by Pat Warren
“I see what you mean. But it’s hard to believe that, as attractive as Tate is, there’s been no other man in her life since Josh’s father.”
“But it’s true. She never goes out, spends all her time working or with Josh and me. Period.”
“That’s no life for a young woman, but I do see where she’s coming from.” And he wondered if he, with the best of intentions, could persuade her to trust him after all she’d been through.
He stuck the letter into his jacket pocket. “Maybe I can get some protection for the three of you in the meantime. I’ll talk to my captain.” Nick didn’t hold out much hope for that, even with the threatening letter. The precinct was always shorthanded.
“We appreciate everything you’re doing. You’re a good man, Nick Bennett. You know, one of the few advantages of growing older is that you can speak your mind more freely. You’re not married, are you?”
“No, ma’am. Never have been.”
“Why is that, a handsome fella like you?” Now she smiled, but her eyes were serious.
Nick shrugged. “Never found that special lady who could make me believe in happily ever after. In my line of work, I see a lot of miserable marriages, and the results of those mistakes.”
“Ah, but look at your parents, and all your siblings?”
He smiled, conceding. “You have a point there.”
“I know you’re attracted to Tate, so I’m asking you to be careful. She seems able to handle everything that comes her way, but inside, she’s battered and bruised, and very fragile. She’s also very special and it’ll take a special man to win her over.”
“Thanks for the advice.” Nick heard Tate’s Buick chug into the driveway and stop. Maybe he could start by tuning up her car, he thought as he got up and went to the door. He saw the wariness on her face as she and Josh came onto the porch. “Hello there.”
She was surprised to see him, and even more surprised at the way her heart stumbled at the sight of him in a pair of hip-hugging jeans and a denim jacket that was necessary, she supposed, to hide his gun. He looked so good, so solid. For a brief moment, when she’d seen him come out on the porch, she’d wished she could move into those strong arms and be held, to feel safe. To cover her momentary lapse of good sense, she made her voice sound cooler than it should. “Detective Bennett. To what do we owe the pleasure of your company?”
So she was back to being formal. She certainly wasn’t going to make this easy for him. “I just came to see how Maggie’s doing.”
“You didn’t catch the bad guy yet?” Josh wanted to know.
“Not yet.” Nick held the door open for Josh as he went directly to Maggie for a hug, reassuring himself that she was all right.
Tate followed her son in, anxious to shed her business suit and heels on this warm day. But first, she checked on Maggie. “Are you okay?” she asked, rolling her eyes toward Nick with a question in them, her back to him.
Maggie took Tate’s hand and smiled. “I’m just fine, honey. Nick’s been telling me all about his family. They sound wonderful.”
“Good. Are you in pain? I could get you a pill.”
“No, not yet, but thanks, dear.” Maggie heard Josh race up the stairs to his room. “Did you find a summer program for him?”
“I think so.” They’d checked out four and the last one seemed to fit the bill perfectly, though it was a bit more money than she’d planned on. But she’d find the cash somehow. “It’s run by two no-nonsense women, one a former child psychologist and the other an educational counselor.”
Tate didn’t add that the building and playground were both fenced and gated and security was top-notch. “They have all sorts of activities all day long, some educational and others just plain fun. The two women are very personable and kind, and all their personnel are bonded and screened. Josh seemed comfortable with them.” And no men in charge, which her son couldn’t seem to handle just now.
“I’m so glad. It won’t be for long, Tate. I’ll be up and around in no time.”
Tate leaned down and hugged the older woman, struggling with a rush of emotion. “I know you will, but healing can’t be rushed.”
“You look warm. Go get changed.”
“Be back in a minute, then I’ll start dinner.” It was nearing six and she was hot and tired, but at least she’d accomplished what she’d set out to do today. She turned toward the stairs and saw Nick standing there watching her in that quiet, intense way he had. She’d forgotten for a moment that he was still here. “Did you want me for anything?”
A loaded question if ever he’d heard one, but he kept his face expressionless. “I’d like to talk with you, if you have the time. I’ll wait until you finish dinner.”
A flicker of annoyance danced through her eyes for a moment, but she nodded. “Okay.”
Nick watched her hurry upstairs, unaware his face gave him away until he sat down alongside Maggie again.
“She is lovely, isn’t she?” Maggie asked softly.
“Yes, she is that.”
“And just as lovely inside as out. I hope you can see that.”
“I think I can. I know that beautiful women scare some men. But I learned at an early age not to be put off by them.” Nick stretched one arm along the couch back. He liked Maggie, admired her spunk, and decided to confide in her since she’d spoken so honestly with him. “You see, when I was in high school, I was kind of a nerd, a bookworm, and to make matters worse, I was shy. But a guy can dream and my dreams revolved around Lisa Hemmings. She had shiny blond hair that fell halfway down her back and these huge blue eyes. She was a cheerleader and very popular. Every time I saw her, my heart pounded so hard I was sure she could hear it. I was equally sure she didn’t know I was on the planet.”
“I doubt that.” Maggie settled back, enjoying his story, enjoying him.
“Well, this big dance came up and, of course, I couldn’t dredge up the nerve to ask her and if I couldn’t have her, I didn’t want anyone else. So the evening of the dance, I went to the movies—alone, wallowing in my self-pity. After the movie, I was walking out when who did I see strolling up the aisle but none other than Lisa, and she was alone, too.
“I was too stunned to remember to be nervous, so I went over and asked her how she’d liked the movie. We talked for a few minutes and I asked if she’d like to go get a soda at the ice-cream shop around the corner. She was easy to talk to and I finally got up the nerve to ask why she wasn’t at the dance, a beautiful and popular girl like her. She told me something I’ve never forgotten.”
“And that would be?”
“She told me that she had a lot of friends, but the boys always assumed someone else had asked her out. They were afraid of being rejected by the prettiest girl in school, so they simply didn’t ask. She said she’d spent many a school dance night alone at the movies. After that, we became good friends. Not dating friends, really, but buddies more like. I even stood up in her wedding a couple of years ago.”
“I think your friend was right. As lovely as Tate is, I know she’s lonely. Men admire her, and some even ask her out, but mostly because they want to prove to everyone they can attract a beautiful woman or because they want to sleep with her. That’s a lesson she learned early in life.” Maggie smiled into his eyes. “I’m glad you’re different, that you see past the wrapping and want to see what’s inside the package.”
“I try to.”
Maggie cocked her head at him. “I’m having trouble picturing you as a bookworm type. You look like one of those men in that cigarette ad. All you need is a cowboy hat and a horse.”
Nick laughed out loud. “If you say so.”
Tate carried two chilled glasses of iced tea out onto the front porch where Nick was examining the dead bolt that had been installed. He looked up as she handed him his. “Thanks, but aren’t you going to eat? I don’t want to interrupt your dinner.”
“I’m not hungry. Josh and I stopped at the golden arches for lunch. I’ve had all the
calories I can handle for one day.” She sat down on one of two rattan chairs and sipped her tea, finding it refreshing. “I’d have asked you to join them for dinner, but it’s only leftover meat loaf.”
“I wasn’t trying to wangle an invitation.” He sat down alongside her in the second chair and nodded toward the door. “That lock’s a start, but steel security doors back and front would be better. Or perhaps a burglar alarm system, one that’s connected to the police department.”
Tate set her glass down on the small table between them. “I’ll be sure and do that with my first lottery check.”
Chagrined, he backed down. He should have known money was in short supply since Maggie’s house was quite obviously in need of paint and a bit of sprucing up. Best to change the subject. “So you’ve found a good place for Josh until Maggie’s fully recovered?”
“Yes. It’s called Little Miss and Mister. Ever hear of them?”
He nodded. “My sister Julia had her two kids in there last summer, mostly because she wanted to work in her husband’s office and the kids were bored at home. She’s a nurse and he’s a doctor. She had only good things to say about the place.”
“I’m glad to hear that.”
“Josh has a little trouble with men, doesn’t he?”
Tate stiffened slightly and hoped he didn’t notice. “I suppose so, probably because he’s not been around men much.” She turned to meet his eyes. “But he’s taken to you.”
Nick frowned. “Yeah, why do you suppose that is?”
She smiled. “Because of that rescue. Up to then, he was nervous around you, too. We watched the whole thing on TV. He thought you were awesome. One of the guys in white hats.”
So that was why Josh had agreed to look at the mug shots. “Nice to know. How about you? Do you think I’m one of the good guys?”
She kept her emotions in check and answered quickly. “Of course. You’re with the police. We have to trust the police.”
“You’re evading again. You’re good at that.”
Why was he here? Tate asked herself. To confuse her or was there a real purpose? “You could have checked on Maggie with a phone call. Why did you come?”
“Follow-through. The department’s big on follow-through.” He reached in his pocket for the envelope and handed it to her. “And because of this.”
The moment she saw Maggie’s name on the envelope, Tate blanched. When she read the short message, she turned even paler. “Oh, Lord,” she whispered.
He took it back from her, pocketing it. “Now, let me ask you again, is there anything else I should know that might help me find this guy?”
With trembling hands, Tate picked up her glass and took a long swallow of tea. Finally she came to a decision, even though it wasn’t the one she knew he wanted. Turning, she looked into his eyes. “If I honestly believed anything I know would bring that man to justice, I’d answer any and all of your questions. But, for now at least, I can’t say any more.”
Quickly she stood up, knowing she had to leave him before she gave in to the urge to confide everything, to let someone in, someone who might help her with this mess she’d made of her life. But she had to think of Josh. “I have to go in now. Thanks for coming by.” Moving decisively, she closed the door behind her.
Nick heard the dead bolt slide home. Sighing, he rose, wondering what in hell he could do to get her to trust him. Because the man who wrote that note wasn’t going to simply go away.
And he probably already knew Maggie had talked to the police.
Chapter 4
Nick studied the woman seated across the table from him as she dabbed at her eyes with a soggy tissue. It had been a week since Ronda Philips had reported being raped in the supermarket rest room. She wasn’t a beauty, but she made the most of what she had to work with. Her sandy hair was cut short and sort of layered, her expressive brown eyes were her best feature and, although she was about twenty pounds overweight, her expensive black slacks outfit had probably been chosen to disguise that fact.
He’d asked her to come in to clear up a few questions and they’d been talking for about twenty minutes now. Nick’s gut instinct told him Ronda was lying, but as yet, he hadn’t been able to bring about a confession. He decided to try another tactic.
“You love your husband very much, don’t you, Ronda?” he asked softly.
She looked up, thrown off balance. “Well, sure I do. What’s that got to do with my…my being raped?”
“I understand he works long hours and that you’re left alone a lot. Since your…incident, has he spent more time with you, making sure you’re all right?”
Ronda brightened and even smiled. “Yes. It’s wonderful, almost like when we were first married. Yesterday he even came home early and made dinner. Later, when I got upset remembering that awful man, Mark just held me in his arms for hours.”
He kept his voice even, nonthreatening, not accusatory. “So then, you could say that your experience put your husband’s attention back on you, where it belongs, right?”
She blinked several times, obviously uncertain how to answer. “I guess you could say that. I mean, it was awful and everything, but now, Mark scarcely wants me out of his sight.” Almost as an afterthought, she added, “But I still hope you catch the man.”
Nick decided to take a chance. “Actually we do have a suspect in custody who matches your description.”
Startled, her eyes went wide. “You do? I can’t believe…I mean, why would he hang around there? Surely he had to know I’d report him.”
“We got lucky. Naturally, he says he didn’t do it. He works at a gas station, a family man with two small children and a wife who’s a waitress at Denny’s. This will undoubtedly ruin his life. We’ll need you to identify him.”
Ronda’s conscience kicked in. “You remember I told you that one of the lightbulbs in the rest room was burned out, so it was kind of dark. I didn’t get a good look at his face. This man probably isn’t the one.” She worked the tissue between trembling fingers. “A family man, you say. They don’t usually rape, do they?”
It was time for truth or consequences, Nick thought as he leaned closer to her. “It didn’t happen quite the way you told us, did it, Ronda?”
“What do you mean?” she asked, her eyes downcast. “I was raped, I tell you. The people at the hospital saw the cuts.”
He zeroed in with the final blow. “Ronda, our officers found a knife behind one of the toilet tanks.” He reached for a manila envelope he’d placed on the floor when he’d come in. Opening it, he let the knife with the six-inch blade slide out onto the table. “Have you ever been fingerprinted, Ronda?”
Her hand was at her mouth stifling her sobs as tears poured down her pale face. She continued to stare at the knife.
“It’s time to tell me what really happened, Ronda? Or do you want me to tell you what I feel happened?” When she didn’t answer, he went on. “You’ve been feeling lonely because Mark works such long hours and he’s tired when he is home. You had to cancel a trip you’d been looking forward to for weeks. So you thought up a plan to get his attention.”
She was crying quietly now, her shoulders shaking.
“You went into the rest room, into a stall, and used this knife to knick yourself in several places, then jammed it between the wall and the tank. You tore your panties and even used something to bruise your cheek. You messed up your clothes and hair. We checked and the cleaning crew had been in that rest room earlier and left a stool behind. You stood on it and unscrewed one lightbulb. Then you left the room, screaming that someone had raped you.” Forearms on the table, Nick leaned in. “Is that how it went down, Ronda?”
Eyes tightly closed, she sobbed. Nick rose and reached for a box of tissues, placed it in front of her. “I guarantee you you’re going to feel a lot better once this whole thing is off your chest.”
Hiccuping, she wiped her cheeks and eyes, blew her nose. “I didn’t mean any harm. Please, let that poor man go back to
his family. I…I just wanted Mark to…to remember why we got married. He doesn’t want me to work, he’s hired someone to clean the house and…and I’ve got nothing to do. Day after day and late into the evening, I’m alone.” The tears began again as she looked up. “Am I going to get into trouble for this? I mean, be arrested.”
“Well, there is such a thing as falsely reporting a crime. And the supermarket isn’t too happy about the bad publicity. But I think if we tell the manager the truth, he won’t press charges.” He slid a yellow pad and pen toward her. “If you write out exactly what happened, I can try to persuade the lieutenant to let you go with a serious warning.”
“Will we have to tell my husband, too?” she asked in a little-girl voice.
“I’m afraid so.”
“Oh, I’m so ashamed.” Bowing her head, she picked up the pen.
“Just write it all down. I’ll be back.” Nick left, closing the door and stepping into the viewing room where Lou and Harris waited.
Lou clapped him on the back. “Good work, partner.” He shook his head. “She had me fooled.”
“Nice job, Nick,” the lieutenant said as he left the viewing room.
“You took a chance there, old buddy,” Lou added, “making up a suspect in custody.”
“Yeah, well, I had a feeling she was a decent person who didn’t realize how she might wreck someone’s life with that story.” He looked through the glass at the woman painstakingly writing her confession. “I feel sorry for her. Apparently she and her husband can’t talk to each other. What kind of a marriage is that?”
“The kind about ninety percent of the population has,” Lou said cynically. “Men get caught up in the rat race of a job and women get involved in raising the kids. By the time he’s made it and the kids are gone, they’re two strangers sharing a house.”
Nick studied his partner who was thirty-seven, married ten years with two young sons. “That doesn’t describe your marriage, I hope.”
Lou shrugged. “Sometimes. In case you haven’t looked around, old buddy, not a lot of cops are happily married. This job drains a man. You wouldn’t know, having escaped the noose so far. You’re smart.”
