WHO KILLED EMMALINE? (21 page)

I feel horrible for him, and I lean into his side, wrapping my arm around his waist to give him as much support as I can. “So what do we do?” I ask gently.

His arm slips around me, and he hugs me tightly. I feel his lips press against the crown of my head. “You won’t do anything until I can get this sorted, right? If he’s innocent, Krista, this could destroy his life if you jump to conclusions without any real evidence.”

“I’ll wait,” I agree reluctantly. “But what if he wants to hurt me?”

“I’ll figure something out.”

I draw back to look into his eyes. “Like what?”

“I don’t know!” he says with frustration.

“Cord, I’m scared,” I confess.

He reaches for my hand, holding it tightly. “Give me a little time. Please.”

“What am I supposed to do in the meantime? I work tonight,” I point out.

“You quit,” he says firmly.

I blink, and another conversation floats around in my mind. “Wait a second. Dane suggested I quit before.” I stare at Cord as I recall past conversations with Dane. “He’s also warned me away from
you
.”

He blinks, looking completely taken aback by what I am telling him. “What are you talking about?”

“If he wanted to harm me, wouldn’t he want to keep me close instead of pushing me away?” I ask with confusion.

“Why the hell would he warn you away from me?”

I think back to what Dane had said to me. “He said that he wants me to distance myself from you until this stuff is resolved, but the way he said it to me was weird. He also claimed that he was worried that it could get pinned on you.” I hesitate and peer at him, debating on whether or not I should tell Cord about the other odd conversation I’d had with Dane.

Cord notices, and his eyes sharpen. “You said he specifically warned you away from me. Tell me, Krista.”

I nod and look at him warily. “Back when he caught us in the fitting room, he implied that you attached yourself to others easily, and that we should slow things down. Way down. It was as if he was hinting that you were obsessive or something.”

Cord scowls and rises to his feet, his hand rubbing the back of his neck with irritation. “What the fuck? Why would he try to do that?”

“To protect you?” I rise to my feet to stand in front of him.

He shakes his head. “He knows how much you’ve come to mean to…” his voice trails off, and he looks away.

I realize that Cord was about to spill that he talks about me with his brother. He looks embarrassed while a warm feeling spreads throughout me. I think Cord cares about me more than he’s letting on.

Cord clears his throat and slips his hands in his jeans pockets. “None of this is making sense,” he says, his eyes shifting back to mine. “You’re right, if he wanted to hurt you, he wouldn’t have suggested you quit. Keeping you close is the perfect way to keep you within reach.”

I hear a car pull up outside and sigh inwardly. Someone’s home early. Shoot. “Do you still think I should quit?” I ask Cord.

“I don’t know anymore,” he says with a frown. “If it’s not Dane who’s after you, it might be safer for you if you’re around us.”

“What if it’s because I’m around you guys that I’m being targeted?”

“Hell. That’s a good possibility, too.”

There’s a knock on my door. “Krista? Whose van is out front?” Mitch asks from out in the hallway.

I give Cord an apologetic look and walk to my bedroom door, opening it to find Mitch standing there. I sense Cord walking over so that introductions can be made. “This is Cord,” I murmur, waving a hand at Cord. “And Cord, this is my stepfather, Mitch,” I introduce.

Mitch just stands in the doorway, disapproval written all over his face as he stares Cord down.

Cord holds out a hand, looking uncomfortable. “Nice to meet you, Mr. Channing.”

Mitch hesitates, then shakes Cord’s hand. “You too. Krista, it’ll be dinnertime soon, and you probably have homework,” he says, his eyes settling on me.

I realize he’s hinting for Cord to leave, and at first I’m angry, but then I decide I could use the time to think over things.

Cord smiles, but it doesn’t reach his eyes. “I was just on my way out,” he says lightly.

Mitch stands in my doorway, backing up a step so that Cord can pass by him. Then he watches him walk down the hall, and he’s silent until we hear the front door open and shut. He turns on me, his expression wary, but there’s also a hint of parental authority in his gaze. “It’s not just your mother that lives in this household, and even though I married into your family, I still have a say in what goes on under this roof. I would appreciate it if you didn’t ask that young man over here when no one else is home.”

My first thought is to argue, but I’m feeling too blindsided by my earlier conversation with Cord to put up much of a fight over what I think is an absurd request. Instead, I just nod. “Fine.”

After Mitch leaves my room, I pick up my phone as I sit down on my bed. I send Cord a quick and simple question.
Stay or quit?

His response comes twenty long minutes later.
Stay for now. Expect it to just be Owen with you tonight. I’m going to keep Dane here and get this shit straightened out.

I’m anxious to see Cord the following day, but I don’t get a glimpse of him until lunchtime. He’d text messaged me last night to verify that I’d made it home safely, and he’d apologized for not being there when I’d had to drive home. He had originally intended on arriving at the end of my shift, but I guess things weren’t going well with Dane, because he’d text messaged me last minute and said he wasn’t going to make it.

He seems quite distracted as we walk from my locker to outside. We sit down at our usual spot, and I can tell that he has a lot on his mind.

“How was the store last night? I’m sorry Dane and I weren’t there to help,” Cord finally says. He shifts more comfortably on the grass and focuses his attention on me.

I set aside my lunch. “It wasn’t too bad,” I lie. It’d been crazy hectic since Dane hadn’t been in, but luckily Owen had been able to handle all the important stuff while I’d stayed behind the register. I badly want to ask how things went with Dane, but I’ve managed to restrain myself from outright asking. I know that this situation can’t be easy for Cord, and I don’t want to start grilling him if he’s not ready to talk about it.

Cord studies me. “This is going to sound strange after my suspicions about Dane yesterday, but I need you to stop by our house after your shift tonight. Dane will follow you, and Owen can close up.”

I stare at him. That is the
very
last thing I’d expected him to say. “But…”

“Just trust me. Please?” he coaxes, his eyes urging me to trust him on this.

“Why can’t you be there?” I press. Last I knew, Dane had no alibi for Emmaline’s murder, and he’d been around the night I’d found blood on my car and the night I’d been run off the road. The last thing I want to do is put my safety at risk by blindly trusting someone that might be out to hurt me.

“There’s shit that needs to be done at the warehouse. If Dane puts Owen on it, then Dane has to close the store, and we won’t have the time we need to sort this mess out. As long as I’m at the warehouse, and Owen’s with Dane, Dane can have Owen close with the excuse of seeing you safely home.” He looks at me intently. “The last thing we need is Owen getting involved in this. The store will keep him busy for a while, and that frees up Dane to talk with us.”

“I guess that makes sense,” I admit reluctantly. “What exactly is going on, Cord? Why now are you suddenly trusting Dane when you didn’t before?”

“It’s complicated, and now isn’t the time to start that kind of conversation. I can tell you that I confronted Dane yesterday evening, and everything is now out in the open.”

I search his gaze. “You don’t think he did it, do you?”

He shakes his head.

“But…he and Emmaline…”

“We’ll figure this stuff out tonight.”

“Okay,” I say with a sigh. “Can you at least tell me if everything is okay between you and Dane?” I ask tentatively.

Cord winces. “It’s such a fucking mess, but yeah, we’ll be okay. It’s going to take a little time, but things will smooth over eventually.”

“I’m sorry,” I say softly. With their father in prison, Dane is the only family Cord has left to rely on.

“It’ll be fine,” he assures. Then he sighs, his expression turning disappointed. “Your stepfather wasn’t happy to see me.”

Now I’m the one wincing. “You noticed that, huh?”

“Kinda hard to miss,” he replies dryly.

“My mom and Mitch are really on edge with everything that’s been happening lately. The incident with the woods really freaked my mom out, and Mitch doesn’t quite believe that Riley was behind it. With your reputation…”

Cord nods with resignation. “I get it.”

I scoot closer to him, my hand reaching for his. “The good news is that I don’t care what they think. They don’t know you like I do.”

Cord peers at me, his eyes nearly mesmerizing me with their intensity. “How can you be so calm about any of this? How can you have so much faith that I’m not lying to you? All I have is my word when it comes to my innocence.”

I draw in a deep breath and decide to be honest. “I’ve had a few doubts here and there, but they’ve never lasted longer than a few minutes. I just…I feel it in my heart that you didn’t kill her. I just know,” I say softly.

He slowly nods, then he gives me a wry smile. “If you hadn’t had doubts, I would have started wondering about your mental stability.”

“Ha-ha. Seriously, I believe in you.”

His hint of humor fades. “Now I just need you to have that kind of faith in Dane.”

“Cord, if it’s not Dane, I’m in real danger, aren’t I?” I ask worriedly.

Cord’s expression grows determined. “We’re not going to let anything happen to you.”

That evening, I work with Owen while Dane remains mostly in the back. My shift seems to fly by with how busy the store is, and at one point, there’s a brief lull, and Owen wanders behind the counter. He retrieves the merchandise that had been left in a basket when people had changed their minds upon hearing their purchase total.

He sets the basket on the counter top. “I hear you had a rough night earlier in the week,” he comments.

“Yeah.”

“Are the police going to do anything about that Channing boy? Dane said that he’d heard from Cord that Channing was home all alone the night you found blood on your car and also the night you were run off the road.”

“There’s a restraining order against him, but otherwise, not much else can be done. His car isn’t scratched up, so there’s no real proof that it was him,” I explain.

Owen frowns. “It seems weird that he was connected to Emmaline, and now he’s coming after you like he is. I hope the police are going to do more than simply wait around to see how this plays out.”

“Without proof, there isn’t much that they can do.”

Dane approaches us. “Owen, would you mind closing tonight? I’m going to follow Krista home and make sure that she gets there safely. Then I’ll swing in at the warehouse and see how Cord’s doing.”

“Yeah, no problem,” Owen says easily. He picks up the basket and walks off towards the back of the store.

I look at Dane, and his eyes are focused on me with a troubled glint reflected in their depths. “Are you okay with me following you back to the house?” he asks quietly.

After looking around to make sure that no one is close enough to overhear us, I nod. “If Cord says you’re safe to trust, then I believe him.”

He gives me an odd look. “You trust him that much?”

I nod.

Relief smooths across his features, and his eyes soften. “I didn’t like the idea of you two together when you first started showing interest in each other, but I was wrong. I think you’re good for him.”

Two teenagers walk over with their arms full of merchandise, and Dane promptly turns and wanders off so I can do my job.

The rest of my shift seems to go by in the blink of an eye, and before I know it, I’m driving to Cord and Dane’s. When I reach the house, my headlights sweep across the yard and the exterior of the home, and I see that Cord’s van is already there. Even though I’d assured Dane that I trusted him, I’m still relieved that Cord beat us to the house.

Without much preamble, we go inside, and Cord and I settle on the couch in the living room while Dane sits on the opposite one. His eyes shift to Cord, and he waits.

I glance between the two brothers. They both are wearing grim expressions, and there’s an odd tension in the air.

Cord sighs, and his eyes focus on me. “The shortest, simplest version of our discussion last night is this; all this time, Dane thought I killed Emmaline, and here I’ve been suspecting him. We were both wrong.”

My lips part, and my eyes shift to a stone-faced Dane and then back to Cord. Dane thought Cord had killed her?
Oh no…
I know how much Dane’s suspicion must hurt Cord, and Dane probably feels the same way. This is such a mess.

“Dane thought it was me, so that’s why he jumped on giving me an alibi,” Cord continues.

I slowly nod. “So you both were trying to protect each other.”

“Yes,” Dane says quietly as he studies me. “Cord says you already know about me and Owen.”

“I’m sorry. I saw you both… I didn’t mean to.”

He grimaces. “We slip up from time to time, and that’s how Emmaline found out about us.” He shakes his head. “There were already rumors going around about Cord and his temper, the last thing I wanted was to make things worse for him. So there was that, but I also feared how the public would accept me being bisexual and being in a relationship with another man. I was worried about how it would affect the store’s reputation.” His eyes hold mine. “I am not ashamed of who I am or of Owen. I’m just not ready to go there yet, and Owen understands this.”

“Emmaline threatened to go public,” I guess.

He sighs. “She came into the store late one night looking for Cord, and I happened to be the only one there. She was in a weird mood and really flirty. I could smell alcohol on her breath, but yet she was still alert.” He grimaces. “She was alert enough to playfully tease me about Owen. I had no idea that she’d ever seen us together, so she caught me completely off guard. She said she figured out that I was into women too and wanted to know what it would take for me to be tempted into screwing one. She then grabbed a few items off the racks and sauntered off to the fitting rooms.”

I glance at Cord, and he’s silent as he waits for Dane to finish his story.

Dane continues, looking disgusted with himself. “I followed her because I had every intention of dragging her ass out of the store. When I found her, she was completely naked, and she wanted to mess around. I told her I wasn’t interested, but then she started threatening to tell everyone about me and Owen. I just…” He shrugs at me, giving me a ‘what else was I to do?’ kind of look. “She was already naked and wasn’t bad to look at, and I already knew that Cord had no real feelings towards her. I’m also not fully committed to Owen, so it wasn’t exactly cheating. Sounds bad, but I was willing to screw her to save my reputation. I assumed that if I gave her what she wanted, it’d be an incentive to keep her mouth shut.”

“I’m not judging,” I promise.

He nods.

“Does Owen know about any of this?” I ask tentatively.

Dane immediately shakes his head. “He knows absolutely nothing about it, and I want to keep it that way. I’ve been careful not to put a label on our relationship, because it’s been hard for me to figure out what exactly I want. I love him, he knows that, but I’m not sure if I want to commit to a man or if I want a wife and kids. I could have either, and I’m just not sure yet on which direction I want to go. I don’t want to lead him on or hurt him. Fuck, this is so hard to explain,” he mutters.

“You don’t have to, Dane. It’s your personal life, I have no business knowing about it,” I say sincerely.

“The fact of the matter is, neither of us killed Emmaline so that means the killer is still out there,” Cord cuts in. His eyes lock on mine. “Someone’s messing with you, and you’re not safe until we get this figured out.”

“What do I do? I can’t go to the police because they think it’s Riley harassing me. I’m on my own until there’s a new development.”

Dane frowns and looks at Cord. “Krista’s been targeted for a reason. I find it a little ironic that Riley dated Emmaline on and off for years, and now that Krista is his stepsister, she’s being harassed. That’s quite a connection there, if you ask me.”

Cord nods. “I was thinking the same thing. He had motive since Emmaline’s the one who broke up with him. Riley was always watching her as if she belonged to him, and he was always territorial over her.”

“It’s not Riley,” I cut in.

They both look at me.

“What makes you think that?” Dane asks as he leans forward with interest as he awaits my answer.

“Think about it. Riley recorded my phone conversation and ruined my reputation at school, there’s no way around that. He also harassed me that night when I was home alone, and the entire school saw that mask on my car’s antenna. If Riley were really after me to hurt me or kill me, he wouldn’t have ever done those things. You guys, if anything happens to me, he’s going to be the likely suspect,” I point out. “He wouldn’t do that to himself. No one would.”

Cord frowns and glances at Dane. “She has a point.”

Dane reluctantly nods. “The thing is, Riley was home alone both nights of the incidents. I suppose there’s always the chance that it’s been him all along and that running you off the road was taking things too far, and now he’s backing off for good.”

I shake my head. “I don’t think he was behind the fake blood on my car or the incident on the road. He’s seriously upset over the restraining order, and he never fessed up to either one. He’s been insistent that he didn’t do it, and there was just something in his expression and tone during our confrontation that has me believing him. I think he started out harassing me, but someone’s taking it a step further.”

Cord stares at me, his eyes hardening. “Which means the killer could murder again without being caught because the police are focusing on Riley.”

“Shit,” Dane curses.

I look at them both, feeling uneasy. “Maybe it was him publicly harassing me in the first place that made me the target.”

Dane rubs his face, his expression tense now. “Maybe Emmaline’s murder was just a means to shut her up because she blackmailed the wrong person, and now that the killer has had a taste of killing someone, it’s tempting to do it again. Isn’t it like a high or something to some killers?”

“Her death was brutal. Whoever killed her enjoyed it, because if they were just trying to shut her up, they would have put a bullet in her head or killed her in a simpler way than butchering her body,” Cord adds.

I’m feeling sick now. “Hey, can you two shut up? None of this is making me feel any better here.”

Cord glances at me and instantly looks contrite. “Shit, I’m sorry.” He wraps an arm around me, bringing me up against his side.

I burrow into him, seeking warmth now that I’m feeling cold. “I don’t suppose there’s the chance that someone’s just out to frighten me instead of kill me?” I ask hopefully.

“The blood was to frighten you, but running you off the road was dangerous. You could have crashed into the trees or lost control of your car. Whoever ran you off the road didn’t care whether you came out of it unharmed. I don’t think any of this is about frightening you anymore. It’s getting serious now,” Dane says.

“Why frighten me in the first place if they want to kill me?” I ask with confusion.

“Whoever it is decided to play with you while setting up Riley at the same time.”

Silence falls across the three of us.

“Do either of you know if Emmaline was being stalked?” I ask, breaking the silence as I pull away from Cord.

Cord shakes his head. “I don’t think so. She was always extremely confident and never seemed frightened of anything. I would think if someone had been messing with her, she would have shown signs of it.”

I happen to glance at the clock on the wall, and I sigh. “I have to go. If I don’t show up at the house soon, I’m betting my mom will be on the phone with the police.”

Cord nods in agreement. “I’m going to follow you home.”

The three of us rise to our feet.

“You can’t go out alone anymore, Krista,” Dane says seriously. “It also might be wise for you to quit the store until this is resolved. I know you don’t want to, but if you keep working there, you’re leaving yourself wide open as a target. The less you’re out and about, the better.”

Cord looks at me. “He’s right.”

“I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I’m in full agreement. I’m not quitting until after Halloween, though. The store is going to continue being super busy, and you guys need the help.” The last thing I want to do is quit, but now that things seem to be escalating, and I have no idea who is after me, I think I’d rather be cautious.

Cord glances the clock. “We’d better get going.”

“Be safe,” Dane tells us.

“See you Saturday,” I murmur to Dane before I exit the house with Cord. Although I have tomorrow night off, I work Saturday evening.

We step outside into the cool night, and I walk over to the driver’s side of my car and turn to face Cord. I pull my jacket tighter around myself as I look up at him. “I wish I could go to the police, but there’s nothing new to tell them.”

“I know.” He draws me into his arms, and I snuggle into his chest. “You just have to be careful from now on.”

“Cord? Can I ask you something without you getting upset with me?”

“Ask away.”

I peer up at him. “Did the police look into Owen’s whereabouts the night Emmaline was murdered? I mean, it’s not like I suspect him, but I am curious.”

“He was out of town at his parents. The police even spoke to them directly.” He pulls me close again. “I’m not mad that you asked. It’s good to be looking at the situation from all angles.”

I search his gaze. “Are you going to be okay?”

He frowns down at me in the moonlight. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

“I know Dane’s suspicion hurt you,” I say softly.

He visibly swallows and looks away. “Yeah, well, I can’t really blame him.”

“Instead of focusing on that, focus on the fact that he was willing to protect you, because that’s how much he loves you.”

Cord looks back down at me. “Yeah, I know.” Then he bends his head, and his mouth presses against mine. My lips immediately part beneath his, and he deepens the kiss, his tongue stroking mine as I clutch the front of his jacket. His hands slide down to my butt, and I tilt my head back, momentarily losing myself to the seductiveness of his kiss. He’s such a good kisser. I brush my tongue teasingly against his one last time before I manage to end the kiss.

I lick my damp lips and give him a look of regret. “I have to go or my mom’s going to ground me.”