CHAPTER NINETEEN
“Brynn, there’s no reason for you not to take some time,” Tiny said, his booming voice coming in loud and clear over the phone line. “In case you didn’t notice, I sort of miss this place. I don’t mind watching the bar for a night or two.”
“It’s only for tonight,” Brynn stressed, not doubting that Tiny was enjoying himself at the Cavern. It was still her responsibility to oversee the day to day operations. “I really appreciate it, Tiny. Is Rose there with you?”
Brynn walked into Lance’s kitchen, spotting the different samples of granite that were next to the refrigerator. She honestly hadn’t seen them this afternoon. One immediately drew her attention, and it was nice to think of something other than the fact her high school friend was most likely buried somewhere…lost to everyone but her murderer.
“Rose is keeping Chester, Harlan, and their wives company this evening. The rest of the usual crowd is here tonight, although Wes showed up around an hour ago. Miles left the minute that boy walked in. Rose’s good intentions have definitely backfired.” Tiny’s pause told her that there was a very specific reason that Rose had joined that group of friends. So much for the reprieve Bryn thought she’d get tonight. She let her fingers slide off the light grey granite as Tiny explained why Rose was compelled to spend her Sunday evening at the bar. “It seems that our friendly detective had a chat with Harlan today. You can understand that he’s upset. Also, Pete Anderson finally left town. Irish is here by himself, because Chad was a no-show. I’m assuming he’s with Clayton, trying to sort out the family feud. Oh, but your reporter friend is back and circling like a damn vulture.”
“Throw her out, if she makes it necessary. She’s been given two warnings already. She doesn’t get a third pass. Oh, and make sure she knows that I was the one who eighty-sixed her and that she isn’t welcome back,” Brynn stressed with a bit of frustration. Detective Kendrick had obviously started to put some heat on their friends and neighbors. He’d all but warned them of that this afternoon. Honestly, it was a wonder that anyone was at the Cavern. Had she been accused of a crime as hideous as the ones committed, she’d be holed up inside of her apartment. “I think Lance just pulled in. I’ll touch base with you later.”
“Okay, baby girl.”
Brynn disconnected the line with a heavy heart and walked back into the living room without grabbing the Coke she’d wanted from the fridge. She hadn’t missed the fact that Lance had stored a six-pack on the bottom shelf. It was rare that he drank soda at all, so the fact that he’d thought of her when picking up a few items from the grocery store warmed her heart.
She wondered why Lance hadn’t come in the door when she’d clearly heard him on the front porch. He’d driven out to his dad’s house to grab the rest of his civilian clothes. Had they not been given the reason someone had broken into his house, he never would have left her here on her own. Honestly, she probably wouldn’t have wanted to stay here by herself.
As it stood, she’d had some phone calls to make. One of them she wanted to do in private—Shae Irwin. It couldn’t be easy having all the details of the worst part of her life brought to the forefront of public scrutiny once again. Brynn wanted to convey that she was here if Shae had any concerns with the way the investigation was being handled. Unfortunately, she didn’t answer her cell phone.
Brynn left a message, but all she’d done was request a call back. She hadn’t wanted to leave any intimate details on voicemail.
Brynn crossed the old hardwood floor that was in serious need to replacing to the door, gently pulling back the aged curtain. Lance mentioned changing the front door entirely, and Brynn could understand why. It was cracked with dry rot at the bottom and around the window. She was relatively sure it was the same front door the Waltons had on their house.
The porch light was shining bright, but there wasn’t a soul to be seen in the front yard. An uneasiness settled into the pit of her stomach. She didn’t doubt she’d heard something outside, but it could easily have been a squirrel or some type of little critter scrounging for food. She’d go with that, considering all of Lance’s fears about the killer breaking into his house had been unfounded.
The lengths to which the reporters and journalists would go to in order to grab a headline was sickening. Detective Kendrick mentioned that the male reporter had been arrested, though he was saying he’d been provided the photograph of the furnace by an unnamed source.
No one believed him for a second.
The picture had been taken with a high-tech expensive digital camera. The same type of camera that the reporter had in plain view on the backseat of his vehicle. The detective was currently waiting on a court order to search the vehicle and camera’s video card for evidence of the crime.
Brynn might feel slightly safer that they were aware of who’d broken into Lance’s house, but that didn’t mean she wouldn’t still take precautions. Lance had made sure of it, as well. He’d left her his father’s double-barreled shotgun, because that was what she was most familiar with, considering she kept one behind the bar. His had the eighteen inch barrels of a traditional coach gun, but they always said that buckshot was a greater equalizer, especially in a wide pattern.
She’d kept her cell phone with her, so she instinctively pressed the speed dial Lance had programmed into her phone earlier today. The call hadn’t even gone through when she caught sight of a raccoon on the far side of the porch.
“Blondie?” Lance answered on the second ring. “Everything okay?”
“Yes.” The nickname immediately brought a smile to her face, although it could have been relief at the sight of the inquisitive animal. “You wouldn’t want to bring home food, would you? I don’t believe those pizza pockets you’ve got in the freezer are going to cut it.”
Brynn made the request for two reasons. She didn’t want to worry him with her overactive imagination, and she was really hungry.
“Don’t you have good timing? I’m at the intersection of Main, so I’ll stop by the diner. Club sandwich and steak fries?”
“And a piece of apple pie,” Brynn practically pleaded, finally letting go of the curtain. She walked back the way she came, entering the kitchen and grabbing the Coke she’d wanted earlier out of the refrigerator. “Or peach, if the apple is all gone.”
“I’ll be home in a bit then.”
Brynn slid her phone into the back pocket of her jeans. She popped the tab on the can, her mouth watering at the fizzing sound coming out of the opening.
Home.
This was his home, so why did the word resonate with her? They had yet to really talk about where their relationship was headed, not that she needed to push the issue. They’d agreed to take this day by day. Honestly, it wasn’t that hard to do with every other minute reminders that life could be cut short in the blink of an eye.
Brynn wondered if that’s what happened with Noah and Reese. She’d only been in town for a little over two months, and that didn’t seem to faze them. Their relationship had grown into something monumental in such a short time. The love they shared showed with every look, gesture, and touch. Had they realized how precious time was in the grand scheme of things? Was that why they came together so quickly?
Thud. Thud.
Brynn’s stomach dropped at the abrupt sound coming from…where had the noise come from? A raccoon didn’t have the bulk to make that kind of racket.
She tilted her head, listening carefully to try and judge the direction or room.
Brynn picked up nothing but silence and the rapid speed at which her heart was beating against her chest. She slowly let out her pent-up breath, setting her can down as quietly as she could on the counter.
Were her senses heightened because of the horrific events these past two months? Was she making something out of nothing? She could admit that her nerves were frayed, which didn’t help her current situation.
She carefully and soundlessly made her way back into the living room, her eyes glued to the shotgun in the corner. Her heartbeat steadied, and the slight tremor that had taken up residence in her fingers subsided as she experienced a sense of security the moment her hands wrapped around the blue steel barrels of the firearm.
How was it the air in the house was rather serene now that she held protection close to her side?
Brynn took a brief moment to peer around the curtain of the front door. The raccoon was long gone, and nothing seemed out of the ordinary. She let the stained fabric fall back into place as she made the decision to walk through the house for her own peace of mind.
She decided to start with the upstairs, going from room to room. The more she searched the shadows in every corner, the more she came to appreciate what Gus Kendall saw in this house. It had a beautiful layout, along with gorgeous wood that would no doubt be brought back to life with a coat or two of elbow grease.
Brynn was breathing a little easier when she descended the stairs. She effortlessly cleared the main floor as well. All that was left for her to search was the basement.
Her previous apprehension returned the second her fingers wrapped around the dark doorknob. The metal was colder than the palm of her hand. She never had been a fan of basements, and knowing that a serial killer had been down there at some point to hide photographs didn’t help their cause.
Brynn reminded herself that she didn’t have anything to worry about. She wasn’t included in those pictures Lance had found, and Detective Kendrick had already named the culprit who broke the window and snuck pictures that headlined in this morning’s paper.
She steadied her breath and twisted the knob, making sure she stepped back in order to make room should she need to fire her weapon.
There was nothing in front of her but total darkness.
Brynn had no choice but to advance down the stairs. She flipped the switch and was able to turn on the light above the staircase. She listened closely for any sound that didn’t belong in this old house. There was nothing to be heard except for the hum of the refrigerator that had turned on when she’d been upstairs.
She quietly set her bare foot on the first step before slowly descending into what appeared to be the pit of hell. At least, that’s what this felt like.
God, she hated basements.
Brynn couldn’t shake the visions of a hand reaching through the wooden slats the closer she got to the cement floor. She even leaned down at one point to make sure there was nothing in the back of the basement, but it was too dark for her to make anything out. She’d have to reach the worn string attached to the lone bulb in the ceiling.
“Shit,” Brynn breathed as her cell phone rang.
So much for the element of surprise had someone actually been in the basement. She pulled the string and quickly looked around the enclosed area before reaching into her back pocket.
The house was clear.
Lance’s name was being displayed across the small screen, so she quickly swiped the button to the right.
“Hey,” Brynn answered, doing her best not to sound as if she’d just run a marathon. “Are you on your way home?”
“I’m just leaving the diner,” Lance shared, though there wasn’t a bit of excitement in his rich voice. Instead, all she could detect was concern. “You’re not going to believe this, but I just ran into Tobias Essinger.”
“Tobias?” Brynn could easily picture the older man who always had a book in his hand. He was partial to westerns. “I haven’t seen him in months. He’s definitely not a regular at the Cavern anymore. What happened?”
Brynn turned the light off and carefully made her way back up the stairs. Every door was shut, every window closed, and every lock engaged. There was no one getting inside the house unless someone broke another window. That was a sound she couldn’t mistake.
“Tobias asked me about that year we were all at summer camp.”
“What about it?” Brynn asked, closing the basement door behind her as she walked into the kitchen. She set the shotgun on the counter and reached for the soda can she’d left near the samples of granite. “I remember that Tobias used to help Birdie out at the camp every now and then, but I couldn’t tell you if he was there that year.”
“Oh, he was there alright,” Lance shared in a manner that had Brynn paying attention. “We began discussing the pictures I’d found at the house. It was as if our conversation triggered a memory or something, because he claims to remember who was taking pictures of us when we were sitting around those nightly campfires.”
“Who?” Brynn barely choked out the word, because the name was no doubt of someone they all knew and respected. “Lance, tell me.”
“It was Calvin Arlos, Brynn. Tobias was certain of it.”