*The Ladies of Sweetwater Lake

*The Ladies of Sweetwater Lake

*The Ladies of Sweetwater Lake

*The Ladies of Sweetwater Lake

*The Ladies of Sweetwater Lake

**Fostered by Love

**Fostered by Love

**Fostered by Love

Her fire alarm blared.

Maggie shot up in bed and stared at the darkness surrounding her, trying to orient herself to the sound blasting the stillness.

A pounding at her front door propelled her from her bed. She raced from the room and in the hallway met a wall of smoke pouring from her office. She headed for the front door.

Suddenly it burst open, and Kane hurried into her apartment, his chest rising and falling rapidly.

“I called the fire department. Get out now.”

Maggie grabbed Kane’s arm as he passed her. “Where are you going? Aren’t you leaving, too?”

“I have to try to stop the fire.”

She couldn’t let him do it alone. “Then I’m coming with you.”

MARGARET DALEY

feels she has been blessed. She has been married more than thirty years to her husband, Mike, whom she met in college. He is a terrific support and her best friend. They have one son, Shaun. Margaret has been writing for many years and loves to tell a story. When she was a little girl, she would play with her dolls and make up stories about their lives. Now she writes these stories down. She especially enjoys weaving stories about families and how faith in God can sustain a person when things get tough. When she isn’t writing, she is fortunate to be a teacher for students with special needs. Margaret has taught for over twenty years and loves working with her students. She has also been a Special Olympics coach and participated in many sports with her students.

Poisoned Secrets
Margaret Daley

Beloved, if God so loved us,

we ought to also love one another.

—1 John 4:11

To the Lord, without You this wouldn’t be possible.

CONTENTS

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

CHAPTER TWELVE

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

EPILOGUE

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

ONE

Aloud thud from the apartment above made Kane McDowell flinch and sit straight up in the lounger.

“What was that?” Edwina Bacon asked, putting her teacup down on the table next to her.

Kane’s gaze riveted to the ceiling of Edwina’s place. “Maybe Henry dropped something.”

“I don’t know. He didn’t look well tonight when I saw him go upstairs. That’s the second strange sound I’ve heard coming from the apartment above. What if he fell and hurt himself?”

“You worry too much about the tenants, Edwina. Henry’s certainly capable of taking care of himself.” His words didn’t erase the worry on the elderly woman’s face. Kane pushed to his feet. “But if it will make you feel better, I’ll go upstairs and check.”

“Oh, thank you. I wouldn’t want anything to happen to someone here. Even Henry.”

“You read too many mysteries,” Kane said as he headed for the foyer of the apartment building he owned.

Kane’s leg ached as he mounted the stairs to the second floor of the converted mansion. He’d overdone it today. Covering the short distance to apartment 2A, he knocked. He waited a minute and then rang the bell. Nothing.

Henry Payne sometimes was out late. But if that were the case, then what made the crashing sound? Reluctantly Kane dug into his pocket for the master key. He fit it into the lock and turned it, but the door was already unlocked.

Alarmed, he thrust the door open, every skill he’d learned in the military activated. The overpowering odors of cigars and lemon polish assailed his nostrils. The complete chaos scattered about this usually tidy, orderly place put Kane on alert. This definitely wasn’t a heart attack. Cautiously he moved into the lighted living area, listening for any sounds coming from the rest of the apartment. Silence greeted him.

“Henry,” he called out while scanning the room where every book the man owned, which had to be hundreds, seemed to be tossed on the floor. Drawer contents littered the beige area rug, and all the cabinets were emptied. The crunch of glass beneath his feet drew his glance. The mirror over the table in the small entryway lay on the hardwood floor in shattered pieces. Probably the crash Edwina heard.

Maybe Henry’s gone.

Or maybe not.

Coveting his own privacy, Kane hated invading another’s, but it was obvious something had gone terribly wrong here. He headed down the short hallway to investigate the two bedrooms. Each one was as neat and tidy as he knew Henry to be.

Back in the living room, Kane limped toward the kitchen to check out the rest of the place. When he swung the door open, the stench of blood—something he would never forget from his time in Iraq—accosted him. The cool breeze from an open window that led to the balcony chilled the room. As Kane inched forward, the door swung closed. The sound of its swish drew his attention behind him. He froze.

On the floor in a crimson pool lay Henry, his dark eyes staring at the ceiling, his arm flung out at an odd angle, a patch of light blue fabric clutched in his hand.

TWO

Maggie Ridgeway stared at the Twin Oaks Apartments. The converted late nineteenth century mansion’s brick was painted a flesh tone, and its trim and shutters a snowy white. Three stories tall with a porch that ran almost the full length of its front, the building dominated the spacious yard with multicolored spring flowers blooming in the well-tended beds. Two massive oaks stood sentinel. A stained glass window with a pastoral scene was above the entrance, and below it were double, dark brown doors with beveled glass.

Finally!

She was here and intended to stay.

Maggie marched up the stairs to find the manager and secure the vacant apartment before someone else did. A friend she worked with at the hospital told her a vacancy in this building was rare and didn’t last long. Afraid she’d never get the opportunity, she was ready to pounce on the opening she’d been anxiously waiting several months for since moving to Seven Oaks, Kentucky.

She stepped into the spacious foyer, a wide staircase directly in front of her sweeping up to the second floor. A gleaming chandelier hung from the ceiling, and a huge round cherry table with a bouquet of expensive silk flowers in a crystal vase sat under the light, adding a splash of vivid colors to the entrance. An ornate Persian rug, predominantly navy-blue and maroon, covered the marble floor in the center, giving off a warm, cozy feeling.

Surveying the first floor, she found the door with a brass plaque with the word manager engraved on it. She covered the short distance to the apartment and rang the bell.

“She’s not home,” a child’s voice said behind her.

Maggie turned around and saw a thin boy with brown hair standing on the staircase, gripping the wooden balustrade. Her heart lurched at the sight of him. Only a few yards away. Staring into his dark eyes, she felt as though she were staring into her own. Kenny! The thought made her take a step back until she pressed up against the manager’s door.

She’d imagined meeting and talking to him for the first time. But now no words would come to mind. Emotions, held at bay, crashed down on her. Emptiness, anger, elation, all swirling around in her, made a knot form in her stomach.

“Ma’am, are you all right?” His freckled face scrunched up into a worried look.

Maggie continued to peer at the boy. Her smile faltered while her heartbeat began to hammer against her rib cage. She’d told herself this would happen and thought she’d prepared herself for it.

The child shifted, alarm flittering across his features. “Lady?”

With her pulse thundering in her ears, she finally replied, “I want to rent the vacant apartment. Do you know when the manager will be back?” Amazingly her voice didn’t quaver although her hands did. She clutched her purse straps to keep the trembling under control.

Besides his eyes, his hair’s the same shade of brown as mine. And I used to have freckles the way he does. She swallowed the lump in her throat. I should leave. Let it go. She rubbed her damp palms together, fighting the urge to scrap her plan.

“She’ll probably be gone for another hour or so.” The child moved forward. “Uncle Kane’s here, though.”

“Uncle?” Maggie pushed herself away from the door and moved several paces toward the eleven-year-old boy. Her legs quaked.

“Well, he’s not really my uncle, but I call him that. He owns the building. He can help you.”

“Where is he?”

He jerked his thumb toward a door down the hall at the back of the building. “In his shop downstairs.” Gesturing with his hand, he spun around on his heel. “C’mon. I’ll show you.”

“I’m Maggie Ridgeway. What’s your name?” she asked although she was ninety-nine percent sure she already knew it.

“Kenny Pennington.”

Even though she’d expected him to say that, the name brought an added joy to her. That feeling tangled with the others—uncertainty, even anger—firming in her mind told her she had to continue with her plan. She’d dreamed about this moment for too long to turn back now.

The sound of sandpaper sliding over wood filled the workroom. The scent of sawdust and linseed oil peppered the air. Repeatedly Kane McDowell ran the block along the groove in the piece of furniture, smoothing the rough texture.

The rhythmic motion of the sanding—back and forth—relaxed Kane, his thoughts wandering as his hands automatically repeated the action. The tension slipped from his shoulders and neck while he proceeded from one chair leg to the next. As the tautness eased completely from his body, his awareness of his surroundings faded, too. The movement of his arm was hypnotic, the gritty sound almost soothing.

The memory came unexpectedly as it so often did. His thoughts were at peace one second, and the next, he flinched, stopped his sanding and closed his eyes as though that could shut it out. It never did…

“I can’t do it. I thought I could. I don’t want to marry you anymore. I’m moving to Dallas, Kane.” Ruth indicated the luggage at the door.

He stood in his parents’ living room, having been at their home for the past month to continue his convalescence after his injury in Iraq. Last week his fiancée had come to help nurse him back to full health. Now she was leaving him.

At the door she paused and looked back at him. “I need a whole man. I tried. I really did. You aren’t the same person you were when you went to war.” Her gaze swept down his length, his body propped up by crutches, his left leg gone from just below the knee dangling uselessly next to his good one…

Kane shook his head as if he could physically drive the memory from his thoughts. The sanding block fell from his hand, thumping to the concrete, its sound reverberating through his mind. Sweat dripped into his eyes, stinging them.

A knock jarred the silence.

“Not now,” he muttered, swiping his forehead with the back of his hand. He needed to escape; he didn’t want to see anyone.

Another knock echoed through his workshop.

Trapped.

Maggie raised her hand one final time to rap on the door when it suddenly opened. She stared into the face of a man who didn’t look too happy to see her. His dark expression didn’t soften as she cleared her throat and said, “I came about renting your apartment.”

The man’s hard gaze bore into her. The taut set of his body, his grip on the door handle, conveyed tension. Then his attention fixed on Kenny, and the owner’s stiff stance melted, the frown wiped away to be replaced with an expression just short of a smile.

Kenny looked at Maggie. “Miss Edwina’s at church so I brought her down here to see you.”

The man who owned the apartment building finally smiled—a fully fledged one that lit his whole face and dimpled his cheeks. “I’ll take it from here, Kenny. Thanks.”

The boy spun around and raced up the stairs. The second he disappeared the strain returned to the owner’s face, his gaze directed at her.

Suddenly the small hallway in the basement closed in on Maggie. She glanced around, noting three other doors, one of them leading outside. A bank of windows on each side of it afforded a view of the back of the building and a glimpse of the lake beyond.

“Dale Franklin told me there was an apartment in your building for rent. He was supposed to call you about me coming to see the place.”

The man, over six feet tall, eased his grip on the door and relaxed against it. “Edwina Bacon, my manager, must have talked with Dale. I don’t usually handle anything having to do with the apartment building.”

“Then should I wait for her to return?”

“Suit yourself, but frankly I’m surprised you’d want to rent it. I haven’t even put an advertisement in the paper yet. Not sure I am for a while. Are you aware of what happened in it a few weeks back? The police just released it a couple of days ago.”

Yes, she’d known that and had barely been able to wait the few days before coming to see about the apartment. The headlines that had occupied the newspaper for a week flashed into her thoughts, bringing forth a momentary surge of anxiety until she remembered the reason she wanted to live here.

“Yes, but I’m living in a dorm connected with the hospital right now. I need a more permanent place to live, and there are few available in Seven Oaks at this time of year with the university in full swing.”

“Hospital? Are you a nurse?”

“No, a speech therapist, Mr.—”

“Kane McDowell.”

Before her courage totally failed her, she said, “I didn’t want anyone else to get the apartment, so I took some time off from work to come here. I really need a place to live. My privacy means a lot to me, and I have none where I’m living right now.” His eyes lit with understanding. “May I look at the apartment?”

“Give me a moment, and I’ll show it to you.”

He left her standing by the door while he sauntered to the sink. His chest, covered by a white T-shirt, revealed his wide expanse of muscles. His faded jeans hugged slim hips and the long legs of a runner.

He splashed water on his face, then reached for a towel. His damp black hair curled at his nape in ringlets as he dried it. When he retrieved his blue short-sleeve polo shirt from an unfinished chair and shrugged into it, his sheer male power transfixed her. He was in top physical condition.

As he faced her, she hastily pretended an interest in the far wall with a myriad of tools hanging on it, fighting the heat of a blush that suffused her cheeks. “You’re a carpenter?”

“Some of the time.”

“And the other times?” Finally she looked into his slate-gray eyes and wished she hadn’t. They were startling against the darkness of his features, their color like polished pewter.

“I’m the admissions director at the university.” He walked past her into the hallway. “I’ll show you the apartment now.”

As she followed him, she got the distinct impression that was all the chitchat she would get out of the man.

“The apartment is on the second floor, Miss—” He peered back at her, snaring her within his flintlike gaze.

“Maggie Ridgeway.”

His guarded look conveyed the message: stay away. The silent statement pulsated in the air between them, intriguing her, tempting her. She knew all the signs of someone who kept himself apart from others. She was a master at it. He could do nothing she hadn’t done herself at some time in her past.

As she mounted the staircase to the second floor, she firmed her determination. She couldn’t afford to be sidetracked. Which one is it? she thought as she passed a closed door. “How many apartments are in this building?”

“Six on three floors. I occupy the basement.” He unlocked apartment 2A and pushed the door open. “As you can see, they’re big. I have three families in my building. Some furniture comes with the apartment if you want to use it.”

“It’ll just be me, and yes, the furniture would be appreciated.”

She entered the living room and surveyed the oblong configuration with a marble fireplace on the outer wall, a brass screen across its front. The carved mantel would be a perfect place to set family pictures. But who would be in those photo frames? The question came unbidden into her mind.

“I just finished having the place cleaned,” Mr. McDowell said, thankfully pulling her attention from the answer to that question.

A shiver skipped down her spine. She refused to think about Henry Payne, who had been murdered in the kitchen according to the news. A murder yet unsolved. Instead, she let her gaze roam over the neat room with a beige leather couch, a coffee table and two navy and beige plaid wing chairs with a table made of a rich cherry wood between them. A bank of built-in bookcases, all empty, ran the length of one wall. On another were two large floor-to-ceiling windows flanking the fireplace, which offered a view of the neighbor’s house, twenty yards away, and the barest glimpse of the lake behind the house. The walls painted maroon gave a feeling of cozy warmth that completely contradicted what had happened in the apartment recently.

“I’ll take it. When can I move in?”

“Immediately, if you want.” Puzzled, he cocked his head to the side. “Wouldn’t you like to look at the rest of it first?”

“No, this is fine. It’s close to Seven Oaks Hospital and in a nice neighborhood. As I mentioned before, there aren’t too many places available at this time of year.”

When she shifted her attention to Kane McDowell, his eyes narrowed on her for an uncomfortable moment as if he were delving into her mind to see what was really behind her desire to live in his apartment building, especially in a place where tragedy had occurred. She schooled her features into a neutral expression, determined not to reveal her hidden motive.

“Normally I have a person fill out an application and then I run a credit check, but if Edwina has gotten a recommendation from Dale, then I’ll lease it to you. I require first and last months’ rent.”

She released the breath she held slowly, covering the space between them and holding out her hand. “It’s a deal, Mr. McDowell.”

The rough feel of his hand warmed hers. When he let go and stepped out into the hallway, the lingering effect of his touch streaked up her arm, jolting her heart to beat faster. Maggie clenched her hands together to still the slight tremor. This man did strange things to her insides, and this certainly wasn’t a time in her life to pursue an attraction. She’d come to Seven Oaks for only one thing. She couldn’t let anything stand in the way of her mission.

“I’ll get a lease, and you can sign it.” Kane retraced his steps to the basement.

“That’s great. I’d like to move in as soon as possible.” Maggie hurried to keep up with him.

Unlocking a door across from his workshop, he motioned for her to enter his apartment. When she stepped inside, the comfortable-looking living room with large windows offering a view of the lake surprised her. After only a short time in his presence, she had been sure his place would be dark and stark like the man. But because the apartment building sat on a hill that sloped to the lake, the basement wasn’t totally below ground. The back half was opened to the sprawling yard with oaks, maples and elms dotting its terrain down to the water.

“Have a seat while I get a lease. I’m sure I have one around here somewhere,” he said and walked toward a hallway.

Restless, she paced. Maybe I should leave the past alone. Maybe I should go back to St. Louis and forget. Maybe—no, I can’t walk away now. This wouldn’t have been possible without You. I know it in here. She tapped her chest over her heart. Lord, it’s finally happening after all these years. Thank You.

Every nerve ending alert, Maggie stopped pacing and rotated toward Kane who moved into the room, a paper in his hand. Their gazes locked. Her lungs constricted at the power emanating from him.

Suddenly, he broke eye contact and crossed the room. “The rent’s due on the first. There’s to be no loud music or noise after ten. Pets are allowed so long as they’re small and not disruptive to the other tenants. Oh, and trash is picked up every Tuesday and Friday.” He laid the lease on the coffee table with the apartment key next to it. “Any questions?”

“No.” Matching his strictly business demeanor, she sat on the rust-colored couch, noted the amount of the rent, then signed her name on the lease.

He retrieved the lease. “This is contingent on the fact Dale gives you a glowing recommendation.”

“He will.”

“Tomorrow’s okay to move in, but I still have a few things to do to the apartment. That’s one of the reasons I took some vacation time.”

“Fine. I’ll be working tomorrow morning, so I won’t be here till the afternoon.”

“I’ll try to be out of the way by two.” He started for his door. “You can give me the rent then, and I’ll give you a copy of the signed lease. I’ll also introduce you to Edwina tomorrow. She’ll handle everything after that.”

Maggie rifled through her oversize purse and withdrew her checkbook. “Let me pay now. One less thing to handle later.” As she filled out the check, she asked in a casual voice, “Who else besides Edwina Bacon lives here?”

“On the first floor across from Edwina there’s the Sellman family with a set of twins. The Penningtons live across from you. You’ve already met Kenny Pennington. Upstairs from you there’s Kyra Williams with her son, Sean, and lastly Edwina’s sister Ann and her husband, Marcus Quinn.” He walked toward the front door and opened it. “If there’s nothing else, I’ll see you tomorrow afternoon.”

Effectively dismissed, Maggie escaped into the hallway and started for the stairs. What am I doing here? Panic seized her.

Father, give me the strength to see this through to the end, whatever that may be. Give me the strength to do the right thing when dealing with the woman who gave me up at birth.

The box must weigh a ton! Maggie tried to shift the weight some as she stopped halfway up the stairs to her new apartment, but she lost what grip she had. The box crashed to the step in front of her. The sound of glass breaking echoed through the quiet.

“Can I help?” Kenny asked as he came up behind her.

Still unaccustomed to having her half brother so near, Maggie tensed for a few seconds before forcing herself to relax and smile. “I don’t think anyone can help now. I think Grandma Ridgeway’s glassware is gone.” She plopped down on the step, placing her elbows on her knees and resting her chin in her palms.

“Maybe it’s not so bad.” The brown-haired boy peered into the container and whistled.

She slanted a look at him. “That bad?”

“Yep, ’fraid so.” He sat down next to her. “You’re moving into the apartment across from us. Uncle Kane told me.”

“I’m glad we’re neighbors.” She had always wanted siblings and now she was sitting not inches from her half brother. The moment awed her, and yet she wasn’t sure what to do about it. She’d gone twenty-eight years without any experience on how to relate to a younger brother.

The child’s expression showed concern. “Will your grandma be too upset?”

“Nope,” she murmured around the lump in her throat. Where do I begin getting to know my brother?

“I know if I’d done something like that, my grandma woulda been upset big-time. And my mom would be crying by now. Once she broke a dish my grandma gave her and she cried. Told me family was important to her.”

His words stole her breath. Her lungs burned as she tried to drag air into them. “Your mother’s right.” And she robbed me of mine. She fought the tears that now gathered in her throat in order to ask, “Would you like to help me finish unloading my car? I’ll pay you.”

“Sure!” Kenny beamed. “Mom isn’t gonna be home for a while. I could use the money—that’s if you don’t mind Ashley tagging along.”

“Fine. Is she your sister?” She knew the answer, but it didn’t stop the feeling of too much happening too fast and the need to slow down.

“My baby sister.” His face screwed up into a frown as though he’d just taken a spoonful of distasteful medicine.

“Tell you what.” Maggie lifted the box, grimacing when she heard the broken glass clinking. “I’ll take this to my apartment while you get Ashley. Then we’ll head to my car.”

Hurrying up the stairs, she needed to put some distance between herself and Kenny before she cried in front of him. She’d dreamed of getting to know her family for a long time—ever since she had learned her birth mother had one—but she’d never dreamed of the rush of excitement that she felt, the anxiety that caused a pressure in her chest, the tug of emotions that ripped through her gut. And the overriding thought that she’d missed so many years of this child’s life, as well as Ashley’s.

At the top of the stairs she paused to catch her breath, to swallow the tears. She looked down at Kenny, who waved and smiled. She returned his grin, resisting the urge to rush down the steps and hug the boy.

I have to take it slow and easy.

Outside her apartment door, she slipped the key into the lock. Surprised it was already unlocked, she tensed, her mind flooded with pictures she’d seen on the nightly news when Henry Payne had been found murdered in this very place.

Cautiously, ready instantly to flee, she eased the door open and peered into the living room. Kane McDowell had said he would be gone by two, and it was well past that time. “Anyone in here?”

“Just me.” Kane came into the living room from the kitchen.

Where the murder occurred. She could do this. She hadn’t lived in the town long and certainly didn’t have anyone mad enough at her to kill her.

“For a second there, I had visions of tossing this box and hightailing it down the stairs. Not an especially dignified start in my new home.” She managed to strike a relaxed pose against the doorjamb.

The sides of his mouth curled upward. “I have your garbage disposal fixed—I think. If this doesn’t work, I’ll have to replace it.”

Stepping closer, his scent of pine engulfing her, he took the box from her. Her mouth went dry. Her reaction to Kane was as strong as the day before. After meeting Kenny, she realized she would have little emotional energy left after dealing with the Penningtons to pursue any other kind of relationship.

“That was beginning to look awfully heavy. Where do you want it?”

“Probably the trash.” When his forehead creased in question, she continued, “I dropped it on the stairs. That doesn’t sit too well with glass. I guess I’d better check it, though, to see if anything is salvageable.”

“How much do you have to carry in today?”

“A carload. I do have several pieces of furniture in storage that I’ll move here later when I’m settled.” Those pieces were the only connection she had to her adoptive father. A rush of sadness washed over her at the thought of never seeing him again. Such a good man.

Kane glanced at the box. “I can lend you a hand with your unloading.”

“That’s great.” Although a deep ache had burrowed into her heart, she arranged her features into a smile. “I have one helper, but truthfully I wasn’t sure how I was going to get some of the larger items up those stairs.”

“Who’s helping you?”

“Kenny.” Maggie started to ask some questions about him and Ashley when the two children appeared in the doorway. Kenny grinned while Ashley hid behind her big brother, peeping around him with her thumb in her mouth.

Maggie wanted more than anything to scoop both children up in her arms and hug them tightly. She might never be able to do that; she might always be no more than the lady who lived across the hall. The realization cut deeply.

“Are you all ready to work?” Maggie asked, putting a firm lid down on her volatile emotions.

Kenny nodded while Ashley stared at the floor.

“I’ll pay you, too, Ashley.” Maggie stepped to the side to get a better view of her little sister.

The child ducked behind Kenny even more, concealing her face from Maggie. A knifelike pain sliced through her heart. Her half sister wasn’t playing hide-and-seek; she was hiding—from her. Ashley’s actions only reinforced the fact that Maggie was a stranger to her own family.

“She’s an old scaredy-cat. She’ll probably just watch. That’s all she ever does.” Kenny frowned at his baby sister.

“That’s okay.” Whirling around, Maggie headed out into the hallway, needing fresh air desperately.

A bond with Ashley formed in the moment Maggie watched her little sister trudge out of the apartment behind Kenny, her gaze glued to the floor, her thumb in her mouth. She knew the frightened feelings Ashley experienced around new people because she had been there herself until one day she’d decided she couldn’t spend her life locked up inside of herself and did something about it. She’d forced herself out of her shell but only so far. Still craving solitude, she preferred watching people from a distance, but it was suddenly very important to help Ashley. Maggie prayed the child would let her.

Descending the staircase, Maggie suppressed a flash of anger. All her life she’d wanted a large family, full of brothers and sisters, laughter and love. Now she was faced with two children who regarded her as a stranger and would never know her as their big sister since she had no intention of saying anything about who she was. She only wanted to get to know them from afar, learn about them from her observations. Why give her birth mother a second chance to reject her? She’d had enough of that in her life.

The next afternoon after Edwina Bacon paid her a visit with a welcome gift of banana nut bread, Maggie sat at her kitchen table downing a large glass of iced tea, relishing the cool liquid as she took a break from unpacking. Every muscle in her body ached. She rolled her shoulders, refusing to look at the spot where Henry Payne’s body had been. There wasn’t a trace of blood on the beige tile because it was brand new, shining in the sunlight streaming through the bay window that overlooked the lake and yard.

Back to work. Finishing her drink, she pushed to her feet and put her glass in the sink. When she started for the living room, a pounding at her front door interrupted her trek to the nearest box. Instead, she answered the urgency in the knock.

“School’s out already?” Maggie asked as she took in the sight of Kenny. Then she noticed the frantic look in his eyes. “What’s wrong?”

“Come quick. It’s Ashley. She can’t breathe.”

In a space of a heartbeat, Maggie reacted to Kenny’s words. She hastened across the hall to the Pennington’s open front door, following the boy into the apartment. Ashley stood near the dining room table, clutching her throat, trying desperately to draw air into her lungs, her eyes wide with fear. The bluish tint to Ashley’s skin alarmed Maggie. She must have something in her throat. For a few seconds, terror held her immobile until her emergency training kicked in.

Maggie raced to the little girl and encircled her torso. Please, dear God, not Ashley. I can’t lose her now.

Clasping a fisted hand under the child’s rib cage, Maggie pressed upward in four quick thrusts. Relief trembled through her when she saw a peanut pop out of the girl’s mouth. Ashley coughed, then began to breathe again.

Maggie gently laid the child on the floor, then hugged Ashley to her. The sound of Maggie’s heart beating roared in her ears as she struggled to control the quaking of her body. She had to remain calm, but for the life of her, she wasn’t sure how she would. She had almost lost her sister, and she had just found her.

“Are you all right?” Maggie asked when she thought her voice would work.

Ashley’s shudder rippled along Maggie’s body. The child nodded but kept her arms locked about Maggie while dragging in deep breaths. She stroked the little girl’s long brown hair and thanked the Lord.

“You’ll be okay now,” Maggie whispered as much to reassure herself as her sister. Never in her life had she felt so scared as she had when she had seen Ashley unable to suck in air.

The five-year-old sobbed against Maggie’s chest, tremor after tremor passing through her small body into hers. “I—I couldn’t—breathe.”

“I know, honey.” Her arms around Ashley tightened as though Maggie could absorb the child’s fear and wipe from her mind the past few minutes. What if she hadn’t been here to help? She clung tighter to the child.

“What happened?” Kane asked from the doorway.

“Maggie saved Ashley’s life,” Kenny said, his face still registering his own fear and panic. “She was blue!”

Maggie looked up at Kane, his gaze ensnaring hers. “She’ll be all right now. A peanut went down the wrong way.”

For a brief moment distress lined his face until Kane visibly took command of his emotions. He glanced from Maggie to Ashley. Crossing the room, he took the child into his arms. The small girl wrapped herself against him as he held her cradled to him, his eyes soft with concern, a smile of reassurance on his face.

“Uncle Kane, I tried to. Really I tried.” Ashley hiccupped between her words, tears cascading down her cheeks.

An ashen cast to his skin sharpened the hard planes of his face. “Shh,” Kane whispered while he held Ashley in his arms. “I won’t let anything else happen to you.”

He walked down the hallway toward the bedrooms and disappeared inside one. Maggie stood. All strength flowed from her legs. She clutched a dining room chair to steady herself, trying to assimilate what had just taken place.

“Kenny! What’s going on in here?”

Both Maggie and Kenny turned at the sound of the woman’s voice. Maggie felt paralyzed, staring at the woman who had given birth to her. In that instant when their gazes touched, time came to a standstill for Maggie. She didn’t have to be introduced to Victoria Pennington to know the woman standing inside the doorway was her birth mother. She was a stranger, yet she was familiar at the same time. Maggie experienced the most disconcerting feeling.

“Who is this woman, Kenny? You know my rule. No one is allowed in this apartment when I’m gone.” Victoria’s gaze swung from Kenny to Maggie. Victoria placed her hands on her son’s shoulders, her stance protective, her expression accusing as she continued to scrutinize Maggie, stranger to stranger.

Don’t you recognize me? Don’t you know who I am?

Maggie pushed away from the chair holding her up, a taut band about her chest making each breath difficult. “I’m your new neighbor, Maggie Ridgeway.” The words came out in a whisper, her mouth parched. It took all her strength to remain standing a few feet from Victoria Pennington and not shout the truth. Maggie wanted to run; she felt as if her carefully thought-out plan was blowing up in her face, leaving fragments behind to slice her composure to shreds.

“Kenny, that still doesn’t excuse you from breaking an important rule,” the woman said in a softer tone.

Maggie backed away, beads of sweat coating her brow. She needed to leave before she hyperventilated.

“She saved Ashley’s life. She wasn’t breathing—”

“What? Where’s Ashley?”

“In her room with Uncle Kane,” Kenny answered.

Victoria rushed down the hall as Kane came out of Ashley’s bedroom. “Vicky, she’s okay. She’s sleeping now.”

With hands clenched at her sides, fingernails digging into her palms, Maggie took another step toward the door, the air charged with intense emotions that demanded she feel something other than indignation. But at this moment she couldn’t deny the anger deep in her heart.

While Kane briefly explained what happened, Vicky peered into the room and sighed. “She fell asleep the minute I put her down.”

“I should have been here. I got held up at the office. The police came again to the campus to question everyone who knew Henry.”

“Yeah, I know. They talked with me.” Kane shot Kenny a look.

Vicky closed her daughter’s bedroom door and headed toward the living area with Kane. “I wish I didn’t have to work. Then that wouldn’t have happened.”

“It could have happened with you sitting right here.”

“John and I are so lucky to have you here. You’re like a member of the family. I miss not living near mine.”

Maggie felt as if she had been slapped in the face. To them she was an outsider. But I belong. She bit the inside of her mouth to keep from shouting the truth. The realization that the words she had no intention of saying had been on the tip of her tongue sent alarm through her.

Kane nodded toward Maggie. “Thankfully Maggie was home to help Kenny.”

“I’m sorry about the earlier reception. As you may have gathered by now, I’m Kenny and Ashley’s mother, Vicky Pennington. Thanks for saving,” her voice faltered for a few seconds before she swallowed hard and finished, “my little girl.”

My little girl. But I am also. Lord, I can’t do this.

Both Kane and Vicky waited for a response. Maggie fought down the panic surfacing. She needed to escape, retreat to her apartment and regroup.

“I’m glad I was here to help out,” Maggie finally said, her throat closing about the words. Her anger swelled to the surface, her fingernails cutting deeper into her palms. Why did you give me up? She was afraid to say anything for fear that question would tumble out.

“I helped Maggie move in yesterday,” Kenny said, breaking the awkward moment of silence. “She paid me ten dollars!” He took the money out of his pocket and waved it in the air.

Vicky shifted her attention to her son. “Ten dollars?”

Envy, doubt and anger constricted Maggie’s stomach. She prayed none of her confused feelings were showing on her face. As Kenny and Vicky talked, Maggie saw her chance to escape. She took the few steps to the entrance and fled into the hallway.

Her gaze fastened on her door, she headed for it. The sound of the one behind her closing relaxed some of the tension in her until she heard Kane say, “Are you all right?”

“Great,” she murmured and thrust open her door. Safe.

She turned to close it, but Kane had already slipped inside her apartment. She rotated away from his probing gaze. It was bad enough she felt this seesawing between anger and hurt. She certainly didn’t want him to see it in her expression.

The sight of the disarray and stacked boxes accentuated her loneliness, a sense of abandonment. She hadn’t been prepared for this tangle of confusion twisting her stomach. In St. Louis she had thought she could handle this objectively as she did most things in her life. Wrong. There was nothing objective about this situation.

“Maggie?”

The sound of her front door finally being closed echoed through the apartment—her home now, hundreds of miles away from anything familiar. Why did I do this? Why couldn’t I be happy not ever knowing why my mother gave me up, what my heritage is? Lord, why do I have two mothers who don’t really want me? She desperately sought the strength she always gained when she turned to God for reassurance and comfort.

“Maggie, you aren’t all right.” Kane touched her hand, sending a bolt of recognition up her arm.

His nearness further eroded her self-confidence, making herself doubt her sanity for even considering this move. She’d gone through life insulating herself from others, and suddenly the walls were crumbling, her usual defenses no longer working. She stepped away, needing to put some distance between them.

His worried expression prompted her to say, “I’m fine. Why do you ask?” None of the nonchalance she wanted to project came across. She held herself so taut that her body ached.

“Oh, I don’t know. Maybe it was the pale tone to your skin or the fact you didn’t even tell Kenny and Vicky goodbye.”

Feigning an interest in an open box, she lifted her shoulders in a shrug. “It isn’t every day I save someone’s life.”

“True. But my gut instinct tells me something else is going on here.”

She picked up a book and flipped through it as though she hadn’t a care in the world. “What possibly could be going on?” When she thought she had herself under control, she faced him.

He studied her, that piercing gaze of his roaming over her as though he could read her innermost thoughts. She prayed he couldn’t because after that scene in the Penningtons’ apartment she didn’t know if she could go ahead with her quest. She wanted answers, not a relationship with her birth mother. She’d already had one with her adoptive mother that hadn’t turned out well. Why subject herself to another?

But still, there were blank holes in her family history she wanted filled. Could she form a friendship with the woman across the hall and discover the answers without disrupting anyone’s lives, especially Kenny’s and Ashley’s?

Shaking his head, Kane massaged the back of his neck. “You know I usually make it a habit to stay out of other people’s business.”

“Safer, isn’t it?”

The intensity in his eyes trapped her. “Yes. Much safer.”

For a long moment she stared at him. She glimpsed his vulnerability, a flash of pain, and that touched her battered heart. She wished she could deny his potent effect on her, but she couldn’t. She wished she could deny the spark of interest she sensed in his eyes before he veiled it, but she couldn’t. Just as she couldn’t give up her quest when she was so close to finding some answers.

They both had their secrets. The barrier he had placed around his emotions was strong, possibly impregnable, and she had never been good at tearing down another’s defenses because she couldn’t get past her own, fortified from years of rejection.

She averted her gaze. “Did you take care of everything in here yesterday?” That ought to be a safe enough subject. His visual assault still tingled up her body. She kept her eyes fixed on a spot across the room.

He moved toward the front door. “I believe everything is good to go. If not, Edwina can take care of it.”

“Kane.”

He stopped and glanced back at her, his expression completely masked, no vulnerability evident.

“Yes, Maggie?”

“Thanks.”

“For what? The Penningtons are special to me. I should be thanking you for saving Ashley.”

“For your help today.” For understanding and not pushing, she finished silently.

He inclined his head toward her, then left. The door closing magnified the feeling of loneliness that had inundated Maggie earlier. She looked about at the chaos. She felt her life was like the items in the boxes, not one of them in its proper place.

Suddenly she needed to get away from the apartment. Walking into her bedroom, she dug through a box until she found her jogging clothes and her MP3 player. One of the best ways she had found to handle her stress was to exercise—hard. After donning her shorts, T-shirt and tennis shoes, she left to run until she was too exhausted even to think.

An hour later and bone tired, Maggie let herself into her apartment, removing her earplugs and placing her MP3 player on the table in the small foyer. The idea of a hot shower prodded her to move faster toward her bedroom even though her muscles ached from her grueling workout.

She entered the room, her gaze immediately fastening onto the boxes stacked against one wall. An unfamiliar scent accosted her nostrils. The hairs on her nape tingled. She started to turn.

Thud!

Something hard slammed into the back of her head. As she crumbled to the floor, the blackness swallowed her up.

THREE

Pain pulsated a pounding rhythm against her skull. Maggie reached up and touched the spot that throbbed. A sticky substance coated her fingertips. Although the darkness reeled behind her closed eyes, she slowly opened the lids. Light assaulted her, and she shut them immediately.

What happened?

Again she inched her eyes open, letting them adjust to the brightness that illuminated her bedroom. She held her hand up in front of her face and saw the red that covered her skin.

Someone hit me?

She remembered coming into her apartment and heading for her bedroom. After that, a blank slate greeted her probing. She was lying prone on the hardwood floor so something had happened. But what?

As though in slow motion, she twisted to her side to push herself to her feet. Halfway up, the room spinning before her, she clutched the small table by the doorway to steady herself. It came crashing down on top of her. The books she had stacked on it tumbled into her and sent her collapsing to the floor. She hit her head in the same place that hurt. Pain streaked outward in waves that threatened to drive her back into the black void.

Edwina Bacon shuffled toward her recliner in front of her TV when she heard a loud noise as if something above her in Maggie’s apartment struck the floor. After all that happened in the past month, the manager of Twin Oaks skirted her chair and made her way toward her front door. She jingled her keys in her pocket to make sure she had them and left her place.

With her hand on the ornate carved banister, she climbed the stairs as quickly as she could.

At Maggie’s place, Edwina rang the bell.

Nothing.

She pressed in the white button a second time then a third.

With a glance from side to side, Edwina removed her key ring and found the one to Maggie’s. If she wasn’t home, what caused that sound? If she was home, why hadn’t she answered the door?

Edwina inserted her key and paused before turning the handle. Memories of Henry’s death only weeks before inundated her. She prayed this wasn’t a repeat of what happened to Henry. For a few seconds she thought of going back down and calling Kane or her nephew at the police station.

Lord, what should I do?

What if Maggie had fallen and hurt herself and couldn’t come to the door? What if she needed help now? With her teeth clenched, Edwina twisted the knob and pushed the door open.

“Maggie? Are you all right?”

Edwina stood in the entrance and glanced around. Relieved nothing seemed disturbed although there were still unopened boxes scattered about the living room, she moved a foot into the apartment, leaving the door wide open.

“Maggie,” she called.

A moan sounded from the bedroom. Edwina hurried as fast as she could down the hallway. Her heart pounded with each step against the hardwood planks.

Then Edwina saw Maggie. She lay on the floor, her eyelids fluttering. Books were scattered about her, and a small table sat at an angle across her stomach.

With an effort, Edwina knelt next to Maggie. Edwina pressed her lips together to keep her own moan inside her at the pain in her aching knees. Maggie needed her help.

“Maggie,” she touched the young woman’s shoulder, “what happened?”

Maggie grimaced as her gaze connected with hers. “I’m not sure.”

“Here, let me help you up.” Edwina pushed the small table to the side, slid several books away and clasped the new tenant’s arm.

She attempted to hoist herself up, but pain flitted across her features.

“Where are you hurt?” Edwina’s gaze fixed on the red stain on the wooden floor.

Maggie sank back, drew in a deep breath and brought her hand to her head. “Here.”

“Let me see.” Gently Edwina turned the young woman’s head and saw the gash and her hair matted with blood. “You must have hit your head hard when you fell.”

“No.”

The weakness of her denial made Edwina look back into Maggie’s eyes, dulled with pain, the young woman’s features pale with a gray tinge.

Silence reigned for a good minute, the new tenant’s brow creased as though she were recalling something. “Someone hit me from behind.”

“Someone was in here?”

“Yes,” Maggie said in a more definitive voice. “When I came home from my jog, the person must have been in here waiting for me.”

“Why?”

“I don’t know. A robbery attempt?”

Edwina felt the shiver that shimmied down Maggie’s body. “I’m calling my nephew. He’s a detective with the police department. We can’t have this in our apartment building. You lie right there while I get some help.”

“But—”

“Don’t move. I’ll be right back.” Edwina struggled to her feet, her breathing coming in gasps, and started for the door.

With her shock receding, a thought wormed its way into Maggie’s mind. She could have been killed. Suddenly the idea of being by herself in her apartment caused her to blurt out, “Don’t leave me.”

Edwina halted. “Oh, dear me. I’m not leaving. I’m just going to make a few calls.”

Maggie gestured toward the bedside table, finally managing to sit up slowly. “I’ve got a phone over there, and it’s hooked up.”

Edwina spotted it, and her face brightened into a smile. “That you do.” She shuffled over to the bed and sat while she dialed.

Maggie listened to her make two calls, first to Kane then to her nephew David Morgan. Although Edwina’s words were muffled, Maggie heard the concern in the older woman’s voice. And Edwina’s sober expression only confirmed the seriousness of Maggie’s situation.

Maggie tried to think what she should do, but the throbbing pain encompassed her whole head now as though a marching band performed inside her skull. No coherent thoughts materialized, and she wilted back against the wall.

A few minutes later while Edwina was still talking to her nephew, someone entered her apartment. Hurried footsteps resonated down her hallway. Was her attacker returning to finish the job? Maggie tensed, that slight movement pulsating a warning to her brain she ignored. She labored to sit straight up, but the action increased the hammering pain in her head until she could no longer ignore her plight.

Kane appeared in her bedroom doorway. Exhaling her pent-up breath, Maggie wished she was anywhere but sprawled across the floor, her hair a tangled mess, her workout clothes askew. There was nothing dignified about her position, but she was so glad it wasn’t the intruder returning.

“Edwina told me someone broke into your apartment.”

Kane bent over and lifted her up into his arms as though she weighed ten pounds. As he walked to her bed, his clean scent of soap with a hint of pine wafted to her. She resisted the urge to lay her head on his shoulder and surrender to the blackness that edged closer with each jarring motion.

Gently, as though she was precious to him, Kane placed her on her coverlet. Its softness cocooned around her legs as she eased back against the headboard. She was careful not to get any blood on her linens, careful not to make any sudden moves or touch the place where her intruder struck her. “Thanks.”

He hovered above her, the look on his face hard and somber. “You need to be checked out at the emergency room.”

“I know.” The pounding against her skull underscored her need to see a doctor. She knew the dangers of a concussion, and if the pain was any indication, she had a doozy.

Edwina hung up. “Kane, can you take Maggie to the hospital?”

“Yes.”

Maggie wanted to protest but wouldn’t. She hated being beholden to anyone, but she really didn’t have much of a choice. She couldn’t see driving herself to the emergency room.

Edwina turned toward Maggie. “I’m having David meet me here to check out your apartment. Then we’ll come to the hospital. He’ll get a statement from you there. Do you think anything is missing?”

So many of her things were still in boxes. Maggie, without moving her head, made a visual sweep of the room. “Nothing looks disturbed, but I’ll need to go through what I have to be sure.”

“I noticed your TV in the living room. Where’s your jewelry? That’s something else a burglar takes.” Edwina pushed herself off the other side of the double bed.

“In the jewelry box on my dresser.” Maggie pointed toward it.

Edwina retrieved it and set it in Maggie’s lap. “You might want to check it.”

She opened the intricately carved box of cherry wood that her father had given her two birthdays ago, right before he’d died. The thought pained her more than the ache in her head.

She didn’t have much but the few valuable pieces—a gold cross on a delicate chain, a cameo pin, a ring with a large red garnet encircled with tiny diamonds and a pair of opal earrings—were all there among her costume jewelry. “Nothing’s gone.”

“Odd,” Edwina muttered as she took the box back to the dresser.

Kane moved close. “Ready?”

Maggie inhaled a deep breath. “As ready as I’m going to be.”

She started to swing her legs over the side of the bed at the same time Kane began to scoop her up into his arms. She held her hand up. “I can walk.”

There was no way she wanted him to carry her to his car. The very thought sent panic through her. The twenty seconds she had been in his embrace earlier was all she cared to experience. Liar, she chided herself. She’d enjoyed the feel of his arms about her more than she wanted to admit.

But as she slowly rose from the bed, her wishes were denied. The room rotated. She collapsed back and clutched the coverlet to keep herself upright. The jerking action, however, swirled the room faster. She closed her eyes, but that only caused the dark to revolve. Her stomach roiled. That was when Kane’s strong arms enveloped her in their protective circle. Again he lifted her effortlessly and headed toward the door.

The exertion of holding her head up was too much for her. She surrendered to her earlier urge and laid her cheek against the cushion of his shoulder. The motion of him walking jounced her so she slid her eyes shut and bit down on her lower lip. Nausea continued to agitate her stomach. This bump on the noggin was worse than she’d thought.

“I don’t want to stay overnight!” Maggie tried to keep her head steady because any movement sent pain through her and riled her stomach. When would the medication the doctor gave her start working?

Kane folded his arms across his chest. “Well, I’m not taking you home, and I doubt you’re in any condition to walk the ten blocks.”

“Did anyone tell you that you’re not very accommodating?”

“Yep, many times.”

The firm set of his mouth told her she wouldn’t be able to budge him. Besides, he was right. She didn’t think she could walk across the room without feeling sick. At least lying in this hospital bed kept the pain at a bearable level.

The door swished open, and Edwina, with a man in worn jeans and a sweatshirt, entered. A grin that dimpled Edwina’s wrinkled cheeks appeared as she shuffled across the room.

“Maggie, I want you to meet my nephew, David Morgan. He’s a detective with Seven Oaks Police Department and will be working your case.”

The detective extended his hand, and Maggie shook it. “It’s nice to meet you. I just wish it were under different circumstances.”

“Me, too. I took a look around your apartment. The intruder didn’t disturb anything that Aunt Edwina and I could find, but I want you to go through it when you feel better and let me know for sure. Did you see anything?”

“No. Now that I’ve had time to think about it, I sensed something when I came into my bedroom and started to turn when I was hit from behind. I can’t even tell you if it was a man or a woman.”

David pulled out a pad with a stub for a pencil. “What did you sense?”

Maggie tried to remember what it was that alerted her to the fact something was different. A blank screen stretched before her. “I can’t remember.”

“Can you remember anything else?”

Maggie tried to replay the whole scene in her mind, but she always came up blank by the time she reached her bedroom. “No, everything seemed normal. My door was locked, and I let myself in. Nothing looked out of place.”

“Are you sure it was locked?”

“Yes, why do you ask?”

“I couldn’t find any signs of forced entry.” David jotted something down on his pad.

“So how did the intruder get into her apartment?” Kane asked before Maggie had a chance.

“I don’t know for sure. Could he have had a key? Maybe Henry gave one out to someone.” David made another note.

“That doesn’t sound like Henry, but I guess he could have,” Edwina said, her lips pinched together.

“We may never know for sure. Maggie, let me know if you do remember anything else.” Edwina’s nephew dug into his back pocket and withdrew a card. “This is my number. Call me with anything you can remember, even if you think it’s not important.”

“Do you think this break-in has anything to do with the murder that occurred in the apartment?” Maggie voiced the question that had plagued her since she had awakened, especially since it was possible the intruder used a key that he somehow got from Henry.

David stroked his chin. “Maybe. I’m not sure what, though.”

“Yeah, that’s what has me puzzled.” Maggie’s gaze sought Kane. “Where are Henry’s possessions? Who took them?”

“Edwina and I boxed them up, and they’re in the basement. Henry doesn’t have any relatives we can find.”

“So there wasn’t any reason for the murderer to break into my place.”

Kane frowned. “Not that I can see, but I’m going to beef up the security. I’ll be changing everyone’s locks. I’m checking into getting a security system for the building.”

“I’ll be talking to your tenants to see if someone saw anything.” David pocketed his pad and chewed pencil. “Aunt Edwina has already given me her statement. How about you, Kane? Did you hear or see something out of the ordinary?”

“No, since I came home earlier than I’d originally planned, I was in my workshop, finishing up a table. Until Edwina called, I didn’t know anything had happened. I had my sander going and barely heard my cell phone ringing.”

“I didn’t see or hear anything, either, and when I went up the stairs, there was nobody around.” Maggie shifted cautiously to make herself more comfortable—nothing helped.

Edwina took Maggie’s hand and patted it. “Don’t you worry. Tomorrow night at a building meeting in my apartment, I’ll get everyone to be on the lookout. This won’t happen again.”

Maggie wished she could believe that. Although neighborhood watches were effective to a point, they didn’t stop burglaries altogether. “Hopefully the robber saw that I didn’t have much to steal and won’t be back.”

Edwina squeezed her hand. “I’m sure you’re right, dear. The meeting will be at seven-thirty, and David’s going to give a little talk about what we can do to be more alert.”

Her nephew’s eyebrows shot up. “I am?”

“Yes, I want the tenants to see the seriousness of the situation, and a detective’s presence will make that point beautifully. Besides, I’m serving those cookies you love so much.”

David grinned. “And tea?”

“Of course, dear. Decaf, however, since it’s in the evening. I wouldn’t want to be responsible for keeping anyone up all night.” After another pat, Edwina released Maggie’s hand. “We’ll go and let you get some rest. This has been a trying day.”

Trying day was putting it mildly. Maggie shifted again. But thankfully the pain’s intensity had finally dulled slightly with the medication.

When Edwina and her nephew left, the energy in the room decreased to a normal level. “She’s a ball of fire.”

“I wouldn’t be surprised if she started patrolling the halls,” Kane said in a serious tone while a gleam danced in his eyes.

Maggie chuckled at that picture. “Don’t make me laugh. It hurts too much.”

Kane moved closer. “Seriously, Edwina’s right. We’ll need to be more alert. Too much has happened in my apartment building in the past month. I’ll make what changes I can, but until the person who murdered Henry is caught, I won’t feel safe.”

“I agree. But it’s been almost three weeks. The longer it goes unsolved the harder it will be.”

“If you want to get out of your lease, I won’t stop you.”

“No!” Her fervent tone caused surprise to flare into his eyes. “I can’t move again. Besides, I haven’t got a connection to Henry, and there’s nothing of value to steal, which I’m sure the thief discovered. My old TV wouldn’t bring fifty dollars.”

“Then we’re going to have to hope the case is solved. The thing is Henry wasn’t a well-liked man.”

Maggie rubbed her temple. “Not liking a person doesn’t mean you’d murder him.”

“Let me put it another way. He was hated by a lot of people in Seven Oaks.”

“Who?”

“Probably everyone who worked in his department and others at the university.”

“Why?”

“He wasn’t a nice man. He took pleasure in making life difficult for others.”

Exhaustion cleaved to her. Maggie closed her eyes for a few seconds. “Are you one of those people?” When she peered at Kane again, she saw a glimpse of something that looked like distaste.

A shutter fell over his features. “He wasn’t one of my favorite people.”

The next evening Maggie entered Edwina’s apartment ten minutes late for the building meeting. People crowded into the older woman’s living room. In the short time Maggie had lived at Twin Oaks she had seen everyone at least once in the hallway, but she hadn’t really gotten to know anyone except Edwina and Kane.

Especially not her birth mother. Besides yesterday when she’d helped Ashley, she’d only seen Vicky once today in the hallway. And that brief exchange had left her drained. She wasn’t good at keeping secrets.

“How are you doing?” Edwina came forward to usher Maggie inside. “Let me introduce you to everyone.” The older woman took her by the arm. “Now that Maggie has arrived, we can start our meeting. Since she’s the new kid on the block, let’s go around the room and introduce ourselves.”

The person closest to Edwina tipped his head forward. “I’m Bradley Quinn. I don’t live here, but my parents live upstairs right above you. They asked me to come and report back to them. Mom isn’t feeling well, and Dad’s at a high school function.”

Maggie shook the tall, thin man’s cold hand. His features should have been attractive except for the permanent frown lines about his mouth and on his forehead. His face, like his body, was long and thin with a mane of chestnut hair, shoulder length, that he kept fidgeting with.

“Bradley might as well live here. He spends a good deal of time with us. He’s my nephew. I’ll make sure I introduce you to my sister and her husband soon.” Turning toward Bradley, Edwina grinned. “Tell Ann I’ll make her some of my chicken soup. That ought to make her better in no time.”

Maggie moved to the next person beside Bradley. A petite, dark-haired beauty that she knew to be Kyra Williams, Henry Payne’s secretary. “I’ve seen you several times with a little boy.”

“My son. Thankfully Edwina arranged for a high school student from our church to babysit the children at the Sellman’s this evening while we meet.”

“Normally Kenny watches them when we’re nearby, but with all that has happened lately we thought it best to have an older teen.” Edwina scrunched up her mouth. “I guess technically Kenny has eighteen months to go before he is an official teenager.”

“Please don’t remind us, Edwina.”

The large, muscular man who had made that comment had to be John Pennington with blue eyes and a buzz cut. He sat next to Vicky, holding her hand.

“It’s good to finally meet you since we live across the hall from each other.” And you’re my mother’s husband. Maggie bit down on the inside of her mouth to keep those words quiet.

“You’ve met Vicky, John’s wife.” Edwina passed on to a couple next to Maggie’s birth mother. “This is Thomas and Lisa Sellman. They live across the hall from me.”

Maggie greeted both of them, trying to remember what Edwina had told her about Thomas and Lisa. He was a graduate student at Seven Oaks University, working part-time at the school while Lisa was a hairstylist. “It’s nice to meet you two.”

“Okay, now that the introductions have been made, let’s get down to business.” Edwina gestured for Maggie to take a seat on the couch next to Kane. “My nephew has been kind enough to come talk to us about what we can do to make this apartment safer for us and our families.”

David Morgan rose from a rocking chair with his cup of tea in hand. He downed some then settled it back in its saucer on a small round table next to him. “Actually there are a lot of things you can do to make sure you all are as safe as possible. Being alert is paramount.”

As David went into detail of how they could be more alert, Maggie scanned the people sitting around Edwina’s living room. Her neighbors. All strangers. She was the outsider, something she was familiar with in her life. They all knew each other, from what Edwina had said, for a couple of years at the very least. Henry had been the last person to move into the building two years ago. Since that time, there hadn’t been a vacancy until the murder.

The sense of being watched engulfed Maggie. She swept her gaze around the circle and found Vicky staring at her. Maggie tensed. Did she see something familiar? Panic took hold until the older woman smiled, her eyes crinkling with warmth. She nodded her head slightly then returned her attention to what David was saying. Maggie released a long sigh that didn’t escape Kane’s notice.

He leaned close. “You’ll be safe. I’m making it my personal mission.”

The intensity in his voice reassured her. At that moment she felt very safe.

After David finished speaking, Kane stood and moved forward. “Today all the doors to your apartments were checked to make sure they were solid wood and the hinges have non-removable pins. I changed the locks—adding dead bolts as well as peepholes so you can tell who has come to your door.”

Kane’s gaze snagged Maggie’s. He had accomplished a lot in one day. Again the sense of security in his presence surprised her. She really didn’t know him well, and yet she felt he would protect her at all costs.

“Now for the outside doors.” Kane looked away from Maggie and made eye contact with each of his tenants. “I’m going to install a system where a person will have to buzz someone inside to be let into the building. It will be locked. People can go out but can’t come in without someone letting them in or having a key.”

“What about the children?” Vicky took a cookie from a plate that Edwina passed around the circle.

“I’ll work with them. They’ll get used to the system.”

“I, for one, am elated that we’ll have a system like you described. It makes me feel my son is safe. He could play in the hallway and I wouldn’t worry about him.” Kyra gave the cookie platter to Bradley, who was behind her wing chair.

“This will be better and will reassure Mom.” Bradley reached around Kyra to hand the plate to John.

“David, are there any leads on who killed Henry?” John shifted his large frame on the love seat and rolled his shoulders as if he were stiff and sore.

“None to speak of.”

“Was the break-in connected to the murder?” Lisa Sellman rose and walked to the teapot to pour herself some more.

“Yeah, was it connected?” Vicky’s frown reminded Maggie of hers when she was really upset.

Tension flowed off her birth mother, affecting Maggie more than she cared to acknowledge. She didn’t owe the woman anything.

“We don’t know. With Kane’s safety procedures and you all being more alert, there shouldn’t be any more problems.” David grabbed the last two cookies on the plate then placed it on the coffee table. “I have to get back to the station. You all know how to get in touch with me if you can think of anything from the day Henry was killed or yesterday when Miss Ridgeway’s apartment was broken into.” He strode toward the door.

Edwina hurried after her nephew. “Thanks for coming. See you at church on Sunday.”

David kissed his aunt on the cheek and left. The click of the door as he closed it sounded in the quiet. No one said anything for a good minute. John chewed his cookie. Lisa drank her tea. Kyra stared a hole into the carpet at her feet.

The anxiety, created by Vicky’s presence, in Maggie increased until she felt as if she would snap in two pieces. She couldn’t shake the idea that the break-in and the murder were connected, although she wasn’t sure why.

Suddenly a thought gripped her. Has anyone checked Henry’s possessions lately to see if they have been disturbed?

Maggie clasped Kane’s arm. His gaze swung to her. “After the meeting, can we check Henry’s things in the basement?”

“You think someone’s gone through them?”

“I don’t know. Maybe.”

“Then let’s do it now.” Kane came to his feet and offered Maggie his hand.

For a few seconds she stared at it, his fingers long and strong from gripping a sanding block. He created beautiful pieces of furniture with those hands. She fit hers within his and allowed him to help her stand. Her vision wavered from the quick movement. She wasn’t used to taking it slow and easy. With him close, she ambled toward the small foyer in Edwina’s apartment.

“You two leaving?” Edwina asked, cutting off their escape.

“Yes, it’s been a long day, and I’m still not feeling one hundred percent.” All of which was true, but Maggie didn’t want to say anything to anyone about where she and Kane were going before she returned to her own apartment. No sense alarming the tenants anymore than they already were. Besides it was probably nothing. Just her trying to make some sense out of something random.

“Dear, I don’t want you to worry about breakfast. I’m bringing you some tomorrow morning.”

“You don’t have—”

“Of course, I don’t have to. I want to.” Edwina’s two dimples appeared in her wrinkled cheeks. “Call me in the morning when you get up. I’ll bring it then.”

Kane reached around Maggie to open the door. His arm brushed up against hers, his touch jolting her. She took a small step back.

Edwina grasped her hand and squeezed it. “Will you be okay upstairs by yourself in your apartment?”

“Sure,” Maggie said without thinking. On second thought, she wasn’t so positive about her answer. She’d spent the night in the hospital and had only stayed in her apartment a few hours before coming to Edwina’s. In that time she’d checked the new locks on her door several times and had jumped at any sound she’d heard.

“I have a spare bedroom for guests. You can stay with me if you want.”

While Kane moved out into the hall, Maggie turned toward Edwina and hugged her. “Edwina, you’re so kind to offer. I may not have been here long, but that apartment is my home now. I won’t let anyone run me off. I’ll deal with it. God is with me.”

Edwina’s eyes twinkled. “That He is. Are you still coming with me to church on Sunday?”

“I wouldn’t miss it for the world. I should be fine by then. Good night, Edwina, and again thanks for the offer.”

Maggie stared back at the door as the older woman closed it. Edwina was wonderful and kind. She’d been lucky to find someone like her in Seven Oaks, in the very building she lived in. She felt so alone here without any family and friends. And now with Vicky across the hall, seeing her every day but not being a part of her life, the loneliness was even more evident.

“Ready?” Kane headed toward the back of the house and the steps that led to the basement.

“I’m not sure if I want to find something missing or not.” Maggie followed him down the stairs.

“We’ll know shortly and deal with it either way.” Kane unlocked the door to the large storage area and let Maggie enter first.

The huge room was partitioned into cages where the tenants could store their belongings they didn’t need in their apartments. Kane crossed to the far wall to the cage next to hers.

“This is an extra one I have in case someone needs more space.” He searched for the key to the cage, and when he found it on his ring, he reached for the padlock.

After unlocking the chain link entrance, Kane advanced inside. Maggie came up beside him. With a deep scowl, he swung around and stared at the padlock then back at the stacked boxes.

“What’s wrong?” Apprehension washed over Maggie as though she had been caught in a sudden downpour.

“Someone has been in here.”

FOUR

“How can you tell?” Maggie scanned the boxes in the cage in the storeroom and didn’t see anything that looked out of place. Everything was neat, piled around the perimeter in orderly rows two deep.

Kane pointed to three of the boxes that were in back with four on each side of them. “Because I stacked the back row four high and the second one three exactly. One’s missing.”

“Are you sure?” The implication meant the intruder probably had been after something he’d thought was in the apartment.

“Yes.” His jaw hardened into a firm line.

She gestured to his key ring. “Is that the only key to the padlock?”

“Edwina has the other one.”

“Would she have a reason to take one of Henry Payne’s boxes?”

“No, and they were heavy. She can’t lift anything over ten pounds. I can’t see her taking a box for any reason.”

“Then that means someone picked the padlock.”

“Or took Edwina’s key.”

The damp chill in the cage seeped into her bones. “Who has a key to this room?”

“Only the tenants in the building.” Kane walked to the storeroom’s entrance and checked the lock. “This looks okay.”

Not liking the idea that one of the tenants took Henry’s possessions, Maggie moved to the cage’s padlock. She bent down and examined it. “Has this always had scratch marks on it?”

Kane inspected it, too. “No. It’s brand-new. I didn’t have a padlock for this cage until I needed it for Henry’s possessions.”

“Picking a lock isn’t easy. Maybe it was a burglar who knew what he was doing.” She hoped that was the case and not something tied to the murder and the people at Twin Oaks Apartments.

“Then how did he get in here?”

She shrugged. “With a key, or he picked that lock, too, and it doesn’t show.”

“I’m glad I’m getting added security on the doors into the building.”

But that wouldn’t help if the culprit was someone in the building. The very idea chilled her. “Someone probably read about the murder and saw an opportunity to steal from a dead man. You know how some robbers read the obits and see when a person’s funeral is then go rob him when everyone is at the service.” She wanted to believe that, but in her heart she knew that wasn’t the answer. Maybe Henry had something valuable one of the tenants decided to steal.

“I suppose that could be the case, but…”

“That might also explain why the burglar came to my apartment. Maybe he didn’t know I’d moved in. I’ve only been here a short time. You hadn’t advertised in the paper about renting the apartment yet.”

“Yeah, but his funeral was weeks ago, so the thief certainly took his time. And I didn’t put these boxes in here until the police were through.”

“The police didn’t release the apartment until recently.” Am I grasping at straws? Trying to convince myself it isn’t a neighbor? Maggie hooked her hair behind her ears.

“I guess it’s a possibility…” Frowning, Kane shoved his hand through his hair. “Since Henry didn’t have any close relatives or friends for that matter, who’s to know what’s missing exactly.”

“That’s sad that he didn’t have anyone.” Maggie leaned against the wall, her exhaustion catching up with her.

“You didn’t know Henry. I don’t feel sorry for him.”

The brief flash of anger that descended over Kane’s features took Maggie by surprise. He didn’t usually show his emotions like that. What had Henry done to him to cause those kinds of feelings? “Then why did you rent to him?”

Конец ознакомительного фрагмента.

Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес».

Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес.

Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.