by Alison Stone
“Same general description—height, weight—and he had on his orange prison uniform under a jacket.”
Heather slowly stood and put her hand down on the corner of the desk to steady herself. “Can I see the body?”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea. That’s an image you’ll never be able to get out of your head.” Zach stood, watching her carefully.
“There are a lot of images I can’t get out of my head. As warped as it sounds, knowing he can’t hurt me again will give me great comfort.” The tremble in her voice and the slight sway of her body weren’t very convincing, but who was he to deny her this request?
“Where’s Ruthie?” he asked, stalling. “Don’t you two have work to do around here?”
“She’s working in the greenhouse today.” Heather crossed her arms and continued to press. “I need to see the body.”
He stared at her a long moment before pulling his phone out of his pocket. “I’ll call Deputy Gates.”
“No, let’s just show up. Harder to say no.”
“I don’t think this is a good idea,” he repeated.
“Please.”
“Okay. Grab your jacket.”
* * *
Breathe in. Breathe out. Breathe in. Breathe out.
Heather tugged on her seat belt as Zach talked on the cell phone, getting directions from a dispatcher as to the location of the body. From what she could hear, personnel were still on location, bringing Brian’s body out of the woods. Maybe Zach was right—maybe this was a bad idea.
But a stubbornness deep inside wouldn’t let her admit her mistake. No, not a mistake. She was just afraid. She had to see for herself that Brian was dead, thus allowing her to live a life without fear. She couldn’t bear to continue always wondering what if.
“You okay?” Zach asked when he ended the call and dropped the phone in the empty cup holder.
“I’ve been better.”
“You don’t have to do this.”
“I know.” She turned to face the window as trees, cornfields and the occasional house zipped by. She sat up straighter when she recognized where they were headed. “This is the direction of the Hershbergers’ home. They didn’t find him, did they?”
“No, the body was found by an elderly man walking his dog in the hills behind their house.”
A new flush of dread washed over her. Had Brian been watching her when she had taken sanctuary there? She swallowed back her fear, praying she’d make it through the next moment. Then the next. One moment at a time.
They drove past the Hershbergers’ home. There was no sign of anyone outside. About a half mile away, a dozen law enforcement vehicles, ranging from the local sheriff’s department to New York State troopers, lined the shoulder of the road. Zach pulled in behind an ambulance. There’d be no need for that.
Heather reached for the door handle and Zach touched her knee. “Wait in the car?”
“I didn’t come all this way to wait in the car.” Besides, with her nerves, she was ready to jump out of her skin. She needed to get out and expend some of her nervous energy.
Zach met her around her side of the car and they approached the edge of the woods. A trooper stopped them from going any farther. “You’ll have to wait here.”
Heather let out a long breath, her stomach churning. A buzzing started deep in her head, much as it had when she was married to Brian and she feared him going off on her for no other reason than she used wheat bread instead of white. Or some equally frivolous reason that always kept her in a state of watchful anticipation.
“You don’t look so good. We can wait in the car.” Zach’s voice sounded strange, as if he were standing far away and talking softly through a long tunnel.
“No. Just help me get through this... I have to do this.”
Zach touched the small of her back and she fought every instinct to bury her face in his shoulder and let him protect her. Let him take all her fear and worry away. But she refused to be weak. A long time ago she had vowed to not rely on anyone but herself.
As she stood next to Zach, she stared up into the trees, a beautiful palette of oranges, reds and yellows, wondering how long Brian had been this close. Was he watching her when she was staying with Ruthie? The idea struck terror in her heart.
Breathe in. Breathe out.
Voices coming from the woods grew louder. Then flashes of orange caught her eye. Her adrenaline spiked. Can I do this?
Deputy Gates led the search team out of the woods. He was wearing an orange safety vest. He seemed to catch Zach’s eye and made a direct line for them. “You shouldn’t be here.”
“I need to see the body,” Heather rasped. The back of her throat ached.
The deputy slowly shook his head, looking to Zach for support. “Between the gunshot wound and animals, there’s not a lot left. It’s not a good idea.”
Heather pressed the flat of her hand against her rioting belly and swallowed back her nausea.
“Can you give us more information about the hiker who found him?” Zach asked, shooting Heather a reassuring smile.
“An old-timer, George Campbell. Walks his dog everywhere. The dog stumbled across the remains. George called us in right away from his cell phone.”
“Are you convinced it’s him?” Zach asked.
The deputy ticked the items off on his fingers. “Peters Correctional Facility inmate uniform. Same height and build. And they’re running the serial number on the gun they found with him.” The officer’s phone buzzed on his duty belt. “Hold up.” He turned his back to them and took the call. His words swirled into a garbled mess, making her think of the old Peanuts cartoons when adults were speaking. She stared at the tree line, holding her breath, expecting men with a body bag to burst into the opening, wondering how she’d feel when they did. Relieved? Afraid? Sad?
The deputy turned back to them. “The serial number on the gun matches one of the guns stolen from a home near the correctional facility. The young woman who helped him escape is out on bail, but with strict instructions not to leave town.”
Heather closed her eyes and nodded. “It seems everything’s lining up.”
“Yes. They’ll run his dental records, which may take a few days, but I’m confident we have found Brian Fox.”
“What do you think?” Heather asked Zach.
“I agree with the deputy. We’ve got him.”
“I need to do this for my own peace of mind.” Would refusing to see the body make her weak?
“Ma’am,” the deputy said, “you wouldn’t be able to identify anyone considering the condition of the body.”
She felt Zach’s gaze on her. Some of her conviction was draining out of her. “This is something I need to do.” But really, she wasn’t sure anymore.
“We’ll run his dental records, which will make everything rock solid. Only a few more days and there’ll be no doubt.”
“What do you think?” Zach asked. “Please spare yourself the pain.”
She looked up and met Zach’s gaze, then slowly shifted her gaze to the men emerging from the woods. Rescuers carried a sled with a body bag. Her heart rate slowed in her chest as the world around her grew black. Only one image remained. The body bag.
Does it contain what’s left of Brian?
The men stopped at the back of a black van. A man reached for the handle and opened the doors. They slid the body bag inside.
The body.
Heather’s world swayed. She gently touched Zach’s arm. “Let’s go.”
She didn’t need to see the body. Brian was dead.
* * *
On the way home, Heather insisted they stop by the Hershbergers’ farm to tell Ruthie and Maryann that her ex-husband no longer posed a threat to the quiet town of Quail Hollow.
They knocked on the front door, but no one answered.
“Let’s try the greenhouse,” Heather said.
They found them watering the mums. Emma was stacking empty pots in the back. Maryann saw them first. She turned off the hose and let her hands hang limply by her sides. Apparently their presence portended something really bad. “What is it?”
“Brian Fox is dead.”
Ruthie’s shoulders relaxed. “They finally found him. What a relief.”
“Yes, that’s why we wanted to let you know. They found him in the hills behind your home.” Heather watched them closely.
“Oh, dear.” Maryann glanced over toward her younger daughter, then back at them as she fidgeted with the folds of her long dress.
“No need to worry now,” Zach said solemnly.
“Had you seen anyone out there lately?” Heather asked, still trying to wrap her brain around everything that had happened.
Maryann’s eyes grew wide. “We were missing some eggs, but I assumed a critter had gotten into the henhouse. Do you think...?”
“There’s really no way to know. But you’re safe now.” Zach touched the small of Heather’s back, a gesture Heather found greatly reassuring.
Maryann stepped forward. “How are you? This hasn’t been easy for you.”
“No, it hasn’t.” She flattened her lips into a thin line, trying to tamp down her emotions. She had come here to reassure her dear friends, not to seek comfort from them. “I appreciate all your support through this. I don’t know what I’d do without you. You’ve become like family.”
Maryann smiled, her porcelain skin only a shade darker than her white bonnet. “Your mother would be so proud of how you handled yourself through all this.” She clasped her hands. “You are part of this family.”
A lump of emotion clogged Heather’s throat. What she wouldn’t do to have known her mother. Getting to know her mother’s best friend was what she’d have to settle for. But she considered getting to know Maryann and her daughters to be a true blessing.
Ruthie smiled. “I love working for you, too. I have to tell you, though, I’ve been a nervous wreck since I first learned that man had escaped from prison. So glad he’s not going to be a problem anymore.”
“Now you can run the bed-and-breakfast without worrying,” Maryann said. “You’ll experience the Quail Hollow that we all know. It’s usually so quiet and peaceful.”
“I look forward to it,” Heather said, suddenly feeling warm under the intensity of the sun through the glass of the greenhouse.
“Your mother always seemed so restless here, but I just know you won’t feel that way. Not now.”
An unease whispered across Heather’s brain. Restless? Heather’s father had assured her that her mother had been nothing but loving and doted on her children. Perhaps Maryann had misspoken. But now wasn’t the time to get into that. Brian was finally gone.
Gone. Dead.
Guilt twisted in her heart. She shouldn’t be happy that he was dead. What kind of person did that make her?
“Does that mean you’re going home, Marshal Walker?” Ruthie’s question snapped Heather out of her maudlin thoughts.
Heather shot her friend daggers but found herself holding her breath waiting for his answer. But what did she expect? Of course he’d be going home. Brian was no longer a threat. She was no longer in danger.
She glanced down at her fingernails, pretending not to care about his answer.
“Yes, my boss had given me a week extension to stay in town, but now that the case is resolved, he’ll be looking for me to get back to the office.”
“When will you be leaving?” Heather wished she could take the question back. She hadn’t meant to sound so needy.
He met her eyes and their gazes lingered. “I should probably head back in the morning.”
The single word “oh” flew out of her mouth.
“Sounds like someone would like you to hang around.”
“Ruthie!” both Maryann and Heather said in unison in similar scolding tones.
“What?” Ruthie’s eyes grew wide, but she didn’t look sorry in the least. Lowering her head to hide her grin, she deadheaded the nearest mum.
“Will we see you again, Zach?” Maryann asked in a motherly tone. “It was so nice to meet you.”
“I own a cabin in the woods nearby. I’ll make sure to stop by and say hello when I’m in town.”
“That would be nice,” Maryann said.
“I’m actually going there tonight,” Zach said. “Make sure it’s closed up before I head back home.”
Heather drew back her shoulders and pointed at Ruthie. “Why don’t you stay here tonight with your family? I’ll pick you up tomorrow afternoon.”
“Sounds good.” Ruthie brushed the dirt off her hands. “Thank you.”
Heather and Zach said their goodbyes, then walked out to climb into his truck. She buckled in and sighed, perhaps a little too loudly.
“I could wait until Sunday night to go back to Buffalo if you need help. My boss wasn’t expecting me till Monday. The roof on the barn is only partially finished, but Sloppy Sam said he’d get it done.”
Heather shook her head, perhaps a little too adamantly. “Yes, the Amish work crew will do a great job. I can’t keep you from your work.”
“Can I take you for something to eat?” Zach asked as he pulled out onto the main road.
“Do you think we could pick up a pizza in town? I’m drained. I’d rather relax at home instead of sitting in a restaurant.”
“Sounds good. If you don’t mind, why don’t you call ahead? We’ll pick it up on the way home. We’ll eat, then I’ll go to my cabin for the night.”
As Heather searched for her phone at the bottom of her purse, she had myriad emotions crowding her soul. She’d miss Zach. But it was time she faced her future as a confident young woman.
Without relying on a man.
* * *
Zach slid the pizza box on top of the stove. The smell of cheese and pepperoni reached his nose and made his stomach growl. He was hungrier than he had realized.
“Would you like some pop?” Heather asked as she stretched up into the cabinet and pulled out some paper plates. It was the most she had spoken since they had picked up the pizza. He had written it off as exhaustion from all the stress. “I have a few kinds here. Is a cola okay?”
“Sounds good.”
She poured two glasses of cola and he plated two pieces of pizza. They settled in at the table next to one another enjoying the view through the new window overlooking the barn and the rest of the yard awash in the early-evening glow of the setting sun. With her food sitting untouched in front of her, she smiled. “This is just the view I imagined and this is the first time I’ve taken the time to enjoy it. Really enjoy it without the nagging dread that Brian was out there.” She tilted her head and a light came into her eyes. “This is the first time that I’ve been allowed to enjoy it.”
Zach’s gaze drifted to the corner where they had found the graffiti the escaped convict had left. Zach had a hard time thinking of Fox as this beautiful woman’s ex-husband. As his smart little sister’s husband. The man had duped a lot of people, including the woman at the correctional facility who helped him escape. She was currently out on bail. But she wasn’t his concern. The legal system would take care of her.
Making sure Fox couldn’t hurt any more people had been his goal. After dinner, he planned to call Deputy Gates and find out where they had taken Fox’s body. Even though he had talked Heather out of viewing his remains. He had to see them. He had to be convinced.
Zach took a bite of his pizza and the two of them sat in companionable silence as they ate.
“I’ve come a long way since the night you showed up at my back door.” Heather’s tone had a distant quality to it.
“You’ve always been a strong woman. From the first time I
met you.”
“If I had been braver, your sister would still be alive.”
Zach put his piece of pizza down, realizing neither of them was going to eat until they had this discussion.
“You can’t blame yourself. If you had stayed, you may have died. And you had no way of warning my sister. You didn’t know. You have to move forward.”
She traced the rim of her glass. “I’ll never forget your father’s face at the trial. He was destroyed.”
A pang of guilt knotted his stomach. No one had empathized more with his father’s pain than he had. As the big brother—in law enforcement, no less—he should have protected his sister.
“There’s enough bad feelings to go around.” He reached over and took her hand. “Let’s move forward. It’s over.”
She turned to him and met his eyes. “It really is, isn’t it?”
“Yeah. It is.” He leaned closer and paused. A small smile played on her lips and she leaned closer to him. He brushed a gentle kiss across his lips. She tasted sweet from the cola.
He pulled back and looked into her eyes. A flicker of happiness danced in their depths, having replaced the fear and worry. She lifted her hand and cupped his cheek. “Thank you for being here.”
Her fingers slid from his cheek and picked up her slice of pizza. “I guess we should finish up here. You probably have to pack for home.”
He nodded and took another bite of his pizza, but he had suddenly lost his appetite.
Apparently his job here was done.
It was time to go home.
TWELVE
Heather woke up early to the sound of rumbling thunder in the distance. She rolled over and snuggled into her covers, trying to put her finger on the emotion she was feeling. Hope? Renewal? Empty? Last night with Zach hadn’t exactly gone as planned. She hadn’t anticipated his kiss as they sat at the table enjoying pizza.
She threw back the covers and climbed out of bed. The kiss had sent tingles all the way to her toes, but she wasn’t the type to have a fleeting romance. And based on her past experience, she probably wasn’t the type to have any romance. She didn’t trust her judgment when it came to men. She had been so, so wrong before.