By the time I’d reached the back entrance to Charlie’s apartment, I was convinced it was all in my imagination. I opened the door, and just before I went in, I saw it again. There, idling just a block away, was the black sedan with the Ozarks sticker. I strained to see if I recognized the driver, but it pulled away from the curb and rounded the corner.
SIXTEEN
January eighteenth
After I showered and dressed, I checked my messages. As expected, there were five waiting for me from Charlie.
11:30 AM Charlie: Coming home for lunch?
12:17 PM Charlie: We’re eating without you. Are you coming home?!?! Rick is getting restless.
1:36 PM Charlie: Rick is leaving. Will call you tonight. Please call I have news.
3:15 PM Charlie: Coming into town. Hitting the store first. Stop avoiding me and call.
3:49 PM Charlie: Will be home soon. You’ve sulked enough. Be ready to talk.
I put away my phone and went downstairs. I was starting to feel like myself again, despite the unnerving encounter with the sedan, and was ready to deal with Charlie and my mounting personal issues. I headed to my office and shuffled through some papers while I waited. I didn’t wait long. By four, she walked through the door holding a Styrofoam take-out container.
“I figured you didn’t eat.” She dropped the container on my desk. “Mind telling me why Sally thinks Brad is abusing you?” Crossing her arms, she looked at me expectantly.
“I screwed up.” Unable to face the disapproving look I knew would be all over her face, I stood and walked over to the window, searching for some logical reason for my actions. From my office, I could see down Main Street. The snow had melted, giving the town a dingy, gray look. There were only a few people on the streets, hurrying to various shops and business. Life was moving forward, but for me everything seemed to be coming apart. “I lost it. The stress of everything that’s been going on…It just got to me. I know that’s not an excuse, but I’ve got it under control now.”
“If it’s so well under control, why did she send me home with a flier for the abused women’s shelter?”
I turned around and met Charlie’s gaze. The compassion in her eyes told me she knew, but I told her anyway.
“Well, it seems like I’m the talk of the town. I have been officially been promoted from creepy town witch to crazy, hostile ex-girlfriend. Last night Brad was drunk and got handsy. I tried to get him to back down, but he had the nerve to call me a whore in front of the entire restaurant. So I decked him.”
“You didn’t.” Charlie slapped a hand over her gaping mouth. Delight gleamed in her eyes, and she started to laugh. “I wish I could have seen that. If ever a man needed to be punched in the face, it’s Brad. Just let me know if you need help hiding his body. Say the word and I’ll be there.”
“Charlie, that’s not even remotely funny considering I’m the prime suspect in a killing spree.”
“Technically, since the killings happened over the course of several months, they’re serial killings, not a spree.”
“Gee, thanks. That makes everything so much better.” I noted that she was enjoying this far too much. Turning back to the window, I watched the cars drive up Main Street. “What am I going to do? I hit Brad. I psychically attacked Sally. Then I made it worse by manipulating her feelings.” I started to giggle, unable to stop myself. “God, I made her think I’m an abused woman. Me!”
“At least you got pie.” Charlie laughed, walked over, and put an arm around me. “Olive, it’s going to be okay.”
“I just can’t seem to catch a break. Since Gran’s been gone, nothing seems to go right anymore. What if this whole dream about living a normal small-town life and fitting in is just that, a dream?” I slipped out of her grasp and walked back to my desk to examine the food. There was a steak, a potato, and a slice of cherry pie. On the lid of the container, Sally had scrawled “You’re a beautiful, strong woman.”
I couldn’t help but laugh at the note. “Well, at least I got some good food out of the whole mess. She only breaks out the cherry for the church social.” I dipped my finger into the sticky fruit filling and licked it. Sally knew tart cherry was my favorite. “I’m not about to apologize for hitting him. Brad was being an asshole. Maybe next time he’ll think twice before he grabs another woman and treats her like that.”
“I never understood why you went out with him. Seriously, Olivia, what was up with that whole thing? Sure, he’s cute, but he has about as much depth as a tea saucer. Rick, on the other hand, I can see. You know he has it bad for you.” Charlie reached over and ran a finger through the whipped cream topping.
I swatted her hand away and closed the lid. “Speaking of Rick,” I said, trying to steer the conversation away from Brad. I wasn’t up to rehashing our entire relationship right now. “You said you had some news. Care to elaborate?”
“One of Rick’s contacts…I just love saying that. It’s all very noir sounding. I think I’ll start calling you His Girl Friday. I mean the amount of Scotch you put away, all you need to do is start smoking and we’ll have ourselves a hard-boiled detective novel.”
“Charlie.”
“All right,” she said and stuck her tongue out at me. “Rick’s contact told him that Scott Malone was hired to move the girls. And this wasn’t his first time.”
“Who was this contact? If they know that much, then maybe they know where the girls were being taken.”
“That’s what Rick is hoping. He went down to meet with her. He said he’d try to call later tonight, but it would be better if you called. Talk to him. It was all I could do to keep him from coming into town and cornering you. He was freaked out this morning when you stormed out, the poor guy.”
“I’m sure he’ll live.” I rolled my eyes, trying to sound uninterested, but I was perversely thrilled he cared at all.
“You’re doing it again. Every time you get close to someone, you start pulling away before you even give it a chance. Well, everyone but Brad.” She said his name with exaggerated mockery and mimed sticking her finger down her throat. “We see how that’s worked out for you.”
“Very mature. And for your information, I’m not pulling away. I’m not even sure there’s anything to pull away from. It was one night out, and even that just kinda happened. I knew he’d be leaving.”
“See. That’s what I’m talking about.”
I rolled my eyes. “It’s the truth, but don’t worry. I’m not going to send Rick packing. Especially since he’s the only one who seems to be on my side. I promise to call him on my way home.” I looked at the clock. “If you’re going to make practice tonight you’d better get ready.” Tonight was Charlie’s night off, and she and Zoe were on a roller derby team.
Charlie frowned, not moving from the chair. “I’m sure my girls will understand if I miss one practice. We don’t have a match for another two months. I don’t want to leave you alone. I’ve had this bad feeling all day.”
“Well, I think you’re spot on as usual. My day sucked, but that doesn’t mean I need a babysitter.” I pulled out my cell and sent a message to Rick. “There. I invited Rick to come over tonight to discuss the case.”
I stood up, grabbed my purse, and headed for the door. Looking over my shoulder I said, “You wouldn’t want to get in the way, now would you? Have fun tonight.”
I knew it was the one thing I could say that would keep her away. I didn’t know if he’d come, but she was right; Rick and I needed to talk. My phone buzzed in my hand, and I looked down to see Rick’s number. Obviously I had to take this call.
“Hey, did you get my message?” I asked.
“Yes, but I wanted clarification,” he paused, and I could hear him take a deep breath. “Do you just want to know about what I found out, or was this an invitation to talk about what happened this morning? Because I can tell you about the case over the phone. I know you were upset, but I didn’t expect you to walk out on me this morning without so much as a word.”
/>
“I didn’t wake up this morning expecting to hear you agree to spy on me.” I bit my lip, immediately regretting my snarky retort. I softened my tone. “Yes. I want to know about the case, but I also want to apologize for this morning. You have to understand something about me,” I sighed, struggling with how to put this. “I’m not sure what you’re looking to get out of this thing between us, but there are times I can’t control how I react. Sometimes my emotions take over. The best thing I can do is get away and sort things out.”
His sigh was audible over the line. “How ‘bout I pick up something to eat and we’ll talk?”
“That works for me.” I hung up and caught myself staring at the phone. What was I was thinking? As if I didn’t have enough drama in my life, now I was actively looking for more. I headed back home sure about one thing: it was going to be an interesting night.
Rick showed up at seven with pizza in hand.
“Well? What did you find out?” He hadn’t even gotten his jacket off. I wanted answers.
“After we eat. I had a crappy lunch since you apparently never shop for food. Honestly, Olivia, I’ve seen college dorms with more to offer,” he said as he eyed me. “So, needless to say, I’m starved.”
My own stomach growled. I’d missed breakfast and ended up just eating Sally’s pie when I got home, so I didn’t argue. I joined him in the kitchen, and got out plates and a couple cold beers.
My land line started to ring. “Would you grab that? I’m on call until Ian is back on his feet.”
Rick walked over and picked up the receiver. “Hello? Yes, she’s here, but she’s in the middle of something. Sure, and who should I say is calling? I see.” Rick put his hand over the mouthpiece, frowning. “Olivia, it’s that asshole from the restaurant last night.”
I set the plates and beers down on the dining room table and waved for the phone. “It could be work,” I said, trying to keep the irritation out of my voice. “I’ll find out what’s going on and be right back.” I turned my back to him and said into the phone, “What do you want, Brad?”
“I thought you were on call tonight?”
“I am. Are you calling about work or are you going to apologize for being an asshole?”
“Why is he still there? Your case is closed. I thought he was leaving.” Brad said sounding genuinely confused.
“I thought we established last night that what I do in my private life is not your concern.” I didn’t even attempt to keep the anger out of my voice. “But while I have you on the phone, answer me a question. Why did Sheriff Black tell the FPD I was a suspect in those cold cases from last year?”
“They requested case files from any open investigations that had similar victimology. I doubt Mike pointed a finger at you. Your name’s still on the list because we couldn’t eliminate you entirely. But everyone knows you had nothing to do with it.”
“Sure. Everyone,” I said tersely and looked over my shoulder to Rick. He was sitting at the table sipping his beer. I didn’t want to have this conversation with Brad. As a matter of fact, I didn’t care if I ever had another conversation with him again. “Did you need something, Brad, or can I go?”
“I wanted to talk to you about last night. I’m not mad, if that’s what you think. I know you can get carried away sometimes.”
Not mad? Carried away? What was Brad smoking that made him think last night was my fault? I glanced over at Rick again and decided the best thing to do would be end this conversation. “If no one is dead, I’m going. I have a guest over,” I said and hung up the phone.
I joined Rick in the dining room and shrugged. “Sorry about that. Hopefully, that will be our last interruption tonight.”
“Hopefully,” he said and pointed to the boxes. “I got your favorite.”
I opened the box and smiled. “You did good,” I said. Pineapple and onion. And while I couldn’t be sure how he knew what liked on my pizza, I suspected Charlie was involved. I sat down across from him and grabbed a slice.
After eating two pieces I sat quietly, nibbling the pineapple off the last slice on my plate, and waited for him to finish. Patience wasn’t a virtue I possessed, and I was on edge. The silence was killing me.
Rick watched me for a few minutes, then shook his head with a grin. He started talking about his favorite pizza toppings and his favorite pizza joints across the country. Whether he was picking up on my agitations or just making small talk I couldn’t tell.
“You’d love Tony’s in California. They make this pineapple and bacon pizza that’s cooked in an authentic wood fire oven straight from Italy.” He closed his eyes as if trying to remember the taste.
“Why are you here?” I asked, interrupting his story.
He arched his brow with a look of confusion. “You did invite me, didn’t you?”
“Not here. I mean what brought you to Indiana.” He just didn’t seem to fit here in the Midwest. I was genuinely curious. “What’s keeping you here? You obviously love to travel, and while Indiana has its charm, you’ve made it clear there are other places you love. So, why are you here?”
“This is where my sister is,” he said, his face suddenly devoid of emotion.
Family was something I understood. “I didn’t know you had a sister.”
“Actually, I have three.”
“Do they all live in Indiana?”
“Just the one. You look like you’re done.” He picked up my plate along with his and deposited them in the sink. “Are you ready to talk about what I found out today?”
He was obviously uncomfortable with the subject of his sister, so I let the matter drop. But it did highlight how little I knew about Rick. There was so much I didn’t know about him, and while he wanted me to bare everything, he was reluctant to share himself. But that was a matter to ponder later; right now I wanted know what he had learned about the case.
We moved into the living room and sat on the sofa. He unzipped the bag he’d been carrying when he’d arrived, and pulled out a spiral notebook.
“It seems like Mr. Scott Malone was a busy man. Outside of being one of the Midwest’s largest illegal charms dealers, Malone also had a healthy smuggling business. He’d ship banned potions and illegal cryptozoologicals all over the country. And for the right price he’d transport people.”
“Charlie said you had a contact. Did she know where he was taking the girls?”
“Jessie, a runner who’s worked with Malone for years, said that twelve years ago he’d taken some girls to New Madrid, a small town in southern Missouri.”
“How can you be so sure that has anything to do with this case?”
“Jessie said the girls all had the charm.”
“And she was okay with that?” After seeing Molly under the charm’s influence, I knew it would be hard not to know she was being held against her will. How anyone could be involved without being outraged was a mystery to me.
“I didn’t judge. To be honest, I was glad she would even talk to me. Maybe she did feel a little guilty for the part she played.” He shrugged as if the thought hadn’t crossed his mind. “So that’s where I’m at right now. I’m planning a trip down to New Madrid in the morning, but I’d like to settle things between us before I leave.”
“Us? I’m not sure there’s anything to talk about. You’re a great guy. I’m attracted to you, I won’t deny that, but last night”—I paused to look for the right words—“that didn’t mean there has to be an ‘us.’ We’re both adults here. I’m not looking for a relationship. I’m not sure I could even handle one right now. If you haven’t noticed, I’m kind of a hot mess.” I looked away, unable to meet his eyes.
He chuckled, his hand coming up to caress my cheek. “I know, it’s one of your charming qualities.”
His tone was light, but I wanted him to take me seriously. I got up from the sofa and walked into the kitchen, putting some distance between us. “Rick, I’m not kidding. Outside of the fact that I can’t seem to manage the most benign personal relati
onships, there’s my job, and this murder investigation. It’s too much for me to handle right now.”
“Why do you think you have to face everything alone? I’m helping with the investigation. I want to kill Samuel for bringing your name up to Marcus. They’ve linked the earlier bodies with Molly and Sarah’s kidnapping, and now I have a lead to another possible case. There’s no way you could be involved. This whole thing will blow over before you know it.”
“I appreciate the help with clearing my name, but don’t blame King. I can’t fault them for suspecting me. Agent Searing was just doing his job, and to be honest, if I were him, I’d ask the same questions. He even went out of his way to make sure it was as painless as possible.”
His expression grew dark. “Olivia, don’t let Marcus’s southern charm fool you. He may have left this morning, but trust me, he’s not satisfied. He wouldn’t have made the trip just for a friendly chat.”
“I don’t like what’s going on, but I’m not worried. I have nothing to hide. I haven’t done anything wrong.”
He laughed. “Darling, it’s not about what you did or didn’t do. Now that you’re a known commodity, I imagine Marcus is going to try to woo you.”
“Woo me?”
“He’s always trying to recruit the best. He tried to recruit me. And with your gifts, of course, he’s going to try to get you.”
It was my turn to laugh. “I know you think I’m gifted, or powerful, but I’m nothing like you. I don’t have skills. I can barely use my magic,” I sighed. “I have no control, and I’m more dangerous than anything else. Agent Searing is a fool if he thinks anything different.”
“Don’t sell yourself short. Marcus won’t. I could see it in his eyes; he wants you, Olivia, and he won’t stop until you're under his control.”
“You make it sound tawdry. Searing didn’t strike me as the wooing type.”
“Marcus came personally.” He ran a hand through his curls, frustration crackling in the air. “Don’t you find that at all odd? He’s checking you out. Whatever you do, don’t trust what he has to say. He didn’t get into his position by being a nice guy.”
Dark Secrets: A Paranormal Romance Anthology Page 193