by Wilder, L.
“Not a clue, but I intend to find out.”
“Do you think it could be the reason why someone hired you?”
“It’s possible, but I won’t know until I find out what this really is.” Concern crossed his face as he said, “It could be an important code, but there’s always the chance that this could be nothing.”
“So, how are you going to find out what it is?”
“I’m not sure just yet. I’ll do some digging and see what I can figure out.”
He was still studying the paper when I felt my phone vibrate in my purse. Curious, I reached for it, and when I looked down at the screen, there were a ton of missed calls from Jessie and the gallery, and even more from my parents. I’d always tried to call and check in at least once a day, so I wasn’t surprised that they’d called numerous times. They had to be concerned that they hadn’t heard from me. “My poor parents. They have to be worried sick.”
“I’m sure they are. If they haven’t already, it won’t be long before they’ll be contacting the police and filing a missing person’s report. It’s going to be hard on them not knowing where you are and what’s going on, but you can’t contact them.” His expression was fierce as he said, “As far as the rest of the world is concerned, we have to make them believe that Madison Brooks is dead.”
7
Jasper
It had been years since I’d talked to anyone except Charlie and my father; however, I never divulged as much as I had with Madison. I only told her bits and pieces, and even that was difficult at best. I’d always wanted to leave my past where it belonged—in the past—but no matter how hard I tried, I was never able to truly let it go. It haunted me, plagued my very existence, and I couldn’t imagine sharing those horrors. After all, how could anyone possibly understand, especially someone like Madison? I honestly thought she would judge me and think I was no better than the men I’d been hired to kill, but I was wrong. She listened with compassion and understanding; there were no judgements or misconceived notions, making it easier to share those horrific memories with her. I felt at ease with Madison, like I could trust her, and I trusted no one—ever. It was a realization that was almost as unexpected as the ever-growing pull I felt towards her.
Just being close to Madison made my entire body feel hot, like I was burning from the inside out, and when we happened to touch, my heart would start beating so erratically that I thought it might burst in my chest. I’d been attracted to plenty of women before, but I’d never been so utterly consumed. She invaded my thoughts, my dreams, and there was nothing I could do to stop it. I was at the brink of completely losing it after I saw the way she looked at me earlier when I checked her ankle. It had been a long time since I’d been around a female, but I’d seen that look enough to know what it meant. I just didn’t know what to do with it. Unfortunately, I didn’t have time to think about it, either. I had to find out who wanted Madison dead, and why.
I’d spent hours trying to make sense of the code but couldn’t make heads nor tails of it. Hoping for some direction, I called Charlie. “Hey, man. I wasn’t expecting to hear from you so soon,” he said, his voice was filled with concern.
“Did I catch you at a bad time?”
“Nah … I was doing some yard work for the wife, but right now I’m taking a break and hiding out in the garage.” He chuckled then added, “She’s got some company coming later and wants everything perfect. I hate to break it to her, but that shit ain’t gonna happen, not after I’ve been working all damn day.”
“I hear ya, man.” He sounded like he was in decent spirits, which was a good thing. After our conversation the day before, I knew he wasn’t going to be too keen on me bringing up Madison again, but I didn’t have a choice. “I hate to bother you during your break … but I wanted to see if you could help me out with something.”
“I will if I can. What do you need?”
I couldn’t tell him the truth, so I lied, “I was going through some of Madison Brooks’ belongings, and I found a paper with a code written—”
“Wait. You were going through her stuff? What stuff?”
“Her purse and some other things.”
“Why the hell do you have any of her belongings?” he shouted.
“I just hadn’t gotten rid of them yet … I took them to make it look like she’d gone missing somewhere away from her apartment.” Before he had a chance to respond, I told him, “I was about to burn them, but I got curious and went through her shit. That’s when I found the code.”
“What the fuck, Jasper?” he barked. “I thought you were going to let this go.”
“I was … I am.” I took a deep breath and tried to collect my thoughts. “But I think this is worth checking out. It could be important to someone … so important they’d be willing to kill for it.”
“You’re all worked up over some piece of paper you found with her stuff?”
“Yeah.” I could tell by his tone that he wasn’t happy, but I didn’t let that stop me from pushing forward. “Look, I’m sure you think I’ve gone off my rocker, but I haven’t. These numbers on this paper look like they might be a code of some kind. I’ve got no idea who it belongs to or what it’s for, but if I’m right, it could be the reason someone put a hit on Madison Brooks. They knew she’d found it and wanted her dead before she could share it with anyone else.”
“Maybe, but why does this matter now? The job is already done.”
“I get that. I’m just—”
Before I could finish, he said, “Jasper, this is crazy. You’ve hit the point of obsession over this girl. You’ve gotta let it go.”
“I can’t. Not until I figure this thing out.”
“Why not? Don’t you see that you’re playing with fire?”
“Maybe so, but I gotta know why I was hired to kill her. I need to know that. It’s the only way I’ll be able to put this to rest.”
After a long pause, Charlie sighed and said, “So, this code … Do you have any idea where she may have gotten it?”
I knew the paper’s origin was an important piece to the puzzle, but there was no way I could answer truthfully without giving myself away. “I have no idea. Maybe she came across it at the gallery?”
“So, she comes across this code that she wasn’t meant to find, and she was killed for it.”
“Yeah. That’s what I’m thinking.”
“I think it’s a mistake, but I’ll do some asking around … see if I can find out anything on the guy who put out the hit.”
“I’d appreciate that, Charlie. More than you know.”
His tone was firm as he said, “If I’m going to do this, I’m going to need your word on something.”
“You got it.”
“Whatever I find out, that will be the end of this thing with Madison Brooks. I don’t want to so much as hear her name ever again. Is that understood?”
“Understood.”
“Good.” He sighed. “Give me a couple of days. I’ll get back with you when I find something.”
“Okay. I’ll be waiting.”
When he ended the call, I looked back over to my laptop and pulled up Madison’s file. I’d already searched through it a hundred times, but I’d yet to find anything that I would consider out of the ordinary. Hoping for some kind of lead, I started going through what they had on her folks. Unfortunately, I didn’t uncover much there either. It was all just basic stuff: her mother was raised in a small town in Michigan and her dad grew up in upstate New York. I dug a little deeper and found that they’d met in college. They got married after they graduated, moved to Ohio, and had been together ever since. I was looking over her father’s background check when I heard Nanook shuffling around behind me. As I turned to see what he was doing, I noticed Madison was slowly hobbling my way. I quickly got up and started towards her. “You need a hand?”
“No, I’ve got it.” As she limped over to the sofa, a smirk crossed her face. “Besides, you know what coaches say … you gotta walk
it off. If you’re playing baseball and you get hit in the head with a ball … walk if off. If you jam all your fingers while catching a football … walk it off. If you fall and twist your kneecap … walk it off.”
“If you break your collarbone during a tackle … walk it off.”
“Exactly.” She giggled as she sat down on the sofa. “I’m just following coach’s orders.”
“I’m not so sure I agree with the coach’s theory. I’d rather you play it safe than sorry.” She was eyeing me as I walked over to the end of the sofa, and I would’ve paid a million bucks to know what was running through her mind as she watched me slip a pillow under her foot. The not knowing was killing me.
Madison looked so damn beautiful with her long, damp hair draped across her shoulders and dressed in a simple pair of patterned leggings with an oversized sweatshirt. Hoping that she hadn’t noticed my blatant staring, I sat back down and asked, “How was the shower?”
“It was great. Thanks.” A curious look crossed her face as she watched me close my laptop and place it on the table. “You having any luck?”
“Not yet, but I will. You hungry?”
“Yeah, I could eat something.”
“You good with a ham sandwich or something for now, and then I’ll make us up a couple of pizzas for dinner?”
She smiled as she replied, “Sure, sounds like a plan to me.”
“Great.” I stood up, and Nanook followed me as I headed into the kitchen. I made us both a couple of sandwiches and drinks, and right before I was going to take them to the table, I noticed how bright the sun was shining from the front windows as I stepped into the living room. “It looks like it might be warming up outside. You up for eating out on the porch?”
“Okay, that would be great.” I walked over to her, and her eyes widened when I leaned down and lifted her into my arms. “What are you doing?”
“Taking you out to the porch.”
“That’s not really necessary. I could walk, Jasper.”
“You need to stay off that foot.” As I started towards the front door, I looked down at her with a smirk and teased her. “Besides, I kinda like hauling you around.”
“Is that right?” she asked with mischief in her voice.
“Um-hmm.” I started towards the door and chuckled. “At least, now I don’t have to worry about you running off on me again.”
“You can stop worrying, Jasper. I’m not going anywhere.” She slipped her arm around my neck, and that playful spark in her eyes from just seconds before changed into something more. I stopped when we reached the front door, and we held each other’s gaze while neither of us turned away. It was as if we were in a silent argument, battling over our next move. And then it happened. Her eyes drifted down to my lips, and I could feel her heart beating against my chest as she waited for me to stake my claim. I carefully lowered her feet to the floor, then took a step towards her, gently pinning her back against the door. I lifted my hand up to her face, cupping her cheek, which was quickly turning a bright shade of pink, and leaned into her, hovering my lips over hers. Our breaths mingled for a brief moment, and then she slowly moved towards me, lifting her head as she granted me access to her mouth. As soon as our lips touched, sparks flew, and the world faded around us. There were no thoughts of hit lists or codes. It was just me and her, and I wished that moment would never end.
I wanted to take my time, savor the softness of her lips and the quickening of her breath when I delved deeper into her mouth. A light moan vibrated through her chest as she wound her arms around my neck, pulling me closer as her body melted into mine. Damn. I couldn’t remember ever wanting anyone as much as Madison. I wanted to feel the warmth of her body next to mine, to explore every inch of her and watch as she came undone by my touch, but it was too much too soon. I was afraid I’d lose control, take things too far, hurt her, and ruin things between us before they ever got started. I needed to slow down and prove that I could trust myself with Madison, so I reluctantly took a step back and broke free from our heated embrace. She looked up at me with disappointment etched in her eyes, making me want to kiss her all over again, but if I did, I knew I wouldn’t have the strength to stop. Her voice was filled with angst as she asked, “Is something wrong?”
“No … just that you’re driving me crazy.”
She cocked her head to the side as she asked, “Crazy good or crazy bad?”
“All kinds of crazy.” I leaned towards her, lowering my mouth to her ear and whispered, “And I like it … I like it too much, and if I’m not careful, I could get carried away.”
“Sometimes it can be good to get a little carried away.”
“As much as I’d like to, this isn’t one of those times.” I leaned down and lifted her up into my arms, cradling her as I opened the door and carried her outside. Once I’d lowered her down into one of the chairs, I told her, “I’ll be right back.”
“Okay.”
I went back inside and gathered up the sandwiches and drinks, then carried them out to the porch and set them down on the table. After I sat down, we both reached for our sandwiches and started eating. Neither of us spoke. We just sat there silently listening to the birds chirp and the wind whistling through the trees. We’d almost finished eating when Madison looked over to me and asked, “So, where are we exactly … which mountains are these? What state are we even in? I don’t have a clue.”
“We’re in the Smokey Mountains in east Tennessee.”
“Oh, I’ve never been here before.”
“I wouldn’t have thought so.”
“Regardless, it’s really beautiful here, Jasper. I get why you like it here so much.”
“Thanks … I like the quiet, but it’s definitely not for everyone.”
“It certainly seems to suit you.” Her eyes narrowed as she asked, “How long have you been living here?”
“A little over two years.” I finished off my sandwich and then my drink. “I needed to get away for a while.”
“Two years is more than just a little while.”
“True.” I shrugged. “I guess I got used to it.”
“I think it would be hard to get used to being alone all the time. Does it ever bother you?”
“Sometimes, but I do get away now and then. With my line of work, I’ve gotten to see some pretty cool places.”
“Do you ever … meet anyone when you’re off working like that?”
Even though I knew exactly what she was asking, I pushed her to clarify. “Are you wanting to know if I hooked up with anyone when I was traveling?”
“If you feel like that’s too personal, you don’t have to answer.”
“Not too personal.” I wasn’t sure how she’d feel about my response, but I wasn’t going to lie to her. “I’ve had a few one-night stands, but nothing ever came of them. They were all just a means to an end.”
“Oh, okay.” Her cheeks flushed an adorable red as she shifted in her seat. Clearly wanting to change the subject, she quickly asked, “Do you ever think you’ll move back to the city?”
“Someday. When the time is right.” She turned and looked down at the creek, silently losing herself in her thoughts. I could’ve just sat there and stared at her all afternoon, but there were still so many things I didn’t know about her. “What about you? Why did you decide to move to New York?”
“I was hoping to break into the art world … at least get my foot in the door, but it’s not been easy. I’ve been working at the gallery for a while now, and I’m still stuck in the same position.” A look of defeat crossed her face. “I might’ve been better off just staying closer to home.”
“I think you made the right decision.”
“I don’t know. I had this image in my head of what my life would be like … and this just isn’t it.”
“How did you see things playing out?”
She shrugged. “I guess I always pictured myself having my own gallery … being able to show the pieces I wanted to share with the worl
d.” She smiled as she said, “I also saw myself having a family. A husband who loves me, and two … maybe three kids.”
“Sounds like you know what you want.”
“Maybe so, but that doesn’t mean it’s gonna happen.”
“It’ll happen.”
“You sound pretty sure of yourself.”
As I stood up and started collecting our empty plates, I smiled and said, “That’s because I am.”
8
Madison
With Nanook following close behind, Jasper carried the dishes inside the cabin while I stayed outside and watched as dark clouds started to roll in. By the time Jasper returned, the wind began to pick up. It was obviously going to storm, so he helped me back inside where we could continue talking. Once we were settled, I told him a little about my childhood in Ohio, and how my parents had always pushed me to follow my dreams—even when it wasn’t always easy. My parents weren’t exactly wealthy, and I always worried about putting a strain on them, but I’d worked hard, made the best grades possible, and ended up getting a full ride to college. When he asked me about college, I shook my head and chuckled as I said, “Oh no, you don’t. I’m not going to be the only one sharing here. It’s your turn to tell me a little something about your childhood.”
“What do you want to know?”
“Anything … everything.”
“I should get back to the code and see what I can figure out.”
“Just tell me one thing, and then we’ll work on the code thing together,” I pushed.
“I have two younger brothers, Grady and Levi. We grew up on my parents’ farm in Somerville, Tennessee. It’s out in the country … about a half hour from Memphis, but we always found something to get into. Thankfully, Dad was always there to help whenever we found ourselves in a mess.”
“Like what kind of messes?”
“Well, like getting our four-wheeler stuck in four feet of mud, sinking our truck in a neighbor’s pond, breaking a leg when I jumped off a roof, or getting arrested for fighting. Pretty basic stuff.”