Night Is Darkest (7 page)

She slipped through the gate in the fence between her house and her neighbor Rhonda’s then made her way across various lawns by dodging Mr. Roper’s clothesline and circling around the Smith kids’ gargantuan neon plastic playset until she reached the patch of evergreens blanketing the community park. Under their cover she slipped across the street then backtracked, keeping the brush on the undeveloped berm between her and the average tan sedan.

As she drew closer, she paused to take in Mason’s serious expression which reflected his focus on his observation of her home. Chills ran the length of her arm. What was he looking for? Determined to have answers, she strode the last handful of paces to the car and yanked the door handle. Lacey practically dove into the passenger seat, guaranteeing he couldn’t flee yet again.

The motion put her an inch from the business end of Mason’s drawn Sig P226.

She blinked.

“Son of a bitch! Lacey!” He re-holstered the gun with cool efficiency. “Are you trying to get shot? Never sneak up on me like that again!”

“S-sorry.” She ducked her head between her knees and took a couple of cleansing breaths to chase away the spots cluttering her vision.

“Shit!” Mason’s broad hand pushed her hair aside to massage the nape of her neck, rubbing the tension away. “Are you okay?”

When her heartbeat had slowed to a mere gallop she rose and said, “Peachy. Brought you a snack.” She handed over the now-slightly-squished cruller.

Their hands brushed when he accepted the goodies she shoved at him. She watched his stony features as he set the thermos in the cup holder but didn’t move to drink from it. Judging by the pulsing muscle in his jaw, she’d swear he was grinding his teeth.

She took a moment to soak in his stoic grimace. Blunt cheekbones, a prominent forehead and a narrow nose should not have added up to the male perfection she saw, yet somehow, it did. She longed for him to say something, anything, to reassure her that she hadn’t obliterated every last spark of their friendship.

“Go ahead, have some. You must be freezing out here. It’s barely forty degrees and you haven’t turned on the car in hours.” She twisted the cap off then poured a healthy steaming slug of his favorite mocha blend.

Still nothing.

A gulp blocked her throat for a moment but, when it cleared, she unleashed her fear in a direct question.

“Mason, are you going to avoid me forever because I slept with Ty?” Lacey clamped her front teeth on her bottom lip to stop it from quivering. When he didn’t answer for a few seconds, then ten, she abandoned hope. Determination drained from her, slumping her shoulders.

“I’ll miss you,” she whispered.

She’d already turned to leave when his restraining hand landed on her thigh, making her jump.

“I’m going to avoid you because I wish it had been me instead.” The gruff admission made her heart skip a beat but, before she could respond, he continued, “And because I’m not sure I could walk away a second time when your eyes beg me to stay, even though it’s still the right thing to do.”

“The right thing for whom? And don’t you
dare
say for me, Mason Clark! I care for both of you and nothing you say will convince me that keeping us apart is the way to go. Unless you know about the secret that isn’t Tyler’s to share…”

The furrows on his brow coupled with his ominous frown and the inability to meet her stare convinced her of his guilt. “Tell me. Nothing you say could change the way I feel.”

“That’s romantic bullshit, Lace. What if I told you that Tyler and I got one of our women pregnant? It wasn’t supposed to be a serious thing but we’re taking responsibility and planning to raise her baby as a family? Wouldn’t that change how you feel? Wouldn’t that alter the circumstances just a little?”

Her jaw dropped. “You’re serious?”

“No.” His cold response left no doubts. “But it would have impacted the situation. There are other explanations that would do the same. Don’t promise what you can’t deliver, doll.”

Heat flared in her cheeks, generating anger to accompany her embarrassment. “Fine. But if you don’t want me, then what the hell are you doing stalking my house? Am I in some kind of danger? What’s going on with Rob’s case?”

He rubbed his hand over the major five o’clock shadow surrounding his luscious mouth. Her thoughts drifted to the way his lips had felt against hers and she nearly moaned.

All business once more, he answered, “I honestly don’t know, Lacey. I don’t mean to frighten you. I don’t have any proof but something’s off. I can’t put my finger on it yet but I’m working the case. Both of us are. Ty’s out canvassing the neighborhood around the crime scene.”

She noticed he couldn’t say “where Rob died”. They suffered, too. Of its own volition, her hand reached out to cup his face, her thumb tracing the line of his cheekbone. He turned his head to press his lips against her palm before enfolding it in a light hold. Decades of friendship outshone their current impasse.

“You haven’t noticed anything unusual, have you?”

She shook her head. “No, there’s nothing going on inside except the freaking phone calls.”

“What phone calls?” His eyes narrowed.

“People ringing to say how sorry they are plus tons of reporters trying for a sound bite or an extra little scoop with a couple of hang-ups mixed in for added aggravation.” She rolled her eyes.

One corner of his mouth kicked up. “No heavy breathers? Creepy messages?”

“Nah. Nothing that exciting.”

The artificial distance he’d kept began to erode. They leaned toward each other, reveling in their familiar closeness, but Mrs. Potter’s dog chose then to bark and Mason swiveled around so fast she feared he’d given himself whiplash. He dropped her hand then cursed under his breath.

“I have to go, Lace.”

“Because of this?” She gestured back and forth in the air between them.

“Because it’s almost time for me to go on duty. I need to take over for Ty.”

Probably true, but she still detected his relief. “You’re not on duty now?”

“The chief didn’t feel there was any reason to warrant a dedicated resource shadowing you. But I can’t shake this feeling so I thought I’d take a drive by.”

“And you ended up staying all day? When are you going to sleep, Mason?”

He shrugged, “I’m fine. Look, just be careful okay?”

“I trust your instincts. I promise.”

“Good.” His sad smile devastated her. “Now go ahead back in the house. I’ll stay until you’re inside. Keep to where I can see you.”

She shivered. “You think someone’s out here?”

“I’m not taking any chances with you. Go now and I’ll send Ty over with a call recorder. It can’t hurt to screen your incomings for a while.”

She studied the stained floor mat under her sneakers.

“You have nothing to be ashamed of, Lacey. Here’s a secret. He’s miserable without you. He’s been irritable as a bear with a fucking thorn in its paw since he left. I think you two belong together.” He took a ragged breath. “And I’m going to tell him so.”

Mason’s declaration reverberated in her mind as she crossed the street. At the top of the stairs, she turned to wave before heading inside. He gave a curt nod in response. She shut and locked the door but couldn’t block out the vision of his tense expression.

She needed something to pass the time until Ty arrived or her head would explode with the possibilities. What would he say to Mason’s advice? Would he pursue her? Why would Mason encourage them to be together if he didn’t want her for himself?

He clearly knew the source of Tyler’s reservation, his pained expression had told her that much. She got the feeling he had just sacrificed something major for her. Was it a woman they both were interested in? Could she accept Tyler knowing that whatever secret the guys had shared would rip apart two men closer than most brothers?

In the office, she flopped down at her desk. Lacey wiggled her mouse until her monitor hummed to life, displaying the hundreds of emails she’d procrastinated sifting through.

The subjects didn’t vary much. “So Sorry”, “Just Heard” and “Our Condolences” were sprinkled around her favorite, “Are You Okay?”

Of course I’m not okay!
When would people quit asking her that? They meant well but, come on, already. The disproportionate flare of her temper made her realize just how on edge she really was.

She pinched the bridge of her nose between two shaking fingers while concentrating on her breathing. When she’d nearly gotten herself under control, she spotted it.

“We Need To Talk,” from Anon Y. Mous.

What the hell?

Furious, she double-clicked the message to open it in a new window. She skimmed the first obvious line, “Your brother’s murder was no accident…” before she realized the action had initiated a chain reaction. The obnoxious red icon flashing in her system tray alerted her to the detection of a virus.

“No!” Struggling to react despite the way her stomach had dropped from the jolt of shock the message had inflicted, she pressed the delete key, banishing the message to the recycle bin. But the damage had already been done. A dialog box popped up over her email program. The status bar zoomed from 0% to 100% almost faster than she could see. Then the blue screen of death obscured everything else.

“Son of a bitch!” Lacey powered down her machine then paused before restarting. She prayed it wasn’t as bad as it had looked. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d done a backup of her data. After a horrible grinding noise, a single line of text flashed on her screen.

Hard drive corrupt. Press F1 for help.

“Help! I’ll give you help!” She hauled off and kicked the tower beneath her desk before stomping upstairs.

At this point, she did the only thing she could. She fell into bed and gave in to tears for the umpteenth time this week. Her hand snaked beneath her pillow, as she hugged the downy puff to her, where it encountered the cool metal of Rob’s service revolver. Probably not an approved storage place but it comforted her to have some piece of him close by.

She squeezed the grip tight then cried herself to sleep.

***

“What kind of fucked-up shit is this? You’re kicking me out? Fucking dumping me?” Tyler watched Mason wince. The clueless bastard had probably never thought of himself as being in a relationship in the first place.

What else would you call it? They spent nearly every day together functioning seamlessly as partners. When they felt the need for a woman they shared one and, in private, they fucked each other. Hell, they’d even
lived
together since graduating high school nearly ten years before.

“You need each other. I can see the hunger in you both.”

“And you don’t think I want you, too? You don’t see how bad she needs you, too? Jackass!” Frustration spurred Ty to lash out.

“What can I give you, Ty? You deserve a life with her. Get married, have kids, do all the regular stuff you want to do. We’ve fooled around long enough, now it’s time for you to make something real, something lasting. Threesome’s are fun but how can it work long term?”

“I know one thing she can’t give me.” He stared at the junction of Mason’s thighs where, even now, a prominent bulge proclaimed his desire.

“And you’d trade it all for some cock? I’ll buy her a strap-on for Christmas.” Mason’s face turned maroon but his voice got softer, a dangerous sign. “I saw the pain in her eyes today. I can’t live with knowing I contributed to it. Just answer me this…can you be with her and not want to fuck other guys?”

Ty’s head snapped back as though he’d taken a jab to the face. “You motherfucking bastard! What the hell are you talking about?”

“Even if it were safe, Lacey could never handle it if you cheated on her. Can you be satisfied with a woman alone?”

Tyler refused to stroke the bastard’s ego with the truth: Mason was the only person he wanted as much as Lacey. “It’s all about the person, douche. Not their equipment. Besides, she’s the hottest lay I’ve ever had. I don’t fucking need you.”

Instead of bristling, or fighting back, Mason gave a curt nod that crushed Ty’s hope. Was his lie so easy for his partner to believe?

“What about you? Will you be happier without me?” Years of doubt bubbled up from the dark abyss he’d locked it away in. Mason had never allowed them to reveal the slightest hint of their clandestine affair. Ty had struggled to ignore the way it made him feel less than worthy but they were riding close to their raw emotions already. Lack of sleep, misery and the danger they both sensed had them on edge.

“Yes.” Mason didn’t hesitate for an instant.

The affirmation stabbed Tyler straight in the heart. Reeling, he grabbed the duffle bag Mason had already packed for him then strode out the door, intending never to return.

If Mason wanted him to claim Lacey, that’s what he would do. At least she would love him honestly.

Chapter Five

Tyler pocketed the key Lacey had stashed under the welcome mat. Was everyone he loved crazy? She and Rob had argued often about that particular lapse in security but maybe her carelessness was partially their fault. They’d sheltered her from the crimes that had become routine in their jobs, preserving her illusion of safety in the lazy, mid-western city they lived in.