Crime & Passion

by Chantel Rhondeau

  Donovan stood to pace the room once again. If only Maria had gotten a piece of her attacker, it would have saved some heartache. He wondered for the thousandth time if Brandon killed her. Even though Suzie went after Madeline in a similar way, Donovan couldn’t convince himself she was responsible for Frank and Maria’s deaths.

  “Character witness to testify about your relationship with Maria will cast doubt on a motive for you to kill her. The evidence with Maria’s murder is just too weak to stand up.” Jeremy sighed and rubbed his eyes. “The real problem is the Johnson murder. We have Eric’s testimony that you hit Frank Johnson combined with Madeline’s testimony that it might have been a cop she saw on the beach. It’s hard to make that go away as easily.”

  Madeline folded her arms across her chest. “Great! I’m the biggest threat to Donovan’s freedom?”

  Donovan stopped behind her chair. “It’s okay, Maddie. Jeremy can argue that you have no way of knowing it’s me. You can’t make a positive ID.”

  “It would be easier if I could get it thrown out,” Jeremy admitted. “If we only had Eric to contend with, I could throw suspicion on his actions. He was mad at Frank that day too. He was with Donovan at the hardware store and could have swiped his phone. He’s the one who conveniently found the phone later. The DA is already hesitating. I think he’d drop it if that was all he had to go on.”

  “I wish there was some way to tie Brandon to all of this,” Donovan said.

  “Brandon Feldman?” Jeremy raised his eyebrow. “You’re convinced he’s involved?”

  “He’s the only one I can think of who might hate me enough to frame me for murder.” Donovan rubbed Madeline’s shoulders absently while he thought about it. Unless it was Suzie, but if she did kill Frank as a favor to him, wouldn’t she have said something by now to try and lure him to her side? “Has anyone been allowed to question Suzie yet? Is it possible she’s responsible for all the murders?”

  “Anything’s possible. Her father’s blocking our efforts to question her.” Jeremy glanced at the clock on the wall. “The DA should be here soon. I’ll do the best I can to cast doubt on Eric and try to downplay what Madeline might have seen.”

  Madeline placed her hand across Donovan’s, stopping its movement. “What if I couldn’t be made to testify?” she asked.

  “Don’t worry, darling.” Donovan bent to kiss the top of her head. “Everything’s going to be okay. You can’t go back on what you saw because eventually it’ll help us catch the real killer.”

  She tilted her head back to look at him. “I didn’t mean I’d retract my statement. There is a way to make it so they can’t force me to testify against you.”

  A smile broke out across Jeremy’s face. “You mean if you guys are married? Excellent idea.”

  “We could go down after your meeting and do it today.” She grinned at Donovan. “What do you say?”

  “What do I say?” Donovan shook his head. “No.”

  The smile slid from Madeline’s face and her chin trembled slightly. “No?”

  Someone tapped on the door and opened it without waiting for an answer. A red-haired woman poked her head inside. “You guys are all set for room 108,” she said. “DA Sorenson is already waiting.”

  Madeline stood as the door closed, her hand to her face, covering her scar. “I’ll let you guys get to it then. Good luck.”

  She brushed past him and headed for the doorway.

  Shit!

  “Maddie, wait.”

  She opened the door without looking back at him.

  “Don’t just stand there, you idiot,” Jeremy said. “Go after her. I swear, if you stick your foot in your mouth one more time with that girl...”

  The rest of Jeremy’s words were lost behind him as Donovan ran out the door. Madeline had just opened the door leading outside the building.

  Donovan grabbed her shoulders and spun her around, wrapping her in his arms and pulling her close. “Don’t be mad at me, Maddie. Hear me out.”

  She stood stiffly in his arms. “I don’t think there’s more to say. It’s okay. You don’t want to marry me. I get it. I was only trying to help.”

  “No, you don’t get it. I love you.” He pressed his cheek against hers, placing his mouth next to her ear. “I don’t want you to marry me because you feel you have to.”

  “That’s not what I—”

  “I told you, I don’t want a relationship of convenience. I meant that.” And you’ve never said you love me. He didn’t say that aloud because it might make her feel she had to say it now. He wouldn’t marry Madeline unless she truly did love him. “If we were to get married, I’d want it to be because it’s what we both want.”

  Her arms went around him and he felt her body relax. “So, you’re not saying no forever?”

  That sounded promising. “We should revisit the issue when we aren’t forced into it.”

  She pulled back from him and lightly stroked his face. “Okay. We’ll wait.”

  He nodded. She seemed to understand what he was saying. Even if she still didn’t say she loved him. He tried hard to remind himself that she spent a month in a coma. In essence, he’d known her for an entire month more than she’d known him. He couldn’t expect her to feel as strongly as he did. Not yet. That didn’t stop him from hoping she got there.

  “Donovan,” Jeremy called from the hallway, “we need to get in there.”

  “Do you want me to stay?” Madeline asked.

  He shook his head. Her parents had called and said they were leaving for home today. Madeline needed to spend some time with them. “There’s nothing you can do here besides sit and wait. We’ll meet you for lunch when we’re done.” Donovan kissed Madeline one more time. “Wish me luck.” I’m going to need it.

  ***

  Madeline stepped out of her car at Rolling Shores Diner. Although she’d checked her phone constantly the last hour and a half while visiting her folks, Donovan had yet to call and give her good news. She could only hope the DA decided not to pursue charges.

  Her parents were at their hotel packing, but would drive to the diner in a few minutes to join everyone for lunch. Madeline searched the lot for Jeremy’s car, but the guys hadn’t arrived yet.

  Although she and Donovan were getting a lot of exercise of a horizontal nature, a quick walk along the beach would be nice while she waited for everyone to get to the diner. She missed walking the dogs and spending time in the fresh air. Besides, her doctors had told her that getting her body back into shape was important after spending so much time in the coma.

  She walked to the beach access stairway at the side of the diner. Grasping the railing, she stepped onto the first stair, careful of her footing. One thing about the stairways—the sand made them treacherous.

  “What are you doing?” a voice asked from right behind her.

  Madeline jumped and fumbled in her pocket, trying to reach her pepper spray. Her feet slipped from under her on the sand and she skittered horribly down a few steps. Strong arms went around her waist, keeping her from falling altogether.

  When her heart stopped thundering from the near disaster, she craned her neck over her shoulder to look at the person holding her.

  Eric’s hazel eyes were wide with surprise. “Sorry, Madeline. I wasn’t trying to scare you. I called out to you from the parking lot, but you didn’t hear me.”

  He steadied her and let go when Madeline gripped the hand railing again.

  “It’s okay,” she replied. “When I heard your voice, it suddenly occurred to me that I was out here on a beach where someone killed Frank Johnson.”

  Eric nodded. “Probably not smart for you to be running around alone.”

  “Not smart at all.” She shrugged. Nothing to do about it now, but Eric was right. Even though Suzie was locked up, Madeline still needed to be cautious. “Thanks for keeping me from breaking my head open. These steps are always so slick.”

  He raised an eyebrow. “I’m surprised Donovan let you out
alone. He’s been so ultra-protective. Everything okay with the two of you? You’re not fighting, are you?”

  Since she’d only had a handful of conversations with Eric, his asking about her personal relationship seemed a bit odd. Then again, he was Donovan’s partner and claimed to be her friend. Maybe he was genuinely concerned.

  “He had a meeting. He’s on his way here, but I thought I’d go for a quick walk. I want to enjoy the ocean like I used to.”

  “Well, you can’t be out here by yourself. The beaches aren’t safe for women out alone.”

  Frank Johnson’s face flashed into Madeline’s mind. “Or men.”

  He nodded. “I’ll walk with you, if that’s okay.”

  It wouldn’t be a bad idea to have a cop with her, just in case. If the killer was still on the loose like Donovan feared, Eric’s police uniform and gun offered reassuring protection.

  “Okay. You can come along,” she agreed, resuming her descent down the stairway.

  She reached the bottom and set off at a quick pace, heading for the water’s edge. The tide was out and she walked along the wet sand, searching the ground absently for shells as they made their way south.

  Eric seemed content to walk beside her, not breaking the silence with chatter. The only problem with that was it gave her time to think about Donovan.

  When he told her he wouldn’t marry her, she’d been surprised by how much it hurt. They’d been together such a short time, and she already couldn’t imagine her life without him. She wondered how long it would be before he was ready to consider marriage. Hopefully he received good news today and they could put this whole murder accusation behind them.

  She looked at Eric, not wanting to think about the death sentence Donovan might be facing. “What are you doing here anyway? You’re in your uniform, so shouldn’t you be working?”

  He shrugged. “I just finished lunch and saw you walking toward the beach. I figured that wasn’t safe and decided to check on you.”

  That was kind of him. Even though he sometimes annoyed her, Eric really was a nice guy. “Thanks for keeping an eye on me.”

  He grunted in acknowledgement. “I told you we needed to stick together, since we’re both new here.”

  She smiled and stopped walking, looking out at the rolling waves of the ocean. The two new kids enjoying the beach, but things certainly hadn’t turned out as she’d planned. Living in her beachside apartment for a year should have been the culmination of her deepest fantasy. Suzie turned it into a nightmare.

  Then again, what she wanted out of life had changed since she left Utah. Five years with Cameron never made her feel the way she felt for Donovan. The question was, would he ever be ready to marry her? Could he really become the better man he wanted to be?

  She touched her face, again feeling the ridge of damaged skin. Would a life with Frankenstein’s monster be enough for him?

  “The scar bothers you a lot, doesn’t it?” Eric asked. He took her hand and moved it away from her face, studying her. “It’s not that bad.”

  “Yeah, right.” She took her hand from his. “Tell me that once you’ve lived with it.”

  “Sorry.” He resumed walking and Madeline followed him. “I didn’t say that to belittle your feelings.”

  Oh, dear. I’m being a bitch. And I’m not even mad at him, I’m frustrated about my face. Get over yourself, Maddie.

  She felt a smile tugging the corners of her mouth. That was the first time she ever thought of herself as Maddie. It seemed Donovan had rubbed off on her.

  “I’m still sensitive about the scars, but I shouldn’t take it out on you.” She looped her arm through Eric’s and squeezed. “I know you’re trying to make me feel better. Thanks for being my friend.”

  “As your friend, there’s something else I’d like to talk to you about.” He stopped walking and turned to face her. The intensity in his eyes frightened her a bit. “But you really aren’t going to like this.”

  She swallowed hard. “Okay.”

  “It’s about your boyfriend.” His gaze shifted to the restaurant behind her. “He’s not a good person.”

  Madeline tried not to let her irritation show, but she’d had enough of everyone’s attitude against Donovan. “I know you don’t care for him, Eric. You’ve made that perfectly clear. But you also have no reason to think he’s done anything wrong. Can’t you see someone framed him?”

  “You still believe that story about being framed?”

  “Of course I do, and it sounds like the DA believes it too.”

  Eric narrowed his eyes. “What do you mean?”

  “The DA is considering dropping the charges. That’s what they’re talking about right now. I think it’s going to happen because he is innocent.” Madeline turned around, walking up the beach toward the restaurant. “Donovan has plenty of faults. Murdering people isn’t one of them.”

  Eric kept pace with her. “How do you know that for sure? I’ve heard some things in the last few weeks—things that have me concerned.”

  “Eric, stop. I don’t want to hear this.”

  “You don’t know about his past.” Eric caught her hand in his, tugging on it to slow her down. “I’ve seen his file, Madeline. Even if he doesn’t pay for these crimes, he’ll get caught eventually for something. I’m worried about you. What if you’re next? Chief Stone says—”

  “You’re being ridiculous.” Madeline whirled around to face him. “Why would you believe Chief Stone? He wants Donovan to be guilty because he can’t handle the fact that his only daughter is psycho and probably the one killing people.”

  “That’s not what’s going on.”

  “Isn’t it?” She put her hands on her hips and glared at him. “Did Stone send you here? Is this his way of putting pressure on me so I don’t press charges against Suzie, by threatening to come after Donovan and accuse him of more crimes?”

  He held up his hands, palms outstretched facing her. “No. No. That’s not it at all.” He shook his head. “I’m sorry. I’m just watching out for you. I shouldn’t have brought it up. But I don’t want...”

  His hands dropped and he shrugged.

  Madeline took a deep, calming breath. She considered herself a reasonable person. Maybe Eric truly was trying to help her. In any case, it would be better to hear what he had to say so she could warn Donovan. “What don’t you want?”

  “I don’t want him to hurt you,” he finished softly. His eyes narrowed, concern shadowing his face. “He’s a violent man, Madeline.”

  “Only to people who deserve it.” She started back up the trail, anxious to get into the restaurant. Donovan was probably there by now. She was tired of Eric’s accusations. Whatever he and Stone were up to, they would never convince her Donovan was bad.

  Eric walked her to the doorway in silence, but he grabbed her shoulder before she entered the building. “Madeline, are you in love with him?”

  She didn’t answer for a minute, unsure whether she wanted to admit anything to Eric. Finally, she nodded. “I am.”

  “So, there’s nothing I can say to convince you he’s bad news?”

  “No. There isn’t. The only people he ever harmed deserved it.”

  Eric raised an eyebrow. “Even the kid he killed in LA?”

  The breath stole from Madeline’s lungs. Chief Stone really was sharing all Donovan’s secrets.

  “If you’re trying to shock me, don’t waste your time,” she said, not bothering to hide the irritation in her voice. “Donovan told me about that. It broke his heart to shoot that kid. It’s one of his biggest regrets and worst memories.”

  Well, not the worst memory. Madeline shuddered as she thought of everything Donovan had seen in his life.

  “Is that what he told you?” Eric rolled his eyes. “And, of course, you believed him.” He shook his head. “If he’s so sorry, why didn’t he ever bother to contact Benny Stark’s family and apologize? He was cold to them Madeline...very cold. You don’t know Donovan Andrews as well as
you think you do.”

  Shocked, Madeline watched Eric whirl around and storm to his car. He climbed in, slammed the door, and revved the engine before screeching out of the parking lot.

  What was that all about?

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Donovan walked into the diner behind Jeremy, searching the room for Madeline and her parents. They were sitting together at a table near the back of the restaurant. He wanted to surprise her and give nothing away about his good news, but he couldn’t stop his smile from spreading as he looked at her.

  When Madeline’s eyes met his, the look on her face changed his smile into a frown. Something was wrong.

  She stood as he approached. “Are you okay? They didn’t pin more charges on you, did they?”

  Donovan shook his head. Obviously, she had worked herself into a frenzy worrying about him. He gave her a chaste kiss on the cheek, conscious of her parents watching. “Darling, he dropped all charges.”

  Her eyes widened. “Dropped them? You’re serious?”

  He nodded. “It’s over.”

  “Oh, thank goodness.” She grabbed his face in her hands, planting a passionate kiss against his lips.

  Unable to stop himself, Donovan slipped his arms around her waist, drawing her to him. If she didn’t care about her parents watching, why should he?

  Beside them, Jeremy cleared his throat. “Kids? I think we should sit down now.”

  Madeline broke off the kiss and her face twisted into a smile as she sat down. “This is great news. I’ve been worried.”

  “Me too.” Donovan took the seat next to her. “Good thing I got myself such a great lawyer.”

  Jeremy took a chair at the head of the table and opened the menu in front of him. “To be fair, it was Madeline who gave me the best idea.”

  “What did she do?” Keith asked.

  “Reminded me spouses couldn’t be made to testify against each other.” Jeremy looked at Keith and Karen and winked. “I spoke with DA Sorenson a few minutes before the judge came in. I may have accidentally let it slip that Maddie is crazy about Donovan and they’re planning to get married soon.”