Chapter 16
After being told to leave the hospital, Aiden was lost. He had nothing to do and nowhere to go.
Without much thought, he drove back to his apartment and pulled into a spot by the curb.
He turned off the engine. After opening the door, he stepped onto the pavement.
He slammed the door closed and used the fob in his pocket to engage the locks.
The day was still gray. A steady rain fell. The weather matched his mood perfectly.
“Hey.” Callum, dressed in his uniform, stood on the opposite side of the street. He waved. “What are you up to?”
Usually, seeing anybody from his family lifted his spirits. But not today. “I’m not doing much of anything,” he said with a shrug.
Cal looked up and down the empty street. He jogged from one sidewalk to the other. Once he was standing next to Aiden, he asked, “How are you doing? Is your head still bothering you? No offense, but you look pretty miserable.”
Aiden was more than glum, and it had nothing to do with his concussion. “My head’s fine.”
“What is it, then?”
“It’s nothing,” he said.
“I’m your big brother.” Cal dropped a hand on Aiden’s shoulder and looked him in the eyes. “I can tell that something’s going on. If you don’t want to talk, that’s fine. But just know, I’ve always got your back.”
“Thanks, man,” said Aiden. Then, without deciding to speak, he said, “It’s Lucy Harris.”
“She still won’t go out with you?” his brother guessed.
“It’s not that at all. We actually went out last night. We had a great time. Talked for hours. She came over to watch a movie. Because of the storm, she got stuck at my apartment overnight.”
“Oh, really?” Cal drew out the two words as he let his hand slip from Aiden’s shoulder.
“It’s not like that,” he said, even though it was exactly like that. True, he confided a lot in his brother. But what happened with Lucy was too personal to share. “Her grandfather was in a car accident this morning.”
“I hadn’t heard anything about that,” his brother said. “Then again, I’ve been focused on the two murders.”
In July, a body had been found near one of the sculptures on the Enchanted Highway. Last month, someone had been shot while at the ER.
“The accident happened on their property, so no citation was issued. But it looks like he had a heart attack and wrecked.”
“How is he?”
Aiden shrugged again. “It’ll take a few days to figure out how much he’ll recover.”
“Lucy must be devastated,” said Cal.
“She’s beyond shattered,” he said. “And furious, specifically at me.”
“What did you do?”
The thing was, he understood Lucy’s position. “If she wasn’t with me, she would have been home when her grandfather had his heart attack. He wouldn’t have wrecked his truck and been unconscious for who knows how long.”
“I’m sure she’s upset. But that anger isn’t directed at you.”
“That’s where you’re wrong. She literally said, ‘You’re the reason Rusty got hurt in the first place.’ Then, she told me to leave.”
“Ouch. That stings.”
He rubbed his breastbone. “Yeah, it does hurt.”
“What happened after that?”
“I left the hospital, just like she told me. What else is there for me to do?”
“Can I give you a little brotherly advice?” asked Cal.
He hated it when Cal treated him like a little kid. But if his older brother knew a way to reach Lucy, then he was willing to listen. “What’s your advice?”
“Well, the way I see it, you have two choices. You can walk away, like she asked you to do, and you’ve done. Or you can try to win her back.”
“Win her back?” The idea was absurd. What was he supposed to do, land five rings and win her a stuffed animal? “How do you suggest that I do that?”
“Right now, she sees you as a liability,” said Cal. “It might not be fair, but you were the one she was with when her grandfather needed her most. She looks at you and sees a distraction.”
“Talk about saying things that hurt.”
Folding his arms across his chest, Cal asked, “Are you going to make smart-assed comments? Or are you going to listen?”
“You look and sound exactly like Dad, you know.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment.”
Aiden rolled his hand. “Proceed.”
“You have to become an asset and do something for her.”
“Like pull her out of a burning building to save her life. Is that what you’re talking about?”
“Christ Almighty, you are in a bad mood.”
Cal was right, he was in a bad mood. He also understood that his brother was trying to help. “I really like Lucy. I thought she liked me. We connected from the beginning.”
“Then you don’t want to walk away.”
“I don’t have any other choice.”
Sighing, Cal asked, “What can you do for her?”
“Isn’t that the line from a pop song? Mid-eighties, I think.”
“It’s not from a song, but the sentiment is the same.”
What could he do for Lucy? She mentioned that all the cattle had to be brought down from the upper pasture. That job was definitely outside of his wheelhouse. But there had to be something else. “If I figured out who started the fire in the barn, I’d be an asset.”
“Exactly.” Cal poked him in the chest as he spoke.
“Good thing my brother is the Stark County sheriff. He can tell me all about the criminal investigation.”
“Har-har.” Cal gave a fake laugh. “I told you already. I won’t know anything about where the lock was purchased until Tuesday at the earliest. And the lock won’t be processed for DNA or fingerprints for a week. Maybe more.”
That meant Aiden was still a liability. Then again… “Does it seem suspicious to you that someone tried to kill Lucy by setting a barn on fire, and then, her grandfather is seriously injured—and almost died—in a car accident?”
“But you said it was a heart attack. And he was driving on his own property.”
“Take both of those facts away.” His mind was spinning. “Would you be suspicious if someone tried to kill one member of a family and then, the other was in a car accident?”
“Yes,” said Callum. “Of course.”
“I should go and check out the scene. Look around and see if there’s evidence.”
“I would go with you, but I’ve got two different task forces working on cases right now,” said Callum. “Let me know what you find.”
“Will do,” said Aiden.
He turned to his car. Using the fob in his pocket, he turned on the engine and unlocked the doors. Ted came around the corner.
“Hey, you two,” he said with a wave. Despite the chilly day, Ted wore a golf shirt and khaki shorts. “Yesterday, I found you outside of The Eatery. Today, you’re standing across from Pixies. Is this all you do? Stand on the sidewalk and chat?”
“Very funny.” Callum’s tone made it clear he found no humor in Ted’s comment. “Aiden was just filling me in on what happened at the Five Steers Ranch.”
“Did you find more evidence about the fire?” Ted asked, suddenly serious.
“Rusty Harris was in an accident this morning. He had a heart attack and crashed his truck.”
Like he’d been punched, Ted stumbled back. “I hadn’t heard. Where’d this happen?”
“On one of the roads that winds through the property. I was the first on the scene,” Aiden added.
“I thought you were off work for the next two weeks,” said Ted. “Did Chief Kane put you back into the rotation?”
Aiden shook his head. “I got the emergency notification on my phone. I was coming back from Mom’s, and since I was so close, I went to check it out.”
“Is the dishwasher fixed?” Callum asked.
“Get this,” said Aiden. “Dad came by yesterday. He was the one who repaired the door.”
“Dad?” Callum repeated.
“Mom said she’s had a change of heart about their relationship because of Sammy.”
“I hope they can get along,” said Ted. “Your parents have always been the best to me. You all have.”
Over the past few days, Ted had been on edge.
Then again, anything that went wrong in Red Grove ultimately became his responsibility.
The overdose deaths. The fentanyl-laced methamphetamines.
The murders. He’d even get some of the blame for the arson at the Five Steers Ranch.
It didn’t matter that the property was outside of the town limits.
“You know they’re your parents, too. Not biologically, of course. But you are our brother.”
“I know,” said Ted. “But it’s nice to hear you say.”
For a moment, nobody spoke, then Callum said, “Aiden’s got a theory.”
“Oh yeah?” asked Ted. “About what?”
“He thinks the car wreck wasn’t caused by a heart attack.”
“But you just said…” Ted began.
“What are the chances that Lucy gets locked into a barn that’s set on fire and then two days later her grandfather has an accident?
I’m not going to do the math. But I’ll tell you, the odds are low.
The wreck isn’t a coincidence. We know for a fact that Lucy was targeted.
I think her grandfather was as well.” As he spoke, laying out his thoughts for Ted, he became sure.
The same person who tried to kill Lucy also tried to kill Rusty.
“Why would anyone want those two dead?”
It was a good question and one that Aiden intended to answer.
“Well.” He was eager to get to the ranch and look at the scene of the accident. “I’m going to go. I’ll see you both around.”
Aiden opened his car door and slipped inside.
He buckled his seat belt and put the car into Drive.
After making sure that the road was clear, he pulled onto Main Street.
As he drove, he considered Callum’s advice.
Sure, when his brother talked about assets and liabilities in a romance, he sounded like a caveman turned relationship counselor.
But there was a little bit of wisdom in what he had said, too.
Like his mom had said this morning, she wouldn’t have gotten a divorce if Dad was the kind of guy to fix a dishwasher without being asked. Caring about someone meant being available when they needed help.
But there was more. Gripping the steering wheel, he focused on the road and the fact that Lucy had been targeted. Relationship or not, Aiden was determined to find out who tried to kill her and stop them before she ended up dead.
For a second time in two days, Stu Whittier found himself driving from Red Grove to the Five Steers Ranch.
He had no idea how his boss knew everything that happened in town.
Sure, he understood that the guy was connected.
But to know that Rusty Harris had been injured in a freak accident and that Aiden Colton was going to be investigating?
Well, that was just next-level dialed in.
He’d been told to take care of the problem, and he knew what he was supposed to do.
He had to kill Lucy Harris. And this time, he needed to make sure that she was dead.
His firearm, a Taurus GX4, lay on the passenger seat.
Gazing at the road, Stu admitted that he felt sorry for the Harris family.
Really, he did. He’d known Lucy’s brother, Derek.
They used to party together. It was a damn shame that Derek had overdosed.
But Stu had his own share of misery from fentanyl.
A few years back, his addiction had been so bad that he started losing teeth.
That’s when his boss offered to help.
He’d truly gotten Stu straight. And hand to God, he was thankful. If it weren’t for the intervention, he’d have ended up like Derek.
But it also meant that Stu was beholden to the guy forever.
Being obligated to someone like his employer was better than death—but just barely. Stu had been asked to arrange all sorts of accidents. Sure, he’d killed people before. But he’d never shot someone. Or stabbed them to death. He’d never had to look them in the eyes when they croaked.
He readjusted his hands on the steering wheel. Ahead was the entrance to the ranch.
According to what he’d been told, nobody was home.
It meant that Stu had time. He drove up the lane and parked behind a stand of trees.
He turned off the ignition and opened the glove compartment.
Inside was a box of latex gloves. He slipped a pair on and opened the car’s door.
He paused before reaching for the gun. The firearm was heavy, cold, and felt like death.
He shoved it into the back of his pants. It pulled on his jeans with each step.
At the front door, he reached for the knob. The handle turned, and he pushed the door open. He stepped inside and closed the door quietly. Stu looked around the foyer. There was a den to the left and stairs to the right. A short hallway connected the front of the house to the back.
He walked down the corridor. It ended in a kitchen.
The scent of stale coffee hung in the air.
A plate, covered with pancakes, sat on the table.
Aside from the food, not much had changed over the decades.
The cabinets were made of wood. The counter was covered in chipped Formica.
The stove was a large gas range that was as old as the cabinets.
He picked up a pancake and shoved it in his mouth.
As he chewed, he thought about the next several hours.
He would wait for Lucy to come home. She would be exhausted and emotional after spending so much time at the hospital.
And then, Stu would have to step out of the darkness with his gun drawn.
She’d beg. She’d cry. Shooting an unarmed woman gave him no pleasure.
Or things could go differently. She might fight. Hell, she spent all day throwing bales of hay. Riding horses. Carrying feed. In short, she was strong. What if she was stronger than Stu?
He couldn’t go back to his boss after getting his ass kicked by Lucy.
But there was another way.
He turned on the burner. A blue flame circled the drip bowl. Stu leaned in closer and blew. The flame disappeared. The gas still leaked into the room with a hiss. He turned the control knob to low. The sound disappeared.
All Stu had to do now was leave.
Because once Lucy got home, it wouldn’t be long until she was dead.