Chapter Eleven
Early on Wednesday morning Daniel sat at his desk and sipped his coffee as a million thoughts whirled through his head. It had been four days since he’d told Angelique that he was in love with her…four long days since she’d broken his heart into a million pieces by not loving him back.
During those four days, he and his officers had worked the cases with no further information to lead them to the killer and Angelique’s attacker. They had reinterviewed people and spoke again to individuals they knew had visited Mystique for one reason or another.
Even though he believed Pierre was still the most likely suspect, that didn’t mean he stopped the investigation.
They had brought in a lot of the other gator hunters to see if Pierre might have confessed to one of them, but nobody had heard any kind of a confession from Mystique’s off-again, on-again lover.
In the quiet moments of his days, his thoughts filled with Angelique. His heart positively ached with his love for her. He’d heard the songs about heartbreak and unrequited love, but he’d never felt the utter despair of those emotions until now.
At eight o’clock that morning when Luke and Clay arrived for work, he led them back to the murder room. “I want us to start at the beginning and go through each and every report and interview to see if we’ve somehow missed something,” he explained.
The three of them settled at the round table in the room.
“Clay, why don’t you go through the crime scene information and Luke, you can start by reading the interviews.
If you find anything that sounds off, or if we failed to follow up on things, let me know.
We’ll keep a list of anything that needs to be checked further. ”
“Sounds like a plan,” Clay said and Luke agreed.
More than anything Daniel wanted to find the killer. If she refused to accept his love, he could at least give her peace of mind by giving her the killer’s name.
The three of them worked until eleven, and then they decided to go to the café for their lunch break. “So far, I feel like our investigation has been pretty solid,” Luke said once they were in Daniel’s car.
“We still have quite a bit to get through,” Daniel replied.
“I’m hoping something will stand out…something we haven’t considered before.”
“It’s a crummy day out,” Clay observed.
The clouds overhead were thick and gray, causing a gloomy overcast that reflected Daniel’s mood. “Yeah, I heard we’re supposed to get some rain later,” Luke said.
“Maybe the rain will dissipate some of the heavy humidity and heat,” Daniel replied. It was safe to talk about the weather. He hadn’t told Clay or Luke what was going on in his personal life. They had no idea their boss was sporting a huge broken heart.
They reached the café, where he parked, and the three of them got out of the car. Once inside they found an empty booth and sat down.
Luke grabbed a menu. “I don’t know why, but I’m starving today.”
“Yeah, me too,” Clay replied.
Daniel had no real appetite. He hadn’t had one since last Saturday night. “Good afternoon, gentlemen.” Dominique appeared at their booth. The sight of her caused an aching pain to squeeze his chest. She looked so much like her older sister.
“What can I get for you all today?” she asked.
Luke ordered the meat loaf special, Clay ordered the fried fish platter and Daniel ordered a bacon cheeseburger. They all ordered sodas.
“I’ll be right back with those drinks,” Dominique said and then left the side of their booth.
Almost immediately Nola Fontenot appeared at their booth. “Chief LeCroix,” she began as she twisted her plump hands together in front of her. “Is there any news on Mystique’s murderer?” she asked.
“We’re still in the middle of our investigation,” he replied, wishing the answer was different.
“I believe Pierre killed her. He couldn’t stand not having her. Can’t you arrest him and get him behind bars? I hate to see him walking around free while my best friend is dead and gone,” Nola said.
“It’s not that easy, Mrs. Fontenot,” Daniel replied.
“Well, it should be that easy. Mystique was a wonderful woman, and I miss her every single day,” Nola said.
“I know the two of you were good friends and I’m sorry for your loss, but we’re working as hard as we can to see that the person who killed her is arrested and charged with her murder. The last thing we’d want to do is arrest an innocent man,” Daniel said.
At that moment Dominique returned with their drinks, and Nola went back to her own table across the room. “The good thing is if Pierre is our man, I don’t see him killing anyone else,” Luke said.
“Yeah, it could be worse with some crazed murderer killing other woman in the same manner,” Clay replied.
Daniel listened to his two officers talk about the case, and then their conversation turned to their personal lives. “How are you and Anita getting along,” Luke asked Clay.
Clay and Anita Cook had been dating for the past couple of months. Anita was a pretty, sweet woman who worked as a nurse at the small hospital in town.
“Things are going good,” Clay replied. “Although between my work hours and hers, we don’t get to see each other as often as we’d like to. When are you going to find some nice woman?” he asked Luke.
“Who knows? I’m in the market to find one,” Luke replied and then looked across the table at Daniel. “And I think we all know who has Daniel’s heart. It’s evident every time he says her name.”
“Unfortunately, she’s not interested in having a relationship with me,” Daniel replied, the words causing his chest to squeeze tight.
“Well, that’s a real bummer,” Clay said.
“Here we are,” Dominique said as she arrived with their food. She placed the plates in front of them and then smiled. “Is there anything else I can get for you?”
“No, I think this will do it. Thanks, Dominique,” Daniel said.
She smiled and hesitated a moment. “Uh, before you leave, could I have a private word with you?” she asked Daniel.
He looked at her in surprise. “Sure,” he replied.
“Okay, in the meantime enjoy your meals,” she said and then left the booth.
“What’s that all about?” Clay asked.
“I don’t have a clue,” Daniel replied. He was definitely intrigued and wondered what Dominique could want to discuss with him. Maybe she’d thought of somebody who had a beef with her sister. That would be great. More than anything Daniel wanted the person who had attacked Angelique in jail.
As they ate, they talked about mundane things like the weather and things that were going on in town. There were always programs going on at the community center to keep the kids from running amok in the summer days.
It was one of the best things that Mayor Ralph Dupree had implemented during his time in office. Many of the children participated in the programs, and it kept them safe and off the streets when they weren’t in school.
They finished eating and paid, and then Clay and Luke headed on outside to the car while Daniel waited for Dominique. She walked over to him and pulled him into an office just off the kitchen area.
“I only have a minute or two,” she said.
“But I wanted to let you know that Angelique is totally in love with you. And if you truly love her, you need to keep telling her that. Eventually, I really believe you’ll break through to her.
She’s just so afraid of being hurt again, but she told us she’s madly in love with you. ”
Daniel wanted to believe her. He wanted to believe her so badly. “Thanks, Dominique,” he replied.
“We both know how stubborn she can be, but she told us she’s deeply in love with you, so please don’t give up on her, Daniel. And now I have to get back to work.”
“Thanks again, Dominique,” he replied.
She nodded and then hurried out of the office. Daniel left the office, too. While she headed back to the dining room floor, he went out the front door and to the car where Clay and Luke waited for him.
“Everything okay?” Clay asked.
“Everything is fine,” Daniel replied. He didn’t intend to share with his buddies what Dominique had said to him.
As he drove back to the station, Dominique’s words whirled around and around in his head. Did he have the emotional stamina to keep telling Angelique he loved her? Even knowing she might deny loving him over and over again?
With his heart still badly broken from his last encounter with her, he wasn’t sure he had the answer to that.
THURSDAY EVENING ANGELIQUE picked at the salad she’d made herself for dinner. Nothing tasted good to her. She hadn’t had much of an appetite since last Saturday night when Daniel had professed his love for her.
Could she trust him to love her through thick and thin? Could she believe that he would never lie to her or cheat? She knew without a doubt that he was a stand-up kind of guy. So, what was she so afraid of?
Heartache? She felt that already. As usual she’d missed him through the past week. She had no idea what to expect from him on Saturday night. There was no question that things had changed between them with his vows of his love for her. So, how uncomfortable would things be between them now.
She wished they could go back in time, and she wouldn’t have had to examine her emotions where Daniel was concerned. She wished she didn’t know about his love for her. More importantly she wished she didn’t know about her love for him. Things would be so much less complicated then.
She finished eating and cleaned up the kitchen then went into the living room and sank down on the sofa. Between her work and getting things together for the shop, at least she’d managed to stay busy and that had helped keep thoughts of Daniel away.
However, each time there was a moment of silence, every time her mind wasn’t occupied with other things, her thoughts filled with the man she’d fallen in love with. Was he really the hero she’d once yearned to find?