“Since Alexis Michaels is dead, who am I? How did you explain my presence here?”
“We’re not actually in the clinic building. We’re in your uncle’s cottage. David’s plane arrived the morning I had to move you, so everyone thinks he’s taken his family on a vacation—the one to visit my parents that I’d arranged for Minette and Mia. Everett’s the only one on the outside who knows the truth. As far as anyone else is concerned, I’ve gone to Toronto to recuperate from my injuries and mend my broken heart. I closed the inn for a few weeks.” He reached for her hand. “Maybe it can stay closed for a bit longer and once the case is over , we can go somewhere for a few days—separate rooms—but I would like to spend time with you. I know I shouldn’t have—”
“Stop” she whispered. This was the time for truth.
“I would like nothing better than to spend time with you, but we don’t have to wait until the case is over. I forced myself to stay away from you because I thought you were married. I didn’t realize it was David who’d given Minette the McKenzie name ... Say something,” she whispered.
Comprehension dawned and his eyes grew large, while his jaw dropped open.
“You thought she was my wife? Why on Earth would you think that?”
“You mean other than the last name and the fact I thought she was sharing your bed?” She frowned. “Where do she and Mia sleep? There’s only one other bedroom.”
Jake laughed bitterly, his eyes filled with sorrow.
“I’m not sure whether to be proud or insulted. Here I was kissing you whenever I could get close enough, and you thought I was cheating on my wife or trying to build a harem. Some opinion you have of me. For the record, David and Minette have a three-bedroom suite above the apartment, complete with their own kitchen and living room. Luke’s mother lives there with her, but she’s been in Florida with my folks. She’ll probably get a place in town now that David’s back. The door next to the bathroom opens onto a staircase that leads up there. We keep it closed to keep Maya downstairs.”
Feeling more than little foolish, knowing Jake wasn’t at all like Bob, the man who’d broken her heart and cheated on his wife, and ashamed of herself for thinking so, she grabbed at the shreds of her dignity.
“I know you aren’t like that, but try to see if from my point of view. It was an honest mistake. You spoke so highly of her, and she was always looking out for you. I saw you kiss and hug Minette that night, right after she interrupted us...”
Jake shook his head, “Yeah, I guess to someone who didn’t know us, it could have looked that way. Minette is French Canadian and very demonstrative.”
There was still the ghost of his dead wife to deal with. She’d seen the agony on his face when he’d looked at that picture.
“There was also the way you got angry when I was getting paper the other night...” Maybe that was none of her business as he’d said, but if she was going to give Jake her heart, she wanted all of his. Greedy? Maybe, but unconditional love was something she’d lost when her parents had died.
He hung his head, and massaged the back of her hand with his thumb.
“I should’ve told you the truth about Irena that night instead of snapping at you, but discussing her and Afghanistan is hard for me. I was wrong; you deserve to know it all. Come here.”
He held out his arms and she got up and sat on his lap. The warmth of his body and the thump of his heart against his chest comforting. He placed a gentle kiss on her forehead.
“I’ve waited a lifetime to hold you like this. I searched for you for ages, but eventually, when I couldn’t find you, I gave up. I’d only been in the country a few weeks when I met Irena’s father. He was well-known in the area, but what no one realized was that he was the leader of a deep-cover band of insurgents, the one’s responsible for Luke’s death. He invited me to his home and introduced me to his daughter. I never realized she was doing her father’s bidding, but I should’ve. One thing led to another, and her brother Ali caught me kissing her. He threatened to kill her if I didn’t marry her; he said I had damaged the family honor.” He shook his head.
Alexis covered his hand with her free one, holding his between both of hers. “I’ve heard of honor killings. Those people take even the most basic situations too far. So, to save her, you married her?”
“More or less. Don’t paint me as too noble. I didn’t see it as the world’s biggest disaster at the time. She was exotic, the complete opposite of you, and I was lonely. Nothing had happened, but I couldn’t let them hurt her, so I went to the base commander, and he saw this marriage as something that might be healing. We had a private Muslim wedding—it might not even have been a legal one for all I know. It was all in Pashto, and I didn’t understand any of it. I’d sent home for the family ring, the one you saw, but she said she couldn’t wear it because she would become a target for the dissidents. Instead, she wore a plain silver band that her dad provided.” He cleared his throat before continuing. “On our wedding night, I learned that she’d been married before, to an Afghani who’d been killed in the fighting—another reason why she probably hated us. She moved onto the base, but she was lonely, missed her family, so I got her younger brother a job as an orderly in the hospital. When drugs and bandages started to go missing either during or after his shifts, I got suspicious and had him followed.”
“Was he selling the stuff he was taking?” she asked, totally absorbed in the tale, wanting to know more.
He shook his head. “It would’ve been better if he had. I followed him to a house we knew was a rallying point for the Taliban. Irena begged me not to turn him in. We argued and I stormed out of the house. I spent the night in David’s quarters getting drunk. The next morning, I took three trucks and half a dozen men to deliver supplies to one of our so-called secret bases. The bombs were planted along our route. I’d left the papers on the table in our quarters, not realizing she’d just been waiting for a chance to sell me out. David said she packed a bag and left about an hour after the argument. She told the guards she was going to visit her grandmother and would be back in a couple of days. When I survived the attack, her father knew she’d been compromised. Irena, bomb strapped to her chest and went into the café where she’d often had tea with women from the base and detonated the bomb.”
Tears trickled down his cheeks.
“Oh Jake, I’m so sorry,” she said, raising her hand to cup his cheek. “What she did wasn’t your fault, any more than it was your fault that the roof dropped on me. They used you.”
“Part of me understands that, but another part blames me for being so gullible,” he said, and pulled her against him. “Does this make any difference to you—to us?”
“Yes, it matters a lot,” she replied, before raising her face to his and kissing him gently.
When the quick kiss ended, she pulled back, pleased to see the heat in his eyes.
“Alexis, the only person who didn’t know I was crazy about you twenty years ago was you, and it seems you’re the only one who doesn’t know it now.”
“Well, what can I say? I told you I have a habit of jumping to the wrong conclusions.” She yawned and winced at the stab of pain the movement caused.
“Bruised ribs still sore? They take a while to heal. Back in bed with you. We can talk again in the morning. Now, close your eyes and rest. I’ll be right here.”
He pushed himself up using the arms of the chair and kissed her gently.
Maybe by morning she’d remember whatever it was that was eating at her. She smiled.
“Thanks for telling me. I know it wasn’t easy. Goodnight.” She yawned and closed her eyes.
* * *
Jake stretched out in the recliner and watched her sleep, relaxed and happy for the first time in years. He’d been so afraid she wouldn’t forgive him for putting her in that bed, but she had, and with everything else out in the open between them, maybe they had a shot at the future he’d imagined twenty years ago. But they had to stop Fire Angel first, a
nd they had less than three weeks to do it.
The door opened and David walked in. Jake frowned, certain his brother had gone to bed earlier.
David nodded at him and motioned for Jake to follow him, then closed the door.
Not wanting to break his promise and yet knowing whatever David wanted had to be critical, he grabbed his crutches and followed his brother into the hallway.
“What’s up?” he asked. “I thought you’d settled for the night.
“I did,” David said, but Everett sent this over by special messenger. He said you needed it right away.”
Jake frowned. “Who answered the door?” If David had, given the rumor mill, everyone would know he wasn’t in Florida like he was supposed to be.
“I did. Don’t worry. I know what you’re thinking, but Matt Conway brought it, and I doubt he’ll tell anyone you’re here. Ev wanted you to have this right away.”
Frowning, his gut still unsettled about the matter, Jake reached for the envelope.
“Thanks. Let’s hope he doesn’t let anything slip. Go to bed. I’ll see you in the morning.”
Pivoting, he entered the room and settled in his chair beside the bed once more.
He pursed his lips and narrowed his eyes. What could possibly be so important that Ev would send it out here at night?
Not waiting another minute, he tore open the envelope. By the dim light in the room, a concession to Alexis’s fear of the dark, he examined the contents. The first was a lab report confirming that the DNA on the shirt and cigarette butts all belonged to the same individual—a male whose DNA profile also matched a couple of six-year old cold cases in the London area. Women, prostitutes all of them, had been killed, most of them strangled although two had been stabbed. Forensic evidence implied they’d had sex post-mortem. He grimaced. How sick was that? Someone—it looked like Ev’s writing, had made a note in the margin that more information on those cases was on its way as soon as they could collate it. As well, the words, you did say he’d killed before, were there, too, along with, but you never mentioned he might do this.
The second item was an envelope from Stats Canada addressed to Alexis with re: Miriam Francis typed under her name.
He frowned. Who the hell was Miriam Francis?
Inserting the items back into the envelope, Jake settled more comfortably in the chair, reclining it all the way. He would ask Alexis about it first thing tomorrow.
***
A few hours later, Alexis awoke with a dull headache, far more manageable than the one she’d had last night, and less pain in her chest. Jake slept in the chair beside her bed. She sat up gingerly and leaned towards him.
“Wake up, sleepy head,” she called softly and was rewarded with a loving look from those deep blue eyes.
He smiled, “Hi, gorgeous. How’s the head this morning?”
“Much better. The body seems up to par as well.” Her stomach grumbled loudly. “And, as you can hear, I’m starving. What do you do for room service in this joint?”
Jake laughed. “You send your lackey, which would be me, to the kitchen with your demand to be fed. I’ll be right back.”
He took up the crutches, wobbled slightly as he adjusted them, and left the room to do her bidding.
Once the door closed behind him, Alexis got up and walked to the bathroom, pleased that her feet were solid under her this morning. Someone had brought in clean towels and a pair of her own pajamas.
Last night, Minette had assured her she could shower and wash her hair once she felt like it, which she did. When she left the bathroom, tired but satisfied, Jake and a breakfast tray waited for her.
“Wow! You look great.”
“It’s amazing what a little soap, water, and your own clothes will do for you. I’m hoping Captain Peters left me more than just my pajamas though.”
“He did. The cases that went back to San Francisco were empty. Min brought some stuff here, but most of it is still at the inn. You can get new cases when you leave. I brought you poached eggs, toast, fresh berries, and coffee, sweetened and creamed just the way you like it,” he said, smiling at her, his eyes glowing. He stood, leaning on the bed for support. “Come here.”
Alexis walked up to him, put her arms around his neck and kissed him. This was what she hungered for. His lips were warm and as the kiss deepened, she felt heat building inside her. He held her tightly to him, and his arousal made her flame even brighter. Slowly, reluctantly, he pulled away. She wanted more, but knew that this was neither the time nor the place.
“I need to get cleaned up,” he said, before dropping a second light kiss on her mouth. “My new leg arrived just before we left the hospital and David says I’m healed enough to try it today. When I come back, I’ll be a new man. Oh, by the way, Everett sent over some reports last night. They’re on the table.” He indicated a brown envelope. “Have a look at them while you eat. There’s a bit of a surprise there I didn’t expect. There’s an envelope for you from Stats Canada about Miriam Francis. See you in a bit.” He closed the door behind him.
Alexis reached for the brown envelope, the food forgotten. The DNA and unsolved murders triggered a memory, but it was the information about Miriam Francis that had everything crashing into place. She knew who the killer was. She could see his profile clearly in the kitchen window. Now, how would she prove it and stop him before the next fire? Most of her evidence was supposition, circumstance, and attributable to her gift. To make matters even more complicated, Jake had already crossed him off the list of suspects. The killer had covered his tracks well, but not well enough. There had to be a way...
The minute Jake opened the door to her room, Alexis jumped out if bed and ran to him.
“You’re walking on your own again, and there’s no limp,” she cried and threw herself at him. “I know who Fire Angel is. He’s Frank Arthur.”
“Frank? We’ve already eliminated him,” he said, folding his arms around her.
“But it’s him. I saw his profile in the kitchen window. We eliminated him based on lies and misconceptions. He’s been playing us all along. I remember him now. He was heavier back then, with long, stringy hair, and his nose was more hooked, more like a bird’s beak. The last day I was in Paradise, someone had put a dead frog in my lunch bag. I was sure it was Frank. When I accused him of it, he smiled and said, ‘Prove it.’ It’s him; I know it is… the way he’s been baiting me with memories, the owl and the dead mice, the flowers...He’s been playing me like a cat with a mouse. The note, the wording—it all fits. The notes? He might as well have signed them—Fire Angel, Frank Arthur.”
“That’s a hell of a coincidence, but we checked the writing. Fire Angel is left handed, Frank isn’t.”
She moved out of his arms and paced the room in her agitation.
“He’s ambidextrous. The year before I left, he broke his right wrist horsing around and learned to write with his left hand, but that’s not all. James’ favorite expression was ‘Strike three, you’re out.’ And the rhyme, Lexy-Wexy? That was James’s pet name for me. He used it the first time I screamed when a dead mouse showed up on my window sill. The last time I heard it was when someone filled my boots with blood and worms—everyone thought it was gelatin that hadn’t set. That was the night I left.”
Jake opened his arms, and she walked into them. He folded them around her as she let the memories of that night wash over her again.
“You know the aunt his mother is visiting?” she continued. “Well, according to records, she’s been dead for nine years.”
“Maybe he has another aunt,” Jake said hopefully, holding her tightly, his eyes filled with shock.
She shook her head. “I checked. It’s her. She’s the only sister his mother has. Amazing what information you can get from Stats Canada, and with a little push from Captain Peters, they rushed the search. If Lynette wasn’t the busy-body she is, I might never have found her. Since you were so sure it couldn’t be Frank, I asked her what his mother’s maiden name wa
s. Once I knew it, I found her records. Miriam had one sister, Flora. Then everything fell into place.”
“What do you mean, everything?”
She held up the paper she’d found in the envelope. “Jake, don’t blame yourself for taking him at face value; everyone around here does. But he gave me the creeps from the get-go. I might not have remembered that, but there was something about him.” She licked her lips. “You and Ev were looking into Mackenzie Holden, right?”
“Yeah. Fire Angel must’ve used the name to lure him to the cabin. The drug suppliers from North bay had people nosing around looking for him, so we thought we would, too, but as you know, that turned out to be another dead end. The boy was killed years ago when he was six.”
“He’s Frank’s brother,” she said, and watched the color drain from Jake’s face.
He frowned, giving her that “are you nuts” look.
“Frank’s mother married twice. Once to Eric Holden and after he died, she married Luc Arthur. She had two sons with her first husband—Mackenzie and Francis. Frank could easily have used his brother’s name knowing no one here would associate it with his.” She bit her lower lip. “Jake, if his aunt has been dead for nine years, where’s Flora?”
“I don’t know,” he said, the muscle in his jaw jerking. “But I intend to find out.”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Jake stared out the window, still holding Alexis in his arms, loathe to believe Frank could’ve played him for a fool like this. My God! If Alexis was right, he could’ve put Mia and Min right into the bloody maniac’s hands.
Reluctantly, he let her go as they reviewed the evidence together. It all fit, and the inconsistencies melted away. Frank had the run of the inn from the onset. He’d claimed to be in Wasaga Beach visiting his mother and aunt the day she arrived, but if that was a lie, he could easily have been the one following Alexis, the one who’d entered her cabin, the one who’d shot at them on Monday when they’d visited the first crime scene. Since he did minor repairs to the inn, he had his own master key—one Jake had forgotten all about. If he’d been in Alexis’s room that night, his scent was as familiar to Maya as any member of the family.
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