Anonymously Yours (8 page)

A long pause ensued. At first I thought he wasn’t going to answer.

“My mom told me you had left Clayfield also,” he finally said. He swallowed hard. “I guess I just figured you’d moved on without me.” He glanced at me and smiled. “Honestly, I was afraid I’d come back here and learn that you had married and now had a houseful of kids.”

I’d actually thought the same thing about him, but I didn’t mention it. I was sure if that had been the case, my parents would have told me.

Justin squeezed my hand tighter, then raised it to his lips. “I still love you, Denise,” he said softly. He kissed my hand. “I always have and I always will.”

“I love you too,” I admitted, my voice barely a croak.

****

Thirty minutes later, the rich earthy smell of the river reached my nostrils. I closed my eyes, enjoying the pleasing aroma.

“It’s gonna be a little bumpy from this point on,” Justin said, breaking into my peaceful slumber. “And this old car makes the ride even worse.” He turned and winked. “Obviously, a newer car is next on my list of major purchases.”

I smiled and leaned back against the tattered seat. I wasn’t about to let a bumpy road ruin my good mood. Justin and I had reached a major milestone back at his new house. The years apart had done nothing to diminish our love for each other. It was a great feeling, one I planned to savor as long as I could. For this one afternoon, I planned to banish all thoughts of Michael Black and Angelica Belmont from my mind. This time was reserved only for Justin and me.

But when I opened my eyes, a dirt road loomed before us. It was flanked by tall trees and overgrown bushes. The old car rattled along the narrow road that wound its way through thick brush and steep hills. I held my breath when we approached a rickety old bridge.

“You’re kidding,” I said. “That can’t be safe.” It had to be a hundred years old, I thought. I straightened and braced myself against the seat as Justin eased the car onto the bridge. The clatter of weathered boards beneath the tires sent icy shivers up my spine. I didn’t realize I’d clenched my teeth until we had exited the other side and I relaxed my aching face. I rubbed my jaws to lessen the pain.

“See, that wasn’t so bad, was it?” Justin joked.

I blew out a long breath of air, then reached over and punched him. “Please tell me there’s another way home.”

Finally Justin maneuvered the car close to a huge oak tree near the side of the road. “Okay,” he said. “We’re here, safe and sound,” he announced. “Now let’s grab the gear so I can show you the romantic little spot I’ve picked out just for us.” His blue eyes twinkled as he spoke.

I followed him to the back of the car, thankful I’d worn tennis shoes. The rocky terrain made walking difficult.

Justin raised the trunk lid and handed me two fishing poles and a tackle box. “Can you handle all that?” he asked.

Before I could answer, Justin reached for a quilted blanket and placed it on top of a large cooler. With both hands, he hoisted the cooler from the trunk and elbowed the lid closed. “Be careful,” he said. “It might be a little tricky going down the hill. But I promise you it will be worth it.”

He wasn’t kidding, I soon realized. Once we’d reached the bottom of the narrow path, my gaze settled on a huge maple tree centered on a grassy area next to the river. A slight breeze rustled the leaves while birds sang a romantic tune.

Justin lowered the cooler, and spread the blanket on the ground, a few feet from the soft rippling water.

I leaned the poles against the tree, while Justin set the tackle box on one corner of the blanket.

“After you,” he said, motioning for me to sit down. He sat beside me, wrapping his arm around my shoulder. “Now isn’t this romantic?” He eased in closer and nuzzled against my hair. “There’s no one here but me, you, and the fish. And we need to talk.”

“Okay, you win. It is romantic,” I agreed. “And I love you for bringing me to this peaceful place for the day. I’m far away from all my troubles for the time being.” I looked at him pointedly. “But as far as my career choice, nothing has changed.”

“You’re wrong, Denise,” he replied. He traced his finger lightly over my cheek. “Everything has changed. Your life may be in danger now.”

“Through no fault of my own,” I quickly pointed out. I turned my face to his. “Which just goes to prove that no one is always safe, Justin. No matter what line of work they’re in.”

He took my hand in his. “Okay, point taken,” he finally conceded. “Life is a risk. But it’s your life I’m worried about right now.”

A gentle breeze rustled the tree’s leaves, and one fluttered onto the blanket. I picked it up, pretended to study it, then gently plucked away the green until only the veins remained. “I really do appreciate your concern, Justin,” I said. “And I also understand how you feel. After you left, I worried about you too. But we can’t try to control each other’s lives. We’re entitled to create our own space in life. If we can’t allow each other that simple pleasure, then we don’t stand a chance together.”

I could feel the moisture behind my eyelids, but I refused to cry. I had to make Justin see that we could have a life together my way.

Justin reached for a rock and skipped it across the water. “While I was away, I kept asking my parents about you. I wondered if you’d ever met anyone else.”

I smiled. “I guess it was easy for us to keep tabs on each other with our parents living so close.”

He continued. “All I could think about was that last day we spent together. The awful fight we had. I was afraid I’d lost you forever.”

“Justin…” I began.

He put up a hand in silence. “Let me finish. I can’t deny that I don’t like your career choice. The possibility of you getting hurt scares me half to death. But I can promise you I’ll try my best to accept whatever you decide to do with your life.” He cupped my chin with his hand and looked me in the eye. “But please,” he pleaded, “let your uncle Bob help you solve this mystery. You said yourself, ‘confidence comes with experience.’ But right now you have no experience. You know as well as I do that you can’t pull this one off by yourself.”

I pulled my gaze from his, and directed my attention to the soft waves of the river. In the distance, a fishing boat sailed past, creating a rippling motion of waves that gently splashed against the riverbank.

I knew Justin was right. I did need help. Someone out there might be trying to kill me. Unfortunately, I had no proof of that. I needed someone who would be as concerned about my safety as much as I was. Someone like my uncle Bob.

I looked back at Justin. “You’re right,” I said. “I do need help. And I won’t lie by saying I’m not scared. But I also know I have to solve this mystery without the help of the police. Because right now, there’s no way I can explain the disappearance of Angelica Belmont’s body from Michael Black’s house.”

Justin sighed and combed his hand through his thick hair. “Then you’ll tell your uncle everything?”

I nodded. “But I’ll tell him in my own way. Agreed?”

He wrinkled his brow.

“I have to make sure he won’t go to the police,” I said. “It’s the only way I’ll agree to this. Once I know he’s on my side, I’ll fill him in on everything.”

I could tell he didn’t like my plan, but he agreed anyway. “Okay. Today we fish and enjoy ourselves. But tomorrow, we go to see your uncle Bob.” He handed me a pole and the cup of worms. “Here you go.”

I hadn’t fished in years. Dad used to take Mom and me on weekend outings when I was younger. But back then, Dad used to bait my hook. With gritted teeth, I slid my hand into the cup and extracted a slimy, squiggly worm. Gliding it onto the hook, I tossed the line into the water.

“Good job,” he said. “I’m impressed.”

I shot him a look. “You should be,” I responded with a wink.

Justin placed his pole onto the blanket, then reached for the cooler. “What’s for lunch?” he asked. “I’ve worked up an appetite.” He reached in and extracted two ham and cheese sandwiches. “Here you go,” he said, handing me one.

We ate in companionable silence, checking our lines now and again for bites. We took long walks, skipping stones into the river, holding hands and feeling like a couple again. It was a great feeling. When the sun dipped below the horizon, neither one of us had any fish to show for our efforts, but we didn’t care. We had accomplished the things that were important to us. And that meant a lot.

Justin reeled in our empty lines and secured the hooks. “It’s getting late,” he said. “We should probably start getting this stuff packed up.”

While Justin reorganized the tackle box, I gathered up the remaining trash, and stuffed it into the plastic bag we had brought along.

While I stood staring at the peaceful river, now shrouded in semidarkness, a chill coursed through my body. I wondered if this could be the same river where Angelica Belmont’s body was discovered. I hoped not. A place so relaxing, so soothing, shouldn’t be the place for such tragedy.

Justin seemed to sense my thoughts. “We’ll find out what happened, Denise,” he said, wrapping his arm around my waist. “We’ll get your uncle Bob to help out. He’ll know what to do.”

I hoped so. I just hoped his help didn’t involve alerting the police. That would ruin everything. I knew I’d have to engage Uncle Bob’s help a little at a time.

Justin went to shake out the blanket, then loaded up the cooler. “I hope you know how lucky you are,” he said, standing beside me again. “If you had walked into Michael Black’s house a few minutes earlier, you might have been found floating in a river too.”

I closed my eyes and tried to clear my mind of that horrible image. It was something I had already considered.

“Let’s go,” he said. “Let’s get this gear loaded back into the car and get out of here.”

I gathered up the poles and the tackle box and caught the flashlight he tossed to me. “Go on up,” he said. “I’ll check around and make sure we haven’t forgotten anything.”

I followed the same rocky path we’d come down, but even with the flashlight’s beam, finding my way was difficult. Crickets, frogs, and unknown rustling noises made the short trip more frightening than it had been earlier. When I reached the top of the hill, I aimed the light toward the blue Malibu, then hastened my pace, stepping over small stones and thick brush.

I leaned the poles against the back of the car when I suddenly noticed the glare of another vehicle’s headlights behind me. I raised my arms and shaded my eyes from the glare. The sudden peel of tires and a racing motor sent chills up my spine. The car sped toward me, but I managed to hurl myself away just seconds before I heard the crunch of the fishing poles and Justin’s rear bumper in the background.

Frozen with fear, I could only watch while the deadly vehicle backed away, then sped off, scattering dust and gravel in its midst.

“Denise? Are you all right?” From below, the staggering bounce of Justin’s flashlight glowed in the darkness.

Breathing heavily, I struggled to my feet and brushed myself off. “If I didn’t know better, I’d swear he was trying to kill me,” I said. I turned to Justin who had just emerged at the top of the hill. My heart pounded with fear. “You didn’t get a look at the license plate, by any chance, did you?”

In the light of the moon, I noticed Justin’s pale face. He shook his head, then softly said, “No, I didn’t get a look at the plates. But I did get a good look at the car.”

My breath caught in my throat. My knees felt like spindles about to collapse from the weight of my body. “Don’t tell me.”

“You guessed it,” Justin said with a nod. “It was a red Toyota. It seems that we’re now being followed.”

“Really, Uncle Bob, please don’t make a fuss. I won’t be here that long. I have the day off, so I just wanted to spend some time with you.” My pleas went ignored while my uncle continued tidying up the guest room.

Uncle Bob lived only about fifteen miles from my parents in an older neighborhood. Most of the houses in the subdivision were rentals. I always wondered why my uncle didn’t move to a more affluent section of town, but I figured that being a bachelor all his life, he wasn’t much for change. Uncle Bob and my parents rarely saw each other. I assumed it was because their work schedules seemed to conflict most of the time. Being a private investigator, Uncle Bob often worked odd hours.

I sat on the edge of the bed, plugging my laptop into a wall socket, while Uncle Bob tried prying open the air conditioning vent on the floor beneath the window.

“I’m afraid this room has been shut up for some time,” he apologized, smoothing back imaginary hair. “I don’t get visitors. This room is mostly used for storage.”

That much was obvious. The small room was dank and musty. The one twin bed looked out of place among one wall of stacked plastic containers. A portable exercise gym that appeared to have been put to pasture, took up another entire wall. One tall, scratched, upright dresser occupied the remaining wall.

I opened the closet door, and the stale odor of musty clothes filled the room. Holding my breath, I flung the door shut. I spun around and exhaled, just as Uncle Bob opened the vent.

“There,” he said, huffing and puffing. “Get some of that fresh air in here and the place won’t seem so bad.”

Already, I could feel the cool air seeping through the rusted vent. I smiled my appreciation and thanked him for allowing me to stay with him.

“Shoot,” he said. “I’m just glad you’re here. I don’t mind telling you that I was a little worried when I couldn’t reach you the other day. You really need to get that cell phone replaced.”

“I’ll do that this week,” I promised him. I wanted to ask why he didn’t bother to call the house phone, but decided against it. Cell phones were the method of choice for most people these days. Maybe he just assumed I’d have it on me all the time.

“I only wish I didn’t have to go into the office today so we could spend a little time together,” he said. “I’d love to hear what you’ve been up to these days. We haven’t had much time to talk since you’ve been back.” He raised an eyebrow. “Things going okay at the diner?”

That question hit a sour note for me. I bit my tongue to keep from spouting off a nasty retort. It was no secret to my uncle how much I wanted to follow in his footsteps. I still hadn’t forgiven him for not standing up to my parents when they nixed the idea of me working at his office.