“No. I’d never do that to you.”
Her conviction caused him to sit up straighter, but she continued before he could respond.
“But I’m afraid someone else will.”
“Who?”
“That’s what I’m calling to ask you.”
She thought he might break his silence? If he was going to do that, he would’ve done it at the police station when, once again, he’d been tempted to use his transgression with Karen to hurt John. “I won’t say anything. He’d never be able to touch you again without thinking of me.” Without knowing she’d wanted him first. That was the real revenge. But it was a revenge he’d never used and never would.
“Then who have you told?” she asked.
“I haven’t told anyone.”
“No one? Not a single soul?”
“No,” he said, wondering why she seemed so unwilling to believe him.
“That can’t be true.”
Cain had assumed she’d merely been trying to reassure herself that it was safe to proceed with the engagement, that he wouldn’t sabotage her. He hadn’t expected this. “Excuse me?”
“There’s someone else, someone who knows.”
“What makes you think so?”
Another long silence ensued. Then he heard her sigh. “Can you meet me at the corner of Rollingwood and Old Schoolhouse Road?”
“What for?”
“I have something to show you.”
22
Cain waited at the appointed place for nearly an hour, but Karen didn’t show up. Frustrated, he finally got in his truck and drove to her house to see what was going on. And then he knew. John’s car was parked out front. His stepfather had probably surprised Karen; with John there she couldn’t even call. Cain didn’t have a cell phone, anyway.
Wondering what Karen needed to show him, and why she was so adamant that, after twelve years, someone knew about their afternoon together, he headed over to Sheridan’s. It was too late to knock at the door, but at least he could make sure no one was lurking about.
He parked across the street, in plain sight in case Sheridan or Skye came to the window. He wasn’t trying to frighten them or get himself shot. He only wanted to check on their safety. But as soon as he left his truck, a voice issued out of the darkness.
“Well, if it isn’t the man of the hour.”
Tiger was in the side yard, leaning against the fence. So this was where he’d decided to get drunk. “Last I knew you didn’t live in this area.”
“Neither do you.”
“I’m here to make sure everything’s okay.”
“Did Sheridan ask you to do that?”
“No.”
“Are you two seeing each other?”
Cain couldn’t decide what to make of his and Sheridan’s relationship. He definitely wanted her back in his house, back in his bed. But he couldn’t say how much of that was due to what had occurred in the past and the fact that they’d already been intimate, and how much to the unusual circumstances that had put her in his care.
Was it even worth deciding? About the time he figured it out, she’d be leaving town.
“We’re friends.”
“That doesn’t seem to matter to the women you know. They want you, anyway.”
“I’m sorry about Amy, Tiger.”
Tiger stared at him, then his face crumpled. “Damn. Why can’t you give me a target?”
“I’m too busy providing a target for everyone else at the moment.”
Tiger’s smile revealed the chipped tooth he’d had for so long Cain couldn’t remember what he’d hit, or what had hit him. “Yeah, you’ve been catching more than your fair share of hell lately, haven’t you?” He gulped down some of his beer. “I guess it’s easier to pile on than to accept the truth.”
The acknowledgement was enough for Cain. He knew what Tiger was going through. “You speaking at the funeral?” he asked.
“I’m saying a few words, yeah. Her mother wants me to give a ‘life portrait.’” He eyed his bottle in the light coming from the porch, obviously measuring the amount he had left, annoyed that it wasn’t more. “Will you be there?”
Cain was well aware that Ned, Amy’s parents and probably even Tiger, would rather he stayed away. But considering what Amy had wanted from him, and the little he’d been able to offer, he felt he owed it to her to pay his final respects. “Yeah, I’ll be there.”
“That should make it fun,” Tiger said dryly. “You’re a glutton for punishment, you know that?”
“I have as much right to say goodbye to Amy as anyone.”
“I guess you do.”
The door opened, and Skye stuck her head out. “You two going to stand in the yard all night? Or are you coming in?”
Cain smiled at the invitation and raised questioning eyebrows at Tiger.
“I’ll go in,” Tiger said, pushing away from the fence. “Why not? I’ve made my peace with you. Now maybe I can finally bury the hatchet with the other girl you stole from me.”
Cain decided to let him do that, even though he was dying for a glimpse of Sheridan himself. “I think I’ll go say hello to Robert.”
Tiger toasted Cain with his bottle. “You’re not threatened by leaving me with your girl?”
Cain didn’t bother to contest the “your girl” part. Tiger was just provoking him, trying to get a reaction. “No. Keep her safe while you’re there, though,” he said. Then he waved at Skye and walked away.
Robert wasn’t home. Neither was John. Cain was just cutting across the lawn to the street when he succumbed to the inner voice that told him he was squandering a fabulous opportunity. Robert claimed he hadn’t taken that digital picture of Sheridan, yet he had a digital camera, a computer and a color printer, and because he lived down the street from her, he also had access. He claimed he hadn’t known the rifle he took from Marshall’s shed was the one that had killed Jason. Yet he’d never mentioned finding it or losing it.
Cain didn’t believe his youngest stepbrother was capable of life-threatening violence, especially against Jason, but something about Robert wasn’t right.
On the other hand, he’d never seemed completely right. His behavior could easily be the result of alcoholism or the mood swings he’d exhibited for years. It didn’t necessarily mean any more. But Cain knew he’d feel better if he checked Robert’s recent picture downloads. Just in case.