Shorts - Thriller 2: Stories You Just Can't Put Down (31 page)

“I feel I know you and at the same time, I don’t.” This wasn’t a line. He really did feel this way. He hadn’t realized how much he felt this until Jamie came on the scene.

Concern clouded her expression, but the remark pushed her away from him. She retreated to her side of the bed. “What do you want to know?”

“Anything.” He took her hand in his. “Everything.”

A single tear leaked from her right eye. “What do you want to know?”

They held each other for a time, not saying anything. Then she told him to get up. He showered and when he returned to the bedroom, she wasn’t there. He found her in the living room surrounded by boxes.

“What’s going on?”

“Get dressed and I’ll tell you my life story.”

The boxes contained photo albums dating back to her baby years. She introduced him to two-dimensional images of family and friends, past and present. It didn’t matter which photos she showed him, Jamie was always there, lurking in the corners, glued to her heels like an unwanted shadow.

“Who’s that?” Nick pointed to a good-looking boy no more than twelve dressed in a
Miami Vice
sport jacket over a pastel T-shirt and white pants. Melanie was at his side. The photo had captured some sort of school dance. It was the first picture that failed to feature Jamie.

Melanie flushed and turned the page.

“No secrets.” Nick turned the page back. He tapped the boy’s image with his index finger. “A first love, perhaps?”

“Yes,” she conceded. “His name was Mikey Pryce. We went steady for six months.” She slapped a hand over her face. “I can’t believe I’m telling you this.”

“So how did Mikey break your heart?”

She pulled back from him. The temperature in the room plunged. “He died.”

Nick’s stomach clenched as a sense of foreboding overcame him. He forced out a single word. “How?”

“Drowned during a family vacation.”

Nick turned the pages. He pointed out something that lightened her mood, then steered her to a picture of another boyfriend. This sparked a long conversation about the boyfriends and girlfriends they’d both had. He pumped her for everything he could get—names, places, dates. His mind was on fire. He committed every detail to memory. Ask him to do this at any other time and he’d have never managed the feat, but tonight it was all about saving his life and every nugget of data was stored. There’d been seven great loves in Melanie’s life, including Mikey
Pryce and Miles Talbot. Each of these guys had skipped out on her. She didn’t make it clear whether they’d all been killed, but they’d all broken things off abruptly.

“All my boyfriends have a habit of walking out on me one way or another.” She turned the page on Miles Talbot.

Nick took the album from her. “I won’t. You have my word on it.”

Seven people. It didn’t seem like a lot of people, but digging up seven life stories consumed time like Nick wouldn’t have believed. He possessed a newfound respect for the police. It took hours just to come up with one single facet of someone’s life. But Nick persevered. If he was going to serve Jamie up to the cops, this was how it would happen.

He used every spare moment researching Melanie’s old boyfriends. This came at the expense of Melanie. He saw her twice a week if he was lucky. She complained, but he blamed a big project at work for his absence. On the plus side, Jamie stopped pestering him. If he was daring Nick to learn the truth, it looked as if he’d get his wish.

Nick’s first break came with Mikey Pryce. He found a newspaper story detailing that the boy had drowned at a watering hole in Sacramento where the Sacto and American Rivers met. The competing currents had swept him away. Melanie had neglected to mention that she and Jamie were there, too. Jamie had provided the eyewitness account to the police. Was he just thirteen when he’d committed his first murder?

Looking for a pattern, Nick tracked down Melanie’s high school boyfriend, Trent Barber. Unlike Mikey Pryce, Trent was alive and well. He hadn’t strayed far from his Orange County roots. He was a sound engineer for the movies. Nick used the movie angle to get Trent to speak to him on the phone, but Nick soon found he was out of his depth when the movie talk got technical.

“I hear we have a mutual friend,” Nick said.

“In this business you need friends. Who is it?”

“Melanie Lassen.”

“Who are you?” The question came through gritted teeth.

Nick saw no point in lying. “Melanie’s boyfriend.”

“So what are you doing—checking up on her?”

“Yeah.”

“If you want to know about STDs, ask for a blood test.”

“I’m more interested in her brother, Jamie.”

Nick got the feeling Trent was about to hang up but the mention of Jamie stopped him. Trent’s tone changed from anger to concern.

“So, he’s given you the speech.”

“What speech?”

“Don’t piss around. You wouldn’t be tracking down her high school sweetheart unless he’d given you the no-one-is-good-enough-for-my-sister speech.”

“And what did you do about it?”

“I blew the freak off. What do you think?”

“I think he convinced you to stop seeing his sister.”

Trent went silent for a good minute before speaking again.

“I was a good tight end in school. Could have gotten a scholarship.”

“Why didn’t you?”

“Jamie broke my hand with a hammer. Happy? Now, would you mind doing me a favor and go to hell?”

Nick received similar accounts from Jonathon Tripp and Tommy Frist, both college boyfriends. Both took Jamie’s hints before bodily harm was involved. Matthew Warner wasn’t so lucky. He was an intern at a San Francisco architecture firm when he dated Melanie. They’d gotten real close, according to Warner’s sister, Penny. He was found at the Marin Headlands across from the Golden Gate Bridge with his throat cut. The police theo
rized the murder was a product of a carjacking, since his car had been found abandoned and burnt out in San Rafael. The only odd factor to the case was that Matt was discovered stretched out on a picnic blanket. When Nick hung up on Penny, she was crying.

Mark Bale proved to be the exception to the boyfriend rule. He’d dated Melanie nine months before Miles Talbot did. He lived in the city and he agreed to meet Nick at a bar on the Embarcadero.

“Did you ever get a visit from her brother?”

Bale turned his nose up. “Not really. He called me once but that was about it. He tried some line with me but I didn’t pay much attention.”

“So, he didn’t scare you off?”

“No.”

“Then why’d you break up with her?”

“Why’s this so important to you?”

“Indulge me,” Nick said. “Call it a commitment thing.”

Bale grinned. “She’s done it to you, hasn’t she?”

If he meant made him fall in love, then yes. Nick grinned back but shrugged.

“If you want the God’s honest truth, the reason Mel and I didn’t last was the plain fact that she got weird. I was ready to settle down, but then the vibe changed. I didn’t like it, so I called it quits.”

Nick’s roommate yelled out, “Phone.”

Nick answered it.

“Good, I’m glad you’re in,” Jamie said.

“What do you want?”

“Melanie decided we should have a night out. I’ve got reservations for three at One Market for Thursday at eight.”

“Okay.”

“I’d appreciate if it you didn’t make it.”

“I would hate to disappoint Melanie.”

“It would be the kinder thing to do.”

Nick ignored Jamie’s request and met them at the restaurant. Melanie’s face lit up when she saw him approach the table, but Jamie just scowled. Nick kissed Melanie and shook hands with Jamie. To Nick’s surprise and relief, Jamie chose to keep the dinner cordial. He and Nick may have exchanged penetrating stares, but that was as far as it went. Melanie led the conversation, choosing to reminisce about her childhood. As Melanie told it, every day had been a Norman Rockwell painting. Mikey Pryce’s drowning never even featured. Nick fought the urge to resurrect the ghosts. If Jamie was playing nice, so would he. Despite the circumstances, Nick was having an enjoyable time.

After they finished their entrées, Melanie excused herself and retreated to the restroom. The two men in her life watched her go.

“I told you not to come,” Jamie said. “This would be a good time to leave. I’ll provide excuses.”

“You don’t get it, do you? I’m here for the long haul.”

“Haven’t I shown you what’ll happen to you?”

“Jamie, I have enough on you to go to the cops right now.”

Jamie smirked.

“I know about the others. All the way from Mikey Pryce.”

That sent Jamie’s smirk running for the hills.

“I don’t want to turn you in because Melanie means so much to me, so I’ll give you a break. You leave now and I don’t just mean the restaurant. I’m talking about the city, the state, the country, I don’t care. Just go. Leave us in peace. I’ll make excuses for you.”

Jamie picked up his glass and polished off the rest of his wine. “I can’t do that.”

“Then this one is going to get messy.”

“I think you’re right.”

Melanie rejoined them. “You two seem to be getting on like a house on fire.”

“Truer words were never said,” Jamie remarked. His eyes sparkled with the irony of Melanie’s statement.

“We’ve got so much in common.” Nick reached over and kissed Melanie. “Like you.”

When the check came, a brief fight over who would pay for the bill ensued. Jamie won. Nick couldn’t help but feel he’d been provided his last meal. While Jamie waited for the waiter to return with his credit card and receipt, Nick took his chance.

“I’ll check in with the valets for our cars.” He snatched up Jamie’s ticket stub.

“That’s okay.”

“No, I insist. Join me, Mel?” He forced the issue by holding out her coat.

Jamie fumed as Nick walked Melanie out. The valet approached them on the street, but Nick waved him away.

“What’s going on?” Melanie asked.

“Three’s a crowd. We need some alone time.” Nick smiled. “I have a surprise.”

They crossed the street over to Nick’s car. He’d gotten lucky and snagged a parking spot directly across the restaurant. He gunned the engine and was pulling away when Jamie came tearing out of the restaurant. Melanie waved goodbye to him.

“I feel so bad,” Melanie said. “Where are we going?”

“Don’t ask questions. You’ll spoil the surprise.”

He headed out of the city and across the Bay Bridge. When he reached Berkeley, he pointed the car in the direction of the marina. The place was deserted. The restaurants had closed for the night. If it hadn’t been for the street lighting, the marina would have been in total darkness. He parked in the red zone fronting the pier.

“What are we doing here?” Melanie asked.

“You’ll see. Come on.”

He came around to her side of the car and opened the door for her. He took her hand and led her onto the pier, then guided her toward the streetlamp at the end of it.

“I know we haven’t been dating long,” Nick began, “but I feel I’ve known you all my life.”

She squeezed his hand. “You’re very sweet.”

With every step they took, he cataloged his affection for her. His outpourings left her speechless. She never interrupted. She just listened and that was good. Her silence gave him the courage for what he had to do. When they reached the end of the pier, he released her hand and turned to face her. He looked into her eyes and his throat closed up.

“C’mon. Don’t stop now,” she encouraged. “What is it?”

Out in the bay, a buoy chimed. The water slapped against the pier.

He needed encouragement to finish this, to go all the way, and he got it. A racing engine and squealing tires cut through the calm. Jamie had caught up with him. Nick thought he’d spotted Jamie’s Acura on the freeway. He’d hoped for a longer lead. It didn’t matter. Jamie was too late.

“Melanie, I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

“That’s why I wanted to give you this.”

Nick reached inside his pocket. A distant voice cried out but he and Melanie ignored it. The moment was all that counted. He produced his gift, a small box containing a ring. He fell to one knee.

“Will you marry me?”

“Stop,” Jamie cried out. His feet pounded on the wooden planking.

“Oh, Nick, you shouldn’t have.”

“Why?” Nick asked.

“I can’t.”

“You can. Forget Jamie. Forget everything he’s done. Just think about us.”

“I’m sorry, Nick.” Melanie turned away from him.

Jamie cried out again.

Damn him,
Nick thought. That son of a bitch wouldn’t win. He jumped to his feet and grabbed Melanie’s arm to prevent her from leaving. She whirled on him. He didn’t see the switchblade she’d removed from her purse until she plunged it into his stomach. Confusion dulled his pain. She jerked the blade free and his legs went out from under him.

“Why?” Nick asked, his words weak in his throat.

Jamie caught up a moment later. He fell to his knees at Nick’s side to examine the wound. “Not again,” he murmured.

“Not again?”

Nick looked straight at Melanie. Her gaze was glassy, absent, and a stiffness had overcome her. She was a million miles away from this.

“Nick, why didn’t you listen to me?” Jamie said. “I tried to warn you. I did everything I could to protect you.”

“You made me think it was you.”

“It was easier that way. I didn’t want you thinking it was her. She’s not a bad person. She’s just damaged.”

“What are you talking about?” Nick tried to move, but the pain in his abdomen stopped him cold.

“Our father.” Jamie tried to apply pressure to the wound, but blood oozed between his fingers and Nick groaned. “He loved her. Loved her too much. Loved her so much he ruined her. You must have noticed she never talks about him and has no pictures of him in the condo.”

It started sinking in. “She killed Mikey Pryce.”

“And all the others. Father was the first.”

The pain in his heart matched the pain in his stomach. “I don’t understand. What did I do wrong?”

“I can’t explain it. It doesn’t make sense to anyone except her. You crossed the line for her.”