Shadows from the Grave (35 page)

“That went pretty well, don’t you think?” she asked. His hand rubbed her arm, and it slowed as he considered the question. When she gave a small protest, he resumed rubbing.

“Well enough,” he conceded. “We made some definite progress, I think. Whether it leads to anything concrete, that’s anyone’s guess.”

“Mmmm,” she agreed. “We did manage to embarrass the heck out of Jason, though.” She raised her head to grin at Ethan, who smiled back.

“True, true. There was that.” He brushed his free hand across her cheek. She grabbed it and pressed a kiss to his palm.

“Aside from all this stuff with Chase and Parker, what’s bothering you?” she asked. “You were very quiet tonight.”

He groaned. “It’s been a long day. I’m tired.” She moved her leg across his groin and cocked an eyebrow. He drew in a breath. “I’m tired, not dead.”

She bent down to him, and they shared a lingering kiss. After a little while, she drew back. “Somehow, I don’t think that’s all that’s bothering you.”

Seeing that she wasn’t going to give in, he sighed. “The thing with Michelle. She said some pretty nasty things. It just bothered me a little, that’s all.”

“What did she say, exactly? You never told me.”

He shrugged. “She made some remarks about my heritage, about my dad.” His father was a first-generation American, his family having moved to Texas from Mexico in the late fifties. Ricky Hernandez had killed himself when Ethan was little more than an infant. Though his mother’s second husband had adopted him, the subject of his biological father was a touchy area for Ethan.

“Oh, honey, I’m sorry,” she said. “I hate stupid people. I really do. I bet Wyatt really did just about go through the roof, then.”

“Yeah, I’d say Michelle will be looking for a new job, come tomorrow.” He pulled her close for another kiss. “Now, about what you started earlier…”

She raised her hand and touched his mouth, stopping him. “Not just yet, Detective. You were quiet
before
you talked to Michelle. What else is bothering you?”

Ethan gave an exasperated groan. “Beth, can’t we just… Do we have to…?” When he saw the look on her face, he stopped and sighed. “Okay, fine.” He sat up. “I saw the way you looked at Lauren and Charlie,” he admitted. “I know it bothers you, as much as you try to not let it.”

Beth didn’t pretend not to know what he was talking about. “Seeing her pregnant hurts a little, yes. But, I don’t think I’m the only person in this bed who feels that way.”

“You aren’t. We’d be parents by now if things had been different.” He reached to push her hair off her face and tuck it behind her ear. “Sometimes, when I let myself think about that, I don’t see how you can stand to look at me, Beth.”

Sitting up, she slid her arm around his back and rested her cheek against his shoulder. “No, Ethan. I don’t think that. I never have. Well, not since I came home from New Mexico.” The kidnapping and subsequent shooting the previous fall had resulted in the loss of their baby. It had been devastating, even though she hadn’t known she was pregnant.

“I do think about it,” Ethan said, his voice tortured. “How can I not? What if we never get pregnant again? How do I live with that? Knowing what we could have had?”

Beth was quiet for a minute before she answered. “Would we really have this, have each other? See, I don’t think we would.” He shot her a puzzled look, and she smiled sadly. “If I had come to you, pregnant, would you have cried with joy? Or would you have accused me of trapping you? We were in a totally different place then, Ethan. If that pregnancy had come to term, I don’t think we ever would have found each other. I don’t think we would be married, or together in any way. You weren’t ready to let your heart rule your head until after I left.” He started to protest, but stopped when he realized he couldn’t argue with what she was saying.

“You need to believe me when I say this, Ethan,” she said. “I would change nothing—
nothing
—even if I could. Because if I did? I might not have you. We might not have this.” She touched the gold wedding band he wore. “You’d probably still be drinking, I’d have a child to raise on my own, and we would hate each other. All the heartache, the tears, the pain? It brought you to me. I wouldn’t give that up for anything.”

“Not even a baby?” His eyes were wet when he looked at her. “Even if that child was the only child we’ll ever create together?”

She shook her head. “Not even for that child.” She waited to see if he would accept her words and, when he finally closed his eyes and nodded, she felt the tension leave his body. He pulled her close, and the kiss he gave her was intense and full of emotion.

“God, I love you.” He kept his lips against hers as he spoke. As he bore her down on the mattress and kissed her again, Beth said a silent prayer of thanks, thanks that Ethan had accepted her words, and thanks that he had apparently finally forgiven himself, as she had months ago.

By midnight that night, the killer had gotten medical treatment and left the state. It had been a bit of a challenge to pull it off, but he had done it. Now he had to make sure he finished getting rid of all the incriminating evidence. That meant his truck had to disappear—permanently. He’d worked with some people a few years back who had been less than honest, and they’d taught him a few tricks of the trade. One of those tricks was how he was going to get rid of the truck, no questions asked.

The antibiotic shot he had been given was definitely starting to kick in, and the pain in his arm had started to diminish. He’d grabbed some high-test painkillers when he left the clinic, but he was managing to hold off on using them by taking the maximum dose of a couple over-the-counter medications. When he stopped for the night, he would consider taking one of the more powerful drugs, but he probably wouldn’t take the risk. He needed his mind to be as clear as possible for the next few days.

As he drove through the night, he kept thinking about Chase Hudson, and how he had managed to screw everything up. The killer had a good thing going until Chase had managed to slip through the noose he’d hung for him. Out of the generosity in his heart, he had planned on letting Annie and Beth live, just so Chase would never know when the hammer would drop. It would have been one of the best tortures he could devise, a cat toying with a mouse that wouldn’t die. However, now that Chase had messed up his plans, the killer was going to have to rethink some things. He’d take a few days to let his wounds heal, and then he’d go home. After that, all bets were off. Satisfied with his agenda, he smiled.

It had been a shame about the doctor, though.

The week after Parker Riley’s body was discovered flew by, it seemed to Annie. It had been a week full of horrible discoveries. The DNA had come back in both Kiely’s case and Parker’s, and both had matched the other eight killings. Although that should have meant Chase was in the clear, Kiely’s family was still trying to maneuver things so that Chase was blamed. Neal Bledsoe had been calling in favors left and right, but now that the DNA was back, no one was paying attention to his complaints. It was still a hassle for Chase to deal with, but the imminent threat of arrest had at least been taken out of the equation.

Gordon had managed to get his supervisor to contact the detective from the original investigation, who had confirmed the identity of Kiely’s boyfriend. Like a lot of retired law enforcement officers, he had one case that haunted him, and Kiely’s was it. Subsequently, he had kept a copy of the original case file, so finding the man’s name had been a matter of opening a box. Once confirmed, Mullins had been easy to track down. He’d been a guest of the Kentucky prison system for the past five years, convicted of manufacturing and selling methamphetamines. He admitted to writing the note and placing it in Kiely’s casket at the time of her funeral.

Adding to the stress was the disappearance and murder of a prominent doctor in Madison. When his office staff had gone in on Tuesday morning, they had found the clinic to be in complete disarray—furniture overturned, one of the examining rooms littered with bloody supplies that indicated someone had been treated, and some medications missing. They had immediately called the police, and a search had been instituted. The next day, the doctor’s body had been found in an abandoned rock quarry a few miles outside Madison. He had been shot once in the head, and even though the modus operandi was very different, the circumstances convinced law enforcement in Olman County that the person responsible was more than likely the killer they were looking for.

By narrowing down the medications he had stolen, they were able to ascertain that he had likely been treated for an infected wound. During Parker’s autopsy, the M.E. had confirmed that she had blood and tissue in her mouth that wasn’t her own. Given the inevitability of infection with a human bite, it was likely that the injury responsible for driving the killer to the clinic had been a bite.

Now it was noon on Saturday, and Lauren’s baby shower was scheduled to begin in less than an hour. The crew had shown up at Lauren’s parents’ house just after eleven, after Charlie had managed to get Lauren clear of the area. They lived in the house next to Molly and Winston and, for a brief while, it had looked like he wouldn’t be able to get her out of the house long enough for the shower preparations to take place. As pregnant as she was, Lauren was miserable and going anywhere wasn’t really on her calendar right now. Somehow, though, Charlie had managed it, and Molly had called to let everyone know. They’d been lurking in the neighborhood, parked a few streets over, and as soon as Molly called, they’d moved in.

Annie didn’t know how long Charlie could keep Lauren out, but she was betting it wouldn’t be the full hour. They had the house set up and ready to go, and had called all the guests who were not involved in the setup to let them know to show up earlier than scheduled. The only thing the party planners were waiting on now was the guest of honor.

The men had decided to move the poker game to Chase’s condo, since it was in town and closer to the shower. Molly had warned them that Lauren was feeling so miserable that she didn’t think she was going to make it to her due date and, in fact, might go into labor as soon as this weekend. It was the way she had presented with Ava, so that was probably a good indication.

As Annie wandered through the family room to double check things one last time, she saw Charlie’s mother come in through the front door. She had dreaded this meeting the most, given her personal history. She had grappled with whether to attend the shower, not wanting to cause Hazel any discomfort, but Beth and Hannah had managed to talk her into being there.

“You’re one of Lauren’s best friends, Annie. You’re Charlie’s sister. Lauren and Charlie would both want you there,” Beth had told her. “If it makes you feel any better, I’ll call Hazel and ask her beforehand.” That was exactly what Beth had done. Hazel had told Beth she didn’t have a problem in the world with Annie being there, but Annie wasn’t sure she believed that.

Hannah came through the back door and asked Annie about one of the food dishes. Annie was answering the question when Hazel tapped her on the shoulder with a nervous smile.

“Annie? I’m sorry to interrupt. Do you have a minute? I’d like to talk to you about something.” Hazel gestured toward the door. “Do you think we could walk outside?”

Annie swallowed and tried to hide her nervousness. “Sure.”