by DJ Owen
With Monica's relationship progressing to something more physical, Alex decided to do a little more research into Mark's past. She hoped she wouldn't find anything, but she had learned to trust her gut over the years and her gut wasn’t entirely happy.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Kyle was more perturbed than ever after he ran the credit card number the Park Ranger had given him for Alex. It turned out to be a pre-paid debit card, and used only for her expenses in the area. She had purchased gasoline and food products near the campground, and a meal at a small diner along US 93. The officer wasted his day off to drive down and speak with the staff of the diner, but he only found two who thought they remembered her, and both vaguely recalled a woman who might have been Alex asking for directions to Las Vegas. He never picked up a trail in Las Vegas, so it was back to the drawing board.
The pre-paid debit card was in Alex's name, but had been purchased three months before and loaded with cash. The card hadn't been used since she visited the diner, which brought the card balance down to $4.27. There was still no viable financial trail for him to follow.
Kyle resorted to searching the internet for any mention of Alex. He found a few articles written by her around the time of her almost ex-husband's death, but they were from various newspapers and blogs around the country. There was nothing more recent.
"Are you still trying to find that girl?" Jolene asked Kyle as she passed his desk. "Why don't you just give her a call again? Ask her outright."
"Oh, Jolene, I can't let go of this. Alex is completely off the grid. How does she manage that? More importantly, why? Why would anyone need to completely erase any connection to her private life?"
Jolene sighed. "Look, maybe she's got a stalker. Maybe that's why she drives around in a motorhome. If she doesn't put down roots, nobody can find her to stalk her. She wouldn't be the first woman trying to avoid a man."
"True, but I think this goes deeper than that. I'm just getting this funny feeling that the girl is hiding from more than a stalker."
"Okay, you win. She’s in witness protection. It’s either that or she’s a serial killer and you're the only person in the world who's ever seen through her." Jolene laughed heartily at the thought that a Sheriff's Deputy in the northern-most reaches of the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest would identify a petite female serial killer when no other law enforcement officer had done so.
---------
Strains of "Don't Bother Me" emanated from Alex's phone at 10:30 one evening. She stared at the name on the display: Kyle Buckley. As Alex was accustomed, she had added Kyle's number to the phone's contact list after he called her from San Francisco, but she really didn't think she would hear from him again and had not yet given him his own ringtone. She would have to rectify that.
"Hello?" Alex decided to play it cool. She thought it would be too soon for Kyle to be visiting San Francisco again, so this was likely just a call to stay in touch.
"Hi, Alex? This is Kyle again...Kyle Buckley?" Kyle had to assume Alex had long forgotten him, and he certainly didn't want to tip his hand to her.
"Oh, Kyle! How was the class in San Francisco? Learn anything interesting?" Alex kept her voice light and friendly. She needed to figure out a way to chase him off without making him suspicious of her. But did she really want to chase him off? She wasn’t sure.
Kyle found himself relaxing a bit as he realized she remembered why he was in San Francisco. She had a way of making him nervous, even when he was the one who initiated the call and had control of the conversation. "It was good, though geared more toward female police officers."
"And we are both well aware that you aren't female," Alex uttered before she could stop herself. She mentally applied her foot to her posterior before continuing. "I mean, I'm sorry it wasn't something more suited to you."
"That's okay. It may end up helping out my career in the long run."
Alex didn't catch any significance of that statement. "Well, that's good, at least." She paused for a moment and decided where to take the conversation from there. "So why do I have the pleasure of your call?"
"Uh, well...I just wanted to touch base with you." Come on, Kyle, you can do better than that! Kyle thought to himself. "Truth is, I'm having a little trouble getting you out of my mind. I don't often run into single women driving cross-country alone in an RV. I've been a little worried about you." That wasn't entirely untrue.
"That's so sweet, Kyle. I didn't know you cared." Alex wasn't sure what to say at this point. She knew she should send Kyle packing, but now that she had settled down in Ohio, would it be so bad to keep Kyle as a phone friend?
"So are you doing okay?" The conversation sounded disjointed, as though both were unsure how to proceed.
"I'm fine. Thank you for asking. How have you been?" Alex realized her answers were short, and her questions becoming trite.
"Oh, I'm fine, too." This is ridiculous! It's almost like I've never spoken to a woman before. Of course, I haven't really spoken to one like this. I'm usually interrogating someone like her, a...suspect! Kyle was determined to bring the conversation back under his control. "So, Alex, I was wondering if you thought you might be back in this area again anytime soon. I sure would like to see you again, only this time it should be under better circumstances."
"I'm so sorry, Kyle. I was really in the area only for a short vacation. I hadn't thought about coming back to Lake Monroe." There, maybe that will give him the right impression, that I'm not available.
"Well, that's okay. I understand." Kyle was setting her up and was just about ready to spring the trap. Alex, on the other hand, was feeling as though she had Kyle right where she wanted him.
"I hope you aren't too disappointed. It's probably for the best. I never thought much of long-distance relationships." There, that should do it. I shouldn't hear from him ever again. The thought saddened Alex just a little.
"Oh, no, not disappointed. I was thinking about coming back out to San Francisco again. It was really a nice city with a totally different atmosphere than we have here in Northern Nevada. You mentioned that I should let you know in advance the next time I was going to come to San Francisco. This is me letting you know I'm planning a trip. I already have your address, so I can just drop by."
Alex's jaw was frozen. This was not the way she wanted the conversation to end. She considered how to respond and went for the most obvious. "Oh, that's great news. When were you going to come back?" The more information she had, the easier it would be to push him away.
"That depends. When will you be in town?" The trap was sprung and there was no way out.
"Gosh, Kyle, I don't know. I'm out of town quite frequently, and sometimes on short notice. I would hate for you to make a trip and then I have to leave." Alex was feeling cornered. She could see a trip out West coming up pretty soon.
"Surely you can plan a few days at home. You've never told me what you do, come to think of it." Kyle was starting to get into the conversation now.
Alex was trapped and knew it. If she told him she was independently wealthy, there was no reason for her to have to leave on a moment's notice. If she told him she was a writer, he wouldn't find much published by her because she used a pen name. Any regular employment she picked would lead to him wanting to call her at work. Alex realized she had waited too long to answer when Kyle spoke again.
"Alex? Are you still there?"
"Sorry, Kyle! Yes! Yes, I am still here. I was just looking at my calendar trying to figure out when I would be back home." Good save, Alex thought. But now what?
Kyle gave her another moment, but he wanted to keep the pressure on. "So? Have you figured it out?"
"Uhm...I'll tell you what. How about we plan on the first week of June?" Perhaps she could kill two birds with one proverbial stone. "Only I think what I would like to do is come back to Lake Monroe. This time, though, I'll have my daughter with me." Alex hoped the mention of a child would scare Kyle away, as it had done with other men in the past.
"That's great! I would love to meet your daughter." Daughter? Maybe he had her wrong all along. She couldn't possibly have a daughter and live a criminal life, could she? Kyle really didn't want to wait several weeks, but the state police still didn't have any leads in the Lake Monroe murder case. As far as he knew, he was the only one looking at Alex and hopefully he had been completely wrong about her. Of course, he thought, this means he would have to figure out another way to ask Alex why she used a bogus address on her license.
"Terrific, Kyle. As soon as I make my reservation with the Ranger's office, I'll let you know, okay?" Alex wasn't happy about the situation. She may have to come up with some sort of explanation about why she doesn't want Kyle coming to San Francisco. In the meantime, she felt exhilarated at the concept of seeing Kyle again. He certainly was good-looking in his uniform. On top of that, she could let Amy travel with her. There was no chance she would flirt with any trouble while she was busy flirting with Kyle.
"Wonderful. I look forward to hearing from you."
They said their goodbyes and hung up. Kyle couldn't wait to tell Jolene about the conversation. He also needed to call Mike and ask him not to let on to Alex that they had been talking about her. That could all wait for the morning. Right now, Kyle couldn't stop smiling.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
A funny fact about freelancing as a writer is that your work is often feast or famine. After the call from Kyle Buckley, it was as if every one of Alex's customers awoke from a lazy winter snooze. She found herself inundated with requests for newspaper articles, blog postings and catalog copy. The more she wrote and submitted, the more work came her way. She didn't have time to drive all over the countryside, even if she wanted to.
By now it was early May, and Amy was giving her mother daily hints and reminders that she would soon be graduating from middle school to high school. Alex had not mentioned taking the trip to Lake Monroe. She was still debating about changing her phone number and never speaking to Kyle Buckley again. It would have been simpler to avoid seeing him, but Alex couldn't risk him trying to track her down in San Francisco. Besides, she was attracted to him. She could fool herself about a lot of things, but the mental image was impossible to erase with his dreamy blue eyes, strong jaw and perfectly-formed torso wrapped up like a present by his uniform.
Alex had spent several weeks living what most people would describe as a normal life. She slept in the same bed every night, spent her days working, her nights with family, and on weekends she often enjoyed some of the finer things in life. It was nice to live her life openly, not having to keep her lies straight or worry about how to dispose of a body. By golly, it was law enforcement's responsibility to take the villains off the street. Why should she get involved when she certainly wasn't being compensated for it?
She was, however, pleased that Amy and Monica were committed to the self-defense classes. They attended, but whined a little when it came time for class. Once they saw Alex throw down the burly instructor, though, they became more enthused. Amy told several of her friends at school about the classes, and three of them also signed up. With her cohorts meeting her there, Amy was happy to go. She also appreciated the looks of awe from her friends when her mother would incapacitate men more than twice her weight.
Mark wasn't as supportive as Monica had hoped. She assumed it was because he was a man and thought he should be the one to protect her. He didn't tell her to drop out of the class, but repeatedly told her he didn't understand why she felt the need to continue.
He would often say, "Seriously, Monica! Aren't you afraid you'll get hurt? Besides, it’s my job to keep you safe."
Monica would tell him she was doing it to make Alex happy, or to encourage Amy to continue. Truthfully, though, Monica liked the feeling of power and confidence she was gaining. Her shyness still didn't allow her to volunteer for demonstrations, but she was becoming stronger and beginning to win during practice. She enjoyed knowing that she didn't have to be afraid of every stranger she met, and her physique was benefiting from the regular exercise. Certain parts of her anatomy were toning up, and while her weight remained steady, the muscle she gained was alluring.
Alex finally gave in and called Mike at Lake Monroe's reservation office. He was happy to hear from her and guaranteed a spot for her motorhome beginning the first weekend in June.
"You'll enjoy it here that time of year. Everything is lush and green, and the air is not so nippy. You know, our boat dock on the lake will be open, and there are boats for rent, if you're into fishin'. We also have a band playing Saturday nights at the pavilion, too." Mike offered up a plethora of activities once he found out Alex was bringing her daughter on the trip. "We've also got some activities just for the younger set. Hiking on various trails so the kids can learn to identify plants, especially the ones you don't want 'em to touch."
"I remember that from when Monica and I were there years ago. Mom and Dad palmed us off on the nature guide so they could have a little alone time of their own. Of course, we didn't understand that at the time, but I figured it out later." Alex laughed. It was refreshing to be able to talk about her past with someone outside the family. She hadn't been happy when Mike brought up her mom and dad during check-in on her last trip, but living life along the straight and narrow had its benefits. She wasn't worried about anyone learning any secrets since she wasn't creating any new ones. Besides, her old ones seem to be safe. She found no evidence of anyone looking for her, so she could let her guard down.
Alex hesitated briefly before asking Mike about the events from her earlier visit. "Hey, Mike, I have to ask you about that incident from the last time I was there. Have the police figured out what happened? If I'm going to bring Amy to Lake Monroe, I want to make sure it will be safe."
"That's understandable. You have to look out for your kid." Mike remembered Kyle's visit and concerns, so he didn't want to tell Alex that the police had determined it was murder. He also didn't want to scare off any visitors to the park. Most of his business came from word-of-mouth. "We haven't had any other problems since you left. It's been pretty dead around here...no disrespect to the guy intended."
Alex gave an appreciative chuckle and used her best prissy voice, "Mike! I can't believe you said that!" They both laughed before Alex continued, "That's good to hear, though. I wouldn't want to bring Amy if someone was still around up there. I guess they decided it was an accident after all, huh?" Alex pushed a little. She hadn't found anything about the van fire since the first article came out, which didn't tell her very much.
"I don't really know, Alex. I would love to tell you that's what it was, but I haven't heard anything about it. I think the police would've come by and told me to keep my eyes open if they thought someone else was involved." Mike was starting to sweat a little. This better not hurt business, Mike thought to himself. And Kyle better appreciate this.
Mike steered her away from the topic by asking for the reservation fee.
"You must not have the number I gave you last time. Hold on a second and let me grab my wallet." Alex was gone only a moment. "Here we go." She rattled off the numbers and the expiration date of the card she had used previously.
"That’ll do ‘er!" Mike ran the card and received the authorization code. "You're good to go. We'll see you in a few weeks. Drive safely, you hear?"
"Will do. I'll make sure I find you when we arrive. I'm looking forward to showing Amy how Monica and I spent some of our summers. See you soon!"
The moment the line went dead, Mike called Kyle's cell phone and left a message to call when it was convenient. "I've heard from your girl," he added.
----------
Alex pulled Monica aside once Amy went up to her bedroom that evening.
"I've scheduled a trip out to Lake Monroe for Amy's graduation present. I stopped by there on my last trip out West, and it brought back so many wonderful memories of when we went there with Mom and Dad. You should have some vacation time built up. You're invited
to join us."
"When are you going?" Monica asked.
"The first weekend in June. It takes a couple days to drive in my slowpoke Winnie, but I figure we will stay a week and come back the following weekend. We'll be gone ten days tops."
"I'll see if I can get that time off. Summers are hard for me, you know. Everybody tries to move over the summer, so the real estate market goes crazy. I'll have to make sure nobody else has requested the time off. We can't be short two people in the office."
"Well, I know Amy and I would love to have you join us, and you need some time away. You've been burning the candle at both ends between work and Mark."
"Oh, my time with Mark is relaxing. He is so kind to me, and takes care of everything. All I have to do is be there to enjoy his company. It's really nice to have someone who wants to make me happy."
"I remember that feeling from when Jeremy and I first got together. Trust me, it doesn't last."
"That may be true, but I plan to enjoy it for all its worth right now. It's certainly better than the alternative." Monica shot Alex a knowing look. She seldom mentioned her past, even in such a vague way.
"At least now you're learning how to defend yourself, in case you ever need it. And hopefully, you never will."
Amy's bedroom door opened and she came down the stairs. "I'm going to make myself some hot chocolate. Do either of you want any?"
Monica and Alex both shook their heads. "No, but thanks for asking," Monica added.
"Once you get your hot chocolate ready, could you come here for a minute?" Alex decided to go ahead and spring the trip on Amy.
