by Dawn Kirby
“David, help me look. A dog’s been in here,” I said desperately. The thought that a dog had been inside the store after she was killed horrified me. “It’s been in her blood.”
“Are you sure it’s a dog?” he asked. I nodded vigorously. “Can you smell anything else?”
I closed my eyes and concentrated hard on the blood on my hand. It had a masculine scent to it. It wasn’t the same scent a male dog had though. A dog’s would have been strictly testosterone. This was human blood mixed with the scent of a dog.
Mom’s killer must own a dog. I didn’t understand why the smell was in the blood and not on it. For the dog’s blood to be mixed in with the man’s it would have had to be here as well. From what I could see a dog hadn’t been inside the store to bleed.
“A man attacked her,” I told him opening my eyes.
“What about emotions or personalities?” he asked pointedly. He had his arms crossed in front of his chest, looking at me thoughtfully. “Mia said you could—”
I quickly cut him off. I didn’t want him to get his hopes up. The guy wasn’t here and his dog wasn’t a possibility. “I can, but only if they’re standing in front of me and never an animal. It doesn’t work that way,” I explained. “I’m sorry I can’t tell you
more.”
“It’s alright, Leah,” he assured me. “What you’ve already told me will help. I can guarantee you that much.”
Chapter Six
My body tensed when I heard a car pull into the back lot. David pushed me behind him, silently warning me to stay quiet. His big body completely hid mine as we walked gingerly towards the door. If they want me they would have to go through him first.
We walked back through the storeroom slowly. As soon as we got to the door, David’s body relaxed. Apparently the new arrivals were the men he’d been waiting for. I stood inside the doorway while David went to greet them.
Two men stepped out of a red BMW parked beside David’s truck. The passenger was the only one I could hear. In fact his heart beat so fast it sounded as if he’d just run a marathon.
When he stood up, I got the full view of his size. Trim, muscular and handsome, he stood a little over six feet tall. Not quite as tall as David, but close, and probably just a few years older than me. He had a tan even Drew would be jealous of, though something told me his came naturally. The soft color of his eyes reminded me of melted Hershey bars. His thick black hair was cut short, but not too short. His facial features were soft, yet firm. This man had the face of an All-American man and the strong body of a lifelong linebacker.
The driver was a polar opposite. Instead of jeans and a t-shirt like his passenger, he wore a neatly pressed pair of khaki pants and a maroon dress shirt. His long, light red hair was pulled back into a loose ponytail that hung down the length of his back. Whether it was the paleness of his skin that exaggerated them or his eyes were actually that blue was anybody’s guess. Either way, they were truly stunning.
“It’s okay, Leah. They’re friends,” David said, waving me to him. “Mia knew them both.”
David gently slid his arm around me as I came to stand beside him. Now that I knew he was my dad, I didn’t feel so alone. Tonight we’d both suffered an unimaginable loss. I knew, given more time and a lot more familiarity, David and I could be a comfort to each other.
“Thank you both for coming,” David told them gratefully. “I’m afraid things are a lot worse than we thought.”
The passenger rolled his head forward and looked at me. “Is this your girl?”
David’s hold got tighter. “This is Leah,” he answered. “This is my daughter.”
“She knows?” the driver asked cautiously.
“Only that she is my daughter,” he said curtly. “Nothing else.”
Oh yes, I thought. Heaven forbid anyone share any details with me.
“And Mia?” the passenger asked. I was grateful to hear the genuine concern in his voice. I didn’t know him, but it was nice to know he cared about her.
“My mom’s gone,” I answered quietly, my eyes tearing up again. The young man’s shoulders dropped. “She’s inside the store.”
The driver came to me and gently took my hand in his. His skin was cool. His touch, soft and comforting.
“Leah, I’m Declan,” he said, dropping his head in a deep bow. “I wan’ ye to know we’ll do whatever it takes to find who took yer darlin’ mother from ye,” he finished softly. His Irish/Texas accent was as pleasant as his touch.
Before I could even say thank you the younger man took my hand from Declan’s.
“I’m Kale,” he said pleasantly. “It is a pleasure to finally meet you.”
Kale’s grip tightened the second his warm lips touched my hand. His nostrils flared, inhaling deeply. Releasing his breath, his upper lip curled menacingly. Though his fingers burrowing deep into my skin hurt terribly, I didn’t dare yank my hand away. He looked up at me. Anger raged in his soft face. He turned his burning eyes on David. A bright red haze followed.
“Is this why I’m here?” he asked furiously, holding my hand up to David.
“It is,” David said flatly.
“You don’t think saying something beforehand would have been nice?” Kale asked. His jaw was clenched so tightly the muscles had started to twitch.
“No time,” David answered. “Leah says the killer is male. I need to know if she’s right.”
“I can’t be sure yet. Wait. You picked the blood apart?” Kale asked, dropping my hand in disbelief. “How is that possible? You’re not”
“Not all, but she has traits.” David put his hand firmly on Kale’s shoulder. “My daughter needs your help, Kale. I need you to focus and tell me who we’re looking for.”
He held out his hand and smiled softly at me. “May I?” he asked politely,
“I promise I won’t hurt you again.”
I gave him my hand and he took it gently into his. He turned it over and smelled my palm. There was a lot more blood there. Several seconds later his red haze disappeared. When he looked back up at me this time there was a look of deep shame in his eyes. “I give you my word I knew absolutely nothing about this,” he said sadly. “I’m sure no one else did either. Please forgive me.” He held my hand firmly between his, begging me for forgiveness.
“I can’t forgive you for something you didn’t do. It’s not your fault.” This is all on me.
“Do you know who it is?” David asked him.
“Not yet. I need a bigger source,” Kale told him. His eyes fell on me again. “Where did you find the smell?”
A hysterical laugh almost escaped me. There I stood covered in blood and he asks me where I found it? I even had blood in my hair for goodness sakes! “It’s everywhere,” I said pointing at store. Then I had a thought. If he smelled things the same way I did maybe he could explain the presence of the dog. “Can you tell me how the dog’s blood got mixed in? It would have to be here and bleeding for that to happen, right? We looked all over for paw prints—”
“But didn’t find any,” Kale finished for me. He shook his head and looked at David. “She should’ve been brought to you a long time ago. Mia should’ve known that.”
“She thought it would all go away,” David said, tears filling his eyes.
“Wud any o’ the blood be Leah’s?” Declan asked quickly.
“No, she hasn’t been hurt,” David answered, wiping the tears away.
I couldn’t blame him for asking. My lower body was saturated. I’d have a lot of explaining to do when the police got here, especially since we hadn’t called them yet. That realization sent me into panic mode.
“David, we have to call the police,” I said urgently. “If we don’t hurry they’ll think you or I did this to her.”
“No, Leah. We have to get you as far away from here as possible,” he said sharply. “I still don’t know who we can trust.” “They’ll know we were here. I don’t want any of y’all to get in trouble on my account,” I argued. “I’ve already c
aused enough.” I pulled my cell phone out of my pocket and flipped it open. No way were they going to become suspects.
David jerked the phone out of my hand and shoved it in his pocket. “First of all, you didn’t cause any trouble,” he told me. “Secondly, I’m not going leave Mia here alone. We have a friend at the department who happens to work in the homicide division. Turner will take good care of her. Let me do this the right way. Let me protect you.”
His tone told me this wasn’t a run-of-the-mill murder. Something else was involved, only I couldn’t figure out what it was. Until somebody finally decided to tell me why it had happened, why people were after me, I had no choice other than to try to trust David’s judgment.
“What now?” I asked him, leaning against the car for support. My legs felt more like a warm bowl of Jell-O than limbs. “How do we figure out who killed her?”
“Declan leave your car here for Kale.” He turned to Kale. “When you’re done here, come to Mia’s. We’ll wait for you there. I need Declan’s help back at the house. Judith has been too close to her already. I’m not leaving Leah alone.”
A sudden sense of guilt overtook me. While I appreciate his desire to protect me at all costs, I couldn’t live with myself if the cost was his life. As scared as I was, I wasn’t totally helpless. The house was my one safe place and I knew how to use a gun. Mom had one tucked away in her nightstand. She’d asked Drew’s dad to teach me how to use it when I was fourteen. With my sight I could hit a target dead center with no problem. I’d just have to sleep with it under my pillow from now on.
“David, really, once I get back home I’ll be fine,” I said. “Everything is locked up pretty tight as it is. I promise I’ll lock the deadbolt when you leave.”
“Leah, they want ye. Doors an’ windows won’t stop ‘em. The only place yer safe now is with us,” Declan said soothingly. “We’ll not let anything happen to ye.”
I looked to Kale for support, but I didn’t get it. His determined stare said it all. No sense in wasting what energy I had left on a losing battle. It was obvious that nothing I could say would change their minds. The three of them against one of me aren’t good odds. Once we got back to the house, they’d see everything was fine and I could go to sleep safely in my own home.
“You’ll stay with her until the detective gets here?” I asked Kale.
“I won’t leave until they take her body away,” Kale said, bowing his head to David.
“Shall I call Donovan?” Declan asked. He already had his cell phone in his hand.
“Please,” David answered. “Tell him the situation. Let May know Leah will be coming home with me. Have her get a room ready. She’ll be safe there.”
“An’ Raine? Ye know the lad will want to help ye,” Declan said.
“Donovan needs him there right now,” David said. “But tell him I want to see him the second we arrive.”
I hated this! Because of me, six other people had their lives on hold. If they helped me, they could end up like Mom. Taking me back to my house to check things out was one thing, but taking me to their house to stay was another. They couldn’t get involved any more than they already were. It was expecting way too much of people I’ve never met. Guarding my life with theirs would be too much to expect of anybody.
“Take me back home,” I told David. “This is my problem, I’ll deal with it. Just tell me what I need to know.”
He stared blankly at me for a minute while my words sank in. The scent of sandalwood filled the air and his eyes turned dark green. His furious reaction scared me, but I didn’t let him see it. I wasn’t going to get him killed too.
“The man who did this,” he pointed towards the store, “is dangerous. You can’t just deal with it!”
“Don’t you think I’ve figured that out? I don’t want any of you to get hurt. I just got you back! Now Mom’s dead!” A sob caught my voice. Nerves raw, I yelled, “If I hadn’t done whatever it was I did, she would still be alive. This is all on me. Can’t you see that? I’m the one getting the strange phone calls and mysterious notes left on my car. And to top it all off I’ve got a couple of stalkers that turn up whenever they feel like it. I can’t drag y’all into this!” Tears began to flow again. Whether from anger or grief even I couldn’t figure out.
David grabbed my shoulders tightly. His strong fingers bit hard into my skin. His whole body was shaking. This was apparently something that was not open for debate. “Leah, this is not your fault! You didn’t do anything wrong. One jealous woman did all this,” he growled. “Her selfish actions have cost me dearly and I will be damned if I let her have you, too. Do you understand?”
All I could do was nod my head. It didn’t matter how I felt about them helping me, they were going to do it anyway. Total strangers were walking into a tornado and I couldn’t do anything to stop it. Defeated, I leaned my head on his chest. David dropped his hands to encircle me, and turned to Declan.
“Make the call,” he demanded. “Kale, be sure you tell Turner this is a delicate matter. If you run into any trouble call Donovan. He’ll straighten things out.”
Kale looked at me thoughtfully. He leaned back on David’s truck, his arms across his chest. “You keep saying ‘he did this’. What makes you so sure someone else wasn’t involved?”
“Because I can only smell his blood on her. If someone else had been involved I’d smell the difference,” I told him. “Mom didn’t give up without a fight.”
“Ye mentioned a dog,” Declan wondered aloud. “How is it ye smell it if the animal wasn’t a party to her attack?”
“I haven’t figured that out yet,” I admitted. “I’ve never had the need to pick apart blood like this.”
“So maybe you’re just picking up on the dog’s scent. Maybe he’s the male you smell,” Kale said off hand.
“I don’t think so, it would smell different. Animals always do,” I explained. “This is a human smell and its masculine.”
“How so?” he asked, pushing off the truck, obviously very interested in my answer.
“I know it sounds silly, but it’s almost like the man and the dog are one in the same,” I told them. “I could be wrong. Like I said, this is the first time I’ve ever took the time to pick apart the scents in blood.”
“Looks like I’ve got some work to do,” Kale said, walking towards the doorway.
With that he disappeared into the store while Declan made his phone call. I was so tired I didn’t even bother to listen in. When he got off the phone he took a blanket out of his trunk and took it inside the store. There were tears in his eyes when he came back outside.
“Kale ‘as my keys. He’ll be along shortly,” he told David quietly. “Let’s get the lass somewhere safe.”
“Come on, Leah,” David said softly. “You can take a shower at the house while we wait.”
I let him lead me to the truck. There simply wasn’t any fight left in me. Declan kindly opened the passenger’s side back door and I crawled in. It took a lot of restraint not to lie down and cry some more.
“Thank you for covering her up,” I said gratefully.
Declan smiled weakly and patted my hand. “Mia’s always been good to us. It’s the wee little bit I could do.”
“Do you mind driving? I’d like to stay with Leah,” David asked Declan. Then he looked at me. “Is that okay with you?”
I nodded and scooted over a little. He handed over his keys and got in beside me. The minute he was settled, he pulled me close and held on like I’d disappear if he let go. To tell the truth, I was afraid of the same thing. I laid my head on his shoulder and did my best to relax.
As Declan pulled away from the store, I started to cry all over again. Reality hit hard. I could still smell the scent of her blood on me as it dried on my clothes and skin. The rosy perfume comforted me and hurt at the same time. I knew her scent was something I would never smell again and that realization cut right through me. She would never see me married. Never hold my kids. Never gui
de me through one silly crisis or another the way she had my entire life. I would never hear her soft voice again. I’d never see her perfect face in life again. The one person who knew and loved me best was gone.
“Leah, I’m sorry I lost my temper earlier, but I need you to trust me on this,” David whispered. “You’re all I have left now.” “You don’t have to apologize,” I said softly. “I just don’t understand. I get that I’m in danger, but why any of y’all want to get in the middle of it is beyond me.”
“I’d be involved no matter what. You’re a part of me,” David said quietly. He rubbed his hand up and down my arm, trying his best to console me. “Whether you know it or not, we’ve been protecting you since before you were born.”
“You don’t have to though,” I argued. “Whoever is after me already got Mom. I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if someone else got hurt. Or God forbid, killed. Obviously they have no qualms about resorting to that.”
“Darlin’, you have a lot to learn,” he said quietly. “You’re just like her. Everybody else comes first to the exclusion of your own safety. You don’t have that luxury anymore. You are the only thing that matters to any of us right now.”
“None of us take yer situation lightly, Leah. We never ‘ave,” Declan said firmly. “Jus’ so ye know, I’ve taken full responsibility for this whole thing. I should have been more vigilant.”
“You know as well as I do who the responsibility falls on, Declan. Let him carry it,” David said angrily. “Eventually,
Donovan will see it too.”
“If I knew what the situation was,” I mumbled, angrily crossing my arms over my chest. “I’d probably understand it better.”
“I know you’re ready,” David said softly, “but I want you to get cleaned up and settled down first. What I have to tell you can wait until then.”
Within minutes Declan pulled into the driveway. David and Declan checked the yards around us for any hint of danger, while I sat back and strained my ears to do the same. Since nothing jumped on us, we piled out. My shadow, otherwise known as David, stayed close.