What Burns Within (37 page)

Craig shook his head. “When I was working with Lori I should have taken a page from your book.”

“Lori Price?” Tain snorted. “That one would have you written up before you could say sex, never mind sexual harassment. How’s she doing, anyway?”

“Not good.”

Their eyes met for a second before Ashlyn returned to the room. Tain pushed the weight from his face and forced a grin.

“See, this is bringing out your hidden domestic talents.”

“Just because I don’t cater to you on a daily basis doesn’t mean they’re ‘hidden.’”

“I’ll just have to drop by more often. Wouldn’t want you to get out of practice.”

She glanced from Tain to Craig and then reached for her tea. “I’m going to bed. Don’t forget to rinse that before you go,” she said to Tain.

He waited until he heard her reach the second part of the stairs. “There’s always a chance it could be nothing. Daly said we shouldn’t jump to conclusions. He’s got an extra team monitoring your place for a few days, and someone’s watching her apartment. Just in case.”

Ashlyn heard the door shut, then footsteps coming up the stairs. She sensed him stop at the doorway.

“That’s my side of the bed.”

She didn’t look up from her book. “You sleep by the fireplace.”

“Not while you’re here, I don’t. Move.”

Ashlyn set
Cross
down on her lap. “Are you serious?”

“Stay where you are and you’ll find out.”

He disappeared into the walk-through closet, into the bathroom. For a moment she tried to go back to the book, but her mind was focused more on Craig’s imminent return than anything else. She marked the page she was on.

The bathroom door opened, and Craig came back through the closet and into the bedroom. He pulled his shirt off and glared at her.

“I meant it, Ashlyn.”

“Really, Craig.”

After a moment under his relentless gaze she muttered, “Fine,” and moved over.

“How did you know I usually sleep on the other side, anyway?”

Ashlyn lifted a copy of
A Good Day to Die
, which glistened in the firelight. He took it from her, setting it down on the nightstand. She turned on her side to face him.

“This guy doesn’t break in when men are home. Being on this side or that side doesn’t make me any safer, but you’re willing to have a stupid argument just to put more distance between me and the door.”

He was lying on his back and didn’t turn to look at her, instead staring up at the ceiling, his right arm folded back, his hand tucked under his head.

“And I am capable of defending myself. Just last night, I slept all alone.”

Craig turned to look at her, the somber expression reminding her of the Craig she’d first met a year before, the Craig who had carried the weight of the case, and a hell of a lot of guilt about his past, on his shoulders. “Are you seeing anybody?” he asked.

She felt her jaw drop and forced it back up as she tried to decide what she wanted to say to that.

“Seriously, Ashlyn.”

“Are you?”

“That’s not the point.”

“Well, if you don’t mind me asking, what is?”

“Is there any reason a man would be coming to your house to look for you?”

Even in the dim light she sensed a shadow passing behind his eyes. “What did Tain tell you?”

“It’s possible someone was watching you when you were with the movers.” He told her what Tain had said earlier and shifted his left arm under the pillow.

She blew out a long, slow breath. “Craig, there could have been a dozen reasons the guy left that have nothing to do with me.”

“All the same—”

“Everyone is overreacting because of this case.”

“Nobody wants to see you get hurt.”

“Neither do I, but you’re all beginning to sound like broken records. I’m not your little sister, and I don’t need you rushing to my defense every time you see someone step on the playground you don’t like the look of.” She could see his face harden at her words, his shoulders taut. “Look, I didn’t mean it quite the way it sounded. It’s bad enough having Daly looking out for me, but I’ve had Tain playing the overprotective-partner thing to the hilt. I just want everyone to let me stand on my own two feet.”

Ashlyn started to turn onto her back, but he reached for her shoulder and stopped her.

“It isn’t you I don’t trust. It’s the guys out there.”

His hand slid down onto her arm, and then he pulled it back to his side of the bed. For a moment they both lay face to face unmoving, and then Craig turned away and switched off the lamp.

She rolled over, gently rubbing her arm to try to alleviate the pins-and-needles sensation that bombarded her when he touched her, listening to his breaths, which hadn’t deepened yet.

“No.” The word came out of nowhere, unexpectedly breaking the silence.

“No what?” Ashlyn asked.

“The answer to your question. I’m not seeing anyone.”

He rolled over all the way, his back to her, and her head snapped back against the pillow again, her eyes wide as she stared at the ceiling.

FRIDAY

Neither of them mentioned the conversation in the morning. They began working their way through a list Quinlan had provided through Daly of things Craig needed to get to work at the fire department.

“What’s next?” Ashlyn asked Craig.

“I have to go pick up some uniforms.”

“That’s it?”

He shook his head. “Fortunately, I was on a volunteer fire department during university, so I have enough training to get by, although Quinlan gave me some refresher videos. I have to watch those later. First, a full physical exam by the department doctor. And them I have to get a pager.”

“What’s the pager for?”

“That’s what they use to bring in volunteers on call. And regular firefighters who might be needed for backup if there’s a big fire, like one of the angel arsons.”

“They page those guys in?” she asked.

Craig nodded. “Smaller departments still use radios. They have a tone that gets broadcast and then the call center relays the information.”

“Hardly secure. Any journalist with a police scanner can pick it up and be at the scene before the department has even responded.”

“Why do you think they’re using pagers here? And not just journalists. Anyone with a scanner can know who’s just been called out of their house in the middle of the night.”

“Can you imagine? You live in some small town where everyone knows you. You get called out to a fire and come back hours later to find your stereo’s gone because some thief with a scanner knows you live alone and that you’ll be out for a few hours.”

“If they used them here it could be harder to pin down a rape suspect.”

A tingling sensation worked its way down Ashlyn’s spine. “Anyone could know whose wife was home alone…. Scary.”

“Maybe the departments will catch up to the twenty-first century before the rapists catch on and start relocating.”

“Well, it doesn’t have any bearing on this case. Whoever’s doing this has to be connected to the department. There’s rotation for who’s on call and who isn’t.”

“Hopefully I can get that information from Quinlan tomorrow.”

“You’re starting rotation then?”

He nodded. “Two day shifts, followed by two night shifts. Four days on, four days off.”

“So do you get paid by the fire department and the police department while you’re doing this?”

Craig gave her a wry smile. “Be serious.”

“There should be something in it for you. After all, you’ve got a girlfriend to support now.”

“One with her own credit cards.”

“Did I ever tell you about the course I took in check forging?”

“Ashlyn…”

She spent the next twenty minutes or so trying to occupy herself while Craig got his uniforms, inspecting every item the store sold, trying to feign interest in shopping while making mental notes of every guy who looked at her sideways while the salesclerk fussed over Craig.

An approving whistle had her turning before she thought better of it.

The clerk was offering her admiration for how Craig filled out the uniform.

“Check him out,” the salesgirl said, calling her over. “What do you think?”

For half a second she wondered what the male equivalent of
cute
was, but she knew what was expected. “He looks hot.”

“See, I told you,” the clerk said as she turned back to Craig.

Once Craig had gone back into the change room, the salesgirl snapped her fingers. “Boots. What size does he take?”

Ashlyn felt her face lengthen as she tried to remember every time she’d seen Craig put on shoes or boots, and then she shook her head. “I don’t know.’

The clerk gave her a knowing grin, but stopped short of winking. “Come on. You must have some idea.”

Tain felt his eyes narrow with annoyance and then widen as he realized who was sitting in his chair, flicking through his notes. He pulled an extra chair from the desk he was walking past and set it down next to his own work area.

The youth leaned back, rocking in Tain’s good chair, a half grin on his face. “So this is where you hang out, huh?”

“It’s where I work.”

“And the babe you had with you the other night.”

Tain frowned at him. “Constable Hart’s desk is right there.” He pointed to the one across from his. For some reason, looking at the two desks facing each other now reminded him of when his own desk had been pushed far against the wall, away from the team he worked with, back when Ashlyn and Craig had sat across from each other.

“You’re so predictable.”

“Excuse me?”

“Can’t admit you think she’s fine. Got to be all pc.”

“What would you know about it?”

“Hell, you tried going to school anymore? I mean, sometimes you just don’t like somebody because they’re a jerk, you know? Now the school counselor wants to figure out if it’s because they’re white or orange or have a wimpy voice. Got to put bullshit labels on everything when it might just be that they’re a jerk.”

Tain suppressed a smile. “You’re pretty sharp, Marvin.”

“I’ve got life experience.”

“Evidently. And if you can learn to watch your mouth, you could have a career in the police department.”

“Nah. Maybe the fire department. But it’s, you know, super hard to get in.”

Tain nodded. “So I hear. What else would you want to do?”

Marvin shrugged. “Not sure.”

“So what brings you by?”

He watched the boy’s face harden. “She’s not coming back, is she?”

Tain couldn’t blink under Marvin’s relentless stare, so he drew a breath and decided to play it straight. “It’s not looking good. We’re doing everything we can.”

“But it’s been days. I read that in most abduction cases, every day that goes by increases the odds the victim’s been murdered.”

“That’s usually true. But this case is a bit different.”

Marvin looked up from where his fingers were pulling at a loose drawer handle. “Are you putting me on?”

Tain shook his head. “I’d bet money she’s still alive.”

“Probably wishes she wasn’t.”

“What makes you say that?” Tain looked up, seeing the figure approaching, the questioning glance at the boy seated at Tain’s desk.

“He’s probably, you know…doing stuff to her. Stuff she wouldn’t like.” He shrugged.

“If Lindsay comes home, in time, with help, she can be okay. She’s got a family that loves her and a lot of friends like you who care about her. And it sounds like she’s a strong person.”

Daly sat down on the corner of Tain’s desk and extended his hand. “Sergeant Daly.”

“Marvin Ferguson.”

“You know, Marvin, there’s something I’d like to show you. It might help you remember something important. You up for it?” Tain asked.

Marvin shrugged again. “Yeah. You got a pop machine around here?”

Tain reached into his pocket and flipped Marvin a two-dollar coin. “Just down the hall, there.” He waited until Marvin was halfway across the room before he stood. “I’ll show him the video of the lobby before Lindsay went missing, see if he remembers our guy.”

Daly nodded. “Not a bad idea. Shouldn’t we be showing it to all the kids?”

“We tried Luke Driscoll, and he didn’t remember anything. Most of the parents are a bit freaked out, blew a gasket about us asking questions without them present.”

“You’d think we’d get more cooperation from people who want to protect their children.”

“They’re scared. People do all sorts of crazy things when they’re afraid, especially when kids are involved.” He didn’t think he really had to explain that to Daly.

For a second Daly’s eyes took on a distant look. “What have you got planned after this?”

“I’m supposed to be tracking down the clown and jewelry vendor from the fairgrounds, but I’m going to take Marvin home after we’re finished.”

“What about those photos of Nicky Brennen?” Daly asked.

“Ashlyn’s supposed to start looking into that later.”

“Right. Let me know if you hear from her.”

Tain nodded, rummaging through another file, retrieving photographs of red Honda Civics and silver Corvettes.

Ashlyn rubbed the bridge of her nose before tossing the magazine down on the coffee table in front of her.

This was the one place she was reasonably certain the rapist wouldn’t be found, and the one place she’d spent the better part of her day. Once she’d established that every nurse and receptionist on site was female, she’d proceeded to flip through the magazines lying around, finding not much of particular interest and absolutely nothing that got her any further along on the case.

Of all the places to be stuck on a beautiful summer day…She glanced out the door to the hallway and felt a prickling sensation in her shoulders as they tensed.

He looked like he must have been mopping the same bit of floor for five minutes until he saw her look up. Then he glanced away and shuffled off down the corridor.

She fished around in the purse she was carrying and removed a scrap piece of paper, jotting down a quick description of the man who’d been watching her.

Ashlyn glanced at the clock. She knew that patients were usually kept waiting anywhere from ten to thirty minutes in the exam rooms. Craig’s physical was going to take at least an hour, depending on which tests the doctor felt were necessary, and he’d been gone for an hour now.

She got up and stepped into the hallway, turning in the direction she’d seen the cleaner going.

After a few moments, Tain knocked again.

This time, he heard someone lumbering down the hall toward the door. He wasn’t surprised when it opened a crack a moment later, revealing the overgrown eyebrows that dominated the face of Father Benjamin.

“Do you have news for the family?”

“I’m afraid not, Father. But I was hoping to speak with them.”

The already creased face added wrinkles as Father Benjamin frowned. “I’m not sure that would be wise. The Eckerts are still quite distressed.”

“I understand that. This won’t take long.”

Father Benjamin seemed to have mastered the art of stopping just short of scowling, making Tain sense his disapproval without exactly pinpointing what it was about the face that gave it away. Somehow, the priest made Tain feel guilty, as though he was doing something he knew he shouldn’t.