Chapter Fifteen
Rachel and Avery sat on the bed, listening intently to Judith Parnell’s press conference. The older woman stood on her front sidewalk wearing a long, flowery, sack-style dress and sneakers with her bleached-blond hair stiff as always.
“I insist that the state drop all charges against my son, Keith Parnell, who is currently serving a life sentence for the supposed murder of his sister, Rachel Parnell,” Judith said to the crowd of reporters. “I have recently spoken to Rachel, and she is very much alive. He was sentenced for HER murder, so, therefore, he should be released.”
A swell of voices spoke at once, and microphones were crammed into Judith’s face. They watched as Judith took a step back and stamped her cane twice on the sidewalk. Immediately, the crush of reporters backed off.
“Well. She certainly knows how to control them,” Avery said, chuckling.
“Do you know where Rachel was all those years?” a reporter yelled over the chorus of voices.
“I do now. But I will not divulge that information. Let’s just say that someone took her away the same day that poor little girl was murdered, and we had no idea that she’d been taken. My husband mistakenly identified the other little girl as his daughter. I don’t know why.”
Rachel dropped her head in her hands. “Great. She practically told them everything.”
“But she did keep her promise not to throw Julie under the bus,” Avery said soothingly.
“For now.” Rachel looked up at him. “But if she keeps talking, it will come out sooner or later.”
Judith continued answering questions, lording over the crowd like a queen over her court. She finally had her moment in the spotlight, and she was relishing it. Her behavior was so opposite from her sister, Julie, who’d never felt comfortable being the center of attention.
Avery turned down the volume. “Are you sure you wouldn’t rather stay another night at my place? After your mother’s done, the press will be after you for more answers.”
“They can’t ask me anything if I stay locked in here,” she said.
“True.” He stood and glanced again at the television. The camera had been facing the reporter as she gave her summation, and something caught his eye. “Look. Behind that female reporter.”
Rachel looked, and she saw it too. “It’s the four-door car that’s been following me. And the man is inside. What is he doing there?”
Avery was already heading for the door. “I’m going to drive over there and see if I can catch that guy. He won’t be expecting me there, so maybe he won’t drive away so quickly.”
“Be careful,” Rachel called out after him.
He grinned. “I will. Lock up, okay? I’ll call you soon.”
Rachel rushed behind him and bolted the door. She moved over the privacy door latch, too, just for added measure. She knew it wouldn’t stop anyone from getting in if they really wanted to, but it made her feel safer.
With a sigh, Rachel opened her computer and started working. She had emails to read, customers to discuss changes with, and a new cover to design. She kept one eye on the television as she read emails, looking to see if she’d catch a glimpse of Avery in the background. But the news changed to other stories, and she eventually turned it off.
When Rachel’s phone rang, it startled her. She’d been concentrating on making changes to a book cover and had forgotten all about Judith and the press conference. She saw it was Avery and answered immediately.
“He got away again,” Avery said, sounding disappointed. “Jeremy was here, overseeing the press conference, and he said they hadn’t found anything from the partial numbers I got the other night. He claims he has no idea who the man could be.”
“Well, thanks for trying,” Rachel said. “Do you think it might be a private detective? I don’t know who’d hire him or why, but it’s a thought.”
“Maybe. I’d believe just about anything right now,” Avery said. “I’m heading to my office at the paper. I want to do some digging into Jeremy’s time in Sacramento. What his father said has really been bothering me. Should I bring you dinner later?”
“I wouldn’t complain if you did,” she said.
“Okay.” Avery paused. “I had a great time last night. I hope you did too.”
Rachel smiled. “I did. I haven’t felt that relaxed and happy for years.”
“We make a good pair,” he said.
She wasn’t sure how to respond. Rachel felt they made a great pair, too, and under normal circumstances, she’d be over the moon at how happy she was. But there was always that nagging thought in the back of her mind that they lived too many miles apart in separate parts of the country to keep a relationship going. And that made her sad.
“Well, I’ll see you later,” he said after she hadn’t replied.
“Okay.” Rachel hung up, wondering if she’d insulted Avery by not commenting on his last words. She hoped not. Rachel did have feelings for Avery; she just wasn’t sure where they would go from here.
She worked for another couple of hours and then sat back and rubbed her eyes. That’s when she noticed that Avery had texted her.
“I ordered dinner to be delivered to your room. I’m afraid I won’t be able to join you. I’m following up on a lead in Sacramento and am heading there now. Enjoy dinner, and I’ll meet up with you tomorrow.”
Rachel was disappointed, but she was also curious about what had made Avery jump in his car and head for Sacramento. She thought about calling him when her phone rang.
“Hello?”
“Rachel? It’s Jeremy.”
Now what, she thought. “Hi, Jeremy. What’s up?”
“Avery just called and told me you’d be alone at the hotel all night, so I’m sending an officer up there to stay in the hallway again. I want to make sure none of the reporters get the idea to pound on
