“Of course not!” Juliet answered, much too quickly. “That’s different, they’re both…”
“Both what? Friends?”
“Declan. You need to watch your tone. I understand that what you saw tonight was confusing, but that doesn’t give you the right to interrogate me.” Juliet was fighting a losing battle, but she didn’t know how to stop the bleeding.
Declan continued to sit on the edge of the bed, his calmness and detachment both disturbing and a little intimidating. He knew what he knew, and Juliet didn’t think she’d be able to change his mind.
“You’re right, it was confusing. Because I’m pretty sure I saw you dancing, romantically or whatever, with Dad’s wife.”
Juliet covered her mouth with her hand and rubbed her cheek. “You need to talk to your dad about what’s going on between him and Sienna. It’s not my place.”
“Not your place? You’re my mother. What the hell is happening?” Declan said, finally allowing his emotion to get the better of him.
Juliet sighed. “They’re not getting back together. She cares about him, he cares about her, but they’ll be better off apart. It happens, sweetie.” Juliet sat next to him, trying to decide how much she should tell him and how much she should withhold. She didn’t want to destroy her entire family with a few unchecked words.
“I don’t understand. Dad said it wasn’t a big deal and the whole thing would blow over and he’d be back in the house in no time. Now you’re saying that, what, it’s over between them for good? Like they’re getting a divorce?”
“I really need you to talk to your dad about this, Dec. He’s going to be very upset with me if all of this comes secondhand.” Juliet touched his knee, but he pulled it away from her angrily.
“Well, Dad is obviously a liar. So, both of my parents are liars and my stepmother is purposely keeping me in the dark. Boy, I hit the jackpot, didn’t I?”
He was angry and hurt. Juliet knew he had every right to be angry and hurt. She just wished she could make it go away. “I’m so sorry, Dec. I know this is hard. I’ll talk to your dad in the morning, okay? I’ll make sure he has an honest conversation with you, so you don’t feel like you’re being blindsided. I’m sorry.”
Declan nodded, but he was clearly still upset. “If Sienna’s cheating on Dad, it better not be with you. That would just take all of this to a whole new level. I don’t know. Just…don’t.” He walked out of the room like he couldn’t stand to be in her presence for a second longer.
Juliet fell back onto the bed and tried to get her emotions under control. It didn’t work, and she cried harder than she had in years. The last thing she remembered before sleep enveloped her was the sound of her own sobs. They’d both known better and had ignored the warnings. Now they’d have to pay the price.
* * *
“Here are the reports on Charlie Goodman,” Celeste said, dropping a few documents on Juliet’s desk. “A DUI and a petty theft conviction, both in the eighties. He was arrested for being involved with a bookie in the early nineties, but nothing came of it. Squeaky clean for the last two decades. Another dead end?” She flopped dramatically into one of the chairs in front of Juliet’s desk.
“Not necessarily. Probably, but not necessarily. You think Kowalski could have been a runner for him? Something like that?” Juliet chewed on her pen cap. She didn’t believe that scenario for a second, but they had to explore every possible situation.
“No. According to his wife, he was either at the library or at home. I know spouses lie, but she seemed to have a good pulse on his whereabouts. He didn’t have any drugs in his system, or anywhere else that we’ve found, so it’s not like he was an addict that got involved with the wrong people. I think we should look at the assistant again,” Celeste said.
“Tara Wolfe? She’s odd, for sure, and totally inappropriate, but the timeline of Rich’s death and Gretchen’s accident don’t make sense with her as the culprit. Unless the two things are completely unrelated, which is possible, but really freaking unlikely, we can’t finger her for it. She seems pretty isolated except for a few acquaintances around town, so I can’t come up with an accomplice. She could have paid someone to take care of Gretchen, but until we find out who was behind the wheel of the red truck, we have nothing. Did you keep an eye on her during Kowalski’s honoring at the benefit?”
“I did,” Celeste said. “She laughed and cried at the right times. She did seem to watch Gretchen and Monique an awful lot during the speech. Could have been watching for their reactions, or maybe she was feeling guilty. Hard to tell.”
Juliet sighed. “I think it might be time to tell the chief that we’ve hit a wall. I really didn’t want to do that, and I feel like a complete failure. But based on everything we know, I don’t know where else to turn. Everybody in Kowalski’s orbit either has an alibi or covered their tracks well. Maybe the county detectives can find something that we missed or that we haven’t thought of, since they’ll be looking at it with fresh eyes. If I read Tara’s love letters or look at the DNA results of that whiskey bottle or try to search for Morris Bright one more time, I’ll go insane. There’s something there, something we’re just not seeing. Was he hiding anything else? It sucks that we can’t help our old friend.”
“Don’t throw in the towel yet. We’ll set a firm date. If we don’t have anything else to go on by, say, next Monday, we’ll turn it over to County. Let’s go talk to Goodman again, and maybe Gretchen has a few more tidbits that she can think of. Four days. That’s it, and then we step back completely. Let someone else take the reins,” Celeste said. She spread her hands out on the desk like she was a dealer at a blackjack table.
“Okay. Monday,” Juliet agreed. Celeste was a good friend. She knew how badly Juliet wanted justice for Kowalski, and she knew that it would taste even sweeter if they could uncover the killer in their own front yard. But Juliet was realistic. She’d never investigated a murder before, and if she’d been in a bigger town with a bigger police force, maybe she’d have been given more tools, or learned other things that would have helped. She’d received a loud and clear answer to a question she’d never really asked. She was happy with her position on the small town force. She didn’t need to be a detective or a flashy investigator to be happy. This was an aberration, not a career path. She considered it a privilege that she’d been afforded the opportunity to seek justice for a man who didn’t deserve what he got.
Celeste left her office. Juliet began searching for all car-related crimes in the general vicinity of Shell Creek. Any mention of a red pickup or stolen vehicles. Something. Anything. It didn’t surprise her when nothing seemed to fit; chasing shadows seemed to be her MO these days.
Chapter Twenty-nine
Sienna knew something was wrong when Declan brushed past her that morning without saying hello or good-bye, or even giving her his usual grunt as he headed toward his bus. Juliet was already gone, so she couldn’t ask her. She peeked outside to see Will making his way toward the house.
“You have any OJ?” he asked, dropping his newspaper on the kitchen table. “All I have in the mini fridge is tomato juice and some sort of margarita mix.”
“Yes, there should be some left.” Sienna looked at the clock and saw that she had a little bit of time before she had to leave. She straightened her cuffs. “Have you had a chance to sign the papers?”
Will stopped abruptly in front of the refrigerator and turned toward Sienna, leaving the door open. “No, I haven’t. In a rush?”
She ignored his sarcasm. “Can I ask what you’re waiting for? My attorney said that everything in the agreement is standard, and I’m not asking for alimony, so I’m not sure what the holdup is.”
Will scoffed. “When did you become so cold? You’re acting like this is a business deal gone wrong. We’ve been married for nine years, Sienna. Don’t you think we owe it to ourselves to see if this can be fixed?”
Instead of acquiescing to his apparent need for yet another rehash, Sienna f
elt her cheeks burn with anger. “No, Will. I don’t. I have tried to make it clear, perfectly fucking clear, that we are no longer in a viable marriage, and rather than keep delaying the inevitable, it would be better for both of us to just rip off the Band-Aid.”
“Wow. I don’t even know what to say to that. I thought I meant more to you than making a decision like this on a whim.” Will’s expression was still defiant, but he flinched after the last words exited his mouth. He knew.
Sienna had to restrain herself from flying into a rage. It mostly worked. “A whim?” she yelled. “Did you really just say on a whim?”
“Sienna, I—”
“No, no, you don’t get to say anything right now. I have been telling you for years, and I mean years, that something needed to change, that I wasn’t happy, that we needed counseling…this is as far away from a whim as you could possibly get. We have nothing else to work on, we cannot fix it because it’s no longer broken. It simply doesn’t exist anymore.” Sienna crossed her arms, feeling her wrath begin to temper. She was harsh and maybe a little more antagonistic than she needed to be, but there was no more room for confusion.
Will just stood there looking dumbfounded. He looked more like a wounded child than the powerful, charismatic businessman he was. His face clouded over, and he slammed the refrigerator door, the juice forgotten.
“I don’t understand you,” he said. “I’ve given you absolutely everything. Look around you, Sienna. What’s missing?”
“Is that really what you think this is about? That I want more things? That I’m so shallow and vapid that I’m throwing a fit to get you to pay attention to me? Fuck you, Will. Fuck you.”
“That isn’t what I said. You’re always twisting my words around to make me look like the bad guy.”
Why couldn’t she get through to him? “I told you from the moment we had the conversation about separating that this wasn’t your fault, that you weren’t to blame, and it was just the natural progression of who we are and who I want to be.” Sienna paused and stared at him indignantly. “Although, now I’m reconsidering that line of thinking. If you’d actually listened to someone for once, instead of being the self-centered prick you’ve obviously become, you’d have heard what I’ve been saying all these years.”
His face morphed into a mask of fury. “It’s time for you to move out,” he said coldly. “I’ll sign the papers today and get them over to Brad ASAP. Don’t be here when I get home.”
“Will,” Sienna started, but he stormed out of the house. She shook her head as she heard him peel out of the driveway. It wasn’t a reasonable request for her to pack up her things and be completely moved out by seven p.m. She leaned against the counter and finished off the last of her coffee.
The truth was, she probably should have moved out months ago. But something inside her wanted to hold on to those last vestiges of the life she’d known for so long, even if the biggest part of that life had been making her unhappy. She loved her home and her stepson and the comfort that had developed over the years, but it wasn’t baseline contentment she wanted for the rest of her life. She wanted passion, excitement. She chided herself for sending mixed messages to Will, and ultimately, Declan. If she’d been gone, there wouldn’t have been any room for confusion or hesitation. That would have truly ripped off the Band-Aid. Sienna checked the clock one more time before heading into the city to check in on her abandoned office. Getting some distance seemed like the best idea.
* * *
There were very few apartment listings in Shell Creek. Sienna scrolled through listing after listing, trying to find anything remotely close to her home. It wasn’t like she had tons of friends, or an office located in town, or even family she wanted to stay close to. But Shell Creek was her home, and she didn’t want to leave it. Not because she had to, anyway. If she was going to pick up her life and move out of town, she wanted it to be on her own timeline.
She looked down at her cell phone when her text alert went off. It was Juliet.
Do you want me to pick up dinner? Heard from the construction guys that they’re going to finish up today, so I’ll be ready to go home later tonight. Dec is going to stay with you for a bit longer. He’s got some big gaming tournament thing that my internet apparently can’t handle. Thank you again for being so gracious.
Sienna shook her head at how formal Juliet was being. Nothing had been solved and everything was still a giant question mark between them, even though they’d repeatedly said that nothing could happen, and they were both okay with that and they’d just be friends. Evidently, they’d both lied.
Don’t think I’ll be home tonight. Got into it with Will and I’m desperately looking for a place at the moment, as he asked me to go. I’ll probably stay at the Salt Creek Inn until I find something. Declan loves the pad Thai from Jasmine’s if you feel like something different.
It was so strange, talking to Juliet as though their lives hadn’t been teetering on the edge of implosion. Maybe space was what they needed.
Sienna, you don’t have to stay at a motel. You can stay with me. You let me stay with you, and I’d like to repay the favor.
Sienna’s breath caught in her throat. That was probably the worst idea she’d heard in her entire life. Her and Juliet, in close quarters, alone, without any distractions. What could possibly go wrong?
That’s probably not the best idea.
It pained her to type out those words.
I can control myself, you know. Just know that the offer is there. Besides, we’re friends, remember? It’s what friends do.
Maybe Juliet had a different definition of friendship, but Sienna was pretty certain that what they shared was not friendship.
Thank you.
The little text bubbles appeared, disappeared, reappeared.
Of course.
Sienna tossed her phone on her desk and went through her casefiles, making sure she hadn’t neglected anyone or anything with all of her time spent with Gretchen. Thankfully, her supervisor had given the more time-consuming cases to the other advocates in her office. Sienna suspected that had something to do with how she’d been acting before being assigned to Gretchen’s case. She was grateful, but also embarrassed that she hadn’t been able to keep her home life from spilling into her work life.
Sienna called the Salt Creek Motel to reserve a room. The clerk answered the phone on the fourth ring, sounding out of breath.
“Yes, I’d like to book a room for a few nights, please.”
The clerk chortled. “We’re booked out for the next four days. Everyone whose house was damaged by the twister is staying here, and that $25,000 Sand Castle Challenge they’re broadcasting on NBC is taking place up in Gloucester. Good luck finding a room within a thirty-mile radius.”
Sienna opened her mouth to ask if there was any possibility of a cancellation, but the clerk ended the call before she had a chance. She called around to a few hotels in the area, and everyone she spoke to echoed the clerk at the Salt Creek Motel.
She checked her watch and saw that it was almost eight o’clock. She was excited to find one lone room available at the Courtyard, about ten miles outside of town. She pulled out her credit card and then audibly swore at the computer. They wanted six hundred and forty dollars for one night, based on absolutely nothing but price gouging.
She needed to get out of her head. With everything going on around her, it wasn’t a fun place to be. Sienna picked up a training manual in her inbox and started to leaf through it. Anything to put off making a decision about staying at Juliet’s, although it looked like that was the best option, at least for one night. She plucked a highlighter out of her pencil cup and sat back in her chair, ready to immerse herself in the untainted world of policies and procedures.
Chapter Thirty
Obviously, telling Sienna to stay with her was a colossally bad idea. On just about every possible front. But Juliet didn’t know what kind of fight Sienna and Will had gotten into, and if he was serious abou
t her leaving the house, then Juliet wanted her to know she had a friend. Besides, she was sure Declan would want to stay with Will for the time being, so his room would be vacant. There was no reason they couldn’t cohabitate for a few nights like platonic roomies.
Celeste opened Juliet’s office door and nodded to the front entrance. “Tara Wolfe is here for your meeting. She looks upset.”
Juliet rolled her neck a few times. “Wonderful. Send her in, please.”
Tara Wolfe walked into Juliet’s office and gave her hair a toss. She sat in the seat across from Juliet and placed a tote bag on the other chair.
She raised her eyebrows defiantly. “Aren’t we going to go into the interrogation room? So you can handcuff me to a table and withhold cigarettes as a way to get me to talk?”
Juliet raised her eyebrows. So that’s how it was going to go. “We can certainly move into the interrogation room if you feel more comfortable playing out a scene from a TV crime show. I don’t see a need to handcuff you to a table, but if you feel like you might get the urge to get up and run, I can do that too. I wasn’t aware that you smoked, but this entire building is smoke free, so I’m afraid withholding cigarettes wouldn’t be a viable tactic to get you to open up.” Juliet folded her hands on her desk.
Tara rolled her eyes and leaned back in the chair. “We can talk here, that’s fine.”
“I just wanted to recap the timeline of events from the night Richard Kowalski was killed. Based on the surveillance footage, you left the library at eight p.m. You said you went straight home from there, correct?” Juliet asked.
“Correct.”
“Your fingerprints were found on Mr. Kowalski’s bottle of nitroglycerin, as well as many other items in his office. Did you take the pills from his desk at any point?”
“Oh, for fuck’s sake,” Tara said, exhaling loudly. “I’ve touched everything in that library about a billion times. I know you all think I’m a weird stalker because I had feelings for Rich. Well, I’m here to prove that it wasn’t one-sided.”
Heart of the Storm Page 18
