by L. P. Dover
“Glenn has us all in different categories,” he stated. “I choose to go after the rapists and child molesters who were let off easy. Wade used to be as active as me, until about two years ago. Now that he’s taking over Chandler Enterprises, Glenn wants him to concentrate on that. So he doesn’t get called away for missions that often now. But when he does, he hunts down those who go after government officials. His job takes more time to plan.”
“Wow,” I blurted, completely taken by surprise. “What about Ian and Bryce?”
“Ian hunts down mob leaders and disposes of them. And Bryce spends most of his time training their youngest brother, Reed, out in Wyoming. He’ll be inducted into the group soon.”
“How long did you have to train?” I wondered.
Sighing, he clutched my arms, pulling me closer. “A couple of years. It’s what I did, day in and day out.”
“Do you even manage to have a life?”
He shook his head. “Going after those sick fucks is all I want to do. Soon, I’ll have to get back to it.”
“I know.” I leaned down and brushed my lips against his. “Just promise me you won’t shut me out again.”
He slid his hands to my face. “I won’t, as long as you swear not to run.”
We kissed again and his body sprung to life. “Never.”
Emma
The door to the gym opened and Preston emerged, his body drenched in sweat. It was nine the next morning and we’d called and given Mrs. Walker the day off.
I looked up from my breakfast and smiled. “I called the bands about the final auditions.”
“Oh yeah?” He wiped the sweat off his forehead with a towel. “How’d that go?”
“Good, but I think you scared the shit out of John. He wasn’t his usual playful self.”
He tried to hide his smile and failed. “I’m glad the boy took my advice.”
I rolled my eyes. “I do know how to take care of myself, you know. All I had to do was tell him no.”
Grabbing a cup of coffee, he sat down at the table with me, eyes dark. “Some people don’t know the meaning of that word.”
Sadly, he was right. “I know,” I whispered. His overprotectiveness was always going to be there; nothing would change that. It made me wonder if he’d been that way before his mother and sister were murdered.
Sliding the chair back, I stood and stretched. My muscles were sore from the night before, but I was ready to go to his house and search through Cameron’s room. “You ready to go to your house? There’s a lot of work to do. I don’t know when Glenn’s going to want me back in Charlotte, so I want to help you as much as I can.”
Preston finished his coffee, his lips set in a firm line as he nodded. “Let’s go.”
The walk was silent, and I knew it was because he hated going there. I couldn’t imagine the strength it took to walk into that house each and every time.
Preston opened the door and everything looked the same from where we left it. The holes in the wall were patched up, and ready to be painted. I thought he was going to work on it, but was surprised when he followed me up the stairs to his sister’s room.
“You going to help me?” I asked, stopping at Cameron’s door.
His jaw clenched as he stared at the door. “I don’t know what I’m doing.”
Gently, I opened the door and walked inside. Cameron’s room was a mess. I glanced back at Preston, my heart aching at the look on his face. I could see the pain. “Why don’t you take a seat and tell me about her? Might help for you to talk it out.”
His eyes darted my way. “Nothing helps, angel.”
“There’s nothing wrong with trying.” Turning my back, I wanted to give him his space for when he was ready.
There were letters and pictures, all scattered around the floor, many of them of Cameron and her girlfriends . . . but mostly, of her and a good-looking, young man. Only, those pictures were ripped apart. She had a framed picture of him that was broken on the other side of the room. I picked it up, letting the shards of glass fall to the floor.
“Was this her boyfriend?” I asked, facing Preston again. The guy looked familiar but I couldn’t place him. I held the picture up and he walked the rest of the way into the room, staring at it.
“His name’s Adam Payne. They were together three years before she was killed.”
I looked down at the picture. Adam and Cameron looked so happy together, all dressed up for prom. “Where was he that night?” I’d seen it on the news plenty of times, jealous boyfriends killing their girlfriends for one reason or another.
Preston closed the distance. “He was the quarterback at Chapel Hill. The night of the murder, he was playing in the game. Her death fucked him up.” He took the picture from my hands. “The day of the funeral, he had to be escorted out; he completely lost it. For a while, everyone thought he’d commit suicide.”
“Wow,” I gasped. “Have you seen him since then?”
Shaking his head, he set the picture back down on the dresser. “No, but I kept up with him. He went on to finish out his football career at Chapel Hill, and eventually, went on to play pro for Atlanta. He’s still there.”
Recognition sparked in my mind. That was where I knew him from. “No wonder I thought he looked familiar.”
He nodded. “He’s married now, and one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL. We all thought he’d fuck it up, but he eventually got his shit together.”
I scooped more pictures off the floor and put them back in Cameron’s dresser. “Sometimes that’s hard to do.”
Preston grabbed Cameron’s senior yearbook off the bed, and sat down on a futon in the corner of the room. He flipped through it, studying every page. “The only person I talked to after that funeral was her best friend, Lainey. I asked her if she knew of anyone who had a key to the house.”
“You must’ve done that recently,” I said.
He nodded. “I went to see her right after I figured out what happened here. She didn’t know anything.”
All the pictures were put back into Cameron’s drawers, but I kept out the letters. There were love letters from Adam, and even funny ones from Cameron’s friends. I was hoping to find a diary of sorts, but came up empty.
I didn’t want to fail. I had to find something. Preston’s focus was on the yearbook, so I sat beside him and watched him flip through it. He stopped on the page with his sister’s senior picture. She had been so beautiful. Now that my hair was grown out, it looked exactly like hers, with golden blonde waves down my back.
“She was really pretty,” I whispered.
Preston smiled. “She was. All of my friends had a crush on her. I beat the shit out of one because he tried to spy on her through her bedroom window.”
I laughed. “I can see that. You’ve always been a protective ass.”
“Only for those I care about,” he murmured, flipping through more pages. Cameron was a popular girl, a cheerleader, and even the homecoming queen. Not only was she beautiful and well-liked, but she was smart as well. The homecoming queen at my high school was never a part of the math team like Cameron had been.
Once he was done looking through the yearbook, he closed it and set it aside.
Taking his hand, I wrapped both of mine around it. “You don’t have to answer this if you don’t want to, but can you tell me how Cameron was murdered? I have my guesses, but I would like to know the truth.”
He closed his eyes and blew out a heavy breath. “Strangled . . . and raped.”
“I see,” I replied, swallowing hard. That was why he liked to kill rapists. “And there was no DNA on her body, or under her nails? Surely, she fought back.”
His eyes flashed open, rage burning inside of them. “She did, but there was nothing. What really gets me is . . .” Stopping mid-sentence, he jumped to his feet, and paced the room. He ran a hand angrily through his hair and then stopped, keeping his back to me.
I stayed put, my heart beating out of control. “What were you g
oing to say?”
Lowering his head, his shoulders hunched. “She was raped, but not until after she was already dead. What gets me though, is that it wasn’t forceful. Her body was examined and there was no sign of internal tearing or damage, almost like he did it gently.”
“Did he not . . . finish inside her? Couldn’t they use that as DNA?”
“No. He was too smart for that. Not sure what he did, but he’d clearly been careful not to leave any traces behind.”
I was not expecting to hear that. “Do you think it was another lover?”
He jerked around. “My sister wasn’t like that. She never would’ve cheated on Adam.”
I held up my hands. “I’m not saying she did. It just sounds like something an admirer would have done. Not to mention, the pictures of Cameron and Adam are all destroyed or ripped apart. Obviously, it’s someone who wanted her.”
“It could’ve been anyone,” he huffed. “All the guys at school wanted in her pants, even older men fancied her.”
I had no doubt. Looking at her senior class picture, Cameron could’ve passed for twenty-five. “Did Adam ever have a key to the house?” I wondered.
Preston shrugged. “Don’t know. There are lots of questions I should’ve asked him, but I was just a teenager. If I had known what I knew now, it’d be a different story.”
I jumped to my feet. “Then let’s ask him. Atlanta’s not too far away. We could drive out there tomorrow.”
“It’s been so long,” he said with a shake of his head. “And he’s a star now. I doubt we could even get near him.”
Closing the distance, I grabbed his arms. “I’m sure he hasn’t forgotten. This could be what you need.” I wasn’t going to back down. If I had to figure out a way to see the NFL starter, I’d do it myself.
Preston could see the determination on my face. “Fine. We’ll go first thing in the morning.”
I had to believe we were one step closer.
Preston
I didn’t know if I was ready to see Adam after all these years. The problem was, he had no clue his soon-to-be visitor was me. Through Glenn’s connections, Emma and I were able to get access into the stadium. It’d been a long time, but I had no doubt he’d recognize me the second he looked at my face.
“What did Glenn say?” Emma asked.
I looked over at the rookies who were still practicing on the field. “That we were reporters for a sports magazine and we wanted to run a story on him.”
“Great,” she groaned. “What if he sees you and freaks out?”
I had an idea. “He won’t. He’ll see you first. Then, when he gets closer, I’ll make sure he doesn’t walk away.” After Adam heard what I had to say, I believed he’d want to help.
Minutes later, Adam emerged onto the field and I turned my back.
“He’s coming,” Emma said. We were far enough away in the stands to where no one could hear us on the field. “Good afternoon, Mr. Payne. I’m Emma. It’s so nice to finally meet you.”
“Likewise,” Adam replied. Once I heard them shake hands, I turned around. Adam glanced at me and smiled, but it slowly faded when recognition flashed across his face. “Preston?” His eyes darted to Emma, then back to me. “What are you doing here?”
I held out my hand and he shook it. “I didn’t know if you’d want to see me or not. It’s been a long time.”
He let my hand go. “It has. I guess I’ve stayed away from Charleston so I wouldn’t be reminded . . .”
I nodded. “That’s why we staged this meeting. You might not have seen me otherwise.”
Eyes narrowed, Adam crossed his arms across his chest. “Then tell me what you’re doing here.”
Emma stepped back so I could move closer. “Did you hear about Shelly Price? She graduated in my class.”
Jaw clenching, he huffed through his nose. “I heard.”
“Then I’m sure you know how she was found.”
He averted his gaze and nodded, his voice thick. “Just like Cameron.”
“Which means, it could be the same guy who killed her.”
“How do you know that?” he asked, jerking his head up. “It’s been thirteen years.”
With a heavy sigh, I knew it hurt him to hear all of this. I could still see the pain on his face after all this time. I couldn’t imagine losing Emma the way he lost my sister.
“Someone broke into the house,” I confided. “The only room trashed was Cameron’s. My guess is they were looking for something. I wanted to see if you might know what it was.”
He sucked in a breath, eyes fueled with rage. “Like what?”
I shrugged. “No idea. Maybe a diary or journal of sorts? I found one diary of hers, but there was nothing in it.” There had to be another one.
“I know she wrote in one, but she never told me where she kept it,” he explained.
We’d just have to look harder when we got back home. “Good. We’ll be on the lookout for it. However, I do know they didn’t like seeing the pictures of you and Cam. Most of them were destroyed. Do you know of anyone who’d do that?”
Face pale, he shook his head. “No. Have the police found anything?”
I huffed. “There were no fingerprints, but that isn’t what bothers me. Whoever it is entered the house with a key. Do you know if Cameron ever gave any out?”
Blowing out a breath, he lowered his head and nodded. “I had one,” he confessed. “I used to sneak in all the time when your parents were asleep. But then, I lost the key one day and just started climbing up through her window.”
“How did you lose the key?” Emma blurted out.
That was a good question. Adam looked over at her and shrugged. “Don’t know. One day it was on my keychain, and the next, it was gone. I never thought too much about it.”
Emma met my gaze and my stomach clenched. “Do you think it could be possible?”
I knew exactly what she was implying. Cameron knew her killer. It had been personal. Unfortunately, that meant it was someone close to her . . . and maybe close to Adam.
“What?” Adam asked desperately.
“We think whoever took your key is the one who killed her,” I stated. “We just need to figure out who it was.”
He threw his arms in the air. “And how are you going to do that? No one’s been able to for thirteen years.”
“That’s because I wasn’t ready. Now I’m back.”
“What are you, a police officer now?”
I shook my head. “Something much worse than that. I’m sorry for bombarding you with this. Just do me a favor and don’t tell anyone I was here asking questions. I’m going to find who took Cameron from us and make the fucker pay.”
Adam nodded and shook my hand again, his eyes full of unshed tears.
Once Emma and I got back into my car, I called my dad to check on him. His pneumonia made it hard for him to breathe or talk, so I could only get a few words out of him. It was apparent he was getting worse. Time was running out.
“Do you think we’re grasping at straws?” Emma asked. “I mean, what are the chances that Adam’s key is the one the killer used to get in?”
I scoffed. “You’d be surprised. You have no idea the kind of shit I’ve seen. It worries me that the killer might’ve been a part of her life and we didn’t know.”
“How are we going to find them?”
“If it’s someone from Cameron’s past, I’ll find them. It’ll just take time.”
Emma clasped my hand, entwining her fingers with mine. “Not unless we find her diary first.”
Emma
I knew before we even sat down to watch the auditions, my first choice would be John’s group. And in the end, he smiled at me and waved when Preston told him the good news. I was about to join them when my phone rang. It was Glenn.
“Hey,” I answered. I hadn’t talk to him since he left.
“Morning. How’s everything going?”
“Good. In fact, we just picked a band. They’ll be on
your doorstep early next week.”
“Glad to hear it. Does that mean you and Preston will be coming back as well?” he asked.
I cleared my throat and hurried out of the auditorium for privacy. “Not exactly. I think we might be close to figuring out who killed his family. Plus, his father isn’t doing well. Preston isn’t going to leave just yet, and I don’t want him alone.”
He sighed. “I understand. I talked to the hospital yesterday. David told me Preston came to see him. I’m hoping to get out there again soon. All I can say is thank you for being there for Preston.”
“I care about him, Glenn. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for him.”
“Just be careful. I want you back in one piece. I’m sure you know how dangerous this can get.”
“I know.” I could hear Preston and John’s voices growing closer. “Glenn, can I ask you something?”
“Sure.”
“What would you say if I got Preston and our band back together? I keep trying to tell him we can pick up where we left off, but he says it’s too late. What if it’s not?”
“It’s never too late, Emma. Why do you think I put him in charge of my music department? I knew it’d make him see what he was missing. You just have to show him.”
I had some ideas about that. “Thanks, Glenn. I’ll see what I can do.” We said our goodbyes and I hurried back into the auditorium. Preston was busy talking to the other bands, while John approached me with the biggest smile on his face.
“Thanks for everything, Emma. You have no idea how much this means to me and my band.” He hugged me and I watched Preston purse his lips from across the room.
“You’re welcome,” I replied, letting him go. “You deserve it. But now it’s time to get home and pack up. I just got off the phone with Mr. Chandler. He’s expecting you early next week. So enjoy your last week in Charleston.”
