by R. L. Syme
Jeez. This jealousy thing. He was gonna have to get a handle on it.
“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.”
“No, it’s not that.” Claire finally turned back to him. Her eyes had glazed, and the beginnings of a good cry sat poised to flow. “It was just a rough time for me. I had a project that failed and I got fired. Sort of publicly. Tande was the only person who stuck by me.”
Good girl, that one. Aidan stayed quiet, sure that whatever he would say trying to offer comfort would be the wrong thing, and just let her talk.
“Tande and I have been digging up investors for this new business we’re trying to launch and this cake from Meg was going to be sort of the crowning jewel of our investor dinner at the end of the month. I’ve been working on this dinner for months. And it was just frustrating to see, then, the most anticipated wedding of the Austin social calendar take our cake.”
Aidan gripped the steering wheel. He should have known Claire wouldn’t over-react about something like that.
“I will just have to tell Marin to pick another cake, then.”
Claire’s face lit up with a smile. “You would do that for me?”
“Claire, I think you should know. I can’t think of anything I wouldn’t do for you. So yes, I’m willing to make my sister pick a different cake for her snooty wedding. That is… to coin a phrase… a piece of cake decision.” He tried to hide the fact that what he’d just said made his heart hammer like a dinner bell. But there was no use dancing around it. She already knew he was interested.
“Oh, Aidan.” She scooted closer to him. “You have no idea what that would mean to me. I just… I can’t explain it. This cake… it’s central to the whole concept of what we’re trying to do with these investors and I’m just afraid that if somehow they end up at Marin’s wedding—which they will, they’re all friends with the governor—and they are served this cake… it won’t be memorable because of us any longer.”
“You don’t have to convince me. My sister will be happy with whatever I tell her was the best. I’ll just tell her the other one was a better cake.”
Claire threw her arms around him and Aidan found himself braking. He pulled off to the side of the gravel road they were on and turned into her hug, sliding his arms around her. They held each other for a long time, not daring to speak.
Aidan’s pulse did not calm now that he had ahold of her. He had so often thought of her over the years, and now, to be holding her… it was surreal.
“I have this memory,” she said, holding onto his neck. “Driving away from you for the last time, before we left for Dallas. I think about that a lot. The last time I saw you.”
“It’s a good thing you left when you did, though. It wouldn’t have been good for us to be around each other, the way we were then.”
He couldn’t release her. Not now that he had her again. There was too much of a possibility that if he let go, he’d never get here again.
“Tande told me about the rumors. I’m so sorry you had to deal with that.”
“I tried to tell my parents we never did anything. And it was ironic that, while everyone was spreading rumors about us, Jane was actually sleeping with someone else.”
“I’m glad for my parents’ sake that it happened the way it did. It’s going to devastate them when they find out about Jane.”
“Part of me just wanted to keep you close.”
“You were my best friend,” she whispered. “It broke my heart to have to leave.”
She began to pull away and he held her just a little longer. “I’m not sure I can let you go, Claire.”
He released her at last and she stayed close, putting her hand on the side of his face. “You don’t have to let me go. I’m here.”
“I mean more than just right now.”
“I know.”
“I can’t watch you leave again.”
“You won’t have to, Aidan. I promise.”
Something settled inside him. The urge to kiss her was so strong, it almost propelled him forward. This time, no amount of logicking himself out of kissing her was going to work. She was his magnet.
He pressed his lips to hers, taking her face in his hands. The electricity that had sizzled around her since they met again was now a full-blown electric storm. Every point their bodies met was struck by lightning.
Aidan finally pulled away, panting against her. Claire leaned her head against his.
“I have been waiting ten years for you to do that.”
“I know,” he said, and he kissed her again. And again.
***
Claire wouldn’t have been at all surprised to start undressing in the pickup cab like a couple of teenagers. Thankfully, they both had the presence of mind to stop before things got out of hand. Aidan’s reasons for not kissing her when they’d first discussed it had been valid, and the more Claire thought about it, the more they needed to put Jane to rest between them.
At this point, she couldn’t imagine life without Aidan. And she knew they would do whatever it took to beat these charges. Even if it meant revealing Jane’s secret.
Aidan sat back against the seat and Claire scooted away from him. They were both still panting.
“No, this is good.” She smoothed her shirt, then her hair. “We need to stop. Find this place on Crater Lake. Get to Yumi.”
Aidan laughed. “So much business, so little time.”
“I’m serious, Aidan. This is your freedom at stake, here.”
He sobered, nodding and shifting the truck into drive. “You’re right. My freedom.”
“Is the place around here somewhere?”
Aidan glanced behind them, one arm on the back of the bench seat. “If my estimation is right, it should be one of these next few left-hand turns. We’ll have to keep our eye out for Crater Lake Road.”
Claire slid under his arm and put her head on his shoulder. She couldn’t even think of what might happen if they couldn’t prove this was suicide or an accident. Or someone else had done it. Whatever happened, it couldn’t have been Aidan.
She watched the road signs on the left. They finally reached Crater Lake Road and it went both directions. Aidan turned left and the first mailbox read 120. They drove past a few more driveways until one on the left finally said 411. There was no name on the mailbox and Aidan pulled to a stop in front of it.
“Do we go in? Or do we stay here?” he asked.
The driveway was long and two houses sat at the end, split by a fork. One was a large, nicely-built farmhouse. The other was a module. Neither looked vacant.
“So, are there two families here? There’s only one mailbox.”
Aidan shook his head. “I guess the only way to find out is to go ask.”
Claire put a hand on his arm as he went to shift again. “Are you sure that’s a good idea? What if they recognize you?”
“Everyone recognizes me, Claire. There’s no better time than the present.” He shook off her arm. “Besides. We’re not going to do anything crazy. Chances are, they don’t know the case has been re-opened. For all they know, we’re out here looking for someone else’s house and took a wrong turn.”
Claire’s pulse raced. Aidan wasn’t exactly a hot head, but a jealous husband was never really in control of his faculties, was he?
A jealous former husband, she corrected. Still. She would have to trust Aidan’s instincts. And make sure she drove next time.
They trundled down the drive. In front of the modular, an old pickup sat up on blocks, tools spread in front of it. Aidan pulled to a stop behind the truck and they got out.
The air was just a touch less stifling than it had been, and Claire’s lungs rebelled when she took her first breath. It took her a few lungfuls to realize it wasn’t the humidity that was rancid, but something coming from the general area of the house.
She turned back to the truck, hoping she could scoot inside and turn on the air conditioning, just to clear out her lungs. But when she pass
ed the cab, she saw another car driving toward them.
“Aidan!”
He was at her side almost as soon as she’d called his name. He took her hand and pulled her behind him. “Let’s see who this is.”
She could make out a squat sort of sedan-sized car and as it got a little closer, she recognized it. The spotlights on top were a dead giveaway.
Cop car.
Aidan tensed up when one of the deputies who had arrested him stood in the open door, with the car still running.
“What are you doing here?” the deputy asked.
“I should ask you the same thing, Jeff.”
Jeff shook his head and closed the door to his car. “This is my house, Conley. I’ll ask the questions.”
Claire could hear her heartbeat tunk-ta-tunk-ing in her ears. She gulped some of the rancid air.
“Claire, will you go wait in the truck, please?”
She shook her head, even though he couldn’t see her. “I’m not going to leave you out here by yourself, Aidan. You’re staying, I’m staying.”
Even as she said the words, she could feel a cold fear steal over her, icing her thumping blood into silence. Aidan took a step toward Jeff.
“Well, now I see why you wanted me to run, Deputy.”
Claire had never heard such violence in Aidan’s voice. She wasn’t sure what he meant, but she waited for Jeff’s response.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Conley.” Jeff pointed to his house. “You’d better be careful, son. I’d bet I could get the judge to revoke your release if he finds out you’ve been harassing an officer of the law and his family.”
“I’m not harassing you, and you know it.”
“Who do you think they’ll believe? A criminal? Or a deputy?”
Claire closed her hands around Aidan’s arm, which flexed under her fingers. She tried to pull at him, even just a bit, but he wasn’t going to move.
“You want to know why I’m here, Jeff? Because we found one of Jane’s diaries, and we know you were sleeping with her when she died.”
Jeff’s face drained like Aidan had pulled a stopper. He sputtered, over and over trying to make words, but he couldn’t.
Aidan advanced another step and Jeff backed into his car, even though they were still several feet apart.
“That’s why you told me to run, isn’t it? So everyone would think I killed her. Forever.”
Claire breathed in, hard. Aidan hadn’t told her about this. Had he really been thinking about running?
Jeff shook his head. “No. I swear, Aidan. I had nothing to do with it.”
“I don’t believe you,” Aidan yelled. “You were sleeping with her, you’re a law enforcement officer, and you easily could have buried the truth.”
Jeff put his hands up as Aidan advanced again. “You don’t get it. I was trying to help you, Conley! The evidence against you is pretty heavy. I wanted you to leave because it’s what I would have done in your place.”
Claire’s pulse hammered as Jeff put one hand on his weapon. “Not another step.”
Aidan backed off. “If I have it so wrong, then tell me what happened.”
“Look. I’ll admit that I was sleeping with Jane. But it was not an affair. She just…” The pudgy face reddened. “She liked to park outside the fire house and have sex in my patrol car. It was random. It wasn’t anything like a relationship or anything. She would just call me and tell me to pick her up on her lunch break, and we’d park outside the firehouse, and she would… well, most of the time she just wanted to…” He gave Aidan a pathetic look and Claire found herself squirming.
“She just wanted to what?”
“Come on, Conley. You know what. Don’t make me say it in front of her sister.”
Aidan glanced back at Claire and nodded as though he’d forgotten her presence. Claire put her hands back on his arm and tugged at him.
“Suffice to say, I had no motive to kill her. I didn’t want to marry her. She didn’t want to marry me. She wasn’t going to ruin anything for me. I knew it wouldn’t last. About six months before the fire, she just quit calling me. I figured you two had worked out whatever was wrong or she found someone else to try and make you jealous.”
Aidan’s shoulders relaxed. “Make me jealous?”
“Well, yeah. Why do you think she wanted to… y’know… park out by the firehouse? She was kinda hoping you would catch us. I think.”
“Did she ever say that?” Aidan wondered.
“Not in so many words. I mean, she talked about getting caught a lot. She... well, y’know… she got off on it.”
Claire remembered the diary and stepped in front of Aidan. “How did this start, Jeff? I mean, how did it first come about?”
Jeff’s face turned a purpley kind of red. “I don’t think I should tell you.”
“Aidan isn’t going to hurt you, Jeff. I will make sure of that.”
He shook his head like a hurt puppy. “It’s not that. It’s just… I don’t like talking about it. It’s kinda embarrassing to say it in front of a girl, let alone her own sister.”
“What she needs to know is, were you working Jane’s accident?”
Jeff cocked his head. “What accident?”
“She got into an accident when she was in high school. Went to the hospital. Did you go visit her in the hospital?”
“God, no. I wasn’t even a deputy when she was in high school. I was only a year ahead of you guys.”
Aidan pulled Claire beside him and put his arm around her shoulders. “So whatever happened… it was what year? How old was she?”
Jeff looked at the sky. “Oh, I don’t know. Probably… a year before she died.” He covered his mouth with his hand. “Sorry, ma’am. I mean, before she passed away.”
Aidan met Claire’s eyes. “It’s not him.”
“No,” Claire agreed. She edged away from Aidan, toward the truck.
“What’s not me?”
“Never mind.” Aidan shook his head. “We’ll leave you alone, Jeff. Thanks for your time.”
The deputy followed them back to the truck and opened Claire’s door for her.
“I would never have hurt Jane. I only said what I did to Aidan because I would have wanted someone to tell me if I had been in his place.”
“What’s his place?” Claire asked, sliding into the truck while Jeff waited in the open door. She sized him up. She just didn’t get a lying vibe from the guy. He was big and dumb. Probably not the world’s greatest liar or the stealthiest fire-starter in ten counties.
The more she spoke to him, the more she believed him. He couldn’t possibly have killed Jane.
“They have some pretty unexplainable evidence against you, Conley. And if you really didn’t do it, then you’re going to have to provide some pretty solid evidence that someone else did. Otherwise, I think Allan’s right, you’re going to prison for the rest of your life.”
He put his hand on the door and prepared to close it, but then he stopped and thought for a moment, leaned his head in, and added, “Or, frankly, you could still run. We’ll pretend this didn’t happen, and if I never see you again, Conley, good luck.”
Aidan started the truck. “I didn’t kill my wife. And I’m not going anywhere.”
Jeff shrugged and slammed the door. Claire let the reverberations of both the door and Aidan’s assertion resonate through her for a moment. He wasn’t going anywhere.
That meant they had to prove he didn’t kill his wife. But Jeff didn’t know anything, they were back to square one. The outlook wasn’t as rosy as she’d hoped.
Escape was starting to look like a viable option.
If only to save Aidan’s life.
Chapter Ten
Aidan didn’t speak on their way back into town. He had been hoping they could confront Jeff and be done with the whole thing. All he wanted to do was put Jane and the fire behind him. Once and for all. What was it they called that on TV?
Closure.
Yea
h, that was what he needed.
Kissing Claire had been revelatory. All he wanted to do was pull over and feel her lips on his again. But that wasn’t an option at this point. Jeff had been a dead end. They had to find someone who knew something who would talk to them. He could think of only one way to start things moving again, so he called Will Johnson.
“Look, you asked me what you could do and I need a big favor. I mean it, Will, it’s a big one.”
On the other end of the line, Will laughed. “You know me. Go big or get lost.”
“I need you to find two things in the archives. There should be a copy of the incident report from Jane’s accident on February 10th, 2001. And one from the fire. Can you pull those for me?”
“2-10-01, got it. I think the chief might have the fire IR. I saw it on his desk before they arrested you. But I’ll do my best.”
“Thanks, Will. I owe you.”
“You owe nothing. Firehouse brothers.”
“Think there will be something in the fire marshal’s archives?” Claire asked.
Aidan couldn’t stop the pounding in his chest. He needed momentum. “I don’t know, but it’s worth asking. Will came by the house today, asking if he could help. That’s my only unexhausted lead.”
Claire fidgeted and Aidan looked around, trying to distract himself. “Maybe we could go to the hospital. Try to ask about the accident. See who treated her. See if they have visitor logs or something.”
“I don’t think they keep track of visitors. It’s not a pr—” But she stopped just short of saying it.
“So the hospital’s out,” he said, trying to cover up her words. “Where else can we go?”
Jeff’s words still rung out in Aidan’s ears. If Allan’s right, you’re going to prison… Aidan couldn’t even fathom it. Going to prison for a crime he didn’t commit? No. He wouldn’t do it.
They had to find something. Guilt over his fight with Jane or being drunk was one thing. Prison was another.
“Well, we still have her emails. Do you think Yumi’s office is still open?”
