TICK TOCK RUN (Romantic Mystery Suspense) (7 page)

“But you don’t believe that, do you?  You wouldn’t be here if you did.”  I took his silence as a bad sign and my heart twitched in my chest.  “Why don’t you believe the ruling?” 

His lips didn’t part.

“I need to know.”  My voice sounded cracked at the guilt of hoping his brother had committed suicide or slipped.  If so, the email meant nothing.  I tugged his sleeve.  “What I need to know is, is this email an empty threat?  You brought me here.  Don’t hold back on me now.” 

Leaning in closer, wanting to untangle Lee’s locked-in thoughts, my gaze studied his face.  He stonewalled me during an agonizing silence, which suggested he gave his answer serious thought. 

Lee steepled his fingers, then stared point blank into my eyes.  “He seemed worried about something, yes.  But not depressed.  When something troubled him he usually went for a drive, not hike up a goddamn hill.  Evidence may suggest an accident, but I knew my brother.”

“So, you think—”

“Not think.”  Lee pointed at the computer screen.  “Daryl was number one.  I’m now convinced that whoever sent him
this
email, lured him and pushed him to his death.”

For a second, I struggled to breathe.  Shit. 
I’m number two.  This is for real. 

Lee spoke again, but I didn’t listen.  The shock wouldn’t let me concentrate. 

I wanted to get up and run out of the café, but the words ’pushed him’ seemed to nail me to the chair. 

“Chelsea,” he said loudly, snapping me back to reality.

My gaze attached to his, silently requesting another explanation.  Somewhere below awareness, I knew I’d expected chilling news.  But not to this extent.  “Tell me this is a wind up so I can go back to my friend, play the doting bridesmaid, and forget the whole thing.”  In my head, I began conjuring up alternative meanings.

“I’m sorry.  I’d love to tell you that email is an advertisement, a software scam or event reminder, something to be ignored.”  Lee gripped my arms.  His biting tone to my ears was as jolting as ice water to naked skin.  ”But, it’s not.  Chelsea, I don’t understand why, but whoever killed my brother, is now after you.”

CHAPTER 5

N
eeding comfort, I leaned my cheek against his hand then stared down in disbelief. 
This can’t be happening.  A death threat? 
Even though it had stopped, the tick, tick, tick of the countdown timer grew louder in my head.
 
My shoes hammered the floor, my whole body quivered with agitation.  Half of me believed it, half of me didn’t.  I jumped up and ran for the exit.  I slapped my palm on the door, pushed it open and hightailed down the street.

Footsteps pounded the pavement after me.  “Wait up, Chelsea.”

I ran flat out past shops, cars, and gawping pedestrians, tears on my cheeks, hair flapping in the wind.  My breathing quickened in time with my raging heartbeat. 

“Stop!” Lee shouted.  “Let’s talk about this.  Look, there’s a chance we could stop the timer, Chelsea.”

I slowed to a jog, surprised he’d chased me this far.

“Maybe it’s some type of sick game.  And Daryl... well, maybe he lost.”

“Stop it how?  Sick game for what?”  I glanced over my shoulder at him, then slammed arm first into a lamppost.  “Ouch!  Goddammit!”  I dropped to my knees on the concrete pavement and clutched my shoulder which hurt.

Lee came close enough that I could smell his aftershave.  “Are you okay?”

Gritting my teeth and rubbing my shoulder, I looked up, undecided on whether my head was spinning or the street was a merry-go-round.  “What do I do?  How do I stop this?”

Lee slid his hands around my waist from behind.  He helped me to my feet and spun me round to face him, as though I were on rollerblades.  He dusted dirt off my jeans.  “I’ll help you.  We’ll wait for the next email.  Let’s face it, you’re bound to get sent more.  There might be another puzzle.” 

This wasn’t the answer I’d hoped for.  I pushed his hands away.  “I don’t care about dirty knees.  Is that the best solution you’ve got?”  The brief trace of optimism left me and instead of feeling lifted, I felt like I was on the floor again.  I back-kicked the lamppost, fumbled and dithered, trying to think of a better solution. 

Lee gripped my shoulders, shook me, then held me still.  “We need to work out who’s got a grudge against you,
before
the clock reaches zero.  Are you listening?” 

I wasn’t equipped to handle a death threat.  Who is?  Nevertheless, options crisscrossed in my mind as though it functioned all on its own.  I nodded.  Lee was right.  What else could I do?  Wait for the next email and call the police.  In the meantime, instead of running off in a panic, I had to investigate who was after me, because clearly somebody was.

I patted Lee’s arm.  “Sorry.  I didn’t mean to shout at you.”

“I understand.  It’s a big shock.”

A young couple walked past us and stared.

“Let’s go to my place and think this through.”  I took several deep breaths then made straight for the car park and drove home in my white Corsa.  Lee followed in his silver Leon. 

During the quiet, thought-provoking journey, my feelings began changing.  They turned a half circle.  Strangely, I wanted the next email to come without delay.  The messages were a warning, and at this point, my only lead.  Without them, I’d have been blind to my future.

I peeked into the rearview mirror.  Lee was driving close behind me.  I indicated to turn left and steered into my street.

After parking, I stepped out onto the pavement and pointed at my front door.  “This is my house.” 

I stepped inside, flicked on the hall light, then moved into the dining room that housed my computer.  I felt as though I had a red target with the number two in its centre sprayed on my chest.  But, once Lee shut the front door I felt safer indoors, as though the walls of my old terraced house could protect me from the horrors I faced, well, at least from being seen.  Everything about my home was as expected, barring one thing.  The table lamp was aglow yet again.  “Damn dodgy switch,” I muttered, clicking it on and off several times. 

Lee lingered in the doorway. 

I crossed to him, grabbed his hand and drew him inside.  “Come in.  Sit down.  Make yourself at home.  Sorry about the mess.  Not had much of a chance to clean up recently.”

“Looks fine to me.  Kind of homely.”

Yeah, sure,
it used to be,
I thought, eyeing piles of old letters balanced atop the fireplace, and a can of lemonade and stray papers littering the floor by my desk.  I ignored the mess and glanced at Lee.  A stranger standing in my home.

Unsure of my next move, but pleased to have someone to share my worries, I wondered why he’d even care about my safety.  A few days ago he didn’t even realise I existed.  How crazy my life had become since the weekend.

“I don’t mean to sound ungrateful, but why do you want to help a total stranger?”  I dropped my handbag on the floor next to my tall vase of twigs wrapped with fairy lights, by the entrance to my kitchen.  “You could just leave.  I wouldn’t blame you.”

“I didn’t get the chance to help my brother.  Maybe things would be different if I had.  I have to learn to live with that.  But I’m going to help you.”  His voice was slow, but still had punch.  By the way his nostrils flared, I knew he meant it.

“Don’t beat yourself up about it.”  I knew firsthand how guilt could eat people up inside, because of the death of Laura’s parents.  “I understand.  It’s tough having the nagging ‘what ifs.’” 

Lee trudged over to the window and stared outside.  “I have to find out
why
Daryl died.  I won’t rest until I get answers.”

My mouth felt and tasted like dry sawdust.  I entered the kitchen, flicked the kettle on then returned.  “Sorry, Lee.  Do you mind if I make a quick phone call?”  I presumed Laura would be upset that I’d hung up on her earlier.  If I didn’t call, she’d likely phone me, or turn up at the same time as the police, once I’d called them.

Still staring out at my back garden, he said, “Go ahead.”

I fished my mobile out of my bag.

“Hi, Chelsea,” Laura said in a warm, relieved voice.  “I wondered how long it would be until you phoned.”

“I won’t be returning to your place tonight.  I’m really sorry, but something’s cropped up.”  I couldn’t worry Laura.  She didn’t deserve any more problems.

“What’s cropped up?”

“I’ll tell you another time.  But please, don’t worry.  What did you phone me for earlier?”

“What did that guy say to you?”

I tried to sound normal, calm.  “Oh, something about his brother.”

“What about him?”

“Later,” I said, looking at the back of Lee’s head.  “I just want to say I’m sorry, and I’m all right.”

“What did he ask you, Chelsea?”  The warm edge to Laura’s voice disappeared.  “What’s with all the secrecy?”

“We’ll chat, tomorrow.  But I have to hang up now.  I’m sorry for letting you down yet again.” 

“It
is
becoming a habit of yours lately,” she muttered.  “Are you still with... him?”

Given that I was meant to be keeping Laura company, she didn’t seem too disappointed.  She sounded more interested in Lee. 

“Yeah.  He’s here.”  I hoped my tone told her not to ask any more.  “Everything’s fine, I swear.  We’ll catch up tomorrow.”

I ended the call and couldn’t help thinking that the main screw up in my life involved Laura.  The car crash. 

“I could murder a cuppa,” Lee said, bringing me out of my private thoughts.

“Daryl wasn’t involved in any car accidents last year, was he?”  I moved to switch the computer on while the kettle reached the boil.  The sounds of the house coming to life broke the gloom brought back from the cafe. 

“No.  Why?  Have you come up with something?”

I shook my head.  “Not now you’ve said that.” 

Lee sat on the sofa while I logged into my emails.  The inbox popped up.  The window to the mystery.

“Nothing yet,” I said.

All we could do was mark time.  And chances were, it’d be a difficult wait finding out how long I had left on the countdown timer. 
Find out how I’m linked to Daryl,
I instructed myself.  I wanted to give the police something to go on.  I stood in the doorway to the kitchen and asked Lee to tell me about his brother.

He took a seat on the sofa.  “Daryl was a psychiatrist, very intelligent, but unfortunately quite a private guy.”  He lifted his gaze to the ceiling.  “A great brother though.  I can’t begin to tell you how much I miss him.”

“I’m sure you do.  Tell me more.  What was he like?”

“Motivated.  Happy.  Until the last week or so.”  Lee rounded forward on the sofa and rested his forearms on his knees.  “My parents prefer to accept the coroner’s ruling that his death was accidental.  I guess anything else is too much to bear.  But they’re blind, just like those useless cops.  Accident my ass!  I don’t accept that explanation.  Especially now.”

“So who would want to—” I gulped, struggling to get the word out.  “
Kill
him?”

Lee shrugged.  “Beats me.”

“I don’t even know what Daryl looks like.  I wouldn’t recognise him if he was standing in front of me, right now.” 

Lee made a throaty sound.  “Well, that’s not going to happen.”