Veiled Passages (2 page)

He opened a hidden portion of the leather case, but before he put it in, he pulled out the large pile of bills and thumbed through them.  “Like taking candy from a baby,” he said ruefully, and then stuffed it away.

With the soft sound of the reporter’s voice in the background, he strolled through the sitting room and the large bedroom into a luxurious bathroom with a Jacuzzi tub. He actually peeked over his shoulder before he unzipped his leather toiletries case and pulled out a nondescript bottle filled with a light blue liquid.  Opening the bottle, he inhaled and closed his eyes as the scent of lavender and chamomile filled his senses.
Perfect, just perfect
, he thought, pouring a sizable amount into the tub before leaning over and turning on the tub’s water. 

Steam rose in the room, covering the mirrors and windows.  He closed the bathroom door, slipped off the rest of his clothing and tossed them carelessly on the tile floor. 

Sliding into the hot bath, he closed his eyes in total relaxation.  The Jacuzzi streams were set on medium force and he felt all of the knots in his muscles being melted away.  He leaned over to a small timer on the edge of the tub.  The wine would be properly chilled in thirty minutes; he could unwind in the tub for twenty-five and be ready just in time.  He set the timer, leaned his head back and relaxed.

The rumble of trucks passing down the main highway through town acted as white noise, blocking out the noise or voices of people in the halls of the hotel.  The one thing he didn’t want to hear were the angry accusations of the writers from 4M.  He’d already decided, after he relaxed with his wine, that he would call a cab and get an early start on the trip to the airport.  He didn’t need someone making a scene.

He opened his eyes and watched the steam vapor swirl around the room, like specters of goodwill, easing his tension.  He lay back again and started to smile, but choked instead. He tried to catch his breath, but couldn’t.  Struggling, he tried to pull himself out of the bath, but his body was too lethargic.  He couldn’t move. He clawed at the side of the tub, trying to maintain consciousness.  Who had done this to him?

Finally, the room dimmed before his eyes, and the sound of the Jacuzzi intensified as he slipped down into the bubbling jets of water.  The blue water darkened to black and Peter Swift sank to the bottom of the tub.

Chapter One

 The alarm clock went off and Mary groaned.  She blindly reached toward her nightstand, thumping her hand against the surface, trying in vain to locate the snooze button.  Finally, she lifted her head above her pillow and groaned even louder,
Crap, it’s on the dresser!

Whipping the blankets across the bed, she stormed across the room and picked up the clock.

“Be nice! You were the one that set it so early,” Mike chided as he appeared next to her. “It’s not the clock’s fault you’re a grumpy pants early in the morning.”

Stopping herself from destroying the clock against the top of her dresser, she took a deep calming breath and turned to Mike. “I am not a grumpy pants.”

He leaned against the dresser and grinned. “Grumpy pants, grumpy pants,” he teased. “So, why such an early alarm, the sun is barely out?”

She yawned, widely, and ran her hand through her hair. “I’m jogging with Bradley this morning,” she complained, her nose wrinkling in aversion.

Mike raised one eyebrow. “Wow, yeah, I can see that you’re still madly in love with the guy.”

She sighed. “It’s not that. Of course I’m madly in love with him. But I have so much to do.”

“At five o’clock in the morning?” Mike asked irreverently.

Glaring at him, she nodded. “Yes! Sleep!”

She grabbed her running gear and walked through him on her way to the bathroom.

“Oh, wow, that hurt,” he called after her. “Invading my personal space like that. Ghosts have feelings too!”

She pulled the bathroom door closed with a decided click and Mike grinned. “That girl needs to get herself married.”

A few minutes later, Mary peeked out the bathroom door to be sure the coast was clear. She paused at Ian’s door and knocked softly.

“Aye?” he called, his voice sounded awake and alert.

She opened the door and peeked in.  “I’m going jogging with Bradley,” she said. “Can you listen for Clarissa?”

He glanced over to his clock. “Sure I can,” he said. “Gillian and I will be having a video chat in a few, but why don’t you keep the door open in case she wakes early.”

“Thanks, Ian.”

“Enjoy your run,” he replied with a wicked smile.

She stuck out her tongue at him and then headed downstairs.  Pausing near the front door, she performed a few stretches to limber up before she started running.

“Looking good,” Mike said, accompanying his words with a low wolf whistle.

Turning, she shook her head, and a small smile teased its way onto her face. “Sorry about earlier,” she apologized. “It’s just…”

Mike hovered next to her. “Hey, really, I get it,” he said. “Wedding coming up, new kid in the house, murderer trying to kill you, your mom coming to visit.  All the normal stresses a potential bride faces.”

Sighing, she leaned against the door. “Wouldn’t it be nice, just for once, to be normal?”

He grinned. “Darling, you’re asking that question to the wrong person, er, angel,” he replied. “If you were normal, I wouldn’t be here.”

Nodding, she stood straight. “You’re right,” she said. “And no amount of normal would be worth that.”

“Have a good run, kid,” Mike said.

“Yes, I think I will,” she said with a bright smile.

It was a lovely spring morning.  The little daffodils and crocuses were already blooming, their powerful scent filling the morning air with perfume.  New grass was pushing through the soil and a perky robin was flitting from one branch to another in the maple tree in front of her house.  She inhaled deeply and immediately felt better; this was going to be a great day.

She wore a sweat shirt over her running gear to try and disguise the hand gun she was also carrying.  Since Gary Copper had not been located yet she wasn’t going to take any chances, so the gun had become an everyday accessory.

Jogging up her street, she made sure she used the cars on the street and the trees as shields.  She knew Gary was not a trained marksman, so it would be hard for him to hit a moving target, much less one that was jogging in an erratic pace around buffers.  It took her a little longer to get to the park, but it was worth the peace of mind.

She entered the park, headed towards the playground and grinned.  There he was, doing those stretches he did so well.  Bradley, dressed in his favorite work out gear of cut-off sweat pants and a t-shirt, had his hands on the top of the bench as he bent and stretched. It was a view that would make any red-blooded woman experience a shot of heat.  She paused at the top of the rise for a moment, just to enjoy the view.

“Um, ma’am.”

The voice behind her made her jump and reach for her weapon. Turning, she saw a female uniformed police officer standing next to her.

“Sorry, ma’am, I was just on the other side of the tree line,” she said. “I didn’t mean to startle you.”

Mary stuffed her gun back into its holster and shook her head. “No, sorry, I’m just a little jumpy,” she explained.

“Yes, I know,” she said. “That’s why the chief has a couple of us stationed around the park, to keep an eye out for anyone matching Copper’s description.”

“That’s a good idea,” she agreed. “Did you need something from me?”

The officer looked slightly embarrassed. “Well, begging your pardon, ma’am, but stopping like you did at the top of the rise makes you an easy target.”

Mary looked around and realized that she had, indeed, stopped to watch Bradley at a really vulnerable spot.  Something she would have never done if she’d been thinking straight. She smiled at the officer. “Sorry, you’re right,” she said. “I guess I just got distracted.”

The officer smiled back at her. “Yes, ma’am,” she agreed, and then pointed to a more sheltered area a little further down the path. “If you want to be distracted a little further down the pathway, that would be a safer place and you’d still…”

Grinning, she nodded. “Enjoy the view, officer?” she asked.

Returning her grin, the officer nodded in the direction of Bradley, still in the process of stretching. “Yes, ma’am.”

“Thank you, officer, I will try to be more aware of my surroundings,” Mary said.

“Have a good day,” the officer replied, stepping back into the tree line.

Mary continued her jog around the path and down into the playground.  Bradley looked up at her and smiled. “Hi! You’re late,” he said.

“Sorry, I stopped to chat with one of your officers,” she replied. “We were both enjoying… the beauty of nature.”

Bradley looked around and breathed in deeply. “Yeah, it’s a great day.”

Mary nodded. “It certainly is,” she agreed.

“So do you want to race?” he asked.

“Of course…” she began, but he took off running before she had a chance to complete her sentence. “Hey, no fair!”

She dashed after him.  They ran up the path that circled the park: it was as wide as a sidewalk and lined with trees on either side.  From their vantage point, they could see down on the band shell, the baseball diamonds and the carousel.  But Mary was too busy concentrating on gaining on Bradley to enjoy the view. 

She just started to gain on him when he turned and ran down the hill, using a narrow deer path that wove through the trees down towards the band shell.  

She increased her pace, watching him skip over roots and rocks like it was a well-practiced obstacle course. 
Well practiced!  Crap! This is a set up! He’s cheating! Well, there is no way I’m going to let him win when he’s cheating!

Quickly assessing the situation, she decided the only way she would be able to catch him was to run directly through the woods and intersect his deer path.  Charging into the trees alongside the path, Mary created a small avalanche as she slipped and slid over dirt, rocks and roots, angling her way towards the path and Bradley.  The hill was steep and Mary’s downhill momentum was increasing.  At first she was exhilarated by her speed, but after a few moments, as small branches whipped against her body and her feet nearly slid out from underneath her, she realized she was not in control and she would have a hard time stopping.  She tried to grab onto small saplings to slow her descent, but she only received a palm filled with slivers. The only thing she could do was plunge forward and hope to keep her feet underneath her.

Angling her body through the remaining trees, she set herself on a direct collision course with Bradley. If she was going down, he was going along with her.

Chapter Two

Oblivious to the drama behind him, Bradley was racing down the small deer path, his practiced steps easily avoiding the tricky roots and rocks.  He knew he had an unfair advantage and he had set Mary up to fail this time. But, he reasoned, it would be all worth it in the end.

The sounds of something crashing through the woods to his side caused him to turn just as Mary broke through the brush and careened into him. He wrapped his arms around her to stop her forward motion, but their feet got tangled together and they both dropped to the ground.

Their forward momentum and the steep incline of the hill caused them to roll down the grassy hill together. “Ouch, ouch, ouch, dammit, ouch,” Mary cried, as her body, often sandwiched between Bradley and the bumpy ground, found every rock, stick and lump in the grass.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, but in reality, were only a few moments, they stopped at the base of the carousel.  Mary landed with her back pressed up against the fence line. Bradley lay next to her, facing the carousel.  He raised his head, slipping his arms from around her body and angling himself up. “Are you okay?” he asked.

She pushed her hair from her face and sighed. “I’m fine. I think my ego is bruised more than my body.”

Smiling down at her, he lowered his face, kissed the tip of her nose and then reached across her and placed his hand on the chain-link fence. “I win,” he announced.

Mary angled her hands against his chest, pushed him, but he didn’t budge. “What? You win?  I could be bleeding internally and all you’re concerned about is winning?”

He shook his head. “I did ask you if you were okay first,” he reminded her. “Besides, it was really important for me to win.”

She folded her arms across her chest. “Oh, really?” she snapped. “What’s so important?”

“Mary O’Reilly, marry me,” he said.

Rolling her eyes and sighing, she shook her head. “You already asked me that question,” she replied. “Remember?”

Grinning down at her, he leaned forward and kissed her nose once again. “Yeah, I remember,” he said. “But, I want to make a slight adjustment to our agreement.”

“An adjustment?” she repeated slowly.

He leaned down again and placed his forehead against hers. “I want us to get married sooner,” he said softly. “I want us to be a family. I don’t want to wait.”

“A family?”

“You and me and Clarissa,” he said. “The sooner we get married, the sooner all of our lives can assume some normalcy.”

Her lips quirked. “You really think your life is going to assume some normalcy being married to me?”

He pondered her comment for a moment and then kissed the tip of her nose again. “It will be the best kind of para-normalcy anyone could ask for.”

Laughing, she nodded.  “Okay, how much sooner?”

He touched her lips with his. “Tomorrow,” he whispered.

She snorted. “No, that’s not going to work.”

“When?” he asked.

Sighing, she did a quick mental list of everything she’d have to complete for the wedding. There was so much more that still needed to be done.  She looked up at him and met his eyes. He was right, it would do Clarissa a world of good to be part of a real family, instead of getting to know her father only during the daytime hours.  What could she promise that wouldn’t totally drive her insane?  Finally, she answered. “Two weeks.”