Reasonable Doubt (6 page)

“Nothing more than a suspect on the run, eh? I mean nothing to you?”

“That’s right, Buster!”

Justin cupped the back of her neck and brought her closer, until their breaths mingled. “Then why are there tears in your eyes?” he whispered.

Her lips trembled, drawing his attention. Warning bells sounded in his head, but he ignored them as her eyes widened and her lips parted in a sudden intake of breath. Pulling her closer, he closed his eyes, ready to lose himself in Keri’s arms and the sweetness of her kiss.

Pain exploded in his cheek. His eyes shot open. “Hey!” He turned her loose and cupped his own face.

She straightened up. Her chest heaved, and she glared down at him. “Listen, Bucko. For someone who didn’t kill his wife, you’re awfully quick to put her out of your mind and cozy up to another woman.”

Outrage filled Justin at the accusation. “You don’t know anything about my relationship—”

“You know what? I don’t care. It’s not my problem.
If you try anything like that again, I’ll handcuff you until it’s time to take you in—even if I have to wait until you’re asleep and handcuff you to Dad’s bed.”

Fire flamed in her eyes, warning him off. He sat back, bewilderment washing over him. Where was the Keri he’d left behind? The sweet kid who—well, not to be conceited, or anything, but who had hung on his every word?

She grabbed her coat and threw it on over her sweatshirt, snatched up a pair of rubber boots, and pulled a stocking cap from the coat pocket. “Go eat breakfast, Justin. And don’t forget what I said.”

Keri stomped onto the porch, underestimated the ice beneath her, and fought to maintain her footing. Only a last-ditch grapple for the railing kept her from landing hard on her behind. But that near-catastrophe was nothing compared to what had almost happened inside the cabin. Her lips tingled, whether from the almost kiss, or the chill in the air, she didn’t know. Nor did she want to know. How dare Justin have the gall to think she still loved him?

She hadn’t meant to be so transparent. Over and over, she reminded herself, this Justin was not the same one who had left Briarwood fifteen years earlier.

With carefully guided steps, she made her way to the Jeep. She grabbed the keys out of her pocket, unlocked the door and slid into the driver’s seat. First things first. She cranked the ignition, and the engine roared to life, sending a shot of freezing air through the wide-open vents.

She gasped from the shock of the cold blast rushing into the Jeep. With a flick of her numbed fingers, she
closed the vent. Why hadn’t she thought to grab gloves? Justin. That’s why. He’d rattled her so much, she hadn’t followed even the most basic of weather-survival training. Reaching forward she tested the air. Not exactly warm, but better than icy. She switched on the radio. All the emergency vehicles including Ed’s road crew trucks were on the same channel, so there was bound to be someone out there listening.

“This is Officer Mahoney. Anyone out there? Over.”

“That you Keri, honey? We’ve been trying to raise you all night. Over.”

Keri groaned. What was the chief doing on the radio this time of the morning? Today was supposedly his day off.

“Yeah, Chief,” she said with a sigh. “It’s me. We’re all iced in up here. What’s it like in town? Over.”

“Bad. We’re warning people to stay home, but you know how folks are—everyone thinks they’re the only ones who can drive on ice, and every other driver on the road is an idiot. We’ve had more than a dozen minor accidents since it all started. Over.”

“What about the highways? Over,” Keri broke in before he could hint around for her to come in and help with traffic calls. He and Abe were more than capable of taking care of a few fender benders without her.

“Now, don’t you even think of trying to get out on Highway 13. As it is, it’s going to be at least tomorrow afternoon before the crews get out there. But the forecast is calling for six more inches of snow tonight, so they may not get out for another day or two. You and Mac just hold tight and don’t worry about anything here in town. Over.”

Shame washed over Keri at the chief’s concern for her well-being. “All right, Chief. But don’t you work too hard. No sense wearing yourself out. Over.”

“I’ll do my best. Over.”

“Uh—Chief, get any faxes from KCPD? Arrest warrants? Anything like that? Over.” She knew she was about as subtle as a ticking bomb, but didn’t know how to approach the subject any other way.

“Nothing that I know of. Over.”

Relief spread calming fingers through her.

“All right. Just wondering. You take it easy and I’ll check in again later. Keep Abe away from the switch, will you? Over.”

She heard his chuckle. “I’ll do that. Enjoy your vacation. Over and out.”

Keri switched off the radio. Tucking her hands inside her pockets to get them warm, she leaned back and stared at the icy landscape.

H
e drummed his fingers across his sleek desktop and took a long, slow drag from his cigarette. With a satisfying sense of release he watched the smoke billow through the air above him. He knew people in the smoke-free building suspected he lit up in his office, but what did he care? It was his office. And since he locked the door first and opened the window to get rid of the smell, they couldn’t actually prove it.

It irked him that a man couldn’t smoke where he wanted. So much for living in a free country. Even New York City, of all places, had passed a no-smoking ordinance. Pretty soon even the smallest of pleasures like an after-dinner cigarette would be banned everywhere.

A sudden cough rumbled through his chest. He frowned at the pain shooting through his lungs, then took another drag.

So Justin had made it to some hideout. Somewhere he thought he was safe. Funny thing about feeling safe. Just when you least expect it. WHAM! The hammer
falls. Amelia knew that. She’d thought she was pretty smart.

If his wife had found out…Well, he couldn’t have let that happen, could he? He might not be the most faithful of husbands, but she was the only woman he’d ever loved. The only one he would ever love. She was the only thing in his life that was good. Everything he’d done had only been for her sake. She didn’t know it, but it was only for her sake. And he’d do whatever it took to make sure she was protected from all the ugliness. Whatever it took….

Keri felt great after a Pilates routine in the privacy of her bedroom, a quick shower, and an hour of devotions to make up for wigging out on God the night before.

Peals of laughter carried through the house from the kitchen, causing her to grin into the silence. Unable to resist, she closed her Bible and followed the sound. All four “men” were embroiled in a capture-the-world board game.

“Hi, Keri!” Billy greeted her, his eyes wide with excitement. “My armies just took out one of Dad’s.”

“
Miss
Keri,” Justin gently reminded, ruffling the boy’s hair to take the bite out of the scolding.

The little boy seemed unfazed. He gave her a wide grin. “Sorry, Miss Keri.”

Keri couldn’t hold back her chuckle. “It’s all right. How are you doing, Josh?”

The boy scowled and motioned to the board. “My armies are blue.”

At the sight of the sparse number of blue armies, she
sent him a sympathetic wink. “Oops. Looks like you’ve lost a few battles.”

“You think so?” His tongue dripped with sarcasm as he gave her a withering look.

Taken aback, Keri was speechless.

“Josh!” Justin’s stern voice made her jump. “Apologize to Miss Keri, right now. It’s not her fault you’re losing the game.”

Josh threw the dice across the table and shot to his feet. He glared at her. “I’m not sorry!” Running past her, he disappeared through the kitchen door.

“I’ll take care of this,” Justin said, his jaw clenched. Keri touched his arm as he walked past. He stopped, towering above her.

“Don’t be too hard on him. He has his reasons for behaving this way, and I have a feeling it doesn’t have anything to do with the game. At least talk to him before you make him apologize or whatever you intend to do to him.”

His expression softened and Keri thought her heart might burst from her chest. He reached forward and trailed his finger along her jawline. “I’ll go easy on him.”

She looked down to keep from revealing what she knew he already suspected: that despite her doubts about him, the wondering, the agonizing reality of what she had to do, despite all those things, she loved him still. She didn’t look back up until Justin disappeared through the kitchen door.

“Well, I guess that pretty much wraps up the game, then doesn’t it?”

Though Dad spoke the words to Billy, he kept his scrutinizing gaze fixed on Keri.

Her cheeks burned. “Excuse me,” she said. “I have to—” What? What did she have to do? Her mind was blank. She had to escape. To be alone with her thoughts. To make sense of her jumbled emotions. “I’m going to my room.”

She left them staring after her. The door to the room Justin was sharing with his boys hung slightly ajar when she walked by on the way to her own sanctuary. Her curiosity got the better of her and she halted her steps and listened.

“I hate him!” Josh’s voice leaked through the door.

Peeking inside, Keri saw Justin shift on the bed so that he could put his arms around his son.

“You can’t hate the man who killed your mom, Josh. It’ll eat you alive. Believe me, I know. You have to learn to forgive. Once the devil weakens you with bitterness, he can lie to you until you don’t live for Jesus anymore.”

Her stomach flopped. What exactly was Justin saying here?
Believe me, I know.
Was he saying he hated the man who killed his wife? Or was he saying he’d hated his wife and the devil had used it to weaken him to the point that he’d killed her?

Deep in thought, she jumped when Justin appeared at the threshold. So much for her cop instincts. Sheesh.

Confusion showed in his face when he found her outside his door. “Keri? What are you doing?”

She opened her mouth to form a good excuse, but nothing sprang to mind. With a sheepish grin, she shrugged. “Eavesdropping?”

Justin chuckled. “At least you’re still honest.”

“How’s Josh?”

“He fell asleep. How much did you hear?”

“Enough. Still preaching the same old sermons?”

“What do you mean?”

“The ‘forgiveness’ speech. You know…what you just told Josh. Not that it wasn’t good, but it’s exactly the same as when we were kids.”

His brows lifted. “I didn’t realize I had a ‘forgiveness speech,’ but truth is always truth.”

Keri nodded. “You’re right, of course.” After all, she was the one still serving the Lord, not him.

Justin stepped all the way out of the room and shut the door softly. He leaned back, resting the sole of his shoe on the door, and folded his arms. “What did you mean about this being the same speech as when we were kids?”

A shrug lifted Keri’s shoulders. “It just reminded me of that time in sixth grade when Tammy Albright lied to Mr. Larken so he’d take the role of Juliet away from me and give it to her. Remember? She told him I said he had to give me the part because my dad was on the school board and could have him fired? The weasel gave her the part just to prove a point.”

His eyes clouded for a minute as though he were trying to revive the memory, then a sudden grin split his face, sending Keri’s heart into a tizzy. “That’s right!” he said. “You showed up and sat with me on the front row. I remember how proud I was of you.” He winked. “And if I remember right, that was the first time I held your hand.”

“Could have been,” she mumbled.

She remembered every warm, finger-laced second of it as though it had just happened yesterday.

“Anyway, remember how vindicated you felt when Tammy forgot half her lines?” He laughed. “Later, you flat-out told her God made it happen to teach her a lesson.”

Resentment pinched her heart as the sweet handholding memory gave way to the humiliating aftermath. “Yes, and you embarrassed me by telling her that wasn’t true. That one thing had nothing to do with the other.”

“Well, what you told her
wasn’t
true. You know God isn’t going to make something bad happen to a twelve-year-old girl just because she took away the chance for Hollywood fame and fortune from you. Besides, didn’t she still apologize and tell you she felt too guilty for lying and that was why she couldn’t remember her lines?”

“Too little too late,” Keri muttered.

“I can’t believe it.” His expression changed from amused to bewildered.

“Can’t believe what?”

“You’re actually holding a grudge against Tammy after all these years?”

If only she could deny it, but seeing the whole thing through his eyes brought it to its proper perspective. She gave him a lopsided smile. “Dumb, huh?”

His returning smile was dazzling and Keri hoped for her sake that he was still afraid of being walloped again. Because if he moved in, she doubted very seriously she’d have the strength to resist his arms or his kiss. As if reading her thoughts, his expression grew serious and his foot dropped to the floor. His arms unfolded and he stepped forward. “Keri…”

A scream shot like an arrow from the bedroom, piercing the air with terror. Justin spun around and pushed through the door with Keri on his heels. Josh sat huddled against the headboard, his eyes wide, face drained of color.

“Josh, honey, what happened?” Justin asked, sitting on the bed.

“He was here, I saw him outside the window trying to get in.”

A lump formed in Keri’s throat. Her pulse quickened and all of her senses alerted to danger. “Saw who, Josh?” she asked.

The little boy gave Justin a pitiful look and flung himself into his father’s arms.

“Shh, son,” Justin said, rubbing Josh’s back and holding him close. “It’s all right. No one is here. It was just a bad dream.”

“Look,” Keri said softly. “The curtain is all the way closed, honey. You couldn’t have seen anyone.”

“I saw him,” Josh insisted.

“Who?” Justin held him out at arms’ length and looked him in the eye. “Who do you think you saw?”

Josh gulped several breaths of air and seemed unable to form the words. Finally, he found his voice enough to whisper, “The man who killed Mommy.”