When the Smoke Clears (Deadly Reunions) (9 page)

Alexia didn’t know why the words carried such a punch. She’d suspected as much. “My mother? Interested in a man? A man interested in my mother?” She snorted. “Now that’s just weird. After the number my father did on her, I would have figured she’d run screaming if another man even looked at her.”

A light hand settled on Alexia’s shoulder. “Your mom’s had a lot of counseling over the last few years. She graduated from school with an administrative assistant degree. She’s going to church. I’m serious. I’ve been in a few Bible studies with her and gotten to know the new Hannah Allen. She’s not the same woman you’re picturing from ten years ago. Give her a chance.”

Pausing, Alexia studied her friend. Then blew out a sigh. “All I can do is promise I’ll try to see what you see in her. Okay?”

“It’s a start.”

Alexia’s head ached from her run-in with her attacker in the parking garage, but she felt the need to return to the house. Plus, the grass needed cutting. Her mother loved a neat yard. Why Alexia felt compelled to give her one she couldn’t say. She just remembered her mother’s comments on the rare occasion her father cut the grass. “I love the yard, Greg, it’s beautiful.”

Most of the time, the job fell to the teenaged Alexia. And she loved it. It got her out of the house and gave her time to think.

Pulling into the driveway, she parked her car and noticed the crime scene tape. Should she go in? Were they finished processing the house? Unsure, she pulled out her cell phone and dialed Hunter’s number.

He picked up on the third ring. “Hello?”

“Hi, Hunter, it’s Alexia.”

His voice warmed. “Hi there. How are you this morning?”

“I’m doing all right, thanks. I’m at my mom’s house. Is it all right if I go in? Has it been cleared?”

“Hold on a sec. Let me check.” Shuffling in the background came over the line. A minute later, he said, “Yeah, it’s cleared. They finished up late last night.”

“Thanks.”

“Sure. You need any help with anything?”

Did she? “No, not right now. I’m . . . not going in the house or down to the basement or anything. I just want to cut the grass for her.”

Silence on the other end. Then he said, “All right. I’ll let you know if there are any new developments in the case.”

“Sounds good.” She was stalling. Sounded like he was too. Clearing her throat, she said, “I’ve gotta go. Talk to you later.”

“Right. Later.”

She hung up and stared at the house. The back of her neck tingled and she shivered at the sensation. When she turned, she didn’t see anything out of the ordinary.

A door slammed and she whirled back in the other direction to see Lori Tabor walking down the front steps of her brother’s house, following two small children. The kids laughed as they ran to the swing set at the edge of the yard. Lori saw her and waved.

Alexia waved back, hopped out of the car, and headed for the carport.

The lawn mower sat in the corner. Alexia grabbed it and wheeled it to the edge of the lawn, feeling like she was once again a fourteen-year-old desperate to escape her life for the next hour, losing herself in the roar of the engine and the precision of neatly cut rows of grass.

Leaning over, she grasped the starter and pulled. The engine sputtered and died. She tried again with the same result.

“I bet you need some gas.”

Alexia looked up to find Lori standing at the edge of the yard. She smiled. “You think?”

Lori shrugged. “Sounds like it. If you don’t have some, I’m sure Avery has a can in the garage.”

Alexia nodded. “Thanks.” She went back into the carport and hunted around. Opening the storage room, she checked.

A gas can huddled in the corner. She hefted it, deciding it probably held about half a gallon. Surely that would be enough.

Walking back to the lawn mower, she noticed Lori had returned to her charges. Alexia filled up the gas tank. Before she had a chance to start the mower, an older man who looked to be in his late sixties walked up the drive. Placing his hands on his hips, he said, “Glad to see someone’s taking care of this place while Mrs. Allen’s in the hospital.”

Alexia straightened. “I’m her daughter, Alexia.”

His eyes cooled. “Ah. So you’re the one. Heard you all had some excitement around here.”

“Yes sir. And you are?”

“Harold Yarborough.”

“Did you know Devin Wickham, Mr. Yarborough?”

“Not very well.” He clicked his tongue. “A real shame, though. He sure did help your mom out quite a bit.”

“So I understand.”

He might as well have shouted, “Unlike Hannah Allen’s irresponsible daughter.” She refused to allow this man to see how guilty she felt.

“When’s your mother expected to come home?” he asked.

“I’m not sure.”

“Have you even been to see her?”

Alexia gaped, then caught herself. “Yes sir, I have. Now, if you don’t mind, I think I’ll get on with cutting the grass.”

He didn’t take the hint. “My wife, Annie, and your mother are good friends. Annie’s been up to the hospital every day since she was admitted.” He nodded in Lori’s direction. “Her too.”

“I’m sure Mom appreciates that, Mr. Yarborough.” Would the man never leave? His hostility was beginning to grate.

“She does. Talks about you all the time, though. Your brother, Dominic, too.”

“Really?” Now that did interest her.

“Annie says Hannah talks about how bad she wants to see her kids again, to have them in her life.”

Was he for real? Why did he feel so comfortable chastising her? “Well, we’ll have to see what happens, won’t we?”

Mr. Yarborough grunted and narrowed his eyes. “If you’re going to hurt that woman again, you might as well get on back to where you came from.”

The urge to tell the man exactly what he could do with his unwanted advice had her opening her mouth. Then she shut it. He and his wife were friends with her mother. Of course they’d want to look out for her. Alexia calmed. “I’m going to do my best to make sure that I don’t do anything to hurt her.”

Her words seemed to surprise him. And mollify him. Giving her a small smile and a crisp salute, he nodded. “Good then. Be seeing you around.” He walked off and Alexia watched him enter the house next door.

She shook her head and muttered, “See you.” She bent back over the lawn mower just as something slammed into the garage post behind her.

13

Tuesday, 9:12 a.m.

Spinning, she saw . . . a dart? After the incident in the parking garage, she didn’t think twice about falling to the cement drive. Another dart whizzed over her left shoulder.

In disbelief, fear thudding through her, she scrambled to her knees and dove for cover behind the large white freezer. Shaking, her fingers fumbled for the cell phone she had shoved in the back of her shorts pocket. She punched in 9-1-1.

Huddled behind the freezer, she was trapped. If the person shooting the darts came looking for her, she had nowhere to go.

“What’s your emergency?”

“I . . . someone’s shooting darts at me. I need help!”

Once again, Alexia found herself in terror mode but managed to relay the information the man needed. Fighting fires had taught her how to fight panic and win.

“Help is on the way, ma’am. I’ve dispatched a unit that’s only a minute or so away.”

All remained quiet. No more darts came flying in her direction.

Sirens sounded in the distance.

Alexia stayed put.

Hunter heard the call over the radio. Someone was shooting darts at Alexia? He’d been on his way to check on Chad but decided his brother could wait. Adrenaline spiking, he made a left turn, then a right. Soon, he was racing toward the Allen house, punching the speed dial number he’d assigned to Alexia’s phone as he slowed to make his way through an intersection.

It rang. Then went to voice mail.

He grabbed the radio, patched through to the dispatcher, and requested an update.

“Officers are on the scene now,” she said.

“Any report of injury? A request for an ambulance?”

“Not at this time.”

Hunter felt his pulse slow slightly. If the officers were there, and no one had called for an ambulance, then Alexia was probably all right.

Two minutes later, he pulled in front of the house. The area looked much like it had last night. CSU would arrive soon, Hunter would make sure of it. This was no coincidence.

Alexia finding Devin dead in her mother’s house, then being mugged in a parking garage? Yeah, okay, that could be coincidence.

Add this incident into the equation and no.

He saw her sitting sideways in the back of a police cruiser. The door was open, her feet on the ground. She looked both vulnerable and mad, with a tight jaw and narrowed eyes. One officer hovered over her. The other examined the area around the carport.

Hunter approached and flashed his badge. Alexia saw him and gave him a tremulous smile.

Touching her shoulder, he asked, “Having a hard time staying out of trouble, aren’t you?”

She sighed. “At least I’m not bored.”

A king cab truck pulled in beside the cruiser and Hunter blinked. “Chad?”

“What’s he doing here?” she asked.

“I don’t know. Let me go find out.”

Hunter left her watching his back as he rounded the front of the cruiser and approached his brother. Chad pushed the sunglasses to the top of his head.

Hunter eyed him. “What are you up to, Chad?”

“Heard the excitement and the address on the scanner. Thought I’d come by and see what it’s all about.”

“You off today?”

“Yep.”

Seemed Chad was off more than he was on these days. “Then why don’t you go enjoy your day and let me worry about what’s going on around here.”

A hard glint turned Chad’s blue eyes as cold as ice. “I guess I can come by if I want.”

Not in the mood for his brother’s antics, Hunter decided to let it go. “Right. Sure. Why not.”

Chad jerked his chin in Alexia’s direction. “She all right?”

“Scared, but not hurt.”

“Tell her I’ll call her, check on her later.”

Did his brother think Alexia really wanted him to do that? Instead of asking, Hunter simply nodded. “Sure.”

Chad’s eyes thawed a few degrees. “I’m heading over to see Dad. He wanted me to help him plant some bush or something.”

“Okay. Catch you later.” Their father loved to work in the yard. Hunter shuddered. Give him a murder to investigate any day.

“You coming to dinner tonight?” Chad asked.

“If I can.”

Chad smirked. “Why don’t I go over and invite Alexia?”

Hunter resisted rolling his eyes. Barely. “I don’t think that’s a good idea right now.”

“Yeah, probably not. See ya.” With that, his brother stepped on the gas and sped off.

Hunter gathered his thoughts and turned back to finish working the investigation.

Alexia watched the exchange between the brothers. Chad seemed angry, hostile toward Hunter. Hunter looked frustrated. But he quickly wiped the expression from his face as he walked back over to her just as the CSU van pulled up.

Hunter looked at Alexia. “As soon as they get one of the darts bagged, I’m going to take it to the lab myself. I’ve got a friend who might have time to run it while I’m there.”