Deep in Death: A Shelby Nichols Adventure (23 page)

***

Hours later, we pushed through the doors to the hotel, our arms laden with bags. Once we’d finished at the market, we decided to take the monorail to the Space Needle, and rode the elevator all the way to the top. Since the clouds had parted, we had a perfect view of the city below and enjoyed every minute of it. Back on the ground, we found even more shops to peruse, and dutifully looked into each one before finding a taxi to take us home.

After setting down a few bags, I managed to open my door and get everything inside. My feet were killing me, so it was a relief to kick off my shoes and set all my purchases on the bed. With enthusiasm, I dumped out the bags and began to sort through them, putting the tees I’d bought for my kids in a pile, and finding the earrings I’d bought for myself.

I slipped them on, then found my new tee shirt and tried it on. It was pink with cap sleeves and Seattle written in swirls with flowers around it, and it fit just right. At the last shop, I’d found the most adorable hat for Savannah. It was like a baseball cap, only lots cuter, and had Seattle in block letters across the front. I tried it on and liked it so well, I almost wished I’d bought it for me.

A knock sounded at the door, so I hurried to answer. Ramos smiled, taking in my new clothes and thinking I looked cute in the hat. It reminded him of the hair hat I’d bought in Orlando, and that made him smile even more. “Hey, we’re having a friendly game of poker and wondered if you’d like to join us.”

“What? You want to play poker with me?”

“I said it was friendly…no money involved.” He was thinking of the big bag of salt water taffy he’d bought at the market to use instead.

“I love taffy…I’m in!”

I followed him into Uncle Joey’s suite where they’d arranged several chairs around the table. Jackie was wearing her new tee shirt and earrings too, so we shared a high five. The evening passed quickly, with lots of laughter and joking. No one seemed to mind too much when I won most of the taffy, and I didn’t always win, so it mostly worked out.

After a couple of hours, I left with my taffy to call Chris and take a bath. He seemed distracted when he answered the phone, so after I told him I’d be home about one the next afternoon, I was surprised when he said he’d pick me up.

“Are you sure?” I asked. “I’ll be on Uncle Joey’s private jet so I’m practically guaranteed a ride home in his limo.”

“I’m sure,” he said. “I can come on my lunch break. Besides, I want to see you.”

My heart melted a little and I quickly agreed. “Just make certain you come to the right airport.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll be there.”

After a nice soak in the tub, I was ready for bed. As nice as today was, it was time to go home. Except for knowing a serial killer was after me, everything was great. Ramos and Uncle Joey were alive, and I’d helped solve the case. Heck, I’d even come up with the plausible story to tell the police.

I’d accomplished a lot in the last few days, so I could certainly figure out what to do about a serial killer. If I could just find a connection between Sean and one of his victims, or find one of their bodies, it would be enough to arrest him. But how to do that wasn’t so simple.

At least Ramos was alive to watch out for me, and I wasn’t opposed to involving Dimples either, so that would help. But to find out what I needed to know, I’d probably have to spend some time with Sean, and just thinking about it gave me the creeps. But I could be prepared and, reading his mind, I’d know before anything bad happened.

As comforting as that thought was, I also knew that even the best plans didn’t always work out. Since I could end up dead, I fervently hoped this wasn’t one of those times.

Chapter 11

There was nothing better than flying home in a private jet. The advantages were mind-boggling, like no getting to the airport two hours early, no worrying about missing a flight, no waiting in longs lines that dragged on forever, no passing through security and needing to take off shoes or emptying pockets, and best of all, no need to find little bottles for shampoo and toothpaste. Yup, I could certainly get used to that.

We touched down just after one in the afternoon, and a small worry that Chris knew where to pick me up tightened the muscles in my neck. As I came down the stairs, my shoulders relaxed to find his car parked behind the limo. His door opened and he stood, sending me a quick wave. The smile on his handsome face warmed me all the way to my toes.

I hurried over to greet him with a hug and kiss, grateful to be home safe and sound. As Chris loaded my luggage into the trunk, I realized I’d forgotten something so I told him I’d be right back.

I quickly made my way to Uncle Joey. “I just remembered something I needed to give you.” I took a folded piece of paper from my pocket and handed it to him.

“What’s this?” he asked.

“It’s from your wake, at the funeral home? This guy came in and, since he looked suspicious, I kept my eye on him. He seemed kind of upset that you were dead. Anyway, he put this note on your casket, so I picked it up and read it.”

Uncle Joey frowned and opened the paper. He inhaled sharply at the signature, hardly able to believe the old bastard had broken his vow and come to pay his respects. Rest in peace? Did that mean he had been forgiven?

“I couldn’t read the name…it’s kind of hard to make out, but I thought you should have it,” I said.

“Thank you Shelby.” His gaze caught mine, and his eyes glistened with sudden moisture. He blinked a few times and pursed his lips. “I trust you’ll keep this to yourself.”

“Of course,” I agreed.

“Good.” With that, he slipped inside the limo and shut the door.

I hurried back to the car. Chris held the door open for me, and I slid inside. “What was that all about?” he asked.

“Nothing,” I said.

“Huh.” Chris shut my door, hurried to the driver’s side and started the car up, thinking that when I said it was nothing, it usually meant it was nothing I wanted to tell him about, which also meant that it was something that could get me in trouble. Why else wouldn’t I tell him?

“That’s not it,” I said defensively. “It’s something personal to Uncle Joey, and I don’t even know exactly what it is, so how can it get me in trouble?”

“Um…I don’t know…but you have to admit that with your track record, it’s a possibility.”

I sighed, not wanting to argue. Mostly because Chris had a point, and from what I’d picked up, it could definitely get me in trouble. So it was probably best to keep it to myself and hope that didn’t happen.

“So, how are you?” I asked, changing the subject. “How are things going with the kids and everything?”

“Great,” he answered. “How was your flight?”

“Good…I could sure get used to flying in a private jet.” Chris concentrated on listening to me and kept his mind curiously blank about anything else. That wasn’t like him. Usually he had several things going on in his mind at once, but not today. Now why was that? Something was off, so I continued to tell him about all the perks while trying to figure out what was wrong. He just nodded and agreed now and then to let me know he was listening, but underneath that, I could tell he was hiding something.

Sudden fear that something bad had happened to Josh or Savannah clenched my stomach. “Are the kids all right?” I blurted.

“Of course,” Chris said, his brows furrowed with confusion. “Oh…and there’s a folder on my desk in the den with a bunch of information about Sean Hanley. You might want to take a look at it, and we can talk about what to do tonight.”

“Oh…that’s great. Thanks. So…everything else is fine?”

“Yes. Everything’s great.” He glanced at me from the corner of his eyes like there was something wrong with me, and it kind of made me mad. I knew something was going on, but he was blocking his thoughts so well that I couldn’t figure out what it was. It was unsettling to say the least, but short of calling him on it, I didn’t know what else to do. I’d just have to wait until he was ready to tell me what was going on and hope it wasn’t too bad.

“Wow,” I said. “It’s hard to believe it’s Friday already. At least I’m home in time to pick up the carpool from school. Did Savannah get to dance class okay last night?”

“Yeah.” He was thinking
“barely”
and that was part of the reason he’d been so distracted lately. Trying to remember what was going on with the kids, their school work, taking care of dinner, and keeping the house together, along with everything he had going on at work had worn him out. He didn’t know how I did it and worried I’d be disappointed when I got home.

Picking that up sent a fresh dose of guilt over me and my stomach tightened. Yesterday, I’d had a great time shopping and playing poker, and hadn’t even thought too much about how Chris was faring. Since he didn’t say anything over the phone, I thought he was handling things just fine.   

We pulled into the driveway and Chris pushed the garage-door opener. Now that we were home, I picked up that he was hoping I wouldn’t be too upset with him. He still didn’t know how it happened, but knew I’d be sad. He just hoped I wouldn’t freak out. Too bad he didn’t get a chance to take care of it yesterday before I got home.

Yikes! I got out of the car with trepidation, worried about what I’d find. Chris smiled and opened the door for me. I stepped inside, grateful to find the living room a little messy, but unchanged. I hurried into the kitchen. There was a lot of clutter on the table and countertops, and a few dishes in the sink, but nothing too bad.

I glanced out the sliding doors to the patio and my eyes widened with shock. “My swing!” My favorite place in the world to relax and read was completely destroyed. Only strings of charred material remained of the awning, and the cushions below were seared black with big blobs of charred padding falling to the deck. A skeleton of burned and blackened pipe stuck out on one end where the cushions had been completely destroyed.

“What happened?” I asked.

Chris put his arm around me and pulled me close. “I’m not sure. I was cooking up some burgers and the next thing I knew the awning was in flames. I grabbed the hose, but the nozzle wasn’t on tight. Once I got it straightened out, the cushions were on fire too. I couldn’t believe how fast it spread. Anyway, I got the fire out, but you can see it pretty much burned up the swing.”

He was thinking the grill was ruined too, but at least the propane tank hadn’t exploded. That would have been a disaster. “I’m glad I got it out before it spread to the house,” he said. “I’m really sorry. I know how much you loved that swing, but we can get you a new one.”

“Yeah, I guess so,” I said, clamping my lips shut so I didn’t say anything that would make him feel worse than he already did. But…still…what the freak! A fire? On the deck? And it could have spread to the house? And the propane gas tank could have exploded? I shook my head and swallowed, grateful Chris couldn’t hear what I was thinking.

“I wish I could have gotten it cleaned up before you got home, but at least I’ve got someone coming tomorrow to haul it to the dump. Why don’t we get a new swing and grill tomorrow?” He could tell by my pursed lips that I was upset, and he wanted to do something that would help me feel better.

I took a deep breath and managed a small smile. “Sure. Let’s do that.”

“Okay, good.” He pulled me close, relieved that I hadn’t freaked out and more relieved that I was home. He’d really missed me this time. “I’ve got to go. Will you be okay?” he asked, checking his watch. “I hate to leave, but I’ve got a meeting with a client in half an hour.”

“Oh sure, that’s fine. I’m glad you brought me home.”

“Yeah…well…you can see why I wanted to be here when you saw that. Thanks for not freaking out on me.” He kissed me again, and I felt the stress and tension drain from his shoulders. I realized that he did his best while I was gone, but deep down he had a hard time keeping up with everything. He hadn’t told me that part, but it was because he didn’t want to sound like that was the only reason he’d missed me.

“Sure,” I said. “I’ll see you tonight.”

I waved as he backed out of the driveway. Once he was gone, my shoulders slumped and I sighed. Most of the time, I was a pretty good wife, so I tried not to get too discouraged at what I’d put my husband through. At least I had a couple of hours to get the house cleaned up and, after I picked up Savannah, I could go to the grocery store and buy something good to cook for dinner.

But before I started any of that, I wanted to take a look at everything Chris had found on Sean Hanley. Now that I was back, uneasiness filled me. I didn’t know when or how, but I knew he would come after me at some point, and I needed to be prepared. In the den, a folder with Sean’s name lay on top of the desk, and I thanked my lucky stars that Chris was so meticulous about his research.

Inside were copies of Sean’s birth certificate, driver’s license, and social security number. Holy cow, how did he get that? I turned the page and found he’d also done a criminal background check. I looked it over carefully, but Sean had never been arrested for anything and only showed traffic tickets for speeding.

The next papers in the file were property records for the house Sean lived in. It looked like he bought the house three years ago on a short sale and was the sole owner of the property. I found a notepad and jotted down the address, noting it was the same address that was on his driver’s license.

Other papers in the file included tax and employment records, and it kind of made me sick to think that all kinds of records like this were available to the public. After scanning through all the information, I realized Sean looked like a regular guy, with nothing out of the ordinary that pointed him out as a serial killer.

I finished going through the folder and realized something was missing. Then it hit me…Facebook. If I wanted to know about his personal and social life, Facebook was probably where I’d find it. Most people posted all kinds of things about themselves there.

I turned on the computer and logged onto Facebook, then typed in his name. I found several Sean Hanleys, but he wasn’t among them. Could that be right? A computer geek in his late twenties and no Facebook account? Did that mean he knew something the rest of us didn’t?

I sighed and turned it off. At least I had his address, and I folded up the notepaper and stuffed it into my jeans pocket. The address wasn’t too far from The corporate office plaza where Sean worked, and where Darcy had disappeared. That made it about ten minutes away from me. Maybe on my way to the grocery store, I could do a quick drive-by to familiarize myself with the neighborhood. That way, when I went back later to do a little spying, I’d know how to find it without a lot of trouble.

***

As I pulled up to the school, I was tired, but in a good way. I’d vacuumed the whole house, cleaned up the kitchen, swept the floors, and even gotten the laundry started. The bell signaling the end of school rang, and I watched for Savannah to come out, anxious to show her the hat I’d bought.

Instead of waiting in the car, I got out and leaned against the passenger side door. I wanted to give her a hug and show off the cute hat. A few minutes later, she emerged with her friends. When she glanced up, I waved. She caught sight of me and waved back, then hurried to the car with a happy smile.

“You’re home!” she said, giving me a big hug. “Did Dad tell you what he did?” I nodded, and she turned to her friend. “Dad caught the patio swing on fire last night. I got home from dance just in time to see it. The flames were shooting up so high.”

She had the attention of the whole carpool now. “He got it out with the hose, but for a minute there, I thought the whole house was going to burn down.” She glanced at me. “Did you see what was left of the swing? He felt really bad.” She was thinking that she’d never forget the look of pure shock on his face.

“Yes he did,” I said. “And to make up for it, we’re going to get a new swing tomorrow.”

“That’s good,” she agreed, and finally noticed the hat I held in my hand. “Where’d you get that?”

“It’s for you,” I said, smiling. “Unless you don’t like it. Then I want it back.” She took it from me and squealed her delight. “This is great.” She put it on her head and smiled.

“Lookin’ good,” I said with a wink. “Come on, let’s go home.”

The kids piled in the car and I hurried around to the driver’s side. After shutting the door and putting on my seatbelt, I turned the ignition. Just as the car came to life, a loud knock on my window startled me. I jerked and glanced up, locking gazes with Sean Hanley. I let out a surprised yelp and pulled back from the window before I gained any semblance of composure.

Sean’s brows rose at my reaction, but he smiled pleasantly and waited for me to roll down my window.

“Sorry about that,” he said. “I guess I surprised you.” He was thinking it had made his day to see me jump like that. “I just thought I’d say hello.” He glanced inside and nodded at Savannah. “Oh…so you’re Savannah’s mom? I didn’t know that. What a coincidence.”