Whispers From the Dead, Page 2

  “I didn’t come out looking for a fight,” Ben shouted, wheeling again in Denton’s direction. Todd was quick and got a hold of Ben’s arm before he had a chance to let the dish fly. Ben quickly slouched in defeat as Todd secured both of his wrists behind his back.

  “He’s sleeping with Ruby. What was I supposed to do?” Ben choked out.

  I never could stand a crying man, but I made an exception in this case. Back in high school, Ben and Denton had been inseparable, so by default, I had spent a lot of time hanging around with Ben. In those days, he was too shy to raise his hand in class and I could still vividly recall the time that he’d crossed a busy highway to hold a dying dog in his lap that had been hit by a car. It hadn’t even been his dog, but you would never have known that from the tears he had shed that day. Ruby was also his high school sweetheart, wife and the mother of his three young daughters. It was bad enough to discover your wife cheating on you, but it was a double whammy for the other man to be your best friend, and way too much to expect any man to deal with calmly.

  Now that I knew what was going on, I was just sorry that Todd had reached Ben before he’d hurled the dish at Denton’s head.

  Still holding out a shard of hope that it was all a huge misunderstanding, I turned to Denton and asked, “Is this true?”

  The room was dead silent and all eyes turned to Denton. The thirty-two year old still looked every bit the high school football star, except that now he was even more ripped. Both of his arms bulged with muscles, and right below each sleeve of his t-shirt was an elaborate tattoo. One arm was decorated with a sun burst and the other with a pouting angel that looked kind of like a porn star with wings.

  He didn’t even have to answer for me to immediately know that what Ben had said was the truth. It was written all over Denton’s unusually sagging face. I inwardly sighed in sadness for Ben’s little girls.

  Denton rubbed his hand vigorously through his blond hair before he finally said, “Yeah, but she’s the one who came on to me.” He glanced back at Ben and said, “Man, you have to believe me. I would never do that to you.”

  “That’s enough,” I said, waving him to silence with an irritated swipe of my hand.

  Denton hadn’t changed one bit since high school. He was still a self-centered, heart breaking dick, too arrogant to take any responsibility for it. And that made the sting even sharper when my body betrayed me with a racing heart and a dry mouth when I faced him.

  “You’re under arrest, Denton McAllister, for disorderly conduct and assault.” He didn’t resist when I cuffed him, but he didn’t go silently either.

  “What the hell, Serenity. Are you kidding me? He’s the one who attacked me and then Ruby’s brother, Nathan, had to get involved. They’re the ones you should be arresting!”

  I turned him around and stared hard into his eyes. Once upon a time, those hazel eyes of his could make me do anything he wanted. I had been a lump of hormones and romantic dreams around him in high school. That is, until he cheated on me with my own best friend at the time. They say that high school memories stay with you for a lifetime. I had to agree, except those memories weren’t always pleasant. In my case, they had turned me into a very jaded adult.

  “For once in your life, keep your mouth shut or I’ll find some other charges to tack on to the list. Now move.” I pointed towards the door. He shook his head in disbelief, but started walking anyway.

  “Todd, can you get Denton into the cruiser. I want to talk to Ben for a minute…and you can take the cuffs off of him.” Then I addressed the crowd. “Everyone go home. Charlie’s is closed for the night.”

  Quickly, people began dispersing, some with down cast eyes and others with smiling faces and Happy New Year wishes. I nodded curtly to get them moving on their way and told Charlie that I’d be with him in a minute to make a formal report. The old bar owner had already gotten to work with a mop and I moved my attention from him to look back at Ben. This wasn’t going to be fun.

  “I’m doing you a favor. I’m sure the last face that you want to be staring at all night through cell bars is Denton’s, so I’m not going to haul you in. But I don’t want you going home to Ruby and the kids tonight, either. You need to get a room at one of the hotels off the interstate and sleep this one off. When its morning and you’re thinking clearer, you can go talk to her about it, but not tonight. Do you understand me?”

  “Yeah, I do.” I was satisfied with his answer and his demeanor, and was about to switch my attention back to Charlie when Ben reached out and touched my arm. I looked at him with a raised brow.

  “Why would she do such a thing? We have a family…I thought we were happy. How could Ruby do this to us?”

  Ben’s eyes were wet and his face was pale. My heart went out to him, but I also wondered when his pain would turn to anger. In cases like this it was probably better to be totally pissed off rather than being lost in so much grief. And what could I say anyway? No amount of advice I could give him would make a difference. Ruby had cheated on him with his best friend, probably because Denton was a hot commodity and all the loving feelings were gone between her and Ben. She’d been nice enough when we were young, but she had always been a party girl. Some bad personality traits didn’t disappear or change over time. They only morphed into something even worse. At this point, no words from me were going to make Ben feel any better, and really, I was the last person in the world who should be giving him advice on the subject.

  But I was tired and wanted to go home, so I lied. “I don’t know why…it was probably just a physical thing and not emotional at all. Try to get some sleep and maybe the light of day will bring you some answers.”

  Ben sighed and said, “Thanks, Serenity. I appreciate you overlooking my bad behavior. I won’t do anything like this ever again. I promise.”

  “You better not. Next time I won’t be nearly as understanding.”

  Twenty minutes later I was finally trudging back through the snow to the car. Luckily, Charlie had insurance for just such incidents. And he’d been so relieved that no one had been injured, he wasn’t going to press charges either.

  I was slipping my gloves on and almost to the car when I noticed Daniel standing beside his Jeep. Apparently, he was waiting for me. I was in the process of weighing the pros and cons of stopping to talk to the former Amish man when he pushed away from his vehicle and strode over, meeting me halfway to my cruiser.

  “Happy New Year,” he said sweetly.

  I chuckled and my breath spread out into an icy mist between us. “Not much happiness going on around here.”

  “It could be worse.”

  I risked looking directly into his eyes and said briskly, “Oh, yeah, no one’s dead this time, but Ben probably wishes he was.” I shook my head. “Dammit, I don’t understand why people do this to each other. If Ruby wanted out, why not just be up front with Ben. And then again, why would she even want out; three beautiful girls, a nice house in the suburbs, and a great guy. What’s the matter with her anyway?”

  Daniel smiled at my little tirade, looking down at his booted foot as he pushed snow around briefly before meeting my gaze once again.

  “I’d really rather be talking about us.”

  “Us?”

  “You know, you…me…us.” His white teeth flashed in a brilliant smile and I was once again completely at a loss as to why this gorgeous guy was stalking me.

  He was so tall and his shoulders were so broad that he actually provided a nice break from the wind that was gusting hard enough to catch the loose snow in the parking lot and spray it up into the air in wild sheets of bitter cold around us. I was even tempted to take another step closer and steal some of the heat that seemed to radiate off of him, but I controlled myself and stood still.

  I had a sudden vision of Daniel, minus the Carhartt jacket and the flannel shirt. I knew that underneath all those winter clothes wa
s a well-defined chest that connected to washboard abs. I definitely didn’t want to think about his firm butt or his strong thighs so I quickly forced the image to evaporate, and squarely met his gaze. Unfortunately, looking at his wide spaced brownish-black eyes and the amused set to his jaw that was covered with a few days’ worth of black stubble wasn’t much safer. He was too damned handsome for his own good.

  “We’ve already discussed this. It’s not a good time for us to get involved.”

  His amusement quickly evaporated and he snorted. “What are you waiting for? We’re both available and we’re highly attracted to each other. We survived a harrowing experience together…what more do you need to simply go out for dinner and movie with me?”

  Maybe I was being a complete idiot. I had issues—I knew it. But letting Daniel into my life was about the scariest thing I had ever faced. A gun pointed straight at my head was more welcome than the prospect of putting faith in any man, especially him.

  “This is just a game to you, isn’t it? The minute I agree and go out with you, you’ll grow bored and move onto someone else. So why the hell should I even bother?”

  His eyes widened for an instant in understanding and then he took a measured sigh. “Someone must have really betrayed your trust for you to be so paranoid.”

  I smiled and nodded, “Yep, I won’t deny it. Just look at what went down in there tonight.” I pointed at Charlie’s with an angry thrust of my arm. “Ben and Ruby were supposed to be living the dream, with kids and a dog, the whole package. Now their lives are ruined. They’ll probably be divorced and both sleeping with new partners by this time next year.”

  “I get what you’re saying. I really do. But it doesn’t have to be like that for everyone…or for us. I’m a patient guy, Serenity. And I have no problem waiting for you to figure out how unreasonable you’re being. Besides, we’ll have that long drive up north with only the two of us in the Jeep and then a whole week in a secluded Amish community together to discuss this. So I’m not overly concerned with your avoidance at the moment.”

  The return of his smug expression cut through the honey warm desire that had been spreading through me by simply standing too close to him. He thought he had it all figured out, but I was determined to show him that he didn’t know anything at all.

  The cold air once again sent a chill through me and I zipped my jacket up to my neck and said, “Actually, there’s been a change of plans.” The sudden arch of his eyebrows was priceless and I quickly hurried on, “I’ve decided to leave tomorrow after all.”

  “But you know that I have to finish the Mayor’s guest suite. He has visitors arriving this week and I promised him,” Daniel said carefully.

  I shrugged. “Sorry, Daniel, I have a tight schedule also. Since I’m officially on vacation in six hours, I’d like to be on my way. Perhaps I’ll get lucky and Bishop Esch and that Rowan fellow were overreacting about the mystery on their hands. I might be able to wrap things up quickly and you won’t need to make the trip at all.”

  Daniel took a step closer and looked down at me. I couldn’t help but swallow hard at his close proximity.

  “I thought you wanted my company on this one.”

  Seeing the resolute look on Daniel’s face, a shiver of fear passed through me when I realized I could definitely push Daniel too far and then he would give up on me. As bitchy as I was being to him, I didn’t want to completely run him off. Part of me wished desperately that he’d stick around.

  “Sure, I’d like your help with the investigation. God only knows how bat-shit crazy this Poplar Springs community probably is. But I don’t want to put you out, either.”

  Daniel took a long breath and stared at me for several more seconds before he finally said, “I’ll join you as quickly as I can. I’m sure you can handle the locals on your own until I arrive.” He suddenly had his arms around me in a tight, but quick squeeze. He whispered into my ear, “Happy New Year. I’ll see you soon.”

  He turned and went to his Jeep without another glance in my direction. The infuriating emptiness that I had felt when he let go said plainly that I was already in way over my head with Daniel Bachman. We’d shared a lot of intense moments during Naomi Beiler’s murder case. And Daniel was one of the few people who’d actually trusted my instincts about the Amish girl’s death. But I reasoned to myself as I walked to the cruiser that we hadn’t even had sex, so I was still in a good position. He did not have a hold of me—yet.

  When I slipped into the passenger seat, I was glad that Todd had the heater cranked up inside the car.

  “I need to give you some hugging lessons. You looked about as responsive as a cinder block there,” Todd scolded me with a wink.

  “You were spying on me?” I growled the words out.

  “I got better things to do than spy on you, boss, like text my fiancé,” he held up his cellphone for good measure, “but it’s hard not to notice you out there talking to Daniel when he’s towering over you as if he’s Superman and you’re Lois Lane.” He shrugged and put the car into drive.

  I pointed the heater vent toward my face and took my gloves off. Gazing out the window and watching the soft spray of light from each of the lamp posts we passed by, I said absently, “We were only talking.”

  Todd chuckled and Denton, who I had almost forgotten about in the back seat, cleared his throat and said, “That guy wants you bad. Todd’s right. You weren’t being very friendly.”

  I thudded my head back onto the headrest at the irony of it all. It was as if I was trapped inside an eighties sitcom. Here I was in a police car with Todd Roftin and Denton McAlister on New Year’s Eve. Either God was punishing me or he had a very sick sense of humor.

  “It’s none of your concern, Denton, so shut up,” I said in a tired voice.

  Todd had been flirting with me since middle school and even though he drove me crazy most of the time, he did know me pretty well and he must have sensed that I was indeed in a very angry state of mind. He lost the obnoxious expression and said with a less mocking tone, “Are you still making that insane trip up to the Amish settlement this week?”

  “Yeah, as a matter of fact, I’m leaving tomorrow.”

  Todd was shaking his head as he pulled up to the sheriff’s office and parked. “I would have thought that after Naomi Weaver’s murder investigation you would have had enough of those people and their crazy cult.”

  I ignored Denton’s face pressed up against the glass that separated the back and the front seats and said, “That’s the funny thing, I’m even more fascinated with their culture now. I’m no fool, though. I’ll never forget that night in the barn. I know what the Amish are capable of, especially when they think they’re protecting their own. But there was something about that minister, Rowan Schwartz, coming all the way down here to ask for my help that’s pulled me in.”

  “Yeah, I get it, but don’t you think someone in law enforcement or the fire department in Poplar Springs can handle it?”

  “That’s just it. I believe the man when he says that the local authorities aren’t being much help. You know the way small towns are. Everyone’s connected in some fashion and there can be long-held grudges.” I sighed and went on, “I just get the uneasy feeling that there’s a lot more going on up there in that northern community than I’ve been told so far. And I would like to figure it out.”

  “Can you talk personal on your own time and get me out of this damn car?” Denton asked with a tap on the window.

  Todd turned and told Denton, “Shut up,” and then he looked back at me. “I know that you have muscle-man as backup, but if you get into any kind of trouble, don’t you hesitate to call me. I’ll get up there right quick if you need me.

  I had to smile. Todd was a good guy underneath it all and I was sure that he’d drop everything to save my ass in a heartbeat if needed, but the trouble was that he didn’t have the ability to resc
ue me from the real danger ahead.

  And that was Daniel Bachman.

  2

  It felt good to stretch my legs after the three hour long drive. I had passed the Poplar Springs township sign about a mile back and this was the first gas station that I had seen in a while. Besides filling the tank, I needed to pee and fill up my coffee mug. It was also the place that Mr. Schwartz had arranged to meet me. But at the moment, I felt pretty stupid that I had left Blood Rock at eleven o’clock at night on New Year’s Day. I wasn’t looking forward to sleeping in my car until day break, but I couldn’t expect my host to come out at two in the morning to get me, either. Not only did the man not drive, but I’m fairly certain that he was just as into the whole early to bed and early to rise thing that all the Amish I had come to know were.

  Stifling a yawn, I took note of the long, wooden hitching rail in front of the convenience store as I walked past it and entered the brightly lit building. I had already seen several Amish business signs along the roadway with their horse and buggy logos, so the fact that there was a hitching rail here didn’t surprise me in the least. But the size of it did make me realize that the Poplar Springs settlement must be quite a bit larger than the Blood Rock Amish community.

  After using the restroom, I asked the middle aged man at the counter a few questions about the area, and having a difficult time understanding his stilted English, I gave up. It was hard to imagine how someone from India ended up in the middle of nowhere Indiana and in an Amish community no less. I filled my canister with coffee and browsed the candy bars, considering whether it was a good idea to eat one if I wanted to get a few hours of sleep before morning.

  When the four young people walked in, filling the small store with their lively chatter, I glanced up. It was a cop thing. Most people who were prowling around at this hour were up to no good. I quickly took in that all three boys were wearing the same royal blue sports jackets that had a soccer ball embroidered on the left front side and their names in cursive on the opposite. Since I had grown up playing soccer, I quickly relaxed, figuring that these kids probably weren’t getting into too much trouble tonight. In my experience, the soccer kids weren’t nearly as rowdy as the football players. Two of these boys had buzzed haircuts and the third, a taller one, wore his hair to his shoulders in the typical South American bohemian style that so many of the soccer professionals sported. The lone girl in the group was a pretty red head who was wearing heavy-duty farm coveralls, immediately garnering my respect. Any girl that puts personal comfort ahead of style in the wintertime was all right in my book.