Taking the Heat

by Brenda Novak

  “You know exactly what I’m talking about,” Tucker said. “The only thing I don’t understand is why. Why would you hurt her, Tom?”

  His brother didn’t answer right away but all pretense finally left his face. Stepping outside, he closed the door behind him. “I didn’t mean to, Randy,” he said, his voice low, his eyes watchful. “I just went over to talk to her. But she was such a bitch—”

  “For the most part, she always liked you.”

  He chuckled without mirth. “She didn’t like me anymore. She figured out I never bought that piece of land in Gilbert you gave me the hundred thousand for. She ran into Harvey Wells, the owner, and he told her the deal had fallen through. I’d gone through most of the money by then, but I was planning on paying it back, Randy, I really was. Only she wouldn’t give me any time. She was gonna go straight to you. She was so angry, and I was so angry, and—”

  Tom held his hands out in front of him as though they were foreign objects. “I didn’t mean to kill her. I swear, Randy. You’ve gotta believe me. She just made me so—” he doubled his fist and gritted his teeth “—so damn angry. When you and Robert lent me the cabin for that ski trip I took in January, I found some pictures hidden under the mattress. They were of her and that fat S.O.B. who lived next door to you, getting nasty, and I thought I had her then. But she still wouldn’t cut me any slack. She said it didn’t matter if I showed them to you, that you already knew and didn’t care. Nothing I said made any difference. She was pissed about the money and determined to ruin my life. She said you’d never be able to trust me again, never include me in anything. She said she was gonna see to it that I went to jail for fraud.”

  “So you left her lying on the garage floor.”

  He jammed a hand through his carefully combed hair, mussing it. “I flipped out, man. I didn’t know what I was doing. I didn’t mean to hit her so hard, but she fought me, and…and she kept screaming what a loser I was, that I’d never measure up to you, that I was going to jail. I went a little crazy, and then I panicked and ran. Later, when the body never turned up, I realized I had a chance.”

  “And when they blamed what you’d done on me?” Tucker asked dully.

  Tom’s gaze fell to the ground, but when he spoke, his nostrils flared with passion. “You’d always had everything. Mom and Dad preferred you, you got all the girls, won all the awards, beat me at every sport. It’s not easy having your little brother steal everything, even the praise of your parents. I was tired of playing second fiddle, Randy. I figured it was my turn. Luck had given me a break.”

  Tucker rubbed his chest against the crushing disappointment. “Well, Tom, I guess your turn’s over, huh?”

  Tom’s eyes darted up. “You’re free,” he said, nervously licking his lips. “Just get the hell out of town. I’ll give you whatever money I’ve got, okay? Then we can both be free. No one has to know.”

  “What about Landon?”

  “Take him with you. You have him, right? The kidnapping was in all the papers. We heard about it as soon as we got back.”

  “You think I’m going to have Landon live a life with me on the run when I can give him better?” Tucker asked.

  “But what about me, man? I’m your brother. You can’t hang me out to dry.”

  Tucker thought of all the days he’d spent in prison. He thought of the foul odors, the fights, the abuse he’d taken from the guards, the resulting bitterness. The system had failed him, but his own brother had failed him more. “Sean Marshall knows where Andrea’s body is,” he responded. “He’s finally coming forward. The police will soon be examining her remains for clues and evidence.”

  “So? It’s been two years. There’ll be nothing to prove I killed her,” Tom insisted.

  Tucker felt no satisfaction at seeing the panic in his brother’s eyes—he felt sick. “You never know,” he said. “If I were you, I’d pack up and start running.”

  He left his brother standing on the steps and headed for his car. After he started the engine, he glanced back at the door to find Tom gone. But Tucker still heard his brother’s words. There’ll be nothing to prove I killed her.

  Lifting his shirt, he pulled off the voice-activated recorder he’d taped onto his back before dropping Landon at his parents. “Yes there will, Tom,” he said softly, staring down at it. “There’ll be this.”

  GABRIELLE RETURNED LATE, long after Allie should have been in bed. She’d been visiting Lindy at her condo in Chandler. They’d gone to dinner at a nice Mexican restaurant and enjoyed a couple of margaritas while they spent time getting to know each other, talking about their childhoods, Naomi, what they wanted out of life. Gabrielle had only known Lindy for a few days, but she loved her already. Her sister had a quirky, almost irreverent sense of humor and a way of putting things in perspective that made Gabrielle smile.

  Just after ten o’clock, Gabrielle had convinced her sister to drive over to David’s. They hadn’t given him any warning. Gabrielle had been slightly afraid he might refuse and she really wanted to see him. They ended up dragging him out of bed, but Gabrielle was glad they’d visited. It was good to be with David, good to know he was still her friend. And Lindy was more than happy to meet him. She thought he was extremely handsome.

  Gabrielle was thinking about the possibility of the two of them getting together as she unbuckled Allie from her car seat and carried her inside. Dropping her keys and purse on the coffee table, she carried her sleeping daughter down the hall to her room.

  It wasn’t until she was on her way back that she began to notice that her house wasn’t quite the way she’d left it. An open duffel bag filled with little boy clothes and a few bigger T-shirts rested on the sofa and there was a set of keys she didn’t recognize on the kitchen counter.

  What was going on? Gabrielle’s heart started to pound as she examined the keys. Leaning over the sink, she gazed out the kitchen window to see a beat-up old Datsun parked across the street. Had it been there when she’d driven up? She couldn’t remember. She’d been too engrossed in thinking about Lindy and David.

  Walking quietly down the hall, Gabrielle paused at the door of her extra bedroom. She was almost afraid to look inside. Would she find an eight-year-old with unruly dark hair and startling blue eyes? And, if so, would she find his father in the house, as well?

  Hope stole her breath as she stepped into David’s old room. Sure enough, a small lump in the center of the bed told her someone was sleeping there. When she moved a little closer, she could tell for sure; it was Landon. Which meant…

  Gabrielle hurried into her own room, where she found her comforter tossed carelessly onto a chair. The blinds were drawn, but just enough light glimmered through for her to be able to see the profile of the man she loved, sleeping in her bed. He was here. For whatever reason, Tucker had come back to her.

  Kneeling at the side of the bed, she ran a hand through the hair that had fallen across his forehead. “Tucker?”

  He stirred.

  “Tucker, what are you doing here?” she whispered, so glad to see him she felt suspended in time and space.

  His eyes opened. When he saw her and had a chance to wake up, his mouth slanted in a grin. “Isn’t this where I belong?”

  “This is where I want you,” she said, “but what about Hansen? And the police? What if—”

  “Shh.” He raised his hand and rubbed his knuckles across her cheek. “You don’t have to worry about that anymore.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “It’s over,” he said. “The police know I’m innocent. Everyone knows I’m innocent.”

  “But how?”

  “Can I explain in the morning? Right now I just want to feel you against me.”

  Gabrielle hesitated because she could hardly believe it was true. “Just tell me if this means we’re going to be together.”

  “Forever,” he said.

  His one-word answer was enough. He’d never promised her anything before. She knew that if he said it, sh
e could rely on it like the sun coming up in the morning. Stripping off her clothes, she climbed into bed with him, and he immediately pulled her into his arms. “I love you, Gabrielle,” he said. “I’m going to love you for a lifetime.”

  EPILOGUE

  IT WAS FOUR DAYS LATER that Warden Crumb and Sergeant Hansen came to visit. As soon as a copy of the tape and the facts about Andrea’s murder trickled down to them, Gabrielle knew they’d appear. They had too much to lose not to try to cover their tracks somehow. Now that Tucker had been proven innocent, he had sudden credibility, and his story would be worth quite a bit to the press.

  But Crumb and Hansen came sooner than she’d expected. And as luck would have it, they arrived while Tucker was gone. He’d gotten up early and taken Allie and Landon to his parents’ house. Dee was going to baby-sit while he met with Robert, his old partner, about managing some of his real-estate projects. From what Robert had said, he was still doing quite well and could use the help. Tucker was hoping to arrange something with a good salary until he could get back into the investment side of the business. He could sue Tom for whatever money he had left, of course, but Gabrielle agreed there was probably little point. Tom now had a wife, who might or might not be entitled to a share of everything, depending on how the courts viewed the situation, and the two of them had spent most of Tucker’s money, anyway. They had a huge mortgage on their house and very little equity. It would probably go back to the bank through foreclosure within the year, and what Tom hadn’t spent he would need for attorney’s fees.

  Gabrielle doubted Tucker would sue his brother even if there’d been a chance of recovering anything, and she didn’t blame him. They could make it without the leftovers of Tucker’s former life. They’d start over together and build from there.

  She just wished they could start right away. But she’d stayed behind in Florence because she was still finishing up her last two weeks at the prison. She’d given her notice as soon as she knew Tucker would be part of her life. He’d wanted her to simply walk out—he couldn’t tolerate any thought of the prison, let alone the fact that she was working there. Only she respected the Deputy Warden at Rynning Unit too much to leave without giving him proper notice, especially when she knew how desperately they needed good corrections officers.

  She had just seven shifts left. Then she and Tucker and the kids were planning to move into a rental house in Tempe or Mesa, somewhere close to his parents and David and Lindy, until they could afford to purchase a home of their own. There, Landon would start school. He’d be a couple of weeks behind the other kids, but Gabrielle felt confident she could tutor him if he needed help catching up. He was such a bright boy and so happy to have his father back in his life, she thought he’d do just fine.

  Having changed out of her uniform into a pair of shorts and a scoop-neck T-shirt, Gabrielle was thumbing through a new cookbook she’d bought the day before when the doorbell sounded. She wanted to make something special for dinner, something Landon would like as much as Tucker, and was hoping Tucker and the kids would be home soon. She missed them already.

  “Hello, Warden Crumb, Sergeant Hansen,” she said when she opened the door to see them standing on her stoop.

  It was September now, but the weather was still hot. A bead of sweat ran down Hansen’s ruddy face. The warden looked perfectly comfortable, even in his suit. She wondered if Crumb ever perspired.

  “Do you have a minute, Officer Hadley?” Crumb asked.

  “Of course.” She held the door wide and gestured them both inside. “Would you like to sit down?”

  They were silent as they passed her, eventually settling into the same seats they’d taken the last time. It would have been polite for Gabrielle to offer them something to drink, but she didn’t want them to stay that long. After the way they’d treated Tucker, after the things Hansen had said to her, she could barely tolerate having them in the house. But she thought it was time they understood how completely the situation had reversed itself.

  “What can I do for you?” she asked, letting them take the lead.

  “We just stopped by to see if you’d heard the news,” the warden said.

  “The news?”

  “They’ve called off the search for Randall Tucker. Apparently the police have uncovered some evidence that proves his brother’s the person who killed Andrea Tucker. Just this morning, a judge signed the order making him a free man.”

  “I heard. They picked up his brother at the airport late last night, didn’t they?” Gabrielle knew they had, because he’d called his parents right after he was arrested. The Tuckers had little sympathy for him, however. They’d been staunch supporters of Randall, but only because they believed he was innocent. To them, right was right and wrong was wrong, and anyone who crossed the line deserved to be punished. Even their son.

  “I think so,” the warden said. For the first time since she’d known him, she sensed his confidence wavering. “How did you hear that?”

  “I have a friend who was involved with the whole thing.”

  “Oh.”

  They probably assumed her friend was someone on the police force. She wondered what they’d say if they knew Tucker was living in her house, that she was going to become Mrs. Randall Tucker in just a few weeks. “But surely you didn’t come out on such a hot afternoon just to tell me that.”

  Crumb stared down at the floor and then at her. “Not exactly. Deputy Warden Wiseman said you gave him your notice.”

  “I did.”

  “Before you leave the prison, we wanted to make sure we’ve cleared up any past misunderstandings.” He leaned forward and loosely clasped his hands between his knees. “Tucker was convicted through no fault of ours, of course, but the backlash from having imprisoned an innocent man can be pretty great. Depending on what he tells the press and others about his stay with us, this turn of events could rock the whole institution. I wouldn’t want any innocent people to lose their jobs.” His smile reminded her of an overeager salesman. “I’m sure you don’t, either.”

  “No, I wouldn’t want that,” she said. “But I don’t remember any misunderstandings, Warden Crumb.”

  He waved a hand. “You know, all that stuff about Tucker and the fighting.”

  “Are you referring to the time the Border Brothers attacked him, and Sergeant Hansen and the others refused to intervene? Is that what you’re talking about?”

  Hansen blanched and glanced nervously at Crumb. “Like I’ve told you before, you’ve got it all wrong, Officer Hadley. I was just about to break up the fight when you jumped in with your baton.” Hansen seemed tractable and definitely scared. He certainly wasn’t the same man who’d threatened her job the day she broke up the fight or sat outside her house in the rain or promised a fitting retribution for Tucker’s escape.

  “I’m sorry but I don’t remember it that way, Sergeant Hansen,” she said. “Neither does Tucker, I’m sure.”

  “That’s just it,” the warden said, his smile growing strained. “Tucker will probably try to stir up trouble, but if we all stick together, I’m sure we can quell any sensational reports of mistreatment and—”

  “The only person I’m sticking with, on this or anything else, is my husband,” Gabrielle interrupted.

  A startled silence fell over the room. “Your husband?” Hansen echoed. “Did you and David get back together?”

  Gabrielle heard a car pull up outside and stood to look through the window. Sure enough, Tucker was home. She could see Landon getting out of the back seat of her Honda, which they’d taken because it had air-conditioning. Tucker was helping Allie out of her car seat, but she knew he’d spotted the warden’s van when he scowled in that direction. “No, but he’s home now. You can meet him, if you like.”

  Crumb and Hansen rose expectantly. Gabrielle moved to open the door, but Tucker came in before she could reach it. As he stood just inside the doorway, Hansen’s jaw tightened and Crumb’s eyes grew wide.

  “Hi, honey. Looks l
ike we have company.” Tucker sat Allie on the floor and strode over to kiss her.

  “Warden Crumb and Sergeant Hansen are here to see what you’re planning to tell the press about your stay in their prison,” she said, wrapping her arms around his waist and leaning against him.

  She’d thought Warden Crumb never perspired, but he was sweating now. She watched him mop a handkerchief across his damp brow.

  “That’s easy,” Tucker said. “I’m going to tell the truth. I know that’s probably a novel concept, especially to Sergeant Hansen, but there it is.”

  Landon came barreling in before anyone could respond. “Grandma said she’d buy me and Allie a guinea pig if it’s okay with you,” he cried the moment he saw Gabrielle. He pulled up short when he realized they weren’t alone. “Who are these guys?”

  “These men work at the prison,” Gabrielle said. “But something tells me they won’t be there much longer.”

  “You think you’re pretty smart, don’t you?” Hansen said, his solicitous facade instantly crumbling. “But I was on to you all along. I knew you two had something going. I knew you were helping him.”

  “What I remember,” Gabrielle said, “is you threatening my job and harassing me. I remember you specifically telling me that a member of the ‘fairer sex’ had reason to worry in your prison unless she minded her own business.”

  Crumb looked as though he wanted to choke Hansen, but Gabrielle felt no sympathy for him. He’d stood behind his nephew. Instead of rooting out the problem, he’d tried to cover it up. “Let’s go,” he said. “There’s nothing more we can do here.”

  “I hope you two are finally happy,” Hansen muttered sarcastically as they left.

  Gabrielle smiled up at Tucker. “I think we’re going to be,” she said. “I definitely think we’re going to be.”