Against the Tide (3 page)

With her high cheekbones, wide forehead, and unusual gray eyes, Olivia was a beautiful woman. Her chestnut hair, twisted into a knot at the nape of her neck, glinted with vibrant highlights. By midmorning, a few strands escaped around her face, softening the severe appearance she seemed determined to maintain.

And there was that mouth. Lipstick was the only real makeup she wore, a glossy dark red on lips so plump and perfectly curved they could have been in a magazine ad. That mouth made him think of dirty sex and taking her to bed, or anywhere else he could have her.

Maybe she could read his mind; maybe she knew what he was thinking and that was the reason she never waited on him. And though she was always polite, she spoke to him only if she had to and rarely by name.

For the first couple of months after she'd taken over the business, he'd figured she was just too busy to notice him. Besides, he was still dating Sally, and he wasn't the kind of guy who cheated on a woman he was involved with.

Four months ago, Sally had moved on, and Rafe had discovered he was glad. He cared for Sally Henderson, but he wasn't in love, never had been. He'd told her from the start he wasn't interested in marriage. At the time, she'd convinced him she wasn't either. But relationships changed, and Sally was ready to settle down.

Sally was ready. Rafe wasn't.

It wasn't until after they'd parted that he started to take an interest in Olivia Chandler. Besides her striking looks and porn-star mouth, there was just something about her, something that began to intrigue him. She was always friendly to the other customers, though according to Nell, she had no close friends outside the people she worked with, and no family in the area that anyone knew of.

At first he'd told himself he just wasn't the lady's type, but the more she ignored him, the more intrigued he became. She rarely went to the local pub, he discovered, just kept mostly to herself in the apartment she lived in above the café. She was a runner, he knew, having seen her jogging early in the mornings with the big, black-and-brown German shepherd she called Khan.

Every time he went into the Pelican, which was often since he was a bachelor and a lousy cook, he watched her, and eventually a funny thing happened. Over the days and weeks that passed, Rafe became more and more certain Olivia Chandler wasn't avoiding him because she wasn't attracted to him.

She was avoiding him because she was.

Liv Chandler was a beautiful mystery, one Rafe no longer intended to ignore. He meant to unearth her secrets, and in the process, if luck was on his side, maybe he'd discover the fierce attraction he felt for her was returned in equal measure.

Rafe damned well hoped so.

Rising from the booth, he tossed a dollar bill on the table for the waitresses' tip jar and started for the door. Olivia Chandler was a mystery he meant to solve.

But another mystery needed solving first.

His jaw hardened. Rafe wasn't about to let the man who murdered one of his best friends go unpunished.

Whatever it took, he was going to see justice done.

Chapter Three

Olivia knocked on the door to the wood-frame house Cassie Webster shared with Scotty Ferris. Cassie's mother, Lois, opened the door. She was a petite woman, a little too thin, and her narrow face looked ravaged.

“Olivia . . . Please come in. Nell said you were going to stop by. She just left to go back to work a few minutes ago.”

Liv handed the woman the mac-and-cheese casserole she'd had Wayne put together, figuring there was no better comfort food in the world than mac and cheese.

Lois took the dish from her hand. “Thank you. I don't think Cassie could hold anything down at the moment, but sooner or later, she'll have to eat something.”

“All of you will,” Olivia said, walking into the living room as Lois closed the front door. Cassie sat on the sofa, her face bone white, her chin-length brown hair still sleep tangled, hazel eyes staring out at nothing. She was petite like her mother, but curvy, the kind of person whose glass was always half-f instead of half-empty.

“Cassie, honey, I'm so sorry.” Olivia walked toward her.

The girl's head turned toward the sound of Liv's voice and her eyes filled. “Thank you for coming.”

Liv sat down beside her, reached over and took hold of her icy hand. “I wish there was something I could do.”

“I know. I just . . . I feel sick all the way to my soul. My heart says Scotty can't be dead. I tell myself it can't be true, but I know it is.”

Liv squeezed her hand. “The police are going to find the man who did it. I know that won't make the pain you're feeling go away, but it's something to hold on to.”

Cassie swallowed. “I don't . . . don't understand what happened. Why was Scotty down at the harbor?”

“I thought maybe you'd know the answer to that.”

Cassie just shook her head. “It was his regular poker night. Scotty went over to the Seaside Motel to play with Ben Friedman and some of the guys.” Ben was the owner of the motel. He lived in an apartment behind the office. Cassie had mentioned that Scotty played with the same group of men every week.

“I knew Scotty wouldn't be home till late,” she continued, dabbing a Kleenex against her eyes. “But it got later and later and he didn't show up, and I got worried. Then the police arrived and Chief Rosen said he was . . . said he'd been killed. That Scotty had been murdered.” She started sobbing, and though Olivia wasn't much of a hugger, it was all she could think of to do.

“I'm so sorry.” She rubbed Cassie's back and just held her, let her cry out some of her grief.

Eventually the girl raised her head and blew into the Kleenex. “I have no idea what Scotty was doing at the harbor. Or why someone would try to rob him. Scott never carried much money. A little more tonight, maybe, since he was playing cards. But not enough for someone to kill him. Whoever did it couldn't have gotten away with very much.”

Cassie sniffed into the Kleenex. “He had a smartphone, but it was an old one, probably not worth very much.”

Olivia sifted through the information, which made absolutely no sense. “Maybe it wasn't about the money,” she heard herself saying. “Maybe it was something else.”

Cassie looked up. “Maybe it was just some rotten piece of filth who likes to hurt people.”

It happened. These days it happened way too often. “Or maybe Scotty was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.” Olivia knew only too well how badly that could turn out. It was the reason she'd wound up in Alaska.

“He was such a great guy,” Cassie said, grabbing a fresh Kleenex out of the box and wiping at the wetness that kept rolling down her cheeks. “I'll never find another man like him.”

Olivia made no reply. Good men were hard to find. As far as she was concerned, they mostly didn't exist. Scotty Ferris was a rare exception, and it was going to take Cassie a long time to get over him. Liv was going to miss him, too.

They sat together in silence, Cassie holding on to her hand. The lunch crowd would be arriving at the Pelican soon. She needed to get back to work, but she wasn't ready to leave the younger woman with her sorrow.

Liv looked up as Lois walked into the living room carrying a tray with cups and a carafe of coffee. Olivia reached for one of the cups, let Lois fill it with the strong, black brew. Nell would be back at work by now.

Olivia could stay a while longer.

 

 

Rafe couldn't put it off any longer. He headed for Cassie Webster's small wood-frame house, dread churning in the pit of his stomach. He knew what it was like to lose someone you loved. He and his family had been living in Anchorage when his mother died of breast cancer. Being the oldest, he'd had to step up, help his dad raise Dylan and Nick. Then a few years later, his father died, another tough blow for him and his brothers.

Little by little, Rafe had learned to steel himself, ignore the pain and get on with his life. After his younger brothers had both turned eighteen, he enrolled in college and met Ashley Richards.

Ash was sweet and pretty, and he was crazy about her. They dated for a year before he decided to ask her to marry him. The afternoon it happened, he'd gone to look at rings in a jewelry store not far off campus. Two hours later, he got a phone call from Ashley's brother. Ash and her best friend had been killed in a car accident. Bad weather and icy roads had sent her little Volvo careening off the hill into a tree.

The diamond ring never left the store. Rafe finished out the school year, then joined the Coast Guard. He'd become a Rescue Swimmer, stayed in the service for the next five years, and aside from his family, had done his best not to let himself get too deeply involved with anyone ever again.

He thought of Scotty, and the tightness in his chest reminded him why he was better off keeping his emotions in check and his heart locked up good and tight.

Rafe parked the Expedition in front of the house. As he glanced over at the front door, his chest clamped down so hard, he could barely breathe.

He knew what Cassie was feeling.

Exactly what Cassie was feeling.

Stepping out of the vehicle, he walked up the sidewalk onto the porch and rang the bell, took a couple of deep breaths while he waited for the door to open.

“Rafe.” Lois reached out and took hold of his hand, gave it a gentle squeeze. “Thank you so much for coming.”

He just nodded, glad Cassie's mother was there. “How is she?”

“A little better. Olivia Chandler stopped by. She's in there with her now.”

Rafe looked over the petite woman's head, saw Olivia sitting on the sofa next to Cassie. For an instant their eyes met and held. Even with the weight of Scotty's death pressing like a boulder on his shoulders, he felt a little tug of awareness.

He walked directly to Cassie, crouched in front of where she sat on the sofa, and took hold of both her hands. They were ice-cold and trembling. “I'm really sorry, honey. Scotty was one of the good guys. We're all going to miss him.”

The girl just leaned forward, slid her arms around his neck, rested her head on his shoulder, and started to cry. Rafe hung on to her hard, wishing there was something he could say, something he could do.

Knowing there wasn't a single damn thing.

She finally eased away, wiped her eyes as he rose to his feet. “It'll get better, I promise you,” he said. “It just takes a lot of time.”

She looked into his face and he could tell she understood what he was saying. Understood that he'd felt the same kind of loss and survived it.

“Have you talked to the police since you saw them at the dock?” Olivia asked. “Have they made an arrest?”

“No word yet. I called Chief Rosen before I came over. He wasn't in, but I left a message. I'll call again as soon as I leave.”

“They've got to find the killer,” Olivia said with such conviction, Rafe blinked. “People get away with murder and it just isn't right.”

Cassie dashed away the tears on her cheeks. “I want to know who killed him, Rafe. I want to know why whoever did it picked Scotty. I want that animal brought to justice.”

“The police are doing their best. Valdez is a small town. Odds are good they'll find him.”

“What if they don't? I can't stand to think of it. I can't stand to think that Scotty is dead and someone is walking around free, walking around as if killing him means nothing.”

The muscles tightened across Rafe's shoulders. He'd had the same thought, kept telling himself to let the authorities do their job. Knew that with every passing hour their chances of finding the killer were growing slimmer.

Before his brother Nick had quit his job last year, he'd been a homicide detective with the Anchorage PD. Which meant Rafe knew more about police work than the average guy and had a brother willing to help in any way he could.

Rafe also knew too many crimes went unsolved.

“Whoever did it isn't going to get away with it,” he said. “I'm not going to let them.” He fixed his gaze on Cassie.

“If you're up to answering some questions, maybe we can work together, help the police figure things out.”

She took a deep breath, sat up a little straighter. It was good to have something to do, he knew.

“Yes, that's a good idea.” She turned to Olivia. “Maybe you could help us. You know a lot of the locals. Most of the tourists who come to town are in and out of the Pelican at one time or another. You could keep an eye out, see if any of them looks or acts suspicious.”

Olivia started nodding. “Yes, I can do that.”

“He was killed at the harbor,” Rafe said. “Do you know why he would have been down at the
Scorpion
last night?”

Cassie shook her head. “It doesn't make sense. He was supposed to be playing poker with Ben Friedman and a bunch of the regulars. That's where he was headed when he left the house.”

“What time was that?” Rafe asked.

“Seven o'clock.
Scorpion
only had a half-day charter, so he was back in town early.”

“That's right,” Rafe said.

“The guys always have pizza and beer on poker night. So he left before supper.” She blinked hard, dabbed at her eyes. “Scotty kissed me good-bye at the door and took off walking. God, Rafe, it hurts so much to know I . . . I'll never see him again.”

She started crying and Olivia reached over and hugged her. “We won't let whoever killed him get away with it,” she said determinedly, bringing Rafe's attention back to her. “We'll make sure the police catch the guy who did it.”

“I need to talk to Ben,” Rafe said. “Maybe Scotty never showed up. Or if he did, maybe Ben knows why he went back to the
Scorpion
.” Rafe leaned down and brushed a brotherly kiss on Cassie's cheek. “I'll let you know what I find out. Take care of yourself, okay?”

She nodded.

Turning, Rafe started for the door. He was out of the house, striding down the walk toward the Expedition, when he felt a hand on his arm. When he turned, Olivia stood on the sidewalk. He hadn't heard her approach.

“Would you mind if I went with you?”

“You want to go with me to see Ben Friedman?”

“That's right.”

Would he mind?
Hell no.
He'd been looking for an excuse to talk to her for weeks, though this was a rotten way for it to happen. “Did you walk over?”

She nodded.

“Get in. I'll drop you off when we're done.”

Rafe almost couldn't believe it when he pulled open the door and Olivia Chandler climbed into his SUV.

It took the death of someone she cared about for Olivia to let down her guard enough to follow Rafe Brodie out of the house. For six months she'd been avoiding him.

Now Scott Ferris was dead and she couldn't get Cassie's haunted features out of her head. Cassie wanted Scotty's killer caught. So did Liv. Wanted it bad enough to risk helping Rafe Brodie make certain it happened.

Why she believed he could handle the job, she wasn't sure. Maybe it was the hard glint in his eyes when he'd promised Cassie that whoever had done it wasn't going to get away with it. Maybe it was just that everything about Rafe Brodie said he was an extremely capable man.

“I don't think the police have talked to Ben yet,” she said as he drove his SUV toward the Seaside Motel. “Lois told me Cassie got completely hysterical when Chief Rosen told her Scott was dead. Her mother drove over and gave her a Valium. The chief promised to come back later, after she was a little more in control, but he hasn't been back yet.”

“I'd like to know what the medical examiner found out,” Rafe said. “She should be able to give us the official cause of death, maybe come up with a more exact idea of the murder weapon.”