Twin Murder Mix-Up, page 12
No doubt, Amy’s teasing jabs about his lack of ability weren’t far off.
* * *
Steam filled the bathroom when Amy heard Carter’s cries. She sighed and tightened the tie on the robe Keith had let her borrow. Before she slipped from the bathroom, the crying stopped. A smile curved on her lips. Carter must have fallen back asleep. Satisfied the infant no longer needed comfort, she turned back to the running water.
Ten minutes later, the hot shower had relaxed Amy’s tense muscles and given her the break from reality she’d craved. The clean pair of shorts and tank top she now wore made her feel almost human again, and she ran a brush through her hair. Eyeing her makeup bag, she toyed with the idea of primping. She gave herself a mental slap. He had a baby with your twin. Why on earth put yourself through more rejection? Amy tucked the bag away and plodded to her room to check on Carter.
Light from the window seeped through the sheer curtains. The landscape beyond called to her. She tossed her dirty clothes on the rocking chair and tiptoed to the glass. Pulling back the lightweight material, she peered outside. Trees lined the road in the distance, and wildflowers dotting the field on the other side of Keith’s fence line waved in the slight breeze. He’d found a beautiful property to set down roots of his own.
Pain tugged at her heart. She and Stacey had planned to live near each other. Even after her twin had joined the Army, Stacey had insisted that her home base always be within shouting distance. A sob clogged Amy’s throat. She dropped the curtain, pivoted and bent to reclaim her laundry.
Glass shattered. An explosion boomed in the room.
Amy screamed and covered her head with her arms. Her ears rang. She peeked up. Fire danced across the bed and licked the ceiling.
Carter.
“No!” Orange-and-red flames blocked her path to his crib. Amy had to get to her baby.
She rushed toward the blaze, the heat searing her skin. The inferno consumed the portable crib. A sob tore from her throat. “Carter!”
Arms wrapped around her and pulled her away from her worst nightmare. “No! I have to save him!”
“It’s okay, Ams.”
“No, it’s not!” Amy pushed away from Keith and dashed into the blazing room. A large hand gripped her wrist and yanked her to the hall. She stumbled and fell against his chest. “Let me go!”
Keith spun her to face him. “Carter’s safe. He wasn’t in there.”
Wait, what? “He’s okay?” She blinked the tears from her vision. “How?”
Ian rushed by with a fire extinguisher. “I called the fire department. Go to your little one and get out of here. I’ve got this.”
Keith hurried her down the stairs away from the flames. “He woke while you were taking a shower. I changed him and brought him down to play with him.”
Amy took two steps into the front room. Her gaze landed on a content Carter lying on the floor. Her legs turned to soggy noodles, and she collapsed against Keith. “My baby.”
Sirens whined outside, and the slam of doors broke through her daze. Only then did she notice the smoky haze filling the room.
“Come on. VSFD is here. We need to get out of the house and let them do their job. Besides, if the fire gets out of control, I don’t want you or Carter anywhere near the blaze.” Keith scooped up Carter, laced his fingers with hers and tugged her toward the back door.
The warm, humid air smacked Amy in the face, stunning her out of her trance. Her gaze darted around the perimeter of Keith’s property. “What if he sees us?”
Keith led her away from the house. “What are you talking about?”
She jerked him to a stop and stared at him. “The person who torched your house. What if he’s still out here?”
Keith readjusted Carter to his shoulder and cupped her cheek. His blue-gray eyes held something she’d never witnessed in the man she’d grown up with. Fear. “The guys are on it. I promise we’ll find him.”
She knew he couldn’t promise that, but she appreciated the sentiment. “When the projectile exploded through the window, the bed and curtains caught fire so fast I didn’t have time to reach the crib.” The words caught in her throat. “I thought...”
“Oh, Ams.” Keith wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close. “I’m sorry you thought Carter...” His voice cracked. He pulled her against him. “Well, you know.”
She laid her cheek on his chest. “I can’t lose him. I just can’t.”
“And you won’t. Not on my watch.” Not letting go of her, Keith shuffled them to the fire trucks. “If someone is still out there, I want you out of sight.” Tucking them between the two monster vehicles, he sat her on the metal step near the pump controls on one of the fire trucks. He shifted Carter into her arms and cupped her face. “Give yourself a minute. Then we can talk about what happened.”
Amy inhaled Carter’s baby scent. The simple action calmed her nerves.
Phone to his ear, Keith ran his fingers through his hair. “No, man, it wasn’t an accident.” Retelling the information, he paced the small area between the trucks, never going farther from her than a few yards. “This has got to stop. What if Carter had been sleeping in his crib?” He smacked the side of the fire truck with his palm. “My son would be dead!”
She jumped and snuggled Carter closer. Worry snaked in and wrapped around her. She’d never heard Keith yell before. In all the years she’d known him, he’d not once raised his voice in anger. She’d found it fascinating and endearing all wrapped into one.
His shoulders rose and fell. “Fine. Hurry up.” Keith disconnected and exhaled. He crouched in front of her and placed his hand on the baby’s back. “Sorry. Guess this shook me up more than I thought.”
“I understand.” And she did. The whole thing seemed surreal. One minute she became an aunt, and four short months later, she had a son and someone hunting her down to kill her.
Keith’s blue eyes searched hers. “Yeah, I guess you do.”
A throat cleared to her left.
Keith launched to his feet and positioned himself in front of her. When his shoulders drooped, Amy took a breath.
“Captain.” Keith stepped toward the man and shook his hand. “I’d like you to meet Amy Baker. Amy, this is VSFD Captain Phillip Scott.”
Captain Scott nodded. “Ma’am.”
She stood on wobbly legs and shifted Carter to her left hip. “Nice to meet you, sir.”
“Wish it was under better circumstances.”
“Me, too.”
Keith slipped his arm around Amy’s waist and held tight. “What did you find?”
An arrow with a lead ball on the tip hung from the fire captain’s gloved fingers. “Fire’s out. Contained to the one bedroom, where we found this. I’m assuming from the way the glass shattered and the odor of lighter fluid on the arrow, this was the culprit that caused the fire.”
Amy froze. All hope that she’d imagined the whole situation vanished. Someone had tried to eliminate her...again. And could very easily have killed Carter.
* * *
The open windows and fans in every room had cleared the majority of the smoke from the house. Keith had taken inventory of the damage and had already called the insurance company. The actions of his father and the firefighters had contained the damage to the single bedroom. Oh, how different the outcome could have been if he hadn’t taken Carter downstairs or if Amy had taken a nap. The thoughts churned his stomach. His gaze traveled to the couch where Amy sat, snuggling Carter. He could have lost them both.
He spun and escaped to the kitchen for a moment to gather his swirling emotions. Placing his hands on the edge of the sink, he hung his head. The towering flames and Amy’s screams played like a movie reel in his mind. Only by the grace of God had no one been hurt. “Thank You, Lord.”
“Amen.”
Keith tilted his head and found Dennis Monroe standing in the kitchen archway. “I... What if...” The words stuck in his throat. The thought of Amy or Carter caught in the fire immobilized him.
“No need to say it. I hear ya.” His boss moseyed over and clapped him on his good shoulder. Leave it to Dennis to be aware of his injuries—both physical and emotional. “If you ever need to talk, you know where to find me.” The man shrugged. “We scoured the area and came up empty. I have patrol outside monitoring the property until we meet as a group to discuss this, and then Doug will take over.” Dennis waved his hand toward the living room. “Mel is here with the results of the autopsy. You up for going over the info?”
Was he? He hung his head and mustered the courage to face Amy. His lack of awareness had almost gotten her and Carter killed. Instead, she’d only suffered minor burns. Her face and arms had a pink color similar to a sunburn. The paramedics had recommended aloe when the burn ointment wore off. The incident could have been so much worse. God had looked out for all of them, Keith had no doubt. He lifted his tear-filled eyes to the ceiling and threw up another prayer of thanks.
After all that had happened in the short time since Amy had come into town, Keith should have anticipated an attack at the house. But no. He had lulled himself into a false sense of security on his own turf and with the guys patrolling the perimeter. He hadn’t considered a long-distance assault. They’d only worried about someone sneaking into the house. He hadn’t focused on an attack from beyond his property. The killer had waited until his father had moved to the opposite side of the house while on patrol. A mistake he refused to make again. He carried the burden of allowing the killer to strike on his watch. If he had to stay awake 24/7, he would if it meant protecting Amy and his son.
“Stop.”
Straightening his spine, he pivoted to face Dennis. “What?”
“Stop blaming yourself. We all thought she’d be safe inside. This wasn’t your fault.”
Keith gaped at his boss. “How did you...”
“Let’s say I’ve been there done that.”
A flash of regret appeared then disappeared on Dennis’s face so fast, Keith questioned whether or not he’d seen it. But the sheriff was right. He had to up his game and wallowing in his guilt wouldn’t help. And not trusting his friends to do their jobs wasn’t the answer either. He had to trust those around him and, ultimately, God to safeguard Amy.
The clomp of Dennis’s boots echoed in the kitchen as he went to the freezer and pulled out an ice pack and handed it to Keith. “Looks like you might need this.”
The word no teetered on his lips, but Keith knew it would be a lie. “Thanks.” He slid his arm back into the sling, took the pack and held it to his shoulder. He’d asked his friend Ethan, one of the paramedics, to rewrap his shoulder after the man had attended to Amy’s burns. His muscles were on fire, and the ache persisted with a vengeance, but a few more days and he’d be able to ditch the sling completely.
Dennis jerked his head toward the living room. “Come on. Let’s see what Mel has to say.”
When they walked into the living room, a lump formed in Keith’s throat. Amy sat in the recliner with Carter in her arms. His dad, Jason, Mel, along with Kyle and Doug, had come to support him and Amy. The eyes of the group landed on him. “I...um...” He swallowed hard.
“Thanks for letting us crash here instead of the station.” Mel scooted closer to Amy and gave Carter her finger to tug on. “I, for one, wanted more time seeing this son of yours. Isn’t that right, Carter?”
Thank you, Melanie. Last year, when Mel had returned to town after ten years, she’d fit right into the group. At least after she and Jason patched up an old hurt.
Keith cleared his throat. “I’m glad you all stopped by. I really appreciate it.”
Jason propped his ankle on his knee and stretched his arm across the back of the couch. “We’ve got your back, bro. Don’t ever forget that.”
An emotional reaction took Keith by surprise. He scanned the group. They’d dropped everything and pitched in. Doug and Kyle had covered the broken window with plywood, while Jason and Dennis had carried the charred mattress and bed frame from the house and loaded it in Keith’s truck. Someone, he wasn’t sure who, had cut the carpet out and had added it to the pile of mangled objects to go to the dump. His father had called a contractor and set up an appointment for the reconstruction that needed to be done. Keith calling the insurance company seemed like a minor job compared to what the others had accomplished.
He blinked back the moisture from his eyes. He had great friends.
Stuff. That’s all. Everything was replaceable. But he had to admit, he was thankful that he’d put his mother’s favorite quilt in the washer. His heart ached at the idea of losing a piece of his mother so soon after she’d passed away. He shook off the thought. All things considered, he hadn’t lost much. The only casualty was the old rocking chair that his grandmother had passed down to his mother. But with a little sanding and stain, the family heirloom would look like new.
Hand resting on his sidearm, Doug nodded at Keith and waltzed to the front door. “My turn to walk the perimeter.” He pointed his glare at Kyle. “Don’t forget to relieve me.”
Kyle grinned and feigned a look of innocence. “Who me?”
“That’s what I thought. Well, if you’re going to leave me outside, at least do something useful.” Doug rolled his eyes and slipped from the house.
How would he ever repay his friends for all they had done for him?
Kyle rubbed his hands together, looking like a shark ready for a meal. “If Mel would quit playing with the baby, maybe we could solve this case.”
Melanie stuck her tongue out at Kyle. “Whatever.” She extracted her finger from Carter’s grip and grabbed the file off the coffee table. Sliding back against the couch cushion, she flipped open the document. “I have a positive ID on the victim. It is, without a doubt, Debbie Ackers.”
Kyle whistled. “Not that it was unexpected, but where does that leave Mayor Taylor?”
“Either he’s lying, or someone is playing him.” Keith took the chair Dennis brought from the kitchen and sat it next to Amy. He couldn’t help himself. The urge to be next to her outweighed his common sense. He slung the ice pack over his left shoulder and placed his right hand on Carter’s back. Is this what it felt like to be a dad? The need to touch his son, confirming the little guy was safe. That same stupid lump formed in his throat. The baby in Amy’s arms had turned his emotions into mushy jelly.
As if Amy had read Keith’s mind, she plucked the ice pack from his shoulder and shifted Carter into his arms. He snuggled the baby and inhaled the fresh baby shampoo scent. That did it. All the stress and fear from today smothered him, making it hard to breathe. Tears blurred his eyes. He blinked, hoping no one had noticed.
Amy’s lopsided smile told him she hadn’t missed the glaze of moisture.
“What do y’all think? Is the mayor telling the truth?” Kyle’s question brought Keith back to the conversation.
“He seemed to believe what he said.” Keith kissed Carter’s head then laid his cheek on the boy’s soft hair. “What was your impression, Ams?”
She tucked her hands under her thighs. “I think he believes that Debbie’s been sending him messages. But...” Amy hesitated.
Keith shifted to face her. “But what?”
“It’s nothing.” She dipped her face, hiding her expression.
He placed his finger under her chin and lifted. “No. Go ahead. Say what you’re thinking.”
She exhaled. “He’s hiding something. I’m just not sure it’s Debbie’s demise.” Amy scooped up her hair and used the black band on her wrist to secure it into a ponytail. “If you look at it through a wide lens, his responses ring true, but there’s something blurry on the fringe of the picture.”
“Couldn’t help yourself, could you?” Keith chuckled. Amy’s love for photography tended to come out in her speech.
“Sorry. Occupational hazard.” The tiny dimple appeared on her cheek. The one that sent Keith’s heart racing.
How had he messed things up so badly? If he could go back and make different choices, he would. But then he wouldn’t have the sweet baby in his arms.
“Any idea what he’s hiding?” Jason twirled a strand of his wife’s hair.
Amy shook her head. “Not a clue.” Her gaze landed on Keith.
He shrugged. He agreed with Amy; the mayor’s behavior was off, but he had no idea why. This was the hardest part of an investigation—the part where you were unable to find a thread to pull to unravel the entire mystery.
Dennis cleared his throat. “Let’s not focus on what we can’t figure out but look at what we know.” The sheriff stuffed his hands in his jeans pockets and shifted his attention to Melanie. “What else do you have, Mel?”
The county’s newly acquired coroner scooted to the edge of the couch and placed the open file on the coffee table. “A few hairs were found on the victim, but without a hair follicle, I can’t get DNA. The lab is analyzing the strands for anything that might be useful, but it will take a while.”
“No chance it’s Debbie’s?” Keith rubbed Carter’s back. The baby snuggled in and sucked on his fist.
Melanie shook her head. “Debbie had auburn hair. The pieces found were brown. No red tint at all.”
“Well, that narrows it down.” Jason rolled his eyes. “Brown isn’t exactly rare.”
“Leave it to my partner to point out the obvious.” Keith glanced at Amy.
Bags had come to reside under her eyes. The bruises on her face had darkened. Quite a contrast to the paleness that had appeared after the fire. She fidgeted with the hem of her shirt, almost as if trying to occupy her hands.
