Love Inspired Suspense April 2015 #1 (51 page)

A few minutes later, Mrs. Tucker left to head upstairs to take a brief nap before supper. Jace muttered something about being thrown for a loop. Mel nodded, distracted. Yes, she knew that feeling well. It seemed something was always throwing her off balance lately. She frowned at Jace. He was the biggest offender, she realized.

“Mel,” Jace's voice called her back to the situation at hand. “I need to talk with Paul. We need to plan for security at your aunt's funeral.”

“You really expect trouble at a funeral?” Mel was horrified that anyone would consider using such a painful event for violence.

His face compassionate, Jace nodded. “I wish I could say no, but yeah, I expect trouble. What kind of trouble, I'm not sure. I hate to sound cold, but we need to be prepared for anything.”

“What about the calling hours? Will we still have those?” It was common practice in this part of Pennsylvania to have calling hours the day before the funeral. One afternoon session and one evening one.

Jace considered the question, then shook his head. “No. I'm sorry, Mel, but there are too many variables. Our police force is going to be stretched pretty thin with the funeral. I think the calling hours would be more than we could safely handle. You really don't want to be in the public's eye that much, anyway, do you?”

The mere idea filled her with dread. “No, but it would be for Aunt Sarah, not me. I could do it for her.”

“I know you could, but I don't think it would be a good idea. Let me call Paul, and we'll see what he says.”

Paul agreed with Jace. There would be no calling hours. Only a funeral at the church and a graveside service. Paul was all for ditching the procession to the cemetery, but Mel was stubborn. Her aunt deserved it. She had been a kind and faithful servant of the Lord her whole life. Mel was sure there were many friends who would need to grieve and say their final goodbyes to her. She was determined to let them have that opportunity.

Paul finally stopped trying to change her mind. “All right, Melanie. We will allow the graveside ceremony to happen. But you need to promise to follow my instructions to the letter. Because your life might depend on it.”

THIRTEEN

A
s Mel got ready for bed that night, she thought about the strategy Paul and Jace had developed for the funeral. She grimaced. The one person she did not want to see there was Dan Willis. It made sense, though. At the cemetery, she would be out in the open, exposed. As Jace had pointed out, the more officers on scene, the safer she would be. She just wished Lieutenant Willis didn't intimidate her so much. Jace will be there, she reminded herself. She trusted him to keep her safe.

She went to bed that night with all the events and details of the day whirling in her mind. How on earth she would ever get to sleep when she was so wired was beyond her. Exhaustion got the best of her, though. She drifted to sleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow.

The casket was being carried down the aisle of the church. She walked behind it, dressed in black. The organ was playing, but it was out of tune, the sound warped.

Suddenly, the church erupted in whispers. She whipped her head frantically from side to side, staring at the people in the pews, who were pointing their fingers at her, murmuring. What were they saying? She couldn't make out the words. It felt as if her ears were filled with cotton.

All at once, the pallbearers stopped. Jace turned away, disgust etched on his handsome face. “You! Murderer!”

Then the murmuring grew louder, clearer. “Murderer! Murderer!”

She clapped her hands over her ears, but strong hands grabbed them and pulled them away. She tried to free herself, looking over her shoulder to see her captor. Officer Dan Willis was holding her, a leer on his face.

“Melly,” Seth sang out, appearing before her. “It's time to take your medicine!” He held out his closed fist. Slowly, oh, so slowly, he opened his fingers to reveal a handful of large pills. Officer Willis held her as Seth stepped closer to her, an evil grin stretching his mouth. He grabbed her chin to force the pills into her mouth.

“Jace, help me! Help me!”

But Jace pivoted, abandoning her as he walked from the church.

Mel bolted upright in bed, the sound of her pounding heart loud in her ears. Her T-shirt was soaked with sweat, and her hair was melded to her skull. Her breath wheezed in and out as she reached over to the night table and fumbled for her inhaler. Trembling hands lifted the canister to her lips, and depressed it.

Once her lungs were able to fully expand again, she walked to the window and peered out. The full moon glowed down on the yard below. Restlessness shivered in her bones. She needed to move. She walked on bare feet to the door and peered out into the hall. Careful to make no sound, she made her way to the kitchen and poured herself a glass of milk. The light came on, startling a gasp from her. Whirling, the milk splashed on her wrist.

A rumpled-looking Jace, complete with five-o'clock shadow, stood blinking in the door.

“Mel? You okay?” His voice was husky with sleep.

She opened her mouth, but found it was too dry to speak. She took a swig of milk. “Fine,” she croaked.

He walked closer and his hand snaked out and caught her elbow. He gently pulled her under the light. Warm blue eyes scrutinized her face. She imagined it was probably pale and wan from both her nightmare and lack of sleep. She swallowed when he tenderly brushed her hair back from her face. Her breathing felt constricted again, but this time it had nothing to do with her asthma.

“You don't look fine, Melanie. Trouble sleeping?” he murmured.

She nodded, not trusting her voice.

“You want to tell me about it?”

She shook her head. Then immediately contradicted herself when she admitted, “Bad dream.”

“Oh, Mel. C'mere.” Jace enfolded her in his arms, resting his chin on the top of her head.

She allowed herself to sag against him for a few perfect moments before stiffening her spine. Drawing away from him, she forced a smile to her face.

“I'm okay,” she insisted. “Just too much going through my mind.”

He waited.

“What happens if we can't pick out the guy from the hospital?” she voiced her fear.

“If we can't pick him out of the book, then we will work with a police artist to get a likeness that we can circulate. It's amazing how fast we can identify people with technology. It's very possible that we'll find his likeness in the national database.”

Mel bit her lip, considering this. Satisfied, she nodded.

“What else was bothering you?”

“How do you do that?” she exclaimed.

“What?” he asked, a smile playing around his mouth.

“How do you know what I'm thinking about?”

Jace placed a gentle finger in the center of her forehead.

“Your forehead creases when you are worried.” He followed the furrow with his finger. “I figured there must be something else bothering you other than ID'ing Ramirez, because the crease stayed.”

“I'm worried about the funeral.”

“I'll do everything in my power to protect you. You know that.” His head tilted.

She hesitated. “I know you will. But I can't help thinking about the mob scene the day I was released. I feel like I'm going to be on parade, with lots of judgmental stares turned my way.”

Jace opened his mouth to answer, but she never knew what he was going to say. The security lights in the yard flared on. A loud clang sounded right outside. They leaped apart, startled. Jace dashed to the window, Mel right behind him. They laughed softly when they saw a large raccoon scurry from the tipped-over garbage can. Jace placed an arm around Mel's shoulders and squeezed.

The phone on the wall rang. Jace answered, keeping one arm firmly encircling Mel's shoulders. “Hello? Yes, the security lights went on. It was a raccoon. Thanks for checking.”

He hung up the phone. Mel realized his arm was still around her shoulders and stepped away. She deliberately crossed the kitchen to put some distance between them. Jace gave her a funny look but didn't remark on her actions.

“That was the police station. The security system alert went off. Guess we can safely say it works,” he joked.

Something was off. His face had changed. Some of the softness she had seen mere moments before had disappeared. It was disconcerting how quickly his mood changed. Fearful of what he might be thinking, she decided she had better make her exit.

“Guess so. Well, I'm off to bed again. See you tomorrow.”

Without looking back, she escaped to her room. She needed to get a handle on this. Jace had made it perfectly clear that the last thing he wanted was a relationship. Was he regretting hugging her? Even though he had hugged her to offer comfort, it had felt like more. She had to protect her heart. She needed to be sensible. She hoped that in the morning she would be able to act as though nothing had occurred.

And speaking of sensible...she would be worthless if she did not get some sleep. Determined, she got into bed and pulled the snuggly comforter up to her shoulders. This time sleep evaded her.

She pondered Jace's certainty that something would happen at Aunt Sarah's funeral. Irene had stated that her brother's instincts were usually on target. Mel couldn't help but fear that the worst was yet to come.

The next morning, she awoke, feeling nervous. She took her time showering and getting dressed in her jeans and a white turtleneck with a jade-green knit sweater over it. As she brushed her hair, she briefly toyed with the idea of wearing a little makeup. Snap out of it, Mel, she chided herself. This is a serious situation.

Finally ready, she walked down to the kitchen. Jace had made pancakes. There was something to be said for a man who could cook, she decided, biting into the fluffy pancakes. She licked a small dot of syrup from her fingers, then looked up to find Jace's eyes riveted on her.

“What?” she asked, defensive.

He grinned. “You look like a little kid. I can't believe what a messy eater you are.”

She grinned back. Her smile faded as the electricity crackled between them. The memory of the hug last night lingered between them. Abruptly, Mel jerked her gaze from his. She gathered up her dishes and started clearing the table. Jace helped her, but neither spoke.

It might be a very long day, she thought as they made their way to the car in silence.

* * *

Jace held the door open for Mel and allowed her to precede him into the police station. As she passed him, he inhaled the scent of her freshly washed hair. Weary from lack of sleep, he was revitalized by the smell.

Unfortunately, there was a new awkwardness between them. He knew that hug in the kitchen was the cause. Did she regret it? He could tell that her walls were back up. A twinge of regret hit him, even though he knew it was a good thing. They had no future. He couldn't afford a romantic entanglement. His job depended on it. He reminded himself that romance and duty didn't mix. Couldn't. Yet he found himself wondering what would happen if he took her out. After the case was closed, of course.

Shaking his head to clear it of these thoughts, he led the way to Paul's office. The door was open, and Paul was sitting inside. Unexpectedly, so was Dan Willis. His spine stiffened. Jace instinctively stepped in front of Mel, shielding her with his body. No way was he letting Dan get near her again.

Neither Paul nor Dan appeared concerned. What was going on?

Paul motioned them into the room. “Close the door behind you. I don't want to be overheard.”

Jace put his hand on the small of Mel's back, feeling the tension in her. He slid his hand up to her shoulder and squeezed. He hoped she got the message that he was here. He would stay by her side. Dropping his hand, he turned and closed the door, making sure he heard the
click
of the latch before he turned back.

Once they were all seated, Paul started.

“Jace, Mel, I need to let you in on what's been going on. I know that Chief Garraway told you she had an officer undercover.” He gestured to Dan. Jace's jaw dropped.

“You! You were the officer investigating Steven Scott's death?”

Dan cleared his throat and scratched the back of his neck. “Yeah. Steve came to see me several months back. He told me how he and at least one, possibly two, other jurors had been threatened. I told him I'd look into it. Before I'd even finished reading about the case, he was dead. I found it suspicious, to say the least. When I investigated the wreck, I found that his car had been sabotaged. When I talked to my chief, she in turn called Chief Kennedy, and they agreed to bring me here temporarily to work undercover.”

“Chief?” Jace addressed his friend, struggling with this new information. “I assume you didn't inform me to make sure there was no risk of a leak.” He knew his tone was a little cold, but he couldn't help feeling angry. Paul had known him forever. They had been hanging out at each other's houses since they were kids. Jace still considered Paul his closest friend. Paul knew he could trust him.

“Please believe me, Jace, I would have informed you if I could have. But there were lives at stake. Knowing that Miss Swanson was being released soon made it even more important that Dan be able to continue his investigation. I did everything I could to protect her. I had her release time changed at the last instant. I had you act as her bodyguard. Still, a mob amassed outside the courthouse. How did they know her release time? And Sarah Swanson and Alayna Brown were both attacked.” He glanced at Melanie. “I will always regret that we couldn't protect your aunt, Miss Swanson. She was a fine woman. One of best I've ever known.”

Jace could see Mel's lips tremble. She bit her bottom lip and nodded. He put his hand over the one clutching the armrest of her chair. Paul raised one eyebrow, but didn't say anything.

“If you were trying to protect me, why did you treat me so horribly?” Mel questioned Dan. Jace was pleased to note that her voice, though husky, was strong. He was so proud of her.

“Sorry about that, ma'am.” Dan apologized in a sincere voice. “I thought it would look more genuine if I acted as if I believed you were guilty. I probably could have toned it down when it was just the two of us, but I figured it would look more natural if I could get you to really dislike me. Then no one would suspect I was actually working to help you.”

The lieutenant then looked Jace in the eye. “I'm sorry, sir, for appearing so belligerent. With Miss Swanson's release date leaked, the chief and I worried about someone here not being completely trustworthy.”

“That's why we didn't tell you, Jace.” Jace swung his head to stare at Paul, shocked. Did Paul think he might have leaked the information? Paul held up his hands and shook his head. “I know what you're thinking, Jace. The answer is no, I never thought you were the leak. You're the most honest man I know. I couldn't take the chance of someone listening in.”

“But then why are you telling me now?” Jace narrowed his eyes, glancing between the two men.

Paul rubbed his hands over his face, suddenly looking tired. “You seem to have become a target, too. With Mrs. Swanson's funeral looming, I need to have you on the same team.”

Okay. That answered most of his questions. Except one.

“Why,” he growled at Dan, “did you leave Mel alone at her house?”

Dan flushed. “I knew you'd eventually ask that. Chief Garraway called me and needed me to check on a lead. I honestly did call the sergeant on duty to cover for me. He was literally two minutes away from the house. I know I should have waited for him to arrive, but I figured Miss Swanson wouldn't be unguarded for more than a minute. It was an error in judgment on my part.”

As much as he wanted to remain angry, Jace knew holding a grudge wouldn't help them get whoever was terrorizing Mel.

“Let's focus on seeing if we can find this dude who was impersonating a doctor,” he suggested.

For the next hour, he and Mel pored over the books of known criminals. When he flipped the last page, Mel sighed, her face discouraged.