Not for Sale

by Iona Morrison

  “You can do better than that. You drive a sweet Mustang. Think again, Jess, give me something to go on.” He gazed at her and winked.

  “Like I said before…” She frowned. “It was white, midsize, hmmm, a Toyota Camry.” She looked up under her lashes at him.

  “Are you sure?” He watched her closely.

  “Yes, it was a Camry.” She nodded, and he knew she had guessed.

  “Ideally, it would be great to keep him in the area. He may lead us to the others. But not at your expense.”

  “How kind of you.” Her voice sounded sarcastic even to her.

  He leaned on the open window, eye to eye with her. “At least for now, he doesn’t know where you live. Wait here, I’ll follow you home to make sure we keep it that way.” He stood up and started to push away from the car.

  She grabbed his hand before he left. “You do know, if he has my name it’s pretty easy to find out where I live? A click of a mouse is all it takes.”

  “I know.” He gave her a wry grin. Darn, she was smart. “I was hoping you would forget that little bit of information so you wouldn’t worry.”

  She made a funny face at him. “Like that’s ever going to happen. I’ve looked up so much information on the Internet about people. I’m fully aware that people can do the same about me.” She grinned, tilting her head back. “I wasn’t born yesterday, you know.”

  “Believe me, I’m fully aware that you’re all grown up.” He couldn’t resist and tried not to grin. “And may I add, quite nicely in all the right places.” He stepped back from the car. “Stay right here for a minute, I’ll follow you home.” He enjoyed the rosy blush spilling across her face.

  ****

  Jessie watched him walk back in the station, out of sight for a few minutes. Her phone alerted an incoming text. Katie wanted her to come to the Inn for dinner. She texted back that she was waiting on Matt. Katie told her to bring him. Matt walked out of the station carrying several folders. She motioned him over to the car. “Katie wants you to come to dinner.”

  “If you’re going, I’ll go too. Tell her that I’ll be there.” He took his keys from his pocket. “I’d like to go over some things with you afterwards if you have time.” He waited as she texted Katie. “Let’s get going. I’ll be right behind you. Keep your eyes open.”

  “You, too…” She put the phone down and shifted the car into gear. She pressed her lips together. She had missed her run. At least she didn’t have to make dinner, or be alone for the evening.

  She pulled into her parking space and Matt pulled right next to her. They walked through the gardens up to the Inn. “We got a make on the car,” Matt said as he opened the door for her.

  “What? You saw him again?” He nodded his head yes. “Where? I didn’t see anything.” Matt put a finger to her lips. He excused himself when they walked through the kitchen door.

  Katie pulled Jessie aside. “After tonight, you’re going to have to thank me big time. This couldn’t have worked out better if I had planned it.”

  “I don’t even want to know.” Jessie waved her off. “Wait a minute, maybe I do want to know. What are you up to?” Jessie scowled at her.

  “I’m giving you a little nudge, my friend. Although, with Matt here it’s quite possible I’ll be nudging him.” Katie smiled at her expression. “Be nice. I am your best friend after all. I want to get married, but I don’t want to wait for years for you to do the same. My kids could graduate from high school before you get around to it.”

  “Katie, I’ve told you, no matchmaking. What more do I have to say?” She frowned, pursing her lips.

  “You know, I never pay attention to the word no. No is exactly the word that says do, to me. I do what’s best in any given situation. Besides, you love me.” Katie smiled, clapping her hands. “You know you do.”

  Jessie didn’t soften her glare. “That doesn’t mean there aren’t times I wouldn’t dearly love to strangle you.”

  “Now, Jess, you know murder is against the law. I just heard you threaten another citizen.” Jessie jumped at the sound of Matt’s deep voice. He winked at her as he reached out to steady her.

  Katie grabbed Matt’s arm. “See?” Katie stuck her tongue out at Jessie. “He’s on my side.” Her eyes sparkled playfully. “Let’s eat, before it gets cold.”

  Jessie figured out Katie’s plan the minute she was seated next to a tall, attractive, dark-haired man. “Jessie, this is Steve Murphy from New York. He’s in the area on business.” Katie beamed at him. “Steve, this is my best friend Jessie Reynolds. Why don’t you two get acquainted?”

  “It’s nice to meet you, Jessie.” Steve stared at her, his mouth open. “Katie has been telling me all kinds of stories about you.”

  “I just bet she has.” Jessie turned a quick glare on Katie. “Steve, this is my friend Matt Parker.” Steve shook hands with Matt. Jessie tried listening to Steve, but Katie’s whispering in Matt’s ear distracted her. Frustrated, all she could hear was his reply.

  “The thing is, Katie, I don’t need any help. I’m a big boy and I can do it on my own.”

  Darn her, she was still at it! Steve was charming but a little self-absorbed. Jessie listened to him drone on for a while, feeling uncomfortable with him. Finally, she excused herself to carry her plate and silverware into the kitchen.

  Matt followed her out. “Shall we call it a night?”

  “Oh, please,” she pleaded with him, her hands wet from rinsing her dishes. “I need to get out of here. Katie means well, but she is driving me crazy with this whole marriage thing.” She rinsed the plate he handed to her. “Besides, there is something about that guy that bugs me.”

  “Didn’t you think the same thing about me when we first met?” He gave her playful swat with the towel.

  She laughed at him, shaking her head. “Sure enough did, but you treated me with equal disdain.” She closed the dishwasher door. “He was telling me about all his cars, money, and property holdings. I just met the man.” She frowned. “I feel like I did the first time I met Pastor Rick.”

  “Which was?” He was watching her closely.

  “He’s slick, not quite real, and has a false charm. There’s an edge to him. You wouldn’t want to cross him. You know, a veiled anger running beneath the surface.”

  “Let’s thank Katie and get out of here.” He walked with her back to the cottage after they said their goodbyes. “I trust your instinct. There’s a reason you feel that way about him, and you need to check him out.” Matt’s hand brushed her hand as they walked. He grinned, moving closer to her. “Personally, I wanted to punch him for hitting on my girl.”

  She glanced at him, moving over on the path. “Could you be serious?”

  “I am, and damn if Katie didn’t know I wanted to hit the guy. She was smirking at me every time I looked at her.” He studied her profile, moving closer to her again. “What are you thinking?”

  “I hope I don’t become suspicious of everyone I meet. I really do like people. I might be a little jaded after the last case, though.”

  “I don’t think that’s possible.” He sounded serious. “You’re a sweetheart, but you read people. You know if they’re being real with you or not. The last time you talked yourself out of the warning you felt, you almost died. Go with your instinct.”

  “You’re right. I think I may have to check up on one Steve Murphy.” She smiled, picking up her pace. “Do you want to come in?”

  “Let me grab the files. I’ll be right with you.” She watched him veer off toward his car. She unlocked the door, flipping on the porch light. She slipped her shoes off and walked into the kitchen for a glass of water. Jessie’s gaze drifted several times to Matt when he walked in the door. He headed toward his favorite chair, sat down, pulled a pair of black reading glasses from his pocket, and began poring over the files.

  “I didn’t know you wore glasses.” She scrutinized his face. They tamed him somehow.

  “They’re a new feature, you know, for r
eading. Too much strain on my eyes.” He bent his head to study the file again.

  “You look good in them.” He looked more approachable. The familiar heat crept up her neck warming her cheeks. “Can I get you anything?” He glanced at her, shaking his head no. Did he know how nervous he made her feel?

  She walked past him to get to her computer.

  “Jess…” He grabbed her hand and held it for a brief moment. “Are you ever going to be comfortable around me?”

  Her eyes narrowed. “Probably…” She grinned, freeing her hand. “You’re like a caged wild animal.”

  “Is that right?” He raised his brows.

  “I don’t mean that in a bad way, but you’re not like my dad,” she blurted out.

  “I sure as hell hope not.” He grinned to lighten his testy response.

  “I mean,” she stammered, “you have a wild energy about you, an almost unbridled energy. I’m not used to it, that’s all.”

  “At this point I’ll take anything you give me. Wild is good.”

  She frowned at him, marched over to her computer, and turned it on. She started browsing. “Where did you see the white car?”

  “It was sitting on one of the side streets as we left the station. No one was in it, or I would have stopped.” He opened another file. “I have to be observant. You’re learning to be.” He watched her scroll down the page.

  “Did you know Steve was here to donate money to Blue Cove Hospital to help enlarge the pediatric wing? I find that interesting, don’t you?” She lifted her eyes from the screen.

  “Not particularly. The hospital’s annual charity ball is coming up. I’m sure there are a few more like Steve in town. What else did you find?” He smiled at her.

  “There doesn’t seem to be anything negative about him. He’s a philanthropist, has a great reputation, and is known for being extremely generous to childhood causes.” Her eyes scanned through the information on the screen.

  “After our last case, a model citizen with a great reputation doesn’t mean anything. He’s worth checking into.” He glanced up from his file again.

  “Believe me, I’m going to leave no stone unturned. There was something going on. I could see it in his eyes.” She tapped her finger against her cheek.

  “Yeah, it was lust; he couldn’t take his eyes off you.” Matt’s smile faded, replaced by a scowl.

  “No, I was thinking it was more along the lines he was angry at me for something, which of course doesn’t make sense. I’ve never met him before.” She glared at the computer screen.

  “I still think it was lust, but you can keep digging, maybe you’ll prove me wrong.” He folded his arms across his chest.

  “Did Dave identify the murder victims?”

  “Two of them. I want you to investigate them as if you were doing a story on our kidnappers.” He walked over to the computer, handing her a piece of paper with both names on it. “There are a few people who would have gladly pulled the trigger on Eddie Lutz. Karl Hampton, I don’t know much about yet.”

  “You wonder what made them get into this line of work. It obviously didn’t work out too well for either of them.” She looked at the names on the paper.

  “I want to run a few things by you before I leave.” He went back and sat down. She followed him and sat on the couch with her notepad and pencil. She took notes as fast as he spoke. When he finished, he jumped up, gave her a quick kiss on the cheek, and was out the door. “Don’t forget to lock up nice and tight.” She watched him walk to his car.

  Where was the white car now? She peered into the darkness. Had he found out where she lived? She wasn’t sure what was worse, someone tailing her or the person sleeping in the Inn who seemed to be angry with her.

  Chapter 18

  One of these times, she would surprise him and kiss him breathless. Jessie smiled, feeling warm at the thought, turned off the light, and crawled into bed. She wished shutting off her mind could be so easy. It would be cool if she could just flip a switch to an instantly quiet mind. While she imagined that switch, maybe she should design it to flip the other way and keep Katie out of her romantic life. What romantic life? She sighed. If she were honest, she had been running from men ever since the day her dad had made it his mission to protect her from life. She looked around the dark room folding her hands behind her head. Dad was great, but he was crazy when it came to her.

  Love made people act strangely, a little out of control. She smiled as she rolled onto her side and propped her head up with her arm. Some of the boys who had pledged their love to her over the years had been downright bizarre. Like Bobby Angel, whose love manifested itself in an endless round of torment and teasing. Then there was Jake Perry, she’d found herself tripping over him every time she turned around. He was always underfoot, trying to do everything that she could do for herself. She had to break up with him, in order to find enough space to breathe.

  She had watched more than one of her girlfriends get a little goofy when they got serious about someone. Katie was an excellent case in point. Any man she went out with might be her future husband. Jessie had lost count of the times Katie had said, “This could be the one.” She smiled and shook her head. So how had others seen her actions? Maybe she really was the ice princess. She sighed.

  She had to admit Matt intrigued her. Nothing seemed to faze him. She enjoyed his humor and his professionalism. When it came to men, Jessie wished this time she could be more like Katie. She stretched out on her back. Then maybe she could approach the whole idea of a relationship with a man with a little less intensity. Just once, she thought, she’d like to stop over-analyzing it, throw caution to the wind, and enjoy the ride. She smiled. It could be fun to experience being with a person just for the sake of being with that person. Especially, when he was as good-looking as Matt was. She exhaled a long slow breath. Oh, well, she was her father’s daughter, and the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. Yet, there was a little something of Grams in her too. Her mind churned with the possibilities. Finally, she rolled over, closed her eyes, and fell asleep.

  ****

  Jessie crashed through the trees in a panic. A low-lying tree limb smacked her cheek with a sting. Her heart beat so fast it felt as though it would explode in her chest. The pounding increased at the sound of the car closing in fast. Fear sucked the air from her lungs and her breath came in short gasps; she scanned the woods for a place to hide. Any place, please. Panting, she ran on. Suddenly, she found herself out of the trees in a wide-open clearing. The car stopped behind her. No place to hide! Her sides ached. Her lungs felt on fire. She was cornered, defeated, and stood frozen to the spot; paralyzed, like a deer caught in the headlights on a dark night.

  “Get the damn kid!” She heard someone yell. Big hands yanked her to the ground from behind and a large foot kicked into her side. She rolled just in time to miss the next blow. On all fours, she tried to crawl away only to be pulled back by her legs. She kicked and clawed at her captor’s arms hearing his curses until she was too weary to fight anymore. Instinctively she raised her hands to shield her face from his fists. The pain was beyond anything she had ever felt. One blow after another landed until she no longer could feel anything at all. A glorious numbness washed over her, and it was if she was floating above it all looking down on her body on the ground. Joshua lay motionless in the dirt, not her.

  “Eddie, stop it, you’re going to kill him.” A smaller man grabbed at the big man’s arm before he struck the boy again.

  Eddie turned to a group of kids cowering by the vans and started cursing, threatening every child in the most vulgar way. “Now, every one of you little parasites knows what will happen to you if you try to run. Get this kid in the van and out of my sight before I kill him.” His big fist doubled, and he slammed the side of the van. Terrified kids stared at the ground, too afraid to be caught looking. “Get in the damn van, now!” His eyes bulged in anger. They scrambled like mice scurrying into their holes at the sight of a big hungry cat. Jessi
e struggled to awaken, but fear gripped her and suspended her somewhere in between.

  “We’ll take care of him, just don’t hit him again. If he dies, we’re gonna have to dump him,” said one of the other two men. Eddie nodded at them. They lifted Josh and carried him away from the big man before he could change his mind. The two men rolled him into the van. A faint groan escaped from Josh’s lips. She doubted they even heard him. They both kept eyeing the big man with a visible fear, whispering back and forth something she couldn’t hear.

  The atmosphere in the van was oppressive, heavy. The children tried unsuccessfully not to stare at Josh as he lay motionless. A girl with stringy, pale blonde hair and a thin face hugged a smaller redheaded girl who sobbed almost inaudibly against the blonde girl’s shoulder. The blonde girl raised her head for a moment; her haunted blue eyes seemed to meet Jessie’s. She looked at their faces, they were clearly terrified, and the silence in the air was punctuated only by a sniff or a quiet whimper. Tears rolled down her cheeks as she watched the faces of the traumatized children. Moving, the van was moving. The bumpy road tossed the children about, hitting one another. They tried hard not to hit Josh, holding on to each other. Jessie watched in horror when the door of the van opened and the two men rolled Josh’s badly beaten body out. He hit the ground with a splat. She covered her eyes; she didn’t want to see any more. They thought he was dead. Well, he almost was.

  When she finally emerged from the dream, like a shroud, her blankets had wrapped themselves around her. “Please, let Josh live,” she pleaded. “Let Josh live. Help us to find those precious children.” Sleep eluded her as she repeated her plea again. She wanted desperately to find those children before they were scattered across the country and lost to their parents forever.