Chapter Thirty-Seven
Jessica woke to the smell of coffee. She quickly sat up, surprised to find Steven sitting in a chair across from the small, red loveseat she’d slept on.
He sent her a smile, nodding toward a steaming cup of coffee perched on the table between them. “Good morning.”
More than a little shaken by his unexpected presence, Jessica sat up and pushed her hair from her eyes. “You startled me.”
“Sorry. The door was open when I arrived this morning. I assumed it was for my benefit.”
Jessica glanced toward the door in question. “I don’t even remember coming in last night. I was so exhausted, I obviously didn’t make it to the bed.”
“Were you drinking?”
She had been. Jess had left the Daytons’ and stopped at a local sports bar to grab a bite to eat. She hadn’t intended to order alcohol, it had just sort of happened. “I had a couple of drinks.”
“A couple, huh? You’re damn lucky you didn’t get a DUI.”
Picking up the cup of coffee, Jess took a small sip, nearly groaning aloud as the deliciously hot liquid slid down her throat. “I had a long talk with the Daytons.”
She watched him closely for any sign of interest but saw only mild curiosity. “Did you find the answers you sought?”
“Not really. How come you didn’t tell me you had an affair with Melanie Dayton?”
Steven leaned back in his chair. “I didn’t see any relevance in it. Besides, that was over sixteen years ago. It has nothing to do with what’s going on now.”
“Maybe not, but you still could have told me.” Jess hated the jealousy that echoed in her voice. Surely to God, she wasn’t jealous of Steven’s history with Melanie, was she?
“I’m not sure why it matters, but I apologize. I should have told you.”
Jessica blew out a shaky breath. “It’s fine. I just thought that since we’ve become friends…”
“Friends,” Steven repeated in a soft tone. “Is that what this is?”
Suddenly nervous, Jessica changed the subject. “Apparently Jasper Dayton still harbors some anger and resentment toward you.”
“I can’t say that I blame him.” Steven ran a hand through his hair. “I reckon it’s a good thing I didn’t go with you to see them.”
Jessica took another sip of her coffee. “I suppose not. After your name was mentioned, Jasper left out of there in a hurry.”
Steven couldn’t hide his surprise. “You would think he’d have let it go after all this time.”
Jessica changed the subject, not wanting to discuss Steven’s past with the Daytons at the moment. “I need clothes.”
“I can take you by your place to pick up some things.”
Glancing at the clock on the wall, Jessica nodded. “Owen will be leaving for work in a few minutes. I damn sure don’t want to run into him right now.”
Steven tilted his head to the side. “What are you going to do about him?”
“Owen?”
At Steven’s nod, she answered. “I don’t know. There’s not a whole hell of a lot I can do until my name is cleared of Sandy’s murder.”
“You don’t have to prove your innocence, Jessica. The state has the burden of proving your guilt. And since you’re not guilty, you have nothing to worry about.”
Jessica would love for that to be true. “Someone has gone to a whole hell of a lot of trouble of making me look guilty, Steven. I’m going to worry until I find out who’s doing this to me.”
“Fair enough.” He pushed to his feet. “Finish your coffee and I’ll take you to your house to grab some clothes.”
* * * *
The first thing Jessica noticed as Steven turned onto Meadowbrook Circle was the number of police cars parked in the Martins’ driveway. “What the hell?”
Steven pulled in behind Jessica’s car and switched off the engine. “Something big must have happened at your neighbor’s place.”
Jessica opened her car door and slowly got out.
Yellow crime scene tape surrounded the Martins’ brick home, and several uniformed officers milled about.
A tall, gray-haired man, wearing khakis and a green polo shirt, looked up from the officer he spoke to and marched off in Jessica’s direction. “Mrs. Nobles?”
Jessica stilled, recognizing the man as the chief of police.
He came to a stop in front of her and extended his hand. “I’m Gary Randall, chief of police. We met at the station a few days ago.”
Accepting his outstretched palm, Jessica attempted a smile she didn’t feel. “I remember. What’s going on?”
“Would you mind if I came inside and asked you a few questions?”
Jessica glanced at Steven to find him standing calmly by the front of the car before she returned her attention to the police chief. “Sure, if you don’t mind Mr. Ruckle joining us.”
Gary glanced in Steven’s direction. “Not a problem.”
The three of them made their way up the drive to the porch. Jessica unlocked the door and waved the two men inside.
“May I offer you something to drink?” She kept her gaze on Chief Randall as she spoke.
“No thank you. I won’t take up too much of your time.”
Randall and Steven took a seat on the sofa while Jessica lowered herself into a recliner, facing them.
“What can I do for you?” Jessica murmured, getting right to the point.
“I’m not sure if you know what’s going on next door, but Eustice Martin was murdered last night.”
Nausea flooded Jessica’s gut. She sat forward on the recliner, fighting the urge to vomit. “Eustice is dead?”
Randall stared at her for long moments before answering. “One of the officers on scene last night spoke with your husband. Do you mind telling me where you were between nine and eleven pm last night?”
“She was with me,” Steven rumbled before Jessica could answer.
Her gaze flew to Steven’s calm and serene face.
Randall pulled a small pad from his shirt pocket, followed by a pen. “And you are?”
“Steven Ruckle. I’m a friend of Jessica’s.”
“I see.” Randall scribbled something in his note pad. “And how long have you known Mrs. Nobles?”
Steven didn’t bat an eye at the police chief’s questions. “A few weeks now.”
“And the nature of your relationship?” Randall persisted, suspicion lurking in his intelligent eyes.
“How is my relationship with Mrs. Nobles relevant to what happened to Eustice Martin?”
Randall continued to write. “I’m simply trying to establish motive and rule out unnecessary suspects. So, I’ll ask again, what—”
“We’re friends,” Jessica interrupted, drawing Randall’s attention back to her. “Just friends.”
Jessica sat glued to that recliner answering Randall’s many questions. She didn’t dare look at Steven for fear of what she’d see in his eyes. He had to be wondering about her whereabouts last night. But then, why cover for her?
Randall stood and handed Jessica a card. “If you think of anything that might be of help, give me a call.”
Accepting the police chief’s card, Jessica promised to do just that. She followed him to the door. “How is Mrs. Martin holding up?”
“She’s in shock as you can imagine. She’s the one who found her husband’s body.”
Jessica swallowed with some difficulty. “How did he die?”
“His throat was cut.”
The floor titled beneath Jessica’s feet. Someone had cut Eustice Martin’s throat. It couldn’t have been his wife, she feared Eustice too much to attempt such a thing, not to mention, he could have overpowered her. No, it had to have been someone strong enough to pull it off.
Standing in the open doorway, Jess waited for the police chief to make it back to his car before slowly turning to face Steven. “Why did you lie about being with me last night?”
He stared back at her, his gaze unreadable. “Would you rather I threw you under the bus?”
“No, but my whereabouts could have been vouched for by some of the bar’s patrons. You didn’t have to cover for me.”
Steven shrugged. “I simply said the first thing that came to mind.”
Jessica rested her hand on the door knob. “I see. Are you sure you weren’t establishing your own alibi for last night?”
Something resembling anger flashed in his eyes before disappearing as quickly as it arrived. “I’m sorry you feel that way.”
Jessica suddenly felt like an ass. Steven had gone out of his way to help her at every turn, only to have her toss unwarranted accusations at him.
He moved to step around her, but Jess refused to budge. “I’m sorry, Steven. I didn’t mean that.”
“I think you did. It’s obvious you don’t trust me. Not that I blame you after learning about Melanie and me.”
“You’re wrong,” she whispered softly, blocking his exit. “I do trust you. Like you said, that happened sixteen years ago. I have no right to judge you. If anyone has the right to be suspicious, it should be you.”
Steven stopped in his attempt to leave. “I don’t think you killed Eustice Martin anymore than I believe you had anything to do with Sandy Weaver’s death. I don’t know how I know, I just do.”
Blowing out a shaky breath, Jessica tilted her head back enough to look into his eyes. “I really am sorry for what I said.”
He slowly leaned down and brushed his lips across hers.
Jessica froze, unsure of what to do next. On one hand, she wanted to lean into him, to give someone else control of her tattered emotions for a while. But an image of Owen’s handsome face stopped her.
She turned her head to the side, effectively ending the kiss. “I’ll just go grab some of my things.”