Chapter 46 Grayden
FORTY-SIX
Grayden
I was exhausted, and if I drank another cup of disgusting coffee, I’d wind up with an ulcer.
The door to the interview room opened, and I dragged my head up. Chief Nichols was back, holding another file folder. “Mr. O’Neal, can I get you anything? Do you need a restroom break?”
“Had one an hour ago. Had some dinner too. I’m good. But you must be sick of this song and dance. Could we at least get some music? Might break the monotony.”
She didn’t respond to my suggestion, but a muscle in her cheek twitched.
I’d been going back and forth about trying to end the interview. They couldn’t keep me here forever. But if I demanded an attorney or asked to leave, it was entirely possible Nichols would decide to arrest me instead.
I couldn’t imagine she had enough evidence, because I hadn’t done anything, but that didn’t always matter, did it?
And my other deeper fear was that, if I left, they might go after Piper and drag her in here instead of me.
“Just a few more questions,” Nichols said, taking her seat across from me. “I truly appreciate your patience.”
The chief opened the file folder and turned it around to face me. There were photos inside. Despite my mental fatigue, I couldn’t help leaning forward to study them.
“The Pine Cone Motor Lodge,” I said.
“You recognize it? The sign’s not visible in this photo.”
“I stayed there a little while. Right after I got back to Silver Ridge.” What did this have to do with anything?
“Daniel Carmichael has been staying there as well.”
“Is that important? I haven’t been near that motel in over a month at least.”
She flipped to the next photo, placing another beside it. “Do you recognize either of these items?”
There was a knife covered in blood. A sweatshirt with Seattle written across it. Looked like mine. But the white letters were smudged with red.
I said nothing.
“We found these items at the Pine Cone Motor Lodge, thrown into some bushes. We believe this knife is the weapon used against Mr. Carmichael.”
My pulse was racing, but I still couldn’t tell whether this news was good or bad.
Chief Nichols folded her hands. “From other evidence in the parking lot of the Pine Cone, it looks like that was the scene of the stabbing. Mr. Carmichael drove away, possibly to escape the attack, and for some reason headed toward his ex-wife’s house.
And that’s where he ran into you. Well, not literally. ”
“Thank fuck for that,” I muttered. “So you finally believe I’m telling the truth?”
“A recording on a neighbor’s doorbell camera helped.
It shows exactly what you described. Mr. Carmichael nearly hit you as his car careened off the road.
Likely because he was losing consciousness.
You opened his door and tried to render aid.
Our medical examiner hasn’t completed his report, but he agrees Mr. Carmichael had lost significant blood before that point. You couldn’t be the attacker.”
I dropped my head into my hands, going faint with relief. “Why are you telling me all of this?”
“Because I just had a witness identify the knife used in the attack.” She tapped the photo. “We’ve now confirmed it came from Piper Carmichael’s garage.”
I sat up with a jolt. “Piper? She had nothing to do with any of this. She and her son were at their house all night with me.”
Nichols shook her head. “No, I’m not accusing Piper of anything. Piper reported a break-in at her garage a few days ago.”
“Yeah. I was there. Officer Bronski’s smooth police work helped the culprit get away.”
“Our current theory is that someone attacked Mr. Carmichael and intended to frame Piper. And you. If this Seattle sweatshirt is indeed yours?” She pointed at the other photo.
“I have no idea.” I wasn’t ready to give up anything just yet. How could I know that sweatshirt was mine, based on some photo?
Could this possibly be a trick? An elaborate ploy to get me to make an incriminating admission?
It didn’t seem like it, though.
“I had more than one break-in at the place I’m renting from Piper.
The first was when Danny broke in looking for something he wanted.
A jewelry box that belonged to Piper’s mom.
Piper told you about that already. The second was whenever the fake package of drugs was planted, and you know about that too. But I thought Danny was responsible.”
“Do you have any idea who’d want to harm Daniel Carmichael and frame you and Piper?” Chief Nichols asked.
“No. None whatsoever.” Then I thought of my confrontation with Danny at the bar last week.
Again, Nichols knew about that. But there was something else.
“When I saw Danny on Thursday night at the bar, he said, ‘You’re late’, before he looked up.
Like he’d expected someone else. I have no idea who he was meeting. ”
“We’ll look into that.” Nichols took out her phone and typed out a note. “God willing, Mr. Carmichael will recover soon and be able to share what he knows. I’m sure this process hasn’t been pleasant, but your cooperation has been very helpful.”
“I’d say you’re welcome, but…”
“I’m afraid I need more, though. I’ll be asking Piper the same thing.
If you think of anything else, any reason someone would try to frame you, please share it.
We have no idea if Mr. Carmichael was the real target, or you, or Piper.
We have no idea what this person is really after. Or what they might do next.”
Nichols had a few more questions for me. But finally, she gave me back my phone and told me I could go.
“Do you still have my card with my number?” she asked. “In case you think of anything?”
“I’ll figure it out.” I just wanted the hell out of here.
And I wanted, more than anything, to see Piper.
Someone opened the interview room door for us. Nichols waved me forward, and I stepped out into the hall.
Then I stopped short. Teller Landry was leaning casually against the wall just outside the interview room.
“Susan,” he said, nodding at Nichols.
“Hey, Teller. Can you see that Mr. O’Neal gets where he needs to go?”
“Plan to.”
“Do I get a say in this?” I asked.
It was the first time I’d seen Teller in about fifteen years, and I was just leaving a police station after spending last night at his sister’s house. I had no idea if he’d want to slug me for touching her or what.
The hell was he doing here?
Chief Nichols winked, like we were all friends. “Officer Landry is here as a private citizen today. I think you two should have a chat.”
“That’s what I was hoping for.” Teller’s light-green eyes, the same as Piper’s, were serious. But angry? Ready to dismember me for defiling his baby sister?
Not so much.
We walked toward the exit. The other officers and staff members stared, and I noticed Officer Bronski wasn’t here. Maybe he’d leave me the hell alone next time we crossed paths.
In the parking lot, Teller said, “Piper sent me. She’s been very worried about you.”
As he spoke, I saw the notifications on my phone. Piper had called and texted. So had Callum and Grace. The only other friend I really had was Milo. I wondered if he’d heard about what happened.
We got into Teller’s truck, and I sent off a quick text to Piper.
Hey sweetheart, I’m sorry it took me so long to respond. I’ll catch you up on what happened today. I’m fine. Teller’s taking me somewhere to chat. So if they don’t find my body…
Just kidding. Mostly.
I miss you and I hope you and Ollie are okay. Let me know where you are. I’ll see you soon.
Seconds later, she wrote back.
Thank God. I’m at the hospital. We’re okay. Just want to see you
“I didn’t even know you were in town,” I said, tucking my phone away for the moment. “Don’t think Piper knew either.”
“I dropped everything and got here as soon as I could today. Danny isn’t my favorite person, but I knew Piper would need support.”
“Good. Glad she has that from you.”
“Of course she does,” Teller said. “She’s my sister.”
This was awkward. Things used to be so easy between Teller and me. Another lifetime ago. But we’d grown apart even before I went to prison.
I’d heard about Teller being wounded as a Green Beret. The scars on his face hinted at that story. Piper had mentioned he and Ayla lived in Silver Ridge part time now, spending the rest of their time in LA or traveling.
His life couldn’t have been more different from mine. I didn’t know Teller at all anymore. It was impossible to imagine ever getting back to the camaraderie we used to have. The brotherhood.
My sleeping with his sister probably wasn’t helping.
I had to be upfront about it. If only because I preferred to be on offense right now than defense.
“I haven’t told Piper this yet, but I’m in love with her.”
Teller cursed, and his truck swerved slightly within the lane.
“Not what you wanted to hear?” I asked.
“Man, what do you expect me to say? Congratulations?”
“That might be nice, actually.”
His jaw tightened, and he tapped one finger against the gearshift. “Are you sure you’re in love with Piper? Or is it what she represents? A chance to get back a piece of what you lost.”
I frowned at the window as trees whipped past. “I don’t love an idea.
I love her. Everything about her. I love Piper’s sense of humor and her love for her son and her passion for life.
Her kindness. Some people think empathy is for suckers.
That’s not the world I want to live in. In my life, I’ve had some time to sit around and contemplate what really matters.
Not claiming to have any profound answers.
I’ve made plenty of mistakes and taken wrong turns.
But Piper…she’s everything that matters for me. ”
Teller was quiet for a long moment.
“That was quite a speech.”
I glared from the side of my eye. He was smirking. “Fuck you,” I said, but there wasn’t much bite to the words.
“Can’t imagine the Grayden O’Neal I used to know being so damn talkative.”
“It’s called eloquent. That’s the word you were looking for. Eloquent.”
He snickered, and just for a few seconds, it was like a couple decades had disappeared from the gulf between us.
I crossed my arms. “Where are you taking me, anyway? Am I about to meet my end off some cliff? A chief of police can probably cover up a crime better than anyone.”
“Let’s not even joke about that.”
“Why? Because you and I have tended to be on opposite sides of the justice system?”
“No. Because I may have interfered with the Silver Ridge PD investigation today, and I’m trying not to feel bad about it.”
“What?”
He shrugged, one hand steering us through the curves in the road.
“I bent the rules. Piper asked me to come to the station and see what I could do for you. I convinced Chief Nichols to interview me as a witness. That way, she could show me exactly what evidence they had against you. Technically, I was just sharing what personal info I had on those subjects. I didn’t expect to have useful information. ”
“Nichols mentioned a witness identifying Piper’s knife. That was you, wasn’t it?”
“Yeah. But I was just telling the truth. And it’s Ollie’s camping knife, actually. I bought it for him.”
Teller explained what had gone down over my dinner break.
After he’d seen the photo of the knife, he’d called Piper for permission to check her garage.
He and Nichols had driven to Piper’s house.
They’d found the leather sheath and holster, all part of a fancy camping knife set Teller gave Ollie for his last birthday.
But no knife.
“When I got to the station a couple hours ago,” Teller said, “I had no idea if I could help or not. By then, Chief Nichols was starting to have serious doubts about your guilt. The timing and events just didn’t add up. It’s clear the stabbing took place at the Pine Cone, and you weren’t there.”
“I was at Piper’s.”
“Yeah, I heard,” he said tightly. “Anyway, the perp tossed the knife, along with that Seattle sweatshirt, as false clues. It’s sheer coincidence you wound up discovering Danny slumped in his car.”
A damn lucky coincidence, in a weird way. I couldn’t have stabbed Danny at his motel and also waved goodbye to Piper and Ollie at the same time. And then jumped out of the way of his car minutes later on Piper’s street.
“I’m just glad I could provide one more piece of the puzzle,” Teller said.
“Before that, you thought I did it. Didn’t you?”
He took a long breath. “I had to entertain the possibility.”
We drove in silence for a while. I still had no idea where we were heading, but it was outside Silver Ridge. Made me think of the drives Teller and I used to take. Talking, laughing. Just being there for each other.
Finally, I said, “I get it. You don’t know me. I’m just a violent ex-con to you. An ex-con who’s trying to get his hooks in your sister, from your perspective.”
Teller pulled us into a bright parking lot.
“You’re more than that,” he said hoarsely.
“You were my friend, as Piper keeps reminding me. You were family. Just like Ashford, Callum, and Grace are to me. But you…with all the shit that happened with our parents, you and I stood shoulder to shoulder. We tried to take care of the others. For a while there, I counted on you, and I think you counted on me too.”
“I did. You were my fucking brother.” I blinked at the windshield as my eyes stung. “I messed that up too, even before my arrest, and I’m sorry for it. Sorry for a lot of things. Maybe that doesn’t mean much to you, but—”
“No, it does,” Teller said. “Remorse isn’t a weakness. It’s cowards who hide behind lies and excuses. It takes strength to admit when you’ve done wrong.”
He turned and looked at me, and the barrier behind his eyes shifted. Like he was really considering me for the first time since we’d met in the station hallway earlier.
“Piper keeps telling me to listen to your side of the story. Do you want me to do that? Do you think it’ll make a difference?”
“You have to decide for yourself. I’ve told Piper nearly everything. I need to tell my siblings the whole story. It’s long past time. Might be easier if I can tell all of you at once, but I still don’t know if I can get Ashford into the same room as me.”
Teller pointed at the large building in front of us, and I finally registered where we were. Hart County General Hospital.
He’d brought me to Piper. That had to be a positive sign.
“Everyone’s here,” Teller said. “Even Ashford. They’re here for Piper.”
“Because she’s amazing.” She deserved everything. All the love in the world.
“But from what I’ve seen, her faith in you hasn’t wavered for a single second. That’s what convinced me to go to the station and try to help you. If anyone can convince Ashford to listen and give you a chance, it’s her.”