Held for Ransom

by Kathleen Tailer

  She finally gave him a nod, although her look was wistful, as if she was still considering his words. “I do forgive you, Noah. And you should know, it wasn’t all your fault. I could have been nicer back then—more understanding.” She swallowed but didn’t pull her hands away. “I guess it was a difficult time for both of us. We should have talked when things first started to fall apart. I...I didn’t realize how you felt.”

  He sighed in relief. “You’re right. We should have talked.” He pulled her hands up and brushed his lips over her knuckles. “Thank you for forgiving me.” He tilted his head. “Do you think we can be friends again?”

  She laughed, and Noah felt the ball of stress that had settled in his chest slowly start to dissipate. Her forgiveness made a strange feeling of contentment sweep over him from head to toe. It was a wonderful start to rebuilding the bond they had shared.

  “Yes, I think we can be friends. Let’s give this relationship a second chance, shall we?”

  He smiled, released her hands and pushed her milkshake over in front of her again. “Okay, friend. Please eat. I’m worried about you. You haven’t eaten hardly anything in the last two days.”

  She did as he asked and picked up the cup. He leaned back, relieved that they had finally talked and put the past to rest. It was as if a giant weight had finally been removed from his shoulders—a weight he hadn’t even really understood that he was carrying. Why had he waited so long to seek forgiveness? He should have initiated contact years ago. He’d wasted entirely too much time nurturing the regret and embarrassment he’d felt as a result of his actions.

  He watched Sophia take a sip of her milkshake and push some of her hair behind her ear in a motion that was familiar and feminine at the same time. A new wave of attraction swept over him, but he looked away, trying to hide his reaction. What would she think if she knew the old feelings of attraction were resurfacing? And it wasn’t completely one-sided this time—at least, he didn’t think so. Despite their situation, he could tell there was a mutual magnetism building between the two of them. He could feel it.

  But would she ever love him?

  Attraction wasn’t love.

  And was she really feeling anything right now for him besides gratitude?

  He wasn’t quite sure about how to move forward, so he closed his eyes and prayed for guidance and direction, right there in the conference room.

  TEN

  Sophia sipped her drink thoughtfully, a host of emotions running through her heart. She was happy they had finally discussed the past, but she still found his youthful profession of love disconcerting. Sure, Noah had tried to take her out on a date a few times, but she had never understood the depth of his feelings. He sure hadn’t acted like he was in love. In fact, all of this time, she’d thought she had offended him and had somehow been to blame for their relationship’s failure. It was a relief to understand what had really happened and why he had treated her so poorly.

  But she still didn’t trust him.

  He was an excellent law enforcement officer. She had witnessed that firsthand. And he had gone above and beyond trying to help her save Kylie. She knew without a doubt that God had brought him back into her life for a reason, and she trusted him completely with her sister’s fate.

  But trusting him with her heart was an entirely different matter.

  Yes, time had passed, and they had both grown and matured. They could be friends again, and maybe after this was all over, they would share a dinner or two and reminisce. She could tell there was an attraction brewing between them, but she didn’t have to act on it. Noah Bradley was a good-looking man, with shoulders that made her knees go weak and eyes that could see into her soul. She even found herself tingling at his touch. But these new feelings didn’t erase the old hurt, despite the forgiveness she had offered, and she wanted to make very sure that she wasn’t confusing attraction for gratitude.

  A knock on the conference room door broke into her concentration and she put down the remains of her French fries and took a sip from her shake.

  “Detective? Ms. Archer? You’ve got a visitor.”

  Noah nodded and walked over to thank the deputy who had stuck his head in. Then he welcomed Angie Carmichael, who had been standing behind the officer, and invited her to take a seat at the large, rectangular conference table.

  The woman was lithe and clothed professionally in a dark blue dress. The nautical-print silk scarf around her neck set off her hazel eyes, and she had an earnestness about her that made her seem approachable and friendly. Despite all appearances, she also looked haggard. There were tiny stress lines around her mouth and dark circles under her eyes. Creases were visible on her forehead and between her eyebrows. Sophia had made reading people into an art form, but this woman was sending so many contradictory signals it was hard to tell what to believe. Was she friendly and overworked or difficult and vindictive? Sophia pulled out her phone and got ready to take notes, curious about what the woman would add, if anything, to the investigation.

  “Ms. Carmichael? I’m Sophia Archer. Thanks so much for joining us.”

  Angie put her purse down by her feet. “Sure. It’s not a problem, but I’m not sure how I can help. Isn’t the man who killed Maggie in jail?”

  “He is,” Noah agreed as he took his seat. “But we’ve had some new evidence come up, and we wanted your insight.”

  Sophia pushed aside the remnants of her meal and thumbed through her notes. “Can you tell me about Professor Keenan?”

  Angie looked a bit taken aback, suddenly nervous. “What about him?”

  Sophia glanced at Noah, wondering if he was seeing the same body language that she was. Something wasn’t right, although she couldn’t put her finger on exactly what was going on. “We were hoping you could tell us what it’s like to work with him. He is your faculty adviser for your doctorate in chemistry, correct?”

  Angie smiled and visibly relaxed. “He is now. I started working with him after Maggie died. He’s amazing and quite the scientist. I’m really learning a lot.”

  Sophia blinked. She hadn’t expected the exuberant response, especially since the man had left such a negative impression in her mind. “We understand Maggie’s assistantship was going to be canceled in the fall. Do you know anything about that?”

  “I do. In the spring, Professor Keenan told me she was doing substandard work and the position might be available if I worked really hard and showed him my potential. He offered me the position shortly after Maggie died. He said he didn’t want to be disrespectful, but he had some projects in the works that just couldn’t wait, so he needed me to start immediately.”

  She leaned forward, as if telling a secret. “Professor Keenan is incredibly intelligent and was recently published in a major national journal. He wrote an article that was cutting-edge. It’s bringing all sorts of notoriety to the university. It’s really an honor to be able to work with him. He’s well-known, both nationally and internationally, in the scientific field. I’m sure that once I earn my doctorate, I’ll be able to just mention he was my adviser and write my own ticket wherever I want to go.”

  Sophia tilted her head. She wasn’t so sure Ms. Carmichael’s assessment was correct, but it wasn’t worth arguing about. “Tell us more about this article.”

  Angie smiled. “It’s about the reasons for instability in an inorganic compound named perovskite. Unless you have a background in chemistry, it’s hard to understand.”

  Noah and Sophia glanced at one another again, and Angie took that as an invitation to continue. “You see, the source of the thermodynamic instability in perovskite is the inorganic cesium atom. The atom actually ‘rattles’ within the crystal structure, causing the entire compound to be instable.”

  Sophia glanced up at Noah, who also was clearly lost by Angie’s explanation. The chemistry student was pleased at their reaction, and a haughty smirk spread across h
er face as she realized they hadn’t followed her description. Sophia could suddenly tell that the woman’s initial friendly appearance had all been an act. She was now aggressive in both her stance and tone. Finally, the chemistry student’s true personality had surfaced.

  Sophia wondered why the woman was so disingenuous and how her behavior related to Maggie’s death, if at all. There were a lot of difficult people in the world, but just because Angie bore several unlikable personality traits, it didn’t mean she was guilty of murder—or of any other crime. “Okay, then,” she said quickly, ready to move on to a different topic. “Did you use one of the desks downstairs in the basement office suite where Maggie was working?”

  “I did, but a couple of weeks ago, I was moved to a new office on the third floor so I could be closer to Professor Keenan’s office.”

  That was an interesting tidbit. Sophia pushed forward. “Did you know that someone had installed a cell phone blocker in that office?”

  “Sure,” Angie said as she crossed her legs. “Some of the other grad students had a problem with talking on the phone when they were supposed to be working. They were constantly taking personal calls. It was very frustrating, so I asked Professor Keenan to put a blocker in there so I wouldn’t be so distracted.”

  “So, he’s the one who installed it?” Noah asked.

  “Yes. He did it for me. He said he didn’t want anything to come between me and my studies.”

  “Did you know that cell phone jammers are illegal?” Noah asked.

  Angie frowned. “I don’t know why they should be. It made it much easier to get my job done. You must be mistaken. Maggie and those other students are the ones who were breaking the rules. They knew they weren’t supposed to constantly be on their phones, but they thought they could get away with whatever they wanted if they were down in the basement.”

  “Was Maggie one of the students constantly using her phone?” Sophia asked quietly, ignoring the woman’s previous comments.

  “She was,” Angie agreed. “I think she had a boyfriend, but I could never prove it.”

  “Why would you want to prove it, and to whom?” Noah asked.

  Angie gave Noah a frown. “Why, to Professor Keenan, of course. And the reason is simple. Professor Keenan demands that we stay focused on our main objective—completing our chemistry projects. Other relationships get in the way. Maggie should have known that. She was Professor Keenan’s research assistant at the time. The rules had been explained to her in some detail, yet she was constantly breaking them.”

  Sophia grimaced, unable to continue keeping her opinions to herself. This woman was really a piece of work. “Have you ever heard of a work-life balance?”

  Angie sat straighter in her chair. “Not in grad school and not in Professor Keenan’s chemistry department.”

  Sophia was tempted to argue, but decided it would be a waste of breath. Although clearly intelligent, Angie also seemed to have very definite ideas about certain things, and she probably wasn’t going to change her mind in the next ten minutes.

  Sophia moved on. “Did you see Maggie the day she died?”

  Angie nodded. “Yes. She went down to the basement office, changed in one of the bathrooms and then said she was going on a walk in the park. That’s the last time I saw her.”

  “Are you having a romantic relationship with Professor Keenan?” Noah asked out of the blue.

  Sophia’s and Angie’s heads both snapped to look at Noah, but his face was blank of emotion as he waited for a response.

  “I don’t see how that’s any of your business,” Angie finally sputtered.

  “It matters if Professor Keenan killed Maggie so he could replace her with you,” Noah responded, his tone even.

  “He didn’t!” Angie said hotly as she pushed away from the table and stood. “He would never hurt anyone. Professor Keenan is an amazing mentor, but Maggie never appreciated him or his skills. Then she got involved with someone, and her work began to suffer. I can’t help it if she was going to lose her job. I am not responsible for her behavior. I earned that assistantship.” She glared at the two of them and then leaned down to pick up her purse. “I have nothing more to say to either of you. Good day.” She turned and left the room, slamming the door behind her.

  Sophia put her phone on the table and whistled. “Wow. She is really something.”

  Noah shook his head. “She was nothing like that when I interviewed her before. Back then, she was all tears, and kept expressing her undying friendship and loyalty to Maggie, who had been taken too soon. Good grief! She’s a consummate actress!”

  “I was thinking the same thing.” Sophia pulled out a notebook from her bag and put the paper she had discovered at Maggie’s apartment in front of Noah. “Do you see the title of this article?”

  Noah picked it up and read the title out loud. “‘Perovskite Instability.’”

  Sophia met his eye. “Is it me, or did Angie just tell us that Professor Keenan had a motive for murder?”

  ELEVEN

  “What do you mean?” Noah asked. “You think Professor Keenan murdered Maggie to get her out of the way so he could have a relationship with Angie?”

  Sophia shook her head, and her brown eyes flashed. Even her cheeks were flushed. Noah thought she had never looked more magnificent, despite the circumstances. Sophia was in her element. It was no wonder she was such a successful investigative reporter. No matter what, she kept digging until she discovered the truth, and she was passionate about her work. Her zeal was obvious based on the drive and determination she had exhibited just over the past couple of days.

  “No, I don’t think he was after Angie initially, although I think you hit the nail on the head when you asked her about their current relationship. It’s pretty obvious something is going on there now, even if it wasn’t before. If my suspicions are correct, however, I think there’s even more going on here beyond a physical relationship. Let me make some calls, and then I’ll know if my suspicions are correct.”

  “Okay,” Noah said thoughtfully. “I want to check on Maggie’s fiancé anyway and ask him why he tried to kill us today. Last I heard, he was in the building and still being processed, but I’m sure they’re done by now. He’s probably waiting down in Interrogation. Can you make your calls from here while I go ask him some questions?”

  Sophia smiled. “Unless your boss installed a cell phone blocker while we were out.”

  Noah laughed. “Okay. I’ll be back in a few. Make yourself at home.”

  Detective Matthews met Noah by his desk before he even made it down to the interrogation room. “Hey, Detective. Where’s Ms. Archer?”

  “In the conference room making some calls.”

  Matthews put his hand on his chin, as if making an appraisal, and studied Noah from head to toe. “You’ve looked better, my friend.”

  Noah glanced at his clothing and sighed. He had to admit, his colleague was right. He’d forgotten to retrieve his tie and jacket at the bomb site, and his pants, shirt and shoes were definitely ruined beyond repair. His hair was dusty and filled with particles of wood and concrete debris. Even his hands were dirty and scraped, and he needed some basic first aid.

  Matthews was the fashion statement of the office, second only to Roman, and he always seemed to look impeccable. At times, Noah admired the detectives’ polished and professional appearances, but now wasn’t one of them. “Yeah, I know, but I can’t worry about my appearance right now, Matthews. A girl’s life is at stake. In fact, I haven’t even been able to think straight since Sophia walked into our office. This case is extremely time sensitive.”

  Matthews nodded knowingly. “Ah, so it’s a lack of time that’s the reason you’re discombobulated, is that it?”

  Noah narrowed his eyes, not missing the gibe. He knew others had noted his commitment to this case and his attraction to Sophia, but he wasn’
t ready to be teased about it. They were a close unit of very adept investigators. Little passed by without notice. “If you have something helpful to say, then say it. Otherwise...”

  The detective raised his hands in mock surrender. “Okay, okay, Mr. Sensitive. You act like someone’s tried to kill you twice today.”

  That made Noah smile. It wasn’t Matthews’s fault they weren’t making much progress. Normally, Noah could take a ribbing without a second thought. He shook his head. “Sorry. I guess I’m just tired.”

  His colleague said nothing more about it, but his eyes said he saw the truth. Still, the man was gracious enough to change the subject, and Noah was grateful. “Where are you headed?” Matthews asked.

  “I was going down to talk to Maggie’s fiancé, who tried to run us off the road today. I’m hoping he can explain why he tried to kill us.”

  Matthews shook his head. “Don’t waste your time. He’s still being processed. They’re backed up down there, and he had to be taken to the ER first anyway for a medical exam. I’d give them another thirty minutes or so.”

  Noah squeezed the back of his office chair, frustrated. “Has he said anything at all?”

  The detective shook his head. “Not yet. Nobody’s really taken a good run at him, though. Do you want us to hold off until you can join in?”

  “Yeah, come get me when he’s ready, okay?”

  Matthews nodded and started to turn, but Noah still had questions. “Wait. Before you go... Has anything new broken in this case?”

  “Not that I know of. Charlie asked me to do background research on some of Prensky’s more suspicious-looking relatives. So far, I haven’t found anything new. I’ve interviewed a few of them, but they’ve all had verifiable alibis and haven’t been near Flint Rock.”

  “What about his uncle, John Prensky?”