Deadly Shadows (17 page)

* * * *

Late that evening, Jesslyn parked her truck at the curb and looked at the coffee shop. She was tired. Aiden was pissed at her for not leaning on him more. He would be. The man needed to

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comfort and protect. And she didn’t know how to take that.

Closing her eyes, she willed away other thoughts that kept intruding. That morning Garrison had taken her to
The Dime
to walk her through everything she and Maddy did that night. Aiden had wanted to go, but she’d talked him out of it. Barely. If it hadn’t been for his parents, she wouldn’t have had an excuse. As it was, she was glad he wasn’t here because she was about to leave to meet Tim and T.J.

The morning had
not
been easy. At
The Dime
she’d gone through Maddy’s slot with the Chief. There were pictures of Maddy and Kirk, Maddy and Tim and of Maddy, T.J. and Jesslyn behind the bar. Why hadn’t anyone cleaned it out? Jesslyn had only managed to untape the picture of the three of them before the reality of the situation hit her like a rock slide. Before she was buried under the tidal wave of grief, she hurried back to the office and attempted to look through other things letting Garrison look through the rest of Maddy’s slot. Anything to keep her mind from dwelling on Maddy.

But it wasn’t easy when Garrison’s next stop with her had been Maddy’s house. Jesslyn had come damn close to breaking there, but she’d held it together. Barely.

Instead she lost it later at the funeral home. Guess everyone had a breaking point.

Sighing, she cut the engine and climbed out, walking into the local coffee shop,
The
Mountain Bean.
She needed to let Sally and David Hewett know about the arrangements. The coffee house was open from seven until seven. Usually Sally worked the evening shift, but tonight both were here.

And so was Tammy.

“Hey, Jesslyn!”

“Hey, Tammy,” she slid into a table by the bar.

“Want what you usually get?”

The dread-locked girl, into new age mysticism, smiled. Crystals, in various colors, shapes and sizes hung in her hair, around her neck and in her ears. Though today they looked mostly purple or red. Tammy looked around, then plopped in the chair opposite Jesslyn. Her head cocked to the side, crystals and beads tinkling. “Your aura’s troubled. Not surprising all things considered.”

“No secrets in small towns.”

“Maybe some Chai tea instead?”

Jesslyn didn’t think of herself as a close minded person, really. But, she generally ignored most of what Tammy told her. Yet, the girl’s words struck a note in her.

Shaking her head, Jesslyn said, “I just had a really shitty day. So if my aura is dented or something, that would be why. And you know how I feel about that tea of yours. I need caffeine. Lots and lots of caffeine.”

Tammy’s lips twitched.

Sally Hewett walked over. “Hey Jesslyn. Has it been decided yet when the funeral will be?” Like a bucket of ice water, the question shocked her back to why she was here. People wanted to know. Everyone liked Maddy.

“Yeah, it’s day after tomorrow. Ten o’clock at the Wheeler Funeral Home in Gunnison.”

David Hewett came up to stand behind his wife. Jesslyn had worked here when she first moved to this town. Probably why she was so hooked on coffee.

“You need anything, anything at all, Jess, you give us a call,” David said, wrapping his

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long arms around his wife and keeping his eyes on Jesslyn.

She nodded. “I will. Thanks guys.”

Sally gave her a quick hug and David patted her on the shoulder. “It’s a shame.”

Conversation flowed around her. There were tourists, she saw, clustered around tables.

Not too many regulars this time of day. Most of the ones that she knew and knew Maddy were the morning crowd.

“Will you guys let others know?” she asked.

Sally nodded. David said, “Sure.”

When Tammy plopped a to-go-cup in front of her, she stood, tossing bills down on the table. “Thanks Tammy.”

Tammy cocked her head. “I heard you have a new man in your life. Got a glimpse of that long cool drink of water. Damn, you’re lucky.”

In spite of it all, Jesslyn smiled. “As I said, no secrets.”

“You need some meditative time, Jesslyn. Here.” Tammy took off a necklace that had a black stone at the end. “Wear this. It wards off negative vibes.”

“And evil spirits?” she joked, but didn’t smile. Tammy held it aloft until Jesslyn wrapped her fingers around it and held it in her hand.

“If you like. Take a bit to clear your head, think, get things back in perspective.” She walked behind Jesslyn and said, “Here let me put it on you.”

Jesslyn set her cup down, held the necklace up and let Tammy put it on her. “You make this?” she asked.

“Would I give you something I hadn’t made? The business is really starting to take off.

Lots of people want jewelry that has a purpose you know, that means something.” The necklace latched and Tammy stepped back around. “I try to incorporate ancient meanings and usage of metals and stones.”

For lack of anything better, she said, “Cool.”

“So wear this. There’s darkness near you and this will help clear things up. And like I said, some good meditative time would do you wonders.”

“Yeah,” Jesslyn said. “I was thinking of driving the Emerald, Schofield loop, to clear my head. Maybe it’ll polish my aura. I’ve got some things to figure out. But I need the Jeep.”

“And it’s starting to get dark,” Tammy said.

“So it is. I should get going.”

“Be careful, Jess.”

She nodded and walked out the door and collided right into Kirk Roberts, her triple café mocha all over him.

“Damn it to hell and back! Can’t you even watch where the hell you’re going?” he asked.

Jesslyn was not in the mood to put up with him. She tried to step around him, but he followed her.

“How
dare
you,” he bit out, his fists at his side.

Swallowing, she stepped back. “Move, Kirk.”

“You didn’t even ask if there was something I wanted done. I wish it had been you that night.” Chills danced up her spine. And she tried to shake them off. “What do you mean?”

“Lots easier for me if you’d died too.”

Jesslyn looked over her shoulder. The door to the coffee shop and all the windows were

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open. Tammy and Sally stood at one, looking out, listening.

“Would it?” she asked. “Maybe you should mention that to Garrison.”

“Fuck you.”

Riding on too much emotion, Jesslyn shoved around him, but he caught her arm. Jesslyn looked at it. “Is that the best you can come up with? Guess your nose is feeling better?”

“You’re a cold hearted bitch. I swear you have ice in your veins. God only knows why Maddy was friends with you.”

Jesslyn ripped her arm free of his and stalked to her pickup. Inside, she revved the diesel engine to life and watched as Kirk just stood there staring at her.

Asshole.

Her tires squealed on the asphalt as she pulled onto the street, almost hitting a pedestrian.

“Sorry!” she yelled out the window.

It was getting late and it was raining. Already, it was after six. What a damn day and she had no idea how the hell it was going to end. At the funeral home, she’d flipped. Her breakdown was shattering her control little by little. The lilies, the tour of Maddy’s stuff, the questions, and questions, forcing herself to remember it all. And the damn funeral home. God she hated those places.

This morning, she’d awakened smiling, thinking the future might hold something for her.

But now? Now she wasn’t so certain she could face it all again if everything went wrong.

If at some point she lost it all, had it ripped away from her. More than once she’d thought that perhaps she’d rushed things with Aiden.

This was a day from hell.

Tim had called twice, once to make certain she was all right after she practically broke down and ran out of the funeral home earlier, and the other time on the excuse to remind her to put the checks in the bank. Jesslyn turned her phone off when it rang and she recognized her home number on the caller ID panel. Aiden.

She hadn’t been ready to talk to him. Not then. Not really now. But she had nowhere to go right now, except to work and Tim told her not to come in. Maybe she would anyway.

Kirk’s word’s still rang in her ears.

It was no secret around town that he was being questioned by the police regularly. And the more she thought about it, the more she wondered. Was Kirk the killer? Had he killed Maddy?There were no answers. The only sound in her pickup was the CD she had blaring. Her wipers shoved the misty rain off the windshield. Before she realized it, her truck sat in front of her two-story, log and rock home. The lights from the inside crystallizing the clear windows through the foggy, wet weather.

Might as well get this over with. Putting it off wasn’t making it any easier. But was halting things with Aiden the right thing to do? She’d planned to tell him later, but later, smater, it wouldn’t matter. No, tonight. Be done with it. It
had
to be the right thing to do. Jesslyn wasn’t certain she could handle anything else. They’d had a good time while it lasted, right?

No big deal. She’d just stop the relationship before it really started.

At the door, she took a deep breath, then quietly opened it. This was why she didn’t even have a pet. No cat, no dog, not even a damn fish. Pets you get attached to and then they die.

And Aiden she’d get more than attached to. Thunder boomed along the mountain sides, the storm brewing, promising its arrival.

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“There you are, Jesslyn. Aiden’s been worried about you,” Mrs. Kinncaid said, standing in the entrance. “You’re wet, dear, and it’s rather cold outside.”

Jesslyn turned and shrugged. “I’m okay, Mrs. Kinncaid.”

The woman waved a hand. “Please, call me Kaitlyn.”

“All right, Kaitlyn.” Jesslyn shoved her hands in the pockets of her jeans. “Aiden’s in the living room?”

“Well, if it’s off then why in the hell is Brice telling everyone the wedding is only postponed?” Jock’s voice boomed from the living room. The older man stood glowering at his son.

Jesslyn waited in the doorway beside Kaitlyn. Aiden stood, hands fisted on his hips.

“Dad--”“Don’t you ‘Dad’ me. Are you engaged to her or not? Kinncaids keep their word. If you told Brice you’d marry her, then you’ll marry her.”

Aiden took a deep breath. “I will choose my own life and my own wife, thank you very much.”“Who? This Jesslyn woman? She’s after your money.”

Jesslyn cleared her throat. “Actually, Mr. Kinncaid, your son can keep every last penny.

I don’t want a dime of his money.”

Aiden turned and spotted her. “Jesslyn.”

She’d come home intending to end it. She wasn’t ready for this. He was dressed in jeans and a dark ribbed crew neck that molded his perfect torso. What if she lost him and had to go through all that pain again. The funerals, the heartache. No, she’d end it. Jesslyn opened her mouth. “Are you still engaged to Brice?” That hadn’t been what she’d planned to ask him. What if he was? Anger shimmered in her blood.

Aiden only looked at her hard, his gaze narrowing.

Jesslyn took two steps into the room. “Well?”

His glare didn’t answer her question. “How in the hell can you ask me that?” Neither did his words.

“It’s a legitimate question from what your father just said and from what I overheard.

Someone doesn’t know what’s going on, either your father or me. And the man is your father.”

The more she thought about it, the madder she became. She walked up to him, and before he knew what was happening, she hooked her foot around his ankle and jerked. He fell back onto the couch. Jesslyn leaned down into his face. “Are you still engaged to her?”

His eyes mirrored his disbelief. “No. No. No. What kind of man do you think I am?”

She sighed. Aiden’s eyes studied her. “Would it matter to you if I was?”

She leapt back. “Now who’s asking dumb questions? I will be
no one’s
other woman.”

Amusement shifted in his eyes, but so did anger. “And I never thought you would be.”

He shook his head and stood. “I cannot believe you thought--After all we’ve--”

Jesslyn backed up. This was going all wrong. And what was with her? She’d planned to come in and tell him this was going too fast. And here she was pissed because he might have done something that would end it. Isn’t that what she wanted? Was to end their new relationship?

“Whatever. I don’t care,” she muttered. This was going all wrong.

She needed to think. Jesslyn rubbed her forehead. At his sigh, she looked up.

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“Are you okay?” he asked, starting towards her, but she backed up yet again.