Part 23 (1/2)

”It's not nonsense. It helped her remember, and now she's trying to do the right thing. We have to help her before Pendleton gets to her.” I grabbed my coat from him and the pocket wacked against a table, making a loud clunk. I sucked in a sharp breath.

”What the h.e.l.l was that?” Mitch asked, his face riddled with suspicion.

”Nothing.”

”What are you hiding, Tink?” He reached for my coat. ”I said nothing.” I jerked away from him.

He sighed, took a step forward, and easily took my coat from my hands. His eyes never left mine as he reached inside the pocket and pulled out the contents. His face grew hard, and he looked at his hand to confirm what he obviously suspected. Then he stared me down, looking angry and disappointed at the same time.

”You know, you almost had me convinced,” he said quietly, gazing at the bottle of digoxin. ”But my past experiences should have clued me in. Women can't be trusted, especially frauds from the city like you.”

”That's not fair. That's not even mine. Someone has been trying to set me up. You have to believe me.”

”Life's not fair, and I'm not buying anything you say anymore.” He grabbed my arm and hauled me outside and then stuffed both me and my coat into his car. ”I'm taking you in.”

”But what about Maude?”

”You let the department worry about her. Our partners.h.i.+p is officially terminated.”

”What are you going to do to me?”

”Make sure you don't leave town, which is probably what you were about to do. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if you and Pendleton have been working together from the start. I think you're the one who needs a lie detector test. I'm taking you both down.”

I sat quietly, looking out the window, unable to process what had just happened. I couldn't believe Mitch actually thought I was guilty. After all we'd been through, that hurt. My instincts were right. Falling for him was such a bad idea.

”Now you get quiet?” he grumbled through his teeth, the muscle in his jaw knotting with frustration.

”I plead the Fifth until I talk to my lawyer.” I had to wonder if he'd cared about me at all. He was angry because he thought I'd duped him, but that didn't mean he was hurt or brokenhearted.

”It must be bad if you're willing to call your mother.”

Oh, it was bad all right, but I had no intention of calling my mother. I did, however, have every intention of defending myself. Just as soon as I found a way to escape. We rode in silence for the next couple of blocks, and then he turned down a side road that was a shortcut to the station.

”Look, over there.” I pointed out his window. ”I think I see Maude!”

”Where?” Mitch turned his head to look out his window, and I grabbed the wheel, yanking it to the right.

”What the h.e.l.l?” Mitch said, fighting for control as the car spun wildly in a wide 360-degree turn.

I screamed, unbuckling my seat belt and opening my door all in one motion while the car was still spinning.

”Wait, you're going to kill yourself,” he shouted, but it was too late.

He lunged for me, but I tumbled out the door, hitting the ground hard and rolling into a ditch. Seconds later I heard a loud crash and looked up to see his car wrapped around a tree.

”Oh my G.o.d,” I whispered, climbing to my feet and hobbling in his direction, battered and bruised.

I'd only wanted to escape. I hadn't counted on the roads being that slippery or, G.o.d forbid, him getting hurt.

I reached his car. The radiator hissed steam into the frigid air. I managed to crank his door open and pressed my lips together as I looked at him. His head rested against the steering wheel with a b.u.mp and trickle of blood oozing from it. I slowly reached my hand out and touched his neck, wilting with relief when I felt a pulse. His chest rose and fell with steady breaths. He would not be happy with me.

I'd knocked him out cold.

I called 911 from his cell phone and then left it turned on inside his car. He had a blanket in the backseat, so I covered him up. Once I was sure he would be okay, I kissed his cheek and whispered, ”I'm sorry,” then shut his door and took off running.

My house wasn't that far away, but it felt like forever in the ice and snow. Opening my front door, I flew inside and grabbed my suitcase. Running upstairs, I tossed it on my bed and started throwing essentials inside. I didn't know who I was more afraid of at the moment: Pendleton or the Grumpster. Either way, sticking around now was not an option.

I was officially a fugitive.

I had no clue where I was going to go, but I figured anyplace was better than here. I only prayed they found Maude in time and that she could identify the killer. I needed time to figure out how to prove my innocence. I had no connection to the killer at all, but Mitch was determined to find one somewhere.

When the police hadn't ruled Amanda Robbins's death a suicide, Pendleton must have tried to set me up since I was also a suspect. He knew I was getting too close, and now he'd escaped from jail. If he caught Maude, I was a goner for sure.

I turned toward my bed and blinked. Morty had appeared out of nowhere as usual. He sat on top of my suitcase like he didn't want me to go. I picked him up and deposited him on the bed.

”I'll be back. I promise.” I petted him behind the ears and then picked up my suitcase and headed for the stairs.

Morty jumped in front of me and hissed.

”What is with you?” I nudged him out of the way, and he scratched me with his paw. ”Ow!” I rubbed my hand. He'd drawn blood. ”Naughty boy. Why'd you do that?”

He licked his lip and kept staring at me, the hair on his back raised. He really didn't want me to go out the door, but I didn't have time to figure out why.

”I'm sorry, Morty. I'm not abandoning you. I have to go away for a little while, but I will be back. You have my word on that.” I hoisted my suitcase and kept moving. When I got to the top of the stairs, Morty was already at the bottom, staring up at me and meowing.

It was a strange and eerie meow.

I stopped in my tracks and pursed my lips at him. ”Morty, this isn't funny,” I said, but then I heard it.

A noise coming from downstairs.

20.

Oh my G.o.d, what if someone was breaking into my house?

Was it Pendleton coming to kill me? Or maybe Mitch seeking revenge? Or the police coming to lock me up and throw away the key? None of the options were favorable, but I didn't have a clue what to do.

I listened a minute, but didn't hear anything more. I didn't want to call the police on a false alarm, yet I wasn't foolish enough to open the door. Maybe if I peeked out through the peephole, I would see something. I looked outside and almost fell over with relief. As I unlocked the door and yanked it open, a gust of wind filled with snow swirled around my legs. ”Goodness, Maude, you scared the wits out of me.”

She gave me a look almost as creepy as Morty's meow had been, and for a brief moment I wondered if maybe she were the killer. But that was crazy. The vision had clearly shown the killer was a man, although it had also revealed that Maude was indirectly involved in some way. I wasn't so sure I wanted to invite her in.

”Are you okay?” I asked when she stood there, her eyes wide and glazed, giving me a funny look.

”No,” she said, shaking her head, looking as though she were in shock. ”Everything is a mess.”

”But I thought everything was clear, and you were going to identify the killer.”