Sea of Dreams (The American Heroes Series Book 2) (39 page)

“Maybe,” he said. “We’ll talk about it more tomorrow when I get back.”

Lizzie wasn’t happy with that answer. “Why not, Dad?” she begged. “These two girls have been really nice to me since I started school. I’d really like to go.”

He gave her a pointed look.  “I will talk to you about it tomorrow,” he said clearly. “Finish up your homework and pick up the living room. Please.”

He added the ‘please’ as almost an afterthought, but Lizzie was pouting by that point.  Blakesley caught her eye as she followed Beck into the kitchen, winking at Lizzie to let her know she was on her side.  Leaving the girls picking up the  living room, Beck collected his keys and gear sitting on the washer on the back porch.

“Got everything?” Blakesley handed him his sunglasses.

He nodded. “Yes,” he looked around just to make sure.  Then he bent over and kissed her on the lips. “Love you. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Okay,” she said, following to the door. “Baby?”

He opened the door and looked at her. “Yes?”

“Do you want me to find out about the girls Lizzie is talking about?” she asked helpfully. “It really means a lot to her to participate with kids she’s making friends with, you know that. She’s been so lonely.”

He sighed faintly, appearing torn. “I know,” he muttered. “If you can find out something about them that would be good. I just don’t want her going off to some wild party with no parents around.  Back in my day, the rich kids on the island would have parties when their parents were gone. That haunts me.”

“I suspect you went to one or more of them.”

He nodded, ashamed. “I did; sex, drugs and rock and roll. I don’t want Lizzie to fall in to that.”

Blakesley put her hands on his cheeks and kissed his lips. “I’ll check it all out and report back,” she assured him. “If I don’t think it’s a good idea, I’ll tell you.  You know I look after Lizzie as if she was one of my own.”

He smiled. “I know you do,” he said. Then he kissed her swiftly again. “I have to go. I’ll see you tomorrow. I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

Blakesley watched him head off into the dark backyard with Alfie running up to him and begging for attention.  He petted the dog as he reached his new truck, unlocking the door and throwing his gear into the back of the crew cab.

As Beck sped off into the night, Blakesley locked up the house, made sure the girls got to bed, and then got herself into bed with the television for company.  She thought on Beck’s transfer and the possibility that he might have to deploy in January. 

It didn’t sit well with her, no matter how much he reassured her.

“I got a call this morning from the State of California,” Blakesley was following Beck around the bedroom the following morning as he threw off his clothes in the process of getting into bed. “Apparently, I told them I wanted to sell the old homestead but I don’t remember. It was the day of my accident.”

Beck was exhausted.  He pulled off his briefs and slid into bed, sighing with satisfaction at the cool and soft sheets.  It was comfortable and wonderful, smelling like his wife.  He pushed his face into her pillow, smelling faint wisps of her perfume.

“What are you going to do?” he asked, eyes already closed as he snuggled down.

“I’m going to go over to the house this morning,” she said, moving into the bathroom with his dirty clothes in her arms. “The guy that called me was from the real estate division. He wants to meet me at the house and talk about a possible sale.”

Beck’s eyes opened as he heard her banging around in the bathroom. “When are you going?”

She came out of the bathroom with her arms full of laundry from the hamper. “Eleven,” she replied. “I’ll go meet with them and still have time to pick up Charlotte and Spike from preschool.”

He rolled over onto his back, looking up at her. “Will you do me a favor?”

“What?”

“Will you wait so I can go with you?”

She cocked her head. “Baby, if you go with me, you’ll only get a few hours of sleep.”

He lay there, bare-chested and gorgeous, gazing at her pensively. Then he held out a hand to her.  Blakesley dumped the laundry on the end of the bed and took his hand, sitting down beside him.  He tugged her over to him so she was laying on his chest, gazing down into his handsome face. 

Beck studied her face a moment, tucking a stray piece of hair behind her ear. “The last time you went to the house,” he murmured, “you were in a terrible car accident. Please let me drive you over there.  It just freaks me out thinking of you driving up on those roads again, knowing what happened the last time you were up there.  Can you move your meeting to the afternoon?”

She smiled and kissed his dimpled chin. “Sure,” she said. “I’ll give them a call right now.  We can pick up Charlotte and Spike first and then go over there?”

“Sounds good.”

“The kids are going to want chicken nuggets for lunch. We can feed them on the way over.”

“Fine.” Now that it was settled, he kissed her and she backed off the bed as he pulled the covers up.  “Are you going anywhere this morning?”

“To the supermarket.”

“I’m out of deodorant.”

“I’ll get you some.”

She picked up the laundry and left the room, shutting the door quietly behind her.  Alfie was inside, snoring on the couch, as she made the way back to the laundry room to start a load of wash. She spent the morning rearranging her meeting with the state, doing laundry, and tidying up the house, which exhausted her so she decided to wait to go to the market. With the chores finished and nothing to do until Beck woke up, she headed out to the big four car garage in the backyard where Beck had set up one of the car bays as her painting studio.

Her accident had thrown a monkey wrench into a lot of plans she had, a big one being the Art Bar.  The space in the gas lamp district was still hers but her health hadn’t been terribly great since the accident and the subsequent pregnancy left her exhausted most of the time.  She was okay to work around the house and paint in her studio, but more than that usually had her stressing out and crashing.  Beck had taken such a huge load off of her that she sincerely didn’t know what she would do without the man.  In six months, she had become completely dependent upon him and he loved every minute of it.

The old Earp homestead had suffered, too.  Marshall relocated to San Diego over the past couple of months to be near his daughter and grandchildren, and he had taken an active interest with the house in Blakesley’s absence.  With Blakesley recovering from her accident, Marshall had spent a lot of time dealing with the Earp homestead in her stead.  When he wasn’t at the homestead, he was dating Gabrielle, which thrilled Blakesley.  Her father had been lonely since the death of her mother, and Gabrielle was a truly wonderful woman. The girls loved her.

So she painted in her studio until lunchtime, this piece of art a large abstract with gorgeous colors of burgundy, black and gold.  Blakesley was more of an abstract artist than an impressionist or realist.  She liked big, blocky colors that provoked the senses.  At least, that’s what she told people.  Whatever it was, it was very modern and people really seemed to like it.  The painting she was currently working on was going to be part of the Art Bar.

Finished for the morning in her studio, she locked it up and headed back across the yard to the house.  Alfie was running around the yard, coming to her when he saw her walking up the back steps.  He charged into the house before she did, his nails making clicking noises on the floor. As Blakesley shut the back door and moved into the kitchen,  she heard her cell phone ring.

The phone was on the kitchen counter and she glanced at the caller I.D. before answering.  She was curious and surprised to see that it was her lawyer from Los Angeles, the one who had handled her divorce and subsequent legal dealings with Ed.   She hadn’t heard from the guy in almost  a year.

“Hello?” she answered.

 Robert Karayan, Esquire, was an old and good friend. “Hey, Blakesley,” he said pleasantly. “It’s Robert. “

She perched her butt at the breakfast bar. “Hi there,” she said amiably. “Long time, no see.”

“That’s a good thing,” Robert snickered.  “No one wants to see their lawyer too much.”

Blakesley giggled. “True,” she said. “So how are you? What’s new?”

On the other end of the line, Robert leaned back in his chair, settling down for the conversation. “I’m good,” he said. “How are you? How’s San Diego?”

“Well,” Blakesley pondered the question, wondering where to start. “You and I haven’t spoken in awhile. A lot has happened.  I got married, for one.”

“Really?” Robert was genuinely surprised. “Anyone I know?”

She shook her head. “No,” she replied. “In fact, it was one of those things that you read about in a romance novel.  Cadee got sucked into the surf one day while we were visiting the beach and a group of Navy S.E.A.L.’s was training in the area.  I met my husband when he saved her from drowning. It was pretty much love at first sight.”

“Wow,” Robert exclaimed softly. “That’s quite a story. How long have you been married?”

“A couple of months,” she answered. “We’re going to have a baby in May.”

Robert was shocked. “Seriously?” he said. “That’s really great news, Blakesley. You wanted to start a new life in San Diego. I guess you got your wish.”

“I really did,” she said sincerely. “My husband is the greatest guy ever and the girls love him.  We’re really lucky.”

“That’s great,” Robert repeated. There was some hesitance in his manner. “Sweetheart, I really hate to mess any of that up, but unfortunately, I did call with a reason.”

Blakesley grinned. “It wasn’t just to shoot the breeze with someone who spent a half million dollars on you in legal fees?”

Robert laughed softly. “No.”

“Trying to drum up more business? Sorry, but I’m not in the market for a divorce lawyer.”

He snickered.  “That’s good to know,” he said, sobering. “Actually, I’m calling about Ed. I’ve got some news.”

Blakesley sobered as well. “About Ed?” she repeated. She hadn’t thought of the man in almost six months. “What about him?”

“His lawyer had his case on appeal,” Robert’s manner softened considerably. “You remember that, right?”

Blakesley was starting to get a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach. She couldn’t put her finger on why; it was more instinctive. She always felt sick when discussing Ed.

“I remember,” she replied evenly. “Why?”

Robert signed faintly. “It seems that the key witness in the case, the sous chef from the Hollyhock who said he saw Ed trying to dispose of Maricelle’s body, has recanted,” he said quietly. “The man is swearing he lied on the stand and is saying he did it for you.”

Blakesley nearly fell off the stool. “He what?” she nearly yelled. “I never… Robert, that’s simply not true! I never told anyone to…!”

Robert calmed her down. “He didn’t say that you told him to do it,” he quickly clarified. “He said he did it because he felt sorry for you.  Plus, he said something more about hating Ed and wanting to see the man burn in hell.  All sorts of crazy things,  Now, I’m not sure how much this guy was paid to recant his statement, but the gist of it is that Ed’s case is being re-examined now and is scheduled to be brought before a grand jury next week.  There’s a very real possibility that he may be acquitted.  I just want you to be prepared.”

Blakesley couldn’t help it; she sank to the kitchen floor, grief and horror such as she had never experienced filling her.  She slumped against the dishwasher.

“Oh, my God,” she breathed. “This can’t be happening.”

“I know.”

“But they can’t release him, can they? Even if a witness recants for the murder charge, he was still convicted of money laundering for the drug cartel.”

“He may just be credited with time served for that conviction. We’ll just have to see.”

Blakesley exhaled heavily.  “I… I just can’t believe this.”

Robert was deeply sympathetic.  He had been with her every step of the way during the Hollyhock Murder trial, so he knew how she felt better than most.  It had been hell.

 “Believe me when I tell you that the Los Angeles district attorney’s office is all over this,” he said. “They’ll put up a big fight.”

Blakesley could feel the tears starting. “But…,” she swallowed. “But he’s a murderer.  He killed that woman.”

“I know,” Robert said softly. “But the good news is that he doesn’t know where you are, or where the girls are. I won’t tell him and neither will anyone else.  Blakesley, does your new husband know about Ed?”

The tears were streaming down Blakesley’s face. “Yes,” she whispered. “He knows.”

“Well,” Robert was feeling a good deal of her grief also, “that’s good, at any rate.  That way, if the worst happens and Ed is released, you two will be ready to deal with the fall out. I’m sorry about all of this, Blakesley. You can believe I’ll be keeping a very close eye on it for you.”

Blakesley was quickly reaching hysteria.  She struggled to speak before she broke down completely.

“Thanks for calling,” she whispered tightly. “Will… will you keep me posted on everything?”

“Of course,” Robert assured her. “You’ll know the second I do.”

“I really appreciate it. Thank you.”

“You take care, Blakesley. “

“Thanks. You, too.”

She hung up the phone and just sat there for a second, staring at it.   Then she let it clatter to the floor as the sobs enveloped her.  Huddling up in a ball, she sobbed her heart out.

Several minutes after the phone call, the door to the master bedroom opened.  Beck had startled himself awake thinking that Blakesley had left to pick up the kids without him and, noting the time and the fact that her car was still in the back yard, he wandered out of the bedroom in search of his wife.  The dining room and living room were empty and as he was passing through the dining room en route to check the play room off the entry, he happened to glance into the kitchen.  At first, he didn’t see anything and he was just turning away when he caught sight of something balled up on the floor.