Chapter 19 #2
He shook his head rigorously. “No. I don’t know that at all. From what you reported, they were both there. If your memory is even correct.” He was gaslighting her, making it seem like she didn’t know what was going on. It made her even angrier.
“You don’t want to believe that she’s capable of all this.
But you have to wonder how your wife died in that car crash and Desiree walked away without a mark on her.
Desiree was driving. She lost control of the car.
But she was on a road with a speed limit of forty miles an hour.
Yet the car hit that tree on the side, smashing it in so hard that Gayle died.
” More revelations hit her. “She must have been speeding recklessly. Or more accurately, purposefully to hit that turn and slide into that tree, crushing her mother.”
His gaze dropped away again, tears sliding down his cheeks.
“Oh my god. She did it. She killed her mother.”
“I wasn’t there. I don’t know what really happened.” He bit out the words, a world of rage in them.
“But you had your guys on the case investigating. You saw the photos and evidence. They’d covered up so many other things she’d done. You had them by the balls. So they did what they expected you wanted them to do and they declared it an accident.”
The fact that he couldn’t meet her gaze spoke volumes.
“I just spent two minutes thinking about it and the answer is so obvious now—you think your whole department was stumped for years? Please. We can’t all be blind and stupid.”
“You don’t know anything. The accident reports are clear. It was an accident.”
“Bullshit. You let her get away with murder. Literally. She killed your wife. Her own mother. And then she killed my family and tried to kill me.”
He didn’t say anything for a long time, then his head came up and he looked her right in the eye and confessed, “Gayle was gone. The only person I could try to save was my daughter. She’s all I have left.”
“No. You have a granddaughter who needs you. Because Desiree is never going to stop being who she is. I’ve been thinking about all those reports in my file.
The things that have happened to me over the years.
They were all preceded by some kind of argument or perceived slight with Desiree.
At the time I never saw it. I never suspected her.
I thought she was my friend. But you’re right, she doesn’t want me to be happy.
She wants me clinging to her. My only friend.
The only one who’s stood beside me through everything.
She likes to smack me down, then pull me close.
It’s a twisted game with her. Except this time, she tried to kill me, steal my boyfriend, and pin it on Neil.
Again. Who does that to the father of their child? ”
Bob’s eyes went wide. “She told you.”
“She didn’t have to.” She tapped her finger to her temple. “I remember seeing him that night, asking someone. ‘Are you going to let me see her now?’ He wasn’t talking to me. He was talking to Desiree, asking if he could see Krystal.”
“Yes. Think about Krystal. If you blow this all up, Krystal won’t have a mother.”
“Good. Desiree doesn’t deserve that little girl. She’ll corrupt her, or worse, treat her the way she’s treated me. No. I won’t let that happen. She’s not going to stop.” Another revelation came to her. “You know why she tried to kill me that night?”
“Lucky, please.”
“She wanted me to help set her up with Lincoln Gunn at the bar. She thought he was sexy and had a lot of money. The perfect guy, even if she knew absolutely nothing about him. But I knew Hawk, so Desiree thought I could somehow make it happen. When I tried, Lincoln shut me down, saying politely that he’s not dating right now.
It wasn’t a cut to Desiree. I’m sure he had his reasons, but it had nothing to do with her.
She was furious with me. I can only imagine how even more irate she was when she walked into my hospital room and found not only Hawk there, but Lincoln, too.
” And more pieces fell into place. “That’s probably why she set up my place to burn and slashed my tire, then tried to flirt her way into Hawk’s heart and me out of it. ”
Rage built inside her. “I’m going to take her down. She will not get away with this anymore. The question is, are you going to stop me? Because I know you’re not going to help.”
He fell back, leaning on his desk. “There’s no evidence linking her to her mother’s death, your family’s murders, or anything else that she’s done to you. Neil’s claims that he didn’t do it aren’t enough. I won’t help you hurt my daughter. I can’t.”
“Will you help save your granddaughter before Desiree turns on her?”
The silence in the room could be cut with a knife, it felt so thick and heavy.
She pushed. “Desiree needs to be stopped before she kills anyone else you love.” She drove the first nail into his coffin.
“Jase has already figured out that Desiree is the most likely suspect. Will you fire him to protect Desiree? Will you let this go on until she hurts someone else? Me? Hawk, because he dares to love me? Lincoln because he turned her down for a date? What does she have to do before you do something, even if it’s simply letting me take her down? ”
“The knife is gone and probably didn’t have her prints on it anyway. You have no memory of that night before Hawk found you. What is it that you think you can do to prove anything?”
“Leave that to me. I know how to handle her. I’ve had years of experience. But it will only work if you don’t tell her I’m coming after her.”
He planted his hands on his hips and stared up at the ceiling. “I want Krystal safe. I want her to feel loved.”
“Maybe what she needs are grandparents who put her first.” Between Bob and Neil’s parents, maybe Krystal had a chance to grow up loved like she deserved.
A knock sounded on the glass in the door.
Lucky turned to find Hawk pointing down the hallway as he mouthed Desiree.
A few seconds later, Desiree stood in front of Hawk and walked her fingers up his chest as she purred, “Hello again. Miss me?”
Hawk’s face remained void of emotion as he stepped out of reach. “I’m just waiting for my girlfriend.” His gaze turned to Lucky and he smiled. The kind of smile he only gave her. One filled with love and an I want you attached to it.
Desiree opened the door and stepped in, her gaze shifting from me to her father and back again. “Hey,” she said to Lucky. “I heard you were in the building. I thought I’d run over and see if you were okay? Is everything all right?” Her gaze shot to her dad, then back again.
“Everything is fine,” Bob assured her. “Lucky came in to answer some questions for Jase about her case. She just wanted to say hi and let me know she was on the mend.”
“Yes,” she rushed to say. “Your dad just wanted a few minutes to find out how I am and what I’ve been up to since we haven’t seen each other in a while.” She bumped her shoulder against Desiree’s. “I think he also wanted to find out if Hawk is treating me right.”
“He better be.” Bob stared down Hawk, who was leaning against the doorframe now.
Hawk held his hand out. Lucky took it without hesitation and leaned into his side, his arm wrapped around her waist. “Hawk loves me. I’m happier than I’ve ever been.”
Which should make my best friend happy for me.
Except Desiree’s smile didn’t reach her eyes and her face tightened, like it was a strain to hold her smile.
“You kept him a secret for a good long while.” Desiree shifted her gaze to Hawk, her sultry glance rude and inappropriate, especially right in front of Lucky.
“I look forward to getting to know you better.”
Hawk kissed Lucky on the head and asked her, “Did you get what you needed?”
Not yet. “I guess we’ll never know what really happened that night, with my memory wiped.”
“Still no leads?” Desiree stared at her father.
“Jase is heading up the case. He’s hit a dead end.”
Desiree chuckled. “Just like Lucky almost did.” No one except Desiree found that funny in the slightest.
“You ready to go?” Hawk asked. “I thought we could head over to Lincoln’s place and you can finally give him that quote and get him on your schedule.”
“Sounds good.” It was a way out of here without looking suspicious.
“Can I come?” Desiree chimed in. “I’d love to see his place and maybe get another shot at a date.”
Lucky frowned. “Um, this is business, and I would only feel comfortable doing that if I had Lincoln’s permission. Sorry. You understand, right?”
Desiree stared daggers at her. “Fine. Whatever.” She didn’t deserve a man like Lincoln.
“We should get going. I want to ask Lincoln if he knows a good time to meet Mercy for drinks, since he seems to know her so well.”
“Drinks?” Desiree eyed her.
“Yeah. Mercy works with the Gunn brothers. She’s close to Hawk and I want to be part of his world, so when Mercy asked me out for drinks, I thought it was a great way to make a new friend.”
Bob’s gaze narrowed. He was catching on to her baiting Desiree, making herself a target. She was allowed to make new friends, even if it did make Desiree feel threatened.
She set the trap. All she had to do was wait for Desiree to retaliate.
“I’m surprised you want to go out drinking after what happened last time.” Desiree tried to look sympathetic but it was just another fake mask.
“Mercy promised Lincoln or Hawk would pour for us and no one else.”
Hawk grinned. “So I’m invited to this girls’ night?”
“It is your bar. And you’re buying, right?” she teased.
“Anything you want, it’s yours.”
“You. That’s all I want.”
He kissed her right there in front of the two people she had left from her past, who should have been the ones she could count on to have her back. Neither of them did and it left her feeling like everything they’d shared over her whole life was a lie.
Hawk drew her out of the office before he ended the kiss, making her laugh.
She was smiling so big, it was hard to stop when she turned to Desiree. “Let’s catch up soon. I’ll call you. Kiss Krystal for me. I love that little girl. I’d do anything for her.” She looked past Desiree to Bob. “Thank you for the talk and helping me see things clearly.”
“It’s the least I can do.”
Yes, it was. The very least. He should have done so much more.
He could have saved her family. Danny.
As she and Hawk made their way down the hall, she heard Desiree ask her father, “What did she mean?”
His answer assured her that he’d keep quiet about what she knew.
“She was upset and ranting about the injustice of the case. I promised I wouldn’t tell anyone about her outburst, then laid out the very few pieces of evidence we’ve found.
I promised her we’d keep investigating and that she has every right to be angry we haven’t caught the person who nearly killed her. ”
Lucky hoped he choked on those words and really took them to heart. Because that’s what Desiree had intended.
She left me there, naked and alone.
Some friend.
She’s going down.