by Raven Snow
“He contacted me and asked me for money,” said David. “I guess he found out I came from a wealthy family,” David snorted. “Not that any of that means I’m wealthy. If anything, I’ve wracked up more debt than I can ever possibly make for my family.”
“So, he tried to blackmail you?” Rowen could see that. It didn’t sound like David was lying to her right now. It seemed all too likely that someone like Justin might try to extort money from someone, and then have a change of heart. She wasn’t sure how his house usually looked, but the leftover mess from the party, said to her that he had a lot weighing on his mind. Lindsay’s death had probably hit him hard.
“He said he saw me leave the party with Lindsay,” said David. His voice sounded a bit shaky as he explained. “He said we were all over each other all night, and that she left the party with me. He asked if he wanted me to have him keep that to himself. Of course, I did. I couldn’t… I can’t let that kind of heat fall on my family.”
Rowen hadn’t expected that. “Did you leave with Lindsay?” she asked, suddenly very wary of the man sitting in the car beside her.
David was silent again. This time, he appeared to be deep in thought. A hand went to his mouth. It was shaking. “I don’t know,” he admitted.
“You don’t know?” Rowen wasn’t sure that she bought that.
“I don’t know,” David insisted. “I… My work gets to me sometimes. I don’t necessarily act like I should.” He winced. “I drink too much. I’ve experimented with some things I shouldn’t have. I’m not dependent on it or anything, but… being sober has become kind of a chore, you know?”
Rowen didn’t know, but she would take his word on it. “I guess your family really stresses you out, huh? That’s a lot of pressure.”
David nodded. “That’s no excuse, but… yeah. I guess that’s a big part of it. Eric has always been the good one. He could make business deals in his sleep. I’m not great with people.”
Rowen had noticed, but didn’t say as much. She tried to get things back to the pressing topic at hand. “But did you go home with Lindsay that night?”
“I don’t know!” David snapped, looking like he hadn’t meant to. “I don’t know,” he repeated, quieter this time. “I wish I did, but… I’d been drinking all night. I know I spent most of the party with one particular girl. I don’t remember her name, but it definitely could have been Lindsay. After that… everything is sort of a blur.”
“Why did you come to my house?” asked Rowen, thinking back to that night. “What were you even doing in Lainswich?”
David lapsed into silence yet again. This time, he looked ashamed. He shook his head. “It’s stupid,” he said.
Now Rowen really had to know. “Why? Tell me.”
“No, it’s…” David sighed. “Just don’t tell Eric, all right?”
“I won’t tell Eric,” Rowen promised.
“He talks about you all the time,” said David. “The whole family has known where you lived for a while. Eric never stopped talking about you and Lainswich and how much he loves spending time here.”
Rowen was flattered. She doubted they had gotten to the ‘stupid’ part yet, though.
“On a bender, I got it into my head that I should come down here,” David continued. “I was going to… uh… seduce you.”
Rowen couldn’t help it. She laughed at that. “You didn’t do the best job.”
“I know,” said David. “Believe me, I know. I also sobered up and realized what a bad idea it was on the way down. I decided to go to a party instead. Apparently, that was a mistake, too.”
“If it’s any comfort, I don’t think you killed anyone.” Rowen really didn’t. “It sounds like you were pretty wasted that night. I really don’t see how you could set up a scene like the murderer did and leave no obvious evidence if you were that far gone.”
David nodded. He still looked uncertain, like he wanted to believe her, but just couldn’t. “There was some blood in the passenger seat. I don’t remember it being there before I came down here.”
Rowen had been thinking about that. She remembered the blood she had found when she had parked his car for him. She hadn’t mentioned that to Eric, either. She wondered if he had found it by now. He probably wouldn’t in the dark. “It wasn’t a ton,” she pointed out. “You don’t know that it’s Lindsay’s.”
“I think she was in my car,” David blurted. He was really shaking now. There were tears in his eyes. “What if I’m the murderer?”
He was genuinely terrified he had done something heinous. For the first time since all this had started, Rowen felt confident he could not be the perpetrator. “I don’t think you could have possibly done it,” she insisted. “Whoever killed Lindsay made it look like some sort of occult ritual. You would have absolutely no reason to do that sort of thing.
That line of reasoning seemed to calm David down a bit. He still fretted, but it made the ride home tolerable, at least.
When they pulled up at the Greensmith house, he had gone silent again. There were more cars parked around the front now. It seemed that Rowen’s cousins had all headed home. She wondered if they had had any luck with contacting Lindsay directly. Probably not.
Eric was already out of David’s car and standing by the door, waiting for them. He had his hands in his pockets and a scowl on his face. If he had used his alone time driving for reflection, it certainly hadn’t made him accept any of this.
David stared out the window at his brother. Rowen could tell he was dreading getting out and going to speak with him. “It’ll be fine,” she told him. She wasn’t sure it would be fine. David probably knew his own brother better than she did. Still, it got him out of the car.
They both headed around back together, likely to speak in private. Rowen watched them go, then headed inside. Her cousins were all eating a late dinner in the kitchen.
“How did your day go?” asked Rose, sounding tired. Apparently, trying to contact a ghost all day took a lot out of a person.
“It’s a long story,” Rowen said with a sigh, going to fix herself some coffee. “I’ll tell you all about it later… Any luck with Lindsay?”
Margo shook her head. “I don’t think she’s talking to us,” she said with a frown.
Willow nodded. “I think, maybe, she went ahead and moved on.”
Rowen rolled her eyes. “We haven’t solved her murder yet. Why would she move on?”
“She’d probably rather we wasted our time on it,” Margo complained. “She’d probably even like it if the thing went unsolved. She always was a drama queen.”
“Don’t speak ill of the dead,” warned Rowen, but she had to give it to Margo. That sounded about right.
Rowen caught up with her cousins a bit more. When Eric still hadn’t returned, she went and took a shower. He was sitting in the bedroom by the time she got back. He was in her bed, doing something or another on his laptop. He didn’t look too into it, though. His mind was, understandably, elsewhere.
“How did it go?” asked Rowen, still toweling off her hair.
Eric shook his head. “It could have gone better.” He held out his hand, willing her to join him. She did. “I think you helped,” he said. “He opened up some. I guess it’s a good first step. Did you know he thinks he killed Lindsay?”
Rowen nodded. “He told me. I don’t think that’s possible.”
“You didn’t think your grandmother killing anyone was possible,” Eric reminded her.
That was a bit harsh, but she conceded the point. “Well, do you think your brother murdered her?”
Eric paused as if to consider that, but it didn’t take long. “No,” he admitted. “I don’t think he has it in him, and it sounds like he was too inebriated to do anything of the sort.”
“That’s what I told him.”
Eric closed his laptop. He put an arm around Rowen and let his head loll back. He was exhausted. After that bit of excitement, they both were.
Rowen leaned her fa
ce in close to his. She kissed him on the cheek. “I’m sorry I got your family mixed up in all this craziness,” she said.
Eric snorted at that. “It’s not your fault,” he said— as if the very idea was ridiculous.
Rowen wasn’t so sure. She got the feeling that her family tended to spread chaos a bit like a disease. Maybe that was why their relationships never lasted.
Chapter Eleven
Rowen woke up to a considerable commotion downstairs. She tried to ignore it at first. Noise wasn’t uncommon in the Greensmith household. She tried to roll over and simply go back to sleep.
It was when Rowen rolled over that she found herself in an empty bed. Eric had already gone. The part of the mattress he had vacated was cold.
A car door slammed outside. That piqued Rowen’s curiosity. She sat up and went to the small attic window. She looked out and saw… a police car?
Most of the family was standing outside. Eric’s parents were out there. Mr. Richardson seemed to be having some words with an officer. Meanwhile, she could make out a tow truck vanishing down the drive. It was pulling what looked like David’s car.
Rowen didn’t stay at the window to watch anymore. She threw a robe over her nightgown and hurried downstairs. She took them two at a time and flew out the front door. By then, there were two police cars pulling away.
Rowen went right to Eric. He was standing next to his mother. His hands were curled into fists and his jaw was clenched. “What happened?” she asked, looking around at everyone gathered so quietly on the front lawn.
Eric didn’t say anything at first. He waited until Aunt Lydia came over and led his mother away. Mrs. Richardson looked particularly shaken. Mr. Richardson was right on her heels as she headed back inside.
“They took David in for questioning,” Eric said, still staring off in the direction they had gone.
“What?” Rowen was surprised. She really shouldn’t have been, though. She probably should have expected something like this. “Justin must have talked to them.”
Eric nodded. “He said there was a bloodstain in the car. He said that the blood belonged to Lindsay.”
That was why they had towed the car. Rowen stared off in the direction it had gone as well. If they ran tests and found out that it was Lindsay’s blood… Wow. This was really bad.
“Did you know about the blood?” asked Eric. He turned to look at his girlfriend. His expression was conflicted, like he wanted her to say no.
There had been no particularly good reason for Rowen to keep the bloodstain from Eric. She supposed, again, she just hadn’t wanted to worry him. She had left it out because it was more convenient. Rowen had never wanted him to think that his brother could be a killer. “I saw it when I moved the car,” she admitted. She considered saying that she had forgotten about it, but that would be a lie. She didn’t want to start a trend of lying to Eric. That would only make things worse.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Eric asked. There really was anger in his voice this time. Rowen’s cousins must have heard it as well. They all began to silently head inside to stay out of matters.
“I just…” Rowen really didn’t have a good excuse. “I just never got around to it, I guess.”
“Really?” Eric snapped. It was the first time he had shouted at Rowen. It made her jump. “After what we talked about last night, you really think…” Eric trailed off. He turned and began to head back inside.
“Eric,” she called after him. They needed to talk about this, didn’t they? Every time a guy had walked away from her after a fight, they had never come back. She didn’t want things to end that way with Eric.
“I have to make some calls,” Eric said, waving her off. “I need to get our lawyer on the phone, and… and I don’t know what else.”
Rowen watched him go back in. She had a sinking feeling in her chest. She had just screwed up something wonderful. She knew she had. After a few minutes of standing around outside in her robe, she headed in.
There were voices coming from the den, so she avoided it. It sounded like the whole Richardson family was on the phone at the same time— each making a different call to try and help David.
Rowen’s own family was organized in the kitchen. They were all gathered around the coffee pot, speaking quietly to one another. They looked up when Rowen came in.
Aunt Lydia held out an arm. Rowen went to her and let her aunt pull her into a short hug. “This will sort itself out,” said Lydia. “It always does.”
It would, of course. The Greensmith family would hold strong. It was her relationship with Eric that she was worried about.
“Poor David,” Margo said with a sigh.
“I’m surprised they got a warrant so fast,” said Peony.
Rose nodded. “I guess they’re really on the ball with this one.”
Margo and Rowen exchanged a look. They had both been to the police station together, and they knew that wasn’t true. If anything, Ben had been annoyed that they weren’t giving this case the attention it deserved. There was a very good chance, with a lack of other leads, they were looking for a scapegoat. Rowen had to hand it to them— David made a good one.
“So,” Rose began, rocking back on her heels and looking at Rowen. She seemed nervous to ask a pretty obvious question. “Should we… you know? Should we report this?”
“No,” Rowen said, immediately. If Eric was mad at her now, she couldn’t imagine how he would feel about her using his brother’s arrest for her own personal gain.
“Doesn’t it seem weird not to, though?” asked Willow.
Margo nodded. “Julia Martinez will report this. Heck, she probably already has. That woman works fast.”
“It’s not like we’re a source of breaking news or anything,” Rowen insisted, standing her ground. They usually did think pieces: exposés, stuff of that nature. This could be skipped. This needed to be skipped. “Leave it out. Keep trying to contact Lindsay. I’ll go in with you today. I’ll try to help.”
“I don’t think that’s going to work,” said Rose, frowning. She seemed torn, but sympathetic. “I think Peony is right. I think Lindsay moved on. There’s not really anyone else to contact about this, either.”
“These things happen,” said Aunt Nadine. “The draw of the afterlife can be strong for some.”
“Actually, I think Lindsay was just that vindictive even in death,” muttered Margo.
Aunt Nadine inclined her head. “Sometimes that’s the case, too.
“It’ll be all right,” said Aunt Lydia, stepping in to address the heart of the problem. “You could ask Eric how he feels about you presenting just the facts. They’re a strong family. I’m sure they’ll understand if−”
“We’re not running the story.” The last thing Rowen wanted right now was to be argued with. “Will everyone just get ready? Please? We’re running late as it is.” That was a pretty lame excuse. Since they were the paper, it didn’t matter how late they ran. It wasn’t like they could do much today, anyway. The arrest would be the most talked about news in Lainswich. If they didn’t mention that, it was going to seem like a joke. Everyone knew she was dating Eric and, if they didn’t know before, they would know now, that David was his brother.
Rowen felt like she was on the verge of tears. She was usually so good under pressure. This made her feel like an inexperienced child. She had been in relationships that went south before. Why did this hurt so much?
Rowen went back to her room in the attic and got dressed for work. She sat there for what felt like a very long time. It was difficult to motivate herself to do what needed to be done. It felt like she had done a spectacular job of messing this up so far. It was important that she keep herself busy, though. If the police weren’t going to do their job, she needed to be the one to help solve this case. Her relationship depended on it. More than that, David’s future depended on it. She may not have cared much for David, but she didn’t think he was a murderer.
When Rowen came back downstair
s, her cousins were already waiting. They all looked tired themselves. She felt a simultaneous stab of affection for her family when she saw them all turn to look at her with sympathetic smiles. They were just trying to help. None of this was their problem. They were only trying to help.
Rowen made a point to offer them back a smile of her own. She headed to check on Eric before she left. He and his family were still on their phones. Eric seemed to be on hold, and she managed to make eye contact with him.
Rowen mouthed that she was leaving for work. Eric said nothing. He just nodded.
That was that, then. She would just have to try and talk with him after this was all over. Rowen headed out to carpool with her cousins to their office.
The drive to work was a solemn one. Normally, there was a lot of banter. Everyone discussed their stories, the responses on their website, what they would have for lunch. Today, no one said much of anything.
