When the Smoke Clears (Deadly Reunions) (20 page)

Hunter froze. “Chad?” He looked beyond his brother. “Alexia?”

Katie strode up behind Hunter. “What’s going on here?”

“The guy may still be here,” Chad snapped as he pointed his weapon at the floor. “Ambulance is on the way for Mrs. Wickham. The husband didn’t make it. I’m going to check out the back.”

Hunter and Katie immediately drew their weapons.

“I’ll go with you,” Katie said to Chad.

With that, they disappeared, weapons ready. Hunter strode toward Alexia. “How’s she doing?”

“Not good.”

“What are you doing here?”

She glanced up at him. “I woke up and got your message this morning. Thought I’d come pay my respects. Tell them how sorry I was that I couldn’t—” She stopped and looked away.

He thought he caught a sheen of tears in her eyes, but when she glanced back up, they were gone.

Katie reentered the room. “All clear in the house, I told the paramedics to come on in.”

Paramedics made their way inside. Hunter slid his weapon back into his holster and watched as they took over the work on Mrs. Wickham.

Alexia held her hands out in front of her and stared at them. Once again, she had someone else’s blood on her hands. Hunter placed a hand under her arm and gently propelled her out of the house where he helped her wash them off in the back of the ambulance.

As he dried her hands, she looked at him, eyes red, yet dry. But the emotion in them nearly tore him in two. “What’s happening, Hunter?” she whispered.

After a moment of hesitation, he pulled her to him and she rested her head on his chest. “I don’t know, Alexia, but you sure seem to be caught in the middle of it.”

She let out a humorless laugh. “I didn’t ask for this.”

“I know.”

A van and two other vehicles pulled up next to the house, and Hunter stepped back. “CSU’s here.”

She nodded. “All right.”

Chad stepped out of the house and Hunter met him halfway between the front door and the ambulance. “What are you doing here?”

Chad shrugged. “I was bored.”

Anger swelled up in Hunter’s chest, and with effort, he shoved it down. “Bored, huh?” He swallowed the words he would regret if he let them pass his lips. “I see. Well, how did you know to come to the Wickhams’?”

“Christine may have mentioned you planned on questioning them this morning.”

Hunter nodded and gazed at the house. “This is my case, Chad. I don’t need you messing with it.”

Hurt crossed his brother’s face and Hunter wondered if it was real or affected. Chad said, “Thanks, bro. I try to support you and this is what I get?”

Drop it,
he ordered himself. He sighed. “You look good, Chad. Glad to see you back on the job.”

A grin that most ladies couldn’t resist replaced the hurt. “Yeah. It feels good.”

“What brought on this change?”

A nonchalant shrug, but his eyes were on Alexia. “It was time.”

Alexia watched the action in the room. Katie ignored her as she discussed the case with Chad and Hunter.

When CSU arrived, Hunter and Chad filled them in. Finally, the two brothers were distracted. Alexia walked up to Katie and asked, “What do you know about Dominic?”

Katie simply looked at her. “What do you care?”

“I care, okay? Is he all right?”

The detective shrugged. “I guess. Last time I heard from him.”

“When was that?” Alexia gritted her teeth. What she wanted to do was grab the woman and give her a good shaking until everything she knew spilled out of her.

“About three years ago, okay?”

“No, not okay. Where was he? What was he doing?”

“I don’t know. He called to check on your mother. I haven’t heard from him since.” She clicked her pen shut. “Now, are you done with the questions? I’ve got a case to solve.”

“Wait.” She placed a hand on the detective’s arm. “Please. Did he say anything about our father? Did he—” she swallowed—“did he ask about me?”

“No. To both questions.”

Hunter turned back to Alexia, his eyes darting between his partner and the woman he was falling for. Something had just gone on with them and he wondered what it was. He walked up to Alexia. “Are you ready to go home?”

Yes. “No. I need to go to the hospital to see my mother. She’s already called me like five times since I stumbled on the Wickhams. I need to see what she wants. I also need to tell her about Devin—and now, his parents.”

“Come on, I’ll give you a ride.”

“I can take you if you want.” Chad’s voice rang between them.

Alexia looked surprised. “Well thanks, I appreciate that. But I have my car here, remember?”

“Sure, no problem.” Chad gave another one-shouldered shrug, but Hunter thought it looked forced. As did the smile.

She looked at Hunter. “I want to talk to you about what you learned this morning when you talked to Marcie Freeman.”

He nodded. “I’ll meet you at Serena’s house. You can drop your car there, and I’ll drive you to the hospital to visit your mother.”

“Okay. Give me a little time. I—” she looked at the house that contained the crime scene and shuddered—“need a shower.” Alexia turned and walked to her car.

Hunter noticed Chad’s eyes following her until she climbed in. Then Chad looked back at Hunter and gave an odd little smile.

“What?” Hunter frowned at him.

“May the best man win.”

26

Thursday, 11:42 a.m.

Back at Serena’s house, Alexia took a long, hot shower and thought about the incidents of the morning. She couldn’t believe Devin’s father was dead and his mother close to it. Who had wanted them dead and why? Sheer coincidence that they were attacked so soon after their son was murdered? No, she wasn’t buying that one. There had to be a connection. But what? None of it made any sense.

She dressed and made ready to meet Hunter. He still had some things to take care of at the Wickham house, but he should be here soon.

As she walked down the hall to the kitchen, Yoda followed at her feet. Scratching the faithful animal behind the ears, she couldn’t help but wonder what Hunter had learned from Marcie. And why did that name sound so familiar?

She poured out the morning’s coffee, rinsed and refilled the coffeemaker, then filled the animals’ bowls.

The knock on the door made her jump. Yoda padded over to it and sat on her haunches as she waited for her to look through the peephole.

Her heart stuttered and her pulse jerked. Hunter was here. Placing a hand on her stomach, she waited a few seconds to give the butterflies time to settle.

Opening the door, she pulled in a deep breath and smiled.

“You ready?” he asked.

“As I’ll ever be, I suppose.”

They climbed in the car and Hunter glanced at her. “I got a call from Chief Granger.”

“Who?”

“The guy investigating the fire at Katie’s house.”

Wariness filled her. “What’d he say?”

Hunter’s fingers tapped the wheel. “It was arson. The person used paint thinner as the accelerant.”

Alexia froze. Paint thinner. The same kind of accelerant that had been used in the fire that had burned her home to the ground as a teenager.

More tapping. “My car had C-4 in it. Traces of paint thinner were also found there.”

She gulped, unsure what to say, how to respond. She looked at him. Did he think she had something to do with the fire? She’d been all alone when it was set—she had no alibi. And as for his car . . . “Hunter—”

“He also said they found something at the fire.”

Apprehension coursed unabated now. “Come on, Hunter, quit tiptoeing around whatever it is you’re trying to tell me.” She looked up and blinked. “And why are we back at my mother’s house? I need to get to the hospital.”

He parked in the drive and sighed. “They found a piece of jewelry that belongs to you.”

“Me?” she squeaked. “How would they know my jewelry?”

“They don’t. I did.” He pulled out his phone. “Katie texted me this.”

She looked and gasped. The letter
X
on a silver chain. “What? That’s not possible.” Alexia exploded from the car and hurried up the front walk. Jamming her key in the lock, she twisted it and raced to her room. Heart pounding, pulse racing, she stood in the doorway and forced air into her lungs.

She heard Hunter calling her name even as his footsteps charged after her. Her gaze landed on the desk. The necklaces all lined up in perfect order.

Except for the one that was missing.

Hunter watched her walk toward the necklaces as though in a trance. One by one, she checked them, then turned to him in disbelief. “It’s really not there.”

“Who else has access to this house?”

“I have no idea.”

“Then I suggest we visit your mother and get a list.”

Still looking a little dazed, she nodded. “Right.”

Back in the car, Alexia was silent for the first few minutes.

“What are you thinking?”

“That I should be ashamed of myself,” she whispered.

He blinked as her words sank in. “Excuse me?”

“I’ve been a selfish brat.”

“What brought that on?”

“I’ve been trying to think of who might have a key to my mother’s house and realize I don’t have a clue. I should have at least a clue.”

“It’s been ten years, Alexia.” He kept his voice soft, nonjudgmental. At least he hoped he did.

“I should have made more of an effort to get in touch with her. Leaving those stupid messages—” Her voice caught. “She apologized to me. For being a lousy mother.”

“Hmm.”

She looked at him. “I guess it’s my turn to apologize to her for being a lousy daughter.”

He glanced at her from the corner of his eye. “You’ve grown up, Lex.”

Silence filled the car until she blew out a soft breath and asked, “What did you learn from Marcie Freeman?”

“That she and Devin were dating. But it looks like he was also seeing someone else and that someone didn’t particularly like the fact that Marcie was in the picture.”

She blinked. “Really? How did Marcie know that?”

“Marcie got a note telling her to back off from Devin.”

A frown pulled her brows down. “But that doesn’t make sense. Devin is the one who was killed.”

“I know. You’re right. It is weird.”

“Unless Devin did something that made his killer mad.”

“Ya think?”

She rolled her eyes. “Well yes, of course, Devin did something to get himself killed. But that still doesn’t make sense because the person on the phone specifically said, ‘Next time I won’t kill the wrong person.’”

Hunter blew out a breath. “Yeah. And with Devin’s father being murdered, his mother barely hanging on . . .”

“Can you find out who sent the note to Marcie?”

“I sent it to the lab. My guess is the person wore gloves, and it looks like it was written on standard white copy paper. I doubt we’ll get anything off of it. Our best bet is asking around to see if anyone knows who else he was seeing—or someone who was interested in seeing him. Could be some kind of stalker thing going on here.”

“Try the church.”

“Yes. That’s our next step. Apparently he was pretty active. Knew lots of people. I’m hoping someone will have something to tell me that will lead me somewhere besides another dead end.” He smiled. “You’re starting to think like a cop. Good job.”