When she stepped fully into the room, she gasped. All of her books had been knocked off the shelves, some with pages ripped out. “Who in the hell does this kind of thing?” she asked of no one in particular. She began putting the books back on the shelves, and those with torn pages off to the side. It sickened her that her college textbooks with the pages torn out of them were tossed around like garbage. Those were the only books with any type of sentimental value. And that’s when she remembered the boxes upstairs in the master bedroom.
She raced down the hall and up the stairs. She stopped outside the master bedroom before going inside. Now these things in here were personal, mostly things that belonged to Joel, but a thief could get a nice payout if they found Joel’s expensive wristwatches and gold jewelry. She had a few pieces that were expensive, but she really didn’t care about them one way or the other. Entering the room, she saw more of the same. Boxes torn open, the contents scattered all over the floor.
“Tess,” Sam said. “Are you okay?”
“No, I’m not okay. Who in the world would do this? How did they get inside? Just look at this.” She gestured to the floor.
“The police seem to think that whoever was here was searching for something.”
“Isn’t that obvious? The entire place has been destroyed.”
“They didn’t take your televisions, the laptop in the guest bedroom, things that burglars usually steal. Whoever was in here was not only looking for something, but they wanted to leave a message, and they want you to know it.”
She shook her head. “Who?” Then it suddenly occurred to her. “Lara!”
“No, I know for a fact it wasn’t her. That was my first thought, too. I called Lee right after he left. He says Lara has been in jail for the past forty-eight hours. Prostitution.”
“What?”
“You heard it right. Prostitution. I can’t believe she couldn’t wait a few days. Damned girl needs to learn a lesson. I told Lee not to bail her out. I hope you’re okay with that?”
Am I?
She knew what it was like to be locked away, to have your freedom taken. While there was no love lost between her and Lara, she was her only living relative. “I’m not okay with this, Sam. Call Lee and tell him to post her bond, but only on this condition: She has to stay with me. Or you, I suppose, if by some cruel trick of the lousy criminal justice system, I end up back in prison. Not live with you. I wouldn’t put that burden on your shoulders.” She stopped.
“I have burdened you with her for years. Why am I just now realizing this? I take back what I said. Let her stay there a few days, then I’ll bail her out. Can she even be bailed out? I guess I should have asked that first. It’s not like I don’t have any experience in this area.” Tessa rubbed her eyes, not caring that she had smeared her mascara. “My life is just one giant mess.”
Sam looked at her, then stepped over the contents of the boxes on the floor. When he reached her, he took her in his arms and held her tightly. Then, before either of them realized it, his lips were on hers. He kissed her with such tenderness that tears filled her eyes. She tried to free herself from his embrace, and said, “I’m not your kind, Sam.”
“Why don’t you let me decide what my kind is? I think you’re perfect, Tess. In every way that matters.” He kissed her again, and this time she kissed him back and felt a tingling sensation in the pit of her stomach and parts lower. The familiar shiver of desire coursed through her, fogging her mind with images that told her that she wanted Sam in ways she had never wanted Joel.
Joel.
“Sam, I can’t,” she said, forcing herself out of the safe circle of his embrace.
“You can’t or just don’t want to,” he whispered.
“Both. Neither. Not yet.” She was so confused, she sounded like a schoolgirl with her first real crush.
He released her, and she felt empty.
“I know the timing isn’t right, but it will be. Someday. I promise.”
She nodded because she didn’t know what else to say or do. She and Sam together seemed wrong in some ways, but now wasn’t the time to contemplate the why and why nots of a relationship.
“Sam, what is going to happen when Chen goes to Judge Crider? Is the case against me going to be dropped? And if it is, when will we find out? And if it isn’t, when will we get a trial date?”
“Soon; we’ll know very soon. Once the polygraph results are in Chen’s hands, establishing that you could not have committed the murders on Friday since the victims were all alive on Saturday, they will have to drop the charges.
“As to establishing the actual facts of the murders, Harry’s the key. He’s good, and he’s fast. I’m guessing we should know everything there is to know about the murders in a week at most. But by that time, the charges against you should have already been dropped since not knowing who the adult male was who was killed and who killed the girls is irrelevant to whether or not you were the killer.”
“What if things don’t work out? What if Rosa fails the polygraph test? What if the DNA results are useless?” She hated sounding wimpy and childish, but her veneer of toughness was breaking down moment by moment, especially when Sam was around.
“We will deal with it. Together. Tess. You and me.” Sam smiled, and her heart melted. Despite all the negativity that surrounded her, he gave her hope, and if that’s all she walked away with, she was okay with that because, until Sam, she had had no hope.
“Thank you, Sam.”
