She sighed and scraped her long hair away from her face. “Stephen.” She handed a book to Chase, who stared at it bleary-eyed. “It was her brother – no, stepbrother – Stephen she was talking about in her notebook. Well…maybe. Possibly.”
“You were looking through the books?”
Bailey nodded excitedly. “I was looking through everything. I almost screamed when I came across this one.”
She pointed to the messy handwriting in the front of The Outsiders.
“To my beautiful darling Gwen, with all my love and heart, Stephen,” Chase read out loud. “So? Her brother gave her a book. That’s not all that strange.”
“You don’t think that sounds a little creepy? From her brother? My brother doesn’t talk to me like that. When he’s feeling particularly affectionate he refers to me as babyfart.”
Chase needed to know the origins of that nickname. As for the book, it was a trifle over the top but that didn’t mean Stephen was jealous enough to kill.
Bailey rolled her eyes and placed some items on the bed. The ticket stubs. “Look at these. Here are the tickets From Dusk ’till Dawn that were tucked into that book. According to Google, that movie came out in early 1996. They were dating even after their parents got married.”
Chase had to be the voice of reason. “That ticket stub might not mean what you think it does. It could simply be she grabbed what was handy to mark her place in the book.”
“Gwen wrote down the names of who went to the movies or a concert with her right on the stub, just like the others. She wrote one word on this ticket stub. Stephen. It could be that she just doodled his name but I doubt it. I think they went to this movie together and she tucked these into a book he gave her. That’s a sentimental gesture you don’t see between most stepsiblings. Which leads to the obvious question why didn’t Stephen tell us he dated Gwen when we asked about her boyfriends? Why didn’t he mention he was a stepbrother? That’s weird too. We only learned about all this when we talked to Cathy who didn’t live with them and wouldn’t know how the relationship between them was going.”
This was one farfetched theory but what else did they have?
Bailey hopped up from the bed and paced, getting more excited by the minute. “Cathy didn’t mention how Stephen felt when their parents married each other. Maybe Gwen was okay with it and Stephen wasn’t. Think about that. You’re dating some girl and suddenly your dad wants to marry her mom. He even goes so far as to adopt her so your last names are the same. That would throw a spanner in anything you had going with her. I read through those inscriptions thinking I would see one from Frank but it was from Stephen.”
Chase was trying to wrap his sleep-deprived brain around this whole situation. “So what you’re telling me is that it’s entirely possible we’ve been chasing the wrong leads, thinking that Frank, Greg, or Alex or all three of them together killed Gwen and were possibly murdered themselves because of that. What you’re saying is that Gwen’s death might be at the hands of her step-brother due to jealousy.”
Bailey nodded. “And he could have killed Frank, Alex, and Greg for the same reasons. We never were able to check out how many of her other boyfriends have gone missing or turned up dead.”
This was becoming surreal. “You think Stephen Baxter is a serial killer? He would have had to have some help. He couldn’t have killed all three men himself. We’ve already established that there had to be multiple murderers.”
Shrugging, Bailey didn’t back down. “He’s rich. He could have paid an accomplice. I know I’m sounding crazy but this is the closest thing we have to a clue right now.”
Scratching his chin, Chase had to admit she had a good point. They’d run out of leads, everything going straight to a dead end. “We need to talk to Gwen’s friend Taylor again. I don’t know if those school notes were to her but if Stephen was still dating Gwen she would know.”
“She didn’t say anything when we were there.”
Levering out of bed, he pulled on a pair of sweat pants and a t-shirt. No way was he going back to sleep now. “We didn’t ask about Stephen. We asked about Frank and the other two. It’s been so long she may not even think it’s important. We’ll go see her today but later. After the sun comes up.”
Bailey blushed and slapped her hands over her face with a groan. “I’m sorry I woke you up so early but I was so excited when I read what Stephen had written and then saw the stubs. The wording struck me as odd and I just couldn’t wait.”
“I’m not mad. I’m cautiously optimistic. This whole theory is a longshot—you know that, right? It could be a coin—”
“Coincidence, yes, I know,” Bailey finished for him. “I have to tell you I’m beginning to hate that word with a passion.”
“So am I but every now and then it might happen.”
“You think I’m off base about Stephen Baxter?”
“I think I need a hell of a lot of coffee before I make any decisions.”
Bailey grinned and wrapped her arms around his waist, pressing her cheek to his chest.
“Bacon too?”
He’d make bacon and then they’d go back and speak to Taylor. He wasn’t convinced that Bailey was right but he wasn’t sure she was wrong either.
If he’d learned one thing in the last few weeks was that nothing was a shock anymore.
Chapter Thirty-Three
It was five hours later when Bailey and Chase pulled into Taylor Richardson’s driveway. The house looked exactly the same as the last time they’d been there but they were certainly different. They’d learned a hell of a lot about Gwen, Frank, Alex, and Greg since they’d first spoken to the woman and this time their questions would be more specific and pointed. If Taylor knew anything about Gwen and Stephen they would find out.
Chase had called ahead of time so Gwen’s friend must have been watching for their arrival. She was standing at the door to greet them before they even made it to the front porch.
“Come on in.” She ushered into the house. “It’s so hot out there. Come in and have some iced tea.”
They settled into the same positions they’d had the time before, Taylor in a chair and Bailey and Chase on the love seat. The only difference was the outfit the woman wore today. Instead of the cream pantsuit, she was in a soft pink A-line dress, her hair pulled up off her neck, perhaps because of the soaring temperatures outside.
“Now Chase, you said you needed to talk to me again. What’s going on?”
Clearing his throat, Chase didn’t mince words. This time they were going to be completely honest. “I had a few questions about Gwen. Last time we were here, we honestly thought that Frank, Alex, and Greg might have had something to do with Gwen’s murder but since then we’ve found that the men had an alibi.”
Taylor’s brow wrinkled. “Of course they did. The police said so.”
“They might have been covering for each other but we don’t think that’s the case.” Chase glanced at Bailey. “Taylor, how come you never mentioned that Stephen dated Gwen before their parents married?”
A flush came to her cheeks but she waved off their question. “Because it happened so long ago. They weren’t serious or anything. It was a non-event.”
Chase took the spiral notebook from Bailey and opened it to the page. “Was this you, by any chance? Were you the one writing notes back and forth with Gwen?”
Taylor’s face lit up with a smile and she laughed, reaching for the notebook. “Oh my goodness, what a blast from the past. How did you find these? Gwen and I had several classes together and we always sat right next to each other if we could, often at tables instead of desks so it was easy to write in each other’s notebook. The teacher thought we were taking notes.”
Bailey pointed to the written exchange. “What boy were you talking about here? Was it Stephen? Did he have a hard time letting go of Gwen?”
Taylor ran her fingers over the page before answering. “It wasn’t like that. Stephen wasn’t like that. He dated a lot of g
irls and Gwen was just one of them. Once their parents married they were just friends.”
“Did Gwen and Stephen go see From Dawn ’til Dusk together?” Chase asked.
“Which one is that? We saw a lot of movies back then.”
“The George Clooney movie with the vampires,” Bailey answered. “Did they see that together?”
Shrugging, Taylor contemplated the ceiling for a moment. “Maybe. They could have. They were brother and sister. A bunch of us could have gone together. I don’t really know. Is it important?”
Chase nodded grimly. “It might indicate that she and Stephen were still dating after their parents married. Those notes you wrote were from November. We know that because the page is dated.”
Shaking her head, Taylor’s lips were now a thin line. “It doesn’t matter because Stephen and I started dating at the beginning of December. He even took me to the prom. So I doubt he was in love enough with Gwen to kill anyone by July and thinking anything different is just absurd.”
Bailey sat back in her chair. What Guy said was true. “You and Stephen dated?”
Chin lifted, Taylor nodded. “We did and we were very happy. We broke up after my freshman year at college when I met Kyle, my husband. No hard feelings. We’re still close friends.”
“So that note wasn’t about Stephen? Who was it about then?”
Taylor’s hand tightened into a fist briefly. “So what if it was about Stephen? He could be a pain just like any guy. I guarantee you that Gwen forgot all about that note by next period.” She leaned forward, her shoulders tense. “Just where are you heading with this? You don’t think that Stephen had anything to do with Gwen’s murder, do you? That’s crazy. Stephen was incredibly protective of Gwen if you want to know the truth. He’d never have hurt her. Heck, I remember a few occasions he tagged along with us to a couple of rock concerts because he didn’t want Gwen going to them alone.”
While Bailey’s brother would have lectured her for hours about staying safe and what boys really wanted, there is no way he would have blown his own evening to babysit her and her friends at a concert, party, or anywhere else. Maybe she just had a selfish brother. “You didn’t think that was strange behavior?”
Taylor smiled. “Not at all. Personally, I think he was trying to spend more time with me.”
Chase placed his hand on Bailey’s knee when she would have spoken up about the book inscription. “And who could blame him? So when did they stop dating officially?”
“The beginning of 1995 maybe?” Taylor didn’t look too sure. “Their parents married in March and the papers to adopt Gwen were final in May. Their dad had a connection at the courthouse and it was hurried through. He said he wanted to be her official dad since hers left her so early in life. He said that during a toast at the party they threw when it was all done.”
Chase steered the conversation back to the relationship. “So when their parents announced they were getting married, Stephen was perfectly happy not to date Gwen and he never mentioned it again. Is that about right?”
Taylor shifted in her chair, her demeanor not as cool and unruffled as earlier. “That’s right.”
“So he wasn’t dating Gwen anymore?” Chase asked gently. “And he didn’t care who she dated?”
Taylor looked up at them, her eyes bright with unshed tears. “He was over her. He told me he loved me.”
Bailey’s heart ached for Taylor. “When did he tell you that?”
Her lips curled up into a smile. “We all spent Spring Break together in St. Lucia. He told me one night under the stars. He loved me so I know he didn’t care about Gwen’s other guys.”
I bet he got into her pants right after he said that too.
Chase took Bailey’s hand and stood. “We thank you for your time, Taylor. You’ve been more than helpful.”
Neither of them spoke as they exited the house and climbed into the car, driving away from Taylor and everything they had learned. Bailey couldn’t take the silence any longer.
“Do you believe her? Do you think Stephen transferred his affections to her?”
Inhaling sharply, Chase shrugged. “Do I think teenage boys are fickle as hell? Yes. Do I think Stephen was in love with Taylor? Maybe.”
A terrible thought was beginning to grow in Bailey’s mind and she had to say it out loud so Chase could tell her she was imagining things. “Could Taylor have killed Gwen? Out of jealousy? It doesn’t explain Frank, Alex, and Greg but it might explain Gwen.”
“At this point, I’m willing to be open to the possibility,” Chase said. “After we stop and see Peyton, we need to talk to Stephen. There’s only one way to know and that’s to ask him some more questions about his relationship with Gwen. See how he reacts.”
What could go wrong?
Chapter Thirty-Four
Chase was becoming concerned about Ellis guarding Peyton. After they left Taylor’s home, they stopped at the hospital and found the grouchy detective reading Bridget Jones’ Diary to the comatose woman. He’d also purchased a couple of soft, colorful blankets to use on her bed instead of the scratchier hospital ones. Clearly an alien pod had taken ahold of Chase’s friend.
He grabbed Ellis by the collar and dragged him into the hallway while Bailey visited with Peyton.
“What in the hell is going on here? Is there something you want to tell me because frankly I’m worried about your sanity.”
Ellis scowled and shook off Chase’s grip. “You’re talking out of your ass, bro. Everything is fine. I’m protecting Peyton. Isn’t that what you want me to do?”
“You were reading Bridget Jones’ Diary, dude. No guy does that willingly.”
A smile bloomed on his friend’s face. “Insecure in your manhood? Not me. Listen, I read the few books that I had so one of the nurses let me borrow one of hers. It’s not Rambo but who cares? Peyton just needs to hear someone’s voice. Whether I’m reading the newspaper or some chick book, it doesn’t matter.”
That seemed like a perfectly logical explanation. But…
“What about the blankets?”
Ellis laughed and walked over to the soda machine in the corner, digging in his pocket for change. “Jesus, you’re suspicious. The blankets the hospital had weren’t all that warm or comfortable. I was walking through the lobby this morning and they were having a craft fair and all the proceeds went to the children’s wing. I bought two handmade blankets. Figured they might cheer her when she wakes up. Is that okay? Do you think I’m trying to seduce a woman in a coma, Chase?”
Rubbing the back of his neck, Chase shook his head and sighed. “Shit, no. It’s just you’ve been acting so strangely. You’ve almost been…nice.”
Ellis handed Chase one of the cans of soda from the machine. “Are you kidding? This is a dream job, my friend. The client is pretty and I get lots of quiet time. Plus the nurses fuss over me and share their muffins in the morning.”
“Peyton is going to wake up eventually. She’ll talk and have opinions, like other people. People you don’t like.”
“So then it won’t be a dream job anymore, but I’ll still do it.”
Ellis’s words were running through Chase’s head one more time. “Wait. Did you say Peyton was pretty?”
“Yes,” Ellis shrugged. “Do you not think she’s attractive?”
“She is. Very. But I’m not sure you should be thinking that way.”
Ellis chugged down half of the soda in a few gulps. “She’s nice looking, Chase. It’s not really a debatable thing. She’s pretty and people are going to notice. You noticed.”
But Chase wasn’t alone with her for hours on end reading books and tucking blankets in.
“Just remember that she’s been through a lot. When she wakes up she’s going to find out things she never knew about her husband.”
“I’ll make a note of that. Now are you going to tell me how it went with Taylor Richardson this morning?”
Chase filled Ellis in on the conversation including how Taylor
had dated Stephen not long before Gwen was killed.
“This is an interesting twist,” Ellis observed. “It gives Taylor a motive if her boyfriend had a thing for her best friend. She was also the one that said Gwen was back in her cabin when clearly she wasn’t.”
Chase had thought about that on the drive over. “It does give her a motive but she still would have had to overpower Gwen to a certain degree. Although it wasn’t made public, we know that Gwen suffered from blunt force trauma before being stabbed. Did Taylor have the strength to do that much damage?”
“A woman scorned? You’d be surprised. You don’t like her for this? I think we’re getting to the point I might want to bring a few people in for questioning. Stephen and Taylor seem like prime candidates.”
“Funny you should mention that. I was thinking of going to talk to Stephen again. He never said a word about his relationship with Gwen so to my mind that makes him suspect number one. He had motive, he had opportunity, and he had the means.”
Ellis grinned. “The cops’ trifecta. Let me get someone here to sit with Peyton and I’ll go with you. I can make this much more official.”
Finally they had enough to bring in the police.
Chase held the car door open for Bailey and she climbed into the vehicle, her nerves on high alert. After the conversation with Taylor that morning, Bailey was of two minds about Gwen’s killer. If what Taylor said was true, Stephen might not have a strong motive for Gwen’s murder although Bailey wasn’t convinced of Stephen’s ardor and loyalty. In addition, if Taylor knew Stephen still harbored feelings for Gwen, it gave her a motive for killing as well.
Or perhaps neither one of them had anything at all to do with it.
Firing up the engine, Chase pulled into traffic. “I can practically hear the wheels spinning in your brain.”
“I’m so confused,” she confessed. “When we started out this morning, I thought I had a theory of what happened but Taylor has thrown that all into question.”
Wicked After Midnight (Midnight Blue Beach Book 1) Page 22