Distortion Control (A Makayla Rose Mystery Book 3)

by Audrey Claire

  “Makayla, don’t tell him. She gave me money all the time.”

  I gasped. “Why would she do that?”

  He faced me. “Because she was dumb enough to love him. She also thought leaving would make him change. He won’t change. Not for anybody.”

  My heart hurt. “So you used her?”

  “I never said I was a good guy. Spencer is good enough for the both of us.”

  “I agree,” I snapped. “I guess you’re not.”

  Spencer walked back into the room, and Ash and I dropped the subject so he wouldn’t know we had been discussing Penelope.

  * * * *

  “I was surprised you accepted my invitation,” Spencer said as he held my seat and I sat down at the table.

  “Thank you.” I offered him a coy smile and angled my head. “Why wouldn’t I? You’re paying, right?”

  He glared, and I smiled. “You know what I mean, Makayla. Our misunderstanding left us both unsure of where we stood, and every time I tried to talk to you, you shrugged me off.”

  I widened my eyes. “‘Our misunderstanding?’ Is that what it was?” I dared not get into further debate about the breakdown of our arrangement lest my true feelings come through. I didn’t have the gift he and Ash had of hiding my emotions.

  He reached across the table and took my hand. I let him. “I want to go back to the way it was.”

  “I—”

  A chair scraped the floor as Ash dragged it from another table to ours and sat down. “What are we having? I’m starving.” He nabbed Spencer’s menu from beside his elbow and opened it to study.

  “Ash,” Spencer ground out. “What are you doing?”

  Ash flicked an innocent gaze at his brother then back to the menu. “Looking for something good. Why the heck did you choose this place? Where’s the burger and fries?”

  “It’s a small world!” David appeared at the table all smiles. “What are all of you doing here?” He waved a hand and also found a chair to add to the table. “Never mind. This is my second time here, and I thought I would have to eat alone. I’m glad I was wrong. Makayla, honey, I love the hair and dress. Fabulous.”

  I had put my hair up, leaving a few tendrils down to soften the nape and temples. The blue dress with low cut bodice had been something I had picked up before Spencer and I had our problems but I hadn’t been able to test it out until tonight. Spencer’s narrowed gaze of interest had pleased me when he picked me up. Now it was all going to waste. We weren’t alone.

  “I didn’t know anyone knew about Chelle’s,” I told David. “Not in my circle. Oh, but I keep forgetting you’re from the Hillrise side of town.”

  David made a noise of protest. “I like the finer things now since I can afford them, but I wasn’t born this way. Chelle’s is no Zekey’s, that’s for sure.”

  “Zekey’s,” Ash moaned. “That’s the restaurant I got that mushroom burger from the other day.”

  “Then why didn’t you go there?” Spencer snapped at his brother, and I hid a smile.

  “And miss out on hanging with my bro?” I knew Ash was playing dumb on purpose. The amusement in his gaze wasn’t lost on me or Spencer, but Spencer didn’t order him to leave.

  “Do you know David, Ash?” I gestured. “David, this is Ash, Spencer’s brother.”

  David practically sparkled. “Hello, nice to meet you finally. I’ve seen you around town. You look so much like Spencer.”

  “Ash is the older brother,” I informed David, and my friend edged closer to Ash.

  “Interesting. I hear you’re in law enforcement too,” David simpered. “I love a man in uniform.”

  Ash raised an eyebrow. “I don’t usually wear one, but thanks.”

  “In…out…” David said, and Ash coughed. I laughed.

  “I’m kind of married,” Ash told him, “but I’m flattered.”

  “Aw, too bad.” David bumped his arm. “If anything changes, give me a call.”

  Conversation turned, and Spencer seemed to accept that we weren’t going to get time alone. Ash went ahead and ordered what he called “fancy food,” and I settled for directing the occasional glance over at Spencer just to enjoy the thought that he had wanted to go out on a date with me.

  “We need to figure out what Makayla knows,” Spencer said out of the blue, and all conversation around the table stopped. Spencer sat straighter, and the slight smile he been wearing as we chatted disappeared.

  “I agree,” Ash said. “She may have clues she doesn’t know she has.”

  “I’ve told you all I know.”

  “Go over everything that’s happened up until now,” Ash instructed me, and his brother nodded. I sighed. They were both focused on me, determined something had been missed. I had no desire to rehash the fear and danger I had experienced. However, with the two Norwoods flanking me, it was doubtful I would get away with staying silent.

  “Well,” I began, “when you called to ask me to come by your house, I—”

  “Hold,” Spencer ordered.

  “Are you going to listen or interrupt, Spencer?”

  He ignored my complaint. “When did I call you?”

  “You know when. The day it happened.” I swallowed. “When I was kidnapped and… I was talking to you on your porch. Who has memory issues, me or you?”

  His silver gaze intent on my face made me fall silent. “I didn’t call you, Makayla.”

  “Spencer, if this is a joke, it’s in very poor taste.”

  He said nothing, so I pulled out my cell phone. I had saved his voicemail and played it on speaker for everyone to hear.

  “That’s you, bro,” Ash said.

  Spencer’s hand clenched into a fist on the table. “I agree, that’s my voice, but I never called.” I felt sick because I had thought Spencer phoned me after waiting so long. Hope had sprung in me that what he now called a misunderstanding was just that. “But, I was glad to see you.”

  I didn’t know what to think of that last sentence, whether he had thrown it in to help me save face in front of everyone.

  “We ended up having an argument,” he added, “and you left.”

  I nodded. “I remember that part but nothing afterward.”

  “Penelope was missing by then. I found out later because I had been too busy to speak with her.” A muscle twitched in his jaw. I laid my hand over his, knowing he blamed himself.

  “Did you talk to Pattie about her?” Ash asked.

  “Yes, she went out about noon the day before.”

  I thought about it. “Maybe she got a message from you, too.”

  Everyone went silent. The prospect that the killer had been manipulating us sent a chill of fear down my spine. I couldn’t be sure if the next call I received would be from a real friend or a dangerous enemy.

  My hand still lay on Spencer’s, and he flipped his over to grasp mine. His expression said he would do everything he could to protect me. I believed he would try. Spencer dialed Pete to request phone records. I couldn’t help being amused that he still spoke to the man as if he were his boss. Pete wouldn’t like that, and Spencer didn’t recognize that he did it.

  “What number did the call come from?” Spencer asked when he got off the phone with Pete.

  “I don’t know. My phone was off at the time. I got the message later, and my voicemail didn’t tell me the number just the message.”

  He frowned. “We can get it easy enough.”

  When everyone finished eating, Spencer picked up the check, but David nabbed it from his fingers and whisked a gold card into the waiter’s hand. “We should go to Makayla’s place to continue figuring this thing out.”

  Spencer scowled at him. “You have nothing to do with this.”

  “You’re not the sheriff right now, buddy. I’m helping whether you like it or not. For Makayla’s sake.”

  “David, you’re a sweetheart.” I stood and walked to him to give him a hug.

  Ash thumped his brother’s arm. “Bet you’re loving this, huh?
Not being in charge?”

  “Be quiet,” Spencer barked in a low tone, but Ash just chuckled.

  We left the restaurant and headed over to my apartment as David suggested. David took drink orders as if he were host, tapping into my chilled wine, and Spencer hovered above me like the killer lurked in the corners of my place waiting to pounce. I had always enjoyed people around me, so I didn’t mind everyone making themselves at home.

  Spencer’s cell phone rang, and he signaled for us all to quiet down. I was surprised but glad he put the call on speaker, and Pete’s voice echoed into the room, full of resentment. “I don’t know why I’m reporting any of this to you.”

  “I’m building evidence to clear my name,” Spencer said. “It’s not unreasonable.”

  “Isn’t that for your attorney to do?”

  “Do you have information or not?”

  I squeezed Spencer’s arm and mouthed, “Be nice.”

  He raised an eyebrow at me.

  “I got the records.”

  “Go on,” Spencer encouraged him.

  “The call came from inside your house.”

  Spencer pushed a hand through his hair and paced.

  “This isn’t looking good for you, Spencer,” Pete said.

  “It’s possible someone either got into my brother’s house or rerouted the call some way,” Ash put in.

  “Yeah, well he had motive. None of this changes things. He only added more evidence for his guilt.”

  “Why are you so convinced I’m guilty, Pete? Are you that desperate to keep my job?”

  I gasped, and Pete dropped a few choice words before the line went dead. “Spencer, you’re not doing yourself any favors by alienating him.”

  “He wants to believe I’m guilty.”

  I looked at him. “Why would he want that?”

  “Because the respect he showed me after I came was all an act.”

  “What?” I refused to believe it. “Pete’s a good person. He would never—”

  “He didn’t just run away to elope, Makayla.”

  “What do you mean?”

  His gaze met mine, and then he looked at the others. I imagined he wondered if he should share police business outside of the other officers. Spencer was not a gossiper. “Pete left to take another position as a detective.”

  “You’re kidding!”

  “No, I’m not. One of the motivators was that he had put in for the position of sheriff and had been turned down. Instead they brought me in from out of state. He applied for and got a new job in a smaller county. It turned out to not be what he expected—neither for him nor for them.”

  “When it didn’t work out he came crawling back to you, I guess.” Ash smirked. “Now he thinks he can be sheriff even if he didn’t earn the position. He might even be able to stay in it if you’re found guilty.”

  Cold dread rolled over me. “You don’t think he would falsify…”

  “No, I don’t think he’ll go that far. Like you said, he’s generally a good person, but he’s young. He’s ambitious, and he might even have his new wife in his ear, encouraging him.”

  I hugged myself, and Spencer sat down beside me to draw me closer. I didn’t resist even with the others there because everything seemed so out of control.

  “Don’t worry. We’ll get him.” His voice sounded confident, but I wasn’t so sure.

  Ash set his glass of wine down and stood. “Well, I guess we’re going over to your house, bro.”

  I looked at Spencer. He hitched his shoulders. “You’re right. To be on the safe side, I want to search again to see if there’s evidence of a break-in.”

  I admitted only to myself I didn’t want to go. Instead, I quietly trailed after them, riding with Spencer while David and Ash rode together in David’s car. When we arrived, I rushed onto the porch and waited by the front door. A creepy feeling of being watched came over me, and I turned to look into the trees. At one time, I had loved Spencer’s home, feeling the tranquility of the secluded property. Now it seemed more accessible by my stalker.

  When Spencer unlocked the door, I hurried inside, and David swept up beside me to take my arm as he surveyed the entrance area. “Your boyfriend’s got pretty good taste, honey. I like it. A little bachelor-esque, but you can fix that.”

  “David.” I tried shushing him, but he moved from room to room, arm hooked with mine, as we followed Spencer. Ash disappeared somewhere else inside the house, and a short while later, we all met in Spencer’s study.

  “Anything?” Ash asked.

  “Nothing.” Spencer unlocked a desk drawer and drew out several folders. He tossed a few to Ash. “These are my old case files going back a few years.”

  “You’ve still got them?” I grabbed one, but Spencer removed it from my hands.

  “They’re my notes. I like to learn from my past successes and mistakes. It helps me to do a better job.”

  “There aren’t as many as I would have thought,” I observed, annoyed he wouldn’t let me see. I was about to protest and demand my own stack when Spencer’s cell phone dinged again. He checked the display, frowned, and booted up his laptop. We all waited in silence. A few clicks, and he made sharp sound. Ash walked around the desk to Spencer’s side, and David chewed his lip.

  I swallowed. “What is it?”

  “This is him,” Spencer said. “I’m sure of it.”

  He swiveled the laptop to face me and tapped the screen.

  “Holden Montgomery. Do you recognize him, Makayla?”

  Chapter Fifteen

  The eyes, I thought. Those dark, angry eyes were the ones that haunted my dreams. I realized only looking into them now that I had seen them if not the rest of his features. My fears had put up the mental wall that stopped me from recognizing him. Even as I stared at Holden Montgomery, I was sure I had seen him in Briney Creek—since the abduction.

  “Who is he?” I asked Spencer.

  “As soon as I was released, I made a call back home and had some people checking into a few things. I never thought of Montgomery because he wasn’t actually a case I had ever dealt with. Not as an arresting officer.”

  Ash snapped his fingers. “Wait, I knew I’d heard the name. Montgomery. Didn’t a Montgomery attend the academy with you?”

  I blinked. “You two remember everyone who attended with you?”

  “There weren’t that many,” Spencer said, “but no, he didn’t. Well, he did for a little while, but I caused him to be thrown out before we finished.”

  “How?” I asked.

  He shifted his shoulders. “He beat up his girlfriend on a weekend off. I reported it.”

  I covered my mouth.

  “Even then, my brother had a hero complex,” Ash explained.

  “I did what I thought was right. He would have killed her if I didn’t stop him. She posted his bail afterward.”

  “These young girls.” I thought of Inna’s foolish and devastating decisions. Not necessarily for a man, but their reasoning was so suspect.

  “The incident was enough to get Montgomery tossed out of the academy.”

  “But that was years ago,” I said. “Surely, he’s not holding a grudge until now, and he must have found a different career.”

  I didn’t tell him I was already sure Montgomery was the killer. Rather I had kept silent to hear the story of their association.

  “Two years later, he was sentenced to prison for voluntary manslaughter.”

  I slapped a hand over my mouth again and then took it down slowly. “The girlfriend?”

  He shook his head. “No.”

  I dipped my chin to my chest and shut my eyes. Spencer went on.

  “Montgomery served five years.”

  “So he’s out?” Ash asked.

  “Yeah, he’s out. The information I have here says he’s been keeping his nose clean and has never missed an appointment with his parole officer.”

  Ash grunted. “My problem, like I said before, is he could easily do that and get he
re as often as he wanted.”

  “True.” Spencer looked at me. I had since first seeing the picture, turned away from it, and I refused to look again now. Concern darkened Spencer’s gaze as he watched me. “Makayla?”

  “I’m sure that’s him,” I said. “I’ve seen him.”

  David hugged my shoulders. “Of course you have, honey, and the sooner he’s caught the better.”

  “No, David.” I shook my head and drew in a deep breath before blowing it out. My fingers hurt, I clutched them together so tightly. “I’m pretty sure I’ve seen him around Briney Creek, Spencer. After it happened.”

  “Where?” Spencer had sat down in his desk chair, but at my words, he surged to his feet.

  “I don’t know.” I put a hand to my forehead. “I know the eyes. They seem etched in my memory, now that I think about it. He looks different now than he does in that picture. Different hair, different face shape. Maybe…”

  “Easy,” he encouraged me. “It’ll come back to you.”

  I didn’t want it to. I knew it would and we needed to know, but seriously, I wanted to forget. That might be why I had in the first place. I was at a loss, and if I didn’t get the mental juices flowing soon, it might be too late. Think, Makayla.

  “Are you sure it’s him?” Ash asked, talking to Spencer rather than to me.

  “This case has the earmarks of revenge. Besides, he said it himself. He wants to make me pay.”

  David spoke up, his words flippant, but I heard the line of nerves. He was worried about me, and I would bet anything he was recalling the last months as well. “They talk about a woman scorned, but honey, it’s the men that do the damage and hold on to a grudge.”

  “How did you know where to find me, Spencer?” I thought I would have to explain where my thinking was going, but he followed right away. That was Spencer for you.

  “I didn’t,” he said. “I left the station because I was worried and I would have ripped off someone’s head if they approached me. When I came home, I saw my basement door was open. I don’t use it, so I knew right away someone had been inside my house.”

  I wrinkled my nose. “Yes, it was rather dusty down there.”

  He frowned, apparently not appreciating my teasing. “I was too distracted and not paying attention to the fact that Pete and the others were on my heels. By the time I untied you, I knew what was happening. I was being framed.”