Chapter 14
Tyler
Five days. It had been five days since they’d arrested him in Brooke’s coffee shop. Five days since his world had imploded in front of part of the town and the rest of Irma learned about it on social media.
The arraignment never happened. Before Tyler even stood before the judge, the prosecutor had pulled his lawyer aside and admitted they’d been hasty. The evidence was circumstantial at best, and without something more concrete, they couldn’t justify keeping Tyler in custody.
Tyler had walked out of the detention center, gone straight home to shower away the smell of jail, and called Robert about work.
“Your job’s here when you’re ready,” Robert had said without hesitation. “Innocent until proven guilty, remember?”
True to his word, things had been fine at the shop. Robert treated him the same as always. Sue had been wonderful, bringing in pastries and making sure Tyler was welcome.
But the rest of the world wasn’t so understanding.
Especially Adam Boverman, who was everywhere. Tyler would leave work and see his patrol vehicle parked across the street. He’d stop at the grocery store and find him two aisles over. Would drive home and catch the tail end of a red sports car—Adam’s personal vehicle—turning the corner.
Stalking. That’s what it was. Legal stalking, done under the guise of keeping an eye on a suspect. Adam wanted him to slip up, to do something that could justify another arrest.
Tyler tightened a hose clamp and straightened, wiping his hands on his shop rag.
Through the shop window, he could see a handful of customers in the waiting area.
Some were regulars who’d been faithful since Morgan owned the shop.
Others were new faces, people who didn’t know him or his history but couldn’t help wanting to catch a glimpse of the accused killer.
Not everyone was fascinated by Tyler and his situation. The reactions had been mixed. Some customers had canceled appointments, citing vague reasons that didn’t hide their discomfort. Others had gone out of their way to be supportive, making a point of saying they believed in his innocence.
Robert emerged from the office, a work order in hand. “Got a brake job coming in at two. You good to handle it?”
“Yeah, no problem.”
Robert studied him for a moment. “You doing okay?”
“I’m fine.”
“You say that a lot.”
“Because it’s true.”
“Tyler.” Robert’s voice was gentle. “I know this is hard, being accused of something you didn’t do and having people look at you differently. But you’re not alone in this.”
The words hit harder than Tyler expected. He’d spent so long thinking of himself as cursed, as poison to everyone around him, that support felt foreign. Uncomfortable, even. And difficult to accept.
“Business might take a hit,” Tyler said. “People might associate the shop with me.”
“Let them.” Robert’s tone was firm. “This is my shop, and I employ who I want. If customers have a problem with that, they can take their business elsewhere.”
“You could lose money.”
“Money comes and goes. Good people are harder to find.” Robert clapped him on the shoulder. “Besides, Sue would have my head if I let you go. She knows you’re innocent, and when that woman makes up her mind about something, there’s no changing it.”
Tyler’s throat tightened. “Tell her thank you. For everything.”
“Tell her yourself. She’s bringing lunch around noon.”
Robert headed back to the car he was working on, leaving Tyler alone with his thoughts and the Ford’s engine.
Work was supposed to be a distraction, a way to keep his hands busy and his mind focused on something other than the case against him, the suspicion in people’s eyes, and the way his life had fallen apart again.
But he couldn’t stop thinking about Brooke and the moment they’d had in her coffee shop before the arrest. The way she’d smiled when he asked her out.
The yes that had made him feel, for the first time in years, like maybe he could have a future.
Maybe be able to build a new life and have a second chance at a family.
Then Adam had walked in and destroyed it all.
Tyler wanted to see her again. He needed to apologize for dragging her into this mess. She’d found a body and met him on the same day—how could that not cast suspicion on their connection?
But more than that, he wanted to know if that moment had been real. If the connection he’d felt was something she’d felt, too, or if it had been one-sided hope from a lonely man who should’ve known better.
Maybe he’d been wrong about being poison, wrong about not deserving happiness, wrong about needing to stay away from people he cared about.
Maybe everyone didn’t die or leave. Maybe sometimes they stayed.
The thought was dangerous. Hope was dangerous. But Tyler couldn’t quite shake it.
He couldn’t even count the number of times he’d thought about calling her or going to her coffee shop. But he’d stopped himself.
He’d seen the social media posts and the things people were calling the coffee shop.
Murder central. Mostly it was made in jest, but Tyler knew there was some truth to it.
Not to mention the accusations being thrown at Brooke.
Someone had leaked that she was the one to find Sheila’s body, which made things worse.
The news that he was there with Robert and Sue did nothing to improve the situation and only added to the rumors.
Tyler had driven past her shop every day on his way to and from work. Surprisingly, she seemed busier than usual. That was saying something.
Morbid. That’s what people were. Just like the ones coming here now, hoping to see him, to say the killer had worked on their car.
He’d noticed it after Jen and Garrett died.
People drove past his job back then, or by his friend’s house where he slept on the couch.
They were curious, yes, but it was a morbid curiosity.
The morning passed in a blur of oil changes and diagnostic work. Customers came and went, some making eye contact and offering greetings, others avoiding his gaze entirely. Tyler tried not to care.
Sue arrived at noon with sandwiches and homemade cookies, settling into the break room with Robert and Tyler like this was any other day.
“How are you holding up?” she asked, passing out food.
“Been better,” Tyler admitted. “Been worse too.”
“The whole thing is ridiculous,” Sue said firmly. “Anyone with sense knows you didn’t kill Sheila.”
“I wish the sheriff’s department had sense then.”
“They will. Eventually.” Sue’s confidence was reassuring. “The truth has a way of coming out.”
Tyler wanted to believe that, but experience had taught him that truth and justice didn’t always align. Sometimes innocent people get convicted while the guilty walk free.
“I can’t just sit around waiting, hoping they’ll figure it out.”
“What do you mean?” Robert asked.
“I mean someone killed Sheila. Someone left her body in the Beartooth Mountains. And whether it was intentional or not, that same person has made me look guilty.” Tyler set down his sandwich. “I need to prove my innocence. Actively. Not just hope the investigation clears me.”
“How?” Sue asked.
“I don’t know yet. But I can’t keep pretending everything’s normal while my life hangs in the balance.”
Robert exchanged a glance with Sue. “What do you need from us?” Sue asked.
The question caught Tyler off guard. “You’ll help me?”
“Of course we’ll help you,” Sue said, like it was obvious. “You’re innocent. You need support. That’s what friends do.”
Friends. The word felt strange. Tyler had gotten so used to being alone, to keeping people at arm’s length, that friendship seemed like something from another life.
“I don’t even know where to start,” Tyler admitted.
“Start with what you know,” Sue suggested. “Who had a reason to hurt Sheila? Who might want to frame you?”
“I don’t know. I’ve been gone since shortly after Jen and Garrett died. I don’t know who Sheila was close to, who she had conflicts with, anything.”
“Then we find out,” Sue said. “Talk to people who knew her. People who knew you back then.”
Tyler thought about his old friends. Phil, Brooke’s brother, who’d believed in his innocence during the fire investigation. And others from high school might remember both him and Sheila.
And Edi. She’d been there when they found the body. She’d questioned him at the shop. But before all of that, she’d sought him out after the fire to say she believed him.
Maybe she still did.
“Yeah, maybe,” Tyler said.
“Sheila’s funeral is tomorrow,” Sue said. “I thought I’d go.” She looked at Robert, raising an eyebrow.
“I’ll join you,” he quickly offered.
Sue smiled. “I thought you might.”
“Are you sure that’s a good idea?” Tyler asked, shaking his head.
“Why not? We knew her from the bank.” Sue broke a cookie in half and offered the second piece to her husband.
“Yep. It’s the right thing to do.” Robert met Tyler’s eyes. “You’ll stay here and hold down the fort. Wouldn’t do for you to go to the funeral. Not with that deputy lurking around.”
“You’ve noticed?”
“Hard not to. Remember, you’ve got us,” Robert assured him.
“And maybe others,” Sue added. “People who know you, who can vouch for your character. We’ve had more than one customer mention you were being framed.”
Tyler nodded slowly, the outline of a plan forming. He’d reach out to old friends, talk to people who’d known Sheila, and try to piece together who might have wanted her dead and why they’d want him to take the fall.
“One other thing,” Tyler said, working up the courage to ask a question that had been on his mind for days. “Did you have an attorney sent to the jail?”
Sue shook her head while Robert said, “I wish I had. But by the time I heard about what was happening, you already had representation.”
Tyler scrunched his face. “Who told you I had a lawyer?”
“Social media.” Sue shrugged. “That’s pretty much where we learn everything in this little town. That Irma Chit Chat page has all the prattle.”
“Most of it’s fake,” Robert added, “but once in a while, they hit the nail on the head.”
“Did you happen to read who sent the attorney to the jail?”
“Nope. Sorry. Did you ask him?”
“He didn’t know, and I called their office and was told it was confidential and their services were pro bono.”
“That seems . . . odd,” Sue said. “A blessing for sure, but still odd.”
“Yeah, I thought so too.”
“Well, maybe we can solve that mystery along with everything else,” Robert said. “Now, I suppose we ought to get back at it. Andre should be here in about fifteen minutes. Sue and I will be taking off when he arrives. You’ll close down the shop.”
“Yep,” Tyler agreed. “Our usual Monday schedule.”
Tyler was looking forward to the day ending. He wanted to see Brooke. Needed to see her, to explain to her what had happened with the arrest. Not that he understood it all himself, but he’d put it off long enough, and she deserved an explanation for what had happened at her coffee shop.
The thought of facing her made his chest tight. She probably thought he was guilty. No doubt she wanted nothing to do with him.
But he owed her the truth, unfiltered by Adam’s accusations. And maybe—impossibly, irrationally—she’d give him a chance to explain.
Maybe she’d even believe him. But first, he had something else he needed to take care of. He had someone else to see.
The afternoon dragged. Andre came in right on time, smiling at Tyler like any other day.
Robert and Sue left after asking Andre if he could cover for them the next day while they went to Sheila’s funeral.
He agreed to do it before starting on a brake job.
Tyler helped a customer with a flat tire and ran diagnostics on a check engine light. Normal work. Normal Monday.
Except nothing was normal anymore.
When five o’clock finally came, Tyler cleaned up and headed for his truck. He scanned the street for Adam’s patrol vehicle or his personal car but didn’t see either. Small mercy.
He climbed into his truck and started it up, checking his watch. If he timed things right, he might get another person on his side.