Cold feet(78)
Author: Brenda Novak

"Poor Susan."

Caleb fell silent for a moment, and Madison knew he was feeling the same sympathy. But then she remembered something else. "Wait, what about the contents of that box under the house?" she asked. "The rope and the locket and–"

"Holly put that stuff in the woodpile behind your father’s house after we got married the second time."

"Why?"

"She told Gibbons she’d decided to stop killing. Somehow being with me satisfied that urge, though I certainly wouldn’t presume to understand her crazy logic."

"So she dumped those…trophies at my parents’ place?" Madison asked.

"It was the safest place to put it," he replied. "Everyone already suspected your father. She’d made sure she set him up as her scapegoat years earlier. She’d seen the news reports of Tatiana Harris’s neighbor claiming to have seen your father’s truck leaving Tatiana’s house. At that point, she merely dug up an old phone book that had your father listed, and made a point of driving by the house to get part of his license plate number. She must’ve done it right before she murdered Anna Tyler, the woman living next door to her, knowing the police would come knocking to see if she’d heard or seen anything."

"But my dad found that box and thought Johnny had killed those women! He–" Madison couldn’t finish without breaking into tears. After her dream, she felt so close to her father.

Caleb nodded sadly and took her hand. "I’m sorry about that."

Rage at Holly and what she’d done burned inside Madison. She wondered if she’d ever be able to get over that anger. She knew others would tell her she had to forgive, for her own sake, but she also knew it was going to take time. How did a woman forgive a person who’d caused her father to commit suicide? Who’d tried to murder her daughter? Who’d nearly ruined her life in so many ways?

"Then Tye found it and hid it in the basement," he added, "which is where you found it."

She wiped away her angry tears. "But where did it go from there?"

"Your mother took it," he said. "When you were talking to her on the phone that day, telling her you’d found something, she knew where you must have found it. And she wasn’t about to let anything that further implicated your father come to light."

"How do you know?"

"She told me this morning that she’s turning it all over to police."

"So she did take it," Madison mumbled. "She was that certain my father was innocent."

"And now everyone else is, too," Caleb said.

Madison let her breath go in a long sigh. "I can’t believe the nightmare that started twelve years ago is finally over."

"It’s about time."

She glanced at the phone. "We need to tell Sharon."

"Sharon?"

"Tye’s wife. She thinks Johnny was involved with the murders. She left Tye because she believed he was protecting Johnny."

"That’s the only reason?"

Madison considered his question. "Probably not the only reason. Tye has his problems. But I know she loves him. I think their marriage is worth saving."

Madison could tell by the way he was looking at her that Caleb’s mind was now moving in a different direction. "What?"

"That makes me think of something else that’s worth saving," he said.

Hearing the subtle change in his voice, Madison hesitated before responding. "What’s that?"

"I know you’re angry about what I did, Maddy." He trailed his fingers up her arm, and she shivered at the unexpected pleasure. "You have every right to be. But I’m thinking you and I had something good. If you can forgive me, I’d like to stick around for a while and see what happens."

Madison’s heart skipped a beat as her eyes met his. She knew what would happen. She’d get completely caught up in him. He was everything she’d ever wanted in a man. But she’d just been through the worst experience imaginable. How could she muster enough faith in the future to take such a risk right now? Especially with a man whose permanent address was three states away? If things went bad between them, he could simply pack up and leave. "Caleb, I–"

He immediately concealed the hope in his face, letting Madison know he anticipated her rejection. "You what?"

Madison felt as though she had a bowling ball sitting on her chest as she opened her mouth to continue. But she had to continue. She’d promised herself that she’d protect Brianna, protect them both. "I have to think about my daughter," she said. "She’s dealt with so many changes already. With Danny always waiting in the wings, hoping to take my daughter away from me, I can’t take any chances right now. I’m sorry."

Caleb stood, putting some distance between them, and she saw him take a deep breath, as though her answer had stung him. "I understand," he said shortly, his eyes now hooded. Then her mother hollered from the front door and Brianna came running toward the bedroom. The next thing Madison knew, Caleb was gone.

IT DIDN’T TAKE MADISON long to recover. She slept for most of Monday and Tuesday, but by Wednesday, when the glass company arrived to repair the window Johnny had broken, she was ready to take care of herself and Brianna and let her mother go home. She and Annette got along quite well. They’d had to stick together to get through the past, after all. But Madison was ready to be alone, or as alone as she could be with Johnny living in her house. She hadn’t seen Caleb for several days, and she was having a tough time pretending it didn’t matter.

"Mommy, when did you draw these?" Brianna asked.

Madison turned from admiring the new window as the repairman drove away to see that her daughter had found the sketches she’d done of Caleb’s chest and lips. "A few days ago," she said, feeling her cheeks grow warm because her mother had also turned to look. "I was just doodling," she added quickly.

"Can I hang them up?" Brianna asked.

Madison opened her mouth to say no. The last thing she needed was a daily reminder of the man she’d fallen so deeply in love with. But Annette took a closer look and spoke before Madison could.

"I think they should go in your mommy’s room," she said. "They’re excellent."

"Thanks." Madison started cutting onions for homemade chili and blinked back tears she couldn’t blame entirely on her task.

"Where is Caleb, anyway?" Brianna asked, wearing a frown. "I want to see him."

Madison decided the truth was probably best. "I think he moved back to San Francisco." She didn’t know for sure because she hadn’t been able to make herself go over to the cottage to check. She was afraid she’d find it as empty as she suspected it was.