by Eryn Scott
I shook my head and Isaac wrapped his arms around me. "Listen, it's okay. We'll look for her. We'll find her."
Just then, my back pocket began to buzz. Someone was calling my phone. I pulled away from Isaac and took out the phone. Alex's name shone back at me. He and Carson must be here. Great. Now I'd have to tell him I'd made a mistake.
Swallowing, I looked up into Isaac's blue eyes. "Sorry, I've got to take this. They might know something."
Isaac nodded and I answered the call.
"Pepper?"
"Yeah."
"I see Liv's car, but—" Alex cut himself off, taking an audible deep breath. "Where are you?"
"Inside. I've—I was—it’s not—" Just as I was about to finish that sentence, a loud buzzing sound reverberated through the room, the sound of a phone vibrating on a hard surface.
My attention flashed over to Isaac's coffee table where a phone lit up, Carson's name illuminated on the screen.
Liv's phone.
Eyes wide, I cried out as Isaac's hand clamped tight where it had been resting on my arm.
My phone dropped from my grasp. Isaac's cool blue eyes stared back at me when I glanced up, his face a terrifying mask of calm. He stomped down on my phone twice, his black boots cracking the surface easily. Then Isaac pushed me back against the wall, his free hand latching onto my other arm. Hitting the wall shoved all of the air out of me and I coughed.
"Where's Liv?" I croaked.
He leaned his weight into me and brought his lips close to my ear. "The bull no longer has any problems of any kind."
One of the ending lines of The Faithful Bull. Chills skittered up and down my body. I squirmed, trying to punch out at him, but he had my arms pinned too tight to the wall.
"I hadn't planned on this, but that's okay." He watched me, a sick smile twisting his lips. "So this was how you died, in whispers that you did not hear," he said, quoting more Hemingway.
Tears streamed down my cheeks as I gasped for air, his torso crushing mine.
I shook my head, gathering all of my strength. Gulping back a sob, I whispered one word, "No."
Isaac leaned back. "No?" His eyebrows shot up.
"I may not be as strong as you think, but I know many tricks and I have resolution," I said.
He wasn't the only one who could quote Papa. Isaac pulled back, his face frozen for a second as his eyes lit up in recognition.
I took that opportunity to yank my knee up as hard as I possibly could right in between his legs. His face contorted into a murderous scowl before he doubled forward, gasping and groaning. His hands released me and I spent a good second—which felt more like an hour—watching him in disbelief. Once my brain realized my defense move had worked, I jumped into action, scrambling over to where he'd dropped the baseball bat.
Just as my finger closed over the handle, though, I felt him grab my legs. I spun around, using the momentum to swing the bat toward his body. It slammed into the side of his head. Isaac staggered backward.
Clambering to my feet, I gripped the bat and charged at him again, holding it in front of me like a medieval lance. Issac's eyes went wide as the tip of the bat sunk into his gut, pushing him back. I kept running. He stumbled back toward the wall of windows. I screamed and pushed with all my strength, sending him through the window I'd left open.
His body slammed into the glass, cracking one side of it as the momentum pushed him out the opening. The last thing I saw were his wide eyes as he fell backward.
I flinched, hearing the sickening sound of his body hitting the metal dumpster below. Rushing to the window, I kept my hands clear of the broken glass. Red and blue lights flashed from the street and I watched as a group of officers raced over to Isaac.
He squirmed, rolling off the dumpster onto the concrete, moving slowly and clutching his arm. The police officers looked up at the window, at me. I wanted to scream, but I was afraid all that would come out were sobs.
"Get him. Please," I whispered around the lump in my throat. "He's a killer. He's not a victim."
Frustration welled up inside me at how helpless I felt. The room pulsed as my heart pounded in my temples, my ears, my throat, my chest, my aching body.
A hand grabbed me from behind. I jumped and screamed, only to be pulled into familiar arms, enveloped in Alex's peppermint and laundry scent. I sobbed against his chest.
"Are you okay?" he asked, breathing heavily, gripping me tight.
I nodded, crying and shaking. "He did it," I said between gasps.
"We know. They've got him now." Alex moved me away from the window.
"Liv?" I pushed away from him in a frantic exhale.
Alex's face darkened. "She's okay, but still unconscious. We found her slumped by the side door in the kitchen. He must've been about to take her out to his car when you interrupted him."
It was as if I suddenly ran out of every emergency store of adrenaline. My body slumped forward, made heavy from the relief. Alex pulled me closer and kissed the top of my head. "You're okay. You're safe, mi pimienta. Everyone's safe, thanks to you."
Carson wouldn't leave Liv's side as the paramedics took her to the hospital to make sure the drug Isaac had given her left her system and she woke up okay. Because they would only allow one person in the ambulance with her, Alex and I drove behind. His right hand squeezed tightly around mine as his left gripped the steering wheel.
We spent the first part of the ride silent. I closed my eyes, but kept seeing Isaac's face: pushing close to mine, smiling, grimacing, then wide-eyed... falling. My eyes blinked open and I looked out the truck's window, unable to handle the silence anymore.
"She was the bull." The words were quiet, but Alex heard them.
"Was it Hemingway?" he asked.
I nodded and then spent the rest of the ride telling him the connections between the victims and the stories.
When I was done, Alex cleared his throat. "I'm so sorry I didn't believe you, Pepper." His voice was hoarse, his worried eyes flicked between me and the road.
Swallowing, I nodded. "It's okay."
"You saved her. We would've been there too late."
I breathed in deep, still feeling like I hadn't quite recovered from the breath being knocked out of me earlier. As I sat there, my whole body began to ache.
Alex pulled into the hospital parking lot and let go of my hand as he turned off his truck. He shifted to face me in the limited light being shed by the parking lot lampposts.
"I know this isn't the time." He picked at something on his dash. "At all... but, Pepper, I've been so stupid." He shook his head. "When I got back from the academy, there was just so much with starting on the force, and you seemed equally busy with your last quarter. I thought we had time."
Swallowing, I tried to hold back the tears burning behind my eyes. Alex took my hands in his.
"When I'm around you, my mind stops jumping around and starts to go in smooth waves," he said.
Lovely goosebumps broke out up and down my arms as I recognized the line Jake Barnes had used talking about Brett in The Sun Also Rises.
"Ditto," I croaked, wishing I could've pulled out some equally smooth and charming line. I shook my head. "But I think I've had enough Hemingway quotes for one night."
Alex's face wrinkled in concern then he nodded, seeming to understand. "Sorry." He looked down. "How about this, then?" He met my eyes with his dark brown ones. "I think we should start dating, Pepper. I've wanted to since I saw you in the library reading last summer. I'm sorry it took me so long to tell you." His hand moved to my cheek and he gently caressed my clammy skin, wiping away the hot tears trailing down to my chin.
Then he leaned forward, his lips meeting mine.
I didn't care that I was a mess or had been ugly crying for the better part of an hour, this was the sweetest, most romantic kiss I'd ever had.
"Me, too," I whispered during a moment when his lips weren't pressed to mine.
Alex smiled and pressed his forehead to mine. "Tha
t's good. I honestly don't know what I would do without you."
I exhaled a quick laugh. "I honestly hope you never have to find out." My tussle with Isaac still sat a little too fresh and a little too heavy in my memory.
Leaning back, Alex squeezed my hand. "Let's go see Liv and Carson."
I nodded, emotion welling up in me again. I kept the tears at bay until we walked into Liv's hospital room and I saw her lying there, unconscious still.
Carson was sitting next to her, but he stood when we entered. I ran forward, hugging him tightly before moving past him to grasp Liv's hand. I tried to be careful of the IV they had in her and the heart rate monitor clipped to her finger, but I leaned down and pressed my forehead against hers as I listened to her heartbeat and her deep steady breaths.
"I'm so glad you're okay," I whispered. I looked to Carson. "She is... okay, right?"
He nodded. "She'd gotten a pretty big dose of what looks to be Rohypnol. He must've slipped it into that last drink." His eyes narrowed as if he were in pain. "I should've checked with you when she texted saying I didn't need to come get her because you had decided to stay."
I pulled away from Liv, plopping down in the chair next to her, holding tight to her hand as if someone was still trying to take her from me. "You couldn't have known." I shuddered at the thought of Isaac using her fingerprint while she was unconscious to open her phone and send those messages.
"It sounds like that's how he got to Mindy, too. Put something in her drink. I'm guessing he must've just followed the other two," Alex said, his dark brows furrowed.
After a few minutes, I let Carson have the seat next to Liv again and stood with Alex. He leaned against the wall and I leaned up against him as he wrapped his arms around me.
We chatted about school while we watched her, attempting to keep each other's worries about Liv at bay, as much as we could.
"Only a couple months from graduation, you two," Alex said to me and Carson at one point.
"Yeah, I just got all of my paperwork in for grad school. Now I have to wait until I get accepted. Or not."
"Of course you will." Carson scoffed.
I smiled at the compliment, but then realized I had no idea what he was planning on doing, having simply assumed he would follow Liv to Seattle. "What are your plans?"
Carson's face tensed. "Well, actually—"
"Hey," Alex interrupted. "I think she's coming to."
Our attention flashed to the hospital bed where Liv lay blinking, her eyes still heavy and tired, but definitely open.
"Why does everyone look so worried?" she croaked out the question, a sly smile pulling at her lethargic features.
Carson stood and held her face in his hands, kissing her, then he stepped away and let me squeeze her tight. Even Alex stepped forward to hug her.
I moved to her other side, taking her hand once everyone was done celebrating. Wrapping both of my hands around hers, a weird mixture of relief and frustration welled up in me. Though I was ecstatic to see her awake and well, I couldn't forget how close I'd come to losing her. I gripped her hand tighter in mine and moved closer.
Liv turned to me and smiled groggily.
"I can't…" I shook my head, swallowing the emotion crowding my words, making it impossible to finish my sentence.
She blinked. "We really should've dyed my hair."
Leave it to Liv to find a way to lighten even the darkest situation. We giggled. It felt good to laugh after everything.
Just then, the hospital door opened and my mother and Maggie bustled inside. At least a half hour of hugging, crying, and recounting the night followed. Alex left a while after to go help out with everything down at the station, but the rest of us stayed huddled together in Liv's room until her father showed up from Seattle a few hours later.
Maggie, Mom, and I left to give them some space. As we walked out of the hospital, Maggie on my right and Mom on my left, I pulled them to me in a double-side-hug.
"How about we go pick up Hamburger and the two of you come spend the night at my place tonight?" Mom said as we headed to the car.
"Really?" I asked, turning to look at her. Mom hated dogs. Dad had brought our childhood dog, Buttons, home without asking and she'd never forgiven him, vowing to never let another dog in her house after Buttons was gone.
She nodded, smiling. "Really. I'd like to get to know Hammy. We can have a girls' sleepover."
"Oh, I'm not missing this," Maggie said. "Josh can take care of the kids without me tonight."
"Oh, no." I shot a worried look at my mom. "She's going to make us stay up late watching musicals."
Mom laughed. "I can't think of anything better than having my girls at home with me. Even if it means I have to watch a musical."
Maggie said, "Fine, I won't force you." She rolled her eyes. "Pepper can choose what we watch tonight."
"Something light," Mom added as we climbed into her car.
We picked up Hammy and then cuddled together on Mom's couch, falling asleep under one big blanket to old episodes of I Love Lucy.
21
It took me two weeks to find out anything more about Isaac and the case. Not for lack of trying, but Alex and his father were trained professionals and each of my attempts were met with canned answers about ongoing investigations.
I was also swamped with classes and helping with Katie, Mindy, and Heidi's memorial services. I visited Simon in the bookstore almost daily, bringing him coffee or a scone or simply a smile. The man had always been a little out there—a quirky, bookish type. But after Heidi's funeral, it felt like he was lost, wandering around in his own mind.
Liv was plenty busy. Her father had stayed for a week after her release from the hospital. She was juggling her classwork along with the many intense conversations about her future her dad seemed to want to have with her. I hadn't been a part of any of these talks, but neither of them ever looked happy when they were done.
I'd been spending more time with my mom. She and I were doing better lately. After coming to the hospital the night Liv had almost died, I'd ended up spilling everything to her about how I didn't feel like she made time for me. We'd had a good talk and started having dinner—just the two of us—at an actual restaurant, once a week.
So when Alex told me his father wanted to meet with me about the investigation, I was surprised to say the least.
Alex was waiting for me in the lobby of the police station when I arrived that day. Just off his shift, he was still dressed in his uniform, looking hot as all get out. He wrapped an arm around me and pulled me into a kiss. We'd been dating—for sure this time—ever since the night they arrested Issac.
He walked me back to his father's office. Images of the day I'd given my statement about that night at The Select flashed uncomfortably through my mind, but I focused on the somber Detective Valdez. He nodded at his son and then his eyes fell upon me.
"I asked you here today as a way to thank you, Miss Brooks." He stood, shaking my hand and then motioning for me to sit down.
I did, unsure of what to say to that.
"I know you've been interested to find out the outcome of the investigation and—as it is now officially wrapped up—I'd say it's within your rights to know."
Blinking, I asked, "Seriously?"
He dipped his head in a nod. "I can extend the same courtesy to your friend, Olivia, if you think she's ready to know."
I nodded, though I wasn't sure Liv was quite there yet.
"So did he confess? Did you guys get him?" I asked, leaning forward.
"Yes," the detective said. "He confessed that night, actually, in the ambulance on the way to the hospital, a sick smile on his face the whole time, even with the state of his broken arm. But he was under a lot of medication and for a few days after, so we needed to be certain of his guilty plea. At the same time, we did what we could to gather all of the evidence we could from his apartment."
"Did you find anything about his father?" I asked.
Detec
tive Valdez cleared his throat, but nodded.
"Yes, he eventually told us that he had witnessed his father kill his mother."
"No wonder the guy was messed up," Alex said.
I swallowed. "Did he explain the Hemingway connection?"
"His mother was having an affair with her English professor," the detective explained. "Isaac said she was obsessed with Hemingway in the weeks before her death."
"Hearing of Katie's affair must've been what triggered him." I nodded in understanding.
"Yes. He overheard her talking about it and wanted to punish her like his father had punished his mother."
My forehead wrinkled in thought. "Then it wasn't about Hemingway after all?"
"Not at first. But when he disposed of her body in the creek and smelled the licorice, he took it as a sign that his mother was proud of him. He said the others just lined up after that and he knew what he had to do." Detective Valdez's lip curled in disgust.
"And that's why Victoria thought it was Sam. He really had been down by the creek that nigh," Alex said. "He confessed to that when I brought him in for some questioning a few days after his encounter with you."
The way Alex said questioning made me wonder if that was all he did after the guy had roughed me up.
"So Victoria was right?" I asked.
Alex nodded. "He was dumping chemicals in the water so the university would get in trouble and his claims would be proven. It was something called Chloropicrin which he stole from his uncle's pest control truck. It smells like licorice. That must've been what both you and Isaac smelled." Alex nodded in my direction.
"So Sam was guilty of something," I said, my hand encircling my wrist. The bruise had faded, but the memory would take much longer to leave me. "That's why he freaked out on me."
"He'll be answering for that crime as well as assaulting you, Miss Brooks," Detective Valdez said.
I smiled and said, "Thank you, for everything." Looking to Alex, I nodded. It was time to go, time to put all of this behind us.
The detective stood. "You are, ultimately, the reason your friend is alive right now. The station owes you a great deal, Pepper." He walked over to me and clamped a stiff arm around my shoulders.