The Final Vow

by Amanda Flower

  “Are they asleep?” There was mischief in his eyes. There was always mischief in Chase’s eyes. Why he was attracted to me and my serious workaholic ways remained a mystery.

  I pushed him away, and he let me. “Yes, they’re asleep. I’ll make some coffee.”

  “Make it decaf unless you’re not planning to sleep tonight.” The teasing sound was back in his voice.

  I ignored him and went into the kitchen to remove the bag of decaf coffee from the refrigerator.

  Chase sat on one of the two bar stools at the kitchen’s island and watched me work in silence for a moment. “I’m staying here tonight,” he said finally.

  “You can’t. Hayden’s here.” I turned the coffeemaker on and the water began to boil. I did this to protect Hayden and maybe, I’d admit, if only to myself, to protect myself as well. “We’ll be fine. Jason’s here.”

  “Kelsey, someone was murdered less than a quarter of a mile from where we are right now.” He leaned over the counter with a serious expression on his face for once. “And if a killer stormed in here, Jason would be completely worthless when it came to defending you and Hayden.”

  That might be true. “I’m perfectly capable of defending myself and my son.” I frowned.

  “I know you are.” He leaned back on the stool as if he realized he’d taken his argument a step too far.

  “Besides, whoever killed Vianna wanted to kill Vianna. That doesn’t have anything to do with Hayden and me.”

  Chase didn’t look convinced. “Please. Let me stay. For me. It would make me feel better if I knew you and Hayden were safe.”

  I sighed. It would be nice to have him there. I knew I might actually get some sleep knowing Chase was nearby, not that I’d ever let him know that.

  “I’ll sleep on the couch and be a perfect gentleman,” he said.

  I arched my brow.

  “I will!” he said, as if aghast. “Your virtue is safe with me, dear lady.”

  Despite myself, I laughed. “Okay. Fine, but just for tonight.”

  His face broke into a grin. I felt like I’d just given Chase an inch that he would interpret as a mile or two.

  Twenty minutes later, I was smoothing a clean sheet over the sofa for Chase to keep him cool while he slept and to keep as much cat and dog fur off of him as possible. Chase stood behind me, holding the bed pillow I’d given him. “I feel spoiled. What service.”

  “Just go to sleep,” I muttered.

  His brows went up. “No good night kiss?”

  This was going to be trouble. A knock on the cottage door saved me from answering.

  “Who could that be?” I asked, moving toward the door.

  “My guess is Candy. She doesn’t sleep when she’s on a big case,” he said, following me.

  I frowned, trying not to imagine what else he might know about the police detective’s sleeping habits.

  Tiffin stood at the door. His rump wasn’t wagging to tell me it was a friend on the other side, but he wasn’t on high alert, so I realized it was someone he knew. I opened the door to find Eddie. My typically pristine ex-husband appeared disheveled. His dark hair, which was always combed perfectly in place, stood on end, the collar to his polo shirt was askew, and there were dark circles under his bright blue eyes.

  I stepped back. “Eddie! What are you doing here?”

  “I need your help.” He pulled up short when he saw Chase, who still was holding the bed pillow, standing behind me. “What’s he doing here?”

  “What does it look like?” Chase snapped back. There was no love lost between those two.

  “Is he here when my son is here?” Eddie wanted to know.

  I stepped in between the two of them. “Eddie, back off,” I ordered. “Chase is staying the night because of what happened in the village this evening. I assume you heard about it, which is why you’re here.”

  Eddie looked as if he wanted to argue.

  “And,” I went on, “he’s sleeping on the couch—not that it’s any of your business.”

  Eddie looked around us at the couch and seemed to be satisfied when he saw the sofa made up like a bed. “I heard about what happened.”

  I knew what was coming next. I would hear a long argument as to why Hayden wasn’t safe living with me on the Farm because of yet another murder on the grounds. I wasn’t in total disagreement with him when it came to that argument, but I still had no intention of giving him and Krissie shared custody of my son. “Hayden is fine. He’s sleeping upstairs. He doesn’t know what happened, and I plan to keep it that way.”

  Eddie ran his hand through his hair. “I’m not here about Hayden.”

  “Then why are you here?” I asked.

  “It’s Krissie,” he said, and his face fell. “She’s been taken to the police station for questioning. They think she killed Vianna. You have to help her.”

  “You’ve got to be kidding me,” I muttered under my breath.

  Eddie sat down in the middle of the sofa, on the clean sheets I’d just placed there for Chase, with his head in his hands. “What am I going to do?”

  Chase leaned against the kitchen counter with his arms folded across his chest while I perched on the edge of the coffee table, ready to spring away from both of them. I was both figuratively and literally between the two men. The irony of the situation wasn’t lost on me.

  “Have you spoken to your brother?” I asked Eddie.

  Eddie’s younger brother, Justin, was an environmental law attorney. He wouldn’t be much help with criminal defense for Krissie, but at the very least he could put Eddie in contact with an attorney who might be able to help him.

  He nodded. “Yes, and the criminal lawyer he suggested is down at the station with Krissie right now. Justin is there too.”

  I slid back onto the coffee table, since I was close to falling off of the edge. “Again, Eddie, why are you here? You have a defense attorney for Krissie. I don’t know what I can do.”

  “You can help me.” His eyes flicked in the direction of Chase. “You have connections with the police. You can help protect Krissie from whatever they plan to do to her.”

  Even though Chase was behind me, so I couldn’t see him, I felt the hostility he threw in Eddie’s direction.

  I shook my head. “Eddie, I can’t do anything. I don’t have an in with the police.”

  He dropped his hands from his face. “Of course you do. Three, now four, people have died on Barton Farm and the museum remains open. You have to have some clout, keeping this place in operation when it should so clearly be condemned. You must have something over the police to make that possible.”

  I glared at him. “If you’re trying to talk me into helping Krissie, I suggest that you use another argument, because that one isn’t going to work. Ever.”

  “What she said,” Chase added.

  I glanced over my shoulder and gave him a look. He flashed a smile in return.

  “Kelsey,” Eddie said. “I’m telling you Krissie didn’t do this. She wouldn’t hurt a fly.” He stared into my eyes with so much earnestness that it took me back to that time we’d loved each other and I’d trusted that face with my whole heart.

  Then I remembered that he’d had the same expression when he’d denied his affair, even after I saw him with the other woman. Twice. How could I believe anything he said? He’d lied to me for months with the worst possible lie, telling me he loved me when he didn’t, telling me he was faithful to me when he wasn’t.

  I shook my head. “I’m sorry, Eddie. I can’t help you in this case. Krissie’s family has money. They can hire the best lawyer that money can buy. That will have to be enough.” I stood up, walked to my cottage door, and opened it. The warm night air floated into the cottage and carried the faint scent of campfire. “I think it’s time for you to go.”

  Eddie joined me at the ope
n door, but he made no move to walk through it. “What about Hayden?”

  His question stopped my heart. “Hayden? What does any of this have to do with Hayden?”

  “Do you really want our child to look on as his stepmother is accused of murder and possibly put on trial? Think of how it would affect him.” The sad expression was gone from his blue eyes. All I saw now was determination, determination to achieve what he wanted at any cost, even using his only child as a pawn to do it.

  “She’s not his stepmother yet,” I snapped. “The two of you aren’t married. You shouldn’t be bringing Hayden into this conversation at all.”

  He ignored my reprimand and said, “Maybe you killed the wedding planner and framed Krissie to stop the wedding, then? Is that it?”

  I stared at him open-mouthed. I couldn’t believe that just moments ago I was feeling sorry for this jerk.

  Chase was there in an instant, next to Eddie. “Just get out.”

  I placed my hand on Chase’s chest and gently pushed him back. This was my battle.

  Chase looked at me. After a beat, he stepped back, and I dropped my hand. I returned my focus to Eddie. “Listen to me, Eddie, and listen closely. I had nothing to do with Vianna Pine’s murder, nor do I want anything to do with Krissie’s involvement with it.”

  “Krissie had nothing—”

  I held up my hand to cut him off. “I don’t care. The reason why I care about what happened is because it happened here on my Farm and because a woman was murdered. Yes, she was an annoying woman and, as far as I know, she only cared about making everything perfect for Krissie’s wedding day, but she was someone to another person out there. She was someone’s daughter. That should be more important than any inconvenience that Krissie is going through right now. If Krissie is as innocent as you say she is, the police will know that. Detective Brandon and Chief Duffy are both very good cops. They won’t arrest the wrong person.”

  Chase stepped forward and opened the cottage door a little more widely. “I think we’re done here.”

  Eddie looked from me to Chase and back again. He walked through the door and turned to face Chase and me. His eyes narrowed as he stood on the top step of my tiny front porch. “I will remember this, Kelsey. When it comes time to present my case for Hayden’s custody in court, I will remember this conversation.”

  My chest tightened. “Stop using your son as a weapon.”

  Before he could respond, Chase slammed the door in his face.

  eleven

  The next morning, on the walk between my cottage and the visitor center, Hayden and Tiffin ran a little bit ahead of me. I kept them in my line of sight. The sun was bright, but I knew danger lurked somewhere on the Farm grounds. I needed no more proof of that than the body I’d found at the foot of the church steps the night before.

  Chase had left the cottage around six. He was out the door before either Jason or Hayden came down the stairs. I was grateful he left without complaint. I didn’t want anything else to upset Hayden’s life. But I had a feeling Krissie and Eddie weren’t going to make as much of an effort to shield Hayden from what was going on with Vianna’s murder.

  Then again, we didn’t know for certain that Vianna was murdered. Yet. She might have just fallen to her death accidentally. The only indication that foul play was at work was the shadow I’d seen fleeing the scene. That said, I didn’t know how she could have simply fallen through the window. It seemed to me that there must have been a force of some kind to send her flying through the wooden slats. Like being thrown or pushed.

  I opened the side door that led into the administrative wing of the visitor center. Hayden and Tiffin raced inside. “I’m going to visit Judy!” Hayden shouted as he ran down the hallway. Laura, who stood just on the other side of the door with two extra-extra large coffees from the local coffee shop in either hand, flattened her body against the wall as Hayden and Tiffin flew by.

  When they disappeared around the corner that led into the main part of the visitor center, she held one out to me, and I took it with a grateful smile.

  “It’s black with no sugar, sweetener, cream, or milk. Boring. Just how you like it.” She sipped from her cup and sighed. “Mine, on the other hand, is fully loaded.”

  I held the cup under my nose and inhaled, enjoying the aroma. I was feeling better already.

  She shook her head. “I don’t know how you can drink that stuff without something in it. If that’s what it takes to weigh as much as a Popsicle stick, I’m not interested.”

  Laura was a big woman, tall and thick, with the most beautiful mane of red hair I’d ever seen. She also had perfectly symmetrical features. She was stunning. Conversely, I was petite, with brown eyes and my hair tied back in an ever-present French braid. There was nothing stunning about me except my stubborn streak, which was legendary.

  “Thank you for the coffee,” I said. “Boring is my style. I could really go for boring right about now.”

  Laura nodded and walked toward my office. “Considering you found another dead body … I need details.”

  “I knew the coffee would have a price.” Following her, I removed my keys from my pocket, unlocked the door, and let us inside the cramped space. I moved a stack of catalogs from one of the two chairs in front of my desk and set them on top of a low bookshelf so Laura had a place to sit. Then I sat on my aged wooden desk chair and leaned back with my coffee under my nose. The heavenly aroma soothed my nerves. Laura closed the door after us and took her seat.

  “How did you hear about it?” I asked.

  “Chase called me very early this morning,” she said. “It must have been about six. He’s lucky I answered, as I was in a deep sleep dreaming about Colin Firth—the Pride and Prejudice version, of course. I watched it last night from beginning to end, starting the moment I got home from the Farm yesterday afternoon.”

  “That’s dedication,” I said. The miniseries had to be six hours long.

  She sighed. “What else is a single girl teacher to do in the summer?”

  I rolled my eyes. I didn’t want us to stumble down the road of Laura’s single status again. She was lovely, funny, and whip-smart. She didn’t need a guy, in my opinion, nor did any deserve her. It wouldn’t do any good for me to repeat this sentiment to her, though. She’d heard it many times before.

  She sipped again from her cup and sighed. “What I want to know is, why did I have to hear about it from Chase?” She arched her brow. “I’d have thought my best friend would text me to let me know. Something like, ‘Hey, found a dead body. Hope you and Mr. Firth have a great night.’”

  “I was going to call you as soon as I got here this morning. I was just too tired last night, especially after Eddie left.”

  She held up her hand in the universal sign for stop. “Hold up. What? Eddie was there?”

  I sipped my coffee. It was perfect. Strong and bitter. “Chase didn’t tell you that part?”

  She jerked forward and sloshed coffee on her shirt. “No, he never mentioned Eddie. I would have remembered if he mentioned Eddie!”

  I gave her a level stare. “You’re more freaked out that I saw Eddie last night than you are about me finding a dead body. You might want to reexamine your priorities.”

  “Would it be wrong to say I am? Because it’s the truth. Why was he there?” She leaned back into her chair.

  “Apparently the police took Krissie in for questioning, and Eddie stopped by because he wanted me to help her. He thinks I have some kind of pull with the police.”

  “What? Of all the nerve. I swear, the next time I see him I’m going to kick him. I’ve wanted to kick him for years, but I’ve held back for your sake. But no more. Oh no, he’s crossed the line now, and as your best friend, I have the right and privilege to kick.”

  I rubbed the corner of my eye in the preemptive strike against the eye twitch that I suspected this conv
ersation would bring on. “No kicking.”

  She ignored me and went on. “I can’t believe he came to your cottage in the dead of night to ask you to help Krissie. Like you would do anything for that—”

  “She’ll be Hayden’s stepmother, for better or worse.”

  “For worse,” Laura grumbled. “Definitely for worse.”

  “I can’t believe she’s capable of murder, especially murder that had the potential to ruin her own wedding or put her in prison on her wedding day. She’s too selfish to do anything that would have such an impact on her own plans.”

  Laura frowned. “We’ll agree to disagree on this. I think she’s positively horrible. And I don’t doubt she’s capable of murder. Tell me everything.”

  I sighed and shared what had happened the night before, from beginning to end. It was much easier to tell my best friend, who interjected the occasional snarky remark, than it was to tell Detective Brandon.

  When I was done, Laura shook her head. “What are you going to do? Are you going to try to help Krissie?” Her tone told me she still thought it was a terrible idea.

  “I don’t know.” I was beginning to waffle on the issue. I could feel it.

  “But then again, maybe helping her will help you.” Laura tapped her index finger on her chin.

  I gave her a look. “How?”

  “It just occurred to me that maybe if you did help them, like get her off the murder rap, then you could use it as a bargaining chip to tell them to stop moving forward with the custody case.”

  I stared at her over my coffee cup. “We don’t know if Krissie’s been charged for murder. We don’t even know if it was a murder. She was just called in for questioning and Eddie flipped out.”

  “But I still think you could use it to your advantage.”

  I shook my head. “That’s a terrible idea. Probably the worst idea you’ve ever had.”

  Laura didn’t have children. She couldn’t understand what a dangerous idea that was, and, worse, how it could hurt Hayden. Above all else, I had to protect my son. Thankfully, she didn’t appear to be offended when I nixed her suggestion. I knew she just wanted to get Eddie and Krissie off my back, but using Hayden wasn’t the answer. I wished that my ex-husband knew that too. I figured we would all be a lot happier if Eddie learned that lesson.