Wish of the Heart (3 page)

“What did he want?” His voice gave nothing away.

“I don’t know.” Her mind ran through the possibilities again and again, trying to guess.

Cruz grunted. “So what do you want from me?”

“Did he do it?” Macie blurted.

Cruz set his coffee cup down, considering her question. “He didn’t ring for me.”

“Why not? His alibi wasn’t completely solid.” Macie’s cup clinked against the saucer.

“It wasn’t only the lack of evidence. He didn’t care enough. He liked your sister. He was upset about her death. But he didn’t love her. When it’s a boyfriend or husband, usually there’s strong emotion involved, either positive or negative.” He spoke with the authority of years of cases.

“How do you know he didn’t love her?” Macie asked.

Cruz shrugged. “He spoke of her like a friend, not a lover.”

“But there was no one else,” Macie insisted.

“Obviously there was.” Having no one to blame almost made her more uneasy.

All this time, a deep place still screamed inside her at the thought of Rylan escaping justice. Her parents needed someone to blame and they’d blamed Rylan. She’d blamed him right along with them. When the private detective they hired turned up no more evidence than the police, it hadn’t lessened the grip of their belief, especially not for her mother.

Macie gripped her hands tight until her knuckles showed white.

Cruz leaned in and covered her hand with his. “I’m sorry. Your sister’s case was one of many I couldn’t get justice for.” He released her hand. “They weigh on me. They all do.”

“I thought I’d moved on.” Macie had been desperate to move on. Karen would want her to be happy. She’d want justice, but not at her family’s expense.

“It’s hard to accept that sometimes we won’t have answers,” Cruz advised.

Without answers, Macie wondered if she could put it all behind her for a second time.

~ * ~ * ~

The subway car sloped down as it passed under the East River. The smell of dampness entered the train. Macie tried to wrap her head around her meeting with Detective Cruz. Former Detective, she supposed, since he’d retired.

There had been no sign of forced entry at her sister’s apartment. Cruz had been convinced the apparent search and robbery of the apartment had been staged. Nothing beyond her sister’s laptop had been missing as far as they could determine. Jewelry and other small electronics hadn’t been taken, even though they’d been tossed around.

Her sister didn’t have any enemies. Everyone loved Karen. Her outgoing personality attracted those around her. She hadn’t been a risk taker, either. She hadn’t frequented seedy clubs or engaged in unsafe behaviors, but in the end, it didn’t matter. She was dead, anyway.

Suspicion pointed to Rylan, but it hadn’t stuck. He’d been to Karen’s apartment on multiple occasions when they dated, so prints and hair were explained away.

If Karen interrupted a burglary, why hadn’t they taken anything more? Had the apartment been searched before Karen arrived and not after? Maybe the perpetrator had been spooked by the confrontation and fled. It was as good an explanation as any, which meant it was no explanation at all.

Chapter 4
 

Macie tossed her purse on the table, still trying to shake off her unsettled emotions.
Had Cruz ever shared his final thoughts on Rylan as the perpetrator?
She couldn’t recall now. She didn’t think he’d been so emphatic before. Maybe he couldn’t be while he was actively involved in the investigation. Maybe he’d said, but she hadn’t been in a place where she could hear it. She didn’t know. That whole period was a jumble.

If Rylan had something to tell her, she needed to hear it. Before she could talk herself out of it, she texted him.

What do you want?

She didn’t have to wait long for a reply.

Let’s talk in person. I’ll come over.
 

Macie’s mind rejected that immediately.

No. Let’s meet in the park.
 

Rylan didn’t respond. Macie’s nails bit into her palm as she waited.

When?

Macie’s skin itched with nerves as she typed her response.

Now. I’m leaving now.
 

Macie didn’t wait for an answer. She grabbed her purse and headed out.

~ * ~ * ~

Macie’s feet pounded on the pavement. Her eyes strayed to the bandshell. Cracks and gouges in the carved stone showed its age. She dodged a boy on rollerblades as he skated over the bricks and hit a tennis ball with a hockey stick. Close by, wooden benches lined the walkway and Macie sat, grateful to catch her breath.

How long would it take Rylan to get here?
She had no idea where he lived now. When he’d been with Karen, she’d raved about the view from his apartment in mid-town.

Macie fidgeted and the planks of the bench bit into the backs of her legs. Walkers and joggers moved up and down the promenade. A woman in heels strutted by, a tiny fluff ball of a dog peeking out of her tote bag.

Normally, such a cute animal would have Macie smiling, but not now. Her stomach twisted, and she rubbed the strap of her purse between her thumb and forefinger.

Macie spotted a man in the distance, his legs eating up the space between them. She knew his broad shoulders and the tousled brown hair whipping in the breeze. It was Rylan, and again she experienced that unwanted spark inside—that spark she’d always ignored. First, because he was her sister’s, and then because of the horror that lay between them.

It was crazy. Macie didn’t understand how she could be even remotely attracted to Rylan. He represented one of the lowest points in her life. Then there was the guilt. The gut-wrenching guilt. She’d never told Karen and, at the time, she hadn’t intended to.
How could this man turn her upside-down?
She should hate him, and she did, didn’t she?

He wasn’t that special. He was handsome, but so were many men. Successful, hard-working. Again in New York, that described a thousand men. A million men. Even after all this time, there was something in his smile, something that flickered in the corner of his eye, that was burned into her memory. The curve of his ear. The bridge of his nose. His strong, capable fingers.
Stop, just stop.
She mentally shook herself.

Macie looked away, focusing her eyes on the sidewalk cracks. She inhaled deeply, trying to calm her racing heart as her gaze traced the wayward patterns on the ground.

“Macie.” His low voice washed over her.

Her eyes flickered up. “Yes.”

Rylan sat beside her on the bench, his hands balled in the pockets of his jacket. “Thank you for meeting me.” He didn’t say the “finally” but it hung unspoken in the air.

Macie turned away. “I didn’t want to, but if you have something to share about Karen, I want to hear it.”

“I moved,” Rylan said simply.

“Did you?” What this had to do with Karen, Macie couldn’t imagine.

“A month ago. To a place on Riverside Drive.”

“River views?” she asked automatically. Riverside Drive was known for its quiet buildings and Hudson River scenery.

“Yeah.” Rylan coughed.

The stilted small talk was excruciating. “Tell me what you want,” Macie demanded.

Rylan nodded. “I have Karen’s laptop. At least, I’m pretty sure it is.”

“What?” Macie was floored as the idea sank into her mind.

“When I moved, I went through everything. I found it in the bottom of a chest in the closet.”

“Did you inform the police?” she demanded. After all this time, it was hard to imagine the laptop had been located. Everyone always assumed her sister’s assailant took it.

Rylan shook his head. “No. I didn’t know what to do for a while. It would be hard for me to prove I didn’t put it there. And your mom …”

“Yeah.” The police would inform her parents they’d found the laptop, and any progress her mother had made would probably be wiped out immediately. “I thought they searched your place.” Macie shifted on the bench, putting more distance between them.

“They did. The chest has a false bottom. Your sister knew about the chest. I showed it to her after she admired it. The laptop is the right model. It seems too coincidental to be anyone else’s.”

“Did you turn it on?” Macie asked.

“Yeah, it’s password protected.” He paused. “I don’t want to dredge up a lot of crap if by chance it isn’t hers.”

Macie stilled as the possibilities assailed her from all sides. “Why would she put her laptop in your trunk?”

“That’s a very good question.” Rylan didn’t sound like he had a good answer.

Macie took a deep breath. “Did you do it?”

“No.” His gaze was steady. “I didn’t. Karen was a lovely person. There was no reason.”

“Was she breaking up with you?” Macie asked.

“I think one or the other of us would have broken it off before too long. We liked each other, but it wasn’t there. That doesn’t mean I wanted to hurt her.” Rylan turned his head as a bicyclist passed.

He was telling the truth. Macie wasn’t sure how she knew, but she felt it. He didn’t have to contact her about the computer. Hell, he could have disposed of the laptop—thrown it in a landfill somewhere. But he hadn’t done that. He hadn’t gone to the police either, but she could almost understand. It would have resulted in questions, maybe even an arrest.

“You want me to log in,” Macie surmised.

“Yes. I tried obvious things. The names of family members. The street where she lived. Maybe you’d have better luck.”

“Okay.” Her hands were shaking. “Okay, but I need a little time. Bringing all this craziness back …” Macie closed her eyes. “I need to think.”

“I understand,” Rylan responded.

Macie could tell he was disappointed. She stood and her eyes flickered over the landscape, unfocused. The air closed in around her.

Rylan touched her arm. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry about Karen. I didn’t get to tell you before.”

“No, you didn’t.” Macie stood and walked away without looking back.

Chapter 5
 

Rylan watched Macie stride away. Her posture was rigid and the tips of her red hair bounced. He kept his eyes on her until she passed out of sight.

Rylan leaned over his knees, breathed in deep, and straightened back up. It was done. He’d managed to get Macie to listen to him. What she would do now was anyone’s guess. She might go straight to the police, or he might never hear from her again. He hoped it was neither and that her curiosity would override her aversion.

With or without her, he was determined to find out why Karen had placed that computer in his apartment. He got to his feet and retreated down the promenade. The cloudless blue sky and perfect temperature didn’t penetrate his thoughts.

Rylan kicked a stone off the path. He’d considered many tactics to reach Macie. He knew where to find her. That wasn’t the problem. Getting her to listen. Getting her to cooperate. Those were the problems. Karen had told him more than once Macie had a stubborn streak. Macie’s initial reaction to him proved Karen hadn’t exaggerated.

At the edge of the pond, ducks quacked and entered the water. Rylan leaned against a rock and watched their progress as they left gentle ripples in their wake. A turtle ambled through the grass at the edge of the bank. The serenity brought a moment’s respite to him before recollection, doubt, and worry swept it away again.

Rylan had wanted to get in touch with Macie for so long, but he’d stayed away, knowing he was a painful reminder of Karen’s death. He wished it weren’t so, but wishing didn’t change it. Finding the computer gave him the impetus to contact her.

When Karen first introduced them, he’d been shocked to feel an instant attraction to Macie. She was so very like Karen, but more. More everything. Her hair was a deeper red, her body more lush, and her laugh more vibrant. Where Karen was pastel, Macie was technicolor.

He liked Karen. He truly did. But it was clear they weren’t meant to be. They were both trying—too hard—to make it work between them.

Rylan pondered his options at the time, but what was the etiquette for moving from one sister to another? Before he’d even considered taking any action at all, Karen was dead and it was a moot point.

All this time, he still hadn’t met anyone who captured his interest as Macie had. He’d see a redhead in the crowd and hurry his pace, but it was never her. His fixation served only to tell him that his interest in Macie hadn’t waned and not just any redhead would do. It had to be Macie, with her sweet smelling skin and a hint of curl in her hair.

He dated other women, but none seemed quite right. Somehow, he knew Macie was the perfect fit.

~ * ~ * ~

Macie stepped off the curb then jumped back as a car accelerated through the yellow. Crazy drivers.

Rylan had Karen’s laptop. He’d had it all this time. She wasn’t sure about his story, but if he’d had it all along, why tell her now?

If she chose to believe Rylan, that left Karen placing the laptop in the chest as the only plausible explanation.
Why would she do that? Why would she hide her own laptop?
The only reason Macie could think of was to protect something on it. Something that Karen planned to retrieve later. That was one more strike against the random intruder theory.

Pedestrians filled the crosswalk and Macie jostled along with the bustling mass. She moved out of the stream, stopping in front of a jewelry display window.

If Karen had been concerned, wouldn’t she have shared that concern with Macie? They told each other everything, even the silly minutia of their lives. They’d always been like that.

Macie wished Karen had trusted her. Maybe it wasn’t a matter of trust. If her sister had been cautious enough to stash her laptop, she might have thought telling Macie would put her at risk. That made the most sense. Karen was a protector—always standing up for those she cared about.

Macie jerked away from the window, her heart aching.

Chapter 6
 

Macie’s steps slowed as she trudged toward Rylan’s door. She didn’t want to see Rylan, but she had to know, and that had gotten her on the phone to set up a meeting. She knocked twice and laced her fingers in front of her.