Guarded (25 page)

She nodded. “You know part of it. I moved to Elkridge last year from Baltimore.”

“Why did you move?” Ryan asked.

Dev wanted to silence his cousin, but understood. Ryan and Ian needed to hear it all too. Before she could answer, the bathroom door opened. Seth and Jules silently rejoined the group.

“I needed a fresh start after my fiancé . . . uh, left me,” Shelley said, staring fixedly at her hands. She quickly highlighted her trek from Baltimore to Elkridge. “When I first moved to town, everything seemed relatively normal. I mean the zoo was a little strange. But it was private, and the smaller zoos get away with more unusual stuff than the larger ones.”

“What sort of stuff?” Seth asked.

Shelley wrinkled her nose, clearly thinking. “Private zoos aren’t monitored as closely as the larger ones. So little things, like overcrowding in the reptile house, or having smaller-than-acceptable cages for the birds or improper feeding of the animals can happen.”

“Did you see all these things?” Ian asked.

She nodded. “And more, but what really bothered me was when the animals in the zoo would change from week to week. One week there’d be four green iguanas, the next none. Rare birds mysteriously flew away. Tortoises escaped and wandered the grounds. Sometimes their cages would not only be cleaned but filled with an animal from another part of the zoo.”

“Shells,” Dev said, placing a hand on her cool ones. “I’m not sure how much time we have, so let’s stay on track. You e-mailed me about missing animals.”

“Right.” Shelley exhaled audibly and explained about the missing snakes, birds, and escaped tortoises. “After I’d started documenting everything, Tomás took me into his confidence. As the groundskeeper and animal caretaker, he’d noticed the strange happenings too. He told me to watch out for the tigers. He explained that before I came to Elkridge, Miah, that’s the female white Bengal tiger I mentioned earlier, allegedly ate her cub. She didn’t. I’m sure of it.
He
was sure of it too. Now he’s dead, and I have a feeling what’s happening now is related to what happened then.”

When Ian and Ryan just frowned, Shelley glanced at Dev, confusion on her face.

“Shelley, I think maybe you need to tell the tiger part of the story chronologically. Go back to when you first arrived in town.”

She nodded and backtracked. “Okay, by the time I started working in Elkridge, Miah’s mate, Leonardo, had somehow escaped his cage one night. Rumor has it he was put down and the body disposed of. But no one can say for sure who put him down and who disposed of the body.”

“Did you try to find out what happened?” Ryan asked, his impassive face giving nothing away.

“Not really. I was new, and Miah was already pregnant with another litter. She had them at the end of the summer. Tomás called me the night she went into labor. He and I waited and watched her deliver five cubs.”

“How did you watch?” Ian asked.

“At the time, we had a camera working in the tiger house.” She swept her glance around the table. “There’s a security room in the old converted warehouse that serves as the visitor center on the zoo’s grounds. We watched from there. It was pretty amazing.”

“Tigers giving birth.” Ian grimaced. “Yeah, that’s prime-time television, all right.”

“Shut it,” Ryan said out of the corner of his mouth, before Dev could.

Ian winked at Shelley. “Sorry, darlin’. Go on.”

Shells stared at him as if he were some new species of monkey she’d never seen before, then smiled, tentatively. “Um . . . okay. Where was I?” She paused then snapped her fingers. “Right. When Dev and I went to the zoo on Wednesday, there were only three cubs. And Cristos told us the camera feed to the house had stopped functioning, so they don’t know when the cubs disappeared. But I think it happened Tuesday night.”

“What do you think happened to them?” Ian asked at the same time Ryan said, “What makes you think they vanished on Tuesday?”

She glanced from one man to the other then sighed. “I think the cubs were stolen. Like I told Dev, there’s a black market for exotic pets. People pay a lot of money for tiger cubs, especially white Bengals. And to answer your question, Ryan, I’m certain they disappeared on Tuesday, or I’d have heard from Tomás. He checked on them daily and was in charge of Miah’s care and feeding.”

“Any idea who would take them?” Seth asked.

Shelley seemed to deflate. “That’s just it. I have no idea. Everyone in town loves the tigers, well, except for Reyna. She’s the zoo owner’s daughter. And she accused
me
of stealing them. I just can’t imagine her wanting to risk her manicure by taking the tigers. I can’t figure out who’s sabotaging the zoo and taking the animals. It’s the reason I contacted Dev in the first place.

“If I’d had proof of wrongdoing, I’d have taken it to the authorities right away. Reptiles and birds might not be in a protected class, but tigers are. The USDA would have come in and investigated if I’d had one shred of evidence that anything was wrong.”

Shelley slapped her hands to the table. “Why are we just sitting here? Tomás is dead, two cubs have been stolen, and Beau is missing.”

“Shells, I know this is stressful, but you need to trust us. Ian and Ryan will believe whatever you tell them. Let us work out a plan of action. Together.” Dev covered her hand with his. Although he wasn’t surprised when she withdrew from his touch. He’d sensed her putting up her guard last night, but it didn’t make it suck any less.

“Shelley, you need to remember everything that happened Wednesday night,” Jules said suddenly. Still pale, Jules grabbed Shelley’s hand as if to steady herself. Unlike with Dev, Shelley didn’t withdraw from her sister’s touch. Jules licked her lips nervously and said, “Tomás came to me and said he needs Shelley to remember what happened on that night. It’s tied to his murder.”

“I’m trying to tell them everything.” Color flooded Shelley’s cheeks. “Dev was with me until after three. I typed up my notes. Remembered I needed my flash drive, which was in my car. Walked to the zoo parking lot, where the car had died earlier. Called the mechanic on my way home. Ate dinner, packed, and. . . .” Her voice trailed off. Her red brows knitted together in concentration. “I don’t know. I think someone knocked at the door, maybe? Then nothing. Just a migraine the next morning.” She shoved to her feet. “This is a waste of time. There’s nothing else to remember.”

“This is not a waste of time, we’re gathering information,” Dev said. He wanted to be the one to soothe her, but she refused to listen to him.

“I’ve got to get back to Elkridge. I need to find Beau.” She pushed to her feet.

“Shelley, you cannot just take off. You heard the television report yourself. The sheriff is already looking for you. Going back to town will just land you at the station at best. Or worse, they’ll arrest you on the spot.”

“Seriously?! Aren’t you supposed to be telling me to turn myself in?” she asked, nonplussed. “Couldn’t just talking to me hurt your career?” She glanced at Seth. “And yours?”

“She’s right,” Seth said. Jules gasped her fiancé’s name and glowered at him. “Precious, if they have already issued an arrest warrant, then Jones and I are jeopardizing our futures, hell, our freedom, by not bringing her in. We should be trying to convince her to go to the station.” Seth included Dev in his argument. “You know I’m right, Jones. We need to take her in.”

“That’s not going to happen.” Dev fought the rise of fury burning in his chest. “Seth, you didn’t question Jules for twenty-four hours after she found that body in October. Don’t lecture me about doing the right thing for my career now.”

“I’m not going to allow anyone to risk their futures for me.” Shelley crossed her arms, defiance in her eyes. “I can handle this on my own.”

“How do you propose to do that?” Damn it, why was she being so stubborn?

“I’ll go talk to Deputy Munro. He knows me. He can’t honestly believe I’d hurt anyone.”

Jealousy, ugly and green, pricked Dev in the center of his chest. “Your old boyfriend?”

“It was one date! And who are
you
to judge me? One night in bed with you doesn’t give you the right to dictate my life. You want to arrest me? Go ahead. Otherwise, get out of my way.”

Christ, she was going to make him crazy. In his head, he had known this was coming, had sensed it from the moment she’d snuck out of his room this morning. She was pushing him away. But he hadn’t expected it to hurt this much.

Perfect! His cousins and partner get to witness his humiliation. Seth, Ian, and Ryan were all staring at the ceiling as if it were the Sistine Chapel.

“I’ve got to go. I rescind my request for help, Dev. I don’t need you. I don’t need anyone.” She must have seen Jules’s pained expression because she added, “I mean I don’t need anyone else to get hurt. Not because of me. I can handle this. I was wrong to contact Dev. Wrong to come here.” Her face crimson and her eyes swimming blue sapphires, Shelley turned to leave.

“Please wait, Dr. Morgan,” Ryan said, softly. His deep, calm tones reverberated through the room. “I respect your situation and the difficulty we all face, but don’t leave yet. I think you’ve given us more information than you realize. Let me consult with my cousin.”

Dev could only assume Ryan meant Ian because the two men put their heads together and whispered.

Shelley, seemingly placated by Ryan’s quiet demeanor, slowly sank back to her chair. Her face still red, she clasped her hands together until her knuckles were white. She refused to glance at Dev. Instead, she stared at the table. Dev’s gut twisted at the chasm building between them. He had no intention of allowing anyone to arrest Shelley for a crime she couldn’t have committed. But she seemed determined to throw herself under a bus in order to find a missing boy and a pair of tiger cubs she might never be able to locate.

Ryan nodded at something Ian said and cast a meaningful glance at Dev. He knew that look. It made him both hopeful and nervous at the same time.

“Do you think you might have opened the door that night?”

She nodded.

“But,” Ian interjected, “you don’t remember clearly.”

Shelley looked askance at Dev, but he’d already figured out their line of thinking. Apparently so had Seth because he said, “And you woke up with a headache.”

“Yes, but what does that have to do with anything?”

“Your missing files,” Dev said on a sigh. “Damn it! I should have thought of that. You said your migraine medicine didn’t work and your files disappeared. Shelley, I think you were drugged. I think the killer was in your apartment.”

She blanched.

“Your theory about the murder being tied to the missing animals is probably on target. And the murderer wants you quiet.”

“So why not kill me?” she asked, color returning. “If he or she was in my apartment, why just wipe the files? Why not kill me too?”

Ian and Ryan shared a look that made Dev tense. One that said they didn’t know. If they didn’t know, then Shelley could be in danger from more than a possible false arrest.

Several silent moments passed. Finally, Ian said, “Tell me about the boy, Beau. Where’s his mother? Is there any chance Beau could be with her?”

Shelley shook her head. “His mother died a few years ago. He’s in foster care right now with a woman who wouldn’t blink if the kid didn’t come home. She’s only in it for the money.”

“Do you have a name and address for the foster mother?” Ryan asked her before glancing at Dev. “I think, since Shelley’s determined to go find the little boy, maybe we should go and make contact with him. Make sure the kid’s okay.”

Ian nodded, adding, “While we’re in Elkridge, we can check out the Jamesons. See if we can’t get them talking.”

“I appreciate you going to find Beau, but he doesn’t do well with strange men. He wouldn’t come to you because he doesn’t know you. But if you could talk to Eddy and the gang at the zoo, maybe you can figure out who’s behind those thefts.”

“Shells—” Dev began, frustrated with her obstinacy.

“Why don’t you let us try,” Ian said with a slow, lazy grin. “I’ve got a way with children. Give us a list of hiding places, his current address, and a few hours. Ryan and I can do this.”

“Please, Shelley,” Jules spoke up. “I think you need to trust them.”

Shelley stared at her sister, her expression completely unreadable. “Fine. But what am I going to do? I can’t just sit here.”

“You’re not going to,” Dev said. “You’re going to write down everything you can remember from the past few days. Every conversation you’ve had. Everything you’ve seen. Let’s see if we can’t piece together a list of who might have motive to kill Tomás. “

“But I’ve just told you everything. Wouldn’t I be more help if I went to Elkridge with Ian and Ryan?”

“Not until we know what’s waiting for you there,” Ian answered before Dev could.

“I have to go to the station to check in with our captain about our own murder investigation. While we’re there, I’ll see what I can find out about the murder in Elkridge,” Seth said.

“Oh, frack! Wait a second, Seth,” Shelley said, eyes wide. She jumped out of her chair and hurried down the hall. She returned moments later with the files he’d brought home last night. “Dev, I just remembered where I heard that name Colbert Rush. He’s from Elkridge.”

A
FTER SHARING WHAT
she knew of Colbert Rush with Seth and Dev—which wasn’t much more than the Elizabeths’ gossip—everyone left, except Dev. He radiated concern. Part of her wanted to curl up in his arms. She retreated to the privacy of the guest room instead.

An hour later, Jules knocked on the door. “Shelley, can I come in?”

“It’s okay, Jules,” Shelley said, relieved it was her sister and not Dev. “Come in. I was just giving Lucy some free time.”

Closing the door behind her, Jules crossed the room and sat down on the edge of the bed next to Shelley. She glanced at Lucy, who was curled up and sleeping on Shelley’s lap. “Free time, huh?”

“Lucy ran around, ate a few treats, then tuckered herself out.” Shelley shrugged. “I thought you and Seth left at the same time as Ryan and Ian.”

Jules nodded. “We did. Diana’s running the shop for me today. So I went home and picked up Callie. I thought you could use some company.”

“Where is she?”

Jules grinned. “I handed her off to Dev. I figured all he’s doing is checking the news and reading some reports. He could watch her sleep for a while.”

Shelley tried to return her sister’s smile, but failed. “Dev shouldn’t be here. He should be at work. Frack, at the very least, he should be getting me as far away from him and his home as possible.”

“It’s not in his nature to abandon anyone in a time of need,” Jules said with a frown. “Surely, you know that. I mean, the way Dev talked about you, I assumed you two were close once.”

Not as close as we were last night.
Satisfaction shimmered through Shelley at the thought before she could completely shove it away. “We were friends in college, if that’s what you mean. And you’re right. I do know him. He’s loyal to a fault.”

Dev knocked on her door, then called through it, “Shells, we need to talk.”

Dreading the conversation, but surprised it hadn’t happened earlier, she turned to her sister, who was rising from the bed. “Please stay.”

Maybe with Jules there, Dev wouldn’t ask the dreaded, “Why did you bail like some fracking weirdo coward last night?”

“Just a second, Dev. Let me put Lucy away.” The ferret woke with a squeak. “Shhh, girl,” Shelley reassured her. “I’ll bring you back out in a few.”

Once the ferret was securely locked away, Shelley opened the door.

“She’s been fed and is sleeping again,” Dev said to Jules, handing her the box that held a sleeping Callie. Jules set it on the dresser next to Lucy’s cage.

“Shells, I’ve got to go.” Dev’s handsome face was clouded; a frown drew his eyebrows so close together, they seemed to be one long one. “Seth just called me. The medical examiner is headed over to Elkridge. The sheriff requested him when he discovered something. The deputies found the murder weapon in your apartment.”

“What?” She shivered. She couldn’t help it. A killer
had
been in her apartment.

“Don’t worry,” Dev said, pulling her close. “The sheriff also said he found something odd with the victim and wants the M.E.’s opinion. Take it as a good sign. It means the sheriff’s office is making sure they have a solid case before they arrest anyone.”

Anyone, right.
She pulled away from him and hugged herself. “You mean, me. They’re making sure they have an airtight case before they arrest
me.
”

“Shells, I won’t let you go to jail for something I know you couldn’t have done,” Dev said, his voice adamant. A soft, green light glowed in the center of his chest, then expanded and shifted until it encompassed his entire body. The color changed from a soothing green to a strong, clear red. The light seemed to pulse around him like a heartbeat.

Shelley blinked and glanced over her shoulder at her sister. If Jules saw it, she gave no indication.

“I need you to trust me, Shells,” Dev said, drawing her gaze back to him. The light faded somewhat, but still pulsed rhythmically around him. “I’ll do whatever it takes to make sure you don’t spend even a single night in jail.”

She believed him. And it scared the holy hell out of her. This beautiful, amazing man was willing to risk his career for her. But she’d never let him.

“Thank you, Dev. Your faith in me means more than I can say,” she said. “I know you wouldn’t let me go to prison.”

Dev reached for her but dropped his hands when his cell phone sang out “Bad boys, bad boys, whatcha gonna do?”

He snatched it from his pocket and answered. “Detective Jones.”

Shelley pressed her lips together to keep from laughing at his choice of ringtones. She glanced at Jules who mouthed,
“Cops?”

Shelley shrugged, grinning.

“I’ll be there in ten.” Dev cut the connection and glanced at Shelley, an apology forming on his lips before he said, “I have to go to the station. Your tip about Colbert Rush helped. He has a cabin in Elkridge that he uses for hunting. According to Mason Hart, Rush was eager to dump the land and Hart Construction was set to buy it.”

“Mason Hart?” Jules’s asked, her eyes wide. “Are you sure?”

“Yeah, that’s why I’m headed into the station.” Dev’s phone vibrated. He glanced at it and shoved it into his camo shorts. “After I change.”

“How did Mason get involved in another crime?” Jules sounded weary.

“Who’s Mason Hart?” Shelley asked.

Jules and Dev both opened their mouths, but Jules answered first. “He’s an old friend of mine. Back in October, his fiancée was killed. He helped save me from her killer.”

“He’s nobody’s hero.” Dev snorted. “But he did come into the station this morning when he read about Rush’s murder. Seems he didn’t know Rush was a silent partner in McGivern’s Jewelers—the site of his fiancée’s murder. Your tip about Rush’s ties back to Elkridge helped jog the widow’s memories. Seems she never went there, it was where Rush went for boys’ time with old friends.”

Dev exhaled a slow breath and said, “I shouldn’t be gone long. And before you start to worry, no arrest warrant has been issued for you. But that doesn’t mean you should go wandering. Let me find out what the M.E. learned and then we’ll talk. No one outside of our group knows you’re here. Let’s keep you hidden as long as possible.”

“I’m really not comfortable with this. I should be actively helping. Not sitting on my hands like someone too weak to take care of herself.”

“No one who’s ever met you could call you weak. Shells, it’s called plausible deniability. If no one sees you wandering around Tidewater, no one will have any reason to ask me about you. If no one asks, then
I’m
not doing anything wrong by not bringing you in on a case I’m not even working.” Dev rubbed the back of his neck with one hand. “I don’t like it any better than you do, but please wait for me to get back. For all our sakes.”

Every instinct in her body screamed that she needed to do
some
thing. Before she could answer, Jules spoke up. “Go to the station, Dev. I’ll stay with Shelley.”

“I don’t need a babysitter.”

“Yes, you do,” Dev and Jules said in unison.

Fisting her hands on her hips, Shelley pasted the most plastic smile on her face and gritted, “Fine.”

Dev exhaled a relieved breath. “Thank you, Shells. Back soon.” He swooped down, planting a quick kiss on her lips and was out the door before she could react.

That kiss, innocent though it may have been, both warmed her and made her uneasy. It was too familiar. Too comfortable.

“Seth owes me a massage,” Jules said with a snicker.

Shelley turned to find her sister squatting in front of Lucy’s cage, running a finger down the ferret’s back.

“What are you talking about, Juliana?”

She straightened and said with a grin, “I bet Seth a massage that Dev was in love with you back in October. Seth thought I was imagining things. Ha. I win. I think I’m going to make him do it naked while feeding me caviar.”

“
Eww!
” Shelley recoiled. “Thinking about my sister getting it on is TMI.”

Jules laughed. “I said nothing about sex. Although that will definitely happen too.”

Shelley pressed her hands to her eyes. “Stop! Where’s the mind bleach when I need it?”

“Okay, so we’ll talk about
your
love life then,” Jules said, plopping down on the bed.

“There’s nothing to tell.” Shelley claimed the seat next to her.

“I saw what just happened. Dev was working hard to keep it casual, but he totally wanted to play tonsil hockey with you.”

“You’ve really got to stop that,” Shelley said, failing to keep her lips from twitching. “Dev and I are just friends.”

Who had amazing sex last night.

“Why are you fighting it?” Jules draped an arm around Shelley’s shoulders. “You already admitted you two had sex last night. You clearly want each other again. And you do the aura thing.”

“The aura thing?” Shelley asked. Anxiety and hope made her chest tight.

“You see his aura. Just like I see Seth’s.” Jules leaned back on her elbows. “That can’t be coincidence. I’d never seen one around a living person before Seth. You said yourself, you’d only ever seen Dev’s. It’s a sign you belong together.”

Shelley liked that idea. Really liked it. Too much. She shook her head. “I’m also locked in his house with you as my babysitter because some nut stuffed the body of my friend in the trunk of my car.”

And just like that, the mood in the room shifted again. “It’s not your fault, you know,” Jules said after a few minutes.

“You don’t know that.”

“I know that a murderer was in your apartment, and you’re lucky you’re not dead too,” Jules said, the color leaching from her face. “I’m glad you weren’t killed too, Shelley.”

“But Beau . . . what if he’s hurt or dead?” Shelley blinked back tears. God, when had that little boy come to mean so much to her? She wasn’t supposed to get attached to people. She knew better.

“I don’t think Tomás would still be on this side of the light if something had happened to Beau. I’ve seen families in the afterlife. If they’re close, they find each other. Travel together.” Jules shook her head. “No, I think Beau is alive. Ian and Ryan will find him. You’ll see.”

Shelley hoped, no she wished, with everything inside her that Jules was right. “You know, without Tomás, Beau is on his own. That sweet little boy is stuck in the system all alone, just like we were.”

“He’s got you.”

Shelley started to disagree when Jules suddenly said, “Besides, we’re getting off topic. You and Dev have a connection. Like Seth and me. Like Momma and Daddy . . . well, if I hadn’t messed that up.”

Jules dropped her arm and sighed with a faraway look in her green eyes.

“Momma and Daddy weren’t happy, Jules. That’s not to say you and Seth won’t be, but I don’t know why you think they were.”

Jules stood up and paced the floor twice before facing Shelley again. Tension had her sister coiled so tight, Shelley wondered if the woman wouldn’t turn into a human spring and bounce off the walls.

“Shelley, it’s my fault Daddy left,” Jules said, almost inaudibly. Her green gaze lowered to the floor. “He didn’t know how to deal with a kid who saw ghosts. I woke up in the middle of the night and went to find him. I was scared and crying because I’d just seen his partner’s spirit. I told Daddy what I saw. He was so freaked out, he told me I was imagining things and put me back in bed. The next day, I came home to find Momma in the kitchen crying and Daddy gone.”

Jules blinked back tears and Shelley’s own eyes misted for her sister. “Oh, Juliana, that’s not why Daddy left. Didn’t Momma ever tell you?”

“Momma cried every time I mentioned him. After that, everything happened so quick. The cancer, the hospital, the funeral. She was gone before we knew it.” Jules’s head snapped up. “What could she’ve told me?”

It was Shelley’s turn to comfort her big sister. She hugged her and shared a memory of the day she wished she could forget. “Daddy had taken the car to the garage. It was always breaking down, remember? Anyway, I was home sick from school. I wasn’t really sick anymore, but the school had a twenty-four hour policy about fevers. Hannah was teething and fussy, so Momma asked me to play with her while she answered the door.

“Two very pregnant women were there. One woman had deep olive skin and hair so black it was almost blue in the sunlight. She had twin boys on either side of her. They were around twelve years old. The other one had white-blond hair. I remember thinking she looked like a pregnant fairy. The dark-haired woman asked if Momma was married to Jerimah Scott.”

Shelley paused, unsure how to continue.

“Who were they?” Jules asked, when Shelley let the silence drag on too long.

“They said they were Mrs. Scott,” Shelley said, remembering the way Momma crumbled that day. “They said Daddy was married to all three of them.”

Jules sat gaping for several long minutes. Shelley understood. She’d had nearly twenty years to adjust to the truth and remembering that day still stung.

“How did I not know Daddy was a bigamist?” Jules whispered the last word. “Are you certain?”

Shelley nodded. “The blond one found some receipts that didn’t jive with something Daddy had told her about his business trips. Seems he liked to keep his real name when he married women, but he kept changing what he claimed was his profession from one wife to the next. With us, he was a trucker. With the blonde, he was a land developer, and I don’t remember what he said he did with the dark-haired one.