The Past Between Us

by Kimberly Van Meter

  Zell turned an awful shade of milky white and his lips all but disappeared as he pressed them together in an angry clamp. “You have some nerve,” he bit out, spittle flying to land in a soggy splotch on the desk. “I ought to fire you right now.”

  “Do it. And I’ll have the Bureau of Professional Standards breathing down your neck so fast you won’t know what hit you. Something’s rotten in Denmark, Zell, and you seem to be at the heart of it. Cassie stays with me.”

  He left Zell shaking with rage but Thomas knew he was right. And while it felt good to go toe to toe with his jackass superior, he knew he’d only bought a little time. If Zell was in a conspiracy with Vissher in some way, the two would likely try to discredit him or make Cassie disappear.

  And there was also the very real possibility he’d just screwed the pooch and tanked his career by making a wild accusation against his superior. All scenarios put together, Thomas didn’t feel comfortable in the least.

  He had to get back to Cassie. He wanted to share the news…but at the core, he wanted her in his sight. Suddenly, he was short on trust and looking over his shoulder.

  As angry as Zell was, he wouldn’t put it past him to chuck something heavy his way.

  CASSI LISTENED AS TOMMY shared all he’d found out as well as the unexpected appearance of Lionel in Zell’s office. She bit her lip in thought, racking her brain for any possible connection that she might’ve missed. She came up empty. “As far as I know Lionel doesn’t have any pull in the Bureau. I mean, he tries to keep a relatively low profile with the law agencies, for obvious reasons. But to be on the safe side, do you have anyone you trust within the Bureau that you could talk to?”

  “Yeah, but I think for the time being I’ll just wait and see what Zell’s next move is. If my accusations are groundless, maybe it’ll just die away, but if they aren’t, Zell might get scared and do something stupid, which will only bury him.”

  “I’m not comfortable with the ‘sit and wait’ plan,” she admitted. “What happens now?”

  “Well, I’m going to have to bring you in for some formal questioning as Vissher has named you as a suspect. And they’ll have to bring Vissher in, too.”

  “He’s an accomplished liar, Tommy. What if no one believes me and they believe him?”

  “That’s what evidence is for. Evidence doesn’t lie,” he said.

  “I don’t know about that,” she said, worried.

  “He slipped up somewhere. For one, he probably shouldn’t have used arsenic. Of all the poisons, it’s the easiest to trace because it lingers for so long. But killers get comfortable with one method and tend to stick with it. The court orders for the exhumation of his previous wives are already in process. Chances are they’ll have arsenic in their systems, too.”

  Cassi grabbed her date book and handed it to Tommy. “Everything I ever found on Lionel Vissher is in this date book,” she said.

  He accepted the ragged book and turned it over gingerly in his hands, flipping the pages open to peruse the contents. He saw dates and times, notes, phone numbers, even pictures stuffed in the side pockets. “You managed to put this portfolio together while trying to survive?” She nodded and his eyes warmed with pride. She could spend a lifetime staring into those eyes, she realized with a start. She leaned into him and he pulled her tight. “You’re amazing,” he said, kissing her forehead. “You would’ve made a great investigator.”

  “I don’t know about that,” she said. “I was pretty highly motivated and desperate.” And scared. She was terrified right now that Lionel was going to walk, just like he always did. There would be no justice for any of his victims, most importantly her mother. She’d have to bring justice to him. She pulled away and he sensed the change in her.

  “Cassi…”

  She quieted him with a faint kiss brushed against his lips. “Don’t say it,” she said.

  “I have to,” he said, looking into her eyes, searching for some kind of assurance that she couldn’t give.

  She smiled, though it was painful. “It’ll all work out. One way or another. I just know it.”

  A heavy silence settled between them and Cassi didn’t trust herself to break it. Instead, she clung to him and prayed. Though she couldn’t rightly say what exactly she was praying for. There was a part of her that burned for retribution and hungered for blood, and it warred with the part of her that was crying for closure and wishing for a new beginning that started with Tommy.

  She could only wait and see which prayer was answered.

  THOMAS WALKED CASSI TO a holding room where she’d be questioned by another member of the team who didn’t have any personal connection to her. Cassi had offered to submit to a lie detector and while it was inadmissible in court, Thomas thought it was a good idea just to go that extra mile to show she had nothing to hide.

  Lionel Vissher was also in the building for questioning, but he had not agreed to a lie detector test.

  In a surprise turn of events, Zell allowed Thomas to interview Lionel. Thomas wasn’t going to look a gift horse in the mouth so he just nodded and headed into the interview room.

  Lionel, looking polished and relaxed, though a bit bored, glanced up when Thomas entered the room.

  “Can we move this along? I have appointments scheduled in the coming hour,” he said, adjusting his cuff with sharp agitated movements. “This is ridiculous. I’ve already told Director Zell where the investigation should be heading and it’s not with me. This is a waste of time.”

  Thomas dropped the case file to the desk and took a seat opposite Lionel. “Thank you for your cooperation, Mr. Vissher,” he said without a scrap of sincerity. It was like reading from a teleprompter, that part. He had to say it. Looked good on the tape for later. “As you well know, some interesting information has come to light regarding your late wife, Olivia Nolan. Cause of death has been changed from natural to poisoning by arsenic. You say you knew this?”

  Lionel sighed. “Yes. Unfortunately, I was trying to protect my stepdaughter, Cassandra. She’s a misguided girl, who always had a hatred for her mother. I figured there’d been enough tragedy—why compound matters with an investigation? It would’ve mortified my beloved Olivia.”

  Thomas smirked at the false concern. “Well, that’s not your call to make, Mr. Vissher. If you believed your stepdaughter was responsible for your wife’s death, it was your civic duty to report her.”

  “Of course. I am guilty of caring too much, I suppose.”

  “Yes. Well, let’s leave that for the time being and move on to your life before you made Ms. Nolan’s acquaintance. Such as…when you were married to Penelope Hogue.”

  At the mention of his first wife, Lionel actually stiffened and a flash of grief passed over his expression that Thomas believed to be genuine. That was unexpected. Lionel drew a deep breath before answering. “She died of cancer. What of her?”

  He pulled a separate file. “You received a decent life insurance payout, didn’t you?”

  “Which was used to pay her enormous medical bills. What is your point?”

  Thomas waved away his question. “Give me a minute…I’ll come back to that. Let’s go to your next wife…”

  “Olivia…”

  “No,” Thomas shook his head, then met his stare head-on. “I’m talking about Sylvia Williams in Raleigh, North Carolina.”

  “I don’t know who you’re talking about.”

  “No?” He pulled a photo that Cassi had stuffed in her date book of Lionel, his face in profile, clearly avoiding the camera but caught nonetheless, standing with a stately brunette at some ritzy function. “This isn’t you? Sure looks like you. It’s odd because she died of the same kind of unexplained ailment as Olivia.”

  Lionel smiled. “I assure you I don’t know this poor woman.”

  “No? Hmm, how about Lydia Proctor from Virginia Beach? Does that name ring a bell? Surely this one is more recent so it should jog your memory a bit. No? How about a picture?” He produced a photo of L
ydia and Lionel smiling, though as usual Lionel was turning his face away from the camera’s lens.

  Lionel swallowed and paled a bit but admitted to nothing.

  Thomas leaned back in the chair. “Here’s what I know—all three ladies were slowly poisoned by arsenic. You want to know what else was similar? All three were wealthy ladies with very little family. They were lonely, rich and vulnerable to predators looking for an easy mark. And with each death, the payouts were larger and more substantial.”

  “Fascinating.”

  “Yes, isn’t it? But there’s more. You see, whoever killed these women also killed another using contaminated fruit bars sent as a gift for doing ‘the right thing’ to help put away a dangerous woman. Except one of the women didn’t die. She’s alive and cooperating quite nicely. You see, she feels terrible about her part in all this and she’s singing like a bird. And isn’t it interesting that when we pulled your financials you had two sizable withdrawals in the exact amounts that were given to the women who filed false reports on Cassandra Nolan? But loose ends are messy, hence the poisoned fruit bars. Not very smart, but it’d worked in the past and who would care about two little old ladies living in a trailer park on a fixed income, right?”

  Lionel looked ill but he remained silent.

  “Here’s what I think—when you lost your first wife it was to natural causes and the insurance payout was nice. Although, like you said, a lot of it went to pay for the medical bills, but it sparked an idea and a hunger for more. You’re a good-looking guy, probably never had a problem catching the ladies’ eye, so how about finding a sugar mama to help fund your expensive tastes? Except sugar mamas get demanding and you don’t like to be tied down. Bye-bye, Sugar Mama. Hello, unencumbered cash flow.”

  “Interesting theory. Prove it.” Lionel stood and Thomas followed.

  “I believe I just did,” he said, leaning toward Lionel. “You’re going to prison, you sonofabitch.”

  “Let’s pretend for a moment that you may be right, which you’re not, but even if you were, the evidence you have is circumstantial. I hardly think that’s enough to go to court with.”

  Thomas smiled, ceding the point. “Perhaps. But it’s enough to file charges and due to the unique nature of the case, it’s enough to go to trial. And these facts are pretty damning, particularly when we bring the families of your former wives to testify. Seems they found it pretty odd that you just dropped off the face of the planet as soon as the ink dried on the check.”

  “We all grieve in different ways,” he said stiffly.

  “True. I bet it’s a lot easier to lament the loss of a wife when you’re on the prowl for the next one.”

  “You’re rude and offensive,” Lionel stated, his lips thinning. “I’m through with this harassment. I expect to take this up with your superior.”

  “Be my guest. In the meantime, we’re taking you into custody on formal murder charges.”

  “I want to call my lawyer,” Lionel said, his mouth trembling, with rage or fear, Thomas wasn’t sure. “It’s a travesty that I did what I could to protect Cassandra and instead I’m being vilified with circumstantial evidence.”

  “Save it for the judge,” Thomas said, motioning to the agents observing the interview. “Get him out of my sight.”

  Two agents entered the room and gathered Lionel, who had begun to struggle but they had no problem subduing him.

  “This is preposterous,” he thundered as they dragged him from the room. “I’ll have your job for this, Agent Bristol. Mark my words, I’ll have your head! You can’t do this to me!”

  “I can and I did.” And it felt good.

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  THOMAS RETURNED TO MAMA JO’S to tell Cassi the good news in person. He wanted to see the joy in her face when he told her she could stop running and that she could start over.

  But as he was on his way he got a call from Zell.

  “Listen, I wanted to give you a heads-up…Vissher managed to get his lawyer to convince the judge to let him walk on his own recog until the arraignment.”

  Thomas swore. “He’s going to run,” he said.

  “He might. We’ve got the airports and his passport flagged. If he tries, it’ll only seal the deal in the case against him.”

  Thomas wasn’t worried about the case. He was worried about Cassi. She wasn’t going to take this news lightly.

  “Bristol, one more thing,” Zell said, his voice roughening. “I’m going to let your allegations slide because you’re a good investigator and you were going where you thought the leads took you, but if you ever make an allegation against me like that again…I’ll fire your ass. Got it?”

  “Yes, sir.” He should’ve left it at that, but he couldn’t. He’d never seen Zell act so cagey. “So, mind sharing what was going on with you?”

  Zell hesitated, clearly not in the mood, but after a heavy pause he said, “I was getting pressure from higher up to close this case. Resources are needed elsewhere and Ms. Nolan looked good for the suspect at first glance. Not to mention, until you brought different evidence to light…we had no reason to believe Vissher was anything but what he appeared. I don’t like that you questioned my behavior but in hindsight I’m glad you didn’t let it go. You’re a good agent. But don’t let it go to your head. I mean it, Bristol. You go berserk on me again and I’ll—”

  “I get it,” he assured Zell. He didn’t think he’d need to go this route again. At least he hoped not.

  The line went dead and he figured that went as well as it could’ve, given all that he’d said. But he didn’t regret it. He was doing what he felt was right and he’d never apologize for that.

  He got to the house and Cassi was there, waiting anxiously. He started with the good news first, saying, “We got him, Cassi. He’s been formally charged,” he said, taking a moment to enjoy her relieved smile because he knew it wouldn’t last. “But Lionel has already managed to convince the judge to let him walk until the arraignment.”

  Cassi stepped away from him, hurt in her eyes. “Why? He’s clearly guilty. There’s a mountain of evidence against him! If he were a regular person without any money do you think he’d get this kind of special treatment?”

  “Of course not. Money talks. I’m not going to pretend that that doesn’t happen, but the good thing that we have to remember is that he’s caught. His passport has been flagged and there’s a Be on the lookout for him at every law enforcement agency, should he try and bail.”

  Cassi turned away. “You don’t understand how easy it is to disappear with the right resources. I did it with barely two pennies to rub together. Imagine how far Lionel could get with the money at his disposal.”

  “Well, he doesn’t have much to rub together at the moment,” Thomas said.

  “What do you mean?”

  “We froze his assets. It’s routine when we believe there’s been some kind of fraud. The insurance companies are going to want to go over his financials with a fine-tooth comb. Trust me, his standard of living is going to change dramatically, and if he runs he’s going to learn quickly how hard life is without a penny to your name.”

  “Yeah, but knowing Lionel, he has cash stashed away, too. Trust me, he’s got resources.” Cassi said with a hard light in her eyes that made him nervous.

  “I know what you’re thinking.”

  “Do you?”

  “Yes. You’re thinking that he’s getting away with killing your mother. That once again he’s escaped justice. That’s not what has happened.”

  “Feels like it.”

  “There’s a process and it will work. But you’ve gotta give it a chance and don’t screw it up by doing something rash. You can’t bring your mom back no matter what you do.”

  She stepped away from him. “I know that. But I can avenge her.”

  He followed her quickly, grasping her arms. “Yes, you can…by living and doing your part to see him put away for his crimes. Your mom would’ve wanted you to be happy, not sittin
g in prison because you were consumed with revenge. Take a chance on life. Take it with me.”

  She startled and drew a sharp breath at his plea. What was he asking? “I don’t understand…we don’t have a future, Tommy. I have a record. Even if none of the other charges stick…I don’t fit in with your life now. We’d be fools to think that I could.”

  “I don’t care about that other stuff. All I want is you. No matter how you come to me.”

  Tears blinded her. He was asking her to turn away from her need for vengeance in return for a life with him. It was an illusion, the two of them riding off into the sunset. No matter how she might want it, it was futile to chase after a dream that was bound to die.

  “I can’t.”

  “You can’t…or you won’t?”

  “Tommy,” she cried. “It’s not as simple as you make it sound. I’m not the person I used to be. I’m not the person you want me to be. I’m not the person you want to be tied down to. Trust me on this before we both hurt each other irrevocably with our failure. I’d rather preserve what we had than try to patch together something new and fail.”

  “I know who you are,” Tommy insisted, refusing to back down. “I knew the minute I opened that file what I was getting into, and I couldn’t fathom letting anyone else handle this case. I know what you’ve done and I don’t care. It’s not who you are. Circumstances change us, you’re right, but they don’t define us unless we let them. I want you—flaws and all—because you’ve always been the one. And nothing has changed that. Nothing.” He pulled her to him and she went, tears streaming down her face. “Nothing will change that,” he murmured against her lips. “I love you.”

  What she heard was Tommy asking her to pick him. To love him more than she hated Lionel. And she did. She loved him so much it hurt to breathe at the thought of walking away from him again.

  She was afraid of failing him, of failing herself. “I’m so scared,” she murmured.