Hour of Need (Scarlet Falls) (16 page)

Shifting the box into one arm, he dug his keys from his jacket pocket. A vehicle pulled into the space next to him. Ellie Ross was behind the wheel. He dumped the box in the cargo bay and walked around to her car door just as she swung her legs out of the vehicle. She was still in her work clothes. Her coat was open and her skirt rode up a few inches, treating him to an inch of thigh. The skating mom a few moments ago might have been cute, but she didn’t make Grant’s chest expand the way it did when Ellie was nearby.

“Grant.” Ellie stood, tugging her skirt down with a surprised frown. Leaning back into her van, she lifted a box from the passenger seat. “What are you doing here?”

“I had to pick up Kate’s things. You?”

She avoided eye contact, and her face was pale. “I’m supposed to be at a parent meeting, but I’m going to have to just drop off these programs for the spring carnival and run.” She closed the van door and shoved a piece of long, dark hair behind her ear. Her hands and voice were shaky. “Now that Kate won’t be coaching her, I’m not sure Julia will even stay with the club.”

She’d been nervous at the hospital, but she should have calmed down now that she knew her grandmother was fine. She almost seemed
more
upset.

“Are you all right?”

“Fine.” Still avoiding his gaze, she faked a smile and glanced at her watch. “I have to hurry. I dropped off Nan’s prescription at the pharmacy. It’ll be ready in twenty minutes. I don’t want to leave her for long.”

“How’s the ankle?”

“Painful.” She sidestepped toward the arena.

“Call me if you need anything.”

“Thank you.” Ellie turned away. “Bye, Grant.”

“Bye, Ellie.”

Returning to the minivan, Grant watched Ellie hurry across the pavement and disappear inside the building. He couldn’t shake the feeling that Ellie Ross was hiding something.

And he had every intention of uncovering her secret.

Chapter Eighteen

Ellie glanced over her shoulder. Grant was folding his big body into the minivan. Once again, she was tempted to tell him everything. He radiated capability. But this morning’s text and the package on her doorstep reinforced Hoodie Man’s assertion that she was being watched. She scanned the salt-dusted parking lot. Her neck tingled, and her stomach clenched. Hoodie Man could be anywhere. He could be staring at her through a windshield right now.

Once her initial panic had passed, she’d realized the heart he’d sent her was far too large to be human. Still nasty, though. She’d hidden the box with its bloody contents in the chest freezer in her garage until trash day. Seeing the bloody organ pinned to her daughter’s picture made his point clear. Hoodie Man wasn’t screwing around. She swallowed her fear and pushed through the door into the building, then walked back to the meeting space. Even away from the ice, cold seeped from the concrete floor into the soles of her shoes. She hadn’t taken the time to change since leaving work. Normally, she’d wear thick boots and a heavy sweater to the arena. She walked past the rink, the temperature dropping with each step.

Voices drew her into the long, narrow all-purpose room. Two dozen adults, a mix of coaches and parents, packed the small area. She only recognized a few faces. Two rectangular laminate tables were set up end to end to form an impromptu conference table. Plastic chairs surrounded it.

Victor Church greeted her. “Hello, Ellie.”

“Hi.” Ellie set the programs on the table. She glanced at the clock above the door. “I can’t stay long. I’m sorry. My grandmother is ill.”

“No problem. We can get started now, and it will only take a few minutes.” Victor went to the front of the room and raised a hand. “Hello everyone. I want to thank you for coming in for this emergency meeting. I know many of you have jobs and need to get back to work. There are also a number of parent volunteers who couldn’t make this meeting, so I would appreciate if you could spread the word.”

Ellie moved to the side of the room and put her back against the wall. The chairs around the table were all occupied.

“As you all know the spring exhibition and carnival is scheduled for next week,” Victor continued. “Coach Barrett ran this event, and we’re all sorry about her death. But we think the carnival should go on as scheduled. We can’t get our deposits back from the vendors. If we cancel, we’ll lose a large amount of money.”

People murmured. Parents already paid steep fees for instructors and ice time. Figure skating and hockey were expensive sports, especially at the more competitive levels. The skating club depended on a few large events in the spring and summer to raise money for fall/winter competition season.

Ellie scanned the faces seated at the table. She recognized the tan face and blond-streaked hair of Corey Swann. His surfer looks didn’t blend in with any crowd. Corey’s IT company heavily sponsored the club. Josh Winslow sat next to Corey. Every time she saw Corey, Josh, or their daughters, her stomach curled up. They went about their business as if nothing happened. They should all be deeply affected by Lindsay’s suicide.

At the front of the room, Victor was talking about the event timetable. Ellie kept one ear tuned on his speech as he reviewed the carnival planning agenda for the next week.

She couldn’t blame parents for supporting their children. The Hamiltons’ position was easy to understand. But if someone accused Julia of tormenting another student, Ellie would stand up for her daughter too, especially if there was little concrete evidence and if Julia said she was innocent. Ellie couldn’t imagine Julia being deliberately unkind. But then, she hadn’t expected her daughter to sneak out in the middle of the night either. She still couldn’t believe that had happened.

Perhaps Corey Swann felt that way about his daughter. Julia’s foray had taught Ellie that, as a parent, it was often hard to accept that your child lied or made a bad decision. Even teenagers without prior disciplinary issues made mistakes.

Thinking about her daughter’s deception still sent fear skittering through her belly and made her wonder how any parent could know what was really going on inside a teenager’s mind.

Victor picked up a program from the box Ellie had brought. “The event agenda is in the program, and we’ll be adding a moment of silence at the event opening for Kate. We don’t want to focus on her death, but the kids expressed that they wanted to honor her in some way.” His voice grew clipped as he listed a few last-minute details that required attention. Parents raised hands to volunteer, and Victor assigned tasks.

Ellie pressed a knuckle to the corner of her eye. She wished they’d just cancel the event. It was Kate’s project. It seemed wrong to continue without her, but Victor was right about the financial risk. The club couldn’t afford to take the loss.

“Does anyone else have any questions or concerns?” Victor asked. Heads shook. “All right then. If you have any questions this week or next, please feel free to e-mail or call me.”

Chairs scraped as people stood and moved toward the door. Shuffling toward the front of the room, Ellie said a quiet hello to the other parent volunteers.

An elbow brushed her ribs. She turned and looked up at Corey Swann.

“Excuse me,” she said pointedly.

Standing far too close, he glared down at her. “Do you work for Peyton, Peyton, and Griffith?”

Ellie took a step back and reestablished her personal space. “Yes.”

“I can’t talk to you.” He frowned, lines etched in his tan face.

Not knowing what else to say, she went with, “All right.”

Her gaze dropped to his black sweatshirt. The logo on the chest read Computer Solutions, Inc. His brown eyes glittered with anger. He pressed closer and lowered his voice. “Your firm is involved in the lawsuit.”

“Not a problem.” Ellie raised a hand to his chest and firmly pushed him six inches away. “
I’m
not the one who bumped into
you
.”

He leaned away. Regret washed the anger from his face. “You’re right. I was totally out of line. I’m sorry.”

Ellie nodded.

“Hey, Corey.” Giving Ellie a polite smile, Josh Winslow tugged on Corey’s arm. “Come on. Let’s get out of here.”

Corey let his friend pull him to the back of the group.

How did Corey even know where she worked? This morning’s news report had identified Lee and given the firm’s name, but Ellie certainly wasn’t mentioned. One of the other parents could have mentioned her job, she supposed. Julia had only been skating since they’d become neighbors with Lee and Kate. Some of the kids had been skating at the arena their whole lives, moving up from team to team as their skills advanced. Ellie didn’t have time or desire to work her way into the gossip chain. Discomfort stirred in her as she realized she’d likely been the subject of a few of those hushed conversations.

She had been the object of public disapproval as a pregnant high school dropout, but she was no longer an insecure teenager. She felt bad for Corey, but that didn’t excuse his behavior.

Maybe bullying ran in the family.

Grant let Ellie into the house. She stopped to give the dog a scratch behind the ears. She’d changed clothes since he’d seen her at the arena a short while ago. The worn jeans and sweater hugged her curves just as well as the suit she’d been wearing earlier.

“Ellie!” Carson ran toward her and flung his arms around her waist. “Is Julia home?”

Ellie stooped to give him a return hug. AnnaBelle butted her head between them, and Ellie wobbled.

Grant steadied her with a hand on her shoulder and took the dog’s collar with his free hand. “AnnaBelle, no knocking visitors over.”

“It’s all right.” She put a hand on the floor and regained her balance. She ruffled Carson’s blond locks and smiled at him. “I’m used to the warm welcome. Yes, Julia is home. She’s taking care of Nan.”

“Is Nan’s foot all better?” Carson asked.

“I’m afraid that’s going to take a while. I’ll bet she could use some cheering up.” Ellie stood. “You want to go over and say hi?”

Carson’s nod was eager and quick.

“Go put on shoes and a jacket.”

Carson ran toward the back of the house, his socks sliding in the hall.

Ellie glanced at Grant. “I’m sorry. I should have asked if it was all right with you. He’s over at my house so frequently, I didn’t think.”

“It’s fine. I’m sure he could use a change of scenery,” Grant said. “As long as you don’t think he’ll be in the way.”

Ellie shook her head. “Nan is already bored. He’ll entertain her for a while.”

Carson raced back. His jacket hung open and his snow boots were on the wrong feet. Ellie and Grant went out onto the porch to watch him race across the front yards to Ellie’s front door. Julia let him in.

“Where’s Faith?” Ellie asked.

“In the kitchen with my sister.”

“Good,” Ellie agreed, but her eyes turned wary. “When you called, you said you had something for me.”

Grant suddenly wished she’d give him half the warmth she’d shown his nephew. “Let’s go into the office so we can talk in private.”

He’d decided to come clean with her. None of the files he’d found were the sensitive Hamilton case. There was no point in hanging on to them. Maybe if he gave them to Ellie, she’d start to trust him.

He closed the door behind them. Ellie turned and backed away from him. Her thighs hit the seat of the old chair, and she eased back into it as if exhausted.

Grant turned the desk chair to face her and sat. He pointed to a box on the desk. “You can take those files to your boss.”

Ellie’s eyes brightened. She lurched to her feet. Her boot caught on the chair leg, and she toppled forward.

“Whoa. Easy.” Grant sprang forward and caught her by the shoulders just before her forehead hit the edge of the desk.

She scrambled to get her feet underneath her body. Her face flushed.

“There’s no rush. Those files aren’t going anywhere.” Satisfied she had regained her balance, he released her arms. “I already made one trip to the ER today. Let’s not make it two.”

Her face paled. “I’m sorry. I’m not usually this clumsy.”

What the hell was wrong with her? He understood why she’d been upset at the hospital, but there was no reason for Ellie to still be a mess. Her grandmother was fine.

She lifted her chin and straightened her sweater. She lifted the files from the box and thumbed through the tabs. Disappointment sagged her shoulders and for a brief moment, Grant thought she was going to cry.

Then it hit him. He knew exactly what she was looking for.

“It’s not there,” he said.

“What isn’t here?” she asked, her voice wary.

“The Hamilton file.”

The look she shot him was defensive and desperate. She didn’t deny that’s what she was seeking. “Do you have it?”

“No.” He shook his head.

She dropped the files back into the box. “How did you find out about it?”

“I saw a news broadcast this afternoon. In an interview, Mr. and Mrs. Hamilton claimed that Lee was their attorney and that he’d found new evidence in their daughter’s case right before he was killed.” He’d spent some hours reading every article on the case he could find online about the suicide.

“I didn’t see any news this afternoon. We were stuck in that ER cubicle for hours. Did the Hamiltons say what kind of evidence?”

“They said they didn’t know.”

Ellie dropped into the chair. Her face was still pale, her focus inward.

“Tell me what’s going on, Ellie.”

“Nothing.” She brought her hands to her face and pressed her fingertips to her forehead.

“I know something is wrong.” Grant moved closer. He reached out and took one of her hands in his. He pressed his palms around her cold fingers. “Maybe I can help.”

Her eyes lifted to meet his. For a moment, turmoil and helplessness looked back at him. Then she pulled her hand free and clenched it tight enough to whiten her knuckles. “I’ll take these files back to the firm tomorrow.”

“Ellie, tell me what’s wrong. Tell me what you know about this case.” He reached for her hand again. “You can trust me.”

But Ellie jerked her fist back to her body. “It has nothing to do with trust.”

“I want to help you.”

“I know, but you can’t.” Her voice sharpened. She picked up the box of files, took three steps to the door, and opened it. “I’m going to run these files to the office. I’ll tell Julia to walk Carson home.”

“Thank you.” But Grant was talking to empty air. Ellie was gone. He heard the front door open and shut.

He went back to the kitchen. Hannah was shaking a bottle of formula while Faith fussed on her hip. Though she still acted tentative, his sister’s skill with the baby surprised him.

“I have to go to Carson’s school.” The only time the teacher, principal, and counselor had all been available today was after school hours. “He’s over at Ellie’s house. Julia will bring him home when he’s ready. You OK here for a while? I shouldn’t be that long. The grammar school is only a mile away.”

“We’re fine.” Grabbing a dish towel, she moved to the family room and settled on the couch to feed the baby. “Could you hand me the remote before you go? I want to catch the market reports.”