To the artists credit, he also managed to accurately capture his vain niece, Chelsea. She was picture perfect on the outside, but anyone would be hard-pressed to miss the devious soul shining from behind her eyes. Dangerously Stunning would be the title Melanie would give the portrait.
And then, there was Chrissy, represented exactly the opposite of her sister, making Melanie wonder how they were actually related. Soft and Approachable was the description of her friend and roommate. Her sea-blue eyes welcomed you inside, inviting you to join her on a relaxing sailboat ride while drawing you deeper and deeper into her being. Trusting – the word caught in Melanie’s throat. She turned her head as tears threatened to spill.
Three present-day portraits of three totally different people. No wonder they were estranged. In her wildest stretch of imagination, Melanie could not picture a backyard family barbecue. No wonder Chrissy had chosen to run as far as she could.
After her wakeup coffee and bagel, Melanie strolled through the garden, sniffing and touching the grand display of fragrant magnificence. It provided the inspiration to get the day rolling.
Melanie found herself missing Trevor who’d slipped into the city for an early court appearance. The fact that he was gone from the house left her on edge. What if Chelsea chose to arrive early and play a new version of, Destroy Melanie’s Character, again? Worse still, what if the arrogant Stephen Alexander the third arrived and played his Stalking Game?
Stop it, she chided herself. You are a big girl - a police officer to boot – who has survived intimidation by fiercer foes than the likes of them.
She would meet Doug at the precinct at two o’clock and proceed to enlighten him about the case and ask for his help. This afternoon seemed an eternity away. Thoughts of her betraying Drew to his homeland police force still nagged at her, but he’d have to dig his own way out of this one. Melanie couldn’t stay dead forever. Most likely, Chelsea and Stephen had already spread word of her resurrection from the watery depths. She’d need to tread carefully.
Trevor seemed to be caught in the middle with nothing to hide. She’d exposed her heart, which now stood on the edge of surrender, and Melanie felt grateful for that one twist of fate, praying it would stay true to the end. She would never again take trust for granted; a characteristic valued by too few people.
Upstairs, Melanie grabbed her purse and ordered the car brought to the front entrance. She skipped down the stairs, eager to be gone from the manor. Melanie paused on the bottom step to listen to scuffles coming from Trevor’s office. Did the maid clean there? Or perhaps he was home earlier than expected. Her heart brightened. Maybe she’d take a quick peek.
The door was slightly ajar. Melanie heard, rather than saw, the opening and closing of filing cabinet doors. A grunt of frustration caught her attention at the same time as Chelsea’s telltale perfume reached her nostrils. What was she doing in there? Melanie’s mind buzzed with possibilities.
“Ah ha,” the woman inside gasped, as she continued to shuffle the papers. Her voice mocked and the words spit venom clear into the hallway. “Thought you could hide this folder from me, did you, Mr. Knight? Well, I’ll show you who is in control.”
When Melanie heard footsteps approaching, she quietly slipped into an adjoining room to continue her surveillance from there. She peered out to see Chelsea leave the office, turn, close the door, and lock it with a key. She glanced around, let a deep breath escape, while hugging a folder to her chest. Chelsea smiled and licked her lips as a cat would, having just trapped and swallowed a mouse.
Melanie’s heart thundered in her chest. She was up to no good and somehow, Trevor was the target of her treachery that day. On her way out, she held her head high with the air of mistress of the manor, and barked obscenities at the surprised maid when she encountered her.
“This is my family’s house, Tilly,” she said, “and I will come and go as I please. I suggest you remember that. You can be unemployed faster than you ever imagined possible.” The words echoed in the great hall, as she departed the house.
Chelsea left the front door open and Melanie watched as she slipped into the back seat of the waiting car. This addition to the scheme playing out now included Trevor. The three of them were under attack by unseen forces. Surely, superficial Chelsea was not the collaborator of the grand scheme unfolding. It seemed beyond her puny brain.
Melanie forced herself to remain calm and not race headlong to the police station to unload this latest encounter the second she arrived. She took a deep breath and swallowed some courage. These would be friendly faces she’d encounter today, for she’d spent her rookie year in that place, and they had advised her to work her way into the detective department. Melanie could now see herself in that role. Excitement to see justice served replaced the original panic, and she believed she would be better at her job in the future.
An unexpected wave of homesickness enveloped her as she stepped through the main doors of the local station. It felt like coming home when she entered the hustle and bustle of a dedicated force of people defending and protecting the rights of Georgian citizens. It had been a good place to work and had nothing to do with her eagerness to leave the state. The need to get away from Drew’s dependence
