A Reason to Believe (13 page)

against Matt’s neck. He could feel the warm rush

of breath against his throat and he swallowed, a

wave of protectiveness so fierce it was almost

debilitating washing over him. He tightened his

arms

around

Kiernan

and

glanced

back

impatiently.

Aidan ran up behind him, throwing open the

door to the back seat. She scooted in and held out

her arms. Matt laid her brother carefully on the

seat, his dark head in her lap. Cautious not to crush

his legs, he slammed the door and climbed in

behind the wheel.

Once the gates opened and he was past the

reporters, Matt made a quick left and sped off

down the dark street. Snowflakes dipped and

swayed, illuminated in the twin beams of the

Bronco’s headlights.

“We can’t go back to the hotel.” Aidan’s voice

sounded loud in the quiet car.

Matt tensed before he glanced into the rearview

mirror. “What do you mean?”

Her eyes were wide and frantic. “You can’t

carry him through the lobby. It would take just one

phone call for him to be swamped by the local

media.”

Matt paused briefly at the corner before he

turned to the right, stepping firmly on the gas. “I

don’t live far,” he said as he navigated the snowy

streets. “We can take him there, if that’s all right

with you?”

“That’s fine.”

He caught the broken expression on her face as

she stared down at her brother. The look in her

eyes made Matt’s breath hitch. “He’ll be okay,

won’t he?”

“He always has been before. But…I’ve never

seen him under quite this far, either.”

Matt’s hands tightened on the steering wheel.

They didn’t speak again for the rest of the drive.

Matt carried Kiernan through the back door of

his house and straight to his bedroom, laying him

gently on the bed. He got a comforter from the

closet and handed it over. Aidan carefully

removed Kiernan’s shoes, covered him and

tenderly brushed the damp hair from his forehead

before sitting next to Kiernan’s hip. Catching his

limp hand between hers, she cradled it near her

chest, rubbing it between her palms as if to warm

it.

“What can I do?” Matt asked, his voice raw.

“I wish I could tell you.”

Matt looked down at his face and felt an

unpleasant clutching sensation in his chest. Kiernan

was so pale, so still. All the animation that made

him seem somehow larger than life was gone, and

in its place was a wan, colorless shadow. Rarely

had anything seemed more wrong.

* * *

they’d been home, the snowfall had grown heavier,

limiting visibility, and was slowly piling up in

drifts. Cars were creeping cautiously down the

street, headlights cutting through the thick spill of

white flakes. Still feeling edgy, he sighed and

wondered how long he should wait before he

forced Aidan to call for medical help. Turning

away from the window, he stilled when he heard

the sound of his bedroom door opening.

Aidan appeared first. She sent Matt a tentative

smile before she turned back, her hands extended.

“I can manage by myself, thanks,” a deep voice

said in exasperation.

Air rushed into Matt’s lungs fully for the first

time since they’d walked in the door.

“I’d feel surer of that if you’d stop staggering

like a drunk,” Aidan replied.

“Oh, shut up,” Kiernan muttered. “It’s not that

bad.”

Aidan took two steps back, still hovering, and

then Kiernan was in the doorway, his black hair

tousled around a face that was still very pale. He

put his hand on the doorframe to steady himself,

and his instability was clear in the hard grip he had

on the molding. He looked up, his eyes finding

Matt’s.

“Hey,” he said.

“Hey, yourself,” Matt said. “You all right?”

Kiernan took another cautious step forward.

“Yeah, I’m fine.” He released the doorframe and

took another step, immediately swaying on his feet.

Matt took a quick step forward but Aidan was

already there, her hand under his arm.

“Yeah, you’re just peachy. I told you to wait a

few minutes.”

“Bitch, bitch, bitch,” Kiernan said, but allowed

her to steady him.

“Can I get you anything?” Matt asked as Aidan

led him to the sofa. “Coffee? Something to drink?”

Kiernan shook his dark head, but Aidan found

his eyes. “He’s going to need food,” she said, her

voice even.

Kiernan shot her an arch look as he settled on

the sofa. “Yes, because we haven’t imposed on his

hospitality enough already.”

“Coming here was his idea,” she said firmly.

“And you need to eat, Kiernan. You know how

hard things like that are on your body. We need to

get some calories into you.”

“I’ve got ice cream.”

Both dark heads turned toward him, twin blue

eyes suddenly making him self-conscious. He was

pretty sure he blushed under the steady regard, and

shoved his hands into his pockets.

“That would be perfect,” Aidan finally said

with a slight smile. Matt nodded and walked

quickly into his kitchen, slapping on the lights and

going straight to a cupboard next to the sink.

He was reaching into his refrigerator when

Aidan appeared in the doorway. She looked at the

distinctive green and brown carton, her lips

twitching into an amused smirk.

“You just happen to have Dreyer’s Thin Mint

ice cream in your freezer?”

“I needed some stuff from the store this morning,

and it sounded good.”

He knew it was lame, even though it was the

truth. He’d been pushing his shopping cart down

the frozen aisle after leaving the precinct, the

desperation of his empty freezer forcing the

shopping expedition, and the carton of ice cream

caught his eye. He’d remembered the obvious joy

with which Kiernan had eaten some, and he’d

thought…he wasn’t sure what he thought. He’d

bought it on impulse, when he was rarely, if ever,

impulsive, and wondered if he’d lost his mind as

he’d shoved it in his freezer.

“Would you like some?” he asked Aidan,

embarrassment preventing him from glancing over.

“No, thanks. I’m fine.”

He opened the carton and spooned a healthy

serving of the thick chocolate ice cream into the

bowl. Adding a spoon, he handed it to her and she

took it with a small, knowing smile. After she left

the room, Matt closed his eyes for a moment in

what he could only identify as mortification.

Clearly, the sister thought something was going on.

He’d gotten that vibe from her almost from the

moment he’d met her.

But there wasn’t. He wasn’t ready for there to

be, not yet, maybe not ever. He returned the ice

cream to the freezer, giving himself a mental shake.

He wasn’t sure why he was so self-conscious. It

was just ice cream.

When he went back into the living room,

Kiernan was eating the ice cream with such

obvious enjoyment Matt almost forgot his

embarrassment. He finished every bite and used

his finger to scoop some of the lingering chocolate

from the side of the bowl, until Aidan made a

disgusted sound and snatched it out of his hands.

“What?” he said, not looking remotely

chastised. “It’s good.”

“You don’t need to lick the bowl. If you want

more I’m sure Matt doesn’t mind if you have

some.”

Kiernan turned his wide eyes to Matt, his face a

youthful mix of humor and entreaty. Matt bit back a

smile.

“That’s fine,” he said, reaching out.

“No, I’ll get it.” Aidan sent Matt a fleeting smile

and went into the kitchen, leaving the two of them

alone.

Kiernan leaned back into the sofa cushions with

a satisfied sigh. Matt settled tentatively on the edge

of a large chair.

“How are you feeling?”

There was a pause. “Better,” Kiernan answered

finally. “That was a really odd experience, though.

I don’t remember ever going quite so far under

before.”

“I should have told you she’d been drugged,”

Matt said, voicing aloud what he’d been thinking

since they’d left the Reynolds’ house. “It never

occurred to me her physical state would be a

factor.”

“And why would it? You didn’t know how it

was going to go down.” Kiernan’s eyes regained

some of their sparkle. “You didn’t think anything

much would happen at all.” Matt didn’t bother to

correct him. He hadn’t voiced his skepticism

aloud, but he had no doubt it was obvious. “And I

seem to remember telling you not to give me too

many details.”

That didn’t stop Matt from feeling responsible,

and guilty because he still wasn’t sure how much

he believed. He stared at his hands, unable to

avoid the mental picture of Kiernan lying on the

cold basement floor, body stiffened and eyes

rolling, slowly choking. It had been like watching

Abby Reynolds die. Matt doubted he’d ever forget

it. If it was an act, it was a damned good one.

Something nudged his knee, bringing him out of

his thoughtful daze. He looked up to find Kiernan’s

sock-clad foot stretched out and touching his leg,

and the other man studying him.

“Knock it off. You didn’t do anything wrong. I

wasn’t in any danger.”

Matt’s expression must have showed his

disbelief.

“I wasn’t,” Kiernan repeated emphatically. “I’d

have passed out and lost the connection and started

breathing spontaneously. I was never in any real

trouble, it just looked like it.”

“You’re right. It looked like it.”

“Hazards of the trade. Ones I accept. Now, let it

go.”

“Do you remember?” Matt asked. “What you

saw?”

A shudder moved over Kiernan’s shoulders.

“All of it.”

“Want to talk about it?”

Aidan returned and handed Kiernan another

bowl of ice cream, and sat close beside him. She

was hovering, but Matt couldn’t blame her.

“That was sort of the point, wasn’t it?” Kiernan

dipped the spoon into the ice cream and shot Matt

an impish look as he shoveled some into his mouth.

“I don’t want to push.”

Kiernan smiled around the spoon. “You’re not

pushing.” He swallowed and loaded the spoon

again. “Ask away.”

Matt paused, gathering his thought. “It was a

man,” he said finally. Kiernan nodded. “And he

covered her eyes?”

“Before she ever woke up. I think it was some

sort of scarf, knotted at the back. It pulled on her

hair.”

Matt tucked the information away. There had

been no evidence of a blindfold. That could mean

one of two things: there hadn’t been one and

Kiernan was full of crap, or the murderer had

taken it with him. Matt was no longer sure which

scenario he thought more likely.

“But she heard his voice.”

“Yeah, but…it was weird. Like he used one of

those electronic voice-altering things.”

Matt narrowed his eyes. “He covered her eyes,

and altered his voice.”

“Which would probably indicate she would at

least recognize him, yes.” Kiernan handed the half-

eaten ice cream to his sister, his appetite

apparently satisfied.

“So, it could have been her father,” Matt mused,

his lips pursed.

“It wasn’t.” He said it emphatically.

“How can you be so sure?”

“She was sure. Look,” Kiernan went on before

Matt could voice his skepticism. “I know this is all

weird to you, to put it mildly. And if you’re like

any of the other five hundred cops I’ve met in my

life, you think I’m either a charlatan or one brick

short of a load. Right?”

“I don’t know what I think,” Matt said. “Three

days ago, I would have agreed with what you just

said unequivocally. Now…”

“Seeing a ghost will do that for you.” Kiernan’s

eyes were level.

“You know, it wasn’t exactly a picnic for him

this afternoon.” Aidan glared at Matt, her voice

tight.

Kiernan put his hand on her thigh without taking