Murderous Lies (19 page)

“Oh, good, it’s you,” Kelsey said. “I didn’t want to get Tammy. She’s always such a bitch.”

“Kel? What’s going on?”

“I can’t come in again tonight, and I was wondering if you’d ask one of the part time girls to cover for me?”

Kelsey sounded a bit too cheerful, which made Rose nervous. It sounded forced. “Is everything okay?”

“Yes, of course. And don’t you dare tell anyone any different.”

Leaning against the wall, Rose suppressed a sigh. “I promised I wouldn’t, but I have to know...did he hurt you again?”

“No, but my bruises look worse today,” she said in a low voice, maybe afraid Bill would overhear her talking. “People will ask about it, and I can’t deal with it now.”

Rose gritted her teeth. She needed to find time to call Calvin. Even if Bill wasn’t the killer, the man belonged in jail. Kelsey was her friend, though, and Rose couldn’t spread her problems around town by telling just anyone. Calvin was the best choice on the police force. He could handle things discretely. “Don’t worry about your shift,” she said. “I’ll find someone.”

“You’re the best,” Kelsey replied. “Oh, hey. I saw Max leaving your house with a bag this morning. Did you guys break up already?” She sounded downright ecstatic about that possibility.

“No, we’re just fine. Great in fact.” Rose didn’t bother to hide the anger in her voice at Kelsey’s continued judgment of Max. “He’s going out of town for a night, but he’ll be back first thing in the morning.”

“You sure he’s not running away? Maybe he’ll stay gone after murdering Jimmy.”

Kelsey hadn’t even been around the public, and she’d somehow heard the gossip.

“Max didn’t kill him,” Rose said, her words coming out clipped and stilted. “I have to go.”

She hung up the phone, seething with frustration. She was always on Kelsey’s side, always had her back. Couldn’t her friend trust Rose’s judgment and stop blaming Max? Especially considering it might be Kelsey’s husband who actually killed Jimmy.

“Rose?” Kevin stood up, waving her over. “We’re ready to order.”

She hurried to their table, knowing that it was safe enough, even though Max probably wouldn’t agree. There were plenty of other people around, even if Kevin did try to start something with her. She pulled out her order pad and looked at the men. “I heard about Jimmy,” she said softly. “I’m real sorry.”

“Sure you are.” Kevin’s lips curled down in a sneer. “If you cared about him at all, you’d quit dating that psycho killer and turn him in. Everyone knows Max did this.”

***

M
ax looked around the small apartment, feeling victorious. Not only did Mr. Calgary offer him the job on the spot, Max’s new boss also gave him a sign on bonus to help with moving expenses. Granted, he had to sign a contract stating he would work at the shop for a year to get the check, but that was fine. Max had no intention of quitting.

“What do you think, Mister Kensington?” the apartment complex manager asked. “Is this something you and your wife will be interested in? These ground floor apartments go fast, so if it is, you’ll probably want to sign the paperwork today.”

The man had automatically assumed Max and Rose were married. Max didn’t bother to correct that impression, since they would be soon if he had his way.

He looked over the lease agreement. It was only for six months. He wished Rose could have come along and picked the place out with him, but if she didn’t like the apartment, they only had to tough it out for half a year. Besides, the price was right.

“How much extra for the pet deposit?” he asked.

“A hundred dollars.” The manager narrowed his eyes. “And no pets allowed on the grounds without a leash and only in the pet area.”

Max shrugged. “Gizmo stays indoors. That won’t be a problem.” He pulled out his cell phone. “I need to send a couple pictures to my wife. She’d kill me if I signed without even showing it to her.”

The manager grinned. “I got one at home like that. Personally, I like ’em feisty, but you do have to be careful. Go ahead.”

Max walked through the rooms, snapping pictures as he went. The walls were a drab off-white and the carpets brown, but considering the minimalist look of Rose’s house, perhaps she wouldn’t mind. Besides, the apartment was almost the same size as her place. It was a good fit for them.

He put the pictures in a slide show and sent them to Rose, checking the time. Nearly 1:00. The lunch rush should be ending. Hopefully she could look at them right away so he could give the manager an answer.

A few minutes later, his phone beeped.

Looks fine. Did you get the job? I can’t wait to get out of this freaking town.

That didn’t sound good. While she’d agreed to move with him, Rose hadn’t seemed overly anxious to leave town until everything was settled about the murders, especially now that Kelsey was having trouble. He wondered what happened. Max was torn between calling her or dealing with the lease agreement.

He thumbed a quick text.
Hope ur ok. Job is mine! Will sign lease and call u soon.

Max paced back into the living room where the manager waited. “Looks like we’ll take it.”

They filled out the lease agreement, and Max explained to the manager that his new job started in a week, so they’d move in soon. Max had thought he’d have to move up by himself for a week to start his job on time, and that had worried him. The way she normally was, he figured Rose would insist on giving a two-week notice to her jobs; she was responsible like that. However, from the sound of her text, maybe not.

Max walked to the car, attaching the new house key to his key ring and putting Rose’s in his pocket. As soon as he got inside the car, he dialed her cell phone.

She answered on the first ring. “I’m so happy you got the job.”

“What’s wrong?” he asked, deciding they could deal with his happy news once he was sure she was okay.

“It’s nothing,” she said. “Just the spotlight is on us, because everyone says you killed Jimmy. It’s no big deal, but I’m tired of the bullshit.”

That made sense. “Did you tell Calvin about Bill?”

“I haven’t had a chance,” she said. “It seems everyone in town came out for breakfast and lunch today. Jimmy’s posse was here too, snarling and growling at me.”

Unease threaded through Max. “Do you think they’ll do anything to you? I shouldn’t have left you alone. I’ll head home right now.”

“You can’t do that,” she said. “You have that appointment tomorrow to check out Cloverleaf for Mom, and I can’t leave here without her. Nothing’s more important than you finding somewhere better for her to live.”

“Speaking of Ginger, there’s a place right here in Beaverton, too,” he said. “My new boss told me about it. He said it’s supposed to be good, maybe better than Cloverleaf. Trinity something or other.”

“Having her even closer would be nice. See? You have to stay and check those places out. I’ll be fine. I promise to be careful.”

As much as he hated to have someone else come to Rose’s rescue, he didn’t see many options. “Fine, but call the police and tell them what we suspect about Bill. Have someone escort you home from the gas station tonight and tell them to keep an eye on the house until I get back.”

“Demanding they babysit me is a bit of an overreaction, but I’ll tell them about Bill.”

“Rose, I’m not overreacting.” Max’s stomach clenched with nerves for her safety. “If Jimmy’s friends blame you, even if they aren’t responsible for the other murders, they might try to do something to you tonight as payback. Does anyone know you’re going to be alone? Maybe you should stay with my mom tonight.”

Rose laughed, though it sounded bitter. “Yeah, Sally’d love that.”

“Then call the cops. Please. I can’t stand being away like this when you need me.”

“I promise to call Calvin. I’ll also call you when I make it safely to the gas station and again when I get home tonight,” she promised. “Try not to worry.”

Easy for her to say.

“Look, I need to get back out to work. My lunch break’s over,” she said. “Love you.”

“Love you too.”

Max hung up and pulled up the navigation system application on his phone. He typed in Trinity and the first option that came up was the psychiatric facility. Max pushed the button to engage the driving directions and started the car.

He didn’t like Rose being alone. He’d check out Trinity Home and then see about changing his appointment at Cloverdale for tonight. He had to get home. Maybe it was just his paranoia taking over, but something felt off.

R
ose organized the candy shelves. Some little brats came in and destroyed the store, and the evening had been so busy that she was just getting to it now. Almost quitting time, though, thank goodness. Rose just wanted to get home and head to bed. Her emotions were overwhelmed and she felt drained.

The run in with Jimmy’s friends at the restaurant had just been the start. All afternoon people had frequented the gas station, talking about Jimmy and giving Rose sly looks. A few even came up to berate her for dating a murderer. It didn’t matter how much she defended Max, they wouldn’t listen.

With a sigh, Rose moved over to the potato chip section, pulling forward bags and straightening misplaced items. It helped to remind herself that they would be getting out of this crappy town soon. Everything would be fine.

The buzzer above the door sounded, and Rose started to the front of the store. “Good evening,” she called.

“Rose? It’s me, and I need your help.”

Rose made it to the edge of the aisle to see Kelsey standing just inside the door. She still wore her dark glasses and was hunched in on herself.

Hurrying across to her, Rose took her in a soft hug, not wanting to hurt her if Kelsey had more injuries. “Did the bastard do something else?”

Kelsey shook her head marginally. “Not really, but he’s wasted again. About as bad as last time. I’m afraid he’ll hurt me.”

Damn it. Rose really wished she’d gotten a hold of Calvin. She’d left several messages for him, but he never returned her calls. Granted, he was probably busy with the investigation into Jimmy’s death, but she had told him it was urgent. Now, Bill seemed to be on a rampage again. Even if he hadn’t killed Jimmy and Julie, he needed to be stopped. Maybe she should have listened to Max and called the police station to ask for protection, but she hadn’t wanted to betray Kelsey’s trust by telling anyone besides Calvin about Bill.

Kelsey let out a soft sob and covered her mouth with a shaking hand, drawing Rose away from her thoughts.

“Can I stay with you tonight, Rose? I was thinking we could leave my car here, then Bill won’t know where I am and we’ll be safe.”

“Of course you can,” Rose assured her. “Where are the boys? In the car?”

Kelsey shook her head. “No. I talked my mom into taking them for a sleep over. I dropped them off before coming to see you.”

Anxiety threaded through Rose. “Won’t Bill look for them there?”

“No. My mom hates Bill, always has. She won’t let him near the kids. Don’t worry about that. Besides, he’ll assume they are with me, if he even sobers up enough to come looking for us.”

Well, they sounded relatively safe. “Why didn’t you stay with the boys?”

She let out another soft sob. “I can’t let my mom see me this way. It’ll be all over the town within minutes. She’s never thought he was good enough for me, but I don’t want anyone to know about this. I told her I had to hurry, so just waved at her from the car as the boys went inside. She doesn’t know about my bruises.”

Rose took Kelsey’s hand and led her behind the counter, patting the top of the stool there so Kelsey would sit. “Kel, I know you don’t want to face people talking about you, but I really think we need to call the cops. You are afraid and Bill beat you. We should get a restraining order or something.”

“No.” She shook her head frantically. “No one can know. I just need a place to crash tonight until he gets sober. If it’s too much to ask, that’s okay. I know how Max is the only important thing in your life right now.”

Her scathing tone stung, and Rose struggled against lashing back at her and saying something hurtful. Her friend was obviously terrified and not ready to face the fact that she was married to an abuser who just might be a killer.

After breathing in deeply for a few moments, Rose patted her shoulder. “Of course you can stay with me. I only suggested the cops because I’m so worried about you.” She glanced at the clock again. Ten more minutes until closing time. “Let me close things up here and we’ll head to my house, okay? We’ll park in the alley and sneak through the back door so Bill doesn’t see you.”

***

M
ax turned his car onto the freeway. Rose was going to be upset with him, but he couldn’t sit around anymore. Cloverleaf hadn’t been able to see him tonight, though they moved his appointment to tour the facility up to first thing tomorrow morning. Only problem with that was Max couldn’t shake the feeling of dread he’d suffered from all day.

He had tossed and turned in the hotel room bed for a few hours before deciding he wouldn’t wait. Trinity was probably the place they’d pick to put Ginger anyway as it had all the programs the other facility did, so hopefully Rose wouldn’t be too mad that he didn’t do the second tour. He had to get to her.

Before leaving Beaverton, Max left a message for Calvin Black, asking him if he’d spoken to Rose yet. It was a bit concerning that the officer wasn’t picking up his phone. The last time Max spoke with Rose, she said she’d left a message as well, unable to reach him.

If something happened to Calvin, the killer could be after Rose next. Max didn’t want to think about it, but all the people around him that could be considered a friend or an enemy kept coming up dead. It felt like the killer was trying to destroy Max.

Killing Rose would be the way to do it. Even if Max didn’t go to prison, his life would be over without her to share it.

***

R
ose unlocked the back door and opened it, waving at Kelsey who hid along the shadows and bushes at the back of the property.

Kelsey turned toward her own house, the moonlight illuminating her frightened face. Apparently satisfied Bill wasn’t outside watching, she raced across the yard, running full speed into the house.