“And what’s that?” Jack queried.
“What if Marvin did hit Sasha — on accident of course — and he couldn’t deal with what happened so he ‘imagined’ a different scenario?”
“I ... .” Jack was about to discount the theory but, when he considered it, he realized it was a legitimate possibility. “We were wondering how he could sit back and do nothing, just leave Sasha to die alone in the woods. Maybe he disconnected or something when it happened.”
Ivy was horrified at the prospect. “Oh, I hadn’t put that together yet. The Sasha thing. If he saw her get hit, he could’ve called someone and got her help.”
“He could have,” Brian agreed. “His mental state is ... messy.”
“What does that mean?”
“Right now he’s under the care of a psychologist. She’s trying to figure out what’s wrong with him and what medications might fix those issues. We don’t have any contact with him — honestly, we didn’t think we would need it — and she says she needs a few days to figure things out.”
“I don’t think that’s unreasonable,” Ivy noted. “I mean ... you guys can wait a few days.”
“Can we?” Jack wasn’t convinced. “You do realize we just took your crew chief in for official questioning, right? We’ve tried to play it off, but he’s unlikely to find what happened funny.”
Ivy had been wondering about that herself. She didn’t want to put herself in the center of things, though. Sasha was dead. Obviously she was the priority. “I’ll just have to suck it up.”
Jack didn’t like that idea at all. He might’ve been angry, but the thought of Ivy suffering because he and Brian might’ve jumped the gun was too much for him. “Just ... hold on a second.” He lifted his hand, indicating Ivy should remain in the break room, and then went to the room where Greg was waiting. “I’m sorry we were delayed,” he started.
“You’re sorry?” Greg was practically spitting he was so mad. “I’ve been sitting here for more than an hour. You said I was free to go ... and then changed your mind. What’s up with that?”
“We got an emergency call.” Jack did his best to remain calm. “Jason Fortin showed up at Ivy’s plant nursery and we didn’t have time to dilly-dally. We needed to take him into custody.”
“Because he’s your killer?”
Jack hesitated and then held his hands palms out. “We’re not sure yet. We’re still ascertaining exactly what happened that night. We do have new information, though, and that’s a plus.”
“So, can I go?”
“Absolutely.” Jack bobbed his head and forced a smile he didn’t feel. “Given what’s happened, though, we think it’s best if you call your superiors and request a switch for Ivy. She might be safer moving to another crew.”
Greg was silent for a beat, one eye narrowed. Then he shook his head. “Yeah, I don’t think that’s going to happen.”
“And why not?”
“Because my crew is already down two people and I think something weird happened today.”
“You think something weird happened today?” Jack’s temper was bubbling toward the surface and it took everything he had to rein it in. “What do you think that is?”
“I’m not sure, but I’ll figure it out.” He tapped the side of his forehead. “You said yourself that I have a unique mind.”
Jack wanted to point out that he hadn’t meant that as a compliment, but he managed to keep his mouth shut.
“I don’t think I want to cut your girlfriend loose until I know exactly what you thought you were doing.” Greg strode toward the door. “I refuse to let myself be manipulated, and I can’t help thinking that’s what all this has been ... one big manipulation.”
“That’s not true.” Jack found he was desperate to fix things. “Ivy had nothing to do with what happened today.”
“I guess we’ll find out if that’s true later, huh? For now, I’ll be leaving. I’m sure you know where to find me when you want to file your formal apology.”
With those words, Greg flounced out of the room, leaving Jack with a sick feeling in his stomach as he turned back to Ivy.
“Do you want to call it a draw or continue being mad?” Ivy asked after a beat.
“It’s a draw,” Jack said morosely.
“That’s what I figured.” Despite herself, Ivy was amused. The feeling only lasted a few seconds, though. Then she started rubbing her head because she could feel an oncoming headache. “Things keep getting worse and worse, don’t they?”
“Yup.” Brian bobbed his head. “We’re in deep now. We need to figure out a way to get out of this ... and fast.”
17
Seventeen
Jack had a problem ... and he had no idea how to fix it. As a decorated police officer, he liked to think he could handle any tense situation. Dealing with Ivy was never as easy and smooth as he would’ve liked, though.
That was probably why he loved her more than anything.
Before he moved to Shadow Lake, he never paid much attention to the women he dated. In hindsight, he realized that made him the bad guy in his relationship. He honestly wouldn’t have cared back then. Ivy made him want to be a better man, though.
Despite that, he remained furious with her ... and guilty about what was to come with Greg. Somehow he was in the worst possible situation, and he hated it.
Rather than worry about dinner, they picked up takeout at the diner and then headed home at the end of Jack’s shift. Ivy was quiet for the duration of the ride, contemplative. That concerned Jack almost as much as the fact that she’d put herself at risk to take in a meth dealer, peaceful as it may have been. Honestly, that galled him more than it probably should and he recognized he needed to get a handle on his temper.
“Maybe we should postpone the wedding,” Ivy announced out of nowhere as they sat at the kitchen table with
