by Kathi Daley
Chapter 5
“So did we find a smoking gun?” I asked after Kyle had taken everything from the box and laid it out on the long dining table.
“I’m not sure if I found a smoking gun, but I may have found something,” Kyle said. “According to a notepad Lloyd had left on his desk, it looks like he had a meeting with James Kingston on Tuesday afternoon.” Kyle paused and then continued. “I guess it makes sense that Kingston might have reached out to Lloyd. As a developer, Lloyd has tended to support investors in the area. He is usually pro anything that is real estate related. Maybe James met with Lloyd to try to come up with a strategy to suppress the movement to ban the vacation rentals.”
“So does that make James even more of a suspect than he already was?”
Kyle tilted his head slightly. “Not really. Chances are that Lloyd sided with James regarding the ban on vacation rentals, so James would have no motivation to kill him. I guess I’ll just pass this information on to Roy. If he feels it warrants further investigation, he can talk to James.”
“Makes sense. Anything else?”
Kyle looked at his computer. “I pulled up Lloyd’s phone records. He received a series of calls from a burner phone in the three-day period leading up to the bombing. The first call from this particular number showed up on Sunday. There were five other calls from the same number on Sunday, seven on Monday, and four on Tuesday. The last call Lloyd received from this number came in just an hour before we received the text that an emergency meeting had been called.”
I leaned forward and rested my arms on the table in front of me. “That seems like it might be a promising lead. Has the number shown up before?”
Kyle shook his head. “I went back into Lloyd’s cell records for three months, and the first time the number showed up was Sunday. Given the fact that I traced the number back to a burner phone, I’m not sure that is going to help us, but I’m going to do some poking around and see if I can find any additional information relating to the calls. If the calls originated from a consistent location, like a home or office, I might be able to figure out where they were made.”
“At this point, it really does look like Lloyd and/or James might have been involved in whatever occurred, although it seems as if there are a lot of holes in every theory we have come up with.”
“I have to agree with that. Lloyd did die as a result of the blast. If he was involved in any way, then it seems obvious that something went very wrong. By the way,” Kyle added. “Roy picked up the money that was sent to the resort. The amount of cash inside was exactly six thousand dollars. Does that amount mean anything to you?”
I shook my head. “No. Not off hand. Did Jeff get the same amount?”
“Jeff received fourteen thousand, seven hundred dollars.”
“That seems oddly specific.”
“Jeff said that his healthcare insurance deductible is fourteen thousand dollars and that he has a separate deductible for prescriptions, which he thinks might come out to around seven hundred dollars.”
My eyes grew wide. “My out-of-pocket deductible is six thousand dollars. I haven’t even stopped to think about the fact that my time in the hospital was going to cost me some of my hard-earned savings. I’m pretty sure I haven’t received a bill yet.”
“Jeff hasn’t either. He doesn’t know who the cash was from, but he was thrilled to have his deductible covered.”
“Okay, so someone has decided to pay our deductibles. Do you think it is the bomber?”
Kyle frowned. “It seems unlikely, but I suppose it is possible, especially if the bomb was not meant to harm innocent bystanders. I suppose the cash could have been sent by a Good Samaritan.”
“It seems as if a Good Samaritan would simply make a donation on our behalf directly to the hospital.”
“That is probably true.”
“So did anyone other than Jeff and I receive cash?”
Kyle shook his head. “Not as of this point. Roy and I discussed it and decided that whoever sent the cash sent it based on need. Hank, Bookman, and I have a lot of money. Paying our hospital bill won’t cause hardship for any of us. You and Jeff, on the other hand, don’t currently enjoy the same level of financial comfort.”
I supposed that made sense. The fact that someone sent me the cash I would need to cover the hospital bill I hadn’t even stopped to worry about was nice, but not knowing who sent it was a little creepy.
“Okay, say this theory is true. How did the person who sent the cash know how much our hospital bills were going to be? As I’ve already said, I haven’t received a statement from the hospital yet. I doubt I will receive one until the end of the month.”
“I’m not sure how the person who sent the cash got this information. Roy wasn’t certain either. It appears as if someone might have hacked into the hospital’s financial records and looked up your deductible.”
I didn’t like the sound of that. “Did Roy say anything else?”
“He has Lloyd’s laptop. I guess the guys at the impound lot found it in the trunk of his car. The laptop is password protected, so Roy is going to drop it by my place this evening after he gets off. He figures that while the county’s tech guys will eventually get in, I’ll get in quicker.”
“I imagine that he is right about that. In the meantime, maybe you should take a break.” I couldn’t help but notice how completely exhausted Kyle looked. He’d only been out of the hospital for a day, and while I knew that he was as motivated as anyone to figure out who was behind the bomb, I didn’t want him to overdo.
“I suppose I could use a break.” Kyle glanced out the window. “The rain and snow showers have stopped, and the sun is out. Maybe we can bundle up and sit on the back deck while the dogs get some exercise.”
“That sounds like a perfect plan. I’ll grab some blankets.”
The estate Kyle owned was located in an isolated cove on Paradise Lake. Jeremiah Collins, the man who brought residents to the area when he opened a lumber mill more than a hundred years ago, had built the huge home. Kyle had inherited the estate from his grandfather, Zachary Collins, four years ago. He’d completely remodeled it since then, but the exquisite location amongst the only grove of old growth trees left in the area was really something to behold.
“This is nice,” I said after tucking a blanket around Kyle and then snuggling in beside him. “Things have been so hectic since the explosion. And so stressful. I feel like I really haven’t had a chance to catch my breath.”
“Things have been intense. I feel like I am missing an entire chunk of time.”
“The explosion was just three days ago. Not all that long in the grand scheme of things, but with everything we’ve had to deal with, it seems a lot longer.”
Kyle wove his fingers through mine. “I guess I missed Gracie’s presentation at school on Wednesday.”
My youngest sister, Gracie, had been assigned a presentation relating to the history of the Paradise Lake area, and she’d chosen to do her speech about Kyle’s family and the impact they’d had on the entire area when they brought commerce and jobs to the area.
“I talked Hunter into releasing me from my overnight stay in time to make it to the presentation,” I informed Kyle. “She did really well. The information and photos you provided to her made her speech by far the best of any of those presented.”
“I’m really sorry I missed it.”
I tucked the blanket up under my chin to ward off the slight breeze. “Me too but there will be other presentations to attend. In fact, I think Ashley has a founder’s day event after the first of the year, and, of course, Gracie has the Thanksgiving play in a couple of weeks.”
Kyle adjusted his position slightly. He was trying to put on a brave face, but I could see that he was still in a fair amount of pain. Deciding that leaning against him probably wasn’t the best position for us to be in, I got u
p and sat down on a chair across from him. The fact that he didn’t argue for me to remain by his side confirmed my suspicion.
“Speaking of Ashley, how did her date go?” Kyle asked after I was settled in the chair. “The poor thing was about as nervous as I’ve ever seen her when she left on Tuesday.”
“I think it went well. If you remember, there were eight of them, four couples. Jenna dropped Ashley and Kristi off at the burger place next to the movie theater. Ashley said the food was good, but the movie was boring, although it didn’t seem she really cared that the movie was boring. She said she had a good time.”
Kyle smiled. “She is growing up so fast. I still remember the little girl I met on that first Halloween. She was so concerned about how to fit in and what sort of costume was best for someone who was most definitely no longer a baby.”
“Not being seen as a baby has always been a big theme for her,” I smiled at the memory.
“She’s had a tough go of it, but she found a way to fit into her new life after your mom died. It seems like only yesterday she was trying to find her way on that first Halloween and now she is dating. It’s crazy.”
“She’s not dating in the conventional sense,” I countered. “Jenna dropped her off and picked her up. She attended the dinner and the movie with Kristi and six other friends. I mean, technically, the friends did pair up, and the outing was referred to as a date, but it wasn’t actually a date. Was it?”
Kyle grinned. “I think it was.”
I groaned. “I guess you’re right. Our baby is growing up so fast. Before you know it, she’ll be going off to college and then we’ll never see her.”
“We’ll see her. She told me that she wants to go to Stanford. That isn’t all that far away.”
I made a face. “Even if she gets in, which is far from being a given, Stanford is pretty pricy. I’m not sure I’ll be able to swing that even with the money I’ve squirreled away to pay for the girls’ college.”
Kyle paused. He made a face I couldn’t quite read but seemed to convey hesitation. “I know we agreed to take things slowly, and I’m very willing to do that, but I sort of hoped that by the time Ashley was ready for college, our relationship would have matured to the point where we would naturally pay for her college together.”
I frowned.
“Ashley won’t go to college for almost six years,” Kyle pointed out. “Surely, you see us being married by then?”
I leaned back into my chair as I tried to gather my thoughts.
“Tj?” Kyle asked.
I glanced at the man sitting across from me. The longer I took to respond, the more serious his expression grew. I could sense the tension between us exponentially increase as he waited for my answer, yet I still couldn’t find the words to end his torment.
“Tj?” Kyle asked once again.
I took a deep breath and forced a smile. “Yes, of course, I see us as being married by then. I’m not sure why the whole thing caught me off guard. I guess I just never stopped to really think about a timeline.” I furrowed my brow as I tried to wrap my head around things. “Have you? Thought of a timeline that is?”
Kyle hesitated. He appeared to be taking a moment to think about his response before answering. Eventually, he spoke in a slow and level tone of voice. “No. Not really. Or I guess I should say, not specifically, but when I look into the future, I see us — you and me and Ashley and Gracie — living together as a family. And I will admit that when I spoke to Ashley about Stanford, it never entered my mind that we wouldn’t be married by the time she went off to college. Am I to assume by your complete surprise when I suggested as much, that I’ve imagined things differently than you’ve envisioned?”
I had no idea what to say. The conversation had taken a turn I really wasn’t expecting, and while I really did want to respond to Kyle, my mind simply wouldn’t form the words needed to prevent this conversation from becoming even more awkward than it already was.
“It’s okay if you haven’t thought that far ahead,” Kyle assured me. “I really didn’t mean to bring up such a delicate subject at this particular point in time.”
“No, it’s okay.” I paused and then continued. “While it is true that I have not looked quite as far into the future as you have, I do love you, and I do think about us being a family one day.” I took a deep breath and blew it out slowly. “I’m not sure why the whole thing hit me wrong. Of course, I want to marry you, but not now. Dad and Rosalie are getting married next month, and we don’t want to overshadow their wedding, but maybe next summer, or even in the fall.”
Kyle raised a brow. “Next fall? Are you ready to talk about a date?”
I glanced at the man who had he always been there for me. I felt nothing but love for the man who’d followed me across the country and back when I’d been so torn up about another guy that I’d decided to leave Paradise Lake. I felt my heart skip a beat as I thought about Kyle’s patience and kindness. I smiled and nodded. “I suppose discussing a date might seem abrupt. I realize there is a protocol which most feel should be upheld, and I know that technically I am bypassing the whole you getting down on one knee followed by a syrupy speech thing, but I don’t need that. To be honest, I don’t even want that. We’ve both had complicated relationships in the past, but to this point, our relationship has been mostly easy and uncomplicated. You are my best friend. I love you. I think that on some level I have always loved you. I want to spend my life with you. We could wait and do things in a more traditional manner, but my heart is telling me that if we both want to get married, we should cut to the chase and get married.”
“Just like that?”
I nodded. “Just like that.”
Chapter 6
Saturday, November 11
It had been a week since Harriet’s funeral. Lloyd had been buried the day after Harriet, and Bookman had awakened the day after that. Hank was still in a coma and not expected to awaken at this point. As for our spontaneous engagement, Kyle and I had decided to wait to make an announcement until everyone was together on Thanksgiving. I could tell that Kyle was thrown by our sudden decision to move from dating to planning a wedding, but he wanted me to be happy, and I assured him that a no muss, no fuss sort of transition was what I wanted. He offered to buy me any ring I wanted, but I decided that the ring I wanted to wear was the ring Zachary had given to Kyle’s grandmother, Mary, even though they had never been legally married. Still, the ring was gorgeous, and given its history, it made me feel close not only to Kyle but also to his heritage. Of course, since we hadn’t told anyone that we were engaged, I couldn’t wear the ring yet, but waiting to tell everyone at our Thanksgiving feast seemed like a good idea, so I was happy to delay the unveiling until our special day.
“Can I come in?” Gracie poked her head in through a crack in the opening of my previously closed bedroom door.
“Sure honey. Come on in.” I pulled a corner of my heavy comforter back so that Gracie could snuggle under the covers with me. “You’re up early.”
“Pumpkin needed to go out, so I had to get up. I think her stomach is feeling rumbly.”
Pumpkin was Gracie’s golden retriever.
“Have you been feeding her people food again?”
“Not a lot. I guess I gave her some cheese last night. And I let her lick my ice cream bowl when I was done eating.”
“Pumpkin has a delicate stomach, so you need to be careful about what you give her. She doesn’t seem to do well with dairy products, so cheese and ice cream probably weren’t a good idea.”
Gracie laid her head on my shoulder. I wrapped my arm around both her and the stuffed bunny she’d clung to. She’d always been my snuggle bunny, and I dreaded the day she would decide she was too old for these heart-to-heart talks, but so far, she seemed to enjoy them as much as I did.
“Will you make her chicken and rice?” Gracie asked after
a minute. “The last time she was sick, you made her a big pot of it, and by the time the pot was gone, she was feeling better.”
“I’ll make some before we go into town. Are you still going over to Kari’s?”
“Actually, Kari is coming here. Kristi too. Jenna is going over to her mom’s house to sit with Bookman while Helen goes to the hairdresser.”
I frowned. “I thought Helen hired a nurse to help out when Bookman came home.”
“Ashley said that Bookman said no to a nurse. She told me that at first Kari’s grandma wasn’t happy about having to take care of Bookman all by herself, but Kari told me yesterday that Helen was so happy to have Bookman home, that she decided she didn’t really care about having help.”
“I guess if Kristi and Kari are coming over here today, I’ll need to change my plans. I’m kind of surprised that Jenna didn’t call and let me know about the change ahead of time.”
“You don’t have to change your plans. Rosalie is watching us. In fact, it was Rosalie’s idea to have Kristi and Kari over so that Jenna could help her mom out.”
Okay. On the one hand, I wasn’t sure how I felt about Rosalie changing plans I had set up without even checking with me. On the other hand, Helen probably did need a break, and it made sense that Jenna should focus on being there for her family. The reality was that I should have realized as much in the first place. “I guess we should get up and see how Pumpkin is doing. I’ll check with Rosalie and see if she needs help today. Once I do that, I’ll make chicken and rice for both Echo and Pumpkin. You know Echo isn’t going to want dog food once he smells the chicken cooking.”
“The cat’s like chicken as well,” Gracie pointed out.
