by Loyd, Sandy
Her chin jutted out a little further. “Did you hear me? I’m replacing you.”
“Like hell you are.” Jason ignored her icy tone, made colder with that glacial glare.
“I don’t need or want you, so I’d appreciate it if you’d take me home.”
“That’s too damn bad. I’m not taking you home. Not yet, anyway. You’re stuck with me until this is over.”
“Don’t tell me that, you . . . you,” she stammered. “I want to go home. If you can’t take me, then call a cab for me.”
When it was obvious he wasn’t responding the way she wanted, the ice melted. She exploded.
“I don’t need someone who isn’t behind me one hundred percent.” Her voice rose, becoming a shout. “You got that, Mr. High-Priced Lawyer?”
“I am behind you, or you wouldn’t be here,” he yelled, matching her in volume.
He was off the sofa and in her face in three steps. Why the woman caused him to lose it, he had no idea. But he was past angry.
“Now, sit down so we can discuss this like two civilized adults.”
“No. I don’t have to listen to you.”
Jason clenched his teeth and inhaled deeply, clamping down tightly on the thin control of his temper. It took several breaths before he could speak calmly.
“We need to talk. Please just sit. It shouldn’t take long.”
“I’ve made up my mind. Your services are no longer required.”
Even though she met his gaze, there was no real connection. Her features had slammed shut, as closed as that first day he took her to see Snyder.
“I’d like to go home,” she repeated. “Now.”
“Damn,” Jason muttered.
How had he gone backward? Her body language clearly stated she wasn’t about to open so much as a crack.
Sighing, he stood up to get his phone and call for a taxi.
• • •
“Daddy,” Amelia yelled the next morning.
“What?” Jason shouted back.
“Phone.”
He dropped the hammer and wiped his hand on his worn and faded jeans. After grabbing the kitchen extension, he put the receiver against his shoulder.
“Thanks, I got it.”
“Hello?”
“Mr. Roberts. Deputy Snyder, returning your call.”
“Thanks for getting back to me so quickly.”
“I was hoping your call meant you’ve reconsidered the lie-detector test and talked to your client.”
“Actually, that’s the main reason I called. To schedule one.”
“Is later today too early? I know it’s a Saturday, but I can set it up.”
“What time?”
He wrote the time down as he heard Snyder say, “I’d like to test both sisters together. Do you think you can arrange for Crystal Grayson to come in too?”
“I can try. I’ll give you a call back to confirm.”
“Great.”
“There’s another reason for my call,” he said before the deputy could hang up.
“Oh?”
“Some information my investigator dug up. Carter had another visitor during that last week. Same person visited him on the day he died. We talked to her, and she vouched for his health.”
“You got a name?”
“Elise Roberts, my soon-to-be ex-wife.”
“You’re shitting me, right?”
“No. I don’t joke about things like that.”
“This guy got around.”
“Understatement,” Jason said, smiling. “Blows your motive all to hell, though.”
“Not necessarily,” Snyder said after a lengthy moment of silence. “They’re still the best suspects.”
“You won’t think so after you see what my guy’s unearthed, which along with the lie detector should prove my client didn’t do it. I’ll bring it with me when I drive down.”
“Can’t you e-mail it?”
“Now, why would I do that?”
“Make my job easier, since you just made it harder. Now I’ve got to talk to this other woman.” Snyder’s voice sounded weary. “I can’t let go of the idea that the sisters did it so easily.”
“You will once I e-mail this stuff,” Jason said, taking pity on him even if his statement annoyed him. “Besides, you don’t want easy if the wrong persons take the rap, do you?”
“Just get those two in here, and send me any info. I’ll check it out. Thoroughly,” Snyder said in a gruff voice before he disconnected the call.
Jason then called his client.
“Claire? It’s Jason,” he said. “Snyder just called. Set up a time for a lie-detector test.”
“You’ll have to cancel. I’ll have another lawyer reschedule.”
“I wouldn’t advise that.”
“I’m not particularly interested in what you would do. I thought I was clear about that last night.”
“You were, but we left things unsettled. This can be wrapped up this afternoon. At least your part and Crystal’s. Why bring in a new person? All that’ll do is feed the press, give them something else to talk about.”
Claire’s silence was deafening, sending a prickle of unease up his spine. Jason held his breath and looked toward the heavens.
“What time?”
The stiff line of his shoulders relaxed as he told her.
Chapter 49
Claire panicked a little when Crystal tucked her cell phone into her purse and returned to the table in the interview room to say, “I’m sorry to desert you like this. One of my clients is having problems with her abusive husband. Jason will have to take you home. I’ll meet you back at your house as soon as I can. Okay?”
“Sure.” Claire forced a smile, not at all happy with the thought of riding in a confined car with Jason for so long. She’d ridden to the station with Crystal, who was now abandoning her. Her glance sought out the deputy. “How much longer?”
“Just a few more questions.” Snyder looked at his watch. “Twenty minutes. A half hour at the most.” He turned to Crystal. “I appreciate the file on Carter and Elise Roberts. Gives me something to focus on, now that you two have been ruled out as suspects.”
“You have my number if you have any questions.” Crystal nodded good-bye and left the sheriff’s office with her lawyer.
“You’re ruling Crystal out entirely?” Jason said to Snyder, drawing Claire’s attention. “I thought you said her polygraph was inconclusive.”
“No. The operator felt she held something back. A few inconsistencies in the patterns.”
“What if she’s lying?”
“The machine would’ve caught it. It’s an effective tool, not an exact science. Since her alibi checked out, she’s no longer a suspect. Which leaves us with Elise Roberts.”
“Elise doesn’t have a motive.”
“None that we can see.” Snyder clicked his pen a few times and tossed it on his desk. His hand moved to his forehead, and with thumb and middle finger, he rubbed as if his head hurt.
A pang of sympathy hit Claire as she noted the dark circles under the deputy’s eyes. He looked as if he needed a good night’s sleep. And his clothes looked like they could use an iron.
In the two hours they’d been sitting answering his questions, Snyder had drunk coffee nonstop. He took another sip, keeping his focus on Jason.
“I lived with her for eleven years,” Jason said. “Believe me, she’s as transparent as a sheet of cellophane, and has about as much depth.”
“Maybe Carter changed her. What if we’re looking at this from a wrong angle, and the two of them planned this from the beginning?” Snyder’s attention moved to Claire. “You admitted you didn’t know about the clause in your partnership agreement. Once you found out, a chain of events played out, maybe causing him to act as he did. And who better to make plans with than the other woman?”
Jason gave an unconcerned shrug, but Claire caught the flicker of doubt that clouded his eyes before it cleared and his face became an unreadabl
e slate again.
Nothing more of his thoughts showed in that stoic mask, a habit that drove her to want to pull her hair out by the roots. Her hands tightened into a fist. When the pain her fingernails inflicted registered, she released them and sighed. Probably just as well they weren’t a couple any longer, if four days with loads of incredible sex constituted being a couple.
“Money’s a big motivator.
Snyder’s voice disrupted her morose deliberations, and she glanced at him.
“The loan Carter tried to take out was for ten million dollars. That along with the proceeds from the stock sales amounts to over eleven million. Eleven million compelling reasons.”
“Doesn’t wash.” Jason’s tone was adamant.
“What if Elise killed him because he botched it? Ruined her plans.”
That comment elicited a reaction from Jason, but it was so subtle, Claire wasn’t sure if it was real or imagined before Jason banked the look and rebutted.
“You’re way off base—”
“Her alibi’s a little shaky.”
“She has two kids who were with her.”
“Easy enough to slip out while they were asleep. Happens more than you know.”
“You gotta be looking at others. What about those closest to him at Claire’s Collections? Have you cross-examined them? Looked into their lives? Maybe there’s something missing.”
The deputy’s face tightened. “I’m not overlooking anything, no matter how much work it takes.”
“Including Amy Denton and Gwen Anderson?”
“I see where you’re going. Unfortunately, both have been cleared. Their alibis are solid. Denton has two friends who vouched for her, and Anderson said she was with a sleaziod. Her word, not mine.” Snyder grimaced. “She didn’t exaggerate about the guy. Not a pleasant fellow, but John Myers corroborated her story.”
Jason nodded. “It’s probably a dead end, but I’ve asked my guy to talk with them.”
“I interviewed all of them thoroughly. It’s in the file, if you want to read it again.” Snyder glanced expectantly at Claire. “That brings us to you and your opinion of others in the company. Anyone else close to Carl?”
“As far as I could tell, he wasn’t close to anyone. We have a few friends, but I cut back on socializing when sales with the company took off two years ago. Since that time, I didn’t really pay much attention to what Carl did while I worked.”
Maybe if she had, he’d still be alive. But as soon as the thought came out, she discarded it. This was not her fault. She wasn’t about to feel guilty over what she did or didn’t do in their relationship.
“Talking about it might jog your memory.”
Claire nodded. The entire time Snyder grilled her, she prayed for escape.
• • •
“So we’re back to square one?” Jason glanced at Claire after putting up with her sulking during the ride home.
Though elation had surged through him when he realized he’d have time alone with Claire in the car, the sensation had long since dissipated. The brooding silence picked at his self-confidence, shard by shard, whittling away the idea that he could fix things, leaving only hope. And that hope was dwindling. Fast.
“What?”
Those beautiful eyes met his, but the warmth had gone out of them. Her smile also seemed forced, even icy, sending his last bit of hope spiraling into nothing.
“After all we’ve been through in the past month, I can’t believe you won’t talk to me.” He placed his hand over hers, keeping it there.
Claire didn’t respond right away. Finally, she cleared her throat and spoke softly. “It was a mistake. I’m sorry, Jason. You were right. I’m not ready for a relationship.”
“Ready or not, that’s what we have. Can you deny how good we are together?”
“That was only sex and raging hormones, and maybe even a little stupidity thrown in. I have to figure out what I need, not what you need. I realize that now.” She turned her attention back to the passing scenery. “I’m sorry.”
Hell! What could he say that she hadn’t already?
For the rest of the drive, he couldn’t block out the pain. Her rejection hurt. More than anything Elise had ever done.
How had they ended up like this? Like complete strangers, he thought as he escorted her to the front door. His heart tore in two when that same door closed in his face after she scurried inside.
Jason turned and slowly walked back to his Mercedes with his head down, unimaginably, unequivocally, completely, and utterly without hope.
Chapter 50
The cool darkness was a welcome relief as Claire closed her front door and leaned against it. She rubbed her temples, praying the throbbing would cease.
At least the reporters were gone. Considering how she felt, it was small consolation.
More pain shot through her at the memory of Jason’s searching, pleading look. But the moment the words were out of her mouth, she realized, they held too much truth. She couldn’t take them back.
A few tears trickled down her cheeks. She wiped them away, refusing to cry.
She kicked off her shoes and padded to her bedroom. After plopping on the bed, she closed her eyes and struggled to forget everything that had happened in the past few weeks. The numbness setting in made the task easier.
• • •
The pounding woke her.
Where was she?
Claire blinked, dazed. For a moment she couldn’t think.
Then the pounding returned. Recognition set in. She heard what sounded like Jason’s panicked voice.
“Claire . . . Claire? Are you in there?”
She sat up and looked around, blinking as she tried to focus her eyes. The acrid scent of fire stole her breath away. When her vision cleared, she noticed the smoke.
Instantly, she snapped wide awake. She ran into the bathroom and wet a towel with one thought. Why hadn’t the smoke detector gone off?
Oh God. Flames were visible and scorching heat hit her neck. Flames!
“Claire!”
Jason’s yelling and hammering with his fist cut through her crippling thoughts. Reacting, she put the wet towel over her head to block out the wall of smoke that now filled the bedroom. Then she rushed to the sliding glass door overlooking the canal, felt for the latch, and threw it open.
“I’m here,” Claire said after stumbling around the the house to where Jason still frantically pounded on the front door.
“Thank God!” The concern in his voice matched the worry carved into his expression. He ran over and wrapped his arms around her to pull her tightly against him. “Are you sure you’re okay?”
She nodded as a red car turned into the driveway, catching her attention. Jason released one hand so she could turn. Crystal emerged from her BMW.
“What the hell’s going on?” She sprinted toward them and pulled Claire into a hug. Glancing at Jason, she asked, “Have you called 911?”
He shook his head. “No time. She just now came outside.”
When Claire’s gaze moved to her burning house, tears started flowing as her legs buckled under her. If Jason hadn’t put his arm around her once Crystal let go, she would have fallen to the ground.
“Everything’s burning,” she murmured as Crystal pulled out her cell phone.
“Shush. It’s okay.” Jason’s consoling words were anything but.
“It’s not okay. My house is on fire,” she yelled, not caring that she was out of control.
“You’re safe.” Jason pulled her into his embrace again. When his soothing hands slid up and down her back, she quickly forgot her resolve of keeping him at a distance. Right now, she needed his warmth and his strength much more than she needed detachment.
“I was sound asleep. The smoke detector didn’t go off.”
She gaped in disbelief at the sight of her precious house engulfed in flames. The house was and always had been hers, not Carl’s, just like her boat. Tearfully, Claire watched it burn, slowly
disintegrating into charcoal.
She remembered Jason’s comment on that evening he’d taken her to Antonio’s. While his life had broken into shards of glass from shattered dreams, hers burned into spent ashes. That about summed up her life at this point. Spent ashes.
Later, once the raging fire had abated, reducing her house to rubble, Jason held her close. “Come on. You’re in no condition to be on your own.”
Claire nodded. She didn’t know what she would have done if he hadn’t been there.
Jason looked at Crystal expectantly. “Can you deal with the authorities?”
“Sure.” Crystal nodded.
Numb, Claire let him guide her to his car and help her climb inside. Disengaged, like gazing from a void, her gaze stayed glued to his progress as he slid behind the wheel.
He headed north, toward his house. “You can stay with me until this is over.”
“I can’t do that,” she whispered. “You have kids to think about.”
“Platonically. You can stay in the guest room.”
“No. I can’t.” She wasn’t sure he heard her because he didn’t say anything for several miles.
Finally, he said, “I have no intention of taking anything from you, and I’ll give you anything you need to help you determine what you want. Right now, you need a friend. Let me be that friend. I mean what I say, Claire. No matter what happens, I’ll always be your friend.”
“I appreciate your help, but I should stay with Crystal.”
“I wouldn’t advise that.”
“You forget. I fired you.” Forcing a smile, she blinked back tears.
The look Jason shot her told her didn’t find her wan attempt at humor funny. “The fireman I talked to indicated a few suspicious circumstances surrounding the fire. It’s being investigated as arson. I want you with me where I can keep an eye on you.”
When he glanced over, his gaze said it all. He was worried. Someone had set her house on fire. Deliberately? To kill her? He clearly believed it.
At least the numbness was wearing off, because at that moment pain ripped through her.
“You said your smoke detector didn’t go off. Why?” Jason gripped the steering wheel harder. “If I hadn’t turned around and come back, God only knows what would’ve happened.”
