Chapter 11
Chapter Eleven
“Ispoke to Grant about what Abby told me she saw. He had no idea what I was talking about. I asked to talk to Jason, but he refused.” Charlie read aloud from the journal and couldn’t believe her uncle never mentioned any of this before.
“You think Jason had something to do with what happened to Abby?”
“It’s possible.” Ryan handed her a cup of coffee and pulled out the chair next to her. “Withholding evidence goes against everything I know about Pete. You think Grant threatened him?”
Charlie rejected the idea immediately. “I don’t think it would matter. Pete wouldn’t keep something like this to himself. We’re missing something.”
Ryan indicated the journal. “Keep reading. Maybe we’ll get a better understanding of what happened.”
She flipped through several pages of Pete going over what he discovered at the Owens’ old house and his conversation with Grant.
“This might be something. It’s the last post in the journal.
‘I saw him in town today. Jason. He was talking with Lila. They seem to be friendly. I tried to warn her off Jason, but I couldn’t tell her what I knew and risk giving too much away.
I asked her how long she’d been speaking to him.
Lila played it coy as usual. She said they’re friends, but I saw the way he looked at her and she him. ”
Charlie sat back in her seat. “Lila never mentioned anything about seeing Jason when we were teens. I wonder if there’s still something going on between them.”
“Maybe it just slipped her mind.” Ryan flipped through the journal. “Still, it’s worth talking to her.”
Before she could respond, Ryan’s phone rang. He fished it out of his pocket. “Boone.”
Ryan answered the call putting it on speaker. “Have you found out anything about Jason or his father?” Ryan briefed Boone about the final journal entry.
“That’s interesting. Turns out, Jason is in town for the holiday. He’s with his father and Grant’s wife. They’re staying at their ski house.”
“We need to speak to him right away and I don’t think we should give them a heads up that we're coming.”
“Agreed. But you should let me handle this one. I know Grant fairly well. I’ll take Will with me.”
He glanced Charlie’s way. “Okay. You’ll let me know what you find out?”
Boone confirmed he would.
Ryan ended the call, and the silence replacing it reminded her of things that needed to be discussed between them. Things she wasn’t ready to go over yet.
Charlie watched through the window as a new day lightened the outdoors in shades of pinks and oranges. And she hadn’t slept a wink. Lack of sleep along with the events of the past two days weighed her thinking down.
She rose and went back for more coffee. “We should have a talk with Lila. She might inadvertently remember something Jason told her back then that might help.”
Ryan watched her for a long moment. “Alright.”
The look on his face condemned her.
“I wished you’d trusted me,” he said softly.
Charlie closed her eyes, her heart breaking. “I don’t know what you mean.”
He closed the journal and rose. “You do. You left because you couldn’t stand being here after your parents’ death. You could have told me as much, Charlie. I would have understood.”
She owed him the truth. “I couldn’t ask you to leave Pine Haven, and I couldn’t stay.” She lifted her palms upward. “Where would that leave us?”
“I would have followed you anywhere, Charlie.”
The soft words ripped her heart further. She turned away and tried not to fall apart. She’d messed things up between them. Had she lost him for good?
“I can’t do this now.” Her voice was barely audible. She was struggling to hang on. “Not now. Not until this is over.” She looked back at him. This wasn’t the answer he wanted to hear. Ryan was the type of man who faced problems head on. Waiting wasn’t something he was fond of.
“Alright,” he said slowly. “We can run into town and talk with Lila.”
She nodded. Would there ever come a time when she and Ryan could discuss what happened?
He took her coat from her and helped her into it, his fingers brushing her skin sent shivers from the contact spot.
Charlie stepped back, not missing the way his jaw tightened at her reaction.
He stepped outside, his intense grey eyes scanning the horizon before motioning her out.
Ryan ushered her to the passenger side and rounded the front until he was seated inside. He reversed and left the cabin. Once the gate was secured, they headed toward town.
“I can’t believe Lila never mentioned dating the richest kid in school.” Charlie said to fill the awkward void. “We were so close back then.”
Ryan’s hands tightened on the wheel before relaxing. He spared her a look. “Lila always kept her secrets. She still doesn’t talk about what happened in Paris. I’m pretty sure something significant did, but I can’t get her to open up about it.”
Charlie frowned. “Come to think of it, Lila never told me either. I hate that she keeps secrets. She tries so hard to put on a carefree front but deep down she carries her scars. Losing her brother at a young age left its mark.”
Lila and Tyler were twins. Tyler barely had his driver’s license for a week when he ran his car off the road and down the mountainside. Tyler wasn’t wearing a seatbelt and was thrown from the scene into the river below.
She took her twin’s death badly, withdrawing into herself for a while. All of this had happened a little before Abby went missing.
He shook his head. “Seems like our town has had more than its share of tragedy.”
That much was certainly true.
Ryan seamlessly weaved the cruiser through the heavy morning traffic. With two days until Christmas, it felt as if the town was bursting at its seams with visitors. In Charlie’s opinion, the crowds were only adding to the danger.
The killer coming after her might be hiding in plain sight. Walking amongst the visitors in town.
And if cornered, innocent lives could be at stake.
Ryan parked in front of the Avalanche and climbed out. Charlie opened the door and stepped out into another beautiful Colorado morning. She’d forgotten how much she loved living in Colorado and seeing God’s majesty wherever she looked.
He held the door open for her as she walked into the café. Charlie scanned the dining room. The early morning working rush was over. Next would be the tourists stopping by for a quick bite before hitting the slopes.
She spotted Lila talking to one of the locals. When she caught Lila’s attention, her friend came over to where Charlie and Ryan stood near the door.
Lila glanced between them before guessing the truth. “You aren’t here for breakfast, are you?”
Charlie told her no. “Can we talk for a moment?”
“Of course.” Lila indicated an empty booth in the corner and motioned to the waitress to bring them coffee.
Once the coffee was served and it was just the three of them, Charlie asked her about Jason Owens.
Lila lowered her gaze with a smile playing across her lips. “You found out I’ve been seeing him.”
Shocked, Charlie’s gaze met Ryan’s. “Wait, you’re seeing him now? I meant back in high school.”
Ryan appeared surprised as well. “Why are you keeping the relationship a secret?”
Lila fiddled with her cup for a moment. “It just seemed too soon to mention it. We were just kids before. Now, well, we don’t even know if anything will come of it.
I’m not even sure I want it to. In case you haven’t noticed, I’m pretty set in my ways.
” She laughed. “Anyway, I just like his company. And he likes mine. That’s it. Nothing more.”
Charlie reached over and covered Lila’s hand. “I only want you to be happy.”
Lila lifted her eyes to Charlie and smiled. “I know you do.” She turned to Ryan. “But I have a feeling if you’re asking me about this then it’s more than mild curiosity.”
Ryan confirmed they were looking at Jason in connection to Abby’s disappearance.
“You’re kidding?” Lila hadn’t been expecting to hear this.
“It’s a possibility. We’re looking into Jason’s old family home that was down from Abby’s place,” Ryan told her.
Lila’s shocked eyes held onto him. “I can’t believe he would be involved. Jason’s always been so straight-laced. He’s always known what his future would be even as a kid. He wouldn’t do anything to jeopardize that.”
Charlie wasn’t as convinced. “Does Abby ever come up in conversations?” She remembered the night she and Abby snuck out of their homes. Jason was having a party at his home. Back then, she and Abby weren’t on the cool-kid list. They weren’t invited and had decided to create their own fun.
Lila considered the question for a moment. “Not that I can think of. . .”
Charlie sat up straighter. “There is something, isn’t there?”
Lila hesitated. “Yes, but I’m not sure how important it is.”
“Let us decide. Whatever it is, it might help solve what happened to Abby.”
Seconds ticked by before Lila answered. “He said later after Abby went missing that he’d seen her the day she disappeared. He specifically said day—not night.”
“When did he tell you this?” Charlie asked. Beside her she could feel Ryan’s tension growing.
“Maybe a few years earlier.” Lila noticed both their shock. “He looks me up whenever he’s in town. Things haven’t turned romantic until recently.”
Charlie tabled the last part for now. “What else did he tell you?”
Lila held up her hands. “Nothing. The only reason that stood out as odd was because I remember we all used to talk about it after it happened. No one admitted to seeing Abby the day she disappeared other than you, Charlie.”
That much was certainly true. “Is there anything else? No matter how insignificant it might seem,” Ryan asked.
Lila thought about it for a long moment before shaking her head. “There’s nothing. I’m sorry, I wish there were.”
A surge of patrons came into the café. Lila looked up and cringed. “I’d better get back to work.” She didn’t move though. “I’m thinking Jason might not be the man I thought he was after all.”
Ryan and Charlie slid from the booth. Charlie gave her friend a hug. “If he’s involved in Abby’s disappearance, he’s responsible for Pete’s death, too.”
Lila’s expression froze. “Wait—Pete was murdered?”
Charlie realized she’d probably said too much. “We believe so. It’s best if you stay away from Jason until we know for certain his involvement.”
Lila shuddered. “Don’t worry. I don’t want to be the next person to wind up dead.” With a nod to Ryan, she hurried away.
Charlie followed Ryan out into the morning. As they headed back to the vehicle, more visitors pulled into the parking lot.
Ryan opened her door and waited until she got inside before returning to the driver’s side.
“This place is getting too crowded,” he said as they struggled to find an opening in traffic to get out onto the road.
Once they were heading out of town, Charlie asked him about his opinion of Jason’s involvement.
Ryan’s jaw flexed. “He was always a hard one to get to know as I recall. I spoke to him that one time, and honestly, that’s the only conversation of any length we ever had.
” His attention shifted her way. “Lila’s right.
Jason was always driven. He knew he’d follow in his father’s footsteps one day and he wasn’t about to let anything get in the way. ”
“Not even Abby,” Charlie said softly. “I can’t believe I forgot about this.”
Ryan turned onto the sheriff’s property and parked. “What?”
“About a month before she went missing, she mentioned something odd. She said that after the holidays she had news she wanted to tell me. At that point, nothing appeared to be bothering her, so I didn’t think much of it.”
Ryan nodded, absently waiting.
“Anyway, she said they thought it was best to wait until the new year to say anything.”
“They?” The word obviously caught Ryan’s attention like it had hers back then. “Did she indicate who she was talking about?”
Charlie shook her head. “No and I asked her. She wouldn’t tell me, but she smiled and told me I’d be the first to know.”
Only she hadn’t been. Whatever secrets Abby kept in her heart she may have taken them to her grave.