Desperate acts, p.11
Desperate Acts, page 11
Control issues . . .
That’s what her last boyfriend claimed, and Lia hadn’t argued.
Kaden continued toward his Jeep and, swallowing a sigh, Lia grudgingly followed. It didn’t make any sense to insist on taking her SUV. She had no idea where they were going and his Jeep was already running. Climbing into the passenger seat, she slammed shut the door and pulled on her seat belt.
“You see, that wasn’t so hard.”
She glanced toward him, meeting his teasing smile. “If you end up in a ditch, I can promise you that Wayne will have it posted all over the Internet.”
He didn’t appear particularly worried. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
He put the Jeep in gear and drove to the end of the alley.
“Where are we going?” she asked.
“Judge Armstrong’s home. I hope you know where it’s located.”
“Turn left.” She studied his profile, absently noting it was perfectly sculpted. Like everything else about him. “Why are we going there?”
“I was at the courthouse when a call came in saying the judge had driven his car through the back of his garage.”
Lia sucked in a sharp breath. “Oh no. Was he hurt?”
“I’m not sure, but it sounded pretty serious.”
“That’s terrible.” She paused. It was awful to think the older man had been injured, but she’d never been very close to the judge. In truth, she didn’t really like him. “Why are we going there?”
His jaw tightened. “Right now, I’m not willing to accept anything is a random accident.”
“Okay, but honestly, Judge Armstrong is seventy years old and a terrible driver.” She’d seen the man take out a mailbox, back into a dumpster, and nearly destroy the local bakery when he put his car in Drive instead of Reverse. He never slowed until he smashed into the building. “Even when the streets aren’t covered in ice.”
“It’s probably a waste of time, but I think we should check it out.”
“Okay.” Lia shivered at the sound of sirens that echoed through the streets. They were becoming all too familiar. “Take another left at the corner. We’ll circle around to the back. I’d rather not get trapped by the inevitable gawkers.”
He nodded, turning onto the narrow dirt path that would lead to the empty lot behind the judge’s house. Years ago, there’d been a laundromat, but the judge had the place condemned and torn down when he built his new house.
Parking the Jeep next to the curb, they climbed out of the vehicle and headed toward the massive brick home.
Kaden muttered a curse as he struggled through the snow that was up to his knees. “Good thing I bought some decent boots.”
She wisely followed his trail. There was no use in both of them forging a path through the heavy drifts.
“The judge’s house is built on a dead-end street. It will be packed with emergency vehicles, not to mention half the town wanting to discover what’s happened. This will be the easiest way to get close.”
He nodded as they neared the large, built-in pool that was covered with a tarp and the patio edged with an outdoor kitchen, complete with a brick pizza oven. It looked like a home you would find in Hollywood, not Pike, Wisconsin. His attention, however, appeared to be on the pristine blanket of snow that covered everything in sight.
“No one’s been back here,” he said.
“Not since it snowed,” she agreed.
“Does the judge live alone?”
“Yes. As far as I know, he never married.” She paused. “And I don’t remember him dating anyone from around here. Which is kind of weird.” Until that moment, Lia had never realized how secretive the judge was about his private life.
“Is he retired?”
“Just recently.” The entire town had furtively celebrated when Judge Armstrong stepped down from the bench. “Unfortunately, he’s still the president of the Chamber of Commerce for Pike.”
“A man with some influence.”
“And good buddies with the mayor.”
“Interesting.”
“Kaden.”
Without thought, she reached out to grab his arm, nodding toward the paramedics she could see pushing a gurney toward the ambulance that was parked at the side of the house. Even from a distance she could see the body was zipped in a bag. That could only mean one thing.
“He’s dead.” Kaden spoke the words out loud.
“Looks that way.”
He gently tugged his arm out of her clinging grip, his expression grim. “I’m going to try to get closer. If you want to wait in the Jeep—”
“No,” she interrupted. “I’m going with you.”
He looked like he wanted to argue. Instead, he shrugged as he glanced back at the house.
“Fair warning. I have no idea what I’m hoping to find.”
“Me either.”
Together, they waded their way past the pool and stepped onto the patio. Then, circling around the massive, built-in BBQ and pizza oven, they at last had a clear view of the back of the garage.
“Yikes.” Lia’s eyes widened at the sight of the busted wall and bricks smashed on the ground. The front of the Cadillac was peeking through the carnage, revealing the shattered windshield and crumpled bumper.
“Damn.” Kaden looked shocked at the gaping hole in the garage. “He must have had his foot fully on the gas to cause that kind of damage.”
Lia had to admit it was a lot worse than she was expecting. Dozens of people in town had fender benders during the winter. It was impossible not to occasionally slide on the ice. But this was a violent collision that had taken a lot of force. She struggled to imagine what could possibly have happened.
“If the snow drifted across his driveway, he might have gotten stuck and gunned the engine to get out,” she offered at last. It was a lame explanation, but it was the only one she had.
“Possibly.” He looked dubious. Lia didn’t blame him. “Let’s take a look out front.”
Kaden walked toward the corner of the house, where the ambulance was backing out. He paused, as if waiting for the vehicle to disappear before he continued. It wasn’t until Lia was standing next to him that she realized he was watching the two men who appeared from the front of the house.
Anthony was in his deputy’s uniform and Tate Erickson was in an expensive wool trench coat and fur cap. The mayor had a hold of Anthony’s arm as he pulled the younger man to a spot out of sight of the gathered crowd.
Kaden sent her a quick glance, waiting for her to nod in understanding, before they crept forward to hide behind a fir tree loaded with Christmas lights. It was close enough to overhear the conversation between the men.
“Stop arguing, Anthony,” Tate was saying, his voice edgy and his narrow face flushed. “Just write the report like I told you.”
“I know what I saw,” Anthony stubbornly insisted.
“What you saw was an old man who hit the gas when he should have hit the brakes and smashed into the back of his garage. It happens. Hell, the judge did it before. Don’t you remember the bakery? He took out the front window.”
“Why wasn’t he wearing a seat belt?” Anthony demanded. “And why was his airbag switched off?”
Kaden and Lia exchanged a silent glance. Anthony clearly didn’t believe the judge’s death was a random accident.
“Because he thought he was above the laws he enforced on everyone else,” Tate snapped. “You know that better than me. How many times did you complain he parked in handicapped spots without the proper tags?”
Anthony folded his arms over his chest. “He looked like he’d been beaten.”
“He was just in a car wreck, for Christ’s sake.”
“I still say it should be investigated. That’s what Zac would do.”
Lia silently applauded Anthony’s dogged determination to stand his ground. And the deputy was right. If Zac Evans were here, the sheriff ’s office would be investigating a lot of stuff. Starting with her belief that she’d seen a woman jump from the railroad bridge fifteen years ago to Kaden’s insistence the skeleton was Vanna Zimmerman to this latest accident.
“Zac isn’t here and I’m in charge.”
“It should be investigated.”
Tate stomped his feet, his gaze flicking toward the nearby house, as if searching for inspiration. Then, a strange smile twisted his lips.
“Listen, Anthony, I didn’t want to share this with anyone until I had a chance to decide what to do.”
“Share what?”
“Leon came to see me yesterday.”
Anthony frowned, as if it took him a second to recognize that Leon was the dead man’s first name. Everyone in town called him “Judge.”
“He came to the office?” he at last asked.
“No, he called and wanted to meet at my house. He said he wanted privacy to tell me something.”
“What was it?” There was a long silence. “Well?” Anthony prompted.
The mayor cleared his throat, glancing from side to side before he spoke. “He confessed that he hit that boy. What’s his name? The one with no neck?”
“Drew Hurst?” Anthony hesitantly offered.
“Yes.” Tate snapped his fingers. “That’s the one. Leon said he hit him and drove away.”
Anthony’s mouth hung open as he visibly struggled to accept what the mayor was saying. Lia was battling the same stunned sense of disbelief. Of all the things she thought the mayor might say, that was at the very bottom of the list.
“Judge Armstrong hit Drew Hurst with his car and drove away,” Anthony said, as if he needed the words repeated.
Tate shrugged. “He told me that he slid on the ice and didn’t even see the kid until it was too late. A tragic accident.” He shrugged again. “Unfortunately, he panicked, and instead of staying to face the consequences, he returned to his house and tried to pretend it didn’t happen.”
Anthony’s brow furrowed, a sudden anger tightening his features. “Why didn’t you arrest him?”
“Don’t be ridiculous. He’s an old friend and a respected member of this community.”
“If what you just said is true, he nearly killed Drew and then fled the scene of a crime.”
Tate clicked his tongue, as if to indicate that Anthony was completely overreacting to the situation.
“I was in the process of negotiating for him to turn himself in. It would have been fine.”
“It’s not fine,” Anthony growled. “You don’t negotiate with criminals. You handcuff them and drag their ass to jail.”
Tate squared his shoulders, clearly annoyed by his deputy’s refusal to concede he’d done what was necessary. But instead of a cutting response, the mayor glanced toward the house and heaved a dramatic sigh. “I’m the acting sheriff; I took care of the matter as I thought best. I never dreamed he would . . .”
“He would what?” Anthony asked.
Tate waved his hand in a vague motion. “End things like this.”
Anthony’s eyes widened. “You’re . . .you’re saying he rammed his car on purpose?”
“Why else would he take off his seat belt and make sure the airbag wouldn’t work? Clearly he couldn’t bear the shame of what he’d done.” The mayor released his hold on Anthony and stepped back. He was obviously done with the conversation. “Still, we can’t be sure what happened. Or why. Just write the report to say it was an accident. It’s the best ending for everyone.”
“But . . .”
“Do it.”
Anthony’s protest died on his lips as Tate disappeared around the front corner of the house. For a second, the deputy stood staring into space, as if debating how to handle the latest debacle the sheriff had tossed in his lap. Then, with shoulders stooped with weariness, Anthony trudged in the direction of the street.
Waiting until both men were out of earshot, Lia slowly shook her head. “I can’t believe Judge Armstrong ran over Drew.”
Kaden turned to send her a puzzled glance. “You did say he was an awful driver.”
“Yes, but . . .”
“Something’s bothering you.”
He was right, but it took Lia a second to sort through her tangled thoughts and pinpoint her unease.
“The mayor was right when he said the judge considered himself above the law.” She battled through her reluctance to speak ill of the dead. Midwest manners weren’t nearly as important as a potential murder. Besides, the man hadn’t earned the right when he was alive to be treated with respect after his death. “He never paid his city taxes, he ruled on cases where he had a clear conflict of interest, and he put ‘no trespassing’ signs on public land so he would have a private place to hunt. There were even rumors that he shot stray dogs.”
Kaden snorted. “Sounds like a classy guy.”
“He was an arrogant bully, but he wasn’t a coward.” Lia could easily picture the judge losing control of his car and hitting an innocent trespasser. That could happen to anyone. But she could never imagine the man being so racked with guilt that he couldn’t bear to continue living. No way. “If he’d hit Drew, he would have stayed and dared anyone to blame him,” she explained. “Not only that, he would also have convinced everyone in town it had been entirely Drew’s fault. The Hursts don’t have any power or money and Drew has been in and out of trouble since he was a young boy. Most of the sympathy in town would have gone to Judge Armstrong.”
Kaden’s jaw tightened, easily following her line of reasoning. “And if he didn’t have any fear of repercussions, why kill himself?”
“Exactly.” She shuddered as the wind whipped around the corner of the house. “So why did the mayor lie?”
“Let’s ask him.”
Chapter 10
Not for the first time, Kaden was happy he’d followed his intuition to find out more about the accident. It was the same intuition that had urged him to leave Wisconsin and head out west. And, eventually, to leave Hollywood to open his business in Vegas.
Of course, suspecting Judge Armstrong’s death was no accident didn’t mean it had anything to do with Vanna. He was guessing the older man had managed to acquire a number of enemies over the years. Many of them right here in Pike. And even if it was connected to the fifteen-year-old murder, he still had no idea who was behind the crimes.
Keeping close to the house, Kaden battled his way to the front of the garage. There was no way to be graceful in the thick snow, but at least he didn’t fall on his ass. He was taking that as a win.
At last reaching his destination, he peeked around the corner, not surprised to find a crowd gathered in the street. It was human nature to be curious about what was happening. Especially in a place where everyone knew everyone. He turned his attention to the deputy who was keeping people from trespassing on the property. It wasn’t Anthony. This man looked as if he was barely out of high school, with a spotted face and a nervous expression.
He frowned, wondering if the mayor had already managed to slip away, when he caught sight of him approaching a couple of teenagers who were standing on the sidewalk. Assuming he was going to urge them to leave, Kaden sucked in a shocked breath when Tate reached out to shove the boy wearing a letter jacket, knocking him off balance. Next, he grabbed the young girl by the arm and tugged her toward his shiny black car, which was parked in the middle of the street.
Kaden glanced toward Lia, who was standing next to him. “What was that about?”
“Sunny is his daughter. He doesn’t want her dating Cord Walsh.”
“Cord.” Kaden recognized the name. “The boy who found the body?”
“Yes.”
“I want to talk to him.”
Knowing there was no point in urging Lia to return to the Jeep to wait for him, Kaden crossed the front yard toward the boy. At the moment, Cord was distracted as he glared at the black car backing down the street. Good. It made it simple to pretend this was nothing more than a chance encounter.
The snow crunched loud enough to attract the boy’s attention as Kaden passed along the sidewalk. On cue, Cord rushed to stand directly in his path.
“Dude,” he breathed, a puff of mist forming in the frigid air. “You’re Kaden Vaughn.”
“I am.”
“Awesome.” The boy bounced from foot to foot, unable to contain his excitement. “I’m a huge fan. When you flipped your bike over that fountain in Vegas . . .” His words trailed away as if he was too overwhelmed to speak. “Man. Epic.”
The jump had been arranged to celebrate the opening of Money Makers as well as a spectacular ending to his career as a stuntman. It’d been one of his biggest, most elaborate jumps, and when it was over, Kaden had accepted that he was well and truly done with the surge of adrenaline and the screaming crowds that had once driven him.
He’d reached the age when he didn’t want to face death on a daily basis.
Still, he was willing to use his fame from the event to get Cord chatting.
“Thanks. A lot of people worked to make the stunt a success.”
“Just you on the bike, though.” The teenager stuck out his hand in an awkward motion. “I’m Cord, by the way. Cord Walsh.”
“Cord.” Kaden shook the offered hand, lifting his brow, as if surprised by the name. “Oh right. I think Wayne Neilson mentioned you when he was telling me about finding the skeleton near the railroad tracks.”
“Crazy, right?”
“You were the one to find it?”
“Yep.” The boy coughed, shifting from foot to foot. He looked nervous. Was it because he was still bothered by finding the skeleton? Or was it because he was talking to a famous television star? “We were sledding down the hill when Drew blasted through a patch of thornbushes. I thought he screamed because he was hurt. It wasn’t until I ran down there that I saw the bones.”
Kaden nodded, as if fascinated by the story. “Tell me about them.”
“Just bones, man.” He forced a shaky laugh. “And a skull staring up at us without any eyes. Creepy.”
“Did it have on clothes?”
“Oh, yeah. It did. A leather jacket. Everything else had just . . .” Cord waved his hands as if there’d been a tiny explosion. “Poof.”
Kaden studied the boy. Cord was trying to act casual, but there was a brittle tension just beneath the surface. Apart of Kaden knew he should walk away. It didn’t matter that the kid was eighteen and legally an adult. It felt like he was manipulating him.
