Max breathed in and out, trying to control his emotions. Rage came so easily to the surface since his first trial. In prison, he was always fighting, and it was hard to adjust to life on the outside. He closed his eyes.
Rose isn’t an enemy. She’s not out to get you.
The calming words didn’t do much to assuage the feelings inside him. It was hard to face the truth—he was only angry because she’d hurt him. He vowed long ago to stop letting people hurt him.
“Max?” Her fingertips caressed his cheek with a feathery touch. “I’m sorry, okay? This is hard for me to wrap my mind around, but I do believe you. I know you didn’t hurt Sage.”
“Or any of those girls,” he said, his voice coming out strained past the knot of frustration clogging his throat. “Even though I have no alibi for Sage, they never could connect me to the other murders. I thought you’d know I couldn’t hurt people that way. You knew me better than anyone.”
Folding her arms, she took another step away. “I struggled with believing it for a long time, but the evidence proved Sage scratched you, and no one your lawyer called to the stand admitted it happened earlier in the evening like you claimed, not until this past trial. An entire jury believed you were guilty and your claim of an argument was a lie.” She blinked a few times and her face reddened. “I was out of my mind with grief and shock, and then I was too busy with Mom to think about anything.”
“If Julie hadn’t told the truth this time, I’d still be rotting there.” He flexed his fingers a few times, trying to see things from Rose’s viewpoint. “Jimmy Durant would have lied to the end of time to keep me locked up.”
Rose looked down at the ground. “Let’s not talk about Jimmy.”
She sounded defensive. Jimmy always had wanted Rose, and been jealous that Max had her. “Do you have something going with him?”
His voice must have been sharper than he planned on it being, because Rose met his eyes, hers hard and angry.
“My, my.” She shook her head. “Back in town one day and already marking territory? My relationship with Jimmy’s not your concern or your business.”
It sounded like she was dating the other man. Was that why Jimmy was so belligerent about Max being around her? Max’s heart spasmed with jealousy that he tried to fight down. “Coming here was a mistake. I’m going home.”
He carefully stepped around her, fighting the urge to wrap her in his arms and kiss her breathless. He could make her forget Jimmy...make her remember the love they once had.
But she didn’t want that.
He crossed the small room and headed for the door.
***
“Wait!” Rose ran after Max’s retreating back, reaching a hand out for his shoulder to stop him. It was hard to understand her conflicting emotions. Inside was still that young girl waiting for Max to make sense of all this turmoil and ease her fears away in his strong arms. At the same time, she didn’t like him acting as if he owned her. It wasn’t his business who she’d dated—or slept with.
Max jerked his shoulder from her outstretched fingers. “Just let me leave. I don’t want to start a fight.”
“I don’t either,” she said to his back. “I know Jimmy came after you yesterday. Calvin told me. If Jimmy lied about your fight with Sage, there’s nothing we can do about that now.”
“If he lied?” Max’s voice was low and the edge of danger crept into it again.
Damn. She kept sticking her foot in her mouth, and Max wasn’t the laid back boy she used to love. He was easily offended now and ready to lash out at anything. Then again, if she spent seven and a half years imprisoned for something she didn’t do, she’d be edgy too.
“I didn’t mean it that way.”
Max shook his head, brushing his shaggy hair across his shoulders with the motion. “I won’t bother you again.”
As his hand touched the doorknob, someone pounded loudly on the other side of the door.
“This is the police,” Calvin’s voice said in a booming tone. “Open up.”
“Great,” Max muttered. “Just what I need.”
Rose stepped to his side, twining her hand in his without thinking about it. It seemed the most natural reaction in the world.
He looked at their clasped hands before meeting her eyes. The hardness in him hadn’t softened. “What do you think you’re doing?”
“I’m opening the door in a second, but first, you need to calm down. Go sit on the couch and let me deal with Cal. We’re having a friendly chat and no one here is fighting.”
Although he hesitated, looking as though he wanted to argue, Max had never been stupid. He nodded and let go of her hand, lowering himself to the couch, though he looked awkward and nervous.
“I’m going to break this damn door down!” Calvin yelled.
“Hang on. I’m coming!” Rose yelled back. She stroked Max’s shoulder softly. “It’ll be okay. I’m sure Kelsey got worried and called them. You aren’t in trouble.”
Placing a large smile on her face, she opened the door.
Calvin stood on the other side of the screen door, gun drawn and pointing at her. “Where is he?”
Rose spread her hands, lifting them to shoulder height. “Is there a problem, Officer? I don’t think the gun’s necessary.”
Calvin’s eyes darted around their sockets, obviously searching for danger that wasn’t there. “Are you okay?”
“Why wouldn’t I be?” Rose lowered her arms and smiled again. “I had a really rough day with Mom, and invited Max in for a drink.” She pushed the handle to unlatch the screen and Calvin stepped back so she could open the door. “Come on in and get a glass of water. It’s hot out there. Just put the gun away.”
With a shrug, Calvin did as requested and stepped inside. The testosterone was almost too much to handle as the men sized each other up.
Hoping they could play nice for a few minutes, just sniffing each others’ tails but not biting, Rose rushed to the kitchen and pulled out another cup, filling it with filtered water from the fridge. She raced back into the room, praying she didn’t look as rattled as she felt.
Calvin had leaned against the wall, and the men were in an eye lock. The image of territorial animals came at her even stronger. Whoever blinked first was the weaker man. Neither gaze wavered.
Hopeless. Rose stepped between them and handed Calvin his water, ending the silent war.
“What brings you over?” she asked. “Did you make progress with the dead rat?”
Calvin’s lip curled in a sneer. “Oh, we all know who left that on your porch, but I’m still looking for proof. I’m here because I received a call from a concerned citizen.”
Rose threw her hands in the air at the same time as Max said, “I didn’t do it.”
“This is ridiculous,” Rose added. “Get out of my house, Calvin. If you don’t want to protect me by actually investigating what happened, don’t interrupt me when I’m spending an afternoon with my friend.”
“Your friend?” Calvin took a long drink of water and thrust the cup back at her. “When you end up dead, it’ll be real easy to send your friend back to prison.”
A chill threaded down her spine. Why would he say that? Was he that determined to pin a crime on Max? “Are you threatening me, Officer Black?”
Calvin’s gaze flicked over her head to Max. “I’m not the one you need to worry about.” He strode through the door but then glanced back. “I sure hope you know what you’re doing, Rosie. I can’t protect you from everything, especially when you put yourself in danger willingly.”
Rose closed the door without replying, pressing her forehead against it. Calvin just confirmed all her suspicions. They weren’t looking at anyone but Max, and she really didn’t think he did it.
“Thanks for standing up for me with your little boyfriend, Super Cop.” The tense anger in Max’s voice was just a part of him now. A part Rose didn’t like.
She tilted her head sideways to make eye contact with him. “You might no
t believe me, but I stood up for you when they first came by this morning. I never thought you left that rat.” Well, maybe for a few minutes, but he didn’t need to know that.
“Calvin sure put it all in perspective, though, didn’t he?”
Rose straightened and walked to the couch, sitting gingerly beside him. “How do you mean?”
“No one is going to give me a second chance. No one will even entertain the possibility that I’m innocent.” His fingers dug into his thighs and he shook his head. “It’s not fair. I bet poor Julie is having a hard time of it, helping me get out. Everyone wants me to be the scapegoat so the police don’t have to do any real work and the community can feel safe at night.”
Rose reclaimed his hand, prying it away from his thigh. She had an overwhelming need for some human connection. He was so distant and different, but she knew the man she loved was still in there somewhere. His bitterness just overshadowed the rest right now. “It doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks. Let’s find the killer and prove you’re innocence, like you said.”
Max sighed and squeezed her hand before lifting it to his face. He kissed her fingers. “I wish it were that easy, Rose. I really do.”
Leaning in to him, she couldn’t help but notice his smell. Even somewhat sweaty from spending the afternoon in his car, his musky scent was not unpleasant. It was comforting and familiar. She wrapped her free arm around his shoulder and kissed his cheek. “It can be.”
Max’s breathing accelerated and he jerked away from her, standing abruptly. “I have to leave. Be careful.”
As Rose sat in shock, Max yanked open the door and left without looking at her.
Didn’t he say he still loved me?
Rose picked her beer up from the end table where she’d left it and took another swig, her hands shaking when another thought hit her.
I left him on his own all that time, believing he killed someone. It’s a fine line between love and hate. All his rage needs a focus. What if that’s me?
Chapter Five
Max sat in his car outside the old boathouse on the lakefront. It was even more worn and dilapidated than it had been the last time he’d gone there. The last time he made love to Rose.
The past week had not gone well. Although he watched Rose from afar, learning her routine and always making sure he was parked nearby whenever she switched jobs or came and went from her house, he hadn’t approached her.
He knew she saw him watching, but she didn’t try to speak to him either. It was a tenuous situation that couldn’t continue. Max kept waiting for Calvin to slap him with charges for stalking, but he couldn’t stay away when Rose was in danger.
He also couldn’t continue tormenting himself with thoughts of how soft and sweet she’d been, kissing his cheek. He couldn’t handle that. Not when she still believed he might be guilty.
It was time to figure out who did this, and why. Over the years, Max had many theories about who might have killed Sage, but no way to investigate his suspicions.
Jimmy Durant was at the top of Max’s list. The little punk might have claimed to care about Sage, but Max had seen the way Jimmy watched Rose. He’d lusted after her from the moment he was old enough to realize what sex was. Plus, all five girls in the area had been murdered after Jimmy got his driver’s license. As if that wasn’t suspicious enough, Jimmy lied to keep Max in prison. Why do that, unless he needed to cover his own ass?
The only problem with that theory was Max didn’t have a good motive for Jimmy to kill Sage, unless the jerk figured he could get Max and Sage out of the picture all at once and then have a free shot at hooking up with Rose. Jimmy had seemed to like Sage, though, even if he didn’t love her. Killing her to get her sister seemed extreme...even for someone like him.
Also, the killings stopped as soon as Max went to jail to await trial. That had him confused too. Why did the killer stop?
Calvin Black certainly lingered near the top of the suspect list. The guy had always been a punk. Four years older than Max, Calvin had just become an officer when the killings started. It was Calvin who connected the dots and pushed for the conviction against Max. It was Calvin who now wanted to keep the public thinking Max was guilty of harassing Rose.
Did the power go to his head as a new cop and Calvin went on a killing spree, raping and beating young girls who challenged his authority? If that was the case, it could explain why the murders stopped. Maybe he found a new way to prove his dominance and no longer needed to kill to get the same satisfaction.
Max shook himself mentally. He had an almost obsessive need to find the murderer, but sitting thinking about it wouldn’t do any good. He’d had these thoughts many times before. What he needed was a clue to the killer’s identity.
After climbing from the car, Max walked up the overgrown pathway to the sagging boathouse. The weeds and grasses had taken over, climbing the side of the house and breaking through the rotting boards.
His and Rose’s love shack was no longer the romantic place he remembered. Stepping inside cautiously, he tested every floorboard before trusting it with his weight. The boat once housed in the center of the shack was gone, making the space feel larger than it used to. The sound of lake water lapping against the wooden beams below was deafening in the silence.
Not knowing what he hoped to find, Max circled the area. Realistically, he knew nothing likely survived the original investigation or the intervening years, but maybe he could find some indication as to what really happened to Sage that night, and who was with her.
Happy memories overlapped the current sadness of the place. In his mind’s eye, Rose stood against the counter at the backend of the house, smiling coquettishly as she tried on a life jacket. ‘What if this was the only thing I had to wear?’ she’d asked.
‘Then I’d be a happy guy,’ he’d answered, taking her face between his hands and nibbling her lower lip while he slid the jacket from her shoulders. ‘But you can make me happy another way.’
Her delicious laughter filled his ears as Rose dropped to her knees, tugging at his belt. ‘You bad boy. I’m going to have to give you a tongue lashing.” Her tongue had darted out to moisten her lips before she dropped his pants.
Max shook his head, forcing himself to focus on the present. His dick throbbed at the memory. This was getting him nowhere.
“What the hell am I doing? Coming here to remember what I’ve lost?”
There was nothing left. No clues to prove his innocence in the empty boathouse. Just memories he shouldn’t dwell on. Eight years without a woman to warm his bed was too long. Especially when Rose was the only one he wanted.
Her kissing his cheek last weekend had been too much to handle, especially since she didn’t believe in him fully. Somehow, he had to prove she could trust him. And maybe convince her she should give them a second chance. Maybe this time she could actually fall in love with him and want to be together.
Facing the truth still hurt, even after a week to think it over. Rose never planned to marry him. The fantasies he’d entertained of getting free and reuniting with his true love wouldn’t happen. He hadn’t had true love in the first place.
***
Rose counted her tips after passing her tables off to Kelsey at Francine’s Diner. At least she didn’t have to work at the gas station Friday nights. All she wanted was a long bath, dinner with Gizmo, and to curl up with a good book.
Kelsey slipped back into the break room, twisting her hair tighter behind her head and securing it with her clip. “Hey, sweetie. We’re friends, right?”
Surprised by the question, Rose stuffed the wad of ones into her pocket and nodded. “Of course. Why would you ask such a crazy question?” Sometimes it felt like Kelsey was the only person who truly cared for her.
Kelsey drummed her fingers against her thigh. “I want to say something, but I don’t want you to get mad.”
Wonderful. Here it came. Kelsey had skirted the issue all week, though other people in town had no problems exp
ressing their opinions. Throughout the week, she realized she really did trust Max, and defended him to everyone who talked bad about him. She’d hoped Kelsey was more open minded and fair, but apparently not. “I know what you’re going to say, but it’s not any of your business.”
Kelsey put her hands on her hips a frown creasing her pretty face. “Look, I’m sorry, but that guy’s creeping me out. Why does he constantly watch you? Even Bill’s worried, and he doesn’t climb out of the bottle long enough to worry about anything.”
Rose sighed, tired of explaining why she didn’t fear Max. She knew the people in Clarkston cared about her, and that’s why they stuck their nose in her business, but she wished they’d stop. “Max just wants to protect me. He’s not hurting anyone.”
“For now.” Kelsey snorted. “Until he freaks out and starts bashing people’s faces in again.”
Rose’s chest constricted and for a few seconds she found it hard to breathe. Sage’s face had hardly been recognizable. She’d been beaten to a pulp and her blue eyes stared sightlessly at the ceiling of the boathouse.
“People are talking, sweetie.” Kelsey crossed the room and crouched level with Rose. “I’m scared for you. They say Max went crazy last time because he’s obsessed with you. I keep waiting for Jimmy Durant to show up dead when someone lets it slip that you dated him for a while.”
Rose felt heat rush to her face and neck and she resisted the urge to punch her friend. This was getting out of control. “Max has known since Sunday. Jimmy’s still alive and kickin’.” She lifted an eyebrow and couldn’t stop the grimace she felt across her face. “Have you been gossiping like this with other people? Saying you expect Max to kill Jimmy?”
Kelsey eyes narrowed and her mouth jutted in a sullen pout. “Everyone’s saying it. Don’t act like I’m the bad guy.”
Rose closed her eyes, counting to ten under her breath. She’d talked with Kelsey Tuesday about Max, told her how much he had meant to her and how hard it was to lose him all those years ago. How part of her hoped she could get back together with him, because those feelings came flooding back the second she saw him.
Murderous Lies Page 4
