“But I didn’t. Eventually, I moved past it. I never got over it. I still think about both of them every single day. I was, I was so excited to be a dad, you know?” he said, tears forming in his eyes. He cleared his throat, wiping his eyes quickly so she wouldn’t notice. She pretended she hadn’t. “But it happened. And it’s done. And then I got this chance to…to avenge them in some way. To catch the person responsible. I’ve already told you this part, but I wanted to tell you again, to set the record straight. When I initially started making contact with you, it was because I needed information about Beelzebub, because I believe she is the one responsible for my wife’s death. But that isn’t the case anymore, it hasn’t been for a very long time. I’m interested in you, Peighton. Completely. And I want you to know and believe that.”
“Is that all?” Peighton asked, tears collecting in her own eyes.
“Should there be more?”
“I thought there would be, the way you went on.”
“Not really. I just want to make sure we start this out with transparency. Honesty is important to me. Do you have any questions?”
“How did she die?” she blurted out, a question that had been on her mind. “I’m sorry. Is that okay to ask?”
“It’s okay,” he said. “She was in a car accident.”
“A car accident? I thought you said she was murdered?” Peighton blurted out, feeling disappointed. It wasn’t that she hoped it would’ve been something terrible, but she’d imagined every possible scenario in her head and a car accident hadn’t been in the running.
“She was.”
“How could you possibly know that?”
“She was run off the road. They thought it was by a deer first, but there were tire marks on the road that indicated someone else had been chasing her. There was no way to know for sure, no witnesses, no damage to her car that couldn’t have been caused by the impact. The case was closed quickly. I even believed it was an accident until I received the message from Beelzebub saying she was sorry.”
“But couldn’t that have meant she was sorry for your loss? Why do you assume she meant she was sorry because she had caused it? That seems farfetched, Clay.”
“Because I never told Beelzebub who I was. I told her I was married and that was it. She didn’t know anything about me…or so I thought.”
“Meaning?”
“I don’t believe Beelzebub is as much of a stranger as I did when we first began talking. I think she knows me. It could be someone at the precinct or around town. I believe whoever it was…she wanted Sarah out of the way, and she made it happen.”
“But then, if that’s the case, why would she kill Todd too? And more than that, it’s been two years since Sarah, you said. So why would she just now strike again?”
“For all I know, they aren’t her only two victims. And, I don’t know why she chose Todd. Maybe you were the target and Todd got in the way.”
She frowned, biting her lip.
“What? You don’t believe me?” he asked, though his face showed he knew the answer.
“I want to,” she said. “I don’t know, this just all seems…insane. And extremely farfetched. And maybe you just need something, someone, to blame for her death. I can’t blame you for that. I want the same. I don’t want to believe Todd’s death was an accident because that just makes it worse somehow. It’s not fair that he’s gone but somehow it seems less fair that he’s gone for no reason—an accident. That,” she placed her hands square on her chest, “kills me. But no matter how much it hurts, it doesn’t make it any less true.”
“How do you explain Beelzebub then?”
“Why can’t it be just a strange coincidence?” she asked, her eyes searching his. She stood, walking to him and taking his hands in hers. “Clay?”
“Yeah?” he said, though his eyes were a million miles away.
She took his face in her hands, forcing him to focus. “Todd’s death was an accident. No one else was home when he fell. He was alone. No one could have hurt him.”
“Do you honestly believe that?”
She pressed her lips together, sighing. “I have to,” she said softly.
He took hold of her hand from his cheek, pulling it to his lips and kissing her fingers. “I hope you’re right.”
“But you don’t think I am?” she asked, reading his face.
“To believe you would be to give up on everything I’ve spent two years working on. I’m not ready for that yet.”
“Okay,” she agreed. “Is there anything I can do to help you become ready?”
“You can kiss me,” he told her, leaning his lips toward her.
She moved forward, pressing her lips into his, his stubble scratching her chin. She ran her fingers across his strong jaw gently, feeling the pulse in his neck. He pulled her to him, his hands around her waist. His lips traveled to her neck, biting and kissing his way across her skin. He pulled away, his lips red, his eyes begging for more.
“Should we go inside?”
She nodded, not able to speak, and grabbed his hand to pull him into the house. She closed the door, twisting the deadbolt. Once they were inside, free from prying eyes, she turned to him, pressing him up against the wall. Their lips met once again, softly at first, but growing more ravenous with each kiss. He held her tight, turning so that she was pressed firmly into the wall. The bumps of the popcorn wall dug into her back, but she couldn’t move. He pinned her arms up above her, smiling at her devilishly. His lips traveled from her cheeks to her ears, jawline to collarbone. He kissed her delicately, his hot breath on her chest. His hands dropped hers from the wall, beginning to tug her shirt off of her shoulders.
She moaned as his tongue slipped in between her breasts and pulled her shirt the rest of the way off in one swift motion. Her heart pounded in her chest, her breathing growing quicker. Her hands found his chest, nearly ripping his buttons off in a hurry to remove his shirt. Once his shirt was open, she stuck her hands inside, her fingers scraping his back. The heat from his body nearly burned her cold skin. She pressed herself onto him, their bodies molded together, as he moved back up to her mouth.
He lifted her up, carrying her to the couch and sliding on top of her, his hands fumbling with her pants. She lifted her butt up, allowing him to remove the remainder of her clothes. He looked her over, his eyes lighting up with pleasure as she reached to undo his belt. She sat up as he leaned down, their mouths meeting again.
“You ready?” he asked, as she pulled his belt off, reaching for him.
“Yes,” she begged, the only word she could muster.
“Look at me,” he demanded, his hand under her head as he slid inside of her. Their eyes met, her dark brown locked with his blue-green, and she knew right then how far gone she was. Damn, she cursed mentally, both out of pure ecstasy and utter frustration. She was in love with Clay Nealson.
Twenty-Nine
FRANK
Frank stood outside of the house. He’d spent all night tracking Kyle’s cell phone, watching it never leave Isabel’s house, before he realized what must’ve happened. Within minutes of tracking Isabel’s cellphone, he found the address where Kyle must be hiding out. A day’s drive later and Frank was standing in Nolensville, TN at the home of Peighton’s mother and step-father.
He knocked on the door, preparing himself for what would be an awkward conversation. He hadn’t told Peighton where he was going. He didn’t want to get her hopes up if this, like the other plan, turned out to be a dead end. After his conversation with Isabel last night, he knew more than ever how important it was to get Kyle home and make sure he was safe.
The door opened cautiously. The woman who stood before him, Peighton’s mother, had aged significantly since he last saw her.
“Hello, Elaine.” He smiled at her politely.
“Frank?” she asked, “is that you?” Her face lit up, her arms outstretched.
“In the flesh,” he told her, reaching for a quick hug.
“Two of my boys in one house? On the same day? How did I get so lucky? What on earth are you doing here?”
He pulled back. “I came to bring Kyle home.”
“Oh, is he done visiting? I wasn’t expecting you. Where’s Peighton?”
“She doesn’t know I’m here. I didn’t want to get her hopes up if he wasn’t here.”
She stepped back, allowing him to come into the house. “Why on earth wouldn’t he be here?”
He walked in, looking around the grand living room. This house never failed to take his breath away. He looked at her with an uneasy feeling in his stomach. “Because no one knew he was here in the first place.”