His Destiny (HIS Series Book 5)

by Sheila Kell

  Kelly couldn’t tell if it was anger or incredulousness in her tone. Either way, it didn’t bode well for Kelly’s chances of interviewing the woman.

  “I’ve some new information that casts doubt on your husband’s guilt.”

  “Ex”—she stressed the word—“husband.”

  “I’m sorry, your ex-husband. I’d like to sit down with you and ask a few questions.”

  The woman studied her for a moment then shook her head. “No.” She turned and walked away.

  Just like that? Oh, hell no. She’d chased stories before, and this wouldn’t be any different. Kelly double-timed it to catch up to the woman. “Mrs. Copeland, this could mean a guilty person is out there while Adrian is in jail for a crime he didn’t commit.”

  “Fuck Adrian. He certainly fucked me over.”

  With nothing to say to that, she tried her stance again. “Mrs. Copeland, may I please have a little of your time to discuss this?” Hell, she’d start asking her questions on the street in a few minutes. Only she’d have rather read the transcripts first to know what the woman had said in court.

  Mrs. Copeland stopped and turned to her. “Read my lips. I want nothing to do with this. I don’t give a shit whether Adrian is innocent or guilty. Leave me alone, or I’ll file stalking charges against you.”

  Stunned, Kelly could only stand there when the woman hurried away. What the hell happened in that marriage that she’d allow him to remain in jail if he was innocent? Good grief.

  She quickly hailed a cab to the newsroom. Her thoughts about the couple didn’t stop until she reached the warmth inside the building. As the cold washed away, Kelly began removing her coat on her way to her seat.

  Much later in the day, she still thought of her interaction with Nikki Copeland. A bitch of the first degree. How could she get her to agree to talk? She’d promised to try and help Adrian and that meant speaking with Nikki. There had to be a way. Kelly had to find something that would benefit the woman. That was all there was to it.

  “Earth to Kelly.” Megan interrupted Kelly’s wayward thoughts.

  Shaking herself to awareness, she smiled. “Hey, Megan. You’ve been out all day. Was it productive?”

  Megan dropped into a desk directly across from Kelly’s. After dropping her purse into a bottom drawer, Megan leaned forward on her forearms and nodded. “It was good, but we can talk about it later. Trent’s home.”

  That reminded Kelly that Megan had told Trent that she was worried. Wondering if Megan had brought him home, she almost missed the woman’s next words.

  “The woman he traveled with died.”

  A lump jumped up her throat and lodged there. Knowing he’d ridden off without a word had been bad enough, but the fact he’d done it with a nurse from the hospital had been a terrible pain in her heart even though she’d already made her choice of giving up hope of him and marrying Brian.

  So excited to have him home, she’d forgotten about his companion when he’d visited the night before. Anger at and concern for him raged through her veins. “What happened?” she asked, unsure she truly wanted to know.

  “Cancer.” The one word was the extent of Megan’s answer.

  The jealousy that had lived within her when he’d left with the woman fled. Although admittedly, a residual amount remained. She couldn’t help it.

  Picking up her notebook, Kelly set it back down and shifted it on her desk, trying to find the proper angle for it. Grabbing her pen to line it up—just buying time before she needed to respond—the movement of several people to the mounted TV screens caught her attention, but she returned her focus to Megan. “He says you’re worried about me. What’d you tell him?”

  A blush crept up her friend’s neck. She should be embarrassed. Although, it had brought Trent home, so she couldn’t be too angry. “I’m worried. I just told him about the car break-in.”

  Kelly’s brow climbed up her forehead. “And?”

  Running her fingers through her blonde hair, Megan cleared her throat nervously. “Well, I told him how you were always looking over your shoulder.” Narrowing her eyes at Kelly, she challenged, “You are.”

  Someone breaking into her apartment and stealing Brian’s bag told her that Megan had been right to be concerned. Whoever had done this had probably been watching for when she was gone so they could get in without issue. They’d failed and caught her and Trent. She winced, thinking how she’d tried to help, thought she was swinging at the bad guy when she’d hit Trent. Hard. It had allowed the thief to get away.

  Deciding it best not to share this with Megan, she smiled, hoping it was convincing that she wasn’t concerned. “I don’t do it any more than normal for living in Baltimore.”

  “Hmph.” Obviously deciding to leave the subject alone, Megan asked, “How’s Ashley?”

  She placed her hand on her stomach, and softly stroked the swollen belly. “She’s been active.” Every day awe still struck her at a life growing inside her body. Wanting to be a mother since she’d reached adulthood, she still couldn’t wrap her head around the fact it was actually happening. With the movements in her stomach more baby and not as much gas, her love swelled for the little girl cocooned in her womb. Just to show her worth, Ashley kicked and Kelly jumped, laughing.

  Megan chuckled. “I remember those days.” Then with a serious tone, she asked, “Have you decided?”

  Stilling her hand, Kelly nodded. “Yes, I’m going to visit Brian’s family.” That decision hadn’t been difficult, but it hadn’t been easy either. She’d grown up in that small town of less than two hundred people. After the event that claimed Brian’s life, her blood pressure had spiked dangerously high, and she’d had a small bleed, which her doctor subsequently placed her on bedrest for two weeks. In her condition, Mike hadn’t wanted her to travel for the funeral. He’d demanded she rest and take care of herself and his grandchild.

  “What about your family?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “Kelly.” Megan sighed. “You can’t escape them. They won’t think less of you.”

  “Of course they will,” she snapped, then quickly apologized. She’d tossed out everything her parents had taught her. Remaining a virgin until she’d married had been ingrained into her. The importance of it. The gift she offered a husband. Even if she’d had sex outside of marriage with someone they loved like a son, she couldn’t face them. Yet she knew going to Brian’s home would bring her parents and siblings. Brian’s dad was eager to meet his granddaughter.

  The crowd around the TV grew. Raising a brow to Megan, her colleague nodded, and they rose and followed the group.

  Listening to the broadcast, sadness seeped into her. Another murder in Baltimore. It never mattered that she didn’t know the person. It was just an untimely death. About to walk away, a name in the scrolling words at the bottom of the screen caught her attention. Her hand flew to her mouth.

  Nikki Copeland had been murdered. Kelly had just spoken with her this morning. She’d been one of the three names on Adrian’s list.

  Urgency with the thought that this was connected to Adrian’s case welled inside her—that she couldn’t put this on the side burner like her boss had directed. Kelly had to pick up those transcripts and get busy reading and investigating. Moving back to her desk, she reached the back of her chair for her coat. “I have to go,” she told Megan as she bundled up and collected her purse.

  Her hands shook at the impact of Nikki’s death. One less person who could help, or hurt, Adrian’s case. To Kelly, this death meant something was fishy with Adrian’s conviction, and no one cared—except her and maybe the real culprit.

  LEAVING Esme, a box of the transcripts in her hands, Kelly’s mind fluttered to the paperwork of Brian’s that had been stolen. There had to have been something there that had led to his death. It just had to. Why hadn’t she read through it? Because it had been none of my business and I hadn’t wanted to acknowledge Brian’s death.

  She stepped down the front s
teps of the courthouse, and relief coursed through her that no ice existed on the sidewalk and road. Ashley kicked again, and Kelly smiled while looking both ways before stepping into the roadway part of the parking lot.

  Hopefully, Trent and HIS found out something, and they could find the hit-and-run driver and put him behind bars. Although, according to Jason, the driver was supposedly paid to do it, which meant there was someone pulling the strings that they needed to find also.

  Mentally shaking her head, she continued across the road. Allowing herself to believe these criminals without any evidence wasn’t like her. She strongly wanted a reason behind Brian’s senseless death. She couldn’t stand it if he was just another statistic with no meaning.

  Yes, HIS would figure it out. As far as she knew, they always had been successful. Plus, she trusted Trent.

  In the meantime, Kelly had a box filled with court transcripts to review. The size of the transcript made her wonder, more than once, whether she was biting off more than she could chew. This had been a well-investigated set of crimes. In the end, only the word of the arsonist had put Adrian behind bars, or so it seemed. She’d see if something else had helped put the nail in Adrian’s coffin, so to speak. She had to at least try.

  “Kelly!” The masculine cry snapped her head up in time to see a massive body clad in blue jeans and a brown jacket, only a few feet away, rushing at her. With her heart pounding, fear froze her in place, and the world beyond this threat didn’t exist. Everything she’d ever been taught by her brothers to protect herself fled her mind faster than the man was charging at her. Heart racing, she couldn’t believe someone would be so bold as to attack her in this public place in the middle of the day. The man was only a few steps away. Do something, Kelly! she demanded of herself. You know karate, protect yourself.

  No sooner had that thought drifted through her mind, a calm overcame her, and she adjusted her stance to defend herself. An engine revving caught her attention, but that was when she recognized the man running at her—Paul. With Brian’s death and the death in her news story, her unexplained fear of him sent a sliver of dread to the base of her spine, coiling in angst.

  However, something made her glance back, and her eyes widened. A dark car neared her, picking up speed. The arm she’d raised in greeting was yanked as Paul pulled her toward him. Pain ricocheted through her hip and thigh as she was hauled out of the open part of the parking lot and between two parked cars. A squealing of tires moving away from them filled in the picture for her. Someone had been about to hit her and Paul had saved her.

  Panting, Paul held onto her arm a bit too tightly, and concern filled his eyes. “Are you okay?”

  Okay? Her heart pounded trying to escape the confines of her chest. Was he fucking kidding? She’d almost been run down by a car. If the raging throb on her hip and thigh were any indication, she’d actually been clipped by it. Good God. Pulse racing, she looked down at her shaking hands, wondering how bad it would’ve been had Paul not pulled her out of that car’s deadly path. “What…?” Her broken voice drifted off before tears escaped her eyes and slid down her face, and she took in a gulp of air. Paul’s strong arms wrapped around her, and she found herself crying against his shoulder.

  “It’s okay. I’ve got you. You’re safe.” His comforting voice only allowed her to finally react to the danger she’d be in. Heart pounding, it hit her that her baby could’ve been killed. She could’ve been killed. With that realization, wracking sobs continued and Kelly buried her face deeper so the mortification creeping up her neck and into her face wasn’t evident.

  Somewhat under control, she pulled back a few moments later and looked in her purse for a tissue. That was when she realized she’d lost the transcript box. Turning frantically, she noticed the box had slid near where she stood. At least it hadn’t opened and spread the papers everywhere for her to chase. After blowing her nose, she looked back at Paul who watched her intently. “What are you doing here?” she asked more bluntly than she meant.

  “Testifying. I think they clipped you. Are you hurt? Do you need an ambulance?”

  The pain in the area where she’d been bumped roared to life, but she knew it wasn’t ambulance worthy. She just needed to sit down, catch her breath, and then maybe cry again. This can’t be happening. Suddenly, her head snapped up. Holy hell, was that the same person who ran down Brian?

  Anger at that possibility radiated through her veins almost singeing her toes and fingers.

  What the hell was she supposed to do now? Thank God, you’ve come home, Trent McKenzie.

  With the rush of emotion and her brain overloading with the possibility of what could have been, black spots filled her eyes, and her limbs turned to jelly. “Trent,” she whispered before collapsing into darkness.

  “DAMMIT, I WANTED to have Devon pull everything he could on Kelly’s Brian, but he took off before he could finish,” Trent groused, thinking that even though he’d come for Kelly’s sake, Jamie would be proud of his reuniting, in some semblance, with his… brothers. In truth, he knew they were blameless. He did miss the men. They’d had good—and bad—times together. Bonding times. Any one of them would’ve taken his, or Les’s, place in rescuing their niece.

  “What’d you expect? Rylee was in jail,” Matt stated like everyone should understand Devon’s reasoning.

  Always the peacemaker, Trent thought.

  Planting his palms on the high-tech conference table, that he’d somehow locked up, making it unusable except to hold shit, Trent ground out, “I’d have expected him to not let his personal feelings interfere with his job.” Anger boiled in him at the entire situation.

  The irony washed by him that he was doing the same thing with Kelly.

  “Don’t worry, when he gets there and sees that she’s safe, he’ll be back online.” Matt took a long drink from a bottle of water, then set it on the table. In bafflement, Trent watched him pick it up and spotting the water ring, stand to grab a napkin off a side table holding the coffee pot and added it under his drink.

  Trent shook his head at the absurdity of it all. This goddamn table and its importance… and current uselessness. He needed to get a check on his frustration. He wasn’t helping anyone like this.

  Matt shrugged. “Devon would have a fit if we messed up his table. As for Belize, we can’t fix it, so let’s work on what we can. From what you’ve told us about Kelly, something is wrong, but I don’t think there’s a threat to her.”

  There was the rub and it bugged the shit out of him. Nothing had happened directly to her—except the thefts. He only counted the break-in as a theft at the moment since they’d been obviously been after something specific. Although he wouldn’t forget it, or the face of the man who’d attacked him. Convincing her to go to the police would’ve been the smart thing to do. With Kelly, though, she could ask him to paint the sky pink, and he’d do his damnedest to make it happen for her.

  “I needed that information from Devon. Now I have to wait while he gets settled, and I don’t like it.”

  “I think he’s still pissed you skipped out on his wedding in Vegas,” AJ said around a mouthful.

  He shrugged. “He’s a guy. They don’t care about that shit. Besides, they were already married.”

  The two men chuckled, but AJ spoke. “Men don’t care, but when their wives do, men do. Rylee’s the one who was put out that you didn’t stick around.”

  Trent shook his head and smiled. “I’ll kiss and make up with her when she returns.”

  Pushing the almost empty bowl of popcorn away, AJ shook his head. “Do you have a death wish? You can’t keep kissing other men’s wives.”

  “Hey, I kissed Megan before you two were even an item,” Trent countered jokingly, knowing that one kiss had been a big mistake that while he joked about it, he regretted it since the action bothered AJ so much.

  “Enough, you two. Trent, what do you want from us?” Matt waved a finger back and forth between himself and AJ, effectively bringing the c
onversation back to their main reason for meeting.

  “Besides fixing this goddamn table so I can look at Kelly’s file?” He huffed out a breath. “I don’t know yet.” And that kept the frustration level high.

  After his reluctant admission, Emily Cavanaugh, the Hamilton family baby sister, strolled into the room. “Trent,” she squealed and raced over to him.

  He’d barely landed on his feet before she launched herself at him, knocking him back a step and winding him. When her arms around his neck started choking him, he tried to peel her away. Before the accident… before finding out she was his sister… they’d always been close—not close like he and Kelly—but close.

  After the accident, when he’d saved her daughter, their friendship became stronger. As one would expect in that situation.

  Funny how he’d never balked at her being his sister compared to Jesse, Devon, Brad, Matt, and AJ being his brothers. Sins of the father….

  Measured in intensity, Em’s embrace beat all the others he’d received from her. Obviously she’d missed him, and that made him smile. Holding her at arm’s length, his grin broadened and he winked. “Doll, you look good.”

  Slapping him on the arm playfully, she laughed while redness crept into her face. “You’re still the shameless flirt.” Surprising him, she kissed him on the cheek. “Amber will be glad to see you. But—” She paused and laughed. “She still says she won’t go swimming with you.”

  Hearty laughter erupted from the table, and Trent couldn’t help but join in. After taking the little girl for a scary plunge into the swimming pool at the Hamilton’s Oxford home—to save her life—he was lucky she even wanted anything to do with him. Yet at that age—what was she three or four?—they tended to be pretty smart.

  “You missed her birthday.”

  So, she’d turned four. Holy fuck. Had he really been gone that long? Well, he must have if Amber had a birthday. Jamie had been right; he’d missed so much by taking care of her, but he wouldn’t have given up that opportunity for the world. She’d deserved the care, especially after all she’d done to heal him both physically and emotionally.