Redemption Chapter Twelve
Aidan walked out the front door, coffee in hand. Stock and inventory, all the mundane aspects that Aidan didn’t really care for had made the previous night a long one at the store. He preferred the day to day tasks that allowed him to interact with people, watch Cody run around, and see the boats moving through the water near the harbor. It beat being in a musty office and doing inventory, hands down.
Even so, he found himself doing more and more of it. The memory of Molly’s kiss lingered in his mind and on his lips. They’d been soft and plump, already slightly swollen when he pulled away. It’d been so easy to get lost in that kiss. Their bodies had pressed together. Her soft breasts had pushed against his chest, and he wanted to remove the clothes that kept his skin from touching hers. It’d been wrong, and something in his mind screamed it.
Krysta didn’t deserve to be toyed with. As soon as the neurons in Aidan’s brain started firing properly again, he knew that he wasn’t being fair to Krysta. Not because of the kiss, but because of the way the kiss felt—like someone sent a jolt of electricity through him, making every nerve ending sensitive and aching for Molly’s touch. As much as Aidan wished he could say there’d been something like that with Krysta, there just never had been.
Aidan didn’t feel guilty for kissing Molly back—he felt guilty because he wanted to do it again. The more he was around Molly, the more he realized how much he needed to tell Krysta the truth. In the short time he’d known Molly, he’d felt more of a connection than he ever had with the woman he dated now. He should have told Krysta his concerns a long time ago, but his fear kept him from it.
Now, he realized, he wasn’t just keeping himself from having a life, but Krysta as well. It didn’t make him feel good about himself.
The bushes near the wrap around porch were weighed down with the morning paper. He sighed. Jason was a good kid, but didn’t really care about where the papers landed when he delivered them in the morning. Smiling, he shook his head, and trotted down the steps. He grabbed the newspaper and a small envelope fell to the ground. Tilting his head, Aidan picked it up, twirling it in his hands, finding no name or identifying marks.
Tucking the newspaper under his arm, he went inside, turning the envelope over in his hands.
Molly sat the breakfast counter sipping her coffee. Her fingers tightened around the cup. “Hi.”
“Hi,” he said. Ever since the kiss, things had been strained between them. He missed Molly’s soft smile brightening up the kitchen, as if the sun moved through the windows to shine on them.
“We can’t keep going on like this,” Aidan said. He walked over sitting next to her.
“I know.” She kept her gaze on blue mug between her hands.
Each night, Aidan found himself more excited to see her in the morning. He reached out and tucked a strand of mussed brown hair behind her ear. The wildness of it made her adorable. Biting her lip, she set down the coffee cup, tucking her casted hand against her chest.
It’d only been a little over a week, and her cast had filled up with signatures. Cody’s, his, Corbett’s, and some people from the store who had gotten to know her.
His growing emotions for Molly conflicted with his long, comfortable relationship with Krysta. Molly’s down to earth nature and compassion for the people around her made Aidan’s heart melt. Guilt tinged the edges of that same heart, because in the years he’d known Krysta, he’d never seen her in such a way, and he started to wonder if his relationship with her was simply so he didn’t spend each night lonely.
It made him selfish, but loneliness overpowered him and won. He’d been desperate for companionship—even if it left him wanting.
“I don’t want us to be awkward,” Aidan said. “I care about you, and not just because you saved my son.”
Molly twisted the mug in her hand. “Please don’t say I’m a good person.”
“Why is that so difficult to hear?” Exasperation laced his words. “I don’t understand why you think you’re so terrible. Is it because of your ex? Thomas?”
When Molly told him about Thomas, about him hitting her, anger mingled with his blood making his temperature rise. The image of her head snapping to the side, her lip busted open, and her eyes wide with fear had infiltrated Aidan’s mind. He was happy that Molly left the son of a bitch, and he didn’t want her to second guess that. She’d offered to leave, to go back to Florida. Whether to be with Thomas or not, Aidan didn’t want her to go.
“No,” she shook her head and sighed. “It’s complicated, Aidan.”
He let out a slow breath. “I’m not going to force you to tell me anything, Molly. On your own time, but I’m here. I don’t want it to be awkward.”
“I don’t either.”
“Then let’s not let it be, okay?” He smiled at her.
After a moment she smiled back and nodded. “What’s that?” Molly gestured to the envelope in his hand.
“I don’t know.” He turned the envelope over in his hand as if some clue sprouted when he wasn’t looking. “Fell out of the paper.”
“Maybe it’s some sort of promotion for one of the local shops.” Molly got up, and poured herself another cup. “Do you want some?”
Bellefort didn’t have many big stores, but they usually put an ad in the paper, not in the folds of it in a blank white envelope. The way in which it arrived left a sour feeling in the bottom of his stomach.
“Sure.” Aidan stuck his thumb under the flap and tore across the envelope while Molly took a mug from the cabinet and filled it up.
The smell of fresh coffee wafted through the kitchen, steam rising from the cup as she poured. Aidan tried to focus on that instead of the unease washing over him.
The paper tore easily, and he pulled out a small card. Jagged, handwritten words swirled over it, with splotches of ink in different places. The words shook as he read, but not just the letter—his hands trembled.
I know who you are. I know what you did. At first, I wanted to destroy your happiness. Now, the stakes have changed. My family will thrive at the expense of yours.
We will meet soon.
Sweat coated his hands, leaving wet prints on the card, even as his blood ran cold. His heart sped up as he read the words over and over. The hit and run hadn’t been an accident. It’d been intentional.
Someone tried to murder his son. They were going to come after him again. His fingers tightened around the paper, crinkling the edges and ripping the corner.
“What’s wrong?” Molly slid the mug over to him, her brows wrinkling as she watched him.
“We need to call the Sheriff.” The stool scraped against the tile as he stood up and pulled out his cell phone.
Frowning, she put her hand over his and lowered it, so she could see the letter.
The front door clicked open and then shut.
“Hey,” Krysta said in an uncertain tone from the kitchen entrance. “What’s going on?”
Aidan dialed the Sheriff and glanced over at Krysta. Her arms were crossed over her chest, eyebrow raised, the bottom of her jaw clenched. He pulled his hand away from Molly. Granted, the situation didn’t look well, but one step at a time. First, he needed to find out who was threatening his family. Then, he needed to face the truth about Krysta.
“Someone’s sent a threatening letter,” Molly said.
“Sheriff Tidwell.”
“Sheriff, it’s Aidan, I need you to come out here right away.”
Krysta took a napkin and retrieved the letter from Aidan, careful not to add her own prints to it.
Molly ran fingers through her long, brown hair, and set her cup in the sink. Suddenly, she jerked around. “Where’s Cody?”
“Fishing,” Aidan said. “With my dad.”
“I’ll call them.” Krysta pulled out her cell phone.
“What’s going on, son?”
“The hit and run wasn’t an accident,” Aidan looked at Krysta and Molly. “Someone’s targeting us.”
“On my way.”
Aidan hung up. Krysta shook her head, indicating that Corbett wasn’t picking up his cell.
His mouth went dry making it hard to swallow. Aidan rubbed his face, willing his heart to stop crashing against his ribs. Guilt washed over him. He never should have gone to the execution. Someone must have recognized him, knew he was one of the victims. He’d had to see Blake take his final breath, after everything—it was closure. The last thread he needed to let his mother rest in peace, to move on fully with his own life, was to know that the man who’d caused so much pain had paid for the crimes and couldn’t hurt anyone else.
What should have been the end, opened a new chapter for more chaos in their lives. His stomach lurched, nausea sloshing around like water in a drum.
Krysta hung up. “I’ll try again.”
Aidan ran for the door, Molly on his heels.
“Aidan,” Krysta called after him.
The door opened before Aidan reached it. Corbett and Cody dashed in a rush of excitement and loud voices.
“Dad! I caught a bass!” Cody grinned, his lips pulled tight from straining the muscles. “Gramps didn’t get anything! Just me!”
Aidan scooped his son up into his arms, crushing him against his chest in a hug. He ran his hand over Cody’s silken, blond hair. The simplest feeling of Cody’s chest rising and falling brought relief to Aidan. The lump that grew in his throat eased and he let out a soft breath, looking at Corbett over Cody’s shoulder.
“Daaad!” He wiggled in his arms.
Corbett raised a brow.
“Sorry, sorry,” he chuckled uneasily and set Cody down. “It’s great you caught a bass, champ.”
“Go put your fishin’ gear out in the shed,” Corbett told him. “And wash up.”
“I’ll go with him,” Molly said. “And you can show me your gear?”
Aidan nodded his thanks to her, silently thinking she was an angel sent into his life to help him cope with the darkness that surrounded them. She smiled and took Cody’s hand.
“You should have been there, Miss Molly!”
She smiled. “Maybe next time I’ll go and you can show me how to fish.”
He bounced on his heels as they walked away.
“Now,” Corbett said when they were out of ear shot. “What’s going on?”
Going back to the counter, Aidan sat down heavily, grateful to Molly for getting Cody out of the way. He wanted to keep Cody out of the thick of all this as much as possible. The last thing the boy needed was to worry that someone would come for him.
Aidan showed Corbett the letter, and told him about the call with Tidwell.
He ran his fingers over his face, wondering when the world would stop throwing curve balls at him. “It’s got to be because of the last appeal.”
Corbett shook his head. “You don’t know that. Could be lots of things. Blake’s execution brought a lot of attention this way.”
True enough, but Aidan spoke at Blake’s last appeal three years ago. In memory and honor of his mother, Aidan kept his temper in check. Instead of lashing out about the killer Blake was, he spoke of the kind of woman his mother had been. Blake showed no remorse, and that’s when Aidan realized Blake wasn’t a man, but a monster. Even his own daughter stayed away, not bothering to show up to the appeals, write a letter, or even go to his execution. Jesse Blake went into hiding and never came out.
Smart girl. Aidan wouldn’t want to be associated with Peter Blake either.
“What are the stakes?” Krysta asked.
“What?” Aidan looked over at her.
“The letter says the stakes have changed.” She pointed to the words. “What were the original stakes, and why have they changed?”
“Could be that Molly saved Cody,” Corbett said. “Struck a chord with whoever this is.”
“Or maybe she’s working with them,” Krysta shrugged.
At the moment, Aidan didn’t have time for Krysta’s jealous antics. “Molly had nothing to do with it. She saved him, or did you forget that fact?”
“Kind of convenient actually,” Krysta flipped her hair over her shoulder. “I mean what are the odds that Molly walked outside just as soon as the car came around the bend?”
“That’s ridiculous,” Corbett said. “She coulda been killed herself.”
“Or maybe this was all to inject herself into your lives.” Krysta narrowed her gaze at Aidan. “You’re falling for every little thing she says and does. I’m telling you, there’s more going on here.”
He groaned. “Krysta, I don’t have time for this. Could you please just be helpful?”
She pursed her lips. “Fine.” Krysta pulled a file out of her purse and handed it to Aidan. “My friend at the office did a background check on Molly.”
“You’re spying on her?”
“I’m making sure that a strange woman around your son isn’t some sort of pedophile or crazy woman.”
“I’m guessing she’s not.” Aidan tightened his free hand into a fist. He didn’t expect to be so angry over Krysta doing the check. She’d mentioned she’d do some digging, but he’d hoped Krysta would let it drop. The more jealous she became, the more she seemed to have it out for Molly. In a way, Aidan understood, but in another way, it just pulled him farther away from Krysta.
“No, but before twenty years ago, it’s like she didn’t exist.”
“Oh come on, Krysta. I don’t have time for this.” He stood, handing her the folder back. “Someone is threatening my family, and all you can do is try and point fingers at Molly.”
She slapped the folder back down on the counter. “Fine. I need some air.”
Without waiting for him to reply, Krysta stormed out the front door.
Aidan sighed in frustration and Corbett put a hand on his shoulder, giving a little squeeze.
“Why us, Dad,” he asked in a tight voice. “Are we cursed?”
“No, we’re not cursed. We’re blessed, even if it doesn’t seem like it right now.” Corbett gave him a reassuring smile. “We’ll make it through this. Just like everything else.”
The journey to make it, Aidan knew, was never an easy one.
