14 Christmas Spirit

by K. J. Emrick

  "You said… She's dead? No. Oh, no," Braun swallowed and for just a moment, his expression broke. Then in the next second it snapped back to anger and fury. "What, me? You think I killed my daughter? My own daughter!"

  "No, actually. I don't." Darcy saw Jon glance once at Brianna Watson and her cameraman, then ignore them completely. "Your daughter was reported missing on Friday. Everyone who knew anything about this case thought Megan was just missing. Her girlfriend thought Megan was just taking a break. A friend she went to for help thought Megan was hiding and would turn back up when she thought it was safe. There was a question in my mind about whether you believed she was dead or alive but you just cleared that up for me. I told you Megan was still alive, and you didn't blink an eye."

  "So she isn't…" Braun's voice actually choked off and all the anger left him. He took a step and nearly fell to his knees, but then recovered himself. "Megan's not alive?"

  "No, sir. I'm sorry."

  "She was killed?"

  The camera guy got a few steps closer.

  Jon nodded, sympathy for the gruff old man showing in his eyes. "We're here to arrest her killer. It's not you, Mister Bortchowski. It's someone who knew Megan was dead before anyone should have known."

  He turned his eyes slowly across the assembled officers.

  His gaze stopped at Blake Cipes.

  Megan's killer.

  Without looking away from Blake, Jon moved his right hand in a circle. Carlos caught the signal, and in the blink of an eye three Oak Hollow police officers were holding Blake's arms back and putting handcuffs on his wrists. He struggled, and protested, but he didn't have a chance to do anything else but submit.

  The look on Brianna Watson's face was ravenous. She was eating this up, already imagining the story she would spin on the six o'clock news tonight.

  "Take his duty belt from him," Jon said to a wide-eyed Shane Wagner.

  The other rookie officer from Misty Hollow hesitated. Darcy could understand his reluctance to arrest a friend and co-worker, but this man had murdered someone. They couldn't leave him with his gun.

  "Shane," Jon prompted. "Take his duty belt."

  Reluctantly, Shane complied, apologizing as he did it. Blake glared at Jon and Darcy the whole time, caught in a trap he never saw coming.

  "You don't have anything on me," Blake grunted when his belt came off. "This is crazy."

  "Wait, I know that voice." Braun said, rounding on Blake, some of his previous anger flashing again. "You're that kid…"

  "Shut up, old man!" Blake shouted with a lunge at Braun that was restrained by the other officers. "You never loved her like I did!"

  Just like that, everyone knew the truth. Whether Blake wanted to admit it or not, everyone standing there knew what he had done. They had all heard it.

  And so had the TV camera.

  Chapter Twelve

  Darcy and Jon sat with Chief Daleson in his office, along with Braun Bortchowski. The man was huddled in his chair, elbows on his knees, head hung low. All of his bluster and anger had been spent in tears, and now he was a broken man.

  "Explain it to me again."

  Jon poured a cup of water from the pitcher they had brought in and passed it to Braun. "You recognized Blake Cipes. He's one of our newer officers. He grew up in Cider Hill right around the corner from you and your daughter Megan. He went to the same high school as Megan. That's where they started dating."

  Braun accepted the cup from Jon's hand. "I remember him. I never really liked the kid but Megan said he was fine so I let it go. Maybe there were some bruises showed up on her face but nothing too much. Nothing she probably didn't deserve. Like her mother. Maybe…maybe if I had pressed her harder, made her stop seeing him…I don't know."

  Shaking her head, repulsed by Braun Bortchowski's stone opinion of women but feeling sorry for him too, Darcy went around the desk to stand next to the Chief, where Braun could see her better. "It's not your fault, Mister Bortchowski. Love gets twisted in people sometimes and makes them do stupid, awful things."

  That was something Braun could understand, she thought to herself in the private recesses of her mind. Now was not the time to judge the way this man had lived his life.

  "But how did you know it was him?" Braun asked. "I mean, he's one of your own officers, for the love of God."

  "He was," Chief Daleson said tersely. "We checked on Blake's background. He came from your hometown, like Jon said. Went to the same high school as Megan. And, he attended Saxton University. Got his degree in the Criminal Justice curriculum there."

  Braun scoffed. "Maybe they should focus more on ethics in those classes."

  The Chief frowned. "Fair point."

  "So, when he needed some place to…dump Megan's body…"

  "Right. He knew about the recent construction up there. Knew when and how to move around without being seen. Being that far away he hoped it would never trace back to him. His hope was that they would finish that part and then his crime would be buried forever."

  Darcy knew better. In her world, the dead never stayed buried.

  "I'm not thrilled about this all playing out on television," Chief Daleson assured Braun. "I want you to know that."

  "It was the only way, Chief," Jon said. "We had to prove it was Blake, and we needed to show our office will do whatever it takes to bring a killer to justice. No matter what it takes."

  Joe grunted, a sound of grudging approval.

  "That doesn't answer my question." Braun took a long swallow of his water and then set the cup down on the Chief's desk. "You found all that out about Blake Cipes after you suspected him. That's all well and good but what made you suspect him in the first place?"

  "That was Darcy," Jon said, smiling proudly. "She figured it out."

  Braun looked up at her, waiting expectantly, his eyes searching hers.

  "We needed to find who the killer was," Darcy explained. "So we looked for the only person who knew Megan was dead."

  "What do you mean? Everyone knew she was dead. You found her there in that hole."

  "That's true," Darcy said gently. "But there was someone who knew she was dead before we found her. Blake Cipes."

  She knew that left a lot out. The whole matter of the communication with his daughter was better left unsaid.

  When she and Jon had first gone with Shane and Blake to interview Nielson, Blake had referred to Nielson as a murderer. The day after that, in the squad room here at the police station, Blake had talked about wanting to find Megan's killer.

  He knew Megan was already dead. The only person who could have known that, was the killer himself. Once she realized that it led them to everything else.

  "Your daughter and Blake had a rocky breakup, is what we're gathering now," Chief Daleson said, picking up the explanation where Darcy left off. "It must have festered under his skin knowing that Megan never loved him. Not to mention finding out he wasn't even, uh, Megan's type. For a man like Blake that was a hard pill to swallow. After Megan moved to Misty Hollow, it was only a matter of time before she and Blake ran into each other."

  "That's right," Jon added. "Apparently, there were some threats made by Cipes that had Megan scared. She kept them to herself but they finally got bad enough that she went to a local guy for a gun."

  "A gun?" Braun exclaimed, obviously unable to believe it.

  "Yes. They found it buried with her. She figured Blake was a police officer, with access to weapons, and if he was going to threaten her then she needed to protect herself."

  "Looks like she was right," Braun mumbled.

  Jon stood up now, too. They'd hashed this out now three different times. There was nothing more to say, and lots of work still to do. "If it makes you feel any better, Mister Bortchowski, when Blake finally started talking to us he told us that he didn't mean to kill Megan. He says he only wanted to make her listen to him. He blindfolded her, and forced her into a car, but she started screaming. When he covered her mouth to keep her quiet…"
<
br />   He let his explanation trail off. Darcy didn't blame him. Now that she heard it out loud she could see the truth wouldn't help. Accidentally or on purpose, Blake Cipes had killed Megan Bortchowski. Suffocated her. Buried her. There was no coming back from that.

  "I'm sorry for your loss," Jon said to Braun instead.

  "Yeah," he answered. "Me too. I didn't want her dead. You know? I just wanted her to change. She just needed to change for me."

  Darcy had nothing to say to that. Some people, like Braun Bortchowski, could only be who they were. No matter what it cost them.

  ***

  Out in the hallway, Jon pulled Darcy into a warm hug. As he was stroking her hair, he said, "You know, this one wasn't easy. Having you with me made it better. Thank you."

  "Sure," she said, nodding into his shoulder. "I wouldn't have it any other way."

  "Good to know."

  Poor Megan, Darcy thought. Going from one abusive relationship to another. Cut off and isolated from everyone, including her family, through no fault of her own. Then, killed and buried and left to rot in a grave where she would have been forgotten forever.

  Darcy wished she had known Megan when she'd been alive. Maybe things would have been different.

  She stayed that way with Jon for a few more minutes, maybe longer for all Darcy knew, until it was time to go back to Jon's desk. The mountain of paperwork he faced would keep him here long into the night. He apologized, and she said it was all right, and neither of them bothered trying to say it wouldn't happen again because both of them knew it would.

  The life of a police officer's girlfriend. No, Darcy corrected herself. Fiancé. Soon to be wife.

  She wouldn't have it any other way.

  The mood in the station was somber and everyone was keeping quiet. There wasn't anything good in what Darcy and Jon had accomplished. Blake Cipes wasn't the first corrupt police officer they'd taken down together, but this time it was one of their own. It just went to show, even good people were capable of doing bad things.

  "Maybe you're thinking the same as me," Sergeant Fitzwallis said to them as he walked over to Jon's desk. "Sometimes, bad things happen to good people."

  Darcy was a little surprised to hear her own thoughts echoed from Sean Fitzwallis, but she supposed everyone had the same thing on their minds. "Have you been here all day again, Sean?" she asked him.

  "I'm going to go home in a little bit. Don't you worry about me, Miss Sweet. Heh, you spend as much time here as I do," he joked with her.

  "Do not. Well. Maybe."

  Fitzwallis winked at Darcy like a favorite uncle before turning back to Jon. "Did you tell her yet?"

  Darcy had a feeling she was the "her" Fitzwallis was talking about. "What? Tell me what?"

  "I was going to wait until this was all over," Jon told Fitzwallis.

  "Tell me what?" Darcy said, a little louder.

  "There's never no time like the present," the old desk sergeant said.

  Darcy practically stomped her foot. "Guys! For Pete's sake! Tell me what?"

  Jon tapped his fingers on his desk, drumming out a rhythm as he chewed his lip. "You're right, Sean. Okay. Uh, Darcy, I was going to tell you about this at home but since it got brought up for me, the thing that the Chief has been talking to me about? Remember?"

  "Yes," Darcy said, cautiously.

  "Well, the thing is…"

  Now Darcy started to worry all over again. "For Pete's sake, Jon, just say it already."

  He swallowed. Then he took her hands in his and made himself look her in the eyes. "The Chief has been planning his retirement for months now. Nobody knew when he was finally going to pull the ripcord but he told me he's picked a date. January first. He's going to serve out the rest of this month and then he'll call it quits."

  "Really?" Darcy was a little surprised to hear it. She'd always thought of Joe Daleson as a career police officer, the kind of man who worked until social security kicked in or death came to town. "That's too bad. I guess. Is it too bad, or are we happy for him?"

  "Oh, we're happy for him," Jon assured her. "He's earned it. I mean, I haven't known the man for as long as say Sean here has, but I know how he's put his heart and soul into this department. He'll enjoy retirement. And the guy who takes over for him will have some pretty big shoes to fill."

  "Sure. Joe's been a great police chief. I mean, we haven't always been on each other's good sides…"

  Then it hit her what he was saying.

  "Jon, he asked you to take over for him?"

  "Temporarily," he said with a lopsided grin. "I mean, the Town Council has to approve it and it won't be permanent until I pass a test, but yeah. He asked me to take over for him."

  He was nearly knocked off his feet when she threw herself at him, wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing his lips. The officers around the room began slowly clapping for them. Darcy didn't care.

  She ended the kiss when she was good and ready, smiling up at him. "Jon, that's great news. I'm so happy for you."

  "You're not upset?" he asked. "I was worried, you know, after what happened the last time I took a promotion."

  "You went to another town for that promotion, you idiot. This one keeps you right here with us. I'm so happy for you!"

  She turned to thank Sean Fitzwallis for making Jon tell her the news, but he was gone. Disappeared like one of the ghosts she helped so frequently. Had he said he was going home? She'd have to find him later. No doubt he'd be back at the front desk again tomorrow.

  "Oh, wait," she said, stepping back from Jon as a thought occurred to her. "What does Grace think about this? Did you tell her yet? I mean, she's been a detective here longer than you have."

  "I said the same thing. The Chief already asked her," Jon assured her. "Grace might have wanted the position once upon a time but now that she's a mother her focus is on her new baby. She gave me her blessing already if I wanted the job. I told her, and I told the Chief too, that I couldn't take it without asking you what you thought first."

  Grabbing hold of the front of his shirt, she pulled him back into her. "You, Detective Tinker, are a very smart man."

  "Of course. I'm going to marry you, aren't I?"

  "Yes," she said, bringing her mouth closer to his. "Yes, you are."

  Chapter Thirteen

  It was only two days before Christmas. Not a lot of time to prepare a dinner for…Darcy counted in her head. Twelve people, if she counted baby Addison. There was food to buy and the house to clean and now she'd have to figure out where everyone would stay, considering they had put JoEllen and Connor in the upstairs guestroom she had intended for her mother…

  Her mother.

  Darcy had walked home, leaving Jon at the station to sort through the paperwork and the arraignment of former Officer Blake Cipes. Grace was going to help him but it was still going to take the rest of the afternoon and into the night. Snow had started falling. Big fluffy flakes that melted when they touched her face. It was kind of a cleansing sight, all white and sparkling. Peaceful, even.

  Then when she got within sight of her house she noticed James Bollinger's car in her driveway. A gray Fiat. A cute little car that would be completely impractical for any more than two people.

  James and her mother were here. At her house. A day early.

  Of course they were, Darcy thought to herself. If life were easy, it wouldn't be fun.

  The lights were on inside. Through the curtains, she could see shadows moving. The sound of laughter came to her on the chill night air. Children's laughter. Izzy and Lilly must be over again.

  "Well," Darcy said to herself, "this place is going to be pretty busy for a while."

  Up on the porch, right by the front door, she saw her Aunt Millie's spirit fade into view between the spiraling snowflakes. The old woman's specter wore a long dark dress, unaffected by the cold that was turning Darcy's cheeks red. She smiled at Darcy, approval in her eyes, the same way she used to look whenever Darcy had done something specia
l.

  Then she blew Darcy a kiss on the wind, and drifted away by degrees.

  She took two hasty steps forward, reaching out a hand, already knowing it was too late. Millie was always around, always watching over her niece, but it just wasn't the same. Especially now, at Christmas time, Darcy missed her.

  "I love you, Millie," she whispered, as she reached her front door and let herself in.

  Into barely controlled chaos.

  Lilly and Connor were chasing each other around the kitchen table in a game of tag, Lilly squealing with delight, leading Connor and evading his grasp and leading him on again. It was obvious that Connor was letting Lilly keep the game going. It was just as obvious that she knew it, too.

  At the refrigerator, James Bollinger stood out of the way so the two racing kids could fly past him and tear into the living room. He turned to her with a shrug. "Kids. You have to let them play, am I right?"

  Darcy nodded her agreement. "Hi, James. Glad you could make it."

  Tall, with a square chin that would have made him look like that actor Ron Perlman if not for his wavy, thick dark hair, James was a handsome kind of guy. When her mother had first described him to Darcy she had envisioned an uptight man with very prim attitudes. Kind of like her mom. James was the exact opposite of that. He was friendly and relaxed and always quick with a funny story. He was good for her mother. Darcy liked him.

  "Sorry we're a little early," James told her, taking out the container of orange juice that had been his reason for opening the fridge in the first place. "Your mom wanted to spend as much time with you and Grace as we could this year."

  "That's fine," Darcy assured him. "Although, you may have noticed the house is a bit, uh, crazy right now."

  He lifted the glass of juice he'd poured for himself. "No worries. Your friend Ellen has been keeping us entertained."

  Darcy felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up at the thought of JoEllen keeping her mother entertained. What could those two possibly have to talk about?

  Smudge came to the doorway between the kitchen and the living room, and meowed at her.