by Diane Burke
Tony squeezed her hand.
“I’m having such a hard time believing Carol’s gone. I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to accept it. We’ve been friends our entire lives. She helped me through my divorce. And I was there for her through her pregnancy. She helped me find my faith. How do you say goodbye to the other half of your heart?”
Erin silently stared at a dark cloud hugging the horizon and watched the sun begin to slip behind it. “Who was she dating, Tony?” She turned and looked him straight in the eyes. “I want to know. Who was the man that reported Carol missing?”
Tony clasped his hands together, holding them in front of him. “Erin, we’ve been over this a million times. I can’t tell you his name. It’s part of an ongoing investigation.”
“I don’t care about your investigation. Tell me. I need to know his name.” She couldn’t keep the rage and grief out of her voice.
“Please, Erin, I can’t.”
“You mean you won’t.” She jumped up and stormed across the yard.
“Wait!” He caught up with her, grabbed her arm and spun her to face him. “What good would it do if I did?”
“Maybe I know him. Maybe I can talk to him. Maybe he’ll tell me things he won’t tell the police. Not everybody likes to spill their guts to men in blue, you know.” She hugged her arms tightly across her chest, not sure whether she was holding in the pain or trying to keep it out.
“Even if I could tell you, I wouldn’t. Do you think I want you questioning potential suspects?” He ran his hand over his head. “Don’t you get it? You’re in danger. You fit the profile of the women being killed. The anonymous phone calls. The dead rose and poem. A single mom of a handicapped kid.” The anger and frustration in his voice rose with every word. “And you want to go out and stir things up by playing cop? What’s the matter with you? Why don’t you just paint a huge target on your back?”
“Well, somebody has to do something. It’s obvious you’re not getting anywhere.”
An angry flush tinged his skin. His lips thinned into a grim slash across his face. “That’s not fair.”
Deep inside she knew he was right. She was being terribly unfair, but she couldn’t seem to stop. “Maybe this Mystery Man you’re protecting killed her.”
“I don’t think so.”
“You don’t think so? You! Mr. Macho Cop. Mr. Know-It-All. How do you know he isn’t the one? How? And if he isn’t, then who is?”
“I don’t know. Okay?” he yelled back. “Are you happy now? I don’t have a clue and it’s killing me to feel so powerless.”
They glared at each other, hands on hips, chests heaving with the exertion of their argument. Tony recovered first. He clenched his fists at his sides and took several deep breaths. When he looked up, his eyes held compassion. His voice rang steady and calm. “If I could bring her back, Erin, I would. But I can’t.” His gaze locked with hers. “The only thing I can do now is find her killer.” He stepped closer. “I’m so sorry. I tried to find her in time. I did everything humanly possible to bring her home.”
Tears spilled from Erin’s eyes and flowed like a twisting river down her cheeks. “I know,” she whispered. And she did know it. He had worked day and night to try and find Carol. So why was she lashing out at the one person who brought her the most comfort?
“I promise you, I’m fully investigating this man,” Tony said. “Just because I don’t think he did it, doesn’t mean I’m not turning over every rock and stone to prove it one way or the other.”
She nodded and hung her head.
“You need to trust me. Let me do my job.” Tony clasped her hand and led her back to the porch steps. When she was seated, he stared down at her. “Meanwhile, you need to continue to keep your guard up. Keep your doors and windows locked. Don’t go anywhere alone. And call me immediately if anything out of the ordinary happens. I don’t care how inconsequential you think it is.”
“Do you think Jack and Tess are in danger?” She could barely put the terrifying thought into words.
“No.” He traced his fingers across her cheek. “So far, it appears he’s only interested in the mothers.”
“Lucky me.”
Tony’s cell phone rang. He answered it, mumbled a word or two and slid it back into his pocket. “I have to go.” He pressed his lips against her forehead. “Try and get some rest. I’ll stop by tomorrow.”
She patted his hand resting on her shoulder, smiled and said, “Stay safe.” No sooner had the words escaped her lips then a feeling of déjà vu washed over her. She used to speak those words every night to her father as he left for work. History repeating itself. A shudder raced down her spine.
Erin remained on the porch steps after he left. The clouds on the horizon darkened and multiplied. The underside of the leaves danced in the breeze. A low, distant rumbling of thunder filled the air.
Finally, here comes the rain.
THIRTEEN
Three days later
The door slammed against the wall. “Mommy, I want you to send Amy home right now.”
Erin glanced up from making Jack’s bed. “You know you don’t mean that.” Erin skirted around his walker and straightened the spread on the other side of the bed.
“Yes, I do.” Jack lumbered to the closet and tried to drag out a small suitcase. “I’ll help you pack.”
Erin took the case out of his hand and put it back in the closet. “What’s got into you? Amy’s your best friend. This isn’t the way we treat our friends.” She returned to making the bed.
“She broke off Luke Skywalker’s arm.” His lower lip jutted out in a pout.
“I’m sure it was an accident. Bring him to me. Maybe I can fix him.” Erin fluffed the pillow and tucked the spread beneath it.
“She knocked down my Lego village. Now, it’s ruined.”
Erin stopped what she was doing and took a hard look at her son. His flushed cheeks and rapid blinking revealed how hard he tried not to cry. Something was wrong. Something much more than a few broken toys.
Erin perched on the edge of the bed. “I’m sorry, honey. That’s my fault. I should have kept Amy with me while I cleaned. But you’re a wonderful builder. I bet you can build a bigger and even better village. I promise I won’t let her near it this time.” Erin patted the spread for him to sit beside her, but he ignored the gesture.
“She ate my oatmeal and raisin cookie. I hid it in my Spider-Man lunch box. She found it and ate it.”
Erin hid her smile. “I’ll tell you what. As soon as I run the vacuum in here, the three of us will make a whole batch of oatmeal and raisin cookies. How’s that sound?”
“No!” Jack’s eyes glistened with tears. “I want her to go home right now.”
Erin gently pushed his walker to the side and lifted her son to sit beside her. “I thought you liked having Amy here.”
Jack hung his head. “I don’t. I want her mommy to come back.”
Erin drew in a sharp breath. She paused for a moment and considered her words. “I want that, too, honey. But Amy’s mommy is in heaven. She isn’t coming back. We’re her family now.”
“Did Amy’s mommy want to go away? Didn’t she love Amy?”
“Oh, Jack, don’t ever think that. Amy’s mommy loved her very, very much.”
“Then why did she go away and leave her with us?”
Erin put her arm around her son’s shoulders. “I told you, sweetheart. A very bad man hurt Amy’s mommy. The doctors couldn’t make her better. So she went to heaven where she doesn’t have to hurt anymore.”
Jack’s shoulders sagged and he started to cry.
“Sweetheart, what’s the matter?” She smoothed his hair with her hand. “Talk to me.”
“Are you going to go away like Amy’s mommy?”
“What?” She tilted his face to look at her. “I’m not going anywhere, Jack. Why would you think something like that?”
“I heard Mr. Fitzgerald tell Aunt Tess that he’s staying on our porch every
night until the police catch the bad man. Is the bad man coming here? Is he going to take you away, too?”
Erin drew in a sharp breath. She was speechless.
Heavenly Father, what a selfish fool I’ve been. So wrapped up in my own pain I haven’t paid attention to the pain and fear of the people around me. Please guide my words and help me comfort my son.
Erin blinked hard and searched for the right words. “Honey, the police are working very hard to find the man who hurt Amy’s mommy. They’re going to find him soon, you’ll see. I don’t want you worrying about anything. No one is coming here. And no one is going to hurt me.”
Jack’s tears stopped, but his breath still held a little hitch. “Tony’s a policeman. Is he helping to find the bad man?”
Erin folded her arms around her son. “Absolutely. Tony is searching for the bad man right this minute. All of his policeman friends are, too.” She rested her chin on his head. “You know how good Tony is at hide-and-seek.”
Jack looked up at her, thought about it a minute, then grinned. “Tony’s great. He finds me every time.”
“Yes, he does,” she assured him. “And he’s going to find this bad man. Until he does, Mommy and Aunt Tess will make sure everybody is safe. And Mr. Fitzgerald is going to help. And Tony is going to help. There’s going to be so many people taking care of all of us that the bad man won’t come near this house.”
“You promise?”
“I promise, sweetheart.” She made the letter X across her chest. “Cross my heart.” She kissed his forehead. “Now, why don’t we go into the kitchen and get started on those oatmeal and raisin cookies.”
Later that evening, Erin leaned against the kitchen counter, a pencil poised above a piece of paper. “Pajamas,” she called out in military fashion.
“Check,” Jack said and Amy mumbled along.
Erin made a show of placing a check on the paper.
“Toothbrush.”
“Check.”
“Toothpaste.”
“Check.” Jack giggled.
“Amy’s teddy bear.”
Amy held up the bear and Erin checked the paper. “I must be forgetting something.” She scratched her scalp with the eraser.
“Cookies,” both children yelled.
Erin slapped both her cheeks. “How could I forget the cookies?” She slid a tin from beneath the counter and placed it in the overnight bag.
“Mommy, you teased us.” Jack laughed.
“Time to go.” Tess scooted the children toward the front door.
“Don’t let them stay up too late,” Erin said and followed them down the hall. “And don’t let them eat all the cookies at one time.”
Tess turned around, hands on hips, and said, “You’d think I never took care of the children before. What’s the matter with you?”
“I know.” She wondered if her voice sounded as sheepish as she felt. “But he’s never been away overnight before.”
“We’re going to be right next door,” Tess said.
“That’s right, Mommy,” Jack assured her. “Mr. Fitzgerald put up a tent in his living room and we’re going to have an indoor campout.”
Erin squatted down, eye-level with her son. “A tent, huh? That’s pretty cool.”
“And we’re going to sing songs and play games and everything.”
Erin tousled his hair.
Jack pulled back, his nose and lips twisting in annoyance. “Stop it, Mommy. That’s what makes my hair stand up all the time.”
“Excuse me. You’re right. I won’t do it anymore.” One more sign of her little boy’s growing independence.
When they reached the front door, Erin held it open and said, “I bet you’re going to have the best time.”
“Yep. And you know what? I’m going to let you use my spyglasses. Then you’ll be able to look in the window and see everything we do.”
Erin laughed. “You know, Jack, that’s a great idea.”
Patrick came up the porch steps and stopped in the doorway as Jack tried to barrel out. “Slow down, son. We’ve got plenty of time.” He let the boy pass, stooped to pick up a package, and then handed it to Erin. “Here, somebody left this.”
Erin glanced at the small brown package and tucked it under her arm. “I can’t thank you enough for doing this for the children, Patrick.”
“My pleasure. Now don’t worry about a thing and go inside and get some rest.” He turned and, whistling a tune, led the children off the porch and across the lawn toward his house.
Tess stood beside Erin and watched the miniature parade. “When you get to be my age, you can’t afford to waste time. I think after the children fall asleep, Fitz and I are going to have a long conversation about his intentions.”
Erin’s jaw dropped.
“What? I’m not getting any younger you know. All of this business with Carol—” Tess’s voice faded away and a tear appeared at the edge of her eye. She took a deep breath, straightened her shoulders and faced Erin. “Life’s short. I can’t be wasting precious time.” She hugged Erin. “And neither should you.” She smiled and toddled off after the group. When she had gone a couple more feet, she glanced over her shoulder and said, “You know, lass, you’re going to have the house to yourself tonight. You might think about arranging a couple of hours of police protection.”
Erin laughed. “Don’t worry about me. A certain detective should be stopping by any minute to check and see if I’m all right. Now shoo.”
When the four of them disappeared into the house, Erin went back inside. Locking the door, she walked into the kitchen and placed the package on the counter before going to Jack’s room to retrieve his spyglasses. She hurried back to the living room, knelt on the couch, held the binoculars to her eyes and laughed out loud. Jack, Amy and Tess sat in the window waiting for her. They laughed and waved the minute they saw her at the window. Erin blew kisses and waved back. The children scooted inside the tent. Erin waved one final time to her aunt, lowered the binoculars and headed to the kitchen.
She turned on the radio and listened to her favorite deejay, Samantha, field questions about relationship problems and play audience requests. The music temporarily eased her anxiety and created a pleasant, mellow atmosphere.
She lit several candles and distributed them throughout the house. She glanced around, satisfied that, at least on the surface, the house was back to normal. Her heart would take much longer to fix.
In the kitchen, Erin spent a few minutes putting cookie sheets away. She reached to turn off the kitchen light when the package on the counter caught her eye.
Curious, she slid onto a stool and examined it. Her name and address were printed in block letters on the front but there was no postage and no return address. It wasn’t heavy. She lifted it to her ear. No ticking. She shook it lightly. No ominous rattling. She chuckled at her vivid imagination. She ripped off the plain brown wrapping. Placing the rectangular box on the counter, she studied it for another minute. No distinguishing marks. Just a plain white box.
Well, it’s not going to open itself, silly.
Erin raised the lid and froze, unable to believe her eyes. She gingerly touched the green silk, thinking it had to be a figment of her imagination. It wasn’t. Her missing scarf, the one she’d been wearing on the field trip to Disney, was no longer missing. Her stomach clenched. Her scarf, the same scarf Tony had said brought out the color of her eyes, was slashed in hundreds of pieces atop a note that read, Can you feel my breath on your neck? I am Death and I am right behind you.
Erin bolted backward, upsetting a kitchen stool. It hit the floor with a loud clatter and the sound echoed in the room. Her legs wobbled and almost refused to hold her upright. Someone had been close enough to steal her scarf yet go unnoticed. Close enough to place the package on her front porch. Here. At her home. Tonight. Her teeth chattered so hard her jaw ached. Tremors of fear shot through her body.
He’s here. Outside my home. Hiding in the darkness. Watching me.
Unable to handle any more stress, she reacted rather than thought. She flung the box across the room and screamed.
“Erin!” Tony banged on the door and peered through the side window panel to see inside. “Erin, open the door.” Adrenaline raced through his body. He pulled his elbow back, preparing to smash it through the glass, but paused when he saw a figure hurrying his way. He heard the dead bolt shift and he barreled through the door the second it opened.
“Tony,” Erin threw herself into his arms, burrowing her face in his shirt, wrapping her arms around him. Her entire body trembled. “He was here,” she said, her voice muffled by his shirt. She lifted her face to look at him. “The creep was here.”
Tony eased her back, supporting her with his left arm, while retrieving his gun from its holster with his right. “Where?” He quickly scanned the hallway and the living room as he guided her to the nearest chair. “Is he still here?”
She shook her head.
He knelt down in front of her and lifted her chin. “It’s going to be all right.”
Clasping her hands in her lap to control the trembling, she nodded.
“Where are Tess and the children?”
“Next door with Patrick.”
“Wait here. I’m going to take a quick look around.”
“Tony…” She tried to grab his arm.
“I’ll be right back.”
He made his way through the house, checking closets, looking in corners and under beds, securing windows. In the kitchen, his gaze fell on a box on the floor against the wall. When he examined the contents, rage churned in his gut. He slipped his gun back into the holster and hurried back to the living room.
He found Erin kneeling on the sofa and peering into Patrick’s house with binoculars. She spun around when she heard him approach. “The kids are fine.” She placed the glasses on the table and sat down. “I’m so glad the children weren’t here when I opened that package. I lost control. I would’ve scared them to death when I screamed.”