Indiscretions

by Barbara Winkes

  Her eyes widened, then she said, “Wait a minute please.” He stepped back politely while she was talking on the phone, already anticipating the course of events that would follow. As expected, a moment later a tall blond man joined him, a petite woman in uniform on his heels.

  Ellie Harding had no idea how lucky she’d been.

  The man introduced himself as Detective Henderson, Jordan’s partner.

  “Detective Carpenter isn’t here?” he asked, acting surprised. “We had an appointment this morning. She didn’t show up and I couldn’t reach her, so I thought I’d try here.”

  Henderson exchanged a look with Officer Harding.

  “When did you make that appointment?”

  “Two days ago. We closed a deal for a house, and I was supposed to give her some papers. She hinted that the move was kind of urgent, we were trying to expedite things for her. I’m surprised she didn’t call me.” He paused for dramatic effect. “Did anything happen?”

  “We don’t know yet,” Henderson said. “Mr. Darby, can I talk to you for a moment? I’d like to hear more about this house sale.”

  “Um…sure, I guess that’s okay. Usually, those details would be confidential, but if she’s in trouble, I want to help. Wow. This was not what I expected.”

  “Good. Why don’t we go to my office?” Another meaningful look to Harding. “That would be all, Officer.”

  She didn’t look happy, but Jonathan silently assured her: Don’t worry. I won’t forget about you.

  * * * *

  The big secret. Jordan had bought a house, and obviously, Bethany didn’t know about it. Not that this gave Ellie any advantage over her, because she hadn’t known either until a minute ago. What did it all mean? Darby, the owner of the real estate agency, had been under scrutiny before, with the house where Lori was found, and recently, because Meg had made an appointment with his company for Judy.

  She hoped Derek would think of asking him for a list of employees, then she slapped a hand against her forehead. Henderson was a seasoned detective, not a wannabe like Ellie at this point. Of course he would remember the details.

  She tried to make herself invisible behind her computer when she saw Bethany walking in, her immaculate appearance revealing nothing about the near meltdown Ellie had witnessed the previous night.

  It was hard to figure out the woman. Why was she holding on to Jordan, when she didn’t seem to have that much respect for her? Emotional blackmail? Revenge? Both she and Derek seemed to be privy to secrets Ellie had no idea of. Maybe Jordan had planned on telling her some time. Maybe the house was the surprise, a place where they could be together without the presence or judgment of another person?

  Judgment.

  Revenge.

  Punishment.

  Ellie knew without a doubt the person who had attacked her was male, but his connection to Gleason suggested that sometimes, he carried out “punishment” for those who wanted to get back at their spouses.

  Bethany?

  She certainly had all the means to hide her traces, but she wouldn’t team up with a murderer for something this petty—would she? Ellie shook her head to herself. Kate might be right to say that her judgment was clouded by jealousy.

  She was wondering what Derek and the realtor had to discuss this long.

  When Darby came out of Henderson’s office, he passed by her desk.

  “Have a good day, Officer…Harding it is?” He smiled before he turned to walk away.

  A shudder ran down her spine before she could identify where it was coming from. He had overheard her name earlier, no need to get paranoid.

  She had more important things to do.

  * * * *

  It took her a while to break through the stronghold of shock. Numbness meant being wrapped in a cocoon of nothingness, where there was no pain or consideration of what he might do next. She couldn’t afford to stay there. Numbness would get her killed.

  Apparently, the chains could be straightened—or the opposite—with some kind of mechanism, but she didn’t have enough leeway to get to it, manipulate it in any way.

  “I’ll be back,” he’d said. “I promise. We can continue all afternoon.”

  That was part of the problem, really, he wouldn’t say what exactly he expected her to do or say. Her only way to pass was staying alive. Even though it wasn’t cold in the room, it took forever for the shakes to finally abate.

  She was hyper aware of her scarcely dressed state, every minute he was in the room with her. Jordan knew it was part of the tactic, to keep her off balance. What she didn’t know was where he planned to go from there, and the fear was part of his game. He was putting on a show. She could do the same.

  * * * *

  Judy came to in the same place she’d curled up some time the previous night, woken by the rays of light coming in through the cracks in the walls of the old barn. She was confused, and hurting. She had no idea where she was, or why.

  She looked at her wrists, crusted over with blood, dizziness assaulting her.

  What had happened to her? Then again, if she was the one hiding, did that mean she had done something illegal? She couldn’t think clearly. She was so hungry. Food, any kind of food, was the priority. Water. Judy had dragged herself back to the door, set a foot outside when she realized the tunic over her underwear was all she was wearing.

  Nowhere was safe.

  Chapter Fourteen

  “Jordan said she had a surprise for me. I think she was talking about the house.” At this point, Ellie was past any feeling of embarrassment or shame. “I didn’t mention it before, because I thought it wasn’t important, but now—”

  “It is still not important,” Bethany said coolly. “You’re as unprofessional as Jordan running away in the middle of this, but I’m beginning to understand why. She signed the contract and then realized what she did. This is not something you can get out of so easily.”

  “She signed the contract because she wanted to get away from you!”

  “Sergeant, I fail to comprehend why Officer Harding is still part of this investigation, when her private interest in my partner is clearly all she has to offer.”

  Derek Henderson winced.

  “With all due respect, Dr. Roberts, Detectives Carpenter and Henderson requested Officer Harding, and if I remember correctly, she has done her job as expected. All else, I agree, doesn’t belong here—from either of you. I’d like you all to go back to work now, and find Detective Carpenter. If she was following a lead, I’m certain it was legit. You figure out everything else on your own time.”

  To Ellie’s surprise, Bethany followed her all the way to the squad car and sat in the passenger seat next to her.

  “You heard the sergeant. I have a job to do, and I believe so do you.”

  Bethany sighed, but she didn’t make any move to leave.

  “What?” Ellie snapped.

  “I believe Jordan might have taken off with some guy. I know, that doesn’t make either of us look good.”

  This was the last thing Ellie needed to hear after the night she’d had. “Remember what you said to me yesterday? I’m going to have to ask you the same thing. Go.”

  “She met with him. He called our home and left a message, about how much he enjoyed himself. As usual, Jordan didn’t bother explaining any of this. Judging from the look on your face, she neglected to mention him when she came running to you.”

  Ellie hated the seed of doubt Bethany was planting, with success even. She didn’t want to believe any of it. It was true, Jordan wasn’t fond of solving issues in conversation, but at some point, you had to trust a person. Bethany, as she was finding out, wasn’t big on trust.

  “You know, Jordan’s parents were high school sweethearts—or at least, that’s the first layer of the story, and quite a euphemism. They were too young when they got married, and by far not mature enough to care for a child. Drugs, alcohol, sleeping around, you get the picture. They didn’t exactly provide a safe or stable h
ome for her, and it’s kind of a miracle she got to where she is now. There’s a price to pay somewhere, always. It’s hard to battle the genes.”

  “Really? Which genes are you battling?”

  Bethany shook her head with a sad little patronizing smile. “I know you mean well, but please, don’t get your hopes up too high. Jordan will come back to me, apologize, and that’ll be it. Believe me, we’ve been through this. Although, a guy? That’s new.”

  “Look, Dr. Roberts, I’m sorry. I’m really sorry you got hurt in this, because I’m sure it wasn’t Jordan’s intention, and it sure as hell wasn’t mine.”

  “This is not about me.”

  “If you say so.”

  Bethany left the car, slamming the door harder than necessary. By sheer force of will, Ellie held back tears.

  * * * *

  “I saw your girlfriend today,” he said. She couldn’t suppress the shudder. Jordan didn’t want to think of Jonathan Darby and Ellie in the same room. No matter what she might still endure. “You know, I was always wondering, who might be the more important person to punish, the cheater, or the enabler. I might want to go back to her.”

  “No. Please, don’t do that. She…it’s not her fault. It’s all mine.”

  Despite her demure manner, he hit her across the face. “I didn’t ask for your opinion, did I? Of course it’s your fault. That’s what I’m trying to get through your thick skull.”

  “I know.”

  “I know what?” he mocked her. “You need to be a little clearer.”

  “I know you’re trying. It’s my fault. I want to learn, okay?” At least, Jordan hoped that was what he wanted to hear, and that it didn’t sound as defensive as it had in her head.

  “Sure you do.” Within a heartbeat, his demeanor changed again, a smile spreading across his face. Jordan wasn’t sure if it was a form of reassurance or a sign of worse things to come.

  “Please leave Ellie alone. You have me now.”

  “Yeah, funny how it goes sometimes. Don’t worry, I know what it’s like with whores like you, they can’t help themselves, but you can change. With a little education and…”

  He held the object close to her face, making her cringe. “Oh, no, don’t be scared. This will only hurry the process along. Don’t fight it, and you’ll be fine.”

  “Please, don’t.” The words were out of her mouth before she could stop them. The details from the autopsy reports and the hospital were too reminiscent on her mind. She was terrified of falling back into the memory of what had passed as a family party all those years back.

  He pressed the plunger to rid the syringe of air bubbles, then pushed her sleeve aside. “The less you struggle, the less painful it will be. I told you, those are all the basics. It will get better once you made it through them. There, just a little prick.”

  She was fighting the loss of control, but the following warmth enveloping her was too tempting.

  “I have high hopes for you, Jordan. Don’t disappoint me.” He stroked his hand along her thigh, and down her calf before he got up, looking down at her with an unreadable expression—or maybe she couldn’t read it because her mind was unable to put together the clues.

  He turned to leave once more.

  * * * *

  Ellie was in the same hyper vigilance state she’d been in right after the attack. She had no choice but to do her job, as everyone else did, but in the past couple of days, she’d been unable to get more than a couple of hours of sleep. The nightmares were back full force. She might still be losing her mind as she’d feared around that time, but she wasn’t going to buy into Bethany’s theory.

  As it seemed, Bethany had abandoned it too, looking more haggard and worried each time Ellie happened to run into her. The bank manager confirmed Jordan had been looking into the possibility of financing a house and started the process.

  Jonathan Darby agreed to show the property to the investigators, though he claimed to have only met her there once. The owner had moved far away, to Japan. Henderson didn’t know it yet, but Ellie planned to invite herself to the viewing. She had found the maps. Maybe she’d be lucky again.

  Meanwhile, no one really believed in Bethany’s theory anymore, not even the profiler herself.

  Detective Jordan Carpenter was officially missing. Ellie couldn’t help thinking it could have been her.

  * * * *

  Jordan had spent a big part of her childhood trying to keep a low profile so she wouldn’t draw the attention of Child Protective Services, and be taken away from her parents. Christina and Kevin, a couple who lived in the same trailer park and dropped in every now and then, had painted the likely future to her in ghastly colors. In a foster family, she wouldn’t be the princess anymore, not like now. She’d be neglected, taken out of school, maybe even hit, that’s what they told her.

  Jordan didn’t have much of a concept of what a princess was supposed to be, or why the term would be in any way correct to describe her circumstances. However, whenever she was hiding in the corner next to her bed, blocking out the loud voices and the laughter, she was wondering if a foster family would be at all different from the present. Sometimes, she was tempted to find out, but then she remembered she belonged with her parents, and they needed her. Who would help Mommy clean up after one of their parties, make sure there were meals on the table? As she grew older, Jordan began to realize they needed her more than she needed them. She couldn’t walk away, even if she could have seen any better alternatives.

  That didn’t mean she didn’t hate it, the loud music, the clogging smell in the air, the clinking, and sometimes, breaking of a bottle.

  “Isn’t that the little princess?” Laughter. It echoed in her brain, made her head hurt. In an instant, she was violently sick, the painful spasm of her stomach lifting the veil of memory and drugs. Fortunately for Jordan, eventually someone had made sure she knew that she owed nothing to a couple of dysfunctional adults, even if they happened to be her birthparents. Kathryn and James Larson had given up their parental rights so Jordan could be adopted. In her opinion, it had been the only good thing they’d ever done for her, even if their actions made it painfully obvious they never wanted her to begin with.

  She’d been able to start a new life. Whether or not she’d get another second chance to live wasn’t so sure.

  “Poor thing. I guess breakfast is out of the question?” The voice was mocking her, in the past, and the present. “Let’s clean up here, and then we can continue for a bit before I go see the cops again. I’m going to show them your house, did I tell you that? Let’s see how it goes over the next few days, and maybe you can even still move in. Wouldn’t that be nice?”

  He opened the cuffs.

  It was only for a heartbeat Jordan entertained a possible escape, because the moment she was on her feet, the ground seemed to disappear beneath her. She felt irrationally ashamed, thinking of Judy who had held out all this time. Only to have an incompetent cop mess up her rescue. She felt the tears hot on her face.

  “It’s okay,” he said softly. “The bathroom is right over there.”

  Had she been in there before? How much time had passed?

  The space behind the curtain wasn’t much of a bathroom. There was a toilet, a sink and a drain in the ground underneath a shower fixed to the wall. At least, he hadn’t come in with her, so she hurried up ignoring the lack of privacy, struggling to clear her mind from the cobwebs. She spent a moment staring at her pitiful mirror image, trying to find any resemblance of hope and resolve when she needed most of it to stay upright.

  Whatever drugs he had used on her were actually helping with the pain, but they also unleashed another kind of monster. The pain was preferable.

  “Can you see it now? This is what a dirty whore looks like.” He chuckled, his arrogant, entitled manner making her forget for a moment that she was facing a cold-blooded murderer, or, that in her condition, she was no match for him.

  “Damn it, Jordan,” he hissed, pushi
ng her back against the wall, his gloved fingers clamping down on her wrists. She wished she could have brought up her knee high enough to hit him where it hurt, but a futile attempt was all she could manage. “Don’t you realize this is getting you nowhere? Do you want to start all over again?” He pressed down hard to the dirty bandage, and she went limp, to keep breathing, and not throwing up, the only incentive left.

  “That’s right, you need to stop fighting me and making it worse. Have you forgotten I know where Ellie lives?”

  “Stay away from her.”

  “Or what?” He laughed.

  “She’s going to kick your ass.” At this moment, Jordan was incredibly grateful for the officer still guarding Ellie’s apartment. If Darby was really that bold, he was going to get caught. Soon. She was terrified of the alternatives.

  “Oh yeah? We’ll see about that.” He let go of her abruptly, but dropping her to the ground wasn’t enough. When the blows started raining, she told herself she’d do whatever it took to keep him away from Ellie, but the hard truth was setting in as the shackles were back and she was held up by the cold unyielding chains once more. There wasn’t much she could do to stop him from anything. He walked around her, regarding her, too damn pleased with himself.

  “You know, I asked them to say it on video when I thought they were ready. Eleanor eventually did, but too bad, so sad, it was too late already. Isabel, she struggled a lot.”

  She was going to be sick again. She didn’t want to hear this, any of it. So much pain. The memory. The present. The fear he could still want to go after Ellie.

  “Why is it so hard to admit? I brought all the evidence, how you hurt other people, made their lives miserable, because you couldn’t keep your legs together. They had punishments for that through the ages, and some of them looked a little like this. The Middle Ages are so underrated.”

  Jordan was fading in and out, as he ranted on about the merits of gruesome punishments in the course of history, but she flinched when he mentioned Bethany’s name.

  “You are failing her. You’ve done so for years, and the sooner you can admit I’m right, the better. Maybe you can see it, admit it, when temptation is gone.” He stepped forward, unexpectedly close, and kissed her, hard. She sputtered.