Embracing Danger (12 page)

Retrieving a beer from the minibar, Shane sat down on the couch before answering.

“They’re not a private investigations firm. Their true function is to consult with law enforcement on difficult cases.”

“This one qualifies, don’t you think? Unsolved for decades and barely a suspect in sight. I know what they – and you – are capable of and I need their help. I want to find my mother’s killer.”

Shane gave her a patient look. “I’m still in the middle of the other thing you asked me to do. We still haven’t found your father.”

She walked over to him, lifted the bottle from his grip, and took a long drag from it. He looked shocked for a moment, then threw back his head and laughed before heading back to the minibar for another beer.

“That’s the girl I knew. Every now and then I see glimpses of her. She knew how to kick ass and take names.”

“That girl is a woman and she’s damn tired of people keeping important secrets like this from her. I need the truth and I need to find my mother’s killer so she can rest in peace.”

A long-suffering sigh escaped from Shane’s lips. “If I don’t help, you’ll just try and do it yourself, won’t you?”

She wouldn’t have a clue as to where to even start but she’d try. “It would be easier if Jason’s firm helped me.”

His lips curved into a smile. “Then it’s a good thing I already sent him a text and asked him to start looking for David Hollis, isn’t it? I also thought tomorrow we could go to the police station and look at the case file, maybe even re-interview any witnesses if they’re still in Hemingdale.”

She couldn’t help herself. She launched herself at him, their bodies colliding with a thud and a giggle. He wrapped his arms around her middle and lifted her off the ground. “How did you know I was going to ask? Have you become a mind reader since I last saw you?”

Chuckling, he set her on her feet and reached for his beer, leaving her feeling slightly at a loss. It had felt so amazingly wonderful to be that close to him and not be in tears as if the world was ending. “Hardly. But I watched your expression as your aunt told the story. I knew you wouldn’t be satisfied if you didn’t try and solve the mystery and I’d be a total jerk if I didn’t help you.”

Her smile fell and she stepped back. She’d asked so much from him and given so little in return. “You’ve done more than I could ever have hoped for, Shane. More than I deserve. I know that you hate me and well…honestly I don’t blame you.”

Pain flickered across his features but was almost instantly gone. If she hadn’t seen it with her own two eyes she wouldn’t have believed it.

“I don’t hate you, baby girl. But if you want to pay me back you can. You can tell me – once and for all – why you left that summer. All I want is the truth. Can you do that for me?”

She owed it to him. She needed to do it.

But damn, it would change everything. He wouldn’t look at her the same anymore and she wasn’t sure she could stand that but this wasn’t about her.

“I will tell you,” she finally said, the words catching in her throat. “But not tonight, okay?”

“That’s fine. Take the time that you need. You know where I am.”

She had a reprieve but it wouldn’t last for long. The truth of that summer couldn’t be swept under the rug any longer. She’d tell him everything.

*     *     *

Shane had been
surprised by how easy it had been to convince the police to show them the file, especially as it was still considered an open investigation. He couldn’t help but wonder if perhaps one of Jason’s partners had contacts that had smoothed their path.

Either way, they were now sitting in a tiny gray conference room in the police station perusing the contents. He leafed through the Susannah Hollis murder police file with a heavy heart and growing frustration. It was easily the skimpiest evidence he’d ever seen and it was no wonder that they’d never found the shooter.

“There’s not much here. They didn’t find any fingerprints that didn’t belong. They were able to recover the bullet but it didn’t match anything in the system. All the witnesses had conflicting statements as well. Not a whole lot to go on here.”

Arden set down one of the witness statements and sighed. “This is disheartening. It’s like they immediately gave up. As far as I can see they only spoke to a few people.”

“They did speak to your uncle but didn’t question him about his relationship with your mother. He simply gave a statement that he was out drinking and playing pool, which a few other people corroborated. But then how do you explain a neighbor saying she saw him get in his car and drive away from the house after the shots were fired?”

“People see what they want to see,” she reminded him. “If they were having an affair they might have met at the house when my father was out of town. As my uncle, he wouldn’t raise any suspicions.”

Arden had been remarkably calm this morning and Shane wasn’t sure he could trust it. If she needed to scream, yell, or cry, he didn’t mind but this serene mask was kind of disturbing. It was like waiting for the other shoe to drop.

“Are you okay about all this?” he questioned. “I’m worried about you.”

Her fingers fiddled with the empty paper cup from the coffee joint around the corner and her eyes wouldn’t meet his gaze.

“I’m still processing everything. I’m trying to stay sort of separate from it all as if this is happening to someone else. It’s like I’m looking down on my body in a way. I am upset but I know that crying and bemoaning my lot in life isn’t going to help anything. It’s best if I try and stick to business.”

It sounded like she was going to have one hell of a breakdown at some point. He only hoped he would be there to help her through it and come out stronger on the other side.

“You’re doing a great job staying calm but just remember you don’t need to. No one would blame you if you took up smoking or drinking right about now.”

She tossed the empty cup into a small trashcan. “I’ve always wanted to take up skydiving. Maybe this is my lucky day.”

She forgot he knew her too well. “Bullshit. You’re terrified of heights. I never could get you to climb rocks with us. You don’t even like to be on a ladder.”

“It is smart to be afraid of heights,” she huffed. “A person could get seriously injured or die if they fall. It’s survival of the fittest. You, sir, are going against nature.”

There was that smile and giggle again. Dammit, he loved it when she dropped the serious facade and played. Just a little.

“Maybe I’m simply more evolved and I’m not afraid anymore. Have you thought about that?”

Tapping the file folder, she rolled her eyes and groaned. “Can we get back to the case now?”

Shane shrugged and grinned. “Sure, if you don’t have a good answer we can. I think we should talk to some of these witnesses again if we can find them. See if they stick to their story.”

“I had an answer but I’m not going to let you bait me.”

Shane jotted down the names and addresses in a notebook. “Seems like you already have.”

“You haven’t changed a bit. I’ve got teenagers in my classes that are more mature than you are.”

He closed the file folder and tucked the notebook in his jacket pocket. “That wouldn’t surprise me, but then my joie de vivre is one of the reasons people love me. I’m fun.”

Crossing her arms over her chest, she lifted an eyebrow in question. “Fun?”

“That’s right. And might I say that you seem to be in desperate need of some. When was the last time you had fun, Arden? I mean real belly-laughing, gut-busting, I almost peed my pants fun.”

The bravado she’d been displaying seeped out of her like air out of a balloon, and she sat there shoulders slumped in defeat. “I don’t remember.”

He couldn’t stand on the sidelines and let that sad state continue.

“Task number one. Have fun. Task number two. Talk to witnesses. So put on your coat and we can get going. We have a full day ahead of us.”

He didn’t know what they were going to do yet but it was going to be something to remember. At least for him. One more chance to have a wonderful day with the woman he loved.

‡

A
rden was having
the time of her life.

When Shane had explained where he was taking them she’d been dubious but the reality certainly surpassed any of her expectations. He’d found what was known as an “escape room” where people paid for the privilege of being locked into a themed room and had to find a way out with puzzles and clues. Their room had been Sherlock Holmes’s study and it had been quite a challenge.

She and Shane had been grouped with a few other people and the “host” explained that there were four different puzzles, each color-coded – yellow, blue, green, and red. Participants had to find all the clues in the room for each puzzle and they were marked with a colored sticker. Then they would use the clues to solve the puzzles and unlock the door. All in sixty minutes.

Except it didn’t quite work that way.

First, because they didn’t know the people they’d been grouped with, working together was a bit difficult. They tried but the fact was the others didn’t seem all that thrilled to even be there, let alone rip apart every nook and cranny of a room for clues.

Second, and this part was rather humiliating, Arden found out she sucked at puzzles. Shane’s ability was top-notch but her own was severely lacking. She had always considered herself an intelligent person but when standing in front of those puzzles with those vague clues she’d been stumped. If it hadn’t been for Shane, it would have gone quite badly. Luckily they managed to solve two of the puzzles completely and almost finished the other two.

Which meant the host had to let them out of the room and tell them what they missed.

“I want to go again,” Arden pouted as they scarfed down a couple of burgers shortly afterward. “I’ll do better next time.”

“Now that you know where all the clues are and what they mean?” Shane smirked. “I think we’d both do better. You didn’t do all that bad. I’ve been to one before but in a different city, so I had an idea as to what to expect. You did well for your first time.”

Arden giggled as she remembered bumbling through the puzzles. “I did a terrible job but it was still fun. When did you do it before?”

Streaks of red painted Shane’s cheeks and his gaze dropped to his burger. “During a trip to Los Angeles.”

Her own heart dropped to her feet before she mentally gave herself a slap. If he’d gone on a date with a woman it wasn’t any of her business. She ought to be happy for him. She was the one that left, after all. She should be thrilled he hadn’t spent the ensuing years pining for her.

Craptastic.

Except that she didn’t like thinking of him with another female. Holding her, kissing her. Maybe even telling her he loved her. The last one hurt the most of all.

It was best to divert the conversation before they treaded on shaky – and personal – ground.

“This was a wonderful break. Thank you for taking me. I do feel better.”

Shane looked up and grinned, showing off that Anderson dimple in his cheek and looking more handsome than anyone had a right to.

“We’re not even close to being done today. There’s more magical fun to come.”

She should have known. Shane always took things to extremes. He wouldn’t be happy with an hour of games and then a cheeseburger.

“What do you have up your sleeve?” Arden shook a fry at him playfully. “I’m actually kind of scared right now.”

Waggling his eyebrows, he picked up one if his fries and pretended it was a sword, dueling with her own until he popped it in his mouth. “You can never have too much fun, so prepare yourself, darlin’.”

Arden was scared but not of having a good time. She was afraid of falling even further in love with the grown-up Shane Anderson. That would be a tragedy she could never come back from.

*     *     *