Caitlyn tried not to react to that, but she flinched anyway. The memories of the attacks were still too fresh in her mind. Always would be. “I didn’t bring this on myself,” she managed to say.
Jeremy made a whatever sound. “You knew what Grant was before you got involved with him.”
It felt as if he’d slapped her. Because it was true.
Jeremy turned as if to leave, but Grayson stopped him. He motioned for a deputy to come closer. “Make sure Mr. Denson isn’t armed and then take him to the interview room.”
“What?” Jeremy howled. “You’re still questioning me even after I bought you the dirt on Melanie?”
“Yes,” Grayson said.
Despite Jeremy’s protests, the deputy frisked him. No weapons so the deputy led him through the squad room and to the interview room directly across the hall from his mother.
“Jeremy’s right,” Caitlyn said under her breath. “I should have seen that Grant wasn’t who he was pretending to be.”
“He’s not right,” Drury snapped, and he slid his arm around her waist. “Everything Jeremy says and does could be to cover his tracks.”
Caitlyn knew that, but it still didn’t rid her of some guilt in this. If she’d never gotten involved with Grant, none of this would be happening.
“You wouldn’t have your daughter if you hadn’t been with him,” Drury said as if reading her mind.
It was the perfect thing to say, and it eased some of the tension that had settled hard and cold in her chest. At least it eased it until she noticed that Grayson was looking at the paper that Gage had given him right before Jeremy had shown up.
“Bad news?” she asked.
Grayson didn’t hesitate. He nodded. “SAPD sent someone to Samuel Street to find out if Nicole was staying there.”
That got Caitlyn’s attention. “Was she?”
Another nod. “The super ID’d her from a photo. The lease wasn’t in her name but rather a corporation. One of the dummy companies on the offshore account.”
That didn’t surprise Caitlyn since Nicole—and Ronnie—had been paid from that same account.
“Nicole wasn’t there,” Grayson went on, and he handed the report to Drury. “The place had been ransacked, and there was some evidence of a struggle.”
Oh, mercy.
“What kind of evidence?” Caitlyn pressed when Grayson didn’t continue.
Grayson met her gaze. “Blood.”
Chapter Eleven
Blood. Definitely not a good sign.
Especially this kind of blood.
According to the report Grayson had given Drury to read, SAPD had found high-velocity blood spatter on the wall of the living room in the apartment where Nicole had been staying. That meant there’d probably been some blunt-force trauma.
Reading that was enough to make the skin crawl on the back of his neck, but there was more. Much more. And that more was something Drury wasn’t sure he wanted Caitlyn to know.
“They killed her,” Caitlyn said.
That’s when Drury realized the color had drained from her face. She also didn’t look as if she could stand on her own, so Drury tightened his grip on her.
“We don’t know for certain that Nicole’s even dead,” Drury insisted, and Grayson gave a variation of the same before he went to the cooler to get Caitlyn a drink of water.
“If they didn’t kill her, that means they hurt her,” Caitlyn amended.
“Not necessarily. It might not be her blood,” Drury tried again, though that was reaching.
After all, the person who’d hired her to be a surrogate could want her murdered to tie up any loose ends. Nicole wouldn’t be able to ID anyone if she was dead.
Caitlyn’s hand was shaking when she took the paper cup of water from Grayson. Her voice shook, too, when she thanked him. That’s when Drury knew he needed to get her out of the squad room. Away from the other officers. And especially away from the windows. After all, they had their three suspects under the same roof, and it was possible hired thugs were also nearby.
With the report still in his hand, Drury took her to the break room at the end of the hall, and he shut the door. With Helen and Jeremy just a few yards away, he didn’t want Caitlyn to have another encounter with them. Not until she’d steadied her nerves anyway. As much as Drury hated it, sooner or later she’d cross paths not only with Helen and Jeremy but also with Melanie.
“I have to get back to the ranch,” she said. “I need to see my baby.”
Drury understood that, but the timing wasn’t good. “Grayson, Gage and the other deputies are tied up right now. Just hold on a little while longer until we’ve got someone to drive back with us.”
She looked up at him. Nodded. But he could tell the only place she wanted to be right now was with her daughter.
And that would happen.
However, Drury kept going back to the idea that there were probably hired guns nearby, and he didn’t want those guns taking shots at them. That meant clearing the area before he took Caitlyn from the building.
Caitlyn shook her head as if she might argue with that, but then the tears sprang to her eyes. “I’m so sorry about putting you in the middle of all of this trouble.”
Drury wanted to snap at her for the apology. It was an insult to a lawman since the only reason he had a job was because of trouble. But considering he’d also kissed Caitlyn blind, it was a different kind of insult.
Of course, he shouldn’t have been kissing her, either, so he wasn’t exactly blameless in the insult department.
She looked at him, their gazes connecting, and even though he hadn’t mentioned those kisses out loud, she was likely remembering them.
Feeling them, too.
Drury sure was.
The moment seemed to freeze or something. Well, they did anyway, but it didn’t stop the old familiar heat from firing up inside him. Kissing her now would be the biggest mistake of all what with this emotion zinging between them, so he forced himself to look away, and his attention landed back on the report Grayson had given him.
It was several pages stapled together, and Drury made the mistake of flipping to the second page. To the picture that was there. Now the blood spatter was there for him to see.
And for Caitlyn to see, as well.
It’d been easy to sugarcoat the possibility of what had happened, but it was hard to sugarcoat something right in their faces. Along with the blood on the stark white wall, the coffee table and chairs had been tossed over. A lamp was on the floor.
So was a baby carrier. Next to the carrier was a diaper bag filled with supplies.
“Mercy,” Caitlyn said, her voice filled with breath. “That’s where she must have been holding Caroline.”
“Maybe.” But inside, Drury had to admit that the answer to that was probably. He only hoped the thugs had taken the baby to safety before they’d gone after the woman who’d given birth to her.
“Does the report say how long the blood had been there?” she asked.
Drury glanced through it, hoping that it was recent, as in the past hour or so. That way, it could mean the baby hadn’t been around for whatever had gone on. Since there wasn’t a body in the apartment, it could also mean that Nicole had escaped and was out there injured but alive. Or better yet, that she’d managed to bludgeon someone who’d tried to attack her.
But no.
“The CSIs will need to test it,” Drury explained, “but it appears to have been there for several days.” Maybe even as long as a week. That meshed with what her neighbors were saying—that they hadn’t seen her in days.
Caitlyn blinked back tears, obviously processing what he was saying. It didn’t process well. Because it meant the baby could have been there in the living room when the attack occurred.
Caroline hadn’t been hurt, but it sickened him to think that she could have been.
“Did anyone hear a disturbance in the apartment? Screams? Anything?” Caitlyn added.
“No.” That didn’t mean someone hadn’t heard, though. The apartment wasn’t in the best part of town. It was the kind of place where a lot of people would have turned a blind eye.
Caitlyn took the report from him, glancing through it, and he saw the exact moment her attention landed on what he wasn’t sure he wanted her to see. Her gaze skirted across the lines, gobbling up details that were probably giving her another slam of adrenaline.
“Nicole gave birth in the apartment,” she said, her voice thin.
“The cops on the scene are only guessing about that.” But it was a darn good guess considering the blood they’d found in the bedroom and adjoining bath.
There’d been evidence of a home delivery, including some kind of clamp that was used for umbilical cords. Other evidence, too, that Nicole hadn’t been planning on staying put. They’d also found a plane ticket to California.
“She was taking the baby,” Caitlyn whispered.
Everything was certainly pointing in that direction, especially since Nicole had already packed a diaper bag with baby supplies. Her wallet was missing, but Drury was betting she’d had enough cash to live on, for a while anyway.
“Nicole might have found out what was going on at Conceptions,” Drury explained. “If she gave birth to the baby before her due date, she might have thought she could escape.”
Of course, that meant the woman might have been trying to escape with Caitlyn’s daughter, but Nicole might have believed this was the only way to keep the child safe. At least that’s what Drury hoped she had in mind. There were cases of surrogates getting so attached to the babies they were carrying that they fled with the infants. No way, though, would the person behind this have allowed that to happen.
Not with a million-dollar ransom at stake.
Obviously, Caitlyn didn’t have any trouble piecing together that theory, either, and because Drury thought they could both use it, he pulled her into his arms. She didn’t resist even though they both knew this was only going to make things harder when this investigation was over. Still, with that reminder, Drury stayed put and probably would have upped the mistake by kissing her if there hadn’t been a knock. Before Drury could untangle himself from her, the door opened.
Because every inch of him was still on high alert, Drury automatically reached for his gun again.
But it was just Grayson.
Like the other time he’d seen Drury close to Caitlyn, Grayson didn’t react. He hitched his thumb in the direction of the interview rooms. “You’ll want to come out for this,” he said. “I think all hell’s about to break loose.”
“Not another attack?” Drury quickly asked.
Grayson shook his head and motioned for them to follow him. They did with Drury keeping Caitlyn behind him, and they stopped along with Grayson in the door of the interview room. Drury hadn’t been sure what he would see once he looked inside. Jeremy was there as expected, but so was Helen, her lawyer and Melanie. It wasn’t standard procedure to get suspects together for a joint interrogation, so Drury had no idea what was going on.
Seth was standing at the back of the room, his back against the wall, and he was eyeing their trio of suspects as if they were all rattlesnakes ready to strike.
“You’re making a huge mistake,” Jeremy said like a warning, and his comment was directed at Melanie.
Drury figured this was just a continuation of the verbal altercation they’d had in the reception area, but then he saw the photo on the phone screen in the center of the table.
“I don’t even know why I’m in here,” Helen grumbled. “I had nothing to do with that.”
Drury went closer with Caitlyn following right behind him.
“That’s Jeremy,” Melanie announced.
Yes, it was, and the man was in some kind of waiting room. Drury looked at Grayson for an explanation, but Melanie continued before he could say anything.
“That’s Jeremy at Conceptions. He was there to try to steal the embryo so he could destroy it.”
Drury expected Jeremy to jump to deny that. He didn’t.
“Tell them how you got those photos,” Jeremy countered.
Melanie hiked up her chin. “I hired a PI to keep an eye on Conceptions. Because I was worried that someone would try to do something dirty. What I did isn’t against the law.”
“It’s not against the law for Jeremy to have been there, either,” Helen pointed out.
“Don’t defend me,” Jeremy snapped.
“I wasn’t.” Helen’s voice was filled with just as much venom as her son’s. “I was about to explain that Melanie could have hired that PI to steal the embryo, as well. But these pictures aren’t proof that either of you committed a crime.”
Everyone turned to the woman. Because that didn’t sound like some kind of general statement. It sounded as if she had firsthand knowledge.
“You know something about this?” Grayson pressed.
“I don’t know anything,” she insisted, “but common sense tells me it didn’t have to be Melanie or Jeremy who took the embryo. Caitlyn has a much stronger motive than either of them. And she couldn’t have legally gotten her hands on them because she wouldn’t have been able to get permission from Grant.”
“That’s true,” Caitlyn admitted. “But I didn’t steal them.” She looked at Jeremy. “Did you?”
Jeremy took his time answering. “No.” A muscle flickered in his jaw. “But I considered it. Briefly,” he quickly added. “And I dismissed the idea just as fast. Frankly, I didn’t think you’d want to have Grant’s baby, not when you’ve obviously still got a thing for the cowboy here.”
Caitlyn opened her mouth, probably to deny what Jeremy was saying, but since Drury and she had nearly just kissed again, she didn’t voice her denial.
“So, if you thought I wouldn’t want Grant’s baby,” Caitlyn continued a moment later, “then why consider stealing the embryo?”
Jeremy gave her a flat look. “You’re not the only player in this sick game, Caitlyn. Mommy wants a grandbaby. I think she has hopes of getting it right this time, since she screwed up with Grant and me. But personally I’d like to make sure she doesn’t get another chance at motherhood.”
Jeremy sounded convincing enough. And maybe he was telling the truth. That didn’t mean, though, that he hadn’t created an heir to use as some kind of blackmail for his mother and Caitlyn.
“I did the best I could with the likes of you,” Helen snapped. “You’ve always been an ungrateful son.”
Jeremy faked a yawn. “Unstable mothers produce ungrateful sons. Am I done here?” he asked Grayson.
“No, he’s not done!” Melanie howled. “You need to arrest him.”
Grayson huffed. “And I’m sure Jeremy will claim I need to arrest you for what’s on those transcripts.” He looked at Helen. “You probably want me to arrest both of them.”
“I do,” Helen verified. “And Caitlyn. I know she had something to do with all of this.”
Caitlyn went closer, practically getting right in the woman’s face. “I would never do anything that would put my child in harm’s way.”
Helen stared at her a moment, then shifted her attention to Drury. “Are you the baby’s father?”
Well, he sure hadn’t seen that question coming. “No.” Though he hated to dignify it with an answer.
Helen’s stare turned to a glare. “I want to see the baby’s DNA results.”
“Get a court order,” Drury tossed back at her. “If you can.”
And he doubted she could since Caitlyn wasn’t using the baby to make any kind of claim on Helen’s estate. Of course, that wouldn�
�t stop Helen from trying to get those visitation rights or even custody of the baby.
“Am I free to go?” Jeremy repeated.
Grayson didn’t jump to answer. He made Jeremy wait several long moments. “Yeah, you can go. Not you two, though.” He pointed first to Helen and then Melanie.
Obviously neither woman liked that. Both started to protest, and again Helen’s lawyer had to restrain her. That’s when Drury decided it was time to get Caitlyn out of there. Seth stepped up to take Helen and her lawyer back to the interview room across the hall. Grayson went in with Melanie, and he shut the door. Jeremy walked out the front of the sheriff’s office without even sparing them a glance.
Drury kept his eyes on Jeremy until he was out of sight. “How deep do you think he’s into this?”
Caitlyn shook her head. “I don’t know, but I just hope they’re not all working together.”
Drury agreed, though he doubted they trusted each other enough for that, and he was certain there was plenty they weren’t telling him.
“We can’t leave yet, can we?” Caitlyn asked. He could hear the weariness in her voice and see it in her eyes.
Not with Grayson and the deputies still tied up, but maybe Drury could get some outside help. He took out his phone to call Lucas. Maybe his brother could arrange to bring a couple of the ranch hands with him. Drury definitely didn’t want Caitlyn out of the building until he had some security measures in place. However, before Drury could even press his brother’s number, he spotted Gage coming toward him. Fast.
“You’ve got a call through nine-one-one,” Gage said, sounding a little out of breath. “The caller says she’s Nicole Aston.”
Chapter Twelve
Caitlyn tried not to get her hopes up, but that was impossible to do. After everything she’d just read in the report of Nicole’s apartment, she had thought the surrogate was likely dead.
And she might be.
This call could be a hoax, designed to make the cops think a murder hadn’t occurred. After all, it wasn’t as if Drury or she would actually recognize Nicole’s voice. Still, this was a thread of hope that didn’t exist a couple of minutes ago.
Drury Page 11
