Best-Kept Secrets

Fear churned her stomach. Why was her mother lying to the police? What could she possibly know or suspect about the bodies in an abandoned root cellar?

“I didn’t mean to distress your mother,” the police chief said kindly.

“Mom hasn’t been feeling well lately. She has a heart condition, you know. I think maybe you’d do better to talk with my father or someone like Miss Tooley at the post office. Or what about Mrs. Kitteridge at the general store? She usually knows all the local gossip.”

Chief Hepplewhite nodded. “They’re on my list. I came here first because of what happened last night. The bodies are a high priority, but I also wanted to reassure you and your mother that we’d be keeping a closer eye on the neighborhood for the next few days. I doubt the person will come back, but I want you both to be alert.”

The serious expression in his eyes caused a hitch in her breathing. “Officer Jackstone said it was probably some kid.”

Hepplewhite’s lack of expression instantly aroused her earlier suspicions.

“I thought it odd that a kid would break into a house where the lights are on and someone obviously is not only home but still up.”

Hepplewhite regarded her shrewdly. After a moment he seemed to come to a decision. “Do you plan to stay in Fools Point for a while?”

The sudden shift took her by surprise. “I’m not sure yet. Why?”

“Frankly, Ms. Thomas, I doubt if this was an attempted burglary.”

Her stomach iced in alarm. “A rapist?”

His shoulders lifted a fraction. “We may never know for sure. I don’t want to panic you, but I think it would be a good idea for you to be vigilant. It’s possible someone saw you through the window, decided you were here alone and marked you as a victim.”

Amy shuddered. His logic made horrible sense. Much more sense than a neighborhood kid.

“It was probably a very good thing that Mr. Collins came by when he did.”

“Yes,” she agreed faintly.

“Now, I don’t want you to panic.”

“No panic, but my fear quotient just jumped several notches.”

He didn’t smile at her weak attempt at humor. “Have you known Mr. Collins a long time?”

Amy nodded without thinking. “We met the summer I graduated from college. One of my roommates was friends with his sister.”

Hepplewhite seemed to be filing that information away.

“You don’t think Jake—”

“Not at all. But he does tend to keep to himself so I was a bit surprised to hear he was here last night.”

Amy sought for a diversion. She really didn’t want to discuss her relationship with Jake with the police chief. “Without sounding paranoid, I think you should know I thought someone was watching the house last night.”

“Before or after the attempted break-in?”

“After.” Briefly she described what she thought she’d seen. “I have to admit, I didn’t get much sleep after that.”

“You should have called us immediately.”

“I might have been mistaken.”

“Amy, our job is to check out suspicious activity. That’s what we get paid for. Don’t ever hesitate to call us.”

“All right.”

Hepplewhite’s expression was grave. “Even petty thieves have been known to kill. If you see anything—and I mean anything at all unusual, day or night—call and let us do the confronting.”

“Don’t worry, you’ve convinced me.”

“Your mother needs to be vigilant, as well. I’m sorry she’s feeling poorly, but rapists don’t care who the victim is. Rape isn’t an act of sex. It’s an act of violence. I’m going to have men drive by regularly. I don’t like the idea that someone may be stalking you.”

“I’m not real excited about the idea, either!”

“Pay attention at all times to your surroundings. It would be best if you stayed with others and didn’t let yourself become isolated.”

Truly frightened now, Amy’s first thought was her daughter. “Do you think Kelsey is in danger?”

“Look, maybe this was just a fluke, but I’m even more concerned now that you told me someone may have been loitering out front after Officer Jackstone left.”

“Maybe…maybe it was Jake.”

“Why would you think that?”

“I didn’t call you because I’d half convinced myself that Jake had come back to sort of keep an eye on us.”

Hepplewhite said nothing and she found herself explaining more than she’d wanted to. “Jake and I were, uh, good friends a long time ago. Despite rumors to the contrary, Jake isn’t involved in organized crime.”

The lines beside his eyes crinkled in amusement. “I know.”

“You checked him out?”

“It wasn’t difficult. One of the locals, Noah Inglewood, recognized Mr. Collins as a Special Forces leader he had shared a mission with once. Mr. Collins has a rather impressive military record.”

“Oh.”

The chief stood and thanked her for her time and the iced tea. Silently, she walked him to the front door.

“Please apologize to your mother again, but try to warn her to be careful. That serial rapist you referred to earlier was never caught. I don’t want to find out the hard way that he’s returned to his old stomping grounds.”

Amy shuddered. “You think this could be the same person who was in the area a few years ago?”

“No,” he said firmly. “If, and I stress the if, the person last night was a would-be rapist, I suspect it was a matter of seizing what he saw as an opportunity.”

“I understand.”

“Stay alert. And if you can think of anything that would help us identify the woman and baby in the root cellar, let me know.”