Could it be that the mental illness that had marred her life after the birth of the twins had actually started much earlier?
Eventually Charlotte reached the landing to the second floor. Still chilled from the rain, she decided to have a shower. Turning the water hotter than usual, she closed her eyes and let her head rest back on the tiled wall.
Charlotte had never run a marathon. But if she had, she couldn’t imagine her body aching more than it did right now. Stress and lack of sleep were catching up with her big time. The pulsing water lulled her into a state of relaxation she hadn’t experienced for a very long time.
She was thinking of getting out, when the bathroom door opened, admitting a waft of cooler air...and Dougal.
“Hey Char. Mind if I join you?”
She cracked open the door for him—he was already out of his clothes. She wrapped her arms around him, shivering as his cool skin pressed against her much hotter body.
“God, this feels great,” he murmured, as he pulled her even closer.
They kissed, and she could taste the malt of the beer he’d just had combined with the essence that was simply Dougal, the man that she loved.
There was so much to talk about, but neither said a word as they continued to embrace under the pummeling water. When Dougal finally led her out of the shower she assumed they would towel off quickly and then make love.
But the second Dougal’s head hit the pillow, he was asleep.
Less than a minute later, lulled by the rain against the roof, and Dougal’s slow steady breathing, so was she.
* * *
Charlotte and Dougal slept a solid two hours before Jamie and Cory came home. Charlotte woke first, at the sound of the front door opening and closing. Gently she removed Dougal’s arm from her waist, hoping to slip out of bed without disturbing him. But his eyes opened.
“What’s up?”
“Jamie and Cory are back from their movie.” She glanced at the time. “They must have eaten dinner out as well.”
She dressed quickly in leggings and a long sweatshirt, then paused to look at him. He was sitting on the side of the bed, looking both incredibly sexy and terrifically sad.
“I wish we didn’t have to rush out of bed.” He raised his eyebrows suggestively.
“Me, too.” She went to him, dropping a kiss onto the top of his head. His dark curls were wild after the shower, soft and fresh-smelling. “You going to be okay?”
“Eventually. I suppose it’s too soon for the book to have gone live?”
“I’ve got my laptop downstairs. I’ll go check.” She’d left it by the back door, near the kitchen, and she found Jamie and Cory there, too, drinking glasses of water at the island.
As soon as she saw Charlotte, Cory came to give her a hug.
It was a tight, loving hug and Charlotte’s heart swelled. She brushed her niece’s hair softly from her face. “How was the movie?”
“It was funny.”
“And sweet,” Jamie added. “Just what the doctor ordered.”
“And you’ve eaten? If not, I could make some waffles.”
“We did have a burger after the movie. But I definitely have room for a dessert waffle. How about you, Cory?”
Cory nodded, then pulled on Charlotte’s hand. “Is the book done? Will my brother be coming home soon?”
Charlotte glanced at Jamie, who gave her a sheepish shrug. Obviously she’d explained to Cory what the deal was for Chester to be released.
“Dougal finished today, and I sent the book to someone who’s going to publish it on a bunch of Internet book sites. We’re hoping it will be ready today or tomorrow. It’s probably too soon now, but I’m going to check, anyway.”
“I can do that for you,” Jamie offered.
“Great. My laptop is in the travel case by the door.”
While Jamie pulled it out and waited for it to power up, Charlotte gathered ingredients for waffles.
“I’ve bookmarked the various platform sights,” Charlotte told Jamie. “I should still be logged in at all of them.”
“Got it,” Jamie said. “I’m checking the first one right now…” A moment later she sighed. “It says still in process.”
“It hasn’t been very long. They say it can take anywhere from twenty-four to forty-eight hours.”
Cory groaned. “You mean we might have to wait two whole days?”
“I hope not sweetie.” This was said by Dougal, as he joined the group in the kitchen. “Anyone else hungry?”
“Aunt Charlotte is making waffles.”
“Awesome.”
For the next hour the four of them hung out in the kitchen, taking turns spooning the batter into the waffle maker. Charlotte put out the maple syrup and bowls of chocolate chips, pecans, and sliced bananas for toppings.
When Charlotte noticed Cory stifling a yawn, she suggested it was bed time and Cory didn’t even protest. Dougal offered to read some of the Tintin adventures to her, and he was back downstairs fifteen minutes later.
“She put up a valiant effort, but she’s fast asleep.”
“We’re all exhausted,” Jamie said. “Do you guys mind if I sleep over again?”
“We’d love it,” Charlotte said. “With any luck this will be our last night without Chester.”
chapter twenty-four
At ten-thirty on Wednesday morning, The Librarian Killer went live on one of the Internet book websites. Within an hour, the book was available for sale on three others. Dougal watched over Charlotte’s shoulder as she opened the Report page for one of them and was amazed to see ten copies had already been sold.
“Okay. It’s real. It’s out there.” Dougal took out his phone and composed a message to Ed.
“The book is published. Already selling copies. Here’s the link.” He cut and pasted the link to the book page, then added, “Now live up to your end of the deal. We want Chester home and safe.”
“Did you send him the message?” Cory was sitting at the kitchen island, coloring in the states in a map of Mexico, working on homework that her friend Paige had dropped off early this morning. She was flanked by Jamie and Charlotte, both hovering protectively around her this morning.
“I just did,” Dougal assured her.
Earlier Charlotte had debated sending Cory back to school today. “Time might pass more quickly for her if she was in class with her friends.”
“Why don’t you ask her what she would prefer?” Dougal had asked.
“Please let me stay home,” had been Cory’s answer. And Charlotte agreed that she could.
They had explained the situation as best as they could to her, trying to minimalize the danger to her brother. Dougal did not share his own grave concerns about the day’s outcome. If the worst happened, they would deal with it then.
Dougal poured himself the last cup of coffee one-handed, as he kept an eye on his phone, waiting for Ed’s response.
He was still waiting for a response ten minutes later when Wade showed up at the back door.
Charlotte invited him in, telling him not to worry about his wet shoes. The rain was forecast to last until later that afternoon. Dougal didn’t view it as a positive omen.
Wade came up to him. “God the media out there is insane today. I’ve got Deputy Field making sure they all keep their distance. Any news from Ed?”
While Dougal gave him a progress report on the publication of the book and his subsequent message to Ed, Jamie got up to make a fresh pot of coffee.
“I think we’re going to need a lot of this today.” Jamie added water to the top of the fill line.
“I hope not,” Charlotte said softly.
Dougal put his arm around her shoulder, wishing he could offer her reassurance that everything was going to work out according to plan.
But the growing silence from Ed was worrying him.
About twenty minutes later, there was another knock at the back door, this time from Stella Ward, who’d arrived to do her regular housecleaning.
Dougal hoped Charlotte would send her on her way—the tension of waiting was making it very hard for him to be civil and the more people milling around, the harder it would be. But Charlotte being Charlotte, of course she didn’t do that. She invited Stella in with a caveat. “Don’t worry about cleaning today. Sit down and have a cup of coffee with us.”
Stella’s face relaxed with relief. “Oh thank you dear. It’s been a terrible week, in more ways than one.”
“What do you mean by that?” Jamie asked, offering Stella a stool at the island.
The older woman settled down with a deep, aggrieved sigh.
“Well, Chester missing. That’s been the worst, obviously. But when you add Liz’s unscheduled holiday—I’ve had to do almost double my usual work load this week.”
“Where did Liz go?” Charlotte asked.
“To Portland. To help a friend who needed emergency surgery.”
“Hang on,” Wade said, his gaze suddenly intense. “When did Liz go to Portland?”
Dougal turned to look at Wade. Why was he asking? Did he think Liz’s absence could be somehow connected to Chester’s?
Stella’s answer supported that theory.
“That’s easy to remember. She called the very same night our young man went missing. I remember trying to tell her about it, but she was very dismissive. Said something vague like, well I hope he shows up soon. And then it was like she couldn’t get off the phone fast enough.”
Wade’s jaw tightened. “We went door-to-door at the trailer park within twenty-four hours of Chester’s disappearance. I personally knocked on Liz’s door. She was home then.”
“But why would she lie?” Stella looked puzzled. “She’s never even called in sick for work before.”
“Good question. I’ll head over right now and ask her. By the way, you should expect more visits from the Feds today. Not sure when, just be prepared.”
Wade was almost at the door when Dougal stopped him.
“There’s something you should know about Liz, first. This summer she told Stella, Jamie and me a bit about her past. It turns out her father—who’s dead now—had done time in jail with Ed. Apparently the men were good buddies.”
“Oh my God, that’s right.” Jamie turned to look at Stella. “At your house that night, remember? Liz’s father told her Ed was quite the storyteller. He used to talk about Dougal a lot and brag about him being a bestselling author.”
“I wish to hell someone had told me this earlier.” Wade’s eyes narrowed as he considered the possibilities. “Do you know if Ed and Liz ever met?”
“I’m sorry, no I don’t. And I would have told you…but I only just remembered the connection now.”
“You don’t think Liz is actually helping Ed?” Charlotte sounded appalled.
“Oh, she wouldn’t.” Stella sounded confident. “She’s a bit intense, and doesn’t have a lot of social graces. But she’s a hard worker and an honest person. Not the sort to let anyone push her around, either.”
“Maybe not in ordinary circumstances,” Wade said. “But Ed is probably armed and he may have coerced her.”
“So it’s possible Chester could be in Liz’s trailer right now?” Charlotte moved closer to Cory, putting an arm around her shoulders.
“It’s definitely worth checking.” Wade pulled out the keys to his SUV. “Hang tight here. You’ll be the first to know if I find anything.” Then he added an aside to Dougal. “And you let me and the FBI know if you hear back from Ed.”
Dougal gave a noncommittal grunt. Whatever Ed asked him to do, he was going to do. And he doubted law enforcement was going to be part of the game plan. But maybe they’d be lucky and Wade would find Chester before it came to that.
“Should I come with you?” he asked Wade.
“You really are vying to get on the payroll aren’t you? No. Stay here and hold the fort.”
Wade hadn’t been gone more than a minute when Jamie let out a gasp. She pointed at the laptop. “I just pressed refresh. Your book has now sold four hundred copies Dougal. Four hundred.”
And just at that moment, Dougal’s phone chimed.
“Is it him?” Charlotte asked.
He checked his phone display. “Yes.”
Everyone fell quiet, as Dougal opened the message and read aloud. “I bought a copy of the book and I’ve taken a look through it. It’s all there. I like the cover and the title, too. You’ve done a good job.”
Dougal swallowed, and reached for Charlotte’s hand before paraphrasing the rest. “He wants me to go to Doris’ Fish Shack. Alone.”
“No.” Charlotte shook her head. “If Wade was here he’d never agree to that.”
“We mess with Ed, and bad things will happen. I’ve got to do it, Charlotte.”
“At least wait to see what Wade finds at Liz’s trailer.”
“I agree,” Jamie said.
“No,” Dougal insisted. “I need you guys to trust me. We’ve got to follow the instructions to the letter. There’s no time to waste. He said I should be there in ten minutes.”
Both Charlotte and his sister were clearly not happy with his decision.
But when he glanced at Stella—who knew Ed Lachlan better than any of them—he could tell she agreed.
chapter twenty-five
Fog kept obscuring the interior of his windshield as Dougal drove to Doris’ Fish Shack, windshield wipers going at half-speed. He would no sooner rub off a patch so he could see, then more water vapor would immediately condense to take its place. Fortunately it was a short drive.
He parked on the shoulder, across from the park, then walked along the boardwalk with the hood of his jacket pulled over his head.
He made note of the vehicles parked around him. There were only a few. A dark gray Ford Escape, a rusting pickup, and a cherry red VW bug.
Once inside the restaurant, he shook off his jacket and hung it on a peg beside his booth.
Would Ed bring Chester in here?
Dougal chose a booth with a view of the shore, guessing it wasn’t very likely that Ed would be arriving by boat. At least, as far as he knew, his father had never been one for water sports or fishing.
Setting the stage for a potentially long wait, Dougal ordered a big breakfast and coffee from Doris herself.
In her sixties, weathered and stocky, she offered her opinion on the weather, took his order, then left him in peace.
Dougal checked his phone, which he’d placed on the table top to make sure he didn’t miss a call or a message. No new notifications.
The restaurant had large picture windows looking out both to the ocean and to the park. He kept swiveling to take in one view, then the other.
How long would Ed make him wait?
Dougal’s food hadn’t even arrived when a new message alert pinged.
“Meet me on the bluffs. Alone. And tell no one. If I see anyone else, especially our noble town sheriff, the boy will be going over.”
Dougal’s gaze shot to the high cliffs that rose above the ocean to the west. The dangerous ledge was forbidden territory for children in town and most of it was fenced off from the park.
There had been accidents over the years and one purposeful suicide that had happened when he was in high school.
Anyone taking a jump from the bluffs could be pretty much guaranteed instant death. The twenty-five foot drop led straight down to jagged rocks and the full force of the Pacific Ocean.
Dougal left money on the table, then picked up his phone and switched it to vibrate.
He met Doris on her way from the kitchen, carrying his plate loaded with food.
“Forgot I had another appointment.” He nodded to the money he’d left. “Hope you can find someone to eat all that. Looks delicious.”
Outside the rain was falling at the same steady rate. Dougal pulled up his hood and shielded his eyes as he studied the ledge. He could see two figures from this angle—the disparity in height suggested a tall adult and a mid-sized kid. He could
n’t discern sex at this distance, but it seemed reasonable to assume he was looking at his father and Chester.
Dougal could feel the loud, rapid thudding of his heart. And the dampness on his palms owed nothing to the rain.
What was Ed planning?
Should he have brought a weapon with him, at least? But Dougal didn’t own a gun and didn’t know much about shooting them. If Ed’s plan was to take him out, he’d probably succeed. But hopefully Dougal would put up a good enough fight so Chester could run away. This was familiar territory for the boy. Running at full clip he’d be home in ten minutes.
Dougal followed the boardwalk for a while, then veered to the left, climbing the steep and rocky incline with purposeful strides. He could no longer make out the figures of the man and the boy.
His phone suddenly started to vibrate.
Dougal paused, and then using his body to shield the display from the rain, saw that he’d received a Text from Charlotte.
WHAT’S HAPPENING? ARE YOU OKAY?
He slipped the phone back into his pocket and kept progressing up the hill. The wind grew stronger with each step, and when he reached the top a gust of air pushed his hood off his head and made his eyes sting.
And then a man stepped out from the grove of trees that ringed the bluffs. It was Ed and he was holding onto Chester’s hand.
* * *
As he drove toward the trailer park on the east side of town, Wade reflected on how strange it was that he hadn’t spent more time here as a teenager. He, Wade, Kyle and Daisy had hung out together during whatever free time they had. They’d rotated houses, depending on which mother would best tolerate them, but they’d never gone to Dougal’s.
And yeah, sure the trailer was small, but they’d never even ridden their bikes over to the playground during the summer.
He knew now that Dougal had been ashamed he’d lived in a trailer, and even more ashamed that his mother cleaned most of their homes—well the Quinpools’ and the Hammonds’, anyway—for a living. Wade’s mother, who had given piano lessons out of their home, had always preferred to do her own housework. Or so she’d told his father.
exposed (Twisted Cedar Mysteries Book 3) Page 17