The Lies You Told

by Emerald O'Brien

  I’ll finish this first and send them over to Banning. Maybe that’ll ease the blow I’m about to receive.

  “First work,” she said in a hushed tone as the cat drank the water, “then bed, then Shawna, then the vet.”

  And then maybe, somewhere during or between those things, Mac will get back to me.

  Chapter Fifteen

  “I’m so glad you’re here,” Shawna said, waving them in through the front door of her father’s house. “Don’t take off your shoes; it’s fine.”

  She led them across a large, marble tiled foyer and into a living room with vaulted ceilings.

  I hope this doesn’t take long. If I’m late for my shift, Roy will kill me.

  Whatever Matt lost after going to prison, he certainly gained some back. This place is a mansion.

  Madigan exchanged glances with Grace before Matt entered the room wearing a high-collared sweater and khakis and shook their hands.

  So this is what he looks like when he’s not in a suit. A softer, more relatable side. Is Matt Morelli back to his old ways, making money on the side, or did he change after prison?

  “Thank you both for coming.” He stood beside Shawna and wrapped his arm around her shoulder as she stared up at him. “I really appreciate the support you’ve given Shawna, and after the frank discussion we had last night, I’m grateful to say she’s letting me have the chance to offer my help too.”

  “You have something to tell us?” Grace asked.

  “Once Shawna agreed to come over last night to hear me out, I was able to not only come clean on what has been going on with Shawna’s mother and me but elaborate on the details. I’ve told the police all of this, even updating them this morning after Shawna and I spoke more, but Shawna and I share the same concern that they won’t take my statements about Rhett to heart because he is one of them. I know you are too, but Shawna says you’re different. She trusts you, and if she does, so do I.”

  Speaking for the both of them now, is he?

  “Let’s sit down.” Shawna gestured to the couch, and she and Matt both sat in wingback chairs across from them.

  She hasn’t seemed this calm since I met her, and now all of a sudden, she and her dad are on good terms?

  She exchanged another look with Grace as they sat.

  Good, she thinks it’s weird, too.

  “Tina and I met at the gym the night she disappeared because it was our safe place. We always went together while we were married, and I’ve been going back since I got out. That’s how we ended up talking again. For a long time, it was just for support while Shawna was away in treatment. She’d kindly give me updates on her progress, and we both shared the same belief that Shawna would win her battle with addiction. After Shawna came home and was sober again, my relationship with Tina changed.”

  “How so?” Grace asked.

  “Well, Tina told me how much better she was doing, but there was less of a need for that support. We didn’t have much to talk about after that, and we’d go weeks without seeing each other. Then, in the new year, she asked me to sign the divorce papers. She said since we were both in a better place and on friendly terms; it was time, but…” he turned to Shawna, “that’s when we realized how much we missed each other. I told Tina I missed talking to her, and she said the same, so I asked her out to lunch—this was just as friends. We enjoyed each other’s company, but then, about three weeks ago, she told me she couldn’t see me anymore.”

  “Why?” Madigan asked.

  “She said the feelings she had for me were coming back, and it wasn’t fair to Rhett. She said once she felt like we were doing something wrong, she had to stop before it went any further. I didn’t take it very well. I went to her home, brought the papers, and told her I wouldn’t sign them because I still love her. She was acting weird since I arrived, and then Rhett came home, and we all fought. I realized two things in that moment. She hadn’t told Rhett we were even speaking, never mind getting together regularly, and she was scared of him.”

  The same thing the support worker next door thinks.

  “How do you know she was scared?” Grace asked.

  Matt reached out for Shawna’s hand, and she grabbed it before he continued, “I knew it in that moment because I took the papers with me, even though I didn’t intend to sign them, just to calm the waters. Tina called me afterward to apologize for Rhett’s behaviour and confirmed she hadn’t told him we were talking again because he gets jealous easily. So he didn’t know what was going on with us—or so I thought.”

  He let go of Shawna’s hand and rubbed his chin, shaking his head. “It was a little less than two weeks ago when she told me she didn’t know what she wanted anymore, and the only thing she was sure of was she still wanted me in her life and that she was still in love with me. We kept seeing each other at the gym. It was the only place we’d meet, and when I asked why, she said she was afraid Rhett would find out. I know she was worried about what he’d do if he knew we were seeing each other. I respected her boundaries, but I couldn’t stop seeing her. I was worried for her at that point, and now that Shawna and I have spoken, so much of what we know about Rhett matches up. I have a right to be worried and a right to be heard, but it seems like the police aren’t interested, especially since this Tommy Leman came into the picture.”

  “What are you saying, Mr. Morelli?” Grace asked.

  “I’ve suspected Rhett could have had something to do with Tina’s disappearance all along. It wasn’t until Shawna told me about Tommy Leman that I had considered any other possibility, but I still can’t shake the feeling Rhett did something to her when he found out about us.”

  “And you told the police this?” Madigan asked.

  “Every word. I didn’t want to be a suspect because I didn’t want to take the focus off Rhett. That’s why I didn’t tell the police about Tina and me in the first place. I knew they’d see my record when they looked at me instead of a man who loves his wife—ex wife.” He sighed. “Every minute they questioned me would have felt like a waste if I’d known they wouldn’t take anything I said about him to heart. They could have been looking into him.”

  “Well, they were, Mr. Morelli,” Grace said. “They have to investigate every avenue.”

  “But I’ve told you,” Shawna said. “They’ll never really look into Rhett. My father is more of a suspect to them than he is, and he’d never hurt my mom.”

  “I want to do something to help,” Matt said, “but I’m just useless here. Now that I’ve heard Shawna’s experience with him, I think something needs to be done. He has mistreated my daughter and Tina.”

  “Mr. Morelli, I urge you to cooperate with the police,” Grace said.

  “Please, call me Matt.” He gripped the arms of his chair. “I assure you, I’ve been cooperating. I’ve also been worried sick about Tina. The last night I saw her, we kissed, and I told her I loved her. She said she loved me too, and we left it like that, but I wish I’d said so many things.” He and Shawna turned to each other again. “I wish I’d told her I’d protect her, whether she left Rhett for me or just left him for good. That I would take care of her in all the ways she deserves, and you. I want to make up for lost time. But now…I think she was under a lot of stress, scared of Rhett, and what if she was too scared to leave him? And like an idiot, I signed those papers and brought them over. What if I let her go back to the man who—”

  Shawna stood and walked behind him, resting a hand on his shoulder. “It wasn’t your fault.”

  “I didn’t want to create any issues. That’s why I came to the house with the divorce papers signed. If she wanted the divorce, I figured at least I’d made her happy. Taken some of her stress away. If she felt the way I did, I thought she’d tear them up. Leave Rhett and come back to me.”

  “Maybe she was trying to,” Shawna muttered.

  From controlling to caring. What has he done to make Shawna change her mind about him this fast?

  “You both think she was trying to
get away from him—” Madigan started as bells trilled from behind them.

  Shawna dashed over to her purse and answered her phone. “Hello? Yes. No, I’m not there right now. Why?” She turned back toward them with a frown, staring at the floor. “How? I thought you were watching him?”

  Her eyes met Matt’s, and he stood.

  “No, I’m at my father’s. Okay, hold on.” She pressed the screen. “They’ve sent a patrol car to watch me. Amanda, Tommy’s girlfriend, is missing, and they searched the Leman’s home and property. She wasn’t there, and neither was my mom or Tommy. He has a warrant out for his arrest after violating parole, failing to check in today. They’re going to question his brother at work now.”

  Matt nodded. “Alright, well, you know you can stay with me as long as you want. They can send a car over, but I won’t let anything happen to you.”

  Shawna tapped the screen and pressed the phone to her ear. “Okay.”

  “The cabin,” Madigan whispered to Grace. “He could be there.”

  Grace walked up to Shawna and held her hand out. Shawna handed her the phone.

  “Hello, this is Detective Grace Sheppard. Yes, I’m here with Shawna—yes. The cabin… It is? I will.” She handed the phone back to Shawna and rejoined Madigan and Matt.

  “What cabin?” Matt asked.

  “We don’t know,” Grace said. “The Leman brothers’ family used to rent a cabin in Torrance, but it was sold while Tommy was in prison.”

  Matt frowned. “What if they still use it? Who does it belong to?”

  Grace turned to Madigan.

  Her wheels are turning…

  “The owner wasn’t listed in the records…” she muttered to herself.

  “That’s it! I’m going,” Matt said. “Where is it?”

  “I think you should let the police handle this,” Grace said. “I’m sure they’ll contact the local authorities in Torrance, and they’ll be there soon.”

  “Torrance is just north of here, and it’s a big place,” Matt said, shaking his head. “It’ll take anyone too long. We’re the closest ones to it, and I’m not letting him hurt her while we just wait around.”

  “I’m coming too,” Shawna said.

  “No,” Grace said, and Matt echoed.

  “Shawna, you need to stay here with police protection right outside,” Matt said. “My security system is state of the art, and I need you safe.”

  Madigan pulled Grace aside. “What do you want to do?”

  “The cabin is in Amanda’s name,” Grace whispered. “They must have sold it to her. I’m not taking two civilians to chase down a murderer. Without us, Matt doesn’t know where it is.”

  “You said yourself, the local police will be there soon. It won’t be just us. They’ll be there.” Madigan glanced over at Matt and Shawna, hugging. “If there’s a chance we could help, we have to go. This is Tina.”

  “I know,” Grace muttered, rubbing her temples. “But you and Matt aren’t trained for situations like this, and I don’t want to put you in danger.”

  “I think he’s going whether we do or not. He’ll just drive the roads of Torrance until he spots a police car.”

  Matt and Shawna parted, and he jogged to the foyer, grabbing his coat and keys. “Even if the police arrive first and everything is taken care of, I want to be there for her.”

  Grace’s phone rang in her purse, and she grabbed it, turning to Matt. “Just wait! Just a minute!”

  He stopped and stared as she answered.

  “Greer.”

  “Kid,” a serious weight hung in his voice, and Madigan took a step closer to hear the conversation clearly, “what are you doing? Shelling told me everything—I heard him on the phone with you just now. Don’t go.”

  “I don’t really have time to explain.”

  “Don’t do this,” he said. “You know Sarge doesn’t screw around. If he wants your job, he’ll take it. Doesn’t matter how much you’ve added to the case or the breakthrough Shelling had because of you. You wanna come back. I want you back. You’ll never come back from this if you go against the Sarge’s orders.”

  Breakthrough? They used the info Grace gave them and had a breakthrough?

  “Shelling was able to place Tommy Leman and Amanda Post in the same place as Tina Morelli. He got a warrant. He already knew about Post, but you put her in the same place as Tina, too. That’s when he looked into her further and found the property ownership. Listen, my point is, you’ve done enough. I know you want to help, and I wanna be out there in Torrance to catch that sick bastard and save Tina just as much as you do. She’s one of ours. But I know my place, and I follow orders. I trust the team, and they’ve left. They’re on their way, some from South Bend even. You need to trust the team.”

  “The team turned their backs on me, Greer. They aren’t my team anymore. I owe Tina everything I have today, and if there’s a way I can help her, I’m doing it. I’m closer than anyone else. It could take too long—they could be too late.”

  Matt opened the front door and waved for them to follow.

  “This isn’t your fight,” Greer said.

  “The hell it’s not!” Grace shouted and held a finger up to Matt. He froze in place again as she turned her attention back to the phone. “Sarge doesn’t give me orders anymore, and if he wants to tell my Staff Inspector about this, he can go right ahead.”

  Madigan beamed with pride.

  “Listen, I appreciate the heads up, and you’ve done more for me than anyone else in the department—except for Tina. Gotta go.”

  She pushed the phone into her pocket and nodded to Madigan before turning to Matt. “Is the squad car out front for Shawna?”

  He nodded, turning back to his daughter one last time. “Shawna, I’m locking it all up now. You’ll be safe. I’m going to do whatever it takes to bring your mom home.”

  Grace and Madigan followed him out the door as his garage opened, revealing an Escalade and a Mustang.

  “We’ll take the Mustang,” he said, “less obvious, right?”

  Madigan’s phone rang in her bag, and she waited until they got in the car to pull it out.

  Roy’s. I’m late.

  She ignored the call and tapped Dana’s name, pressing the phone to her ear.

  “Hey, Knox, what’s up?”

  “Is there any chance you could work my shift today?”

  “When is it?”

  Madigan grimaced. “Right now.”

  “I can’t. I’m with Tyler, and it’s not enough time to find a sitter. I’m sorry—”

  As Dana apologized, a beep interrupted her, and Madigan checked the screen.

  Roy’s.

  “It’s alright; I gotta go,” she said, ending the call and answering the bar’s number. “Hello.”

  “Madigan, are you alright?” Roy asked.

  He never calls me, and he never calls me by my first name.

  “I am; I’m sorry I’m not there, Roy. I’m not going to be able to make if for my shift.”

  Roy sighed. “I know this job probably isn’t your dream, but we’ve been over this time and time again. I need reliable bartenders. I need to keep this place running, and ya keep showing me that’s not a priority to you.”

  “I’m so sorry, Roy. I know I’ve let you down.”

  “I didn’t wanna do this, but whenever you find yourself here next, we’ve gotta talk.”

  A heavy weight in her chest stopped her from taking full breaths, and her hands went cold.

  “I need directions,” Matt said from the front.

  “Roy, I promise this won’t happen again.”

  “Your word doesn’t mean that much to me now—”

  “I always get my shifts covered. This is the first time—”

  “You just don’t get it.”

  “I do! I’m trying to say, I’m doing my best.” But I’m not giving my best to him. I’m just trying to juggle what I’m passionate about with what pays the bills. “It’s not fair to you, Roy, I
know, but at least wait until we see each other to make up your mind.”

  “Are ya not coming in at all today?”

  I’m too far in, now. I can’t go back.

  “I’m sorry, Roy.”

  “I’m sorry, too, cause my mind’s made up.”

  The phone went silent, and Madigan checked the dark screen.

  And that’s it. I’ve let him down one too many times.

  The guilt swirled in the pit of her stomach as she let the conversation sink in.

  I deserved that, but I can’t let that be the end for Roy and me. I couldn’t stand it if things just end on that sour note between us, just like my last job at The Gazette.

  What’s wrong with me? Why don’t I fit anywhere, with anyone?

  Grace glanced back at her and pressed her lips together, tilting her head to the side in sympathy before turning around.

  If I hadn’t pushed her to be more involved, her job wouldn’t be on the line.

  I have to focus. I can’t disappoint Grace, too.

  Chapter Sixteen

  As they approached an intersection along a concession, Madigan guided Matt to make a left turn from the back seat as Grace peered out the passenger window at the gray sky.

  This could be it. We could get there, and the Torrance P.D. could have everything under control, and I’ll be written up for involving myself with the case again. Or worse.

  Nothing is worse than leaving this to other people and knowing I could have helped because they were too late. That we could have saved her.

  I’ll regret that more than losing my job… But if I don’t have my job—I have nothing.

  “And now it’s down the road about five minutes, and then to the right, past those trees out there.”

  “Matt, you need to listen to me,” Grace said. “I know your instincts are going to be to look for Tina, but we need to do a proper sweep of the property first. We’ll park at the end of the road by the driveway. If Tommy’s car is there, we’ll notify the police. If the police are already there, we’ll do as they ask. Got it?”