Page 55 of Trace of Doubt
“Not until those against you are stopped.”
“Or I’m stopped.”
“You’re not alone. You have your faith, friends, and for what it’s worth, I’m in for the duration.”
She focused on me. “Today has been very hard.”
She needed time. Both of us did. “While you talked to your mother, I checked in with the agents who’ll be handling your protection. We have a transfer in about twenty minutes. Two agents will take you to a safe house about fifty miles from here. I’ve used it before on cases in my jurisdiction. Sheriff Wendall and I will follow through with our part.”
“I suppose it’s a good thing. Wish we knew the culprit’s name. As it is, I feel I’ve exchanged one cell for another.”
“The temporary housing protects you from the bad guys.”
“I’m just voicing my messed-up emotions. Will you check in with me every morning and night?”
“Sure. If I keep you posted, you’ll stay put?”
“I can’t promise.” She reached into her backpack. “Here’s the note. I’ve already rewritten it.”
“Read it to me.” If the wording needed to be tweaked, she’d have time to make changes.
Shelby opened the folded piece of paper. “‘Life has no meaning for me. Mom will soon be gone, and my family refuses to forgive me. Who can blame them? I thought after prison I’d be able to start over. It’s impossible. My crimes haunt me day and night. One lie builds on another. Edie, Amy-Jo, and Pastor Emory believe in me... my lies. They are dear people and deserve more than my sham. I’m a murderer and a thief. Yes, Itook the $500,000 from Marissa and Travis’s account. I forged an ID and placed it in an overseas account. The words of my Bible convicted me of the truth. May whoever reads this also find the treasure in that truth.’ Rather fitting, don’t you think, with all my Jesus talk?”
I asked her to reread it and digested her words. “That works.”
“Good. Please give it to the sheriff.”
“Will do.” I remembered her poem tucked inside her Bible and hoped she’d removed it. “I arranged for hidden cameras inside and outside of your cabin. They’ll be installed by the time I drive back.”
I sensed her staring at me. “Are you really convinced of my innocence?”
“More with each passing hour.”
“Thank you. I appreciate your support today, for being with me to face my family.”
I dug deep for a chuckle. “What choice did I have? If Edie or Amy-Jo had driven you, they’d have flattened your dad. Then I’d have to arrest both of them.”
She forced a laugh. “What a pigsty that would have been.”
“But funny. Your time with your mom went well?”
“We talked, and she knows I love her.” Shelby pressed her lips together, and I thought she might cry. “It was worth facing Dad.”
“And seeing Marissa?”
I nodded. “Honestly, I wasn’t sure what my reception would be. Marissa had a breakdown during the trial, and her parting words to me were filled with hatred, bitterness. I deserved it but living under Dad’s thumb had its price too.” Shelby leaned back against the headrest. “Denton, when will this be over?”
The weariness in her voice drew me into her lonely world, a place I longed to be to fill the void. And yet she filled an empty spot I thought I’d never fill again. When my plans for marriage and family had exploded in my face, I swore to have a bachelor’s life. But I never thought a soft voice with undeniable strength would melt the glacier around my heart. Unlike Lisa, no avalanche oftears to persuade me to her way of thinking or silence that could last for hours.
How did a grown man approach what had been the unthinkable? How did I reconcile her past as a killer? Confusion beat me up. Being attracted to her labeled me a fool or a victim of some cosmic joke.
“Let’s take one day at a time,” I said. “The person making the threats has grown bold, as though he or she thinks they’re invincible. We need them to believe you’re out of the picture, so they’re free to search the cabin. Then it will be over.”
34
SHELBY
Denton assured me the men we were about to encounter had experience and wisdom. But I wasn’t convinced. He drove me down a dirt road where we met two older men in a navy-blue sedan. He knew both agents, which gave me a huge dose of comfort. After the two men introduced themselves, Denton and I said our goodbyes, and I slid into the back seat of the sedan.
