Page 1 of Night Watch
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“Mom didn’t kill herself.” Kennedy Walker fisted her hands on her hips and glared at her younger sister, Finley. “And she sure wouldn’t accidentally overdose on her medicine. Detectives and medical examiners are human too. They can make mistakes.”
“Argh.” Finley rubbed her face dotted with freckles. “Mom’s been gone for almost a month, and you haven’t proved foul play in her death. It’s time to give up and move on.”
Move on. Right.The very idea was ludicrous.
Kennedy strode to the wall of windows in their mother’s floating home, where Kennedy had been staying since the funeral. She watched as the Columbia River crashed along the back deck and adjusted her stance for the sway that high winds and fast-moving currents could bring. A sharp gust fluttered curtains on a nearby window, cooling the August heat.
“Staring out over the river isn’t going to change anything.” Finley joined Kennedy, her tone softer now. “Mom wasn’t murdered.”
Kennedy glanced over her shoulder at her sister, who resembled Kennedy in so many ways. They both had shoulder-length hair in an outrageous shade of red and an excess of freckles that they’d inherited from their late father. Finley had more than Kennedy, but Finley covered hers with makeup. Kennedy had never gone in for the girly things in life. She was a self-professed tomboy and glad of it. As kids, Finley had held tea parties while Kennedy had embraced their mother’s interest in science and concocted wild and crazy experiments.
“I’m afraid you’re going to burn out trying to prove something that doesn’t exist,” Finley said. “Once you get something in your mind, you don’t ever let it go.”
“Why should I let it go?” Kennedy snapped. “Mom had everything to live for. She’d finally gotten over losing Dad and loved living in this place. Plus, she was poised to make a breakthrough in her research project. And she was a scientist, for goodness’ sake. She was meticulous with everything in her life. Every little thing. She would never accidentally take too much blood pressure medicine.”
“You weren’t here.” Finley got in Kennedy’s face. “You didn’t see the stress she was under. She wasn’t sleeping. Or eating. She lived in that lab or at the college. Came home only to feed Oreo.”
As if Oreo heard her name, the cat crossed the room and wound in and out of Kennedy’s legs, purring like a lawn mower. Kennedy scooped up the black creature with a white nose and paws and hugged her close, her soft fur tickling Kennedy’s face. Oreo was missing her owner just as much as Kennedy missed her mom. Desperately.
Kennedy took a breath to keep from arguing with her sister again. They’d had this conversation before, but this was the first time Finley had brought up Kennedy’s living in Virginia, where she worked as a forensic diver for the FBI. Maybe Kennedy should have moved back to Portland to help her mother with her research. If she’d had any idea things were so bad, she’d have come home.
But Kennedy hadn’t seen any sign of this stress. “I talked to Mom every couple of days, and she didn’t appear to be stressed.”
“She didn’t want you to feel like she needed you here. She wanted you to embrace your new career and live your own life.” Finley stroked Oreo’s head. “But shedidneed you. Badly. I don’t want to think she snapped under pressure and ended her life. I think it was an accident. She was tired and worn out. She made a mistake, one that cost her life.”
Finley’s face contorted with pain, and she broke out crying.
Oreo meowed her concern, her focus fixed on Kennedy.
Kennedy’s heart split at the pain in Finley’s expression and tears begged to be released. She sucked in a breath, then another and another to stop them. She had to keep it together to help her sister. Five years younger, Finley was still trying to become a responsible adult, and Kennedy needed to cut her some slack while she was still grieving the loss of their mother.
Kennedy cinched her eyes closed until she gained control. “Tell you what. I’ll keep working on Mom’s project until it’s completed, but I’ll cut back a little on digging into the potential murder if that will make you happy.”
Finley dabbed at her eyes, but it did nothing to stop the mascara running down her cheeks. “It’s not about making me happy. I just don’t want to see you stuck in limbo.”
Kennedy released Oreo and drew her little sister into a hug. Sure, Kennedy wanted to offer comfort, but she needed some too. “Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine.”
Finley pushed back. “When you say cutting back, you don’t mean dropping the murder investigation, do you?”
Kennedy shook her head.
Finley gave an angry swipe at her tears. “Then maybe you should get some help.”
Kennedy eyed her sister. “What do you mean?”
“Erik Byrd and his brothers left law enforcement to form a protection and investigation agency. Nighthawk Security. You should call him and finally end this.”
“No!” The word shot out of Kennedy’s mouth like a bullet, before she could swallow and take control of the sudden burst of emotions. “My breakup with Erik was a mess. You know that. I can’t even believe you’d suggest it.”
“You hurt him. Big time. But now that Mom and Dad are both gone, you can explain. I’m sure Erik will understand. And if for some reason you’re right, and Mom was murdered, he’ll have to know about WITSEC.”
“No.” The word held less force this time. Truth was, Kennedy had wanted to tell Erik about her dad testifying against a pyramid scammer and taking his whole family into witness protection. Not that Kennedy had known her family was in the program. Not until her last year of college, when she’d found her parents’ legal documents under a different name hidden in the garage. Their dad wasn’t supposed to keep anything from his prior life, but he’d broken the rules. Thankfully, no one else had caught him.
She’d confronted him, and he explained about WITSEC, but forbid her from telling Erik. Her father’s life depended on her keeping his secret so of course she couldn’t tell. Wouldn’t tell. But every time she looked at Erik after that, she felt like she was living a lie. No way she could live a lifetime of lies and deceit. Now, the tumultuous breakup was behind them, and they’d both moved on. No point in going to see him and bringing it all up again.
“It took me years to get over Erik.”If I even am.“And I’m not going to reopen that old wound.”
