“We didn’t get much of a chance to talk when it was going down,” she offered, calm. “I was too busy trying to stay alive to say the things I was really feeling.”
“And what are you feeling?” Jared asked, adjusting his voice so it didn’t threaten to take over the entire room.
“I feel that I need to get a few things off my chest,” she replied. “He was an important part of my life for a bit, and then he derailed it by being scummy. He came back to mess with us, with me in particular, and I want to talk to him about that, too.
“I know you don’t understand it,” she continued, gently reaching out a hand to touch his wrist. “I know you want me to stay far away from him. He’s going to be separated from me by security glass, though. He won’t be able to touch me.”
“That doesn’t mean he can’t hurt you.”
“No, but I’m beyond his reach now.” Harper was so earnest it made Jared’s teeth ache. “I was beyond his reach when he came back. I felt guilty for never really loving him, but that’s long gone now. I’m fine. I’m going to stay fine. I need to do this.”
Jared found that all the reasons he wanted her to stay away from Quinn were really his reasons. His fear had teeth and he wanted to bite. That wasn’t fair to her, and he knew it. “Okay.”
Harper wasn’t sure she heard him correctly. “You’re good with this?”
“That’s not the correct word. I’m not good with it.”
“But you’re not going to put up a fight.”
“No, I’m not going to put up a fight,” he confirmed. “You need to do this. I want you to have everything you need.” He thought about the upcoming proposal and realized they both needed to put this behind them if they truly expected to move forward. “I want you to be careful and don’t fall prey to his machinations. I’ll be close if you need me after.”
“Oh, see, this is why I love you.” She slipped her arms around his neck and hugged him tight. “It’s going to be okay. I’m not going to call you, though. You need to find Zoe. That should be your priority.”
“You’re always going to be my top priority, but I’m going to let you handle this on your own and not get involved for a change. As long as you promise to be careful, I’m going to step back and let you do your thing.”
“I promise to be careful. I always am.”
Jared’s lips curved down. “That is a lie. You’re never careful.”
“I promise to be careful this time.”
“You’d better.”
“It’s going to be okay. Once it’s done, other than testifying at his trial, we’ll be done with him. To me, that’s something to look forward to.”
Jared hoped that was truly the case because if anyone could get under Harper’s skin, it was Quinn. The man was a manipulator through and through and he was only happy when he was toying with others. Jail would’ve limited his options, which meant he was probably feeling feisty.
“I’m only a phone call away.” He kissed her cheek. “Don’t hesitate to call if you need me.”
“I’ll be okay. Focus on Zoe. She’s the one in trouble.”
“Yeah. We’re heading toward the former girlfriend’s house first. It’s doubtful she’s a suspect, but we have to rule her out.”
“I’ll join you this afternoon and offer whatever help I can. Hopefully we’ll know more by the afternoon.”
“That would be a nice development.”
JARED WAS STILL SULKING about Harper’s plans when he and Mel parked in front of Jessica Hayden’s house an hour later. His mood matched the weather, which was stark and chilly.
“I can tell you’re going to be a lot of fun today,” Mel groused, exiting the vehicle. “Do you want to tell me what you’ve been muttering over there for the past twenty minutes?”
Jared stomped his feet extra hard against the cold driveway as he joined his partner. “I don’t think you’re going to care.”
“Let me guess, Harper did something to irritate you.”
“Not yet, but soon.”
“She told you she’s going to do something to irritate you?”
“She’s going to see Quinn. His lawyer called this morning and he’s asking for a sit-down.”
“Oh.” Mel was legitimately surprised. Harper and Jared’s arguments were generally more tiffs than anything else. He often found it amusing when his partner melted down over things Mel would’ve completely ignored. Of course, Mel had been married for more than two decades. He knew which battles were worth fighting. As far as Quinn was concerned, he couldn’t help siding with his partner. That was a battle he would be more than willing to fight if his wife was the one on the receiving end of a similar call.
“Yeah, oh,” Jared echoed, grimacing. “I don’t think it’s a good idea. She thinks it’s necessary. I bet you can guess which one of us won that fight.”
“He won’t be able to touch her,” Mel offered pragmatically as they climbed the steps that led to Jessica’s front door. “They take safety seriously at the county jail. She’ll be perfectly fine.”
“Physically, yes. Emotionally, though? He’s a user. I’m afraid he’s going to get her all worked up.”
“She’s a big girl. She knows how to handle herself.”
“I guess I can see where you land on this particular argument.”
“Yes, I land on your side,” Mel said, taking his partner by surprise. “I wouldn’t want her going either. It’s not your decision, though. It’s hers. She has a right to see him if she feels it’s necessary.
“He haunted her life for years,” he continued. “All that pain and guilt she felt was for nothing. If she wants to unload on him, I don’t see what the problem is.” Instead of waiting for a response, Mel rapped on the door. “Stop being a baby and focus on the case. Harper will be fine. She knows what she’s doing.”
Jared scowled. “Well, if you’re going to be rational.”
Mel waited a full two minutes. When no one answered, he knocked again. After the third knock, he moved to the big bay window at the front of the house and shielded his eyes from the glare so he could peer inside. “It looks empty.”
“What are you guys doing?” a female voice asked from the neighboring house, causing both men to jolt and look in her direction guiltily. “Mel?”
“Hey, Irma.” Mel plastered a fake smile on his face and smiled at the elderly woman watching them with suspicious eyes. If Jared had to guess, she looked to be in her eighties, although still fairly spry. “How are things?”
“Well, I thought I was coming out here to shoot some bad guys,” she replied, lifting the handgun she had hidden away in the folds of her skirt. “Now that I know it’s cops, I haven’t decided on a course of action yet.”
Mel’s eyes narrowed. “Um ... are you supposed to have that gun?”
“What gun?” Irma was suddenly innocence and light as the gun disappeared into her skirt again. “Can I get you a doughnut and coffee, Detective?”
Jared bit back a grin as Mel glowered at the older woman.
“We don’t have time for pleasantries, Irma. We’re looking for Jessica. We need to question her in regard to Zoe Mathers’s disappearance.”
All trace of mirth disappeared from Irma’s face. “I heard about that. It’s terrible. I don’t know why you would be looking to talk to Jessica, though. She’s a good girl and never gets into trouble.”
“Yes, well ... she was dating Luke. We simply have to rule her out, and she was his most recent conquest.”
“I told her he was a bad choice, but she wouldn’t listen. I told her he would break her heart. Guess what ended up happening.”
“He broke her heart,” Mel finished automatically. “That’s what he does.”
“Yeah, well ... .” Irma worked her jaw as she got her emotions under control. “As for Jessica, I haven’t seen her since yesterday afternoon. She was on her front porch, looked upset, and she took off in that Japanese car of hers.”
“Japanese car?” Jared furrowed hi
s brow. “Is that a euphemism for something?”
“It’s a Civic,” Mel replied. “Irma’s husband worked the lines in the Ford plant for forty years. She doesn’t believe in buying foreign.”
“It’s un-American!” she barked.
“Well, that’s not really the important thing to argue about right now, is it?” Mel was calm. “We really need to find Jessica. Do you know where she’s been working?”
“No. Like I said, she looked upset. She had a big bag and was loading it in the car and then she took off real quick like. I figured she had an appointment.”
Something occurred to Jared. “What kind of bag?”
“One of those small suitcase things with the rollers.”
“Do you think she was leaving town?”
Irma shrugged. “I’m part of the Neighborhood Watch, not the Neighborhood Busybody Society. I don’t ask about other people’s business.”
“Okay, well, thank you for your time.”
“Don’t mention it.”
“And make sure that gun is registered,” Mel called after her.
“What gun? I think you’re imagining things.”
Six
Harper was ridiculously nervous as she sat in the chair the jail guard indicated. She expected other people to be around during her conversation with Quinn, but the visitation area was eerily quiet. She was thankful for the guard, who didn’t look friendly, but she was starting to wonder if she’d made a mistake agreeing to the request.
“He won’t be able to throw a chair through the glass, will he?” Harper asked the guard, her nerves taking over. “I saw that on an episode of television once. I really don’t want him to jump on me.”
The guard furrowed his brow. “Excuse me?”
“The glass.” She gestured toward the huge wall of plexiglass. “He can’t jump out and try to kill me, can he?”
“Are you expecting him to jump out?”
“I’m the reason he’s in here.”
“Really?” Suddenly intrigued, the guard turned to face her. “I heard stories about that takedown. Supposedly it happened in a field.”
Harper remembered the location of the final fight very well. “Right in front of a haunted scarecrow.”
“What?”
She shook her head. There was no way she would be able to explain things to him in a cognizant manner. “It doesn’t matter.” She forced a smile. “His lawyer called and said he wanted to see me. I can’t figure out why he would possibly want to revisit what happened.”
“I can think of a reason.”
Before Harper could question the guard further, a loud clanging sound assailed her ears and she jerked her eyes to the left. Quinn, his hands cuffed in front of him, shuffled thanks to shackles on his feet. The orange jumpsuit he was forced to wear washed out his complexion, and his hair was longer than she remembered.
“Hello, Harper,” he drawled as he sat across from her. Instead of phones like she’d seen in movies, there was a speaker set at the bottom of the window, so she had no trouble hearing him.
“Hello, Quinn.” The nerves she’d been feeling for the better part of two hours suddenly disappeared, and all she was left with was rage. “Is there something specific you want? Your lawyer called and said you wanted to talk to me.”
“I do want to talk to you.”
“So ... talk.”
Quinn’s handsome face split into a wide grin that was more obnoxious than pleasant. “Oh, is that any way to talk to the man who held your heart for years?”
Harper rolled her eyes. “You never held my heart, just that spot in my bowel where I keep my guilt.”
The guard made a noise that sounded suspiciously like a choked laugh but kept his eyes pointed forward.
“Oh, don’t be that way,” Quinn wheedled, adopting a whiny tone. “I’m genuinely sorry about what happened. I didn’t mean for it to go down that way. I genuinely didn’t have a choice, though. I was trying to protect you. That’s why I left in the first place.”
“Oh, really?” Harper shot him a withering look. “Do you really think I’m going to believe that?”
“It’s the truth. Have I ever lied to you?”
“You faked your death. That seems like a big, fat lie to me.”
“Yes, but I was protecting you from my enemies.” As if putting on a show, Quinn offered up an exaggerated look around the room before leaning closer. “I was a bad man who wanted to change thanks to the love of a good woman. That woman was you.”
Harper wanted to smack him with a chair. It was probably good, she internally mused, that she couldn’t break through the glass and attack him. She would hate to have her own bunk in this place before all was said and done.
“You know I’m not going to believe that nonsense, right?”
“But it’s true.” Quinn refused to back down. “I fell in love with you and I wasn’t expecting it. I admit, I first started dating you because I thought you would make a nice front. Plus, well, you were always ridiculously hot.” He graced her with a flirty wink that caused her stomach to churn.
“I didn’t mean to form real feelings, but I did,” he continued. “Each day, they grew. I got to know you, and before I realized what was happening, I was head over heels.”
He was a good actor. Harper had to give him that. She understood the game he was playing, though, and she had no intention of falling for it. “Quinn ... .”
He barreled forward before she could shut him down. “There were things from my past that I wanted to hide from, push aside. I couldn’t, though. People wanted to hurt me, and if they couldn’t get their hands on me, I knew they would have no problem going after you. The only thing I could do to keep you safe was to let them think I was dead. It’s not as if I wanted to leave you.”
“Oh, yeah?” Harper decided to lure him a bit, if only because she wanted to know what sort of nonsense he would lob at her next. “Why would you possibly come back if you were trying to keep me safe? Did you decide you no longer wanted to do that?”
“No. It’s just ... I missed you so much. You have no idea the pain I went through, pining for you for years. It hurt every night when I went to sleep.”
“Good grief. How much fertilizer are you going to shovel on my feet?” Harper challenged, her temper flaring to life. “Do you think I’m stupid enough to fall for this?”
He mustered an actual tear, which Harper wanted to smack off his face as it slid down his cheek. “I want you to search your heart. You know the truth is there. I’m not your enemy. I was trying to protect you.”
“Oh, so you’re my hero, are you?”
“I wouldn’t use that word. I’ve done too many horrible things. I wanted to protect you above all else, though.”
“You are the worst liar ever,” Harper barked, her tone so loud it caused Quinn to jolt. “The fact that you actually think I might fall for this is horrifying. I’m not stupid. I’m also not weak. I’m not going to believe that story no matter how you spin it.
“Now, if you want something specific, it’s probably best you tell me before I storm out of here in a huff,” she continued. “I’m too old to play games. And, while you may be bored, and this is the highlight of your day, I have a lot of things on my plate.”
“Right.” Quinn’s eyes darkened. “Let me guess, does Romeo have something special planned for you? Another picnic at your new house?”
Harper’s heart skipped a beat. “How do you know about the picnics?”
“I watched you when I came back to see what you were doing. I wanted to be sure I could drive a wedge between you and the cop.” All pretense of being pleasant fled as Quinn turned down and dirty. “I knew you were dating him before I ever returned. I had people giving me reports on you from time to time. I had no idea you two were as serious as you were until I saw you in action together.”
“Don’t bother talking about Jared,” she warned, her eyes turning to molten blue fire. “If you say one bad thing about him, I’m out of he
re. I’m not kidding.”
“What makes you think I want to say anything bad about him?”
“I’ve met you. I was there that day in the field. You would’ve killed me ... and Molly ... and Jared ... and Zander. You wouldn’t have even blinked an eye if it meant you would get that money.
“They found it, by the way,” she continued, enjoying the way Quinn squirmed in his chair. “You probably haven’t heard because they decided not to make a big deal out of it for the news. The bank, of course, took possession of the money, so you don’t have to worry about it being out there waiting to be discovered. It’s gone.”
“You’re lying!” Quinn’s voice whipped past fury before he could bank it.
“Hey, that will be enough of that.” The guard extended a warning finger, the slope of his shoulders telling Harper he meant business. “If you can’t control yourself, Jackson, you’re going to have to go in timeout. Do you want to go in timeout?”
Harper had no idea what “timeout” meant, but she doubted it was a good thing, especially given where they were sitting. “Just tell me what you want, Quinn. I don’t have time for you. There’s a missing girl in Whisper Cove. I need to get back so I can rejoin the search.”
“Oh, you’re still the martyr, aren’t you?” Quinn hissed. “Only you would donate your time looking for a missing kid. I mean ... come on.”
“See, that’s why you couldn’t wedge yourself between Jared and me,” she said calmly. “You don’t understand what it is to feel things. You don’t have emotions. You’re a sociopath. You can’t understand giving of yourself because it’s an alien concept to you.”
“Oh, geez. Have you been watching old reruns of Oprah or something?”
Instead of reacting with anger, Harper merely pressed the heel of her hand to her forehead and sighed. “What is it you want, Quinn?” she pressed. “If you don’t tell me, I’ll simply leave.”
Quinn opened his mouth in such a way Harper was convinced he had something snarky to say. Instead, he adjusted his stance and offered a smile. “I want to talk to you about your testimony.”
“Oh, really?” All Harper could hear in her disappointed mind was “I should’ve seen this coming” over and over again on a loop.
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