by Raven Snow
Rowen continued into the house. She heard Margo before she saw her.
“Rowen!”
The relief that hit Rowen was a physical thing. It was like she had been holding her breath since her phone had rang last. Margo was running down the hall towards her, a blanket falling from her shoulders as she moved. She launched herself into Rowen’s arms and hugged her tight.
Rowen hugged her cousin back. She didn’t demand answers just yet. She held her instead, getting the sense that the situation was under control for the moment. The best thing she could do for Margo now was be supportive. “It’s all right.”
For what felt like a long time they just stood there. Rowen scanned the room over her cousin’s shoulder. She wasn’t sure where Peony and Willow had gone, but she could see Rose. She was standing next to her husband at the end of the hall. They were talking quietly. Occasionally, Rose would cast a furtive look in Margo’s direction.
The front door opened. Rowen didn’t turn to look at who was coming inside. She assumed it was another police officer. Instead, she heard her uncle’s voice. “Margo?”
Margo released Rowen and rushed to her father. He had moved out shortly after the children had moved in. He had an apartment in the complex where Willow and Benji lived. It seemed he had received a phone call and rushed over as well. He swooped his daughter into a hug, freeing up Rowen to go get some answers.
Aunt Lydia had joined Rose and Ben at the end of the hall. They all looked up as Rowen jogged over to them. “What the heck happened?” she asked, keeping her voice down.
Aunt Lydia opened her mouth to say something but immediately closed it and shook her head. It wasn’t often that she was speechless, but she seemed to be looking to Ben for an explanation. He probably had more answers than anyone else right now. He had several sets of eyes on the scene.
“It seems there was an attempt made on Margo’s life,” said Ben after hesitating for a few seconds, trying to find the best way to say something that was more than a little alarming. There was no good way to break news like that.
“What?” Rowen had heard and understood the words, but she couldn’t quite parse the meaning from them. It just didn’t compute.
Ben turned and looked out the nearest window. Through the curtains, lights from the trailer were visible. “There was an intruder. We’ll need to sit Margo down at the station and get the full story once she’s had a moment to collect herself. From what she’s told us, someone kicked in the door. She didn’t see who it was, just that they were wearing all black and had their face obscured somehow. At that point, Margo locked herself in the bathroom. The intruder fired several times into the closed door and then fled. Obviously, Margo wasn’t hurt. Understandably, she’s very shaken, but she wasn’t hurt.”
Aunt Lydia covered her mouth with her hand. She was trembling. Rowen didn’t blame her. This was… a lot. “Did anyone… Did anyone see a car coming or going?”
Ben shook his head. “We’re not sure which direction the intruder even approached from yet. We’re hoping we’ll find some better evidence once there’s light out. Realistically, there’s only so much we’ll be able to do outside tonight. Not that we’re going to sit on this. I imagine we’ll be on the scene all night.”
Aunt Lydia nodded, like she had to give them permission. “Of course. That’s fine. You have to catch this person… I don’t… Why would anyone go after Margo?”
The immediate thought that came to Rowen’s mind was the interpersonal drama she knew was going on with her cousin. She was trying to break up with Jasper and start dating Sutton. At least, that was sure what it seemed like. Rowen bit down on the inside of her mouth. She didn’t want to say anything. She knew Jasper. She more or less trusted Jasper.
Then again, she had to remember that his family was capable of terrible things. Heck, his sister had killed someone once upon a time. That sort of temperament had to come from somewhere, didn’t it?
“What are you thinking?” asked Rose.
Rowen hadn’t realized her thoughts were so plain on her face. “I’m thinking a lot,” she said quickly, not ready to share what was on her mind just yet. “It’s a lot to take in, you know?” She could tell by the thoughtful way Rose was looking at her that she knew there was more to it than that. “Where are the kids?” Rowen asked, turning to Lydia and changing the subject some.
“Hmm?” Lydia was also deep in thought. She looked up, and it took her a moment to catch up with what she had just been asked. “Oh, they’re upstairs. Reginald and Philip are with them. They were wide awake when I left them, but I don’t want them underfoot or seeing Margo so upset. They wouldn’t know how to handle it, and she doesn’t need that sort of stress right now.” Lydia glanced toward the stairs. “I hope they found a way to fall back to sleep. Maybe I should go check on them.”
Rose nodded. “Go check on them if you need to. We’re not going anywhere any time soon.”
Lydia looked in Margo’s direction. Leaving her at a time like this seemed to be giving her pause.
“She’ll be okay,” said Rowen, glancing in Margo’s direction herself. Uncle Norm had led her over to the sofa. They were sitting there together, one of his arms around her. She was leaning into his side.
“It’s good that he made it here so fast.” Lydia took a deep breath and gave one more resolute nod. “Okay,” she said. “I’ll be back down soon.” With that, she headed up the stairs.
Rowen knew this was tough for Lydia, that she thought of Margo like a daughter. Like Rowen’s own mother, Norm had been away for much of Margo’s childhood. Lydia and Nadine had practically raised Margo as they had Rowen. She was less a niece and more like a daughter to them.
“Have you found anything?” Rowen asked Ben.
Ben glanced to the window again. “I mean, it’s still early. We’re gathering clues as I speak. I’ve told you the gist of what happened. It’ll be a little while before I can give you more details than that.”
“If you tell me I have to wait for a police statement, I’ll—”
“I wouldn’t do that.” Ben frowned, looking a little hurt that she would think something like that of him. “You’re family. I’m going to keep you informed… Though, on that note— I should probably mention that I’ll be taking a back seat on this one.”
“What do you mean?” asked Rowen.
“I mean, this case hits a little close to home. I’ll still be involved, but I’m going to need to take a step back.”
“Right.” This had happened in the past. Rowen wasn’t sure why it hadn’t occurred to her before now. “Of course.”
“Well, I should probably get out there.” Instead of looking at the window, he pointed at it this time. “I’m still in charge of things tonight. Come find me before you leave, and I’ll let you know if I’ve got any news.”
“I appreciate it,” said Rowen, even though she wasn’t sure she would be leaving tonight. She should probably call Eric and let him know. Something occurred to Rowen then. “Hey, Ben. Where’s Eric?”
“Oh. He took his own car. I think he swung by your house. He tried to call, but I guess he never got anyone on the phone.”
Rowen patted her pockets and realized she must have left her phone at home in her rush to get out the door. Everyone else’s phone had been in a near-constant state of use. She swore. “Rose, can I borrow your phone?”
It proved unnecessary. Eric came inside as Ben went out. Rowen had her ear to Rose’s phone when she saw him step through the door. His broad shoulders sagged visibly with relief and he hurried over to her.
“I’m sorry!” Rowen said hastily, sweeping him into a hug. “I must have left my phone. I didn’t—”
“Yeah, you left it.” Eric stepped back and fished her phone from his pocket. He handed it over to her. “It’s fine. I get it. I was pretty stunned too. That said, you did terrify me.”
“I’m sorry,” Rowen said again, because it felt necessary. “God, this whole thing is crazy. How much have you
heard?”
“Just what Ben told me. Someone tried to kill Margo?”
Eric was speaking at his regular volume. Rowen looked past him and at her cousin seated on the couch. It didn’t seem like she had overheard them, but if they kept talking about her, she might. Rowen pressed a finger over her lips. “Let’s talk outside.”
“All right, but you should probably put some shoes on first.” Eric pointed to her bare feet.
Rowen was suddenly aware of how very cold her feet were. They had mostly gone numb, and that probably wasn’t a good thing. Aunt Lydia had a bedroom nearby. Rowen went to that and retrieved some fuzzy pink slippers. She doubted very much that her aunt would care. With her shoe situation remedied, she and Eric went out the back and into the garden.
“So, someone tried to kill Margo,” Eric began again.
“That seems to be what happened.” Rowen walked to the edge of the garden. It was looking a bit sparse in the cold weather. Most everything that would die for the colder months already had. She crossed her arms in front of her, feeling the chill in the air now that she wasn’t driven by adrenaline.
“So, what happened exactly?” Eric stopped behind his wife. She heard some rustling then felt his leather jacket settle over her shoulders.
Rowen tugged at the edges of the jacket as she looked back at him. “I can go back inside and grab a jacket, you know. You don’t have to—”
Eric cut her off with a raise of one hand. “It’s fine. Seriously. I’ve got a sweater on. See?”
He did have a sweater on. It had a high neck and stripes. It looked cute on him. “Well, apparently, someone broke in and shot at Margo. I guess they fled right after. They didn’t hurt her, thank God.”
“I wonder if they know they didn’t hurt her,” Eric wondered aloud.
That was a good question; one that hadn’t occurred to Rowen. “They shot at her through a bathroom door, so they might not. They’ll find out pretty soon, though. At least, I assume they will. If they don’t know already, they’re going to figure it out when there isn’t a news story about a murder being run in the paper.”
“Was anything stolen?”
“I don’t know. No one mentioned anything being stolen. Of course, the police wouldn’t know what’s missing, and I seriously doubt Margo stopped to take inventory of her stuff. Weird way to go about a robbery though, isn’t it? Why would you rob the little trailer and not the great big house nearby?”
“More people in the house?” Eric suggested. “The trailer is easier to get into, and you can’t pretend that Margo doesn’t have a bunch of nice stuff.”
“Not sure how well a thief is going to be able to fence designer clothes and high-end makeup.”
“Thieves steal jewelry all the time.”
“True.”
“You don’t think that’s it, though.” It wasn’t a question. Eric could clearly tell as much just from his wife’s tone. “What do you think happened?”
“I don’t know.”
“I know you don’t know. No one knows. I asked what you think.” When Rowen didn’t answer him, he pressed the matter. “You’re thinking something. I can tell.”
Was she really that transparent? Rowen sighed and caved. “You remember what I told you about Margo’s… love life?”
“I think so.” Margo wouldn’t be happy to know that Rowen had told her business to Eric, but they were married. They were best friends. This wasn’t the sort of news you kept to yourself. Besides, it wasn’t like Eric was going to tell anyone. “Wait, you don’t think it was—”
“That’s why I didn’t want to say anything.” Rowen cut him off. She didn’t even want to hear it out loud. “It was just a thought that came to mind, that’s all. I don’t want to put ideas in anyone’s heads. As a theory, I think it’s pretty out there.”
“You want to see how close we can get?” Eric nodded in the direction of the trailer.
Rowen doubted anyone would let them get close, but she nodded anyway. “Might as well, right? Maybe I’ll pick something up.” Sometimes she got impressions from crime scenes. Given the kind of hit and run nature of the crime that had occurred tonight, Rowen didn’t think she would pick anything up. She’d be kicking herself later if she didn’t at least try, though.
Eric’s jacket fit him, but on her it went down to the tops of her thighs. It was nice. The whole thing was quite warm and smelled like her husband’s shampoo. It was comforting, a feeling she tried to relax into as she made her way across the lawn.
The scene was taped off. From the way the front door of the trailer stood slightly ajar, Rowen could tell that it had been kicked in. Rowen had lived in that trailer for a little while. She was sure it wouldn’t take much effort for someone to bust in that way.
A couple of officers stood on the lawn talking to one another. From the windows, Rowen could see more movement inside. Shadows passed across the windows occasionally. That must be where Ben was. She had seen him come in this direction.
“Are you getting anything?” asked Eric.
Rowen wasn’t feeling anything just from standing nearby. She closed her eyes and tried to concentrate. There were some vague negative feelings coming through. There was fear and anxiety. No surprise there given what had just happened.
Unfortunately, there wasn’t a whole lot beyond that to go on. Rowen’s area of expertise rested more in the wheelhouse of communicating with the recently deceased. “Someone else might be better at this than me.” Rowen made a mental note to mention something to her family later on when things had calmed down a little. They should all give looking the place over a shot. Maybe after Margo went down to the station for questioning.
“What do you think—” began Eric, but the sound of brakes squealing cut him off. They both turned to see a new car in the driveway. Dust was kicked up all around it, like it had stopped suddenly. The door flew open and someone tall stepped out. His figure grew larger as he hurried across the lawn in Rowen’s direction. He was moving as fast as he could without it turning into a jog. It was awkward to look at.
“Hey, Sutton,” said Rowen when she recognized who it was. He was wearing a long tan coat and a button-up shirt over slacks. It wasn’t tucked in, and his stubble was closer to a full-blown beard than Rowen had ever seen it. He’d probably gotten the call while he was in bed.
It took Sutton a moment to focus on Rowen. He seemed shaken, more frazzled than Rowen had ever seen him. “Give me an update on what’s going on here,” he managed after a few seconds of standing there awkwardly.
“You know I don’t work for you, right?” Rowen shoved her hands in the pockets of her coat. She didn’t much care for Sutton and cared even less for him barking orders at her.
“I think Ben is in the trailer and Margo is back at the house,” said Eric a little more helpfully.
Sutton looked past them to the trailer and then glanced back to the house. He looked torn but ultimately walked forward and climbed the steps to the trailer. He needed to at least report in to Ben, it seemed.
“Do you think he’s worried about Margo?” asked Rowen, watching the door he’d disappeared through.
Eric raised his shoulders in a shrug. “Hard to say. He could just be out of sorts because he got woken up in the middle of the night with a big case like this.”
“I think he’s got Margo on his mind,” Rowen decided aloud. Whether this was because he cared about her or because he was worried his burgeoning relationship with her might get him in trouble at work, she wasn’t sure. “I wonder if Margo called Jasper.”
“She seemed pretty shaken. I doubt she’s called anyone.”
“She called me,” Rowen pointed out. “And someone called Norm. Maybe I should call Jasper.”
“Go for it.”
Rowen pulled out the phone Eric had brought her. She had to check and make sure she had his number. He wasn’t exactly someone she called with any kind of regularity. Luckily, he was in her contacts. She pressed dial, brought the phone to her ea
r, and waited.
The phone went straight to voicemail. Rowen frowned down at the phone. “Well, never mind then.”
“Didn’t get him?”
“Nope. Voicemail.”
“He’s living at home, right? You could call someone else in his family.”
Rowen shook her head. “I’m not going to get the whole Stonewall family down here. Margo doesn’t need that right now.”
“Your call.”
It was her call, and right now Rowen just wanted to sit down and talk to her family. “Let’s go back to the house.” She felt like that was probably where she was most needed.
“You don’t want to try and get inside?”
Rowen shook her head. “I can always do that later. Besides, I don’t think there’s anything for me to pick up in there. Better to give the police their space and let them do their thing.” That said, she did pause as she turned.
Eric made it a few steps before realizing his wife wasn’t behind him. He stopped and turned back to her. “What’s up?”
“I don’t know,” Rowen said honestly. “There’s something… I thought I sensed someone.”
“Who?”
“I don’t know. I don’t know that it was anything.” Rowen stood there a little longer. She closed her eyes and opened her mind, trying to be receptive. She didn’t hear anything. “It was probably nothing,” she said before turning and walking back toward the house.
Chapter Five
That night was not the best she had ever spent with her family. Eventually, of course, Margo had to go down to the station. Norm and Nadine went with her. Ben made it very clear that he did not want the whole family down there. They would have all eagerly gone, but they definitely would have been in the way in such a small space.
Besides, Margo didn’t want everyone crowded around her anyway. She made that abundantly clear when everyone came to join her in the den. She had immediately retreated to another room, her father trailing behind her.