Page 47 of Sinister Secrets

“He does,” I say. “But he’s also got a project that’s going to take more of his time than usual.”

“Huh. Well, I’m sorry you two are getting overworked right now, but I can’t say I’m sad about it. I’m just so incredibly grateful. Seriously. You guys are the best. I have no idea what I’d do without you.”

Jake’s eyes meet mine over her head, his look a silent repetition of his earlier words. We’re doing the right thing. Which becomes my mantra as the night drags on.

After dinner, she insists on helping Jake do the dishes. Then, she logs into her Netflix account on our TV and streams her favorite sitcom, trying to catch us up on the characters and storylines. Her enthusiasm about every little thing is palpable. But so is her obvious loneliness.

Which is why neither of us has the heart to rush her before she’s ready to leave. I remember how long the nights sometimes seemed at my apartment in Virginia. Looking at the empty space at the table, the couch, the bed beside me, longing to see someone there. Turning on music as background noise while I read simply so I wouldn’t feel so alone.

You’d think that by then I would have been used to it, but I ached for more. If I’d had years of experience and still felt the sting of a solitary existence, how must Chelsea feel with the development still being so fresh?

So I keep a smile on my face and draw from a reserve of patience I never knew I had as she keeps us company late into the night. Finally, when I can barely keep my eyes open any longer, she stands up to leave. “Well, I’ll get out of your hair and let you get some sleep.”

“I’ll walk you out,” I offer.

Jake says goodnight and heads down the hall. As the sound of his footsteps fade, I ask, “Are you going to be okay walking back in the dark by yourself?”

The unexpected surge of protectiveness that fills me feels almost maternal. It’s a dangerous world out there. I’m not sure I should let her go, certainly not to face it on her own. Who knows what could be lurking out there in the shadows?

“You don’t have to worry about that. I drove over. Besides, I feel safe here.”

My brain is still trying to wrap around the concept, what it must be like to not live with a headful of fears and doubts and horrors, when she throws her arms around me, squeezing tight.

“Thank you, Cassie. For everything.”

There’s an odd sense of comfort in her embrace that triggers memories long buried by time. Ones I’m suddenly desperate to regain. And even though I’m not a hugger, I find myself squeezing back, holding on just as tight to this stranger whom I feel like I somehow know.

CHAPTER 26

Even though it’s Saturday, my phone rings bright and early, bringing with it a rude awakening. I knock it off the charger onto the floor in my flailing haste to silence it. Lean over the bed and search blindly with my hands until my left closes around it, drawing it from beneath the bed.

Sitting up, I rub the sleep from my eyes. Slip from beneath the sheets and hurry to the bathroom as Jake groans, pulling his pillow over his head.

“Hello?”

“You need to get over here. Now.”

“What?”

I look down at the device, feeling like I must have missed something since I have no idea where here is, much less who’s barking at me.

“I have Gordon Massey’s mother sitting in my office right now, and the woman is not happy. I don’t know what you did—”

“I didn’t do anything,” I say, the missing pieces of the puzzle clicking into place, though considering Sheriff Kingston’s face is on one of them, I almost wish they hadn’t.

“Well, you’re the one she’s demanding to talk to, so you better make it snappy. I told her you’d be here in ten minutes.”

“It takes that long just for me to drive there.”

“I know. That’s why it’s the time I told her.”

“I can’t just drop everything and hop into the car this second, Lyle. I have other responsibilities.”

I’d been planning on going over the feeding schedules with Chelsea today to make sure she had everything down, so we could give her more responsibility while she’s here. Not to mention showering. Eating. Getting dressed.

“By all means, take all the time you need, but you’re the one who’s going to have to explain all the things that are more important than the investigation into her son’s death when you finally do get here.”

With that, he ends the call. Groaning, I wash up as quickly as possible and hurry back into the bedroom.