Broken Trust (13 page)

The news from Keri wasn’t good.

After the call, Toni hung up the
phone. She pinched the bridge of her nose, trying to settle her nerves, failing
miserably.

“Everything okay?” Mac asked in a
gentle voice.

“Just business. Another sales clerk
quit this morning, but Keri says she can fill in until I can return. It happens
all the time. Thank goodness I’ve got Keri to help out.”

She didn’t tell him about the
overdue accounts. The store had been in financial difficulty since before Dad
was killed. She’d had a good offer from Gorsheim’s Shoes to buy the store, but
Grams insisted they hang on. It was just a matter of time before they’d be
forced to let the store go. Toni hoped it worked out before they faced the
humiliation of a bankruptcy.

She didn’t want to deal with the
store issue right now. Not until she resolved this problem with Eric’s file.

“Anything I can do to help?” Mac
stood next to her.

She flinched. Lost in her thoughts,
she hadn’t noticed him hobbling over to her.

As she looked up at him, he rested
a hand on her arm. In his eyes, she saw genuine concern. She felt the urge to
hand her burdens over to him rather than cope with them herself. He’d carry
them, no doubt about it, but it wouldn’t be right. After all this time, she
needed to stop relying on him.

“Toni.”

He looked into her eyes and moved
nearer. His warm breath caressed her cheek. She thought he might kiss her and a
rush of excitement swept her. Then, she shook her head, knowing it wouldn’t
change anything between them. “Mac, I can’t.”

She stepped away, trying to ignore
the flash of rejection she saw in his expressive eyes. She didn’t want to hurt
this man, but how could she confide the feelings broiling in her heart? Eric
had died just five weeks earlier. Once they resolved the issue of his letter, she
and Mac would return to their separate lives. She’d run the shoe store until
forced to sell and Mac would return to his career with the military. Nothing
had changed between them. He didn’t want to be tied to her.

“Make yourself comfortable,” she
told him as she headed for the stairs. “I’ll get my laptop so we can take a
look at Eric’s flash drive.”

She wanted Mac to stay and help
her, yet out of loyalty to her heart, she needed him to leave. Unfortunately,
she couldn’t have it both ways.

Chapter
Twelve

Mac stood in the living room,
watching as Toni disappeared from view. His gut churned with a mixture of
longing and regret. He wasn’t a fool. He’d heard part of her whispered
conversation to her manager at the shoe store. Something about overdue
accounts. From the little bit Eric had told him, the business was suffering
from financial difficulty. This economy wasn’t kind to small businesses.

If he offered her a loan, would she
accept? She might, if they were still engaged. Now, he wasn’t so certain.
Before they’d broken up, he’d felt encumbered by their relationship. A wife and
family would hold him back. Now, all he wanted to do was ease her burdens.
Losing Eric and his other men had changed Mac in ways he didn’t quite understand.
He just knew the people he loved had become more important to him than anything
else in the world.

He couldn’t live a lie. She’d have
to know the truth eventually. And when she found out, she wouldn’t want
anything to do with him ever again. At some point, he might even find himself
on the five o’clock news.

Cara swept down the stairs wearing
a modest T-shirt. “Satisfied? I’m off to Shannon’s house. See you later.”

She waved, and hurried out the
door. Mac sat on the sofa, shaking his head. He liked Toni’s sister. She didn’t
seem like a bad kid, just lost and missing her parents.

A thought occurred to him. If he’d
died with Eric, Toni would be forced to face this situation alone. Maybe God
did have a plan for them after all. But he couldn’t help thinking the Lord had
made a mistake by saving the wrong man.

When Toni came downstairs carrying
her laptop, she turned on every light in the house in spite of the sun shining
brightly outside. No doubt she still felt shaken by their earlier encounter
with the man she now called Ponytail.

They went into the den and she
plugged the laptop in. After she turned the computer on, she stepped back from
the desk.

“Can I have the flash drive?” He
held out his hand.

She lifted the lanyard over her
head and handed it to him while the computer booted up. Then, she went into the
kitchen and got them both a glass of orange juice and a plate of homemade
chocolate chip cookies. He drained his glass in a matter of seconds and munched
a cookie.

“Thanks.” He set his glass aside.

She pulled up a chair beside him
and stared at the keyboard while he logged in. After inserting the flash drive
into the USB port, he followed the prompts to open the files. Two dozen
thumbprint pictures of him and Eric appeared. Dressed in their cammies, they stood
against a backdrop of red sand and Abrams tanks, grinning at the camera. Mac
perused each one, opening the jpeg files, printing them out, looking for a clue
as to what might be important about these files.

Nothing.

“I’m sorry, Toni. I can’t find
anything here.”

She stood and leaned her hip
against the desk as she peered over his shoulder. She smelled good, like
raspberry lip gloss.

“What about the photo of you with
Eric and Lieutenant Andrus? Anything unique about that picture?” she asked.

He double-clicked on the thumbprint
and the larger picture opened. Nothing unusual about it, no difficulty in
opening it.

He closed the picture, then used
the mouse to left and right click on it, moving the picture around, minimizing,
searching the background for any hint as to why Eric had electronically altered
this particular photo. Mac studied their clothes, their gestures, their
expressions. Nothing gave him a clue as to why Andrus had been included.

Finally, Mac blew out a breath of
defeat and slumped back in his chair. He tipped his head and raised a brow in
frustration. “Zilch. It’s just a picture, Toni. I have no idea why Eric
included Andrus in this photo.”

“What’ll we do, now?” She looked
deflated.

He sighed, sharing her
disappointment. “Now? Are you hungry?”

“Yes. Most of our lunch ended up on
the floor of your truck.”

“Let’s go get something to eat,
then I’ll take you over to your Aunt Holly’s place. Maybe we’re looking too
hard and it’ll come to us later.” He stood and handed her the flash drive,
which she tucked inside her pocket before retrieving her purse.

As they walked outside, Mac noticed
a stranger standing on the corner. The trees and shrubbery cast a disturbing
gloom around him.

“Mac, is he watching my house?” She
pointed at the man, who wore jeans and a sweatshirt with the hood covering his
face. The dry evening heat didn’t warrant a jacket.

“Why don’t I ask him?” Mac took
several limping steps, but before he could get any closer, the other man turned
casually and jogged away.

Mac wished he could follow, but his
leg pounded like a cannon on the Fourth of July. As usual, he’d overdone today.

Toni shrugged. “He’s probably just
a neighbor. The recent events have made my imagination work overtime.”

He flashed her a smile, not wanting
to worry her. “No harm done.”

They drove to an Italian restaurant
on Las Vegas Boulevard. A waiter seated them at a table with drippy candles and
long, dry breadsticks. They ordered salads and cheesy manicotti and talked
about inconsequential things.

“How are things going at the shoe
store?”

She hesitated. “Not good. I wish
Grams would let me sell, but she believes it’d be disloyal to Daddy.”

“You don’t want to sell shoes the
rest of your life?” he asked.

She snorted. “Not if I can help it.
You know I hate shoes.”

“Most women are crazy about them.
Mom’s got a collection in her closet that would put your store to shame.”

The candle glow illuminated hints
of golden-red in her hair and he couldn’t resist gazing at her creamy
complexion.

She laughed. “In all honesty, I
love shoes, too. But I don’t want to sell them for the rest of my life. You
know I want to open my own real estate office.”

Yes, he knew. They’d spent long
hours talking about their hopes and dreams. That’s when he’d realized his
career clashed with hers. It wouldn’t be fair for him to marry her, then leave
her here in Vegas for months, maybe even years, without seeing him while he
went on another tour of duty to some remote location where he might be killed.
“I think Eric mentioned you got your realtor’s license.”

“Six months ago. I’m just waiting
until Grams agrees to let me sell the store. I’d love to open my own real
estate office where there’s lots of potential. Maybe somewhere like Clarkston.
There’s so much beautiful land there, it’d be a realtor’s dream.”

He chuckled. “With a realty office,
it wouldn’t be a small, isolated town for long. My dad has constant offers to
sell his land to developers. What Clarkston really needs is a doctor.”

“Ah, yes.” She leaned her elbows on
the table, cupping her chin in one hand. Her eyes gleamed in the candle glow.
“Your mom’s always wanted you to open a medical office there.”

He shrugged. “It’s such a small
community, I’d never get rich, but it’s an ideal place to raise a family.”

Now, why had he said that? He loved
working in Clarkston during summer break, but he’d never seriously considered
living there year round. But after what he’d been through in Afghanistan, his
perspective had changed and it seemed like a more attractive idea. Funny how
losing all his buddies and the use of his leg had made him more appreciative of
his family and the simple enjoyments of life.

“People actually care about each
other in Clarkston. It’s a wonderful place to live, Mac.”

“Yeah, a person can think clearly
there. I feel as though I can sort out any dilemma when I’m in the cabin on
Thorne Mountain.”

“Mac, I don’t mean to interfere,
but maybe your parents are right about you seeing a doctor for your PTSD. Maybe
someone can help.”

He locked his jaw, his pulse
kicking into overdrive. If only it were that simple. “Unfortunately, my problem
can’t be solved.”

“But maybe…”

“I don’t need anyone’s help.” His
voice sounded clipped and he immediately regretted stinging her with his words.
He couldn’t tell her he suffered from guilt, not PTSD. No one could help him.

Their quiet interlude had come to
an end.

“I’m sorry, Mac. It’s not my
business.”

He longed to tell her it was okay,
but he couldn’t. The waiter brought them their check and she reached for her
purse.

“I’ll get this.” Mac snapped up the
bill and opened his wallet.

Silence settled over them, so thick
he could have cut it with a knife.

Outside in the parking lot, her
voice washed over him in soft waves. “Thanks for dinner, Mac. I really enjoyed
it.”

“My pleasure.” Before he thought to
stop himself, he reached out and squeezed her hand.

She went very still, staring at
their entwined fingers. He pulled away, realizing he’d made another mistake,
sending mixed messages. This was moving way too fast. For both of them.

“He was my brother and I loved him,
Mac.” She whispered the words, so low he almost didn’t hear.

“I know, so did I.”

As she lifted her head, he caught
the sparkle of tears in her eyes. An invisible barrier stood between them. A
barrier he’d placed there through his own selfishness.

“Come on. I’ll drive you to your
Aunt’s. I want to take another look at Eric’s files. Maybe I’ll notice
something new. I’m going to call my commanding officer out in Mountain Springs.
Early in the morning, I’ll pick you up and see if we can visit him. He’ll give
us some insight into how we should proceed.”

“I don’t know what I’d do if you
hadn’t been here to help.”

“I’m glad to be of service.” He
gazed into her eyes, his heart completely lost. No wonder he’d always loved
this woman.

* * *

Mac and Toni didn’t speak as he
drove them to her aunt’s house. Inside her pocket, Toni gripped Eric’s flash
drive. She wished she could be alone with her thoughts. Mac made her feel
things she wasn’t prepared for. Emotions that went far beyond mere friendship.
Dredging up the past wasn’t healthy, for either of them.

Silently, she asked God for help.
He could cleanse the grief in her anguished heart and help them find Eric’s
secret file.

Twenty minutes after seven o’clock,
Mac parked the truck in front of her Aunt Holly’s house. Cara should be inside,
safe with Grams. Toni resolved to be as kind as possible to her sister. With
any luck, the girl would open up and tell Toni about her day.

“I’ll take you in.” Mac got out of
the truck and opened the door for her. They walked up the front sidewalk in
silence. Inside, Aunt Holly greeted them.

“Well, hello! You’re just in time.
Dinner’s about ready. As soon as Cara gets here, we can eat.”

Toni froze. “You mean Cara’s not
here, yet?”

“No, we thought she was with you.”

“But I called Grams and told her
Cara’s plans.”

Holly nodded. “And Cara called and
said the plans had changed and she’d be with you.”

A sickening dread overwhelmed Toni.
She should have known better than to trust her sister to do as she’d been told.
But what did Toni know about raising a teenager? Not much.

Toni reached for her cell phone.
Without a word, she flipped it open, then dialed Shannon Taylor’s house only to
discover that Cara had left almost two hours earlier.

“Oh, no.” Toni dialed her home,
praying Cara hadn’t disobeyed and gone there for some reason.