just to make sure she hadn’t said the words out loud.

  “Tell me about the letters,” he prompted.

  “I told you what was going
on in Winchester. Who was doing what at school. I even put pictures with the letters.” She laughed. Placed her glass on the table. “It was silly, I know. But I wanted to still feel you and that was the only way I could.”

  She blinked. He had moved. He was suddenly next to her, on his knees, staring into her eyes, and her breath caught.

  “I don’t know if I’m this Andy you loved so much when you were a kid,” he said softly, so softly she shivered, “but I would really like to be the guy you care about now.”

  Her heart swelled into her throat. She started to suggest that it was the wine talking, but it wasn’t. The truth was in his eyes. Those blue eyes she knew as well as her own. And despite her wine consumption, she was stone-cold sober as she considered what could happen between them tonight.

  “I’m really glad, because I would hate to think I’m in this alone,” she confessed.

  He kissed her so sweetly that tears stung her eyes. Then he stood and pulled her into his arms. He carried her to the nearest bed.

  No matter what happened tomorrow, she would always cherish this night.

  Chapter Thirteen

  NOW

  Napa, California

  Claire Hart had not stopped pacing the floor since she spoke with Liam. From the moment he’d told her he was staying a few more days in Winchester she had gone through every possible hiding place in the house. There were no photos of Liam from the time he was a little baby—and there were only a few of those—to when he was around seven. There were some listed as being of him during that time period but never showing his face pointed at the camera.

  She knew deep in her heart that something was wrong with this scenario.

  Alone in this big old house, Claire had allowed her imagination to run away with her. She had searched everywhere, even in her parents’ private space. She’d felt so guilty. How could she doubt her parents this way? What had possessed her to believe they would do such a thing—whatever the thing was? At the beginning, she had refused to label the notion driving her. But then she had been forced to concede that something was not as it should be. There were secrets.