Moved, she asked, “What about Graves? The election? This isn’t just about Eliza. He’s trying to destroy you too.”
“That means you’ll have to do a hell of a job.”
“What can you tell me about Caleb Matthews?”
“Assistant D.A. Straight arrow, doesn’t play games.”
“All lawyers play games,” Kell scoffed.
“Well, fewer games than most. He’s up from Brunswick. Been in Hallden for a year or so.”
“He doesn’t seem to care for Graves. Had a dust-up in court.”
“About what?”
“You and me, I think. Graves appeared irritated when the D.A. only mentioned the witnesses and not that other stuff.”
“Our delayed affair?”
“We’re not having an affair.”
“Not for lack of my trying,” Luke quipped without amusement.
Kell muffled a laugh at the note of irritation. “Where are we going, Luke?”
He gestured out the window. Stands of pine rolled past as the truck bumped along the county road. “According to the lab report, the material I found on Clay’s hand and in his boots came from a wood-processing facility. Pine and other wood refuse. The stuff on his hands has tested as an alcohol, only thicker. I thought it smelled like pine.”
“Pine-scented alcohol?” Kell tried to recall her chemistry classes from high school. “Could it have been a cleanser?”
“A janitor’s job that paid enough for a Hummer?”
“What’s your theory?” she countered.
“I’m not sure. Which is why we’re going to see where Tony did his interview.”
“We’re looking for a mysterious office in the middle of the woods.”
“Hopefully, Curly will call in a few minutes with some help to narrow it down.”
“Help?”
“I asked Curly and Cheryl to pull property reports on this land out here.”
Kell flinched, nearly invisibly. But Luke, who’d become attuned to her every expression, caught the reaction. “What is it?”
“I think I have to tell you something else.”
Resigned, Luke rolled his eyes. Without another word, he slowed the truck and pulled to the side of the road. The asphalt was empty of cars, had been for the last twenty miles. He gritted his teeth, preparing. “Tell me what?”
Kell wondered about her decision, and the consequences for holding back. He claimed to care about Eliza, to be falling in love with her. Worry about making the wrong turn for Eliza bumped squarely into an emotion she refused to name. She, who made a career of bold decisions, feared that her choice in the next few minutes would alter all of their lives. But if he was in—truly in—then she owed him as much of the truth as she could spare. Shifting to face him, she confessed, “Two things. Neither will sound good, but you have to know that Eliza didn’t do this.”
“I’ve placed my career on the line, Kell. If I didn’t think that she was innocent, Graves wouldn’t have been in court today. I would have.”
He might still, she thought, casting her mind about for another tack. Nothing occurred. In for a penny, she decided bleakly. “First of all, the land is owned by a foundation. The Metanoia Foundation.”
“Metanoia Foundation?” He tried to recall ever hearing the name, but drew a blank. “How do you know they own the land?”
“Because Eliza Faraday is the sole beneficiary.”
“And when did you learn this gem?” he asked, his voice bland, eyes dangerous.
“Last night. This morning, I mean.” She took a breath and plunged. In self-defense, she fixated on a spot outside her window. “When she told me that Clay has been blackmailing her for years. Sixteen years.”
“Blackmail.” He repeated the word, softly, ominously. Knuckles tightened until bone stretched skin. “Is there anything else?”
His calm acceptance raced a chill along her spine. Before she could regret it, she spit out, “The murder weapon. I know where it is. Or, where it was.”
“Where was it?”
“In the Center. Mrs. F had it, but it was stolen the night of the break-in.”
The explosion she braced for didn’t come. After several seconds passed, she twisted to face him, confused. “Did you hear me?”
“Yes.”
“And?” She tried to read his expression, but the taut face was blank. Tight mahogany skin stretched over the high cheekbones and along the squared jaw, revealing nothing. “Luke?”
“And what, Kell? What do you want to hear me say?”
Concerned, she touched the back of his hand, startled when he slipped it out of reach. “I’d like to know what you think.”
He faced her then, eyes flickering with disdain, and she thought she glimpsed a flash of hurt.
Incredulity dripped from his words. “What I think? I’m absolutely certain that you don’t actually believe I can think. Because if you gave me credit for a single brain cell, we’d be having a different conversation.”
She scrubbed a weary hand over her eyes and reminded him, “I only found out about the foundation this morning at the jail. This is the first opportunity I’ve had to tell you.”
“And the murder weapon? When did you learn Eliza had stashed it in the Center?”
“Earlier.”
“So, Eliza was at the crime scene the night Clay died. But she didn’t kill him.”
“No. She panicked, Luke. That night, she did go to see Clay to tell him she wouldn’t be paying the blackmail any longer. After he attacked Nina, she refused to give him anymore. She drove to the motel, went to his apartment. She said the door wasn’t closed completely, and she heard sounds.” She broke off, trying to read his reaction.
He betrayed nothing, simply motioned for her to continue.
“She entered the apartment and saw him lying on the floor. She tried to help him, but before she could do anything, he was dead.”
“Why didn’t she call the police?”
“He was dead, Luke,” she reminded him. “And when she tried to help him, she recognized the knife. She couldn’t call it in.”
Luke comprehended instantly. “Because she thought one of the kids had done it.”
“Exactly.” Kell moved restlessly. “She took the knife and hid it. When she got back to the Center, she didn’t check her stand. She’d freaked out and didn’t think about the obvious proof that it wasn’t one of the kids. The knife she found at Clay’s was still in her set.”
“Someone had a duplicate knife.”
“Exactly.” Wanting him to understand, she stressed, “If she hadn’t taken the murder weapon with her, you’d have made an immediate match and arrested her.”
“Instead, now the murder weapon is in the hands of the killer, again,” he rejoined. “That knife is evidence that now has her fingerprints on it.”
“She didn’t kill him.”
“I know that,” he dismissed impatiently. “But the person with the murder weapon can turn it in and we’ll have her finger prints on it. With Clay’s blood. Did she try to wipe it down?”
“I doubt it. Eliza isn’t a criminal mastermind.”
“No. That’s why she’s got you.”
“Yes,” she gave him a level look. “That’s why she has me.”
Luke refused to feel remorse for the potshot. He reminded himself that she’d withheld information and put them in this morass. But he’d have all of it. Now. “What’s the reason for the blackmail? Are you going to tell me what Clay held over her that was so terrible, she paid him for so long?”
“I can’t,” she murmured, regretting her silence. “I’m sorry, I can’t.”
Without a word, he left the truck, engine idling, the sound loud in the sudden silence. He strode toward the tree line, long, angry strides that ate up the ground.
Grimly, Kell removed the key from the ignition and trooped after him. “Luke. Luke!”
He gave no sign of hearing her, except to lengthen his stride.
Kell sped up, joggi
ng to close the distance. She grabbed his arm and skipped around to block his path. “What’s wrong now? I thought you wanted me to be honest with you. To tell you the truth.”
“The truth about everything, Kell.” He shook his head in disgust. “But you can’t do that, can you? Every time I think you finally have some faith in me, you prove me wrong.”
“Of course I have faith in you.” Angry now, Kell stood her ground. “Eliza gave me permission to tell you about the blackmail and the rest of it. Once I knew it was safe to tell you, I did. Luke, I’m doing what I’m supposed to do. Defending my client. But when will you decide you can have faith in me?”
“What?”
“You keep asking for my trust, for my faith, but what about you? I’m a defense attorney, Luke. My job is to protect my client, no matter what.”
“And protect yourself.” Luke hated that she had to, that she might still need to. Her secrets kept him helpless, forced to stagger around her world blindly. Vicious disappointment rode him and he lashed out, “Clay blackmailed her for almost twenty years, and you don’t think I know why?”
“You don’t.”
“Of course I do.” Pulling himself in, his tone was clipped, icy. “Their bodies are lying in the morgue.”
Kell swallowed. “Those men have nothing to do with Eliza’s innocence.”
“No, that’s all about you. And don’t say I don’t have faith in you. Hell, I’ve broken a dozen regulations because I do believe in you. As much as you’ll let me.”
“Then stop acting like I’ve lied to you about what’s going on,” she spat out. “I’ve only ever asked you to help me save Eliza. Never anything else.”
“That’s true.” He gave a short, bitter laugh. “You won’t tell me about what happened sixteen years ago. Why two men are dead and you and Findley Borders ran away from Hallden.”
“You’re the detective.” Kell slapped at his chest, anger spilling over. The hit pushed him back a pace. “You want to know what happened, figure it out.”
Chest and ego smarting, he ticked off, “Eliza paid blackmail to Clay Griffin beginning right after you skipped town. To keep him from telling the police that you had something to do with the warehouse fire. Am I wrong?”
Kell looked away, refusing to answer with another lie. “It’s complicated.”
Luke closed rough hands around her arms, fingers digging into flesh. “Everything with you is complicated, isn’t it?”
She welcomed the bitterness, matched it with her own. “Sometimes.”
“No, all the time. And each one puts me in jeopardy of losing my job.” He relaxed his grip slightly, spoke in harsh tones that shook her. “A job I love, but am willing to put at risk for you.” Giving a derisive snort, he added, “For a woman who doles out information like I’m the one on trial.”
She didn’t shrug off his grasp. “Luke. You can’t really believe that. I care about you. Respect you.”
“Respect me?” He stared down at her, bemused at the earnestness. At every turn, she deceived him and yet, like a fool, he came back for more punishment. “I think you’re a damned good liar who is going to have to tell me the truth. All of it.”
“I can’t.”
“And I can’t act on blind faith any longer,” he warned bleakly. “Over and over, you’ve asked me to accept your version of the world, and I have, like some infatuated rookie cop.”
“You don’t believe Eliza killed Clay.”
“No, but I’m not so sure about you and that fire, Kell. I don’t think you killed those men, but you do know more than you’ve told me. More than these trickles of information. I deserve the whole, ugly, unvarnished story.” He slipped his hands up to her throat, tilting her eyes up to his. “I’m in, Kell. All in. But you’ll only come half the way. What am I supposed to think?”
“That I’m doing the best I can.”
“Do better.” Incensed ebony eyes bored into dismayed brown. “Give me something to hold on to. Something that proves that I’m not making a fool of myself here.”
“These aren’t my secrets to tell, Luke. By God, if they were, you’d be the one I share them with. Believe me.”
He released her then, unwilling to touch. With one hand, he flicked aside her plea. “Why should I?”
“Because.”
“Give me a real answer.” His request was low, almost anguished. “Why, Kell?”
“Because I may be falling in love with you too.”
CHAPTER 25
“I’m doing my best.” The admission emerged on a ragged sigh. Defeated, she turned and headed toward the truck.
Luke touched her shoulder. When she stopped, he challenged, “You can’t say that and walk away.”
“I didn’t expect you to believe that either,” she snapped wearily. She refused to struggle against him, to make more apologies for choices made long before they met. Turning, she bowed her head. Her hands clenched and unclenched. Not wanting to see his reaction, she confessed, “I care about you. I care about your career. But you’re not the only one who’s lost something in this.”
“Your partnership.” He slid his hands down to capture hers and their restless movement. “I’d forgotten.”
“Yes. My partnership.” She gave a short chuckle, failure rich in the sound. “Probably dozens of clients who will be told a variety of stories as inducement to stay with David. Stories that are true. I did toss aside a major case. I did abandon my practice for a personal crusade.” I let myself become involved with the last person I should want.
Because he knew she needed it, even if she didn’t, he shifted to fold his arms around her. Emotions knotted inside him, a tangle of two codes of justice that could not coexist. His demanded truth, hers mandated loyalty. Dropping his chin onto her head, he muttered, “We make a terrific pair.”
Her forehead pressed against the ridge of his bicep, giving into comfort. “Someone wants Eliza in prison, Luke. They know too much, about her, about me. About you. And they’ve got Graves to pull the levers to accomplish whatever they’re trying to do.”
“So you’ll prove she didn’t do it.”
Leaning against the firm band of his arms, she looked up at him. “I can’t do that without you.”
“Well, you’ve got me.”
He bent his head and covered her mouth with his. Desire, impatient and fierce, clawed at him, mingled with frustration. With effort, he battled off the urge to crush her lips beneath him until he’d sated the anger that roiled in him still. Instead, the kiss was as much a balm as a warning. Her taste spun inside him, crowded his senses until all he knew was that soon, one of them had to break.
Ending the kiss, he laid a hand on her cheek. “I know you’re doing your best.”
“Thank you.”
“Try harder.”
Deliberately misunderstanding, she slipped free. “Help me figure out who’s behind this, and I will. We have until Tuesday. Then I have to convince the judge that Grave’s evidence is worthless.”
Luke thought about what they knew already. “We can try to discredit Doc, but the kids heard the threat, as did Tony. Plus, we shouldn’t underestimate Caleb Matthews. He’s a good man, but he likes to win.”
“Great.”
“So our best bet is finding this building Tony was taken to and pointing the finger at someone else.” Luke fell into step beside her as they returned to the truck. After helping her inside, he pulled onto the lonely route. “I talked to him again this morning. According to what he remembered, Clay drove for nearly an hour on County Road before they reached it.”
“Was it on the route?”
“No. He remembers feeling a gravel path that jutted off the main road. The building was about a quarter of a mile inside.”
Kell filed away the information, watching the road carefully. “What did the lab say about the sample you sent in?”
“The substance I found appears to be a pine resin.”
“Appears to be?”
“Tests were in
conclusive. The lab tech who wrote the report says the sample I sent doesn’t match any resin he’s ever worked with. In fact, he’s sent the sample to the university for analysis.”
“When will they have the results?”
“A week.” Understanding her concern, he reassured Kell, “We’ll just have to find something else.”
“What do we do about the knife, Luke?”
He shared her concern. “I don’t know. But one worry at a time, okay?”
Green rolled outside the windows in unbroken waves. Luke kept his speed at a sedate 55, which earned snide comments from Kell. Curly had called to confirm Kell’s assertion that the land was owned by the Metanoia Foundation. With instructions from Luke to keep this information to himself, Luke returned his attention to their slow hunt for the building.
“Can we speed it up, Sheriff?”
He slanted her a knowing look. “Remember what happened the last time you were caught speeding?”
Duly chastened, Kell subsided into silence. The road stretched longer, winding across low hills and precious little else.
“There!” she exclaimed, as a trail veered off into the woods. “Make a U-turn. There’s a road to the left.”
Maneuvering the truck, Luke guided the vehicle off the highway and onto a gravel path rutted by storms and disuse. At a quarter of a mile, he slowed to a crawl. “I don’t see a building out here.”
Disappointed, Kell suggested, “Let’s go farther.”
He drove deeper into the woods, the gravel track giving way to hard packed soil. Brush littered the road, branches snapping beneath the tires. At half a mile, he recommended, “There’s nothing out here, Kell. We should get back on the main road and continue looking.”
“Okay.”
Luke reversed the truck in a neat three-point turn and aimed toward the spot where they’d entered. A squirrel darted in front of them, and he slammed on the brakes, swerving to miss the tree rodent. As he pulled the truck under control, he glimpsed a flash of metal behind a screen of trees.
“It’s here.” He shoved the truck into park and leapt out. Kell followed on his heels. Quickly, he stripped away the false cover of limbs to reveal a driveway. A metal building, identical to the one Tony described, lay in a clearing.
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