“Rachel!” Tricia’s voice was getting faint now. Or perhaps it was Rachel’s hearing which wasn’t functioning very well anymore. The world was a wall of gray, and her head hurt so much. If she could only lie down and close her eyes for a few seconds…
*****
Chapter 22
Afterward
Rachel woke up on the grass outside, to the sound of sirens and the hiss of water. Two paramedics were leaning over her, and tending to the wound on her head. Pushing them aside, Rachel sat up on her stretcher.
“Tricia?” She found her voice was hoarse from all the smoke she’d inhaled.
“Lie down.” It was Scott. He put a gentle hand on her shoulder, and made her lie back down. He was on his knees in the grass, and his face looked raw with pain.
“Tricia!” Rachel insisted. “In the—”
“She’s alright. You’re both alright.” Scott leaned down and put his lips to hers, and for a moment, nothing mattered but the sweetness of his kiss.
“Oh, Rachel.” He sighed as he disentangled himself from her. “I’m sorry,” he said to the medical workers. “I can’t leave her side, but I don’t want to stop you from doing your job.”
“We’re all done anyway.” A paramedic smiled. “But we strongly suggest taking her to the hospital for observation.”
“Absolutely,” Scott said.
“Absolutely not!” Rachel exclaimed. Already, the fresh air was doing its work—she felt ready to stand again. Turning her face to Scott, she said urgently, “It’s Annie! She’s—”
“We know. Tricia told us. We sent out an APB and caught her on the highway heading south. She’s in custody.”
Rachel relaxed slightly. “Then all’s right with the world,” she said.
“That remains to be seen. You’re going to the hospital, and so help me, if you protest—”
“I suppose I can’t protest.” Rachel smiled. “What with you being my savior and all.”
“Savior?”
“My hero.” She had a big smile on her face. “You saved my life, Scott.”
“Actually...” He scratched the back of his neck. “I mean, I’d love to take credit, but it wasn’t me.”
“What? Then who did?”
“Tell you at the hospital.”
A few hours later, Rachel was on a white bed with the blanket tucked under her chin. She’d protested this, but Scott had insisted on it. The doctors had said they’d hold her for a day to check for a concussion and then, hopefully, she could go home.
Tricia was on a bed next to her, looking equally banged up, but none the worse for wear. She smiled weakly at Rachel. Mia stood beside her, holding her hand tightly. Mia herself should have been in a bed too, Rachel thought. There were scratches all over her face and hands. A nasty bruise was forming on one cheek.
Emily stood in a corner, smiling brightly, even though her clothes were stained with ashes and grass.
“Okay,” Rachel said. “Enough suspense. Tell us what happened—start to end.”
“Emily tells it better,” Mia said.
“Hogwash. Mia is the drama queen.” Emily smiled. There was no malice in her voice, only fondness. She rolled her shoulders, stretched her hands, and looked at Scott as if for approval. Scott nodded at her.
“So earlier today, Scott came by and gave me a stern talking-to,” Emily said. “He read me the riot act, basically. Told me all the ways I was being an absolute idiot. By the end of it, I actually kind of agreed with him.” She paused, looking at Mia now. “I was an absolute bully to you, Mia, and I’m sorry.”
“You don’t need to be. I’m the one who punched Rachel. I never even said sorry to her. If I was in your position I—”
“Never mind all that!” Tricia exclaimed. “Hurry up and tell us what happened!”
“Well, I went over to Mia’s house to apologize,” Emily said. “But when she opened the door, she was expecting Rachel.”
“I thought Rachel might have come back,” Mia said. “I told Emily she ran off with a weird look on her face, and Emily said, 'I’ve seen that look before. I know what it means.'”
“I knew you’d figure it out,” Emily said. “I figured if you ran off in such a hurry, you’d do something stupid like try and confront the killer yourself. So between me and Mia, we went over everything you’d said to her, and we realized where you were headed.”
“Annie’s basement!” Tricia exclaimed.
“Cellar.” Emily smiled. “It’s a cellar, not a basement. Important difference.”
“Why is that important?”
“Because, you see, I know how to break into cellars from the outside,” Emily said. “The one at Annie’s is nearly identical to the one at Mia’s.”
“I’m getting some additional locks on mine.” Mia grinned. “Can’t have you trampling around at odd hours.”
“Wait... so you came to Annie’s house and broke into the cellar?” Rachel asked.
Emily nodded. “Well, the house was on fire already, and that seemed like the only way in. We rushed around to the back, and I opened up the door. I was kind of confused once we tumbled down into the cellar and then I was terrified when I saw blood everywhere, and your footprints in the blood.” Emily shuddered. “I totally fell apart. But not Mia. She was so brave. She knew exactly what to do. She’s a total heroine!”
Tricia gave Mia’s hand a squeeze and looked up at her adoringly. Mia tucked a lock of hair behind her ear, and smiled.
“I’m not a hero. Emily is. She’s so smart; if she hadn’t figured out how to open the cellar door, you’d still be in there.” Mia shivered a bit. “And she’s the one who called 911.”
“You’re both heroes,” Tricia said. “And you both deserve a delicious, giant cake.”
“Not lemon bundt!” Emily and Mia exclaimed together.
Laughing, Rachel said, “I can’t make any promises. But you’ll get your just desserts soon enough.”
*****
Chapter 23
A Conversation
The doctors released her early, at eight p.m. that day. Rachel was glad. She hated the idea of sleeping in a hospital bed, away from Scooter and her cozy home. Scott asked the doctors a dozen times if it was really okay for her to go home, before accepting that she was fine. He insisted on staying the night, though, so he could check up on her.
He refused to let her touch anything in the kitchen, and instead, donning her apron, he began cracking eggs into a bowl to make her a mushroom omelet. Rachel sat at the table with Scooter bumping her legs, smiling at the sight of Scott. He was still in uniform, but had put on Rachel’s pink frilly apron to protect himself from stains.
“Suits you perfectly,” Rachel teased.
“Oh, please.” Scott rolled his eyes. “I’m going to buy you one that’s black with little flames on it. Suitably manly.”
“You don’t need clothes to look manly,” Rachel said. Then, realizing what she’d just said, she buried her head in her arms. Scott gave her a teasing grin and winked. “Do tell.”
He got out the dishes and served her the omelet with buttered toast on the side. “I’m no culinary genius, but it’ll do,” he said.
“It’s amazing.” Rachel closed her eyes as she took a bite, and made an exaggerated gesture of licking her lips.
“Now don’t distract me,” Scott said. “I’ve got stuff to say, and I think it’s best if I say it now.”
“You don’t need to,” Rachel said. “Really.”
“Sure I do,” Scott said. “I’ve been an idiot, Rachel, and I’m really sorry.”
“Scott—”
“If you don’t want to move in with me, you have every right not to,” Scott said. “Of course I’m okay with that.”
Rachel hesitated. “Are you sure? It’s not just because of what happened? I mean, you were pretty upset when I last saw you.”
“Yes, and when I heard there was an incident with you and a burning house, my blood ran cold,” Scott said. “I’m trained to ke
ep it together in emergencies. I’m trained not to be shaken. But when it was you… none of my training mattered. Just instinct. I wanted to be with you, and I wanted to protect you. That’s it.”
“Oh, Scott—”
“Let me finish,” he said. She could see how much it cost him to be saying these things. Her Scott, who preferred to layer every argument with a joke, and run away from any inconvenient emotion.
“The thing is...” Scott hesitated. “Well, it’s no excuse, but I hadn’t been sleeping well. I was staying up all night for days trying to catch this killer. So, and I know it’s no excuse, I was kind of grumpy and exhausted.”
“Of course you were. Look at you. I know how hard you’ve been working,” Rachel said. “I love that about you. Your dedication. But you take it too far. You work too hard and—”
“Let me finish,” Scott said again, the corner of his mouth turning up in a grin.
“Sorry. I’ll continue that lecture another time.”
“Well, so there I was, grumpy and exhausted, and I impulsively asked you to move in with me,” Scott said. “The thing is, Rachel, I love you. I’ve never felt like this before. You blow me away with you... just… being you.”
Rachel opened her mouth to say something, then shut it. Let him finish.
“So I was so excited, you know. I was like Scooter when you say w-a-l-k. If I had a tail, it would have been a blur, and when you weren’t excited as well, it was like you threw cold water all over me. I kept asking myself why you didn’t want to move in, and I couldn’t come up with any good answers. Maybe you weren’t in love with me. Maybe you thought I was moving too fast. Maybe you were still not over your ex. I know Brandon did a number on you…” Scott scratched the back of his neck. “The thing is, if any of those are true, you've got to tell me. It’s okay to be taking it slow, I just want to be on the same page.”
“Scott.” Rachel’s voice was soft. “It’s none of those.”
“But it has to be.”
“It’s a little more complicated,” Rachel said, biting her lip. “Personally, I didn’t really know what I wanted—to be honest. When you sprung it on me, my emotions reacted first, and my brain took some time to figure out why they weren’t elated. It isn’t that I don’t love you, because I do.”
“Then what is it?”
“See, Brandon and I met in college, and we moved really fast,” Rachel said. “Then, I spent my entire adult life with him. We graduated together; we started a company, and we moved in together. It was just him and me all the time.”
Scott nodded. She could tell that insecurity and anxiety were flaming up inside him. She could imagine how she would have felt if the tables were turned, but she had no option but to tell him the truth.
“The truth is, I made a mistake moving so fast with Brandon. I don’t want to make the same mistake with you. Believe me, I love you. I’ve never met a man like you. If anything, you’re little too perfect sometimes.”
Scott grinned.
“But, I’ve never met me either, not really. I’ve never lived alone this way, and been an adult and handled my own responsibilities. It’s tremendously freeing, and more than that, it’s challenging. Each day, I’m learning, and growing, and—I know you may not understand it—I want to keep doing this.”
“Actually, I do understand.” Scott smiled. “You've got to remember; I’m five years older than you. I had that phase too. I get it. Totally.”
“Then you’re not hurt?”
“Nope.” Scott smiled.
“So… we’re okay? I’m not moving in, and things continue the way they are?”
“Yep.” Scott shrugged. “Just… one thing. You’re sure you love me, right? You’re sure I’m not being, like, too clingy, or too pushy, or—”
“I adore you. Every single inch of you,” Rachel said.
“And you see a future with me?”
“A very bright one.” Rachel smiled. She felt a weird kind of happiness, almost as though for the first time, she realized that she wasn’t the only one with insecurities. Scott couldn’t read her mind either, and he wanted her, and it made him insecure and nervous sometimes. Knowing that filled her up with a weird kind of tenderness toward him. Her big, brave sheriff was also a confused, little boy.
“Sorry,” Rachel said. “I know you wanted to take things to the next level but...”
“Actually, I think we already kind of have,” Scott said.
“Huh?”
“Think about it,” Scott said. “Until now, you and I were kind of in a honeymoon phase. All lovey-dovey and mushy. But a relationship isn’t real until you have your first big disagreement, and talk through it, right? At least now we know we can do that. We disagree on something major, and we’re still in love.”
“Wow,” Rachel said. “I didn’t think of it that way.”
“You should.” Scott winked.
“So what you’re saying is...” Rachel hesitated. “We took a big step forward right now?”
“Looks like it to me, yeah.” Scott grinned. “Now how about we take another big step and have dessert? Any chocolate in the house?”
“Wouldn’t be a house without it,” Rachel said. Just like that, all the tension between them was gone, replaced with their familiar easy banter and cheesy jokes. Rachel felt a rush of love for him, and something clicked in her heart. She expressed it the best way she knew—by teasing him once more about his pink, frilly apron.
*****
Epilogue
A Few Months Later
It was a hot day, with the sun blazing in the sky and fluffy clouds occasionally wandering by. A perfect day to be in Shoreline Park, Rachel thought. She parked her car and entered, smiling at the dozens who were tanning by the lake, and the teenagers doing tricks on their skateboards. On the grassy lawn a little ways from the lake, Tricia and Mia were working together, setting up a podium and arranging cardboard boxes on a table.
“Careful now,” Tricia said. “We need to get this just right.”
Mia nodded, and unfurled a large banner. Rachel felt her throat catch a little. It was a photo of Ethan and Gina, with In Memoriam at the bottom.
“Hi,” A small voice said. Rachel turned around and found Tilly at her shoulder. She had grown her pixie hair out, and looked more like Princess Diana now. The shock and unhappiness that had been on her face all those months ago was now a little muted, as though happiness were slowly making its way back.
“Hi,” Rachel said. “It’s good of you to come. We weren’t sure...”
“Thank Emily. She absolutely insisted.”
“The three of them have been working hard on this,” Rachel said. “Their plan is to refurbish the children’s playground with the proceeds, and put Gina and Ethan’s names on a plaque. Just… so the town will never forget.”
“I don’t think anyone who’s lived through it will ever forget.” Tilly shuddered. “I still get nightmares about it sometimes. It doesn’t go away.”
“Oh, Tilly.”
“So I’m going away,” Tilly said. “Ethan always wanted to travel, you know. But we had our jobs, and our plans… Now, I’m going to take some time to see the world. Europe first. Then maybe Asia.”
“Whatever helps you,” Rachel said.
“I’m hoping time and distance will,” Tilly said. “My parents have been wonderful, you know. So has Swaddle. I never really knew what a community was until I needed it and then, I got the finest one I could ask for.”
Rachel only smiled. Between Tricia and Emily and herself, they’d made sure that Tilly always had someone with her, and always had food in the house. It had been a bit of an effort, especially for Emily, who had a family to look after in addition to her café, but it was definitely worth it.
“The cake-off will go splendidly. I’m sure of it. Mia’s so talented,” Tilly said. “It’s wonderful what she can do with color and light.”
“She’s trying her hardest to open up her boutique again,” Rachel said. “I heard
she’s got a down payment ready, and is waiting to save up a little more.”
“Good luck to her. I’m sure she’ll succeed,” Tilly said. “She’s changed, you know. I see her around town, and it’s like she used to be brittle before. Or maybe bitter’s the word I’m looking for.”
“A bit of both, I think,” Rachel said. “She never really trusted that Swaddle considered her one of its own. Maybe we never really did.”
“But it’s different now?”
Rachel shrugged. Ahead of them, Mrs. Bingham was handing over a cardboard box to Mia and chatting animatedly with her. Tricia had two nails in her mouth and was using a hammer on something.
“It’s different now,” Rachel said. “Better.”
“I guess that’s all anybody can hope for,” Tilly said.
*****
The End
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One More Thing…
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