Truth is in the Darkness (Paynes Creek Thriller Book 2)

by Heather Sunseri

  I felt his hands at my wrists. He pulled my hands from my face, then smoothed his hands down my arms. “I’ve never needed an apology from you. You did what you had to do to heal.”

  “Coop… how can you ever forgive me?”

  “You’ve done nothing to need my forgiveness.”

  I straightened, then stepped back out of his reach.

  He dropped his hands, continued to study me. And then his face softened. He closed the distance again. “I don’t need your apologies or your reasons.” He slid his hand to the back of my neck and tilted my head back, forcing me to look at him. “I’ve only ever needed one thing from you. And I’ve been willing to wait as long as necessary to get it again. Until you were ready.” His dark brown eyes were intense as they focused on mine. “You, Lil. That’s all I’ve ever wanted. You’re the love of my life. That love didn’t stop twelve years ago, and it hasn’t lessened one bit since.”

  “How can you say that? After all this time?”

  He shrugged. “Because it’s true.”

  “I don’t deserve that kind of love.”

  “Says who?”

  I tried to pull away, but he held tight.

  “You’ve come this far,” he said. “Tell me what you want.”

  “I don’t know.”

  “Yes, you do.” He looked down, taking in the sight of me in his thick navy-blue robe. The robe was hiding how my body was reacting to the realizations I had come to in the shower, as well as to his words and his touch now. “You didn’t race out of the shower or skip drying your hair and getting dressed because you didn’t know what you wanted. I saw it on your face when you stepped into the kitchen.”

  He took my hands, forced them behind my back, and held them there with one hand, forcing me to arch my back and press my body into his. My breasts, separated by the thick terry cloth, pushed against him.

  “Tell me, Lil,” he said. “What do you want?”

  My breaths came quicker now. I didn’t dare look away from the intensity of his gaze. “You,” I whispered. “I want you. A part of me always has. I’m just sorry it took me so long to admit it.”

  He smoothed my wet hair behind me, looking down at me. “I’ve waited so long to hear you say that.”

  He crushed his lips to mine. We both moved, reacting to the feelings the kiss invoked. No space existed between us, only fabric.

  I was the one who broke the spell. I backed away from him, and he looked at me with a fiery passion I’d never seen in him before. Slowly, deliberately, I untied the sash that held the robe closed, and I let the robe fall open.

  As he took me in, the fire in his eyes overwhelmed me. “God, you’re beautiful.” He tore his gaze from my body to look me in the eye. “Are you sure?”

  It was a simple question. One I didn’t have to think on. I nodded.

  “If we do this,” he said, “there’s no going back. No more running. We face everything together.”

  “I have a flight scheduled to New York tomorrow.”

  “Cancel it,” he said without hesitation. His gaze narrowed. More fire. “Decide, Lil. Either you’re ready for this, or you’re not. But I’ll be damned if I’m going to let you go through with this and then watch you run from me again.”

  “No more running,” I said quietly.

  “And no more talk of changing your name. We face this head-on, and I put whoever’s doing it away.”

  I nodded. “I’m ready.” I took a step toward him. “So… are you just going to stand there interrogating me? I’m here, Coop. And I’m giving myself over to you.”

  He wasted no more time. He rushed me, scooped me up in his arms like I weighed nothing at all, and carried me all the way to his room, where he set me down on his bed.

  I climbed to my knees and began unbuttoning his shirt. Sliding it off his shoulders, I met his gaze. “I know there’s still so much we need to talk about.”

  “And we will. But first, I want you. I’ve waited so long.”

  Twenty-Nine

  Coop

  I watched her desire blossom. It filled her breasts. Color bloomed across her cheeks. And those sexy green eyes told me her need far outweighed her fear of what being in my bed meant.

  I covered her body with mine, took a breast in my mouth. When her head slammed back against the pillow and a moan escaped, I could feel myself shift from want to need. I had to have her.

  When I pulled back a little, she whispered, “It’s been a while.”

  “I think it will all come back—for both of us.” I brushed my lips across hers, then sank into the need. My hands were on her, teasing her and reminding us both of what we almost had, once upon a time. And of what we could still have now.

  She ran her hands across my back, no doubt discovering me again, feeling how much my body had changed. We’d both changed.

  She was still beautiful—so beautiful—but I wanted to see more color in her cheeks and weight on her. She’d been under too much stress, and it showed in her face and her body.

  “This feels different,” she said softly.

  “We’re definitely not seventeen anymore.” I smiled.

  “Thank God,” she answered with a laugh.

  My hand skimmed along her waist and molded to her breast. She gasped as I gently pinched her nipple.

  We explored each other, rediscovered what made each of us tick and quiver. When I finally drove into her, she said my name on a whisper and moved with me in a tangle of limbs until we lost ourselves in each other. I was surrounded by her intoxicating scent and the feel of her body beneath me until we both broke with a thunderous tremble, collapsing into each other, fully spent.

  She clung to me. We lay there breathing heavily for several minutes before I rolled off of her. I pulled the sheet and comforter up and over us, then gathered her close and held her, her back to my chest.

  “I’m not sure what this means,” she said softly.

  I kissed the back of her head. “I am.”

  Thirty

  Lil

  I woke to the sound of a hard, driving rain beating against Coop’s bedroom windows. It was dark outside, but a flash of lightning lit up the room, followed by a low grumble of thunder in the distance.

  Coop’s limbs were intertwined with mine, and his breaths came slow and steady. Surrounded by his scent, I smiled, remembering the way he’d touched me a couple of short hours before. While he had been gentle, he had also driven me to my limits and over the edge with a sense of purpose I would not soon forget.

  We certainly weren’t seventeen anymore. He’d learned some new tricks in the lovemaking department.

  I smiled as I ran a finger over my lips. For the first time since returning to Paynes Creek, I was truly happy.

  I slowly slid out of his arms, trying hard not to disturb the sleep I knew he needed. He took in a long breath and turned over, but he didn’t wake. I grabbed my jeans and his shirt, then slipped out of his room and dressed as quietly as I could.

  Downstairs in the kitchen, I poured a glass of water. It was only ten p.m. We’d made love and then slept right through dinner. How little he moved when I got up proved his need for sleep. I knew that the investigation was wreaking havoc on his ability to get a good night’s rest.

  His phone buzzed and lit up on the kitchen island. When I looked, I saw that he had eight missed calls and several unread texts, but he had his phone set so that I couldn’t see who they were from or what they said. I just hoped nothing else terrible had happened while he and I were… reconnecting. He deserved some down time—time to regroup. He was of no use as a cop if he allowed himself to get run down.

  I considered returning to Coop’s bed and enjoying the feel of him holding me while we slept. The problem was, I was now wide awake. I had changed things between us tonight. I had denied needing him in my life for so long. But no longer. Tonight felt right. We felt right.

  I set the phone back down and walked around the lower level of Coop’s house. I hadn’t explored before,
but it was clear this place was going to be amazing when the remodel was complete. There was a formal dining room that extended to the front of the house, complete with gorgeous wainscoting and a hole in the ceiling where a chandelier would hang. No dining room table yet, but I could totally picture a table that would be perfect for Coop. And the sitting room to the right of the front door was still unfurnished, but underneath the drop cloths, the heart pine floors had been sanded and refinished to glossy perfection.

  Beyond the powder room was another hallway, and I walked quietly down it and opened the first door on the left, revealing another room that extended to the front of the house. Lightning flashed through windows that looked out onto the front porch. I flipped on the light, which proved to be a five-light globe chandelier—a modern update to match the feel Coop had clearly been going for with other parts of the house.

  To one side of the room stood a pair of sawhorses with a large piece of plywood stretched across them. All the paper strewn about on top made it clear this was a makeshift desk. Behind the desk, a large black corkboard stretched the entire length of one wall, covered with more papers and photographs and strings.

  My eyes were immediately drawn to one particular piece of paper on the far left side. It was a photocopy of a sketch that I’d seen many times—a sketch so familiar that it entered my dreams on a regular basis.

  A shiver started at the base of my neck and moved at lightning speed down my spine.

  I was looking at the police sketch of the man who had kidnapped me when I was seventeen.

  A loud crack of thunder broke the silence, and my entire body shook. But I didn’t take my eyes off the corkboard. Instead I stepped closer. I knew exactly what I was looking at.

  An evidence board.

  As I scanned the wall from left to right, many of the bits of evidence were more recent—some from just this week. There were copies of the vandalized pages from my book; photographs of the blood and dead fox in my childhood bedroom; and a horrifyingly graphic photograph of Tricia Hood with two knives protruding from her body.

  My hand went to my mouth, smothering a frightened gasp.

  String stretched from the photograph of Tricia to two other photographs. One was a blurry photo of Bree White, the gas station clerk that I was sure was involved in my kidnapping. And the other was my kidnapper himself. Except this picture wasn’t a police sketch; this was an actual photograph. And beneath his photograph was a Post-It note with two words written on it.

  Rudy Richardson.

  Coop had identified him? How? When?

  He hadn’t said a word. He’d never told me he knew his name. He’d never told me he was even investigating him. He certainly hadn’t told me that he’d tied that very man to Tricia Hood. Or to the threats and letters from my stalker.

  Did he really think all of these things were related?

  I nearly leapt out of my own skin when a clap of thunder shook the house. Instinctively, I turned toward the window. And just as I did, another flash of lightning illuminated a dark figure standing on the front porch—staring right at me.

  I was paralyzed with fear, every nerve in my body tightened. I sucked in a breath.

  And then lightning flashed again.

  The man had stepped closer to the window.

  I screamed.

  I ran. I fled down the hallway as fast as I could, and I smacked into a wall of human.

  Coop grabbed my elbows. “Lil, it’s me. What’s wrong?”

  “Outside,” I said. “Someone’s out there on the porch. He was watching me through the window.”

  Coop sprinted to a small table in the entryway, reached underneath it, and came away with a handgun. Cocking it, he went to the front door. “Stay back!” he ordered.

  He flicked on the porch light, unlocked the door, and stepped outside. “FBI!” he shouted. “Show yourself with your hands up!”

  “Don’t shoot,” said a male voice calmly. “It’s me. Luke.”

  Coop let out a breath while lowering his gun. “Fuck, man! What the hell are you doing out here in the dark?”

  “It’s night time?” the man said. “It tends to get dark at night. Sorry to surprise you. I tried calling. You’re not answering your phone.”

  I stepped forward, sensing that the danger was over. “So you decided to peep through the front window?”

  Luke looked at me. He was dressed in a dark suit—an expensive one—and a tie that hung loose around his neck. He was a good-looking man, with eyes that were a warm, moss green. Not at all what I expected from a man who, moments ago, was spying on me through Coop’s front window.

  “You must be Lily,” he said, holding out a hand. “It’s nice to finally meet you.”

  Hesitating slightly, but noticing the smirk on Coop’s face, I slipped my hand into his and shook it.

  “I’m terribly sorry I scared you,” Luke said. “The house was dark. I was just looking through the only window with light to make sure everything looked okay. Coop doesn’t usually ignore his phone.” He turned an accusatory eye on Coop.

  Coop raked his hands down his face. “I’m sorry. I fell asleep. I must have drifted off after…” His voice trailed off.

  A grin lifted the corners of Luke’s mouth.

  Coop waved him inside. “Just get in here already.” He turned to me to explain. “Luke is with the FBI. Was just transferred to the Lexington office. He’s helping with the case.”

  “And which case would that be, exactly?” I said, tilting my head toward his office. “It seems you’ve been keeping a lot of things from me. A lot.”

  “I know. I’m—” He cut himself off and faced Luke again. “Give us a minute? I’m going to go put a shirt on.” He placed a gentle hand on my elbow and guided me toward the stairs.

  I went willingly. I was done running. And I wanted to give Coop an opportunity to explain himself.

  But when we reached Coop’s bedroom, I turned on him. “Why do you have all that information tacked to your wall downstairs?”

  “Because I’m still working with the FBI.”

  “What?” I was sure my surprise was written all over my face.

  “I told everyone I was working as a patrol officer here in Paynes Creek because I was rattled by a case that went wrong and needed to recover. That’s partly true—I did take some time off from the Bureau—but mostly it’s a cover. A way to explain why I’m here in Paynes Creek. I’m actually still working for the Bureau.”

  I still didn’t understand. “Doing what? What interest would the Bureau have in putting an undercover agent in Paynes Creek?”

  “I’ve been tracking the man who kidnapped you twelve years ago.”

  “Rudy Richardson,” I said. “I never knew his name. But apparently you did.”

  “Yes. I identified him soon after I started working for the FBI. In fact I’ve been working human trafficking cases during most of my tenure. And Rudy Richardson has been my primary focus for much of that time.”

  “Wait—hold on a second. You identified him right after you joined the FBI. What is that, eight years ago? You’ve known his name for eight years and you never told me?”

  “I’m sorry, Lil. I—”

  “No.” I shook my head. “I’m sorry. I’m sure you had your reasons. And knowing the man’s name would have done nothing to change what happened. I’m just surprised, that’s all. Go ahead and finish your story.”

  “Shortly after the West Virginia bust, we received a tip that Richardson had been spotted in Paynes Creek. It actually wasn’t the first time. He’s been spotted here a few times over the years. Given that this is a small town and there’ve been no further kidnappings in the area since yours, my assumption was that he has a non-professional reason for being here.”

  “You mean he lives here.” My heart skipped a beat.

  “Or he knows someone who does, yes. Maybe family. And today we got a little more confirmation of that. This morning, we—the Hopewell County Sheriff’s Office—took Bree White int
o custody. Her phone number was on Tricia’s phone, and we used that to lure her in.”

  I turned and paced. “Rudy Richardson is connected to Bree White, and now White is connected to Tricia, who was murdered on your property. Under our tree.”

  “Yes. And there was another number on Tricia’s phone. Just initials: RR. But you can bet that’s Rudy Richardson. They’re definitely connected.”

  I turned and paced. “And my stalker? You’ve got stuff about him all over your board. He’s connected to this too?”

  Coop took in a breath and let it out slowly. He seemed to be considering whether to tell me everything. “The NYPD traced one of your stalker’s gifts to Tricia Hood. A candle. It was sent from Paynes Creek, and her fingerprints were on it.”

  I paused to take it all in. Then I turned and met Coop’s eye. “It was never over, was it?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “The kidnapping twelve years ago. Somehow, all of this, everything that’s been happening lately… it’s connected to that.”

  He nodded. “I think so. I just don’t know how. Or why. We don’t even know yet how anyone even knew you’d be in Paynes Creek.”

  “Oh, that reminds me. I was going to tell you, but with me getting drunk and suffering a hangover all day and then… ending up in your bed…”

  “What is it?”

  “Linda knew I was coming home to Paynes Creek.”

  “Really? How could that be? Did Barb tell her?”

  “No. Grammy hasn’t spoken to her in months.”

  “Would Bryn or Drew have told her?”

  “No way. They hate her. And they don’t talk to her either. Honestly I wouldn’t think there’s anyone in Paynes Creek who still talks to her.”

  Coop rubbed his chin, thinking deeply.

  I turned and walked to the window. It had stopped storming. Only lingering rain remained. And I wasn’t sure how I should feel. Angry at Coop for keeping all this from me—apparently for years? Or grateful that he’d been looking out for me all this time?