Derek merely shook his head and stood from his seat. “I think you’re crazy, Poppy. Are you done here?”
“I am. I can’t say I found anything useful, but if any of my hunches pan out, I’ll be sure to tell you everything, just as I promised.”
I knew Mariah didn’t fit with my theory about the same person being the killer of both Bethany and Helena, but for the moment, she worked as someone who could be considered a suspect so Alex wouldn’t remain the only person who seemed to work as the murderer.
Not that I intended to tell Derek one word of any of this. It was too messy and I couldn’t prove a thing. But whether my first theory or this one had any merit, at least I had something to work with and a direction that didn’t point to Alex.
Pleased that he could leave and get back to whatever he did at night, Derek headed out the door back to the car. I followed him, and as I approached the door, I caught a glimpse of a paperback stuffed into the cushions of the couch. Curious that the crime scene investigators wouldn’t have dislodged it from its home, I quickly reached down and pulled out a self-help book on how to turn off negative thoughts to improve your work life.
I had no problem imagining Bethany subscribing to the author’s ideas, and smiled at the thought of her using the techniques to get ahead at her job at The Eagle. She always was a go-getter.
Flipping through the first pages and wondering if I should consider following some of the ideas, I saw a single bloody fingerprint pressed into one of the pages. It was only a partial print, but it was clear.
My mind began to race, and I looked around to see if Derek had seen me pick up the book. I heard the car running, so he likely hadn’t. I took a hard look at the fingerprint and instantly worried because of its size that it had come from a man’s hand.
Without thinking, I stuffed the book into my purse as the horrible thought that it could be Alex’s fingerprint tore through my brain and closed the apartment door behind me before heading to the car. Derek seemed utterly unaware that anything had happened after he left, and even though I couldn’t help but feel guilty about going back on my word to share everything I found with him, I had to keep this from him if there was the slightest chance that the fingerprint could be Alex’s.
We drove back to my house, the two of us not saying a word the entire time. As he stopped the car and put it in park, he turned to look at me and I knew what he what on his mind.
“Poppy, once I get the coroner’s report, if there’s anything that points to Alex, I’m going to have to bring him in and very likely arrest him. I know you’re in contact with him, so please tell him to make this easy on everyone and not cause a problem.”
I felt my world begin to spin out of control. Grasping for any semblance of his feelings for me, I begged him to put it off as long as possible. “Alex isn’t going anywhere and I need some time to find more clues. I can’t believe Mariah’s disappearing is a coincidence. We need to find her and hear what she has to say before you arrest him. Please, Derek.”
He hung his head and sighed. “Poppy, Mallory Michaels said she wasn’t even sure Bethany had anyone staying with her. You seem to be the only person who thinks her sister was there.”
“Please, Derek. She’s important to this case. I know it.”
He looked at me and shook his head. “I can’t promise anything. If the coroner’s report is damning, there will be nothing I can do to help him. I have the report from his wife’s murder, so I’ll be using that to consider if I should arrest him for this one.”
There it was. As he’d believed all along, Alex was guilty of not only Bethany’s murder but his wife’s all those years ago.
And there was nothing I could say that would convince him otherwise until I found some real evidence to prove he was dead wrong.
Nodding my head, I silently got out of the car as the wind picked up and pushed me toward my porch. I didn’t look back to wave goodbye but hurried inside to the safety of my warm house. Maybe if I crawled under the covers and closed my eyes, the nightmare of the past day would go away.
At least for a few hours until the morning when I’d get up and start all over again trying to find a way to prove Alex wasn’t the man Derek had made him out to be.
Chapter Ten
A bag of pretzels left over from the holidays sat on the kitchen counter calling to me and threatening to ruin my attempt once again to lose weight. I stared at it trying to deny its siren song as some part of my brain had already given in to temptation, giving the command to my hand to grab the bag and satisfy my craving for carbs. I did just that and closed my eyes as the salty tang hit my tongue and whatever pleasure center inside me associated with junk food kicked into overdrive.
I couldn’t help but notice this was my first truly happy experience all day since Derek woke me up all those hours ago. Every other experience, even talking with the man I loved, had ended up as nothing but bad and more bad.
Taking a seat at my kitchen table, I tried to unravel the mystery less than twenty-four hours old that had taken over my life. I’d last spoken to Bethany before she took off work to spend time with her sister for vacation. I wasn’t going crazy when I thought that she said Mariah would stay for three weeks, was I? I remembered her saying she’d be coming a few days after Christmas, and then she’d be there until at least the second week of January.
Three weeks. Then why wasn’t she at the apartment when her sister was being brutally murdered just feet from her front door on the night of January 10? And why was there no evidence that she’d ever been there at all?
My brain jumped to the possibility that Bethany had been having problems with someone, maybe a new boyfriend. It had been a few weeks since she and I had last talked, so maybe she’d met a man over the holidays.
I fumbled around inside the bag for another pretzel rod and stuck it in my mouth, letting it hang like a cigar from between my lips as I tried to imagine who might be able to help me find out what Bethany had been doing in the weeks before her death. She had a few other friends, but she hadn’t mentioned them to me in ages. One had moved away a while ago, and another had gotten married last year, so they’d drifted apart as often happens when a husband comes into the picture.
No, the key to finding out what was going on with Bethany was her sister, who had somehow seemingly dropped off the face of the Earth. Until Derek and his men found her, an integral piece of this mystery would remain unknown.
I grabbed a glass of water and sat back down, my brain consumed by the idea that there was something about Bethany’s life I didn’t know about that could help me unravel who had lay in wait in the backseat of her car and so viciously murdered her in the middle of the night. Where was she going at that time dressed in jeans, a sweater, and her favorite black suede boots?
Those boots had been such a find for her last summer. When the rest of the world was shopping for flip flops and swimsuits, she’d snagged those knee-high black suede beauties for seventy-five percent off at the Hagerstown outlets. I still could see the proud look on her face as she slid the oversized rectangular box out of the shopping bag to show me her awesome find the next day at work. The box nearly knocked over much of the knick-knacks on my desk, and she apologized profusely even as she told me she had to show me those great boots.
Never in my wildest nightmares had I thought she’d be wearing them when some madman slit her throat less than a year later. When I looked into the car and saw them, all I could think about was how happy she’d been that day over finding those boots, and now she was gone and they were covered in her blood.
Shortly after buying those boots, she began seeing Alex. I remembered her happiness then too, but as I sat there at my kitchen table absentmindedly eating one pretzel after another until the delicious saltiness they provided made my tongue numb to their taste, I couldn’t avoid remembering how I’d felt when she was so elated back then.
The jealousy had practically eaten me alive for the first few days after I found out they’
d begun seeing each other. While she chatted on and on about how much she liked him and how great a time they had together whenever they went out, it was all I could do to keep my mouth shut and a smile plastered on my face because if I had opened it to speak, that same tongue that now sat numb from too much salt might have spewed all those horrible, hateful things seething in my mind.
How she wasn’t right for him. How he wasn’t right for her. How they were total opposites and would never work out because of their differences.
And worst of all, how I wanted their relationship to fail since I liked him because he and I weren’t total opposites. Because I didn’t go through men like water and then discard them when they became inconvenient.
I cringed at how terrible a friend I’d been to her then. I had no excuse. I secretly hoped and prayed for Bethany and Alex to crash and burn, and when it did, I had to pretend to be upset for her. I’d thought after a little while that I had come to accept him with her, but it never truly happened. Every day they were together I harbored that jealousy and knew full well how petty it made me.
And even knowing that, I couldn’t stop myself from wishing they weren’t together.
Then when he and I began seeing each other after they’d broken up, the reality of how awful I’d been to my friend became clear. Brokenhearted by the split, Bethany never once acted spiteful or jealous. I knew she probably felt like I had, but it never showed when she asked me how we were doing or if I was happy.
She’d simply reacted like a friend should have and smiled as she told me she was happy for the two of us.
Like I hadn’t.
Regret choked my thoughts and made trying to tease out the truth about this case impossible, at least for the time being. For now, I’d have to live with what I’d done and hope that somewhere Bethany saw that I hated myself for the person I’d been to her.
I’m sorry, Bethany. I wish you were here sitting in my kitchen tonight with those cool black suede boots so I could tell you how truly sorry I am.
I pushed the now almost empty bag of pretzels away from me, disgusted and sick to my stomach, although I wasn’t sure if that was because I’d eaten too many or because I’d finally admitted the truth of the horrible person I’d been to my friend too late for her to ever find solace in my apology.
A knock at my door startled me out of my misery, so I forced myself to cheer up and shuffled over to answer it. I wasn’t in the mood to explain to my father or Derek, who were the only two people I expected to see standing on my porch when I opened the door, how awful I felt at that moment. That would only bring out their sympathy, and I didn’t deserve that.
Feeling the chill of the cold January air as I approached the door, I opened it and stood in shock at the sight of Alex standing there shivering in just a sweatshirt and jeans. He looked like he hadn’t slept in days. His face was unshaven with substantially more than a five o’clock shadow to prove how little time he’d spent on his usually impeccable appearance, and that face that always seemed to wear a stoic expression now looked like it would never be rid of the deep frown that showed his sadness. Worst of all, the look in his eyes screamed how lost he felt.
“Alex! Come in! You’ll freeze out there without a coat on,” I said as I grabbed his arm and pulled him into the house.
His lips were practically blue from the cold, but his cheeks were red raw, like he’d been out in the wind for hours. I cradled his face to warm them and felt the ice cold skin against mine as he silently stood staring at me with that sorrowful look that had made my heart clench as I saw him standing there on my porch.
“What are you doing, Alex? You look like you’re half frozen to death.”
“I couldn’t stay in that house any more, Poppy, but I couldn’t think of anywhere else I should go but here,” he said quietly as he lowered his gaze.
Pulling him into my arms, I held him to me. “I’m so happy you thought that.”
His body slowly warmed while I hugged him close, but he didn’t say another word the whole time we stood embracing in my kitchen. He didn’t need to tell me how he felt, though. I knew. The man who rarely spoke had taught me to focus more on his eyes and his expression to understand what was really going on with him, so it had only taken one look into those deep brown eyes filled with sadness to know how torn up this day had made him. Added to that was the strong scent of alcohol on his breath, and I knew what he’d done to himself to try to forget.
Although I could have been happy standing there with him in my arms for hours more, after about five minutes I pulled away and asked, “Would you like something warm to drink?”
He simply shook his head, but the frown that seemed permanently etched into his face didn’t budge. I kissed him softly on the lips and smiled, hoping I could coax out some tiny bit of happiness I knew still existed in him.
“Why don’t we go into the living room and get you warm?”
I took him by the hand and we walked to the same place where we’d had our first kiss all those months ago. He sat down on the couch with a rush like the world was pressing down on him and he couldn’t fight it anymore.
Staring off toward the opposite side of the room, he began talking, the words coming out as if each one was forcibly pulled from his throat. “I’m sorry about what I said on the phone before, Poppy. I didn’t mean it.”
I brought his still ice cold hand to my lips and kissed the red skin. “Don’t, Alex. You don’t have to apologize for anything you said.”
“I was just afraid you were turning on me. I couldn’t deal with that if you did,” he said, still refusing to look at me.
“Never. I would never turn on you.” Gently turning his face toward me, I kissed him. “I know you’re not the person who did this. Not to Bethany and not to your wife. Don’t ever think I doubt you because I don’t.”
He closed his eyes. “I never felt the way Bethany did for me. I couldn’t. I feel bad about that, but I wasn’t ready. Or maybe it just wasn’t right between us. I don’t know, but no matter what, I would never hurt her like that.”
“I know. You don’t have to explain yourself to me. You’re a good man, Alex. A good man who never led her on. She knew what you were capable of giving her. Don’t beat yourself up about that.”
His eyelids slowly lifted to show the pain he felt. “At one point today, I sat there in my house wishing I had never gone over to her house last night. If I hadn’t, none of this would be happening. I’d be working this case and looking for the bastard who killed her instead of being the one Derek and the rest of the force thinks is guilty.”
Stroking his cheek with the pad of my thumb, I shook my head at the thought that he wouldn’t go to someone in need. “That’s not the kind of man you are. Of course you went to her when she asked you to.”
“I saw the look on your face when you found out I stopped over there after leaving here last night. You looked so hurt, so betrayed. It made me feel like someone was squeezing my heart in their fist. I’m sorry you had to find out that way. I didn’t intend on hiding it from you. I just never got the chance to tell you before everything happened.”
“It’s okay, Alex. I was thrown for a second there, I have to admit. Probably more my petty jealousy than anything else, but I know you. You wouldn’t lie to me.”
His eyebrows knitted, and he shook his head. “I wouldn’t. I swear to you I didn’t do this, Poppy.”
I pressed my forehead to his and whispered, “You don’t have to say that ever again. I know you didn’t. I believe in you, Alex. Don’t ever doubt that.”
He sighed, letting out a breath full of liquor that made my eyes tear. I’d never seen him drink more than one or two, but clearly from the smell of him, he’d spent the last few hours downing far more than just a couple drinks.
I leaned back against the arm of the couch and let out my own sigh. “You’re going to have to stay here tonight because I can’t let you drive after how many you’ve had.”
Alex had never stayed t
he night, even though I had the sense that he wanted to as much as I did. A sheepish look crossed his face as I knew he realized that.
Hanging his head, he said, “Hell of a way for the first time I finally spend the entire night here. I didn’t drive, though, so I can walk home, if you want.”
That’s why his cheeks had been so red raw. His house was miles away, and in the cold he’d walked all the way here to find me. Inching across the couch to be closer to him, I cradled his face once again and kissed him sweetly on the lips.
“You’re not going anywhere. You can stay here on the couch, if you like, or with me upstairs. Whatever makes you happy. I just want to see that frown leave your face.”
“I love you, Poppy. I can’t imagine what it must feel like to suddenly have me be tied up in something like this. I wouldn’t blame you if you didn’t want to be around me until this is all over.”
I certainly hoped that was the large amount of alcohol talking because if not, he had lost his mind if he thought I’d leave him now. “You’re crazy, Alex Montero. I’m sorry to inform you of this, but you’re stuck with me.”
For the first time that night, I saw a hint of a smile form on his lips. I wished it would blossom into more, but I’d take that for now and do whatever I must to ensure that charming smile of his returned soon.
“She used to say that, you know? She used to say I was stuck with her, like it was some kind of hardship,” he said in a faraway voice that threatened to break my heart.
“Your wife?”
Alex nodded. “Yeah.” He hesitated for a moment and then continued. “Helena. Her name was Helena. I’ve never felt right saying anything about her to you. I don’t know why. I just didn’t. Until now.”
Emotion flooded his face as he winced like he was in pain from his admission. I didn’t want him to feel like he had to defend his marriage or how much he loved her to me just to prove he couldn’t have killed her. I didn’t need that.
The Darkest Hour Page 9
