“She’s in the shower. We’re all fine. None of us were inside.”
Kevin watched his mother’s expression as Mallory told them what had happened. His mom always had a poker face and he never knew what she was thinking, but she’d never really liked Mallory. Just like Dad, Mom had blamed her for him dropping out of medical school. It wasn’t fair, but there it was. Blaming someone else was always easier than looking squarely at truth.
His mom took a sip of her coffee. “So, are you heading back to Bangor today?”
Mallory poured herself a cup of coffee with jerky movements. “I’m not going back, at least not until I find out who killed my father. And who burned down our house.”
“I see.”
Mallory glanced at the girls. “Haylie, why don’t you help Sadie get changed and then take her outside to wait for the school bus?”
For once Haylie didn’t complain, and both girls left the kitchen with the dog. Kevin’s gut tightened. He recognized the determined expression on Mallory’s face. She intended to have it out with his mom, and he couldn’t blame her. It had been a long time coming.
A sip of coffee laced with heavy cream bolstered Mallory. She settled across the table from Mrs. O’Connor. Kevin’s mother had never made any secret of the disdain she felt for her, and seeing her so unexpectedly had reminded Mallory of the years she’d spent pursuing the impossible task of winning Candace’s approval. She glanced at Kevin, and he shrugged as if to say this discussion was inevitable.
Kevin looked a lot like his father, same warm brown hair and eyes, same nose and strong musculature, but he had his mother’s bone structure. On him it looked masculine, but on Mrs. O’Connor, the prominent cheekbones made her appear exotic. She was about fifty-five now, and she looked every bit of it with a fine map of lines around her eyes and forehead.
Mallory traced the curve of her cup with a finger. “Let’s not pretend, okay? I know you were shocked to find me here. And probably upset. I wouldn’t be here if there were any other choice.”
“There’s always a choice. You could have gone to the inn. Your father would have had insurance.”
“I insisted,” Kevin said. “There were three of them, and the inn is crazy expensive.”
“There are motels too.” Suppressed fury flickered in Mrs. O’Connor’s narrowed eyes. “You’re just getting back on track, Kevin, and now here she is. Messing with your head again, disrupting your life.” She turned her head and glared at Mallory. “You ruined our family, Mallory. Destroyed it! None of us will ever be the same. And it’s all your fault.”
Mallory looked down at her hands and made no attempt to defend herself. His mother couldn’t blame her more than she blamed herself.
Kevin slammed his coffee cup onto the table, sloshing coffee onto its surface. “It’s Dad’s fault, Mom. He’s a bitter man. None of this is Mallory’s fault. You think she got pregnant all by herself? That would be a first. And while we both made a mistake, God forgave us. Don’t you think it’s odd that Dad can’t? And it’s clear now that you haven’t either.”
His mother’s back was stiff enough to surf on. “She wrecked your life, Kevin. You would have been a doctor but for her.”
Mallory’s fingers tightened around her coffee cup. “Hey, I’m right here. You don’t have to talk over my head. Did you ever once ask Kevin what he wanted? I knew when we were sixteen that he didn’t want to be a doctor. He just wanted to please you both. Do you really think he would have been happy stuck in an office every day?”
Mrs. O’Connor’s mouth flattened. “He would have made an excellent doctor.”
“He would be good at whatever he wanted to do. He’s that kind of man. But don’t you want him to be happy?”
His mother sniffed. “Happiness is fleeting. I didn’t want him to live like we’ve had to live with never enough money to do what we wanted to do.”
Mallory shook her head. “You’ve got a nice house, money to get your nails done every week, you dress well. What more did you need? Would you have wanted your husband stuck in a job he hated just so you could have lunch at the country club?”
Mrs. O’Connor’s cheeks reddened, and she pressed her lips together again. She wouldn’t answer that because the answer would have been yes. Yes, she would rather her husband worked at a job he hated so she could move in the same circles as the ones she’d grown up in.
Kate tried to smile, but tears glittered on her lashes. “Hasn’t this family been ripped apart enough, Aunt Candace? Can’t all of you bury the hatchet and let Kevin live his life?”
Mrs. O’Connor got to her feet. She shoved her chair in so hard that it banged against the table. “I’m leaving. I want to be alone.” Her kitten-heeled slingbacks clicked against the wood floors as she marched toward the door.
Mallory leaped to her feet and caught her before she got to the front door. “Look, Mrs. O’Connor, I don’t want to be your enemy. You’re taking all of this too seriously. Kevin and I are just friends now. He offered my family and me a place to stay. Don’t let this be another wedge between the two of you, between you and Sadie.”
The dislike—no, hatred—in Mrs. O’Connor’s eyes made Mallory yank her hand back. This woman would never forgive, never get over having her plans thwarted.
Mrs. O’Connor’s eyes sparked with rage. “I came over today to invite Kevin and Sadie to dinner at the house. It was going to be the first time in fifteen years that he’d come to the house. My husband finally agreed because it was the only thing I really wanted for my birthday, but you’ve ruined it. Everything you touch turns to ashes. I hope you’re happy with what you’ve done.”
Mallory blinked fiercely against the sting in her eyes. “I’ve done nothing, Mrs. O’Connor. I won’t be here long. Please, just go back into the kitchen and invite Kevin to dinner. I’ll leave today. I’ll be gone when he gets back to the house tonight.”
“No, you won’t.” Kevin stood four feet away. “I won’t be manipulated. Good-bye, Mom. When you decide you’re going to let me live my life, give me a call.”
Mrs. O’Connor held out her hand toward him, then it fell back to her side. “What about Sadie?”
Did she really even care about her granddaughter? Mallory wanted to believe the little girl meant more to her than just a tool to be used against her father.
Kevin must have had the same thought. He shook his head. “You’ve made your choice. Until you choose forgiveness rather than bitterness, I don’t want to hear from you. Sadie doesn’t need to be around that kind of toxic attitude either.”
Tears rolled from his mother’s eyes, and she jerked open the door and charged through it. Moments later her car engine revved to life.
Mallory swallowed hard. “I’m sorry, Kevin. I’ll just get our things and we’ll leave.”
He stepped closer and his hand, warm and compelling, came down on her arm. “I don’t want you to go. I realized I’m acting as badly as my parents. We both were at fault in our breakup, Mal. Let’s start fresh and put it behind us as we figure out who killed your dad.”
As the heat of his palm soaked into her skin, she stared up at him and tried to read his expression. Even if they still had feelings for each other, what kind of life could they build surrounded by that kind of hostility?
NINETEEN
The conference room was packed for the special meeting, and Kevin had to stand in the back by the door. The last place he wanted to be this afternoon was in a meeting, especially knowing his father would be there too. By now his mother had probably told Dad about Mallory being at the house this morning.
Kevin had stopped by Ruth and Wimpy’s on his way, but that hopeful clue had been a dead end. And DNA testing on the tennis bracelet found on Edmund’s boat had come back with no matches.
Ned Chesterton, head of Kevin’s division, stepped to the large map at the front. He was nearing retirement age, but the wardens were placing bets that he would die in the saddle. He was only five-eight, but years of weight lifting h
ad bulked up his muscles. His hair was mostly white now with only traces of brown remaining.
He laid some papers on the podium. “The rabies problem has escalated. We’ve had more cases this past year than I’ve seen in my thirty years as a game warden.” He turned and gestured at the red pushpins on the map. “Ten since this time last year, and we’ve had three more just this month. And it’s only May.”
Kevin raised his hand. “Do we know what species is driving the outbreak?”
“We’ve had one cow, three skunks, and seven red foxes.”
Mostly foxes, data that matched what Kevin suspected. The two rabid animals he’d taken in for testing had both been foxes. He listened to Chesterton give a rundown on the problem. The majority of the cases had been scattered all over the county. It was going to be hard to control.
Chesterton stacked the papers on the podium. “I’ve issued an alert to residents that will go out on TV and radio news tonight. We’ve got to stay on top of this to make sure no one else is hurt. Our unusually warm spring has a lot of children roaming the woods, so be on the alert. Dismissed.”
Kevin started for the door, but Chesterton waved him over. “O’Connor, I want to talk to you.” Kevin’s dad was already standing near their boss, and he stared impassively at Kevin.
Kevin joined them. “Have you heard how the teenager who was bitten last week is doing?”
The fifteen-year-old had been bitten by a red fox while playing baseball with friends. He and his companions had run screaming to the house with the fox on their heels. It was a blessing that none of the other kids had been bitten.
“He’s had three rabies shots so far and will get his final one in another week.”
Kevin was all too aware of his dad’s distance. Dad hadn’t so much as glanced at him. He stood a few feet away with his hands in the pockets of his dull-green pants. Looking at his dad was like seeing his own future in about thirty years. They both stood at six-four and had the same broad shoulders and size-fifteen feet. His dad’s nose had been broken twice, so Kevin had escaped the bump, but in all other ways, he was the spitting image of the fifty-five-year-old standing behind Chesterton.
Their boss handed him a paper. “Your father is in charge of charting all the incidents we’ve had so far. I’m assigning you to help him. It’s too big a job for one man. I want you both to personally walk the perimeter of where the animals were discovered and see if you find any more rabid ones. I think there are several dens around incubating the disease.”
Kevin wanted to suggest that Chesterton assign someone else, but he recognized the aggressively jutting jaw. “Yes, sir.”
His father shifted on the balls of his feet. “I can handle this by myself, sir.”
Chesterton skewered Dad with a glare from his icy-blue eyes. “This isn’t up for discussion. I’m tired of tiptoeing around you two. You can’t seem to bury the hatchet, so I’m going to force the issue.”
A muscle flexed in Dad’s jaw. “This is none of your business, sir. Our personal lives have nothing to do with our jobs.”
“You carry this feud into your work, O’Connor. Your son has remained professional, but I can’t say the same for you. Just last week you were in the break room talking about how Kevin could do better than this job. Every other warden knows you don’t hold our work in high esteem, yet you’ve worked here for thirty years. What kind of message do you think you’re sending to young game wardens?”
Kevin’s dad glared back. “I didn’t mean it that way and you know it.”
Kevin rubbed his neck that had begun to warm. He’d known how Dad felt, but Kevin thought he at least had the good sense not to talk about their family. “I appreciate your desire to help, sir, but I’m not sure this is the right way to go about it.”
Chesterton stuck his papers in his pocket. “It’s a done deal. Get along or I’ll be asking for your badge, Pete. You’re old enough to retire, and I won’t have you disparage the warden service any longer.” He walked off and left them standing alone in the room.
Kevin eyed his father’s rigid face. “I guess you’re stuck with me.”
“Your mother says you have that woman at your house. Haven’t you learned your lesson? She’s poison, Kevin. She’ll lead you down the garden path and leave you again. Hasn’t she done enough to wreck your life? Look at you—raising a blind child all by yourself because of poor choices you’ve made. You never seem to learn.”
The pressure built in Kevin’s chest as his father’s words penetrated. “I have a great life, Dad. I’m doing a job I love, and my daughter is the world to me. My choice, as you put it, wasn’t to see DeAnn leave me. That was her decision, but you seem to have a problem with anyone making decisions other than you.”
“It all started with Mallory. I don’t know why you can’t see that.”
“And I don’t understand why you can’t seem to grasp that any mistakes I’ve made were my choices. Mallory didn’t force me to do anything. She’s a wonderful woman, and you’d know that if you took the time to get to know her. She has a great heart and cares about other people, which is more than I can say about you.”
He turned away from his father’s derisive expression and headed for the door. The next few weeks would be like running a gauntlet.
The ocean was choppy with whitecapped waves slamming into the side of Mallory’s boat. This was her first run out to Allegory Rock, and already at ten in the morning the dock teemed with people waiting on their mail. She maneuvered the boat into the harbor and navigated close to the weathered boards until the bumpers of the boat bumped the pilings. A white-headed man in a suit caught the rope she threw and tied off the boat for her.
“Thanks. I’ve got lots of packages today.” She glanced around and saw the buckets many areas put out for outgoing and incoming mail. The outgoing mail bucket was full, and several packages wrapped in brown paper had been set beside the bucket.
The man in the suit nodded. “Ayuh, I wondered if I might catch a ride back to Summer Harbor with you.” A stylish leather suitcase was at his feet.
Mail boats commonly ferried passengers so this wasn’t Mallory’s first request. “Sure, but we won’t get there until about three. I have two other stops to make.”
He frowned and shuffled his feet. “I thought you went straight back to the mainland from here.”
“I usually do, but the sea is rough today, and I wanted to get these packages delivered before they got wet.”
“The mail time isn’t supposed to be changed at your whim, young lady.”
With his gruff voice and the scowl he directed at her, the initial impression she’d had of a kindly older gentleman vanished. When she looked closer, she realized he was younger than his gray hair indicated too. “The mail itself is my priority, not passengers. This mail boat doesn’t typically carry passengers.”
“Your dad took me to the mainland several times. My boat is being repaired, and I have an important meeting in Bangor. Listen, I’ll give you two hundred dollars if you’ll take me to Summer Harbor before you deliver the rest of the mail.”
She was tempted to turn him down because it would add two hours to her day, but a hundred dollars an hour was hard to refuse. The really intriguing thing was that he’d mentioned her father. “Okay, I’ll do it.” She deposited the mail into the bucket and handed out several packages, then scooped up the outgoing mail. When she returned to her boat, she found the man already seated starboard.
She stopped to hold out her hand. “I’m Mallory.”
He barely touched it with a single shake before turning his attention back to his iPad. “Len Nevin.”
What a scintillating conversationalist. Once she started the engine, there wouldn’t be much talking, so whatever she got out of him had to happen now. “So you rode with my dad sometimes?”
“Ayuh.” His attention was still on his iPad.
“Did you ever have an argument with him?”
That caught his attention. He turned off the iPad an
d crossed his legs in a nonchalant motion. “I didn’t know him well enough to argue with him.”
He’s lying. She saw it in the flicker of his lids and the shift of his face. “Did you ever visit his property in your boat? What’s the name of your boat, by the way?”
The skin around his mouth and jaw tightened. “I’ve never even been to Folly Shoals. Is this some kind of inquisition? The paper said your dad died in an accident, but you’re grilling me like you think I caused his death in some way.”
He still hadn’t told her the name of the boat, but she could look that up easily enough. In spite of her dislike for his manner, she forced a smile. “I didn’t mean to make you feel you were under suspicion. I’m trying to figure out what happened to my father. I don’t believe it was an accident, but I’m not accusing you of killing him.”
Her placating words just made him narrow his eyes. “You’re hardly an expert on criminology. If there was something fishy about your dad’s death, the sheriff will handle it.” He leaned against the seat cushion. “But he doesn’t believe you, does he?”
His smug tone made her curl her fingers into her palms. “Actually, he does believe me now. Some additional evidence has been uncovered.”
He straightened and his sneer vanished. “What evidence?”
She shouldn’t have let him goad her into revealing more than she should. She turned her back on him and went to start the engine. “We’d better get on the road. I don’t want you to be late for your appointment.”
He stood. “What evidence?”
Her pulse pounded and she backed away. “It really has nothing to do with you. Sorry if I upset you.”
Ignoring his scowl, she slid into the pilot’s seat and started the engine. As the boat chugged away from the dock, she tried to ignore his glower. Maybe Kevin could find out something about this guy.
TWENTY
If she was going to stay here, she needed to earn her keep. Mallory piled dinner ingredients onto the kitchen counter, then plugged in her iPod and turned on Creed. The aroma of cheesecake from the oven was already wafting in the air. She liked Kevin’s house. He’d said it was built in 1902, but instead of the usual small, chopped-off rooms, he’d opened up the kitchen to the rest of the house. The white cabinets contrasted with the gray granite counter and set off the marble subway-tile back-splash. Kate had told her he’d done most of the work himself, even laying the travertine tile on the floor.