Page 25 of Unforgotten

Seth nodded. “She did. But we still had a couple of obstacles to overcome. Including her ex-husband.”

“But you two are married, so that means you’re good now. Ain’t so?”

“We’re better than good. We’re happy and she’s mine. And ... she’s expecting.”

“Congratulations. That’s wonderful-gut. Wunderbar.”

“It is. Danke.” He slapped Jay on the shoulder. “I know it’s hard, but try not to give up on Bethanne. God will help the two of you, and when the right time happens for the two of ya, you’ll be mighty glad you believed in something greater than yourself.”

“God’s will?”

“Oh, for sure. But also your lady’s happiness. Love is a powerful thing, Jay. It’s life-changing. Believe in it, yeah?” And with that, Seth strode on, covering a full yard before Jay mumbled a suitable reply.

As he started walking again, Jay took a slower pace. Thought about not giving up. Decided he would somehow find a way to let Bethanne know that his interest hadn’t waned but that he was no longer going to be so pushy.

And maybe, along the way, he’d take a moment to thank Seth Zimmerman for stopping and giving him some much-needed advice.

That would be a good thing too.

10

The Marion Police Department was on Main Street, in a rather spacious brick and wood building that had once been a bank in another life. The employees inside were scattered into different divisions, some of which were divided only by partitions made of reclaimed wood. Except for Chief Blake Foster. He got an office. The other room was for holding, and it happened to have the remains of an old vault inside. The officers had a running joke that one day someone they brought in would spend some time in it. Of course they wouldn’t actually do that, but every employee there would be lying if he or she said it hadn’t crossed their minds. Every once in a while, they brought in someone who simply could not be quiet.

After roll call and a visit to the high school, Ryan Mulaney sat down in his cubicle and glanced at his phone. Again. He had a couple of people he was waiting to hear from about open cases. But what he was really looking for was a text from Candace Evans, aka Miss Crittenden County.

If another officer asked why he was continuing to escort Candace to her various events, Ryan knew he would say allthe right things. The first was the excuse he’d given Candace. He needed to get to know the citizens in Marion and the surrounding areas. Meeting them in such a nonconfrontational way wasn’t a bad thing.

In addition, he’d remind them she was only twenty-two, petite, and vulnerable. Or how some of the roads in the county flooded easily while others were so remote that obtaining a cell phone signal was about as easy as coaxing a stray cat into one’s lap.

Then, of course, was the most obvious reason for him to be at her side—crowds of people surrounded her at these events. Some of them even thought nothing about touching her without her permission, which grated on him like nobody’s business. That shook her up—and with good reason. No way should anyone have to put up with a stranger doing that.

Thinking about how, the last time he’d accompanied her, some woman tried to run her hand down Candace’s hair, Ryan gritted his teeth. He’d put a stop to that fast. Even the lady’s look of hurt outrage hadn’t made him regret his decision. Not when he’d caught sight of Candace’s face, full of relief.

And ... that was his secret, he supposed. He might be an experienced cop, six foot four and close to two hundred pounds, but whenever Candace was around, he turned into his goofy younger self. The guy who had a crush on the prettiest girl in town.

But who could blame him?

Yeah, she was pretty as all get-out, but that wasn’t what drew him to her. It was the way she didn’t take herself seriously—the way she seemed more delighted to visit with people and ask them about their lives than to have anyone fuss or congratulate her on her win. So sweet.

It was the way that there was something vulnerable in her hazel eyes that she tried to hide. But it never went away.

And that concerned him.

Though she hadn’t spoken anything out loud, Ryan was sure Candace was more afraid of her stalker than she was letting on. She was scared bad enough to accept his company. Scared enough to agree to share her schedule with him and tentatively agree to allow him to drive her to the events.

She relaxed around him too.

So, he spent the next hour working while waiting to hear from her. Doing paperwork. Investigating some of the leads they had on a recent robbery. Helping a lady who came in with concerns about her neighbor’s suspicious behavior, and even going so far as to promise to stop by soon.

Just when he was about to reach out to her, Candace texted him.

Hey, Officer Mulaney. It’s Candace. Candace Evans.

He couldn’t stop the grin as he texted back.

Hi, Candace. I knew it was you. How are you today?

After a few seconds, he spied the telltale line of dots and then her reply.

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