Black Creek Burning (The Black Creek Series, Book 1) (26 page)

She glanced up when she saw movement from the corner of her eye. Nathan walked with
Andy on his shoulders and Duncan at his side. Over their shoulders were chairs, a
tackle box and fishing poles. She stood as they walked toward her.

"Come fishing with us, Miss Chapman. We are really good fishers." Andy balanced his
fishing pole in one arm and his chair in the other.

"Next time, guys. The boss is a bear around here."

"That's okay," Nathan interjected. "Now we can make man noises and smoke cigars."
He winked at her as they walked toward the lake.

"Coooool." Andy rode on Nathan's shoulders with his feet tucked under his arms.

Brie was glad she'd worked the yard front to back. She was close enough to hear the
three of them talking and felt only a tiny bit guilty for eavesdropping. Andy didn't
want to lace the worm on his hook. Duncan had his line out before any of them. Nathan
tried to explain to Andy how the bobber worked.

Brie butted sod up next to the corner she planned for a wall of ornamental grasses.
She wanted a frothy green to give a backdrop of solid color that would allow the effect
of the flowers to show more brilliantly. Unrolling and cutting, she adjusted the sod,
imagining a cluster of tall purple cone flowers behind bushes of knee-high Early Sunrise
coreopsis. There would be variety without looking like a botanical garden. The corners
would be crowned with autumn joy sedums for fall blooming.

When she heard Andy yell excitedly, "Dad, I've a big one!" she turned her head to
watch the fun.

Except it wasn't Andy. Duncan held onto his awkwardly bent pole as he obviously realized
he'd addressed Nathan as his dad. He jerked his head to look at Brie. Nathan stood
composed with his thumbs in his pockets, but with eyes shut. Brie and Duncan stared
for only a fraction of a second in silent understanding before Duncan continued.

"Get the net, Dad," he addressed Nathan again. "We're eating this one."

And they did. They ate together using Brie's kitchen. In real chairs. At a real table.
Brie silently decided this would turn into an evening habit until Nathan's kitchen
was finished. She thought of how long it had been since she'd cooked. She liked to
cook, was actually good at it, but living alone left her rushing out often with a
yogurt in one hand and her keys in the other.

No, she corrected her thoughts. Nathan was right. She'd avoided anything that took
extra time in the house that once belonged to her parents. She decided to work to
change that.

"You coming back from that daydream anytime soon?" Nathan tucked some loose strands
of hair behind her ear as he sat down with drinks for the kids.

Blinking a few times, she sat. "It smells delicious. Let's eat."

After their late meal of breaded catfish and garlic bread, compliments of Mackenzie,
Brie sat in a tiny red chair next to Andy's bed, reading him a story about bears and
moons.

"What will she look like?"

Brie sighed with frustration that their first substitute teacher couldn't handle the
job. Or didn't want to. "She's about your grandma's age and is very nice. I think
she'll do a great job as a sub and that you will like her."

Andy nodded politely. "Will you be here before I leave?"

"I'll make sure of it."

He nodded again. "Will you make me lunch?"

Now she laughed. "Lunch? Why?"

"It's cheeseburger day tomorrow and the cheeseburgers are gross. Dad is just going
to tell me to choose the peanut butter and jelly instead, but it's gross, too."

"I'll see what I can come up with. Go to sleep." She pulled up his covers and kissed
the top of his head. She tried to keep her deep frustration of her suspension hidden,
but suspected Andy could sense her reservations as they discussed her newest replacement.
Her expression remained tight as she turned out his light.

She walked out and shut Andy's door gently just as Nathan shut Duncan's. They stood
there awkwardly. The scene felt so right, it unnerved her. Quietly, they walked down
the stairs together and out the front door to her car. After a few comfortable minutes
laughing about worms and the look on Andy's face when he tried the catfish, she headed
to Liz's for the night.

* * *

Detective Tanner and Officer Dave Nolan stood before the case board first thing Monday
morning. Over the smell of strong coffee, they went over open files and their plan
for the day. Tanner was a big man with skin the color of coffee. Not in shape like
Dave, just large. It was easy to tell Tanner had been off beat patrol for several
years, but he was still efficient, meticulous and brilliant. When they reached the
Chapman section, Tanner opened the floor to Dave.

"What've you got?"

Chapter 22

"Finley is still missing. Looks like she cashed in her savings and disappeared," Dave
said. "Didn't cancel her accounts though, and kept some in checking. We're watching
for credit card activity, but so far nothing. I've got someone checking out-of-town
transportation after the date of the lockdown, but she's come up empty so far. The
old boyfriend has been seen driving by at least two times and was said to have grabbed
her during a party on New Year's Eve."

Dave tapped at a picture of Susie. "Susie Phillips. Works in Chapman's building. Started
the year before she did." He sat a hip on the edge of the desk, flipping through his
notes. "Possible motive? Brie was offered the administration position Phillips applied
for. Twice it looks like, and Brie turned down both offers. Hardly a reason to burn
someone's house down."

"Stranger things have happened," Tanner interjected. Make sure you approach that one
as someone who could help Brie. Don't let on that she's a person of interest."

Tanner looked at the pictures as he spoke. "The case is just as frustrating now as
it was six years ago. No forced entry. No prints. Precise backdraft. No activity post
arson until recently. It feels as much of a loss now as it did then. Is that all?"

"No, there's Elizabeth Whittier. She was Chapman's teacher when Brie went to school
there. Got a hold of the photos meant for the Board of Education and pinned them up
in their workroom. Says she found them in her office box."

Tanner wrote on the board and in his file as he continued. "Neighbors?"

"Lucy Melbourne is the only one known to have been home during each incident."

"She's the one who made the 911 call six years ago."

"Yes, and she's also
always
home. So, not much help there," Dave said.

"Okay. Get the ex-boyfriend in here. Let's see what he's got to say. Shake that one
up. See what happens when someone pushes his buttons. And line up interviews with
the staff who was at the school six years ago. Looks like a short list there. Oh,
and call the vet to find out the drug used on the dog. I want to know how easy it
would be to get it and in that amount."

Dave finished writing down Tanner's instructions, flipped his notebook closed and
started to walk to his office.

"Nolan."

"Yeah?"

"I want this one wrapped up. Whatever you need. Keep me posted."

* * *

Brie had already taken the dogs for a run. She was able to get Macey to stay at her
left and Goldie at her right now, no matter the speed or terrain. Training dogs was
one of her most treasured parts of life. She'd showered in one of Nathan's guest showers
that morning and didn't kick his gorgeous cabinet when she realized she'd forgotten
her brush at Liz's.

The three males in the morning were a sight to see. Socks that didn't match, bed-head
hair and favorite hats that had gone missing. She had to admit that they'd found a
comfortable system and it warmed her heart.

She noticed that Nathan had taken her advice and laid out backpacks and clothes the
night before. Andy gave Nathan throat-choking hugs and Duncan one-armed chest bumps.
The boys walked to the bus stop and Nathan to his garage. Brie sensed he wanted to
give them some growing up room while still keeping an eye on them.

It was no accident that he waited to put on his headphones until after the bus arrived.
That morning he said he was working on installing the slides to the kitchen drawers.
She brought the dogs with her to say goodbye to the boys.

Andy bent down and rubbed cheeks with Goldie as his lips moved a mile a minute. Duncan
spoke of the new friends who'd asked him for drawing lessons during recess.

When the boys spotted her brown, paper lunch bags, they stood straight and turned
their backs to the house. She slipped a bag to each of them, then glanced over her
shoulder. Nathan revved his drill and was concentrating on his work.

After waving goodbye through the high windows, Brie headed to his garage before going
to get her mail and newspaper. She knew Nathan would think of some excuse to come
with her.

He picked up the steaming mug that sat at the end of his workbench and took a sip
as she noticed he had another. She could get used to this routine and this man. And
she was getting all too used to him escorting her to her own home. This time, he assured
her it was time to do a thorough walk-through.

It had actually been a long time since she felt this good about coming into her own
home.

* * *

Nathan stood in his work jeans, looking in Brie's fridge. "You have nothing in here."

"I haven't been living here, remember?" She walked over to look out the glass of the
doors. "There's no rain in the forecast. We've been without a nor'easter all spring.
I'm going to focus on finishing the edging and your pond and put off the plants for
a rainy week." She turned to face him. "What do you think about a patio?"

"Come away with me for the weekend."

"Away? Where? Are you serious?"

He took her face in his rough hands. "Yes, away. Camping. Very serious."

She shuttered. "I have work to do."

He pulled back and curled one side of his mouth. "All you've done is work for weeks.
And there's no rain coming for your... for my plants."

"
This
weekend?"

"Yep." Nathan meandered over and searched the empty cabinets. "My folks think the
weather looks good for Niagara Falls and the kids have Friday off. I think Dave is
taking Amanda and Rose to Florida."

Brie tried to pinpoint the moment from last December when her life turned upside down
and realized she didn't care. "Yes. Yes, I'll do it. Wow. I have a lot to get done
before then." She headed upstairs to pick up an extra brush before getting started.
Pausing, she thought and turned back, kissing him long and hard.

* * *

Standing with knees locked, Brie stood in the dry, chilly air judging the look of
the curved edging. The earthy red color blended with the slate gray of the house.
Each brick lay on a layer of sand to prevent movement. They were evenly buried so
two inches remained exposed and lined nicely with the tops of the new grass. There
was plenty of room for the river rock.

Slowly, she rotated while resting her hands on her hips. She'd used an assortment
of fitted, limestone and granite rocks of all different shades for the three tiered
spots, the two back corners of the property and the northwest corner of the house.
The short, staggered walls were easy to stack once she used sand, string and a level
to lay the first layer flat. The areas still needed to be filled with black soil before
she could start on the fishless pond and trickling waterfall.

She looked forward to each day working in the fresh air and each night spent with
Nathan and his kids. As her mind wandered, she looked at the space for the deck, the
empty tiered corners and back again. She made a decision and picked up her shovel.

The tile guy finished the grout in the kitchen. Intricate and complicated patterns
framed the base cabinets and the imaginary kitchen island Nathan had drawn on the
kitchen floor. He chose several colors of tile, all that would enhance the cherry
color of the kitchen cabinets. He let him finish in peace and walked around to his
backyard and found Brie neatly digging up some of the sod she'd laid just the week
before.