Chapter Twenty
Brian had lost track of how much time had passed when the driver’s door of the SUV opened and a thickset deputy with a gray buzz cut slid inside. “How is Chloe?” Brian asked. “Is she going to be all right?”
“What’s your name?” the deputy asked.
“Brian Weeks.” He waited for the jolt of recognition, the hardening of the man’s gaze as he realized Brian was the man suspected of killing another young woman in the same alley.
“She asked for you,” the deputy said. “She said you saved her life.”
Relief swept over him in a dizzying wave. “She’s awake then. Is she going to be all right?”
“She was unconscious when we got here but she came to. They’re taking her to the hospital to check her out.”
A second deputy, younger than the first, slid into the passenger seat. “I’m going to read you your rights, then I want you to tell us your version of what happened,” he said.
Brian told the story—of deciding to go to the places Sharee had visited on her evening rambles in hopes of finding anyone who might have seen what happened the night she died.
Of his waiting for Chloe in the bar and getting the call from her phone.
Of finding her slumped on the ground, the woman with the knife standing over her.
“She threatened to kill Chloe. Then she went after my dog and I jumped her and wrestled the knife away.”
“Who is she?” the first deputy asked. “The woman with the knife?”
“I don’t know. But I can guess.”
“What’s your guess?”
“Chloe had a woman come to her shop who gave her name as Bunny Allerton. She wore a blond wig and a lot of makeup, like the woman in the alley. Chloe’s apartment was broken into and her purse was stolen and Chloe thought Bunny might have been responsible.
In the alley just now, she talked about her husband and kids.
I think her real name could be Douglas. She’s married to a man named Cameron Douglas, in Virginia. I can’t remember her first name.”
“Theresa Douglas,” the second deputy said. “Does the name ring a bell?”
“Yeah. But I don’t know why she was in that alley with Chloe. Chloe never did anything to hurt anyone.”
“Who is Cameron Douglas?” the first deputy asked.
“Chloe told me he was one of her sister Sharee’s teachers. Sharee had a crush on him and he filed a restraining order against her. She got kicked out of school and her parents decided to send her here to live with Chloe.”
“We recovered the knife in the alley,” the second deputy said. “Did you touch it?”
“No.”
The first deputy opened the driver’s door. “We’ll get prints and DNA from the knife. If you’re lying, we’ll know it.”
“I’m not lying,” Brian said.
“I’m not saying you are. But we will check.
” He stepped out of the car and opened the door to the passenger compartment.
“We’re going to take off those cuffs. You’ll need to come to the station and give a formal statement.
We’ll send someone to the hospital to talk to your girlfriend.
We want to get everyone’s stories straight. ”
“Then can I see Chloe?”
“You can do whatever you want after we’re done with you. But don’t go too far.”
CHLOE ACHED ALL OVER. Her hands hurt. Her head hurt.
And her throat burned as if she had swallowed acid.
She tried to sit up further in the hospital bed and focus on Detective Renfro in the chair beside it.
The bags under his eyes seemed even heavier and he looked as exhausted as she felt.
She had spent the last hour going over the events of the evening, croaking out the answers to his questions about Theresa Douglas and Sharee and Brian.
“Theresa admitted to me she killed Sharee,” she said.
“And then she attacked me. She took the scarf from around her neck and started choking me.”
Renfro consulted his notepad. “Ms. Douglas says Brian Weeks attacked her. When the first deputies arrived on the scene, he had her on the ground in the alley.”
“He must have been trying to save me,” Chloe said.
Fresh tears sprang to her eyes at the thought.
“I was already unconscious by then, but I had called Brian and left the call open in my pocket, so he would hear what was going on. He obviously got the call and found us in that alley and stopped her from killing me.”
“And you think Theresa Douglas wanted to kill you because of the photographs of her family your sister took?” Renfro asked.
“She thought the photos were of her husband and Sharee together. Or maybe of Sharee alone, meant to tempt Cameron Douglas into a relationship with Sharee. She had never seen the photos and had imagined the worst about them.”
“When we interviewed the Douglases, they both said Theresa was home with her children and her sister when your sister was murdered,” Renfro said.
“Her sister confirmed this. We even found a neighbor who was sure she had seen Theresa with the children in a neighborhood park the evening Sharee was murdered.”
“Theresa said she and her sister were close and would do anything for each other,” Chloe said.
“They’re also twins, did you know that?” Renfro said.
“She said something about that.” She tried to read the expression on his face. Was it less accusatory? “Her sister could have worn Theresa’s clothing and answered to her name and the neighbor wouldn’t have known the difference,” she said.
“Maybe.” Renfro checked his notes again. “Did she say anything about Brian Weeks’s ski glove?”
Chloe frowned. “No. She never mentioned the ski glove.”
“We’re trying to figure out how the glove got in that alley,” Renfro said. “With Brian Weeks’s and Sharee’s DNA on it.”
“I think Sharee took the glove from Brian,” Chloe said. “I think she had it in her pocket when she was killed. It could have fallen out in her struggle with Theresa.”
“And what led you to this conclusion?”
She explained her theory about the glove. “It’s the kind of thing I think Sharee would have done,” she concluded.
Renfro made a note. “We’ll look into it.”
“What did you do with Theresa? Are you going to charge her?”
“They have her at the station, questioning her. She’ll likely be retained in custody.”
“Where was she staying? We looked and looked and couldn’t find her?”
“She was in a vacation rental outside of town, registered under a fake name.”
“Where’s Brian? And Daisy! He had his dog with him.”
“We took the dog to the station. She’s safe. Brian is at the station, too, giving his statement.”
“When can I see him?”
“After he gives his statement, he’s free to come here.” He stood. “If you think of anything else that could be relevant, give us a call.” He laid a business card on the table beside the bed, then left the room.
Chloe lay back, tears leaking from her eyes, even though she didn’t want to cry.
Standing in that alley, hearing Theresa say all those terrible things, had been like losing Sharee all over again.
The panic that had paralyzed Chloe when Theresa wrapped the scarf around her throat had been the same panic Sharee had known in the last moments of her life.
A knock on the door brought her out of the spiral of dark thoughts. “Come in,” she said, and wiped her fingers beneath her eyes.
But the tears poured all over again when Brian stepped into the room. Sobs shook her and he rushed to gather her close. “It’s okay,” he said. “You’re safe now.”
“I thought they arrested you,” she said. “I told them you saved my life but I wasn’t sure they believed me.” She studied his face. He looked the worse for wear—uncombed hair, unshaven jaw.
“They had me in cuffs, but only until they got everything straightened out,” he said. “I guess when they showed up tonight they found me on top of a woman in an alley, with a second woman unconscious nearby, and they thought the worst.”
“I told them what happened,” she said.
“I did, too, and I’m sure our stories matched up.”
“Daisy!” She clutched his arm. “Did you find her? They told me they took her to the police station.”
“She’s fine. I took her home, and I promised her a cheeseburger. If she hadn’t distracted Theresa, we might have all been in that alley a lot longer.”
Chloe sat back, sadness returning. “Theresa killed Sharee. She told me such a wild story.”
“Shhh. You can fill me in on the details later.” He moved to sit on the side of the bed. “They told me she choked you unconscious. When they brought you out to the ambulance you weren’t moving and I was so afraid…” His voice broke.
“I’m okay. Tell me what happened in the alley.”
“I got your phone call and knew you were in trouble, but it took me a few minutes to find you,” he said.
“When I got there, you were on the ground, not moving, with a scarf around your neck, and Theresa was standing over you with a knife. She threatened me, and then Daisy began barking. Theresa told me to shut her up, but I couldn’t get Daisy to quiet down.
Then Daisy went after Theresa, who tried to slash her with the knife.
I saw red and jumped her.” He shook his head.
“I still can’t believe Daisy went after her.
Being gentle isn’t just her nature, it’s been drilled into her with her training. ”
“Someone threatened the person she loves most.” Chloe squeezed his hand. “Love can make all of us do things that seem impossible.”
“Theresa Douglas had a twisted view of love,” Brian said, “if she thought killing Sharee would save her marriage.”
“She did. And now she’s lost him and her children. She’ll probably spend a long time in prison.”
“I don’t care about her, as long as you’re safe,” he said. He reached out to touch her throat. “Does it hurt much?”
“A little.” A lot.
He kissed her throat, a silken, soothing caress of his lips. She smiled in spite of the pain. “You’re sure they’re not going to arrest you?” she whispered.
“They’re not.” He straightened. “Try to get some rest.”
She fell asleep with his hand in hers. When she awoke, he was still there, along with a man and woman she didn’t recognize.
“CHLOE, THIS IS my mom and dad.” Brian introduced his folks as soon as he realized Chloe had awakened. She still looked pale, with bruising around her throat, but she was still beautiful. Strong and brave.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Chloe,” his father said. He had Brian’s blond hair and boyish face, though he stood several inches shorter and wore wire-rimmed glasses. “Though we wish it was under better circumstances.”
“How are you feeling?” his mother asked. She had short curly brown hair, silver streaks catching the light.
“Better.” Chloe cleared her throat. “Thank you.” She tried to sit up. Brian moved to operate the controls to raise the bed.
“Brian has told us what happened,” his dad said. “You’ve been through a lot.”
“How did you get here so quickly?” Chloe glanced at Brian. “It’s only been a day. Or did I sleep longer than I thought?”
“It hasn’t even been twenty-four hours,” Brian said. “Mom and Dad were already on their way here.”
“As soon as Brian told us he was a murder suspect we had to come here to do what we could,” his mother said. “It’s terrible what happened, but it sounds like he doesn’t have to worry about the sheriff pressing charges now.”
“They arrested Theresa Douglas for Sharee’s murder,” Brian said. “And for attempting to murder you, the break-in of your apartment and probably some other things.”
“Everything happened so fast I’m still trying to absorb it all,” Chloe said.
“Me, too.” Brian had lived with the threat of arrest hanging over him for so long he had a hard time believing the ordeal had ended. Yet in other ways, that horror seemed part of an awful dream.
A commotion at the door made them look over. Connor, Stacy, and a woman he didn’t recognize came in. “We heard what happened,” Connor said. “We came to make sure you’re all right.”
“Doing better now,” Brian said. He shook Connor’s hand and accepted a hug from Stacy.
“I’m Nadia, one of the stylists at Chloe’s salon.” The tall woman offered a hand with bright pink nails. “Hello, Brian. I’ve been wanting to meet you.” Her eyes sparkled with mirth.
“Um, this is my mom and dad.” He made the rest of the introductions.
“It’s all over town they’ve arrested a woman for Sharee’s murder,” Connor said. “Did you have any idea?”
“Who is she?” Nadia asked. “And why did she try to kill Chloe, too?”
“It was Bunny,” Chloe said. “But her real name is Theresa Douglas. She’s the wife of a man Sharee was infatuated with.”
“I knew there was something not right about that woman,” Nadia said. “Her name! And the wig and heavy makeup.”
“She was an amateur actress,” Chloe said. “But she was accomplished enough to fool all of us. I had seen Theresa Douglas’s picture yet I didn’t recognize her at all as Bunny.”
“Apparently, she confessed everything,” Stacy said.
They all stared at her. She shrugged. “I talked to a deputy who was willing to give me the inside scoop. I’m sure it will be all over the news before too much longer.”
Connor clapped Brian on the back. “You can go back to being Brian, not Dave.”
Nadia moved closer to Chloe. “Don’t worry about the shop. We’re all going to pitch in to take care of everything until you’re back on your feet.”
“Thank you,” Chloe said. “That means a lot.”
“You mean a lot to us,” Nadia said.
“I took you off the schedule for today,” Connor told Brian. “Let me know when you’re ready to come back, but don’t think you have to rush. And if you need me to look after Daisy, let me know.”
“Daisy and I will be back soon,” Brian said. He looked forward to getting out on the snow, in the cold and fresh air, letting the mountains work their healing magic.
A nurse appeared in the doorway. “We have a limit of one visitor at a time,” she said.
“We just stopped by to say hello,” Connor said.
“I have to open the shop,” Nadia said.
“We’ll see you at your place,” Brian’s dad said.
A minute later, only Chloe and Brian were left in the room. “I didn’t want them to leave,” Chloe said. “I never felt so surrounded by love.”
“You’re still surrounded by love.” He sat on the side of the bed and took her hand. “I love you. As horrible as this whole experience has been, I wouldn’t wish it away if it meant I wouldn’t have found you.”
“I love you, too,” she said, and leaned forward to kiss him.
When the nurse returned, she found them still in each other’s arms. She left the room again and shut the door gently behind her.
Brian savored the moment. Soon enough, life would move forward again.
Chloe would be released from the hospital; they would go back to work.
Maybe he would even take Connor up on the offer of help with the senior certification process.
One day there would be a trial. But for this moment he savored the sensation of time stopping to acknowledge this precious thing they had found.
The chance to be there for each other, facing whatever came next together, as Chloe had said, surrounded by love.