“What was his last name?”
“I have no idea. Really, I don’t.”
“Okay, but is there any possibility that this guy could be Maggie’s father?”
“What?” I exclaimed. “Her dad is—”
“I know it’s listed as James Graham, and he died in prison, but really Taryn… Is there a possibility?”
“What exactly do the letters say? What makes you think this?”
“He states over and over that she took something away from him, and that he never knew, and that she had no right to keep something like that from him. It says nothing directly, which is why this is so frustrating. I can only speculate. I’m hoping you can look this stuff over and see what you think.”
“Where did you find it?”
“Well, that’s the strange part. It was with her things at the office.”
“At work? At Miller and Harris?”
“Yeah. It was a manila envelope that was in with another file. We’ve been going through her work and found it stuffed into one of her accounts. It seems to be unrelated to that particular account, but Taryn, I think you should look through this stuff.”
“Uh, okay. I’m in Utah right now but my flight leaves in a few hours. I’ll call you when I get there.”
“What time does your flight arrive?”
“Um, two-ten.”
“I’ll pick you up. See you then.”
Chapter Sixteen
I was a little overwhelmed, and as I explained everything to Zack, he kept reminding me to take a deep breath, to relax, or to not jump to any conclusions.
“James Graham is Maggie’s father,” I repeated for the third time. “He is, he really is…”
I knew I was trying to convince myself that there wasn’t any other threat to my life with Maggie. I didn’t know what I would do if something changed that.
“Rachel had an awful relationship with him—he was a pretty bad guy. He even roughed her up a few times, went to jail for it, and then ended up in prison right after Maggie was born. He died a year later—some sort of complications with diabetes or something. Rachel was relieved—I mean I know that’s awful to feel happy about, but she was so worried about Maggie’s future because of him. And his family was actually pretty supportive of Rachel. They’d kind of cut their ties with James because he got in trouble with the law so much. His parents didn’t want a relationship with Rachel or Maggie because they felt it was better not to, and Rachel was pretty lucky she didn’t have to deal with all of that.”
“But the police looked into the Graham family, right? There wasn’t anything there except one little suspicion about a brother, but that didn’t go anywhere.”
“Right. And as of now that family isn’t linked to Rachel in any way. But this Spencer guy…”
“Well, you just need to read the letters. Maybe something will come to you. Remember Taryn… One day at a time, okay?”
I nodded, but I felt like it was easier for him to say. He wasn’t the one whose sister was murdered and whose life was being turned inside out, piece-by-piece.
I had an even harder time leaving after that. Zack even offered to skip out on his commitment that day and come home with me, but I very strongly objected. I really didn’t need him to be careless with his career; he needed to prioritize and I could wait.
Maggie was also sad to be leaving, but she really was excited for Abigail’s party. She chatted almost nonstop on the plane about her costume and exactly how she wanted me to do her hair. I was grateful for the distraction, even realizing that she had another costume idea for trick-or-treating.
I was surprised when she mentioned Jared. Besides a couple of texts to ask how I was doing, I hadn’t seen or spoken to him since the last time he was at my house. He knew we were out of town until Halloween, and that Maggie had her party at Abigail’s at four, but other than that, we didn’t have much contact with one another.
“What about Jared?” I asked, not quite sure I heard what she said.
“When’s he coming over?”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“He’s going trick-or-treating with me.”
“He is?” This was news to me. I know Maggie talked about Jared when she was plotting her costumes, but I didn’t know anything about plans with him.
“He said he’s coming.”
“Uh, did you invite him?”
“Yes. He wanted to see my costume. I wonder what he’s going to dress up like,” she smiled.
“Uh, grown ups don’t always dress up for trick-or-treating,” I tried to warn her, just because I didn't want her to be disappointed.
“He said he was gonna,” she said pointedly.
“Oh. Well…I’m not even sure he can make it, Maggie. I didn’t know anything about Jared going trick-or-treating with us.”
“I invited him,” she said, like it was obvious that it was going to happen because she said so.
I didn’t respond after that. I was a little annoyed because I already had to worry about this thing with the investigation, and now I had to deal with upsetting Maggie when her trick-or-treat buddy doesn’t follow through for her.
Detective Bronson really did pick us up from the airport when we arrived. Originally I was going to take Zack’s Jeep that was parked there, and then I was just going to pick him up when he arrived that night. But this was better I guess, and Zack could have his Jeep when he got in.
Our first stop was home, and even though I wanted to talk about the case right away, I refrained for Maggie’s sake. I got her ready for the party and then we headed for Abigail’s house. When I arrived with Maggie I told Harriet that I needed to take care of something important but I would be right in. She realized it had to do with Rachel’s case and told me to take all the time I needed.
Once in Michelle’s car again, I took a deep breath and said, “Okay, I’m ready. I think.”
She pulled out a manila envelope from her visor and handed it over. “They aren’t dated at all, so I tried to put them in order the best I could…”
I started reading right away, and I read for about five minutes. There were three letters, about half of a page long, and I read them twice.
“He mentioned La Note,” I said.
“The Note? Yeah, I don’t know what that means.”
“Well he calls it the Note, but it’s a restaurant called La Note.”
“Really? Where is it?”
“In Berkeley. It’s a French restaurant.”
“In California? So he’s someone she knew in college?”
“Maybe. She graduated from Berkeley when Maggie was almost two. I never saw my sister back then, even though she only lived twenty minutes away. She kind of just segregated herself from us when she was dating James. My parents hated him, and I think she knew he was bad news too, but because it really did end up so bad with him, I think she was…I don’t know, embarrassed maybe? Like she knew she’d made mistakes but was too proud to admit it. That’s why she was so hell bent on getting her business degree and becoming successful. I know she had people watching Maggie while she finished school—she wouldn’t ask any of us to do it—so I’m not sure how she pulled it off financially, or if she made other arrangements somehow… I really don’t know.”
Detective Bronson thought for a few seconds. Finally she asked, “What about La Note? What’s the significance?”
“I don’t know, really. I just know what it is and that Rachel really liked eating there even though she couldn’t afford it. She was fluent in French and wanted to go to France one day. Maybe it was just her favorite restaurant, and I’m sure she probably went there on occasion with a date.”
“What about this Spencer character. You have no idea who he is? Could this be him?”
She handed me a few pictures and I looked them over.
“It doesn’t ring a bell—Hey wait…” I studied one of the photos a little closer.
“You recognize someone?”
“Yeah, this guy here…
He’s a waiter at La Note.”
“Is it Spencer?”
“No, his name was… Oh, let me think… It was French, actually…”
“Pierre?” she tried with a smile.
I smiled too, but shook my head. “It might come to me. Just give me a minute. But I think that Rachel may have gone out with him a few times. I know she dated a guy that worked there.”
“Looks like I’ll be making another visit to Berkeley,” she said.
“This is actually taken at La Note,” I noticed, recognizing the background.
“What about those two pictures?”
They were of different people, but I didn’t recognize anyone. But I could tell they weren’t taken at the same place.
“Different setting. I don’t know where that’s at or who those people are.”
I went back to reading the letters again. And yes, the most upsetting part was that it sounded like this guy really could be talking about a baby he didn’t know about. And the way he said what we had was good did sound like they were in a relationship.
I was no help to Detective Bronson, even though she told me I was because of the restaurant. She was going to make a trip south to ask more questions and I had mixed feelings about her returning to my hometown again. I guess I wanted answers, but I was afraid of them at the same time.
Zack had texted me to call him as soon as I could. I did before I went into the Johnson’s home, and while I finished up the party with Maggie, Detective Bronson waited for us in the car while she made arrangements to head to California.
I fed Maggie a sandwich when we got home around six. She’d had cereal that morning with Zack, but all she’d had since then was junk food. I helped her change costumes—now she was sporting a princess gown.
“Is he here yet?” she asked, looking out the window.
I groaned to myself but decided not to answer. Instead I sent a text to Jared that said: Why does Maggie insist that you’re taking her trick-or-treating???
He replied almost instantly with: Because I am.
My heart kind of thumped heavily when I read that, but I groaned out loud that time.
“Is he on his way?” Maggie asked, taking my phone out of my hand to see who I’d been texting.
“Gimme that,” I said, taking it back.
“What time is it?” she asked, walking over to the clock to stare at it.
“Uh, it’s almost seven. You ready to go?”
“No, Jared’s comin’ at seven,” she told me matter-of-factly.
“So let me get this straight… You somehow arranged a trick-or-treating date with Jared? How did you manage that? I don’t remember arranging anything with him.”
“A date?” she giggled.
“It’s a— Never mind. When did you guys talk about this?”
“On the phone.”
“When?”
“When you were with Zack, Jared called.”
“In Utah? At the lodge?”
“Yep.”
“And he didn’t think to ask me about it?” I said, basically to myself. Maggie just shrugged her shoulders. “Did he, uh, ask for me first?”
“Uh-huh. He called when you were sleeping in your room.”
“So you decided to answer it and have a conversation with him, making plans that I didn’t know about?”
I got a text right then from Jared and it said: I guess it just occurred to me that Maggie didn’t really have your permission like she said she did?
I replied: No, she did not. This is the first I’ve heard of it.
He apologized, joking that he was duped by a five-year-old. He told me that he didn’t have to come if I was upset with him, but to please ground them from something else besides trick-or-treating.
That made me smile.
No, it’s fine. We’ll talk about it later because she’s really looking forward to it. And for some reason she thinks you’re dressing up, so hopefully you didn’t lie to her.
He replied: I’m shocked you’d think I would lie to a child…
I smiled again, just as I heard the rumble of a Camaro pull up. My heart got nervous again and I wasn’t sure why. I liked being friends with Jared, but why did I feel so anxious around him?
Maggie knew he was there too, and she ran to the door and flung it open to face Jared already standing on the porch.
I think my mouth hung open. He was wearing a tuxedo, and with his trademark fauxhawk, he looked…amazing.
“Your chariot awaits,” he told her with a bow, motioning to the road.
I thought he was joking about his car, but when Maggie reacted with a loud squeal and jumped up and down, I knew it had to be something more.
I joined them at the door and said, “Oh. My. Lord.”
Chapter Seventeen
Parked in the street was a horse-drawn carriage, complete with a driver and lanterns that hung from each corner of it. It was a lovely sight, especially at night.
“You ladies ready?” Jared asked with a grin.
“Yes!” Maggie shouted, jumping up and down again.
Jared looked me up and down and said, “I like it. The rebel going to the ball in a sweatshirt.”
I scoffed, but really didn’t know what to say.
“It’s okay,” he said with a wave of his hand. “You’d end up losing your dress at midnight anyways.” I raised my eyebrows at him and he seemed to catch what he said. “I mean the whole Cinderella thing. You know, because at midnight she—”
“Yes, I know the story,” I sort of chuckled.
I could tell he was embarrassed, and that gave me great satisfaction. But at the moment, Maggie was jumping up and down to get in the carriage.
“Okay, let me grab a few things before we—”
“I’ve got blankets in there,” Jared said. “I mean if that’s what you were gonna get…”
I eyed him for a second and then said, “Okay, then just let me grab a coat for both of us.” Maggie looked like she was ready to keel over from excitement, so I motioned for her to go ahead with Jared. I grabbed two coats, and at least I had the sense to grab my camera too, and then I headed for the, uh, carriage. Jared was standing there waiting for me, already having loaded Maggie.
When he held out his hand to do the same to me I couldn’t help but laugh.
“Okay, fine, load yourself,” he motioned.
He pretended to not even care, but I got a smile from him when I patted his face and said, “You look very handsome.”
“Oh?”
“Yes, you do,” I nodded. “And this,” I said, motioning to the carriage. “I don’t even know what to say.”
“She was kind of particular.”
I lightly laughed and said, “She talked you into a horse-drawn carriage? You sucker.”
“Well, no, that was my idea. But the horse had to be white, and there had to be lanterns, and the blue velvet seats inside… The kid has an imagination.”
“Yes, I guess she does. That, or she’s seen too many princess movies.” I glanced at his Camaro parked at the curb and remembered our phone conversation. “By the way, you weren’t texting and driving, were you?”
He smiled and glanced behind him at his car. “Nope, I was parked over there,” he pointed down the street. “Had to wait for the real ride to arrive. Timing is everything.”
With a chuckle I agreed. “Yes, it was impeccable.”
I climbed into the, uh, cab, and sat on the opposite side facing Maggie. Jared sat next to her and our journey began. It was probably the easiest trick-or-treating experience I’d ever had, and probably ever would. I did get out of the carriage for the first few houses, but after that Jared ended up unloading and loading Maggie, and I just sat at the window and watched them.
Of course we did draw a noticeable crowd on occasion, and Maggie was totally thrilled to be seen coming out of a horse-drawn coach every four or five houses. Jared would wait for her at the sidewalk, like a formal escort, and it was pretty cute.
By eight
-thirty it started to rain a little. That was Washington, and I totally expected it. I’d even had umbrellas sitting by the door at home, anticipating a wet Halloween.
It was amusing when a car stopped to deliver us each a hot chocolate, apparently arranged by our handsome escort, and then we returned to the house before eight-thirty. I was pretty impressed with the night, if I do dare to admit that.
Maggie was still a little wired from the experience, so it did take her a while to calm down. But after a bath to remove her princess makeup, and warm snuggly pajamas, she started to get sleepy. She sat on the couch with Jared to watch a Halloween cartoon, and ended up falling asleep.
Jared untied his bowtie and unbuttoned a couple of buttons. I think he really wanted to get out of the tuxedo so I said, “You can take it off.”
He kind of smiled and said, “You want me to take my clothes off?”
“Ha-ha, I meant your jacket.”
He slightly nodded, but he did shrug out of his jacket as he stood, and he untucked his shirt. “Much better,” he sighed, sitting back down.
For some reason he looked much better, if that was even possible. There was just something about him that always caught my attention, and I wasn’t sure if I liked that.
I got up from the other couch and said, “Do you want something to eat? Or drink?”
“Uh, well…I wasn’t really planning on staying if you didn’t want me to, but…”
“I haven’t been able to go to the store yet, but I can throw something together.”
“Uh, okay. That sounds great. Um, how was your trip? To Utah, I mean.”
By then he’d gotten up and followed me into the kitchen, probably to talk to me so he didn’t wake up Maggie, but it made me nervous to be alone with him.
“It was fantastic. Maggie had a lot of fun.”
“That’s awesome. What’d you guys do? Did she learn to snowboard?”
“Yes, and she did great. Zack was amazing with her, and he had her boarding on her own the first day she tried it.”
“Super cool. She seems to be a little more social since the first time I met her. And on the phone she talked nonstop. Does she just take some time to warm up to people?”
Love Today Page 12
