by Gen Griffin
Trish couldn't argue with that. “I guess I get to dissect a toilet,” she grumbled.
Grover laughed. “You're the one who wanted the truck. You going somewhere right now?”
“No,” Trish shook her head at him. “Right now, I'm planning on going to my bedroom and getting some actual sleep. I think I've gotten about 4 hours worth in the last two days. I just wanted to know where the truck was in case I needed it later.”
“You go out later, don't forget the white bread,” Grover said.
“I won't,” Trish promised.
Chapter 28
“The good news is that I think I've figured out what started your fire last night,” Tate Briggs told David as they stood in what had previously been his front yard. The ground was black with soot. All of the grass had been scorched away. The trailer itself had been reduced to a smoldering pile of ash. It hurt to look at the warped chunk of burned metal that had been the Toyota.
“Don't take this the wrong way, but I don't care about what started the fire. Its obviously a total loss. Tell me about the body you said you found?” David took a deep breath and steeled himself for bad news.
“Yeah.” Addison was leaning against the bumper of his truck. He'd beaten David to the property by a couple of minutes. He had both his arms crossed over his chest. “Tell us more about the body.”
“I don't know much about the body right now.” Tate shook his head at them. “She was dead well before I found her this morning.”
“She?” Addison asked. He'd gone slightly pale but not severely enough that anyone who didn't know him well would think anything was wrong.
“Look, if I talk to y'all right now it has to be off record. Everything I know is my own speculation based on the crime scene and arson training I've had.”
“We understand.” David spoke for both of them without bothering to so much as cast a glance at Addison. “Just tell us what you can.”
“I was trying to explain how I found the body when you interrupted me,” Tate informed him. “As I was saying, I think I know how your fire started last night.”
“Ok. How?”
“The fire burned hottest right at the front door of the trailer.” Tate gestured for David to follow him over to where the front porch had previously stood. He brushed debris away from an area of dirt. “I think the front porch light must have sparked and started the blaze.”
“Okay,” David said. He didn’t see why it mattered what had started the fire so long as it hadn’t been arson. Destroyed was destroyed in his book. “So what?”
“I located the remains when I was sifting through the wreckage from the porch trying to determine the initial cause of the fire. The body was underneath the porch and I could tell from the bones that it was a female.” Tate sighed and shook his head. “Are you sure you were alone here when the fire broke out, David?”
“As far as I know, I was.” David stared down at the blackened dirt. “Has anyone been reported missing since last night?”
“You mean has someone filed a recent missing persons report?” Tate asked.
David nodded.
“Not that I know of,” Tate said. “But that would be more Addison’s department than mine. He’s the cop.”
“I’m the Game Warden. I’m not in charge of missing persons,” Addy said. “You can't tell us anything else about the body?”
“All I know is that there is a body,” Tate replied. “Other than that, I don't know much.”
Addison pressed him. “You don’t even have any good guesses about where she came from or who she could be?”
“We'll know a lot more once Baker County gets done with the body. You know as well as I do that Ian followed the ambulance as the official escort. I imagine he'll stick around and find out any information he can.”
“Do you think it was a fresh body?” David asked after a slight hesitation. “I mean, I thought for sure I was alone here when the fire broke out. Was someone here and I just didn’t know it?”
“I don’t know. I have extremely limited forensic detective skills.” Tate hesitated for a second. He pulled something out of his pocket and held it out to David. “You ever seen this before?”
David frowned down at the dirty, heavy gold bracelet in Tate's palm. “It's a bracelet.”
“Observant, aren't you?” Tate handed the bracelet to David. “I found it buried in the rubble near the body.”
“You didn't send it into evidence?” Addison asked. He reached out to take the bracelet from David.
“Ian told me to give it to David. He decided it wasn't evidence because the corpse wasn't wearing it when we found her.” Tate rolled his eyes. “Ian needs to go back to the police academy, if you ask me.”
“No one asked you.” Addison examined the bracelet. “It's heavy and it looks old. Like the kind of thing Granny Pearl might wear.”
“It's probably real.” David took the piece of jewelry back from Addison and turned it so that he could see the underside of the thick gold rosettes. “I can't tell if there's an inscription. It's got too much dirt caked on it.”
“Ordinarily I'd tell you its evidence and to leave it alone,” Tate said with a shrug. “But in this case, I reckon you can do what you want with it. You sure you don't recognize it?”
“No, I don't.” David frowned at the bracelet. “I've never seen it before.”
“Me neither,” said Addison.
“Darn. I was hoping one of y'all would recognize it and we'd be able to use it to identify the body,” Tate said. “I mean, I figure David probably has to know the woman I found even if he wasn't the one who put her there. How many people could really be dead underneath that trailer?”
“More than you think,” David mumbled under his breath as he let the reality of the situation sink in. “A whole lot more than you think, considering what a sleazebag my father was.”
“Kerry is probably going to say it’s the body of that girl who’s been missing since he was in middle school,” Tate suggested with a shrug. “The one he’s obsessed with. What was her name?”
“Casey.” David dropped the bracelet into his pocket. “Casey Black.”
“Speaking of Kerry,” Addison sighed and stared at the edge of the driveway. The fire had cleared out enough brush and trees that the highway was easily visible from the yard. A baby blue Audi convertible was sitting in the middle of the highway with its blinker turned on. “Here he comes.”
“Kerry’s here?” Tate frowned at the luxury car as it turned into the driveway. “I thought Kerry was supposed to be riding a desk from now on?”
“Yes. He is. Not that he's ever listened to a word Sheriff Chasson has told him.” Addison put his hands on his hips and snarled at the Audi as it came bouncing down the driveway towards them. The car revved up loudly, struggling to get through the soft sand in the drive. The tires bogged down, sand flying in all directions.
“He gets stuck, I ain't pulling him out.” David crossed his arms over his chest. “I don't give a shit how much money he offers me. I own this property and he's fucking trespassing.”
“Depends on whether or not he's officially on duty.” Tate intentionally stepped in between Addison and Kerry. “Y'all can't go after him for being an officer investigating a crime scene.”
The Audi revved up even harder as Kerry pegged the accelerator. The car sunk into the sand until it was sitting stuck on its axles.
“We can go after him for being a nosy, good for nothing son-of-a-bitch.” Addison began walking towards his own truck. “I'm fixing to call Frank.”
Kerry flung the door of his car open, pushing sand out of the way. He was grinning from ear-to-ear as he jogged through the sand towards them. His face was flushed red with what appeared to be a combination of anger and excitement.
“I knew I'd get you bastards one day.” Kerry ran towards them on foot. He didn’t stop until he was inches away from David’s face. Kerry grinned like a maniac. “I knew you'd killed Casey. It was only a matter of time
until we found her body. You're going down, David. You killed Casey and now I finally have the proof I need to make sure you rot in a jail cell for the rest of your miserable life.”
David decided he didn't care whether or not Kerry was performing his official duties. He punched the smug deputy squarely in the mouth.
Chapter 29
Trish woke up to find a huge pair of turquoise eyes several inches away from her face. A waterfall of golden hair spilled down past the eyes and onto the mattress.
For a moment, Trish thought she was looking at Addison. Then she realized that the eyelashes surrounding the eyes were covered in gooey black mascara.
“Gracie?” Trish sat up in bed, blinking.
Gracie was laying beside Trish in the bed. She had her head propped up on one elbow. “Hi.”
Trish looked around the darkened bedroom. There was still plenty of bright sunlight streaming in through the curtains. She hadn't been asleep for more than a couple of hours but her head felt heavy. “How did you get in here?”
“Grover let me in,” Gracie explained. “He told me which room was yours. You know, this house is identical to Granny Pearl's except for the furniture.”
“I know.” Trish rubbed her eyes. “What time is it?”
“Around two, I think.” Gracie looked perfectly at home stretched out across Trish's handmade quilt. Today the other girl was wearing a pair of scandalously short cutoff jean shorts and an orange halter top that featured the kind of built-in bra that had never done Trish the slightest bit of good. Gracie had kicked off her flip-flops before climbing onto the bed. Her bare toes were wiggling in the air just off the end of the bed.
“Don't take this the wrong way, but why are you here?” Trish didn't know what horrible past act she must have committed in order to get stuck with Addison's blonde goddess of a sister for company when she herself was wearing an old t-shirt and walking around with a rat's nest for hair.
“David wanted me to come check on you,” Gracie explained. “I'm supposed to make sure you're doing okay after what happened last night and this morning.”
“I'm...okay.” Trish wasn't quite sure what else to say. “You talked to David?”
“Briefly. Cal and I were getting gas when David pulled into the Gas N' Go to tell us that Tate found a body. Oh, that reminds me.” Gracie rolled over and stuck her hand into the back pocket of her shorts. She pulled out a familiar bright green rectangle. “You left your phone in the wrecker.”
“Is that where it was?” Trish took the phone back from the other girl. “I was looking for it before I laid down for my nap.”
“It was in the cup holder.”
“That explains why I couldn't find it.” Trish pushed the button to bring the screen to life but the battery had died. She reached over to the nightstand beside the bed and plugged the device in. “Thanks for bringing it back to me.”
“You're welcome.”
The two of them stared at one another awkwardly.
“Um, so, are you okay?” Gracie asked after a minute.
“I'm fine.” Trish lied as she stared unhappily at her reflection in the mirror.
“Your car is a mess,” Gracie said.
Trish frowned and swallowed a sudden and unexpected lump in her throat. “You saw my car?”
“It was still on the back of the wrecker when we saw David,” Gracie explained. “You're pretty lucky to be up and walking around like you are. The whole front end is crumpled up like a can someone kicked.” Gracie chewed on her lower lip. “Addy told me about what your ex did. About how he snatched you off the road.”
Trish nodded bleakly. She didn't know what to say. It seemed pointless to tell Gracie that she wished Addison had kept his mouth shut. “I feel pretty dumb right now,” she admitted unexpectedly. “I knew deep in my heart that Curtis could be dangerous and I kept lying to myself about him. I kept trying and trying to tell myself that something he'd done to me had been an accident when I knew it hadn't been.”
“You can't blame yourself for trying to think the best of someone you loved,” Gracie said. “You're being too hard on yourself.”
“Maybe.” Trish stared unhappily at her reflection in the mirror. “Its been a pretty crappy couple of days. Pretty crappy couple of months, honestly. I tried to be nice to Curtis last night and he rewarded my kindness by making me wreck my car and then setting it on fire. The diamond ring I'd planned on selling to replace the car turned out to be good quality fake. I may or may not get granted a divorce when I go to court in three weeks. I decided to give up on men and become a crazy cat lady. Until I met David. Unfortunately, it appears he's a serial killer.” Trish flopped down on the edge of her bed and crossed her arms over her chest. “Does that about cover the definition of bad day?”
“David's not a serial killer,” Gracie said, sounding thoughtful. “I promise.”
“I've known him for 24 hours and he's been accused of murder several times. Now he's off dealing with a dead body. It's not looking like a very promising start to a relationship.” Trish knew she sounded bitchy and bitter but she didn't care.
“You're having a really bad day,” Gracie said. “I think you need to take some time to relax and clear your head.”
“I do,” Trish agreed. “I actually kind of thought today might be fun. I was kind of looking forward to-. Well. Never mind.”
“Looking forward to what?” Gracie asked curiously.
“Nothing that matters right now.” Trish didn't know how much David had told his friends.
“Tell me?” Gracie batted her eyes at Trish.
“I was supposed to have plans with David today.” Trish intentionally kept it vague.
“He told me and Cal that he proposed to you right before Ian showed up and ruined the afternoon,” Gracie said flatly.
Trish blinked at her in surprise. “You knew about David proposing?”
Gracie laughed. “David tells Cal everything.”
“And Cal tells you?”
“Mmm, mostly David tells us at the same time. I know all his secrets. He knows all of mine.” Gracie smiled at Trish. “Not that there are many secrets in Possum Creek.”
“You're trying to tell me that everyone in this town already knows David proposed to me.” Trish didn't know whether to be awed or terrified by the revelation.
“I'm telling you that they'll know how much he spent on the ring before y'all make it out of the jewelry store,” Gracie replied.
“Okay. Fine then.” Trish shrugged her shoulders and held out her hands in a gesture of surrender. “I was looking forward to going out with David today. I still think he's insane, but I was looking forward to the chance to spend some one-on-one time with him. It was going to be nice to get to know him a little better.”
“David was really upset about not getting to spend the day with you,” Gracie informed her. “He actually told me to take you ring shopping and let you pick something out. I told him that girls like their commitment jewelry to be hand-picked by the person who is actually committing.”
“He told you to take me jewelry shopping?” Trish couldn't help laughing. “I don't actually recall accepting his proposal.”
“He's insane,” Gracie replied. “Mostly in a good way, but you did nail it on the head when you said he was insane. I'm glad you caught on to that early in your relationship with him. It makes my life a lot easier.”
“How does my knowing David is insane make your life easier?” Trish asked.
“I don't have to worry about whether or not you'll break his heart when you realize he's crazy.”
“Oh.” Trish considered the other girl's statement and then nodded. “Fine. That's fair enough.”
“You should probably also know that I'm supposed to make friends with you,” Gracie said bluntly. “Like, I was told to really make an effort here.”
Trish blinked at her. “Who told you to make friends with me?”
“David. And Cal agreed with him.”
“Oh. Um, that
was nice of them. I guess.” Trish was officially confused now. “You don't have to be my friend if you don't want to.”
“Its not that I don't want to. I'm just not very good with other girls,” Gracie said. “But I need you to like me.”
“Why?” Trish asked.
“Because I'd probably die if David married a girl who hated me,” Gracie confessed with a miserable frown. “He's my best friend after Cal. He's the one I call when I need someone to be completely honest. He really does know all my secrets.”
“You're worried I won't let y'all be friends?” Trish abruptly realized where this was going.
“David hasn't had a girlfriend in like, 6 years,” Gracie said. She chewed her lip for a minute. “You're the first girl I've ever seen him fall for. You're the first girl any of us have ever seen him fall for. No one was expecting him to do this crazy love-at-first-sight thing. Not that I'm not sure you're great and all. I mean, you're pretty and I'm sure you're a wonderful person-.”
“Stop, Gracie. Really. I won't think worse of you if you admit that you're having doubts about my relationship – or rather my lack of a relationship – with David.” Trish held up her hands. “I'm technically still married to Curtis and I met David last night. Today, when I was trying to explain the type of person I am to David, I told him that I'm a girl who needs commitment. He immediately proposed. I wasn't expecting him to propose. I wasn't asking him to propose.”
“Well, I suppose proposing does solve the commitment issue,” Gracie said with a small laugh. “That's classic David, by the way.”
“I didn't think he was serious,” Trish said.
“He's serious.”
“I'm slowly figuring that out,” Trish said. “It scares the hell out of me.”
“Do you not want to marry him?” Gracie asked. The blonde was clearly surprised.
“Would I be crazy if I said that I did want to marry him?” Trish countered. “Be honest with me. I met David last night. I normally go for guys who wear polos, khakis and deck shoes. Preppy boys. David's-.”
“David is as far from preppy as you can get,” Gracie cut in. “He's a bad ass and he looks it.”