Diamond Lake Series: Complete Series (Bks 1-7) Boxset

by T. K. Chapin

  She split off from the foyer inside and went in the kitchen. I headed into the living room. Folding my arm over my stomach, I rested my other arm to hide the injury from her. A knot of anxiety twisted in my chest as I adjusted several times while she poured cups of coffee in the other room. If she saw my wrist, that’d be it. She’d lose all sympathy for Hunter.

  “Do you think he . . . ?” she asked, coming into the living room. Taking the cup, I took a drink, still keeping my other wrist concealed. I shook my head and set my coffee down on a coaster on the coffee table.

  “I don’t think so.”

  “Well, I know that knife they found belongs to him.” Serenah was quiet for a moment, then she lowered her voice. “That places him near the scene.”

  “Yeah. The scene of a coat.” Caught up in the exchange, my wrist slipped from concealment and she saw it. The look on her face said it all. “It’s not what you think,” I tried to say before she said anything.

  “Why would you hide it if it’s nothing?” she asked, her tone suspicious and her demeanor entirely changed. “He hurt you, didn’t he?”

  “He was having a nightmare. It was an accident.”

  “It’s always an accident. You don’t even know this guy, Miley.” Serenah moved from the chair she was sitting in and over to the couch beside me. Putting an arm around my shoulders, she pulled me in for a hug. “You’ve known this guy for not even a week and he’s hurt you, and now, he’s been brought in for questioning for a possible murder . . .”

  “I know, but he didn’t do it. I know that.” My eyes fell to my coffee and I grabbed the mug, bringing it to my lips with trembling hands. I was scared of the possibility I didn’t want to admit, that Hunter could be a killer. The truth was hard to swallow in the midst of it all, the fact that Hunter was indeed a stranger.

  “I’m not saying he murdered someone, but you don’t know. Maybe it was an accident in the heat of the moment, or maybe it was a nightmare. Who knows, Miley?” Serenah gently grabbed my wrist as she continued. “I know you’re desperate to meet someone and not be alone, but you shouldn’t settle.” Her words were like shards of glass ripping through my chest and plunging themselves into my heart. The drops of blood dripped into reality and were hurtful, even though based on lacking evidence. My chin dipped. “I’m sorry. These pregnancy hormones make me say things I shouldn’t. Hey, you never made it to the Feed the Hungry event. I was really worried about you.”

  Letting out a sigh, I nodded. “I fell asleep at his house. It was a total accident. I’m so sorry.”

  Her eyes widened. “You did what?”

  “No, no . . . not that. We fell asleep watching a movie on the couch. I woke up and had to go right into work.”

  “All right.” It was evident in her expression how displeased she was. This wasn’t going well. How am I supposed to get her to get rid of Wendy when I do nothing but disappoint her so far in my visit? Ugh. Her pursed lips loosened, and she took a drink of her coffee. She shifted the topic. “What brought you out to see me?”

  “Wendy.” My tone was sharp and my knot of anxiety shifted into flares of anger. "You know how she is . . .”

  “I do. What happened?” Serenah adjusted on the couch to face me. Her expression softened. Serenah worked for the wretch for a decent stint before taking over the inn. She understood the pain.

  “She kept harassing me about Hunter on the TV. I’d just seen the newscast with him getting brought in for questioning. I didn’t want to talk about it, but you know how she is. She pressed and pressed. Then she grabbed me, threatened me, and fired me.”

  Serenah was quiet for a long moment. Setting her coffee down, she folded her hands in her lap and raised an eyebrow as she looked at me. All that disappointment I saw earlier didn’t linger at all in her countenance. “Would you be interested in running the diner?”

  “You sure this isn’t the pregnancy hormones talking again?” I replied with a laugh.

  Shaking her head, she grinned. “No. Wendy’s been long overdue to be removed from the position. We just bought out the other owner’s shares and were looking to restructure. We wanted to wait until summer, but I bet I can talk to Charlie and get it moving now.”

  “Really? I don’t know if I’m qualified.”

  She touched my arm. “You’ve worked there for years, Miley. What is it that you think you’d struggle with?” Serenah made a valid point. I had done all the same tasks that Wendy had done at one time or another, and when she was out for a month due to illness, I ran Dixie’s Diner with ease.

  “I guess I can do it.”

  Serenah stretched out her hands, palms up. “You guess? If you don’t want to do it, don’t.”

  “I just . . .” My thoughts drifted to my dreams of someday being a teacher. If I took on management for Dixie’s Diner, I’d be admitting defeat in my dreams and succumbing to the stark realization that my lifelong dream would never see the light of existence. Maybe Wendy once had dreams of a life outside the diner, but the years made her cynical. I didn’t want to become a Wendy. “I want to be a preschool teacher, and I worry if I take on management that I might never be one.”

  She nodded slowly. “I understand. Take some time to think about it and let me know.”

  Arriving home that evening, I turned on the TV and went into the kitchen to put on a kettle of water for tea. As I waited for the water to heat, I saw the mailman through the window at the kitchen sink. He was whistling, like he always does, and filling each mail slot down on the sidewalk of the apartment. Even in the winter, he seems so happy, I thought to myself. Peering over at the kettle, I knew I had enough time to check the mail before it’d be ready, so I headed out my front door.

  Arriving at the base of my apartment stairs, the mailman had just barely finished as I opened the box with my key. Pulling out the thick wad of mail, since it had been almost a week since I checked it, I turned around and went back up to my apartment. Flipping through the junk mail, I came across an envelope with a red stripe running across the front, white lettering stating, URGENT MATTER. Opening it up quickly as my fingers trembled, I wondered, what is this? It turned out to be a doctor’s bill for the middle of the night ER trip I had made last month for a rapid heartbeat. It was mostly due to paranoia since my father died of heart disease. Ever since his passing, I’ve been ultra-sensitive with anything medical. Reading the amount, my eyes welled with tears knowing I couldn’t pay it. Hurrying up the steps as I heard the kettle whistle, I went inside and tossed my mail on the counter.

  The disheartening part of the bill wasn’t the fact of how much it was, a measly forty-two dollars after insurance, but it was the tenth bill I couldn’t afford to pay, and now, now I had no job.

  Taking the kettle off the stove, I poured the steaming hot water into a mug and steeped my tea. As I waited for it to cool, my eyes wandered to the bill on top of the mail on the counter. Thinking about the manager job, I knew what I should do even if every part of me felt I was doomed if I did it. Bowing my head and my heart, I prayed for God to help me. Help me understand what I was supposed to do.

  As my prayer finished, I heard the news on the TV kick on after a commercial break. The reporter was interviewing Hunter’s neighbor—Terrance. I recalled the confrontation they had the other day, and I took my cup of tea over to the couch to sit down and listen.

  “You know, I don’t know much about that guy. I know he is a racist, but you know, he fought for our country. I don’t know.”

  Rolling my eyes, I continued to listen.

  “Racist?” the reporter woman asked, putting the microphone back to the man’s face.

  “He and I got into an argument, and he was trying to tell me that black lives don’t matter. I tried calming him down because I don’t know, that’s just the right thing to do, you know? He was just out of control. Completely out of control.”

  Furrowing my eyebrows, I shook my head. “That’s not what happened . . .”

  The report went off screen, and
it cut back to the studio, and the Anchorwomen went on to rehash all the same information about the case. Why did he lie about Hunter? Something wasn’t right. Breaking out of my thoughts, I found myself staring at a cardboard box that was sitting beside the entertainment stand. It was full of pictures in frames that my mother had mailed to me after my father passed. Taking a sip of my tea, I had the same random thought I had every time I noticed the box. I should hang those up. Then I did what I always did after the thought—nothing.

  CHAPTER 6

  Released. One word, but it meant so much. When the morning newscaster said it the next day, I was giddy with relief. He is innocent. After my morning coffee and shower, I got dressed and headed over to his house to talk to him. I was sure a friendly face would cheer him up after all the questioning and humiliation of his name being dragged across the news and smeared through the mud. A part of me, a small part of me didn’t want to acknowledge the fact I was a little worried to see him.

  Arriving at Hunter’s house, I saw Terrance out shoveling the sidewalk. He had a cigarette hanging from the corner of his mouth and a red and black flannel jacket on. My eyes stayed glued on him as I made my way through the gate and up the walkway to Hunter’s porch. He smiled and waved, but I didn’t return anything more than a curt nod. You did this, I thought to myself as I continued up to Hunter’s door. You put this war vet through public humiliation and lied about him! Coming to the door, my heart was pounding hard enough that I figured even Terrance could probably hear it. Giving the door a couple of knocks, I took a step back and drew a deep breath, expelling it to calm my nerves and loosen the tension I felt welling in my muscles.

  Hunter opened the door, but not entirely. Straight-faced, his lips pressed together to form a thin line, he seemed to peer right through me. “Hey,” he said with flat and dry tone.

  “Hi, Hunter. I wanted to come see how you were doing. I saw—”

  He raised a hand. “I'm all right.” His eyes glared over to his neighbor and then back to me. “You came over to see how I was?” He let a dry laugh out with no humor. Looking down at my wrist, he shook his head and looked back at me. “I’m a suspect in a possible murder once they find a body. I know you’re just trying to help, but Miley, it’s not good.”

  “You’re innocent though. I know you are.”

  He raised an eyebrow, and his face softened. “Really? How do you know I am?”

  “It’s not you. I know you didn’t do this.”

  “You don’t know me, Miley. You don’t know who I’ve killed in war. What makes you automatically assume I haven’t killed someone here?” He started to close the door, but I caught it with my hand and stepped into the doorway.

  Shaking my head, I said, “War is different. You fought for our country. You’re innocent here. I know that much.” His expression softened more. His hard eyes were replaced with a glaze of hopelessness flooding through. He was worried.

  He let me inside. We went over to the couch and sat down. I took my gloves off. Hunter’s eyes still held a look of uncertainty. “I fear I’m being set up. It’s only a matter of time before things get worse.” His face turned to a hardened expression once again. “I just don’t know who is doing this.”

  “Why would someone set you up?” I asked.

  “I don’t know.”

  “I saw the neighbor lying on TV about you being a racist. Maybe he did it?” I offered.

  “No. I don’t think Terrance would do that to me.” His eyes jumped to the window that pointed toward the neighbor’s house. “He doesn’t like me, but he wouldn’t set me up.” Turning to me, he took my hands in his, his touch soft and gentle. “I had nothing to do with this guy or my knife going missing. I swear it, Miley.”

  His words and his face held no deception in them. I believed him, trusted him. “I know. I believe you.”

  A knock came a moment later. Fear gripped Hunter’s expression. It was apparent he wasn’t expecting anyone. We both stood up, and I glanced out the window that overlooked the porch. It was Luke. Relieved it wasn’t the police, I said it was him and went over to answer it.

  “Hey, Miley.” He looked past me at Hunter. “I’m so glad you’re out, brother.” He stepped in and went over to Hunter. Leaning over, he hugged his neck. “I was worried about you.”

  “Thanks, Buddy.”

  Luke sat down beside Hunter. “You get that leg and everything just falls apart, eh?”

  Hunter laughed. “That’s life, I guess.”

  Shutting the door, I walked over and sat in the recliner by the couch. “How was the questioning?” I asked.

  He shook his head. “Bad. They were accusing me the whole time, but luckily, they can’t call it a murder without a body.” Hunter shook his head and hunched over as he sat on the couch. Face between his palms, he said, “This is the worst. I lose my unit, lose my leg, and now I might lose my freedom.”

  Looking over to Luke, who seemed overwhelmed with all this news, Hunter spoke to him. “If they take me—well, when is probably more suitable—I need you to watch Frito. I won’t be able to feed him.”

  “Absolutely, Hunter.” Luke’s eyes fixed on Hunter. “I’ll take care of him for you.” Luke’s phone buzzed, and he had to leave.

  “I want to take you somewhere,” Hunter said as Luke shut the front door on his way out. “It’s a place Alex and I used to go back when we were still in high school.”

  “Okay.”

  Arriving on a dirt road on a snowy mountain along the panhandle of North Idaho, I couldn’t lie to myself about feeling a bit uneasy. It was the type of place where you could scream and nobody would hear. Maybe a car and a half in width, the road wove between trees that reached up into the cold skies above. Each branch was weighed down by snow, and the farther we went, the higher we climbed up the mountain. Hunter’s truck felt like it was about to slip off the edge of the road the entire length of the road, and I was more than relieved when we pulled over into a turnaround area off the path. Hunter got out, and I followed suit.

  We walked across the snow-covered road over to the steep drop-off. Through the trees in this particular spot, you could see a valley below and it was coated in a blanket of snow. I stood in awe beside Hunter as I took in the beauty.

  “Alex and I would come up here in the summer and pick huckleberries. We’d talk about life, girls, and whatever else came up. We didn’t make it up here very much in the winter months, but when we did, we’d just sit and stare at it for hours while we chatted on the tailgate of my truck.” Hunter’s eyes stayed fixed on the valley as I turned and looked at him.

  “You miss him a lot, don’t you?” I asked.

  He turned to me, tears welling in his eyes. “I do. We were like brothers growing up. If it weren’t for him, I would have been in jail a long time ago.” Hunter turned and looked at the road as he continued. “The part that kills me the most about being a suspect is Luke. He has already lost one brother. He shouldn’t have to lose me too.”

  Seeing Hunter’s worry and pain over his circumstances, I moved closer to him. Taking off my glove, I framed his face and looked into his eyes. He let his cheek rest against the flesh of my palm, and I could see some of the pain dissipate. Though I couldn’t make all of his pain go away or make this investigation stop, I could be there for him at this moment.

  Arriving back to his house that evening, there were a pair of police cars with their lights on in front of his house. Hunter gulped and clutched my hand on the armrest for comfort. Smoothing my other hand atop his, I tried to be there for him for whatever was about to happen. He could have turned around, kept driving, or did a multitude of other actions, but he didn’t. He pulled into the driveway.

  “Mr. Bowman, I presume?” A cop asked as we got out of the truck. Hunter nodded. “I’m placing you under arrest for the murder of Kent Hammer.” The police continued his spiel as Hunter and my eyes connected. My heart broke over and over as I could feel every pain he was feeling at the moment. The flashing lights of t
he police car played off his face as the officer turned him around and cuffed him. My heart pounded.

  “You can’t do this! He’s innocent!”

  Hunter shot a glare at me as he shook his head. “Stop it. They’re just doing their job, Miley.” Watching as they led him to the patrol car, I saw Terrance next door. He was smirking.

  “You happy? He’s an innocent man.” The smirk fell off his face at my words and snow started to fall. Through the flakes of frozen water and the tears welling in my eyes, I watched as they shut the back door of the cruiser and Hunter’s chin dipped to his chest.

  Terrance walked over to me in the driveway as the police pulled away from the house.

  “You think you know this boy?” he questioned.

  Crossing my arms, I turned to him. “I know enough. I also know you lied on the news.”

  Terrance’s eyes followed the police cars for a moment as they were continuing down the street. “I knew Hunter back when he was a kid. He’d visit his aunt and uncle here. Always killing cats, always fighting with the other children. He’s troubled. Why do you think he went into the military? His parents didn’t know what else to do with him. He was a bad seed. He always has been, and he always will be.”

  “Sounds like you have a beef with him.” Dropping my arms to my sides, I headed to my car.

  “Sometimes you don’t always know someone as good as you think you do,” Terrance said as I made it to my car. “Be careful, little girl.”

  Arriving home, I turned on the evening news as I prepared a chicken salad in the kitchen. There, the coroner’s report was up on the screen. Stopping from mixing the greens in the bowl on the counter, I wiped my hands on my jeans and went to the couch and sat down on the coffee table in front of the TV.

  “The victim was stabbed fourteen times the morning of January tenth before his body was dumped into Diamond Lake. This is an ongoing investigation, and the community is asked to report anything they saw suspicious on the morning of January the tenth at one o’clock. The investigators are taking all tips and information into consideration.”