The Fire Still Burns

by Crystal-Rain Love

  ~~~

  Adam snapped his cell phone shut and slammed it down on the counter.

  “Easy, big guy,” Jamie Lee peered at him from over the rim of her coffee mug.

  “Sorry,” he said sheepishly, glancing around the diner to check if anyone else had noticed his small tantrum.

  Fortunately, it was a slow day. Only two other customers shared the diner with them, and they were settled into a booth along the far wall. The waitress who’d served them their coffees at the counter was engrossed in a newspaper, oblivious to their conversation. “I've been calling her all morning and she hasn't picked up once. She's avoiding me.”

  “She might be sleeping in, or busy.”

  “Busy avoiding me,” he replied grumpily, staring down at his own coffee cup. He couldn't even drink it. His stomach was tied in knots. “I scared her off. What are you grinning at?”

  Jamie Lee's pale face reddened. “Sorry. I've just never seen you like this. You're a nervous mess over this woman.”

  “Yeah, well, some things never change.” He let out a disgusted sigh.

  “So I was right.”

  “Huh?”

  “All those times you'd go on tangents about how she was this evil woman who seduced you, just so she could rip your heart out and laugh in your face. How you hated her through and through. I told you those were just the ramblings of a hurt man. I told you she was your one true love.”

  Adam could feel his own face flushing, recalling the things he'd said about Brynn in anger. “Yeah, well, how come you never joined in? You're the one person I know who never had a bad thing to say about her.”

  “She was my babysitter. I knew her, I knew how she felt about you. I might have been young, but even I could recognize the love in her eyes when she looked at you. I've always believed there was more to the story. I'm glad you've finally realized it, too.” She traced her finger along the rim of the mug.

  Adam nodded, recalling the realization which had slammed into him with the force of a speeding train the night before. “What do you think she was lying about? Why would she have left with Cal if she didn't love him?”

  “Those are questions you'll have to ask her.”

  “I've tried.” He rested his elbows on the counter and shook his head.

  “Then you haven't been asking the right way.”

  “Are all women as difficult and confusing as you two?” He gave Jamie Lee a grin.

  “We all aspire to be.” Jamie Lee batted her long lashes coyly. “Be patient. She already confessed that she still loves you.”

  “She also said that doesn't change anything.”

  “Whatever. She's a woman in love. Her mind is fighting against her heart. It won't work though.”

  “You're so sure?”

  “I'm a woman, aren't I?”

  “Yes, but Brynn is also a mother.” Adam sighed, the reminder hitting him in the gut. “I'm not the most important man in her life.”

  “This is true.” Jamie Lee stared at her coffee cup thoughtfully, chewing at her bottom lip a moment before nodding her head affirmatively. “It'll all work out. You'll see.”

  Adam hoped she was right. It had taken him hours to fall asleep in his new temporary residence the night before, his mind overactive with thoughts of Brynn, haunted by so many questions.

  Why had she left him if she didn't love Cal? Had his former friend held something over her? Or was that just wishful thinking? Maybe it really was cut and dried—she just hadn't wanted him anymore. But that couldn't be right. She still loved him after all these years, and had admitted it. Not that she needed to. He'd seen it in her eyes, crystal clear.

  “You haven't mentioned anything about the case.”

  Adam pushed thoughts of Brynn aside for the moment, feeling guilty for not having Zeke at the forefront of his mind. “I know. I should be more focused.”

  “Hooey. You're as focused as anyone can be. There's nothing wrong with taking care of yourself.” Jamie Lee’s tone was firm.

  “His killer needs to be found and put away. That's the priority, not my love life.”

  Jamie Lee nodded, her pretty blue eyes softening. “So have you and Brynn discovered anything?”

  He sucked in a breath, letting it out slowly before expelling the details to her of just what type of man his brother apparently was. “My brother was sleeping with under-aged girls, including Rachel Wood, and he’d gotten her pregnant. He wanted her to have an abortion, and we think her disappearance is wrapped up in these arsons.”

  He took another relaxing breath and found that it didn't feel so bad telling Jamie Lee, his most trusted friend, but he knew he'd hate conceding the truth to the rest of the town, especially his mother.

  Jamie let out a soft whistle and covered his hand with her own. “I'm sorry you had to find all that out, but there's no such thing as perfection. We all have demons, faults. We are all capable of darkness. Zeke must have not been strong enough to fight against his.”

  “I suppose so.”

  “You really think Rachel Wood killed him, though?”

  “She had the motive.” He pushed his mug away, his stomach clenched tight.

  “So did a lot of other people judging by what you've told me.”

  “Brynn has a gut feeling Rachel Wood was involved in the killing, and the woman has been missing for months. I'd say Brynn’s on to something.”

  Jamie Lee nodded. “I just hope the arsons are over. I love job security and all, but not at this expense. The Mulroneys were devastated over the loss of their home.”

  I was devastated over the loss of my brother, Adam added silently, feeling like a jerk. He'd had another dream about Zeke, another rehashing of a bad memory—a fight they had gotten into over something trivial and stupid.

  He'd been having more of them since the truth of his brother's character had come to light. It made him feel like a traitor. Zeke was dead. He should only be remembering the good things about his older brother, not dwelling on the bad.

  “You might want to take a look out the window.”

  Adam withdrew from his thoughts to do as Jamie Lee recommended, glancing out the window of the diner. His gaze drifted across the football field of his old high school, the store Riley Wood's family owned, and Tucker's Fabric. He was about to ask Jamie Lee what he was looking for when he noticed the woman pumping gas at the station on the corner.

  Brynn's auburn hair blew in the wind, her head bent, focused on her task. She wore dark blue jeans, a snug navy blue T-shirt and her cell phone peeked out of her jeans pocket. Adam dialed her number and watched with a frown as she checked her phone, noted the Caller ID and re-deposited the slender phone into her pocket.

  “So much for the sleeping in theory.” He gave Jamie Lee a dark look.

  “Fine, so you were right. She's avoiding you,” Jamie Lee conceded, a small grin tugged at the corners of her mouth. “What are you going to do about it?”

  “Find out what the hell is going on inside her head once and for all,” Adam answered as he placed a few bills on the counter and left the diner, marching straight toward Brynn.

  She glanced up at him, the look in her eyes not the least bit welcoming. The only acknowledgment, a look that could kill.

  “I've been calling you all morning.” Adam stopped next to her.

  “I noticed.”

  Yeah, I noticed you notice. “And?”

  “And what?”

  “And what?” Adam stared at her, taking in the way she slammed the gas nozzle back into place and twisted the cap to her gas tank on more forcefully than required. “Why didn't you answer?”

  “Didn't feel the need to.”

  She turned to get in the car and Adam grabbed her by the arm, effectively turning her to face him. “What's the matter with you?”

  “Nothing is the matter with me.” She looked from her arm to his face, her eyes smoldering.

  “You're mad at me. What did I do?”

  “Look, I have work to do,” she snapp
ed and tugged on her arm, attempting unsuccessfully to detach herself from his grasp, “and I don't appreciate being manhandled on a public street.”

  “Then quit acting so damn silly,” Adam snapped back, losing his patience. What had he done? Told her he loved her? Since when was that a crime? “Tell me what's wrong. Did I do something?”

  “My life isn't about you.”

  Hurt slammed into his chest, her words pummeled against him like fists, but he had to realize she wasn’t the same girl she’d once been. She had other responsibilities now.

  “Nathaniel?” he recalled her son's name. “Is your son all right? Your mother? What happened? Tell me.”

  Brynn shook her head, her eyes glazed with anger, jaw clenched. “I really hate you sometimes,” she finally sputtered before stomping on his foot. She tried to get away, but Adam held on tightly, even as he hopped on his uninjured foot

  “Dammit, Brynn. What's gotten into you?” he asked after the pain in his foot eased enough so he could stand on it again, but she didn't answer.

  Her desperate struggle to escape his grasp continued as she twisted her body and jerked on her arm, drawing attention from passersby. Well, an escape just wasn't going to happen.

  Adam grabbed her keys out of her hand and scooped her up, tossing her into the backseat of her unlocked Jetta before quickly sliding into the driver's seat. He struggled for a moment while he adjusted the seat for his size and shifted the compact in drive.

  “What are you doing?” Brynn screeched from the backseat, smacking him in the back of the head as he eased the car onto the main street, choosing to ignore the gawking stares they received from several onlookers who'd caught their fight. He had bigger problems, the main one being what to do with the hot-tempered female he’d technically abducted.

  “Ouch, Brynn, dammit,” he barked at her as she landed another healthy smack to the back of his head. “I'm driving here. You want to get in a wreck?”

  “I want you out of my car,” she snapped as she climbed over the seat. Adam watched her land in the passenger side with a scowl that could make a demon tremble.

  “Now,” she added, shoving him toward the door.

  “I know you're pissed,” Adam used his only free hand to grab blindly at her wrists while keeping his eyes on the road before them, “but if we get in a wreck and die, who's going to take care of your boy?”

  Brynn made a sound similar to a grunt, but much more defeated, and slumped into her seat, her arms crossed beneath her breasts which were heaving from exertion or anger, Adam couldn't really tell.

  “I can't stand you right now,” she finally said after they'd spent nearly ten full minutes in heated silence.

  “Yeah, I gathered that. What I want to know is why,” Adam replied as he pulled the car to a stop outside the cabin in the woods that he'd secured until he found a more permanent living arrangement.

  Brynn bounded from the car as soon as the engine was cut and looked around. “Where are we?”

  “The cabin Jamie Lee's extended family stays in when they come down for a visit. She's letting me use it until I find a new place to call home.”

  “You mean you left Mommy Dearest?” Brynn asked, one eyebrow cocked.

  Adam unlocked the front door and pushed it open, choosing to ignore her barb. He jangled her car keys as he glared at her, reminding her she had no way out of the woods unless she planned on going by foot.

  “Are you coming in with me or waiting out here for the bears to get you?”

  Tennessee was famous for its Black Bears, but there hadn't been any attacks in several years, and those had been when the animals were provoked. However, Brynn had been a big city girl for several years so Adam counted on her still believing in the stories their parents used to tell them to keep them out of the woods by themselves when they were curious children and horny teens.

  Judging by the widening of her eyes as she nervously glanced around and then reluctantly entered the cabin, he knew she did.

  The cabin had a small kitchen, dining, living and sleeping area, which were all thrust together into one large open area. The only separate room was a bathroom, which Adam sent up a silent thank you for. He didn't care much for outhouses or the lack of modern plumbing and electricity.

  The sitting choices included a queen size bed, a selection of hardwood chairs by the dining table, a love seat or a recliner. Brynn chose one of the hardwood chairs, which made it a whole lot easer for Adam to intimidate her into telling him what was going through that pretty little crazy head of hers.

  He grabbed the chair she sat in and roughly picked her up in it, turning her, chair and all, so she had no choice but to face him. She gasped as the chair legs hit the floorboards with a loud thud and he loomed over her, leaning forward to invade her personal space. “Now, tell me what the hell your problem is.”

  ~~~

  Adam hovered over her, so close she could feel his warm breath on her face, his jaw clenched tightly to match the anger she read in his eyes, but if he was attempting to intimidate her, it wouldn't work. She knew he'd never hurt her. Not physically anyway.

  “Nice work, Adam. You'll make a great cop. The whole hard-ass interrogator vibe fits you well.”

  He closed his eyes, let out a frustrated sigh, and shook his head. “I'm not interested in playing games or exchanging little quips with you.” He eased his grip on the chair but didn’t back away. “Why are you mad at me? What have I done to deserve your anger when all I've ever done is love you?”

  “Don't say that to me,” Brynn ordered through clenched teeth, fresh anger giving her the strength to shove him away, which caused him to fall backward on his well-sculpted ass. Don't think of his ass, she cautioned herself as she stepped past him. Don't fall for him again.

  “Why?” He pulled himself up to stand. “It's the truth and you feel it, too. You admitted it.”

  “Because I was stupid enough to believe in you,” Brynn snapped, turning on him.

  “To think I felt bad all these years for hurting you, Mr. Innocent, but you weren't so innocent after all, were you?” She knew she was being petty and childish.

  Adam hadn't known her real reason for leaving, but she couldn't stop picturing him with Stacy Willinger, her nemesis. She couldn't get over the betrayal, the fact he would willingly do something so awful to hurt her deliberately.

  “What the hell are you talking about now?” Adam asked, raking a hand through his dark hair. The look of utter bewilderment on his face would have been comical if not for the fact that Brynn's chest was so tight with the pain of heartbreak she could barely breathe.

  “Look, I'm only in town long enough to get my financial state in order and then I'll be gone so fast you'll be choking on my dust. Other than the arson case, you and I really don't need to discuss anything.”

  “I have the right to know why you're mad at me.” His loud bellow echoed off the walls.

  “What does it matter?”

  “I love you, dammit. Even after all that's happened, after you left me, I still love you. I'm willing to forgive—”

  “Oh, that's so grand of you,” Brynn yelled into his face. “Maybe I'm not willing to forgive you.”

  “Forgive me for what?” Adam held out his arms, his hands palm-side up. “What the hell did I do?”

  Brynn had told herself she wouldn't let him know how badly his betrayal had hurt her. She wouldn't give Stacy Willinger the satisfaction of arguing with Adam over her, but there was no stopping herself from asking the questions burning through her mind.

  “So just how long exactly did you wait before you slept with the one woman I hated more than I'd ever hated anyone? How many were there in all?”

  Adam sucked in wind as he took a step backward, dropping into the chair she'd recently vacated. He stared at her for a beat, and she did her best not to give in to the desire to cry, not to let him see her shed even more tears over him. Finally, he lowered his head into his hands, shaking it slowly.

  “I'm sor
ry, Brynn. I know how you must feel.”

  “You have no idea how I feel,” she said from behind gritted teeth, sucking breath in hard in order to withhold her tears, using her anger as a buffer against the sorrow in her heart. “How many were there?”

  He looked up at her, anguish mixed with a hefty dose of guilt evident in his eyes. “Brynn, you don't want to—”

  “How. Many. Were. There?”

  “A lot,” he answered reluctantly, his voice the softest she'd ever heard it. “But they all meant nothing.”

  “Not all of them,” she responded, unable to dispel the images of Adam being intimate with several different women out of her mind. “There was one who meant a great deal. She meant the ultimate revenge, didn't she?”

  “Brynn, I'm sorry, I—”

  “How could you? You knew what it would do to me to find out, and that's exactly why you did it.” She pointed her finger at him, aware her voice elevated with each word. “You wanted to make me suffer.”

  A flash of anger flared to life within his deep blue eyes and he rose from the chair.

  “Dammit, I'm sorry I hurt you, and I've regretted it since it happened,” his voice rose. “I was hurt, too. You left me for my own friend. Of course, part of me wanted revenge. Of course, part of me wanted to hurt you as badly as you hurt me. Don't you dare hold this against me now, punishing me for my mistake when I've chosen to forgive you for yours.”

  “I didn't willingly try to hurt you,” Brynn yelled back, face to face with Adam. “You hurt me on purpose.”

  “And you didn't? What else do you call cheating on me with my best friend? Having sex with my best friend?”

  “I didn't have sex with your best friend,” Brynn screamed. “He raped me!”

  She slapped her hands over her mouth.

  Adam stumbled backward, the redness of anger seeped out of his face as his eyes coated over in shock.

  “What did you just say?”

  Chapter Twelve

  Brynn fell to the floor, tears streamed down her cheeks. Adam sat hard in the chair he’d left minutes before. The room spun as he tried to collect his thoughts, but there were too many of them racing around inside his head.