Secret Reflection (34 page)

The cynical, rational side of her brain wanted to laugh hysterically that she had been reduced to pleading with a phantom she would never have believed existed only a few short weeks ago. Now she was not only a believer, but desperately in love with a dead man who in truth lived a hundred and forty years ago.

The air around her continued to remain oppressively silent, and just as she had done so many times in the past twelve hours, she forced the threatening tears back. ‘Please,’ she begged one last time. When no answer came, she breathed deeply and climbed into bed, huddling there as if it could cocoon her from reality.

The gentle hand swept up her back to make her smile inwardly. Her body reacted, a rash of goosebumps spread over her skin, raising each tiny hair. Heat pooled between her thighs, warming, dampening. She so needed his touch
.

Turning, her lips sought the heated skin of his chest. Her tongue danced a circle around one small flat nipple that pebbled and peaked as if reaching toward her. The low rumble of his pleased laugh echoed through every cell and she felt a triumphant surge of feminine power
.

One large hand splayed across her chest as he teased the edge of her breast. She felt it tighten and a dart of adrenalin shot through her belly, almost shocking in its intense suddenness. The hand began to weave a path downward bringing every cell in its path alive, then slowing over her slightly rounded belly, before his long fingers tangled in the damp curls. She lifted her hips, forcing his fingers lower so they delved into her heat. Yes, that was where she needed him
.

Nuzzling, he buried his face in her neck, his hot breath feathering against her sensitive skin as he slid one leg between hers. Using a gentle pressure he pushed his thigh upward against his own hand to increase the pressure of his fingers as they delved in the slickness that flowed from her. A groan tore from her throat as he slid the pad of his finger over her swollen nub. Her legs quivered. His index finger pressed firmly, just once, and her back arched upward
.

Crying out, the spasms of ecstasy shivered through her and her eyes flew open
.

She gulped in air, panting as if she had just run a race. Her whole body thrummed and the contractions of her internal muscles continued to pulse, firing her nerve endings to send spurts of sensation down the insides of her thighs all the way to her toes.

‘Omigod! Not again,’ Kelly said into the silence as her heart rate and breathing began to slow. Her eyes darted about the darkened room.
Could he be here?
When she’d asked for him to follow through and haunt her, this wasn’t really what she’d meant!

Leaning across to the bedside, she tapped on the light. It took a minute for her eyes to adjust, but she already knew that she was quite alone. The hollow sensation that had gripped her since last night returned along with the light.

Looking down at herself she felt an uneasy sense of humiliation. Her nipples stood out against her t-shirt and as she wriggled her bottom to the side of the bed she felt that slippery, squelchy sensation that only ever happened when she’d had sex.

Raising a shaky hand to push her hair from her eyes, she stared at the blank space where the mirror should have been. The loneliness hit her in the chest like a blow. If this is what the future would be, she didn’t know how long she’d cope; erotic dreams and asking ghosts to haunt her … she definitely needed a psychiatrist!

It was no surprise to Richard when he opened the door to find Detective Inspector Mathieson’s unreadable visage staring blankly at him. He’d been expecting the good inspector all afternoon. Whether the man believed Will Montgomery’s allegations or not, he was fairly certain that Kelly would have told him all the gory details of last night’s little fracas. The flowers had been a peace offering, suggested by his lawyer. While he didn’t think it’d do much good, he decided the gesture wouldn’t hurt. Obviously it hadn’t helped any, either.

‘What can I do for you, Detective Inspector?’ he said in a sarcastic tone as he walked away, leaving the door open for the inspector to come in, or not, as he chose.

Sitting on the couch before the television, he nursed his bandaged arm and proceeded to focus on the football game that was playing.

The inspector followed him into the room and stood between Richard and the screen. ‘I’ve just been over at Stanthorpe getting a statement from Ms Reid.’

Richard’s eyes darted up momentarily before they again settled on what he could see of the match.

‘Ms Reid has decided not to press assault charges, Mr Ditchley.’

At that, Richard straightened and looked directly at the inspector for the first time. Maybe the flowers
had
worked. That notion set his mind to wondering whether he might, in fact, convince her to marry him after all? While he didn’t really think that likely, he’d pay another visit, perhaps in a day or so, just to test the waters. He knew he didn’t have long before Will would be by to collect Denny’s money … either he got a cheque from Kelly, or he needed to think seriously about getting out of town. And that wouldn’t be easy. Knowing Denny, he had blokes all over the place, watching him, waiting for him to do a runner.

‘Is that all you wanted?’ he asked the inspector lightly.

‘No, in fact it’s not, Mr Ditchley. Actually, I am here to make your day. You will be pleased to know that the blood test came back negative. It seems the foetus came back with neither your nor Deanna’s blood-type. We are doing further testing to see if we can learn the identity of the father of Deanna Montgomery’s foetus.’

‘I told you I hadn’t touched her.’

‘While you might not be the father, we still intend to pursue the investigation into Will Montgomery’s allegations. Until our inquiries are complete, do not leave the county.’

‘Fine.’ Picking up the remote control, he started flicking between channels as if the inspector was no longer there. ‘Anything else?’

Mathieson moved to the door. ‘I’ll be talking to you further, Mr Ditchley.’

‘Fine,’ Richard repeated.

As soon as the door closed Richard stood and smiled to himself. Relief washed through him like a spring wind. So, the brat was some other man’s bastard. While the idea that she’d been sleeping with someone else irked him, he felt deliriously happy that they had no evidence against him.
That news deserves a celebration!
He headed for the cabinet that held his stash of scotch and grabbed the most expensive bottle. What with Kelly not pressing charges and the test findings, things were looking up.

Another persistent knock sounded on his door. ‘What now,’ he grumbled under his breath as he stalked back into the living room and wrenched the door open. He was just about to ask the inspector what he’d forgotten, when Eithne’s angelic face greeted him.

‘Hello, Eithne. What brings you over?’

The girl tilted her head up and gave him her best smile. ‘You said to come by after the funeral, Mr Ditchley. Me dad’s at the pub having a wake with his friends, so I thought I’d come to ask you about the job … if it is still open.’

The charming persona clicked into place and he swung the door wide. ‘It most certainly is. Come in, Eithne. Would you like a glass of juice? Or a soft drink?’

She shook her head and shuffled inside.

‘Take a seat,’ Richard suggested as he sat on the couch.

‘What happened to your arm, Mr Ditchley?’

‘Call me Richard, Eithne … if you’re going to work for me, you’ll get sick of calling me mister all the time. I got cut by broken glass. Just a few stitches but it’ll be better soon.’

She nodded and squeezed into the seat on the end of the couch.

‘How was the funeral? I wanted to come but your dad wouldn’t let me.’

She glanced up at him from under her pale brows, her eyes, so like Dee’s, glassy from unshed tears. ‘It was okay. Lots of people kept trying to hug me and I just wanted to get away.’

Richard sipped his scotch and nodded sagely. ‘Yeah, people can smother you. Do you miss Dee?’

She put her head down. ‘Sometimes,’ she said weakly. ‘She used to stop dad from hurting me when he got to drinkin’ too much.’

Interesting
.

‘Did he try to hurt you often?’

‘Sometimes. He hurt Dee lots.’

One of Richard’s brows rose slightly. Dee had never told him that her father beat her. ‘I’m sorry, Eithne. If he ever tries to hurt you, you can always come here … okay?’ He slid closer to her on the couch and gave her a reassuring pat on the thigh.

Without warning the girl threw herself against him, hugging him fiercely. ‘Thanks, Mr Ditchley,’ she whispered against his ear. ‘Dee said if I ever needed help and she wasn’t around, to come to you.’ She squeezed for a second, then pulled back and gave him a shy smile.

The smell of her fresh skin flooded his senses and his whole body tightened. Squirming slightly, he angled his body away from hers to relieve the sudden pressure inside him. This was not good, not so soon after Dee’s death, and certainly not with Will’s accusations still hanging over his head like the proverbial sword of Damocles. He needed to stay cool. While he might be eager to explore the possibilities Eithne offered, he really needed to bide his time.

‘What did Deanna tell you about the job?’ he asked to divert her attention, and his.

Eithne’s eyes narrowed as she concentrated on remembering. ‘Dee used to say that it was real good working for you Mr Di— Richard,’ she giggled sheepishly. ‘She said you never made her work too hard, and that you used to give her nice things to eat and sometimes special clothes to wear.’ Eithne slid him a sideways look that reminded him of Deanna when she was out to seduce him. His groin tightened further and his temperature went up a notch. He wondered just how much Dee might have told her little sister.

Leaning over he picked up the end of her pigtail and twirled it through his fingers, deliberately tickling her neck. Again she giggled.

‘What else did Dee say?’

‘She said that she was going to marry you one day.’

Richard’s eyes widened. ‘Really?’

She nodded with the enthusiasm of youth. ‘She said you were going to take her to London and marry her as soon as she was old enough.’

Swallowing, he wondered whether Dee had told her father these things as well. It would account for the accusations.

The door crashed open, bouncing on its hinges with an almighty crack. His breath lurched.

‘I told you to leave my little girl alone,
you animal!
’ Will Montgomery roared as he threw himself headlong at Richard so fast that he had no chance to evade him. All the wind was knocked out of him and he heard, rather than felt, several ribs crunch as the full weight of Will’s nuggety body landed on his chest. He couldn’t breathe, he couldn’t even moan.

Will began pummelling his face. ‘You won’t be such a pretty-boy after I’ve finished with you, Lord
bloody
Stanthorpe.’

Richard’s head rocked back when Will’s fist ground into his face. Strangely, he didn’t feel a thing … it was as if he was watching from the sidelines. He knew he ought to be fighting back, but he had no strength, no air.

‘NO! DA, STOP!’ screeched Eithne from somewhere behind him. ‘We wasn’t doing nothing! We were just talking, Da!’

From the corner of his eye he could see Eithne trying to grab hold of her father’s raised fist. But Will was too fast and light blasted inside Richard’s brain as the fist found its mark.
Now
it hurt. Hot pain jagged all the way down his spine and warm liquid covered his face. Everything in the room went dark and hazy for a moment and his body began to shudder. The fist drew back, ready to strike again. He tried to turn away but his head no longer obeyed his commands.

‘DA! Stop it!’

The fist caused another shower of sparks inside his brain and he coughed hard. Several teeth came spraying out of his mouth in a crimson cascade that threatened to choke him.

‘Keep your weaselly cock out of my daughters!’ Will growled as his knee jerked upward.

GOD!
Fire consumed him as the most excruciating pain he’d ever endured exploded through his body. Richard began screaming. Now he did choke and he didn’t even notice when Will’s fist smashed into his nose for the third time. He didn’t hear the sound of it breaking. He didn’t hear Eithne’s convulsive cries. The pinpoint of agony between his legs consumed him beyond all else and he struggled towards the distant buzzing that promised unconsciousness.

Only it didn’t come. Like a rag doll he slid to the floor while Will battered him relentlessly. Will straddled him, thumping each side of his face with the skill of a boxer. The
buzzing got louder and Richard would have smiled if his face had been able to respond to his thoughts.

Suddenly Will’s weight disappeared and Richard found himself staring into Mathieson’s hard face.

‘Playtime’s over, Montgomery,’ he said as Will landed in a heap beside the television. ‘Let’s all take a ride into Abingdon.’

Richard didn’t know how long the ambulance took to arrive. He drifted in and out of consciousness. But he did hear Mathieson arrest Will and a gleeful sound gurgled up his throat.

Day Twelve

‘That was Mathieson,’ Tom explained as he put the telephone handset back in its cradle. ‘He says he’ll be over to talk to you later today.’

Kelly glanced up from her uneaten breakfast. A chilled feeling passed through her despite the sunny warmth of the kitchen. ‘Maybe he has decided to arrest me. It might be time to find a lawyer.’

‘Don’t be silly, Kel,’ Nancy placed her hand over Kelly’s and gave a reassuring squeeze. ‘The man needs evidence for that, and I’m sure he hasn’t got any.’

‘The police were at the funeral in force yesterday. They watched everyone like hawks. My guess is they were hoping the killer was there and would do something to reveal himself,’ Tom offered as he stirred his tea.

Kelly’s lips thinned. ‘You watch too much television, Tom. I’ve been party to a few investigations in my time and they don’t usually tell you anything unless they need to. The good inspector probably has a whole lot of circumstantial evidence. They keep everything under wraps until they think they have enough, then they come get you.’