The pit bull was back. “I’m sorry, Devin. I owe you my life, but I absolutely won’t do that.”
Shane dropped his head against the wall muttering about ungrateful, senile, old men. Devin just leaned in against the rails of the hospital bed.
“How about tonight? What do you think happened this evening?”
Henry grinned. “Well I know I’m glad I don’t have any kids, because they’d be trying to ship me off to some assisted living facility thinking I burned my own house down.”
“So is that what happened? You had a senior moment?” Her eyes were twinkling, because it was hard to keep a straight face thinking of Henry as being senile.
“Heck, no! One minute I’m setting the table, and I go back to the kitchen to get the roses I cut out of the garden, and the stove is on fire! Before I can do anything, I see this movement out of the corner of my eye, but I just think it’s Bo, and then whack! Everything goes dark, and I wake up on the front lawn with the house on fire.”
Devin turned around and mouthed “I told you so” to Shane, but his brow was drawn in concentration. She frowned as he pushed off the wall and started to question Henry
“Henry are you sure you couldn’t have slipped when you made that dash into the kitchen? Or tripped over Bo? If you hit your head, you may have forgotten something or things may be a little fuzzy. Are you one hundred percent sure things happened that way? Heck, can we really be a hundred percent sure of anything in this life? ”
“I’m pretty darn sure, Shane, but I guess with a head injury there is a chance things could have been different.”
Tendrils of ice slid down Devin’s spine, followed by white-hot, all-encompassing rage. With one phrase Shane had just filled her in on who he really was. Lying by omission hardly covered it. She said her good-byes to Henry with assurances that she would look after Bo. Shane kept up steady chatter all the way through the hospital, but Devin kept her mouth drawn in a tight line. She didn’t dare open it for fear that if her anger was unleashed in these tight corridors, innocent bystanders might be injured. Once they had cleared the hospital doors by a good twenty yards she rounded on him.
“You’re a lawyer!” She hurled the words at him like a weapon snarling with fury. “What’s worse, you’re a defense attorney! You’ve studied in Richmond. I can tell. Did you practice there, too? Ever defeat one of my cases? Or did your firm specialize in tax evasion?” Her questions continued to come fast and furious, and her anger only intensified. Shane held his palms up and backed away, trying to keep a bench between them at all times.
“Hey, easy now, before you go jumping to any conclusions, let’s talk about this. For one thing, how did you just figure that all out?” From her murderous expression, he must have gathered she wasn’t in a sharing mood at the moment. “Okay, we’ll come back to that. Most importantly, I never wanted to be a lawyer. My daddy was a lawyer my granddaddy was a lawyer, and so forth and so on. It was expected of me, so that’s what I did, but I hated it. I spent a year in New York being a peon in the D.A’s office and bored out of my skull. When the budget got cut and they transferred me to the public defender’s office, I was done. My family here needed the help, and there was an opening for a sheriff’s deputy. That’s all there is. I’m not some slick defense attorney, so get off your high horse.”
Devin was taking long, slow breaths to calm down. She knew her reaction wasn’t proportionate to the situation, but hearing those exact words again took her back to a court room scene she didn’t want to see. A confident witness that was suddenly shaken and confused. A solid case that unraveled and murderers walked free. One more slow breath. Her voice was tight now but under control.
“So you went to law school in Richmond,” she paused for him to confirm, “and you had a professor named Gabriel Dallon.”
Shane was so stunned he forgot for a moment to maintain a safe distance and leaned across the back of the bench, his words not so much a whisper as a breath. “How can you possibly know that? Yes, I did have him as a professor. He was a pompous jerk, and I nearly flunked his class. Devin, what the hell is going on?”
The surge of anger receded just as quickly as it had come, but it left Devin empty and shaken with harsh memories rather than satisfied vengeance. She looked ghostly in the moonlight, she had gone so pale that the traces of soot made harsh bruise like patterns on her skin. She didn’t answer him immediately. Instead sinking into the memories that were her own personal demons, the screams and the blood that still kept her up at night, the trial that had fallen apart. Finally she shivered in the evening breeze and it brought her back to Shane’s concerned blue eyes and his outstretched hand. Apparently she was starting to sway a bit, the effects of the day taking their toll. She ignored his hand and steadied herself on the back of the bench. When she spoke, she kept her tone even and matter-of-fact.
“You were questioning him like a defense attorney, trying to create doubt.” Devin offered up a small tired smile. “There should have been an objection—you were leading the witness.” Shane just huffed with a roll of his eyes. “I heard Dallon defend some street-scum gang members on a case once where there was an ironclad eye witness, but he had her so confused by the end, she wouldn’t have testified to her own name.” She looked into Shane’s eyes and kept her gaze steady. “He kept using that exact same line about being 100% sure about anything in this life.”
Shane looked back at the hospital and nodded. “That’s a patented Gabriel Dallon line. He used to say it so often, it became a drinking game. Someone would record his lecture and that night at a party, we’d play it back and every time he said it, the whole group did a shot. Needless to say, fifteen minutes into the lecture everybody was hammered. Ughh!” Shane rubbed both his hands across his face and then brought his fingertips together at his lips. “I can’t believe I used a sleazy Gabriel Dallon line. I feel like I need to go wash my mouth out with soap.”
Devin laughed. “Do you want liquid or a bar?”
“I think I need both to get rid of the taste.” His grin lit him up. He was thrilled to be inching back into her good graces. He offered her his arm as they headed for the parking lot, but she sauntered off without him. Undeterred he kept pace beside her. “So was it one of your cases that Dallon ruined?”
She scowled. “Let me guess, you like to pick at scabs, don’t you?”
With a sharp intake of breath, Shane threw both of his hands dramatically over his heart. “You know me so well! It’s like we’re soul mates!” He finished it off with rapid fluttering of his eyelashes.
Devin was already standing beside his truck and hissed out between clenched teeth “No, it was not my case. Now will you just get over here and take me home!”
Chapter 15
On the ride home Devin pondered why Henry wouldn’t give her any more information. She knew he wanted to find Laney’s killer more than anyone. Not to mention the fact that she has just saved his life, his dog and probably his house. She smacked her hand on the seat in frustration.
“What could be so important for Henry to protect? I mean it wasn’t like they were out overthrowing the government, so what’s the big deal? It’s been thirty-five years!”
Shane shrugged his shoulders keeping his eyes on the road. “I have no idea. Same thing with the girl—why not give a name? She’s a girl he spent ten minutes with in the back seat of his car three and half decades ago.”
“Gee, and they say chivalry is dead.”
“Hold on a minute, Henry is no saint. He’s quite the ladies’ man and always has been. Back in the day I don’t believe he was known for courting young ladies at the church socials, if you know what I mean.”
Devin had to laugh at the image. A young Henry brought to mind fast cars and rock and roll, not Bible bingo and discussions on morality. But the laughter died on her lips.
“Why then protect this one girl? What was so special about her that Henry would keep her a secret all these years?”
Usually the jester, Sha
ne was very serious when it came to breaking down an investigation. He frowned deep in thought. “Do you think it was Laney?”
“No. No way. If he’d gotten Laney in the car it would have been to run off and elope. Think about it—he wouldn’t have wasted his time with the girl of his dreams in the back seat of his car for a ten-minute memory. He would have whisked her away for a lifetime of memories.”
Shane nodded in agreement. “Okay, then who else was important to Henry?”
Devin let out an exasperated sigh. “No one! His world revolved around her…”. She trailed off as the thought hit her. She and Shane looked across the cab at each other and said in unison.
“Who was important to Laney?”
“Of course, he would protect whatever or whoever was precious to her!” Devin’s voice was gaining volume with the speed of her thoughts.
“But the problem will be narrowing it down. She was the prom queen for goodness’s sake. She must have had a hundred girlfriends.”
“You, my friend, do not understand the female psyche.”
Shane snorted as he turned the truck on to Devin’s street. “That’s the understatement of the year.”
Devin smiled tiredly at his humility. “A girl may have many friends, but there is only best friend, one confidant that is like a sister.”
And Laney Bennett’s was more than a friend she was actually a blood relative, a cousin.
Devin was exhausted when they pulled into the driveway, she was considering just sleeping on the porch swing. She gazed admiringly at her flower boxes before she reached for the door handle of the truck. Those petunias are really coming along nicely. Then her hand froze in mid air. That all-too familiar shiver of awareness ignited her senses, and adrenaline pumped through her veins, waking her up in an instant. The dining room curtains were gaping open three inches, creating a black stripe down the center of the window from the darkened room within.
Her voice was low and intense, and all the while, her searching gaze never left the house. “Shane, do you have an extra pistol in the truck?”
His head snapped up, searching for what she saw. He was already reaching for the gun. “Why do we need it?”
“Someone’s been in my house.”
As soon as the gun touched her hand, Devin was out of the truck and on the porch, sliding along the windows to get a look inside. Shane let out a low string of curses and radioed in a possible break-in and officer needs assistance, and then sprinted up on the porch to catch Devin before she went in the house. She motioned for him to go around back, but there was no way he was leaving her to go in alone with his gun and no badge. So with hearts pounding and pistols drawn, they cleared each room one by one, first the downstairs and then up.
They had just come back into the dining room and flipped on the lights when sirens hit the street. Shane went out to meet them. Devin could hear orders being shouted about and footsteps pounding into the perimeter around her house. The flashing lights penetrated the crack in the curtains, creating a psychedelic effect in the room. Shane came back in with Adam and the sheriff. For some reason she had half expected to see Sheriff Bittner in a flannel bathrobe and slippers topped with his patrol hat, but he looked the same as always, as if he sat at home waiting for catastrophes to strike. Adam, on the other hand, looked completely caught off guard. He was wearing a yellow Fenton Sheriff’s Department sweatshirt paired with khaki pants and shiny penny loafers with no socks. He reminded her of the men that dressed in a hurry when their wives were in labor, only the bare essentials and no concern for what made an outfit as long as they were clothed and shoed.
“Miss Devin, this is not the hospitality I was hoping to roll out to you.” Sheriff Bittner was frowning as he hooked two thumbs in his duty belt just under his immense belly.
She couldn’t help but grin at that grandfatherly face. “Are you kidding? Arson and break-in? Welcome to a Friday night in my town. I feel right at home.” It helped reduce the tension in the room.
“All right, sweetheart, what happened?” The sheriff was listening, but it was Adam who pulled out the pad and began taking notes.
Devin didn’t get very far in her story. “When Shane brought me home from the hospital, we pulled in and I could see immediately that the dining room curtains were pulled apart about three inches—”
“Curtains? I called in a breaking and entering over curtains?” Shane threw up his hands in disgust and stalked to the other end of the table. Adam and Sheriff Bittner were looking at her as if she were a bit touched in the head.
Devin clenched her jaw. “Really? There is a point here.” Shane turned around and folded his arms, his jaw just as tight. She explained about the darkness in the room before she left for dinner and thinking about needing to open the curtains tomorrow.
The three were unmoved by her evidence. It didn’t help her case that a deputy came in at that moment and reported that no signs of an intruder had been found on the property. There was some damage around the back door lock where someone could have tried to jimmy it, but the marks didn’t appear to be fresh and the newest finger prints appeared to be Devin’s.
Devin pinched the bridge of her nose, trying to deter the headache that was forming.
Great, maybe I can have Grandma’s old bed at the mental hospital.
Adam broke into her thoughts with his gentle voice. “Devin, is anything missing or disturbed?”
I wonder if a strait jacket will make my butt look big?
“As far as I can tell, nothing is missing, but my papers in here have definitely been rifled through. I am very obsessive about how I work through case files and notes, and now this is in complete disarray.”
Adam frowned at the tabletop. “It is very messy for you.”
Shane growled at the both of them. “Guys, you are totally over thinking this. Devin is rushing to get to dinner she walks quickly through the dining room and slams the front door. The gust of wind knocks the papers around and messes up the curtains.” He clapped his hands together and then flashed his palms out again as if he has just completed a magic act. “Life is simple—it’s not one big conspiracy theory. We’ve wasted enough county resources. We should go.”
The Sheriff cut in with a sharp tone. “Shane, this is exactly what our resources are for, and it is always better to be on the safe side. You call us for anything you need, Miss Devin.
She thanked the sheriff for his courtesy but her hard stare never left Shane, like a predator locked on the prey. “If you believe that life is really that simple, then it’s a good thing you took up small-town law enforcement, because you wouldn’t last a day as a cop in a city with a major crime rate.”
She hadn’t pulled any punches and neither would Shane. “Really? How would you know? They threw you out. Maybe it’s because you’re cracked and analyzing curtains!”
Neither Sheriff Bittner nor Adam underestimated her reaction. They did, however, underestimate her speed and agility. They both threw themselves between Devin and Shane. So she went over them. Planting her left foot on the seat of the chair she had just been sitting on and her right on the tabletop, she was able to stair step up and jump right over them, rolling right over their heads and glancing a kick off of Shane’s chin. Fortunately with the tight quarters Adam was able to pull her back before her right hook made contact. The Sheriff grabbed Shane by the front of his shirt and started dragging him towards the door.
Shane looked down at the blood he had wiped off his bottom lip with his thumb. “You are crazy!”
“Well, crazy solves cases, pretty boy! I’ve solved more cases in the last year then you’ll solve in your entire career! Go wax that!”
The Sheriff didn’t let Shane answer. “Miss Devin, you’ve had an incredibly difficult night. So I’m not going to arrest you for assault.” Shane started to protest so Sheriff Bittner shoved him completely out the door before he continued. “This time.”
Adam still had his arms wrapped around her, gripping her tightly to his chest a
s they watched the Sheriff make his exit. She tapped her fingers on his arm. “Adam? I’m not going anywhere. Hello, Adam.”
For a moment he looked as if he had no idea what she meant. After a few seconds of blank staring his face became bright red and he let her go.
“Oh! Yeah, of course. Shane can be so thick headed and he always wants to look like a hero, not a heel.” Adam grabbed his bag and headed for the door. He paused right on the stoop and cocked his head to the side as he looked back at her. “Go wax that?”
She grinned. “He looks like he’s waxed off all his body hair to me, it is not natural for a man to have skin that smooth, and he has these perfectly shaped eyebrows. Even his hair looks like wax is holding it in place—it’s shiny and pointy. He’s like a polished wax doll.”
Adam returned her grin. “Nice. See you in the morning, sunshine.”
Fabulous, in four hours I have to teach a self-defense class and I’ve alienated two of my three assistants. Way to go, Devin.
Chapter 16
Even though Devin arrived at the high school gym two hours early, there were already two trucks and a motorcycle in the parking lot. She didn’t know what to expect when she walked inside, but a clamoring of St. Bernard puppies would have been an easier way to start the day. Both Shane and Deputy Lambert were trying to be first in line to apologize this morning, and they had gifts to try and win her forgiveness. She practically ran over Jake as she burst through the double doors—he was waving a bouquet of supermarket flowers and a box of doughnuts. She had to dodge a daisy he was stabbing towards her eye.
“No thanks, Jake. I can’t eat those this early in the morning, but thanks for coming to help with the class.” She was looking back at him as she walked and had to come to a complete stop to not collide with Shane. He held up a tall paper cup with a lid and fancy wrapper. Devin was sure it was an expensive frothy whipped coffee drink of some sort.
“Devin, I’m so sorry. I’m a jerk and an idiot.”
Devils Among Us (Devin Dushane Series Book 1) Page 13