“No,” Morris stated. “Please don’t tell her. She’s been through enough already, which was the reason why the sheriff pulled me aside and told me privately.”
Audrey stepped closer to Duke as Ackerman answered. She gave him the quick rundown about the vehicle at the restaurant and then briefed him on who they found near the scene before telling her boss she’d call him back if there were any new developments. “No, I don’t need anyone to come here. False alarm.”
Morris had on a pair of jeans, a dark shirt, and work boots.
“Toss me one of your boots,” Duke said.
Morris complied.
Duke checked the bottom against the print. The two didn’t match. “Catch.” Duke tossed the man his boot back. “Go home, Morris.”
“I’m sorry,” he said with the kind of sadness in his voice that threatened to rip Duke’s heart in two. “I’m not trying to cause any trouble. I just needed to see for myself and I didn’t want to worry my wife. She wouldn’t want me here. But I had to see where it...”
Morris broke into sobs.
“How did you get here?” Duke asked.
“My truck’s parked down the road,” Morris admitted.
“Get back to it and go home before anyone starts asking questions,” Duke said.
“I will,” Morris said before turning and running. He disappeared into the trees.
And then, he and Audrey headed back to the cabin.
“He could have been testing the water,” Duke said as a niggling feeling ate away at the back of his mind once they’d caught their breath and were back standing in front of her home. “Checking to see if you would notice the light bulb.” It wasn’t the most likely story, but he wanted to offer an alternative theory. It was always good to consider every angle. The other side to the story was that Jenson wasn’t acting alone. Duke was bothered by something he couldn’t quite put his finger on. He’d made a career out of honing his instincts, and they told him to keep digging in this instance.
Fortunately, they could do most of the investigating on their own. They’d have to move forward without subpoenas and official channels, but between the two of them, they had enough combined experience to give her the peace of mind she searched for.
“Do you have a guest room, or should I crash on the couch?” He yawned, realizing it had been almost forty-eight hours since he last slept.
She was already shaking her head before he finished his question.
“I’m not leaving you alone while there are questions about whether or not Jenson acted on his own,” he explained.
“Well, I can’t let you get distracted on my account while you’re supposed to be up at the hospital with your grandparents,” she countered.
“Compromise?”
“If you can come up with one that satisfies both of us, I’ll consider it,” she reasoned.
“How about we get cleaned up here, and then we can sleep at the hospital?” he asked. “I’m not expecting a change with either of my grandparents, but you can never be too sure. We can brainstorm other possibilities while we’re there. They have coffee and a cafeteria if we get hungry. And I’m sure they can find recliners for us when we need sleep.” He wouldn’t need more than fifteen or twenty minutes of shut-eye every few hours. He’d trained himself to survive on little sleep while he worked on a case.
Her gaze stayed on the ground as she stood there, contemplating. She glanced at her cabin and then back at him. He had no idea which way she was leaning.
“I’LL GO,” Audrey said, not wanting to spend the night at her cabin alone. She hated the feeling of weakness that almost made her turn Duke’s offer down. The truth was that she wanted to stay at the hospital anyway. She was glad he hadn’t suggested the ranch because it held so many memories. She was feeling too vulnerable to stay there tonight. And this most recent scare had her unnerved.
She did her level best to convince herself that last part was true because her heart argued she wanted to spend time with Duke. She wouldn’t deny it. She missed him. The times she’d known he was coming home had been the hardest days to endure.
At least he knew the truth about why she avoided him when he was in town. His grandparents had been right. Seeing him for the first time had been harder than hell. At least he no longer believed she actively avoided him on her own accord. That was something.
“Do you want to wait on the porch while I grab my overnight bag?” he asked.
She probably didn’t want to know why he had one so readily available in his truck if it wasn’t for law enforcement purposes. “I’ll wait.” Going inside her home without backup didn’t seem like the smartest play.
He retrieved his backpack while she fished the key out of her purse. Moving to Mesa Point should have meant leaving doors unlocked and keys inside vehicles. It was more of that small-town charm that had drawn her. Except that she would never be one of those people who could leave the back door unprotected. Or windows open, for that matter. Even though she’d learned a long time ago the ones closest to her could cause the most damage.
The people you loved shouldn’t be the ones who hurt you. Period. Age didn’t matter. The statistics were plain sad. Women were hurt more often by the man who was supposed to love them the most. How was that for messed up?
But Duke and his sisters and cousins were the furthest things from abusers. They were taught love and respect. Duke put her on a pedestal when they were dating. One she wasn’t so sure she deserved.
He, on the other hand, had been the perfect boyfriend. He was then, and she imagined he would still be now, honest and honorable.
A hot tear spilled out of her eye and ran down her cheek.
Duke hopped onto the porch, took one look at her and stopped in his tracks. “Hey. Hey. Hold on there. What’s this?” He closed the distance between them and thumbed away her tear.
She turned away, sniffed and unlocked the door before entering.
The snick of the lock behind her confirmed he was inside, but she could already feel his presence. It was just that way with Duke. His presence filled a room. There was never a need to announce him. Her skin tingled, and the tiny hairs on the back of her neck danced whenever he was near. It had always been like that, even the times he sat in the hallway at sixteen. She’d known he was there without checking.
Before she could disappear down the hall, Duke’s hands were on her shoulders gently turning her to face him. “Hey,” he said.
“I’m not a crier,” she defended, even though he hadn’t asked the question or made an accusation. She was telling him so they would both believe it.
“I know,” he said. “But even if you were, it’s not a sign of weakness.”
Her chin quivered, but she didn’t respond.
