Safe (2 page)

“How did you get here? I don’t understand…” she stammered and stuttered, unable to get the silly grin off her face.

“Can I come in?” he asked with a smile. His eyes hadn’t changed a bit. He was still as handsome as ever and seemed taller, too.

“Of course. Come on in! Mom is out of town, as usual,” she said pointing for him to come inside. “I still cannot believe you are back.”

“Me either. It was so long, Carly. I thought I would never make it back home.” His eyes were almost pleading as if he had been pining for home. “I brought presents!” he said with a big grin.

“Oh really? For me? Cool!” Carly said jumping up and down on the sofa on her knees.

“It’s not much,” he said handing her a bag. Inside, she found two small teddy bear figurines. One was standing beside an English phone booth. The other was holding a bouquet of flowers.

“These are adorable, Aidan. Thank you,” she said reaching out and hugging his neck. She felt different hugging him than she used to. He seemed to hold on to her a little longer, a little tighter. The smell of his cologne floated by her nose, and her insides started to quiver.

“You cannot imagine how much I have missed you, Carly,” he said looking at her in a way that she didn’t remember before. His voice was soft and sincere, and oh so delightfully British.

“Well, I missed you, too. You are my best friend, and it royally stunk not having my best friend around all the time,” Carly said trying to make sure he understood that they were still just friends. Right?

“Have you had dinner yet?” he asked.

“Nope. Not yet.”

“How about a basket of chicken fingers at our favorite place?” he asked with a grin.

“Sounds good. Let’s go.  Have you seen your parents yet?” she asked as she grabbed her purse.

“No. I came here first. They don’t even know I am here yet,” he said opening the door for her. She thought that was odd for someone who was just her friend. Why wouldn’t he go see his parents first? What was on his mind?

November 4, 2010

“Mrs. Caine, are you listening to me?” Detective Cloud asked in an irritated tone as he waved his hand in front of her face.

“Oh, sorry. I went somewhere else in my mind.” Carly was lingering back in time at the moment that she knew she would break Aidan’s heart.

“I really need for you to pay attention to me. This is serious business, as I am sure you understand.”

“Of course I understand. However, I am not accustomed to seeing murders in front of my eyes. This has been very upsetting, and I just want to go home.”

“Mrs. Caine, you can’t go home now.” His words cut through her like knife. What was he talking about? Why couldn’t she go home?

“I don’t understand. I’ve told you everything that I know.”

“Yes, but you aren’t safe. You have agreed to testify for the prosecution, right?”

“Of course. I want to see that murderer locked up for the rest of his pathetic life - even if that murderer is my own husband,” she said looking down at the table. How could she have been so wrong about Ethan? When had he changed into a vicious murderer?

“We have evidence showing that your husband may have hired someone to kill you, Mrs. Caine. He was planning to have you taken out, but his plan backfired. You saw him murder David Sims first, and now the hitman that was coming for you is still out there. He is, of course, refusing to tell us who it is. You aren’t safe right now. You need to be in protective custody.”

“What? He hired someone to kill me? How do you know that?” Carly was astounded and in shock. Sure, Ethan had been involved in some seedy stuff in the recent past, but he would never kill her … would he? He had loved her for more than ten years. How could he want her dead? Did he ever really love her?

“Our investigators found evidence in his computer files as well as on some paperwork that he had stashed in his car. That’s about all I can say for now.”

“Why can’t I just stay with friends or a family member? They will take care…”

“No. Absolutely not, Mrs. Caine. We cannot bet our entire case on you getting protection from your friends. Plus, do you really want to put your friends and family in danger? You are our eye witness. We would have a tough time proving our case without your eye witness account. You must stay in protective custody until we find this hitman and anyone else that might be working for your husband. End of story,” he said standing up and opening the door.

“Where are you going?” she asked standing up.

“To finalize the plans for your safe keeping. You will be given a full-time guard and taken to a safe house.”

“My God. This is like some horrible Hollywood movie. I am going to lose my job, Detective Cloud!” Carly cried. She was a marketing executive, and she had worked hard to move up the ladder at Devlin & Associates.

“Better than losing your life, Mrs. Caine,” he retorted as he walked out of the room.

Carly sat there wondering where she had gone wrong. How had she been so blind to Ethan’s criminal activities? He hadn’t always been this way. Their love story had started out like many others.

***

“Are you busy tonight?” Aidan asked Carly as they sat on her front porch steps.

“No. Why?” she responded nervously. Aidan had been getting awfully close to her lately. She wondered what his intentions were, and she worried that he took her letter writing to mean that she wanted to settle down with him when he came back home. But, she couldn’t settle down. College was quickly approaching, and she needed her freedom.

Carly did like Aidan. He was debonair and fun and sweet. But, she was about to go off to college and didn’t want to tie herself down to anyone in her small town of Carter’s Creek. She wanted to get out of there and never look back. She simply couldn’t and wouldn’t allow herself to feel those old, familiar feelings she’d had for him when they first met. He was like her brother now, right? Of course, she was attracted to him, but her feelings were just a confused mess at this point.

“The country club at the golf course is having a dance tonight. I thought you might like to go… with me,” he said softly without looking at her. She couldn’t break his heart like this. She had to go.

“Sure. Do we dress up?” she asked trying to sound nonchalant.

“Nothing too fancy. Just dress like you’re going on a… date, I guess,” he stumbled over his words. It was cute, and she was feeling butterflies in her stomach suddenly. She forced herself to stop feeling that way. Nothing could happen between them.

A few hours later, Aidan arrived to pick her up. He was dressed in a button-down baby blue shirt and black slacks. She wore a red sundress and white sandals.

After arriving at the country club, Aidan asked Carly to dance. One of her favorite songs, “Wonderful Tonight” by Eric Clapton, was playing. As they swayed to the music, she could tell that she was no longer dancing with a friend. He had bigger ideas, and she wasn’t sure she wanted to go that route. At the same time, she could feel the warmth of his body and the comfort of being with him. A mish-mash of emotions fluttered around inside of her head and her heart.

Being his friend had been more important than being his girlfriend during the last year. She thought that he felt the same… that he wouldn’t want to ruin their amazing friendship just for the chance of having a dating relationship. Apparently, he had other ideas. He had leaned on her for a year while waiting to see his family and friends again. To him, she was like a soft and beautiful life vest that had saved him. She had been his link to his former life, and now he was falling for her.

“You want to get out of here?” he asked after the song was over.

“Where do you want to go?” she asked.

“To the golf course. I hear that you can see a ton of shooting stars out there,” he said pulling her hand and leading her toward the car. Were they dating? This was a date, after all. Why was he holding her hand? Carly’s mind was moving a mile a minute.

As they walked along the golf course path, it got quieter and quieter. She could feel the anxiety pitting in her stomach. She could feel his tension as he walked with her.

They both laid down on the grass looking up at the stars. The night sky was pitch black and clear as a bell. Within moments, she saw a shooting star streak across the sky.

“Make a wish!” Aidan said.

“A wish?”

“You are supposed to make a wish when you see a shooting star? Haven’t you ever seen one before?”

“Actually, I haven’t.”

“Really? Well, I’m glad you got to see one then,” he whispered. “And I hope your wish comes true.” He smiled at her as he sat up on one elbow. Carly didn’t make a wish because she had no idea what she wanted anymore.

A little while later, they walked back to the car. Carly was relieved that he hadn’t tried to kiss her, but she was also a little disappointed, much to her dismay. Why didn’t he at least try to kiss her? Was she misreading his actions? Part of her wanted to kiss him to see what it was like. She had certainly wanted to kiss him a million times over the years, but he didn’t seem to be interested in her that way.

He opened the door to the car for her, and she got in. As he slid behind the steering wheel, he looked at her with eyes that she didn’t recognize. They were eyes filled with desire, and she wanted to find out what was on the other side of that look. That’s when he leaned in and kissed her softly.

Carly’s mind whirled as she tried to figure out what she felt. His lips felt foreign to her. They had always been the lips of a friend, and now they were pressed against hers. Warm and soft and sweet were words she could use to describe those full lips of his. She didn’t know what to think or do or say. She felt uncomfortable, yet excited, to finally kiss him after years of being “besties”. Her feelings were a confused mess inside of her head and heart. Before she had a chance to decide what she wanted, he was sitting back behind the wheel looking at her and smiling.

As the next few weeks passed, they continued to hang out when they could, but Carly pulled back. She didn’t kiss him again, and she created a distance between them in her mind. She knew she was leaving for college soon and would have little time to see Aidan. She didn’t want to give him the wrong impression, and she didn’t want to tempt herself to stay in this old world - this old life.

Carly left for college in late June, excited to start her new life. Her college was just a couple of counties over, but it gave her the new start she desperately wanted. A few weeks into school, she met a guy named Ethan Caine. He was in one of her classes, and he was the smartest man she had ever met. They started talking, and he asked her out. And then Carly did the unthinkable.

She was so worried about telling Aidan that she was dating someone else that she decided to let him find out on his own. Knowing he would be at their favorite eating place one Friday night, she took her new flame, Ethan, there to eat. Aidan saw her immediately and looked shell shocked. The color drained from his face as he realized that she had moved on without him. Moments later, he left the restaurant with his friend, and she never heard from him again.

Two years later, she married Ethan. She was only twenty years old, but Ethan represented a whole new life to her. All of the old things were gone. Her heart always felt bad for how she had treated Aidan, but she knew she couldn’t tell him face to face that she didn’t want a relationship. She regarded herself as a coward for the way she handled things. She felt disgusted with herself for throwing away a long friendship the way that she did. But, life goes on. Ethan became her husband and was a good one until a few years ago when it became apparent that he was not who he said he was.

Hours passed as Carly continued to sit in the questioning room. She was growing more irritated by the minute as Detective Cloud tried to work out where she was going and who would guard her. She hoped they would get some Rambo-like character who could make sure that she was safe.