As tactics went, Troy was still seething over the approach taken to use his nephew as bait, but no one could argue with the outcome. Bowe’s crimes had been uncovered. Everleigh was innocent of murdering her husband, had never cheated on the man as Bowe had believed, and remained equally innocent of any involvement in Danny’s kidnapping. A fact that had brought her even closer to his family.
When the man who had actually murdered her husband came after Everleigh, Troy’s cousin Clarke had put all of his PI skills into finding the real killer and keeping her safe. So safe that Everleigh was about to become a Colton, her and Clarke’s intense time together having led to love.
He couldn’t help but compare that situation to Evangeline’s.
Confused at the direction of his thoughts—she was hardly a victim like Everleigh—Troy brushed them aside with brisk efficiency. It was fine to think this woman was attractive. It was another to let those thoughts of her cloud his judgment when it came to handling cases.
Instead, he fell back on his training and the polite veneer he used in any and all situations. The “Colton polish,” as he’d heard fellow townsfolk refer to it, never failed. “Thank you for that. I know my sister really struggled to find any sense of peace and normalcy for a while. It helped that the motive for kidnapping Danny was discovered and dealt with.”
“How? I mean, I know he was kidnapped but I never heard the reason why.”
Troy was surprised Evangeline didn’t know the story. “I guess the GGPD and the DA’s office aren’t talking as much as I thought.”
“Maybe that’s part of the problem,” Evangeline muttered.
“You think?”
For the first time since he came upon her outside the alleyway, Troy saw a spark of the Evangeline he knew and admired. It lit the depths of her eyes and framed her voice in a layer of passion and determination. “We’re matched resources, right? Law enforcement captures the criminals and the DA’s office prosecutes them. Yet here are two very intimate issues that neither of us knew details about. You barely knew I was on leave, save for a few light whispers. And I had no idea your nephew’s case had been solved. Twice.”
“I’m sure Arielle was trying to give you your privacy with respect to your leave.” Arielle Parks, the well-respected Grave Gulch County DA, was under a ton of scrutiny herself. He could only imagine she wanted to shield her staff as much as possible.
“And I am more grateful for that than I can say. But it still doesn’t change the fact that our organizations should be talking more.”
He was prevented from saying anything by the ping on his phone that said the order was ready.
As he got out of the car to go retrieve their burgers, Troy couldn’t help but take Evangeline’s impassioned words to heart. It had meant a lot to him to sit and talk with her, openly and honestly, about all that had happened in Grave Gulch since the new year.
More than he would have ever thought possible.
* * *
Evangeline directed Troy through town and back toward her condo complex. She’d lived in the elegant building for about three years now, her home a product of years of saving as much as possible and then the satisfaction of building a place in the world that was all hers.
She directed him to a parking area in front of her building and then quickly got out of the car before he could come around to help her. It was hard to explain, but she felt as if they had reached some sort of intimacy as they sat and talked while waiting for the burgers. She knew Troy Colton, obviously, but didn’t actually know him. To talk the way they had, in the car and before, while they sat at the precinct, had meant something. Even there, he was in full cop mode but he never made her feel badly.
That ability to talk, engage and, ultimately, to understand—that was a skill. One she knew was incredibly valuable for someone in law enforcement. Because in the end, wasn’t that all anyone wanted? A fair shake. The feeling of being listened to.
The feeling that they mattered.
Of course, she acknowledged to herself, it also helped that she wasn’t accused of anything.
Yet, a small voice whispered in her ear.
“Evangeline?”
She turned to see Troy’s expectant face staring up at the building. “Sorry, I was woolgathering. I’m right down this way. The third door.”
“I guess I’ve been a bit presumptive.” Troy held up the brown paper bag. “But I assumed we would have dinner together.”
“Oh, yeah, sure, that would be great.”
It’s not a date. It’s not a date. It’s not a date. She mentally whispered those words to herself over and over as she unlocked the door, flipped on the lights and invited him into her home.
“Here, let me take that.”
“Oh, no, ma’am, this is door-to-door service. Just direct me to the kitchen.”
She smiled at that and pointed down the small hallway that led to her kitchen. “Right down there, then.”
It was simple, but his silliness was enough to set her back at ease. This wasn’t a date and she was perfectly capable of sharing a meal with a man. But that didn’t mean it couldn’t feel nice to have a houseguest. Someone to talk to.
Something that would break the monotony of what she had been living with for the past few weeks.
Evangeline followed him into the kitchen, heading for the cabinet where she kept plates. Troy had already torn open the bag, the scents of cheeseburgers and fries filling the room with a delicious aroma that had her stomach growling.
“That smells amazing. Burgers were an inspired idea.”
“They usually are.” Troy smiled. “I also find they help on the days when I had a really big adrenaline rush and need an energy pick-me-up. Are you doing okay?”
The concern was completely unexpected. “Yeah, I’m okay.”
“All right. I just wanted to check.” He turned back to the burgers, busy setting the wax paper–wrapped halves onto plates.
“I can tell by your tone of voice that you don’t believe me.” The words came out more accusatory than she’d intended, yet Evangeline found she couldn’t quite pedal them back.
“I believe you. My question is if you believe yourself.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“You’ve been under a lot of stress. It’s okay not to have all the answers, or to be perfect.”
Although she had appreciated the sharing of confidences in the car, this felt like a bit too much intimacy. And it cut a little too close to home. “You don’t know anything about my life, Troy. I’m telling you I’m okay, because I am okay.”
She eyed him but refused to engage any further. She’d spent her life trying to one-up her father in conversation and when confronted like this, all she wanted to do was back off and curl up into herself.
In the courtroom, she never backed down.
In her personal life, she backed away so quickly she left proverbial tire tracks in the dirt.
“All right, then.” He shrugged before handing her a plate. “You’re okay.”
The “damn right” was on the tip of her tongue but she held it back, refusing to give him any satisfaction.
Settling in at the table, she had just pulled a napkin onto her lap when his phone went off. He set his plate on the table and dug his phone out, frowning as he stared down at the face. “Excuse me.”
Troy left the kitchen, all signs of the lighthearted dinner companion who’d followed her into the house vanishing.
All she saw was the stiff and stoic back of a cop.
How had their conversation turned so quickly? One minute he was teasing her about door-to-door service and the next she was backing away like she’d been stung by a rattlesnake. Of course, she couldn’t quite forget the personal snapback in between.
Way to welcome your guest, Whittaker.
She left her burger on
her plate, unwilling to start eating before he came back, but she did sneak a fry as his words drifted toward her from the hallway.
“What did CSI say about the alley?”
CSI?
He hadn’t mentioned putting CSI on anything. Sure, Detective Shea and his K-9 had looked into the surrounding area but they’d sent more cops down there, too?
And what would they have back in hand so quickly? She understood the processing of evidence took time. No matter how riveting a TV crime drama, securing evidence simply didn’t work the way it was portrayed in entertainment. Add on the fact that Sunday night at the GGPD wasn’t exactly crawling with CSI experts on duty and his questions to whomever was on the other end of the phone were a puzzle.
It was only when he walked back into the kitchen, grim-faced, that Evangeline felt those frissons of fear she’d finally managed to force back on the ride home rise up again in full force.
“What happened?”
“CSI combed the alley for evidence.”
“You didn’t tell me that.” The accusations were back but Evangeline didn’t care. Was this the way he operated? A few nice words and dinner, all while keeping a suspect on the hook?
For the first time, she saw the heat and sparks of anger fire up under her direct gaze. “I didn’t need to tell you that. It’s part of my job and as an assistant district attorney, you’re well aware of that. In fact, if I hadn’t sent out a CSI team your office would be on my ass for violating proper protocol.”
He was right.
Damn it all, he was 100 percent right.
And still, she felt a tiny sting of betrayal she couldn’t quite define.
“And suddenly CSI works overtime on a Sunday night?”
“They do when a serial killer is on the loose in my jurisdiction.”
Damn. Once again, he had an answer. And once again, she had to admit it was the right one. More than right. It was proof the GGPD was determined to take any and all action to get a killer off the streets.
“Our jurisdiction, Troy. We’re in this together.”
He nodded, even as his face remained grim. “Yes. Ours.”
She appreciated his ready agreement, even as she couldn’t get past the broader issue at hand. “Killer or no killer, CSI can’t process evidence that quickly.”
Troy sighed but his gaze never left hers. Never dropped in the split second before he delivered bad news. “They can when there isn’t any evidence to process.”
CHAPTER 4
Troy hated to have such irrefutable proof, but he knew the investigators and was sure they had done a thorough job.
He’d always believed in them, but Randall Bowe’s betrayal had lit a fire under the entire team. Even though no one else in Grave Gulch’s CSI division was suspected of colluding with Bowe, they all had something to prove.
And they’d all been working overtime to prove it.
“It’s just like Detective Shea said. Before.” Evangeline’s voice was low, the distinct notes of defeat lining her words. “His K-9 didn’t catch a scent, and CSI is saying nothing is there, too.”
“Yes.”
“Which means you think I’m lying.”
“No, I didn’t say that.”
“You’re thinking it, which is the same thing.”
Her burger and fries still sat on her plate, untouched. Dark circles rimmed the fine skin beneath her eyes and a defeated slump rounded her shoulders.
“No, I’m not. Quit putting words in my mouth and quit assuming you know what I’m thinking.”
“What else could you be thinking?” she asked. “I called in a murder and not only did you not find a body, but you haven’t found a bit of evidence that suggests there ever was one.”
She was right. Empirically he knew that. Yet bodies didn’t suddenly disappear. And well-respected members of the community who worked in positions of authority simply didn’t go around seeing murders where none existed. “Then something else is going on.”
“What else could possibly be going on? I know what I saw, Troy. I know what murder victims look like. And I saw one. Yet there’s no one there.”
“Then we figure out the angle.”
“What angle? There is no angle.”
He sat down as if he hadn’t heard her. She was on edge and he’d spent enough time around people to know that part of defusing a tense situation was to avoid further engagement. This woman had a great legal brain and sooner or later it was going to get its way past her anxiety.
In the meantime...
Well, in the meantime he had a new focus. And that started with getting some food into her.
“You’re going to eat right now?” Her high-pitched voice was just shy of a screech, which only reinforced his tactic.
“Yes, I’m hungry. You should be, too.”
“How am I going to eat?”
He shoveled in a fry and kept his tone light. Irritatingly so, if he had to guess. “One bite at a time.”
“Why?”
“To keep your strength up,” he said around a mouthful of burger.
The wariness never left her eyes but she did sit back down at the table. With a small headshake she reached for a fry. And he didn’t miss the way her eyes fell to half-mast as crispy potato and salty coating hit her tongue.
Good.
Hell, it was damn good. And getting some food into her was a step in the right direction.
He figured they might be out of the woods when she picked up her burger and took a bite.
“It’s good, isn’t it?”
She eyed him narrowly over the burger, before nodding. “Yeah, it is.”
“Never underestimate the power of food.”
“Is that a rule of the law?”
“No, it’s a rule of my stepmother.” He couldn’t help but smile as he pictured Leanne Palmer Colton standing in the middle of the family kitchen. “She always says very little can’t be helped by a bit of food and a good night’s sleep.”
“She’s a wise woman.”
“Yes, she is.”
Leanne was amazing. She had come into their father’s life, and by extension, his and Desiree’s, before they even knew they needed her. But she found a way to reach them—all of them—through the nearly paralyzing grief of Amanda McMahon Colton’s horrifying murder.
A big heart and love that overflowed from it had been Leanne’s secret. She’d fallen in love with all of them, she’d told Troy once, and knew that her life had become complete when he and his father and sister had come into hers.
It was a lesson he’d carried with him. That even in the midst of sadness and tragedy, something good and meaningful could flourish and grow. It never diminished the pain of losing his mother, but through Leanne’s love, he had found a way through it. They all had.
Even now, she was the first to call him on the anniversary of his mother’s death and she’d made sure that photos of Amanda and his father, Geoff, were in the family home, and on the mantel. They sat alongside photos of the family they’d raised together. Troy and Desiree, Geoff and Leanne’s two biological daughters, Annalise and Grace, and their adoptive son, Palmer, had all grown up knowing they were loved.
They were a family, Troy thought with no small amount of happiness and deep-seated pride. One that had been born as much as made.
Through love.
His father was a good man and Troy had always known Geoff would do anything to keep him and Desiree safe. But finding Leanne had made all the difference. Her generosity of spirit was a gift and Troy knew that he was beyond fortunate for it. All his siblings were.
“You speak of her with such love. You’re quite lucky. Not everyone speaks of a step-parent in that way.”
“I am lucky. Desiree and I talk about that a lot. How we kind of hit the stepmom jackpot with Leanne.”
&nbs
p; His mother’s murder was something that was well known around Grave Gulch, and he had no doubt that Evangeline knew the story. Yet Troy still felt compelled to add, “There are times I think my mother sent her straight to us. That somehow she knew we never would have survived without Leanne’s love.”
“That’s a very beautiful way to look at it.”
“I think it’s true.”
“I think you’re right.” Evangeline opened her mouth, then closed it again, as if she were hesitant to say something. Troy waited, giving her a moment, curious to see if she’d continue.
He was pleased when she started in on her story. “When I was little, my grandmother from the Philippines came to visit. She told me a story of a small bird that lived in her village growing up.”
She stopped again, seeming to question herself, but Troy waved her on. “Please. I’d like to hear it.”
“She said the bird was little but very beautiful, its feathers plumed in rich shades of blue and purple. And she often heard it singing.”
Troy set his burger down and reached for a napkin to wipe his fingers. He sensed this conversation was important to her and felt that she needed his full attention.
“A rash of crows had come to the village and one morning she found the small bird on the ground, hurt and on the verge of death from an attack of the larger birds.” Evangeline played with one of her fries, taking a small bite as she summoned the words of her story. “My grandmother took the bird in, terrified it would die but unable to leave it alone. She cared for it and nursed it back to health.”
“That’s very caring of her.” And not a surprise based on what he knew of Evangeline. She was known for her strong preparation in the courtroom. She fought hard, but fairly and compassionately, seeking outcomes that would help someone find the road back to society, instead of away.
“It was caring, but in a lot of ways it wasn’t enough. The bird grew strong again, but it wouldn’t sing, and its feathers faded, their brilliance turning a mottled, grayish color.
Harlequin Romantic Suspense July 2021 Box Set Page 22