Darkness Follows (6 page)

"I
was hoping we could make a pit stop." Ryanne told Max when they turned south
off Maple Lane toward town. Max rolled their windows down a bit, keeping them
just high enough so the rain couldn't get through.

"Oh yeah?"
Max
laughed."
Where to?"

"I
don't know--somewhere fun. Where do you go for fun?"

"Oh,
I don't know." Max laughed. He could feel his cheeks flush. O’Leary’s was
the first thing that came to his mind. When Max was off duty, it was he and his
friends’ go-to spot, frankly one of the only spots in town. Ever since he
became a police officer, he had been treated differently there. It seemed they
treated him with a little more respect, but as if he couldn't have any fun
anymore, except for his own friends that was. He had some of the best times
there with them over the years.

"Come
on, please?" she asked him, as he rolled their windows back up and put on
the air conditioning. The humidity was making him sweat. If Crawley found out
he took her to a place like the town bar, what would he say? If there was a
place where the majority of the town could be at one time, that was one of the
most likely options. Max wasn't exactly sure if he would be breaking a rule, or
walking a fine line. The Chief hadn't told him they couldn't go there though.

“How
much do you know about our situation?
Mine and
Aurina’s?"
Ryanne asked, and Max was taken off guard.

"Not
as much as I’d like to be honest, but as much as I'm supposed to know."

"Okay,
so what do you know about us?" Ryanne turned her body to face Max. He kept
his eyes on the road.

"I
know Aurina's boyfriend--"

"--
Ex
-boyfriend,"

"Right--I
know he helped this guy Jeremy kill three girls about your age. I know she had
no idea, and that David confessed to her, to the both of you, that there was
another guy." Max finally looked at Ryanne, her blue eyes sparkling. “I
know that this other guy was out to hurt you.
Or is now
anyway."

"Hurt
us
."

"Well,
I've heard that during your visit, David seemed to be scared for you." The
Chief hadn’t actually told Max this so much as he had read it in one of Jones’
reports sent over the previous night. Max was eager to receive the rest of the
files.

"I
was there. I would know. David was worried for both of us."

"Okay,
well, I'm just telling you what I've been told.
Seems Jones
has been on the case for the past three years."
Max said.

He
had thought about the case the previous night while he sat out front of the
girl’s home on shift, and about what might have happened if Ryanne hadn't been
with her sister when they tried to get a confession from David.

Ryanne
stared out the window and started playing with her hair. Max turned the radio
on. Hard rock blasted through the speakers, and he switched the station to a
slower country song. From the corner of his eye, he saw Ryanne shudder.

"Sorry,
too cold?" Max asked, and turned the AC off completely. She sat in silence
watching the windshield wipers steady rhythm. "Listen, I'm sorry for what's
happening to you and your sister."

“Do
you have any siblings?”

“Yeah, an older sister.
She lives in
Camden with her husband.”

“You
guys close?”

“We
get along really well, my whole family does, but don’t see each other that
often.”

“Yeah,
Rina and I didn’t either for a while until this summer when I came back home
from school. Where do you live?"

“Here
in Dersten with my parents. They have a nice piece of property just east of
town. I’ve been with the Police for a little more than a year now, and after
I’ve saved enough I’ll probably move to Camden too and commute to work.” He
pulled out a picture from his wallet."She's pregnant, so I'm going to be
an Uncle."

Ryanne
took a look at the family picture and smiled. “Nice picture. She must be due
any time now.”

Max
nodded.

"Do
you get along with your brother-in-law?" She handed the picture back to
him.

“Yeah,
Steve’s a pretty good guy.” Max put his wallet back into the middle console,
and turned the windshield wipers up to full power. "My whole
family's
excited for the baby."

"That's
something nice to look forward to." Ryanne smiled at Max, but before he turned
to her, she looked away to a field on her right with cows lying down in the
grass.

They
passed a few more farms, before Ryanne broke the silence.

“Were
you told about how those girls were killed?” Max was convinced she was
preoccupied with the murders, and began to wonder how she was dealing with it
all.

“No,
but I’ll be finding out soon enough.”

“The
news said they were strangulated.”

Ryanne
spoke without looking at him; she looked at the rear-view mirror.

"I
know a place we can go that helps when I want to take my mind off things.”

Ryanne
turned to him with a smile and sat up slightly in her seat.

Burrows
nodded to the officer parked against the curb, as Jones pulled the car into the
driveway.

"Would
you get an update from Jarrod before you come in?"

Burrows
gave a quick nod, and hopped out of the car.

Jones
walked along the stone path to the front door, where Mr. Patrick stood, and saw
his gaze follow Burrows to the other squad car.

"Mr.
Patrick, Inspector Jones.
Nice to meet you sir, and apologies
for the circumstances."
Jones extended his hand, and Mr. Patrick
opened the door, and shook it firmly before Jones stepped inside.

"Mrs.
Patrick." Inspector Jones nodded when he saw the woman who was the
spitting image of a grown up Ryanne. She sat at the kitchen table, and gave him
a half-hearted smile as her husband ushered Jones to take a seat.

"How
are they?" Mrs. Patrick asked before Jones could sit down.

"They
are safe. I know Inspector Daniels caught you up over the phone, but if you
have any questions, let me know."

"I
just need to know they're safe, and taken care of
. "
Her voice quivered. "I just don't understand why we can't be with
them…"

"They
are safe and sound Mrs. Patrick. We had to make moves quickly to ensure their
protection when we got the information from David." Jones noticed Mr.
Patrick's eyes twitch.

"My
daughters
got the information." Mr. Patrick said as he took a seat
beside his wife.

"Yes,
and we appreciate their co-operation in the matter. It's terrible what the
victims’ families have been
through,
and..."

Mr.
Patrick held his hand up. "Our family is going through something. Let's
just focus on that."

"He
sat right there." Mrs. Patrick nodded to the empty seat across from her,
and stared at it until Mr. Patrick spoke.

"That
disgusting excuse for a human being spent Christmas dinner with us."

"Mr.
Patrick, we have done everything in our power to keep your family safe, and we
will continue..."

"Inspector
Jones, I want to know what you've been doing to find
Jeremy?
I assume you would have told us if you'd found him?"

There
was a rap on the front door, and Mrs. Patrick began to rise, but Mr. Patrick
shot up quickly and strode to the door.

"Sir,
I'm Detective Burrows." Burrows shook his hand.

"Good
handshake." Mr.Patrick said as she followed him to the kitchen table.
"Inspector Jones was just about to tell us about the progress you've
made."

Burrows
took a seat beside Jones, and he shot her a quick look before clearing his
throat.

"We've
questioned his family and co-workers. We recently received information that
Jeremy has not left the country. Currently, we are sorting through Jeremy and
David's possessions to gain a better understanding of Jeremy's location."

"Has
David said anything more?" Mrs. Patrick asked.

Jones
turned to her. “We will be meeting with David tomorrow, along with his lawyer,
where we will question him further."

Mr.
Patrick scoffed. “Oh, that's great. Your key to finding Jeremy is his
accomplice who is not cooperating with the police. Think he'll just start
talking now?"

"It
is in David's best interest to..." Jones began.

"David
is a pathetic little prick, and if you haven't realized that when his mouth is
open he is lying, you're more inexperienced than you look."

"I'm
so sorry for what David has done to your family, Mr. Patrick," Burrows
spoke softly. “He has lied to everyone, and betrayed your daughter
deeply." Jones noticed a growing light in Burrows’ eyes as she went on. "We
want to catch Jeremy, bring justice to the families whose lives they have
taken. I want to assure you Inspector Jones and I have been working on this
case around the clock, and every effort will be made to bring your daughters
home safely."

Mrs.
Patrick took hold of her husband's hand and gave it a squeeze. "Thank
you."

Jones
looked at Burrows, who gave a minute shrug before looking back at the
Patrick’s. “We’ve stationed a car outside your house on twenty-four seven
watch, and so far, there have been no unusual sightings."

"Yeah,
well, I'd like to see him try to come in here." Mr. Patrick said.

Jones
shook his head. “We doubt he will, but best to be safe. You have my number if
you need to get in touch with me."

"Please
let the officer outside know if there are any concerns. They'll be happy to
help." Burrows nodded, and Mrs. Patrick smiled sheepishly. "Is there
a message we can pass onto your daughters for you?"

"I
don't want them to worry about us," Mrs. Patrick said. "Tell them we
love them, and..." Her eyes became blurry with tears.

"Our
daughters are strong Dora." Mr. Patrick put his arm around his wife, and
she looked to him, wiping her tears away with her
hands ,and
took a deep breath nodding. "Just tell them we love 'em and to take care
of each other."

"Of course Mr. Patrick."
Burrows said.

"You
can call me John."

"Thank
you for your time." Mrs. Patrick said, and they all stood from the table.

"We'll
be in touch." Jones said, shaking hands before they left.

When
they got into the car, Jones sat still, looking straight ahead.

"I'm
sorry if I crossed a line in there." Burrows looked to Jones.

"No
need to be sorry. You gained their trust."

"Then why the silence?"

"Now
we know where Ryanne gets it from."

"What?"
Burrows laughed, "Don't take it personally, they're just upset."

Jones
snapped on his seat belt, and started the car.

"Oh,
I don't take it personally, I've dealt with worse. It's just..."

"What?"

"Mr.
Patrick, or
John
as you might call him, is right about one thing."

"Ha,
what's that?"

"We'll
be lucky to get a confession from David."

"So
what's the plan if we don't?"

Jones
slipped his sunglasses on. "Then there's only one option left."

When
they pulled into the parking lot at the end of Main Street, Ryanne saw some of
the shops closing up for the day, and a few people with umbrellas out walking.
The weather had forced most people inside, and the town was not as busy as when
they had arrived. She followed Max up the street quickly through the rain, and
he turned into a door way on the left. She looked up and saw the sign
"O'Leary's", and followed him in.

It
was a pub, and a large one at that. The bottom level had a long bar immediately
to the right, seating and booths to the left, and in the middle-- a short set
of stairs to the next level that had pool tables, dart boards, and what might
be a small dance floor. She twisted her damp hair to one side, and looked down
to see her t-shirt riddled with dark spots from the rain.

Ryanne
followed Max to the bar, and she noticed other than two men sitting at the far
end, there were only a few families eating an early dinner in the booths. The
rest of the place was empty. When they approached the middle of the bar, Ryanne
took a seat, and the bartender, a young guy with short dark hair and a bit of
scruff came to take their order.

"Officer
Max," the bartender nodded to him, "who've you brought in with you?
Is this your date?" Ryanne looked at Max to catch his reaction, but gave
none. The bartender continued to smile at her.

"This
is Ryanne, Ryanne this is Jake O'Leary. His dad, Bill, owns this place.” Max
sat down beside her, and got comfortable in his seat. "And no, she is not
my date." Max laughed when he realized they were both still staring at
him.

“Ryanne,”
Jake repeated, “never heard that name before, very pretty. What can I get for
you two?"

"Just tonic water for me."
Max told him.

"Ah
on duty are you? You don't want the usual Max?" Ryanne noticed Max's lips
tighten.

"I'll
take a spiced rum and coke please." Ryanne told him. The last time she had
been to a bar was at the end of her first university school year in April. She
had gone with some of her friends to a local club called Benny Bananas, and had
a great time, although it was bitter sweet because they would all be returning
back home for the summer. Benny’s was her group’s favourite place to party.
Ryanne would usually tag along, but her personal favourite place was a bar
called The Golden Fir, closer to the edge of Toronto where her family lived.
She could rarely convince her friends to travel so far for drinks though.

O’Leary’s
reminded Ryanne of The Golden Fir. It was a smaller place, with lots of charm,
and a relaxed vibe she felt when she came in. Clubs were fun once in a while,
but this was the kind of atmosphere she felt comfortable in. Complete with
small red glowing candles and a jukebox.

A
couple entered the bar waving to Jake before taking their seats in the
mezzanine.

"Be
right up." Jake went to the back of the bar and started mixing their
drinks. A familiar song played in the background. It was becoming more of a
nostalgic visit than she would have liked, but at least she didn’t miss home in
this place that seemed so familiar.

"Did
you want something to eat?” Max asked. “You’ve gotta be hungry."

Ryanne
shook her head. She didn't want the food to interrupt her buzz, if she would be
so lucky as to catch one. “Just one drink then and we'll go, alright?"
Another group came in the pub, and joined the couple on the upper level.

"Relax
Max.” She said and leaned toward him, giving him a nudge with her arm as Jake
came over with their drinks.

"Yeah,
relax Max." Jake winked at Ryanne as he rolled up his sleeves revealing a
dark tattoo Ryanne couldn’t make out.

Max
rolled his eyes, as Jake leaned in.

"So
Ryanne, where are you from?"

"The city.”
She couldn't
believe she had already forgotten its name, but Jake seemed to know what she
meant.

"Oh
nice, and what brings you here?"

"Visiting my cousin."

"Oh
yeah, and who would that be?" A blonde girl carrying a server’s apron
entered the pub, and waved to Jake as she passed them, sauntering into the back
kitchen. He nodded back.”Who’s your cousin?"

"Blake
Holloway."

"Oh, really?
Cool. Blake’s a
cool guy. How do you know Max?"

Ryanne
thought for a moment before looking to Max with a smile.

“Ryanne
and I went to college together in Camden.”

Jake’s
attention was drawn to the blonde girl now without the apron waving him over to
the end of the bar, and looking between Ryanne and Jake.
"Back
in a sec."
He told Ryanne as he left.

“That
was close.” Ryanne looked to Max as he exhaled loudly. “Good save.” At this Max
finally smiled back.

"So
what do you think?”

"Of O’Leary’s?
It's nice. Good
service." She smiled, and Max shrugged as he sipped his tonic water.
“Reminds me of a bar I like back home.”

Ryanne
noticed more people sitting on the upper level, and she watched as Jake seemed
to flirt with the apron girl. Her short blonde hair came just past her chin,
and framed her face, softening her sharp features. She laughed and squeezed
Jake’s arm before heading onto the upper level. Jake went over to tend to the
two men at the end of the bar, and then hurried into the back. The house music
turned off and the lights dimmed.

Ryanne
noticed the blonde with the apron approach the dance floor where a microphone
was set up. Soft jazzy music started to play again, and to Ryanne’s surprise,
she started singing.

"Who's
that?" Ryanne asked.

"That's
Anne Marie. She's a server here. We went to High School together." Max
poked at the lime in his tonic water and then took a sip.

"She
has a nice voice."

"Yeah,
she's not bad. She does open mike here sometimes." Ryanne noticed Jake was
on his way back to them.

"Let's
hope he doesn't ask any more questions." She whispered as he approached.

"You
finished that fast." Jake took Ryanne’s empty glass. "Another?"

"Yes
please." Ryanne told him, and when he went to fill it up, Max leaned into
her and she could smell a faint hint of spice.

"Hey,
come on, I thought we were leaving?" Max asked.

"Last
one okay? I’m actually enjoying it here."

Max's
mouth melted into a grin, and he nodded.

"
Thanks,
Max." She whispered to him.

As
Jake returned, he and Max both waved to a couple who came in the door waving
back.

"So
how long are you staying?" Jake asked.  

"I'm
not sure." Ryanne said. She stirred her new drink slowly, and it began to
fizz.

Jake
was about to say something when a guy in his early twenties approached the
other end of the bar, waving for his attention.

Ryanne
looked back at Anne Marie, and realized she was watching her. She was singing a
sad song Ryanne had never heard, and in the moment, it made Ryanne feel
uncomfortable. She took a big gulp of her drink, realizing Jake had made the
second one significantly stronger, and leaned into Max.

"When
were you last in here to drink?" she asked.

"Saturday."

"Oh
wow, Max, who knew?” Ryanne nudged his arm with a smile. “You get out often
then?"

"I
try. I’m not as straight laced as you might think. I have a feeling now that I
am finally off desk duty I’ll be in here even more—though mostly to break up
drunken fights." Ryanne tried to picture Max drinking with his friends,
and when the image finally came, she could believe he wasn’t as uptight as he
seemed while on-duty.

"Oh yeah?"
Ryanne drank
again and sucked on a small ice cube that slid into her mouth, "That
happen often?"

"Hey
Ryanne, how about you do a shot with me?" Jake was back, and he brought
two shot glasses filled with clear liquid.

"I
don't think that's a good…" Max started.

"I
wasn't asking you Officer Max." Jake told him. "I thought we told you
to relax. Ryanne, how old are you?"

"Twenty-two."
That was easy,
she thought, it was the truth.

"So
then you are old enough to make your own decisions." Jake handed her the
shot and looked at Max defiantly for the first time since they had come in,
challenging him to say different.

“Hey
Kyle,” Jake shouted as he put two more shots in front of him. The guy Jake had
just been talking to, with a short dark buzz cut, and a mild case of acne came
over to them and stood beside Max.

“Hey
Max, how’s it goin’?” Kyle asked, and looked at the shots on the bar.

“Max’s
friend Ryanne and I were just about to do a shot. Wanna join us?” Jake asked,
placing the shot in front of him.

Ryanne
saw the disapproval in Max's eyes and quickly downed her shot before he could
say anything else. Her eyes started to water, and she coughed, laughing. Jake
and Kyle
clinked
their glasses together and took their
shots next.

"What
was that?" Ryanne asked wiping her mouth.

“Did
you like it?" Jake asked.

"No."
Ryanne said with a straight face. Jake looked surprised. He stared at her
blankly, and then she laughed. "I think it's time to go Max." She took
the last long swallow of her drink to chase the shot.

Max
stood quickly, and helped Ryanne off her bar stool. Anne Marie had just
finished her first song, everyone clapped, and a group of young guys at a table
on the upper level whistled wildly.

"What's
the hurry?" Jake shouted over the noise as Max put two bills on the bar.

"Keep
the change Jake.
Later Kyle."

"Will
I see you again?" Jake called.

Ryanne
smiled back at him, and then let Max lead her out of the pub. She wondered if
Jake was as flirty with all of his female patrons, and giggled as they began to
walk down the
street,
and almost tripped on a hole in
the sidewalk but Max caught her.

"Are
you actually drunk?" Max asked as he steadied her.

"No."
She couldn't help but smile as she concentrated on her footing. When they got
to the car, Max held the door open for her and she fell into the passenger
seat. When Max got in, Ryanne was putting her hair up into a pony tail.

"You're
trouble Ryanne." Max told her, shaking his head as he started the car.
Ryanne laughed again, and rolled her window down. It was dusk and the air
smelled damp, but as Max sped up, the breeze felt calming on her face and neck.
It had stopped raining, and the air was cool and damp now.

“Who’s
Kyle?”

“Oh
yeah, sorry I didn’t introduce you, but you understand why. Don’t need any more
questions. He’s an old friend of mine, and a new friend of Jake’s.” Max
adjusted the radio station as they left the parking lot. “We went to school
together, but Kyle dropped out in the eleventh grade. Just one year shy of
finishing High School, but his parent’s needed his help on their farm. That’s
where a lot of kids here end up working, with their parents. When I went to
college, we didn’t talk as much anymore, except when we’d see each other at
O’Leary’s. He was going there to drink more often than I could because of
school, and that’s when they got close I guess.”

“How
come you and Jake aren’t friends?”

“We’re
just very different people.”

Max
stopped off at the grocery store just before they closed, and when he came
back, Ryanne was fussing with the radio.

"Oh,
hands off my radio." Max told her as he put the groceries by her feet. He
turned it back to the rock station it was on when they got in.

“Could
you play something country?” Ryanne asked after a few minutes.

“Ohhh,
so now you’re honest about the music you like to listen to.”

“I
said I like a little of everything and it’s true, but I was thinking…when in
Rome.” She smiled, and that was enough to sway Max.

As
they drove down the back country roads, Ryanne sang along with the radio to the
songs she knew and Max laughed with her when she mixed up the words. It wasn’t
until they approached Maple Lane that Ryanne thought about where they were, and
the issues at hand.

“Could
you not tell Aurina where we were?” Ryanne asked. She smiled at Max, and pulled
down the sun visor to check her face in the mirror. She was slightly flushed,
and the rain had made her hair frizzy with the humidity, but otherwise, she
looked normal.

“Could
you not tell Crawley?” Max smiled back as he put the car in park on the other
side of the road, and placed his aviators back on.

“Deal,
and thanks for helping me take my mind off things Max.”