Page 118 of Promise Me, Katie

“Libby should be getting up from a nap any minute now, and we’ll take her for a long walk through the neighborhood so you can have some peace and quiet.” The door softly squeaked as Sarah was pulling it shut. “Now you rest and don’t worry about a thing.”

Though she tried, Katherine couldn’t relax. She felt terrible that she was here resting while Matthew was out dealing with another car accident. Especially after a rough night of sleep.

Tossing and turning, she couldn’t seem to get comfortable without him by her side. Every time she moved, her hoodie twisted around her body and bunched up in her armpits. No matter what she did, nothing seemed to make a difference. She was uncomfortable, and if she didn’t get comfortable, she certainly couldn’t relax, let alone rest.

Glancing at the door, Katherine strained to hear if Matt and Sarah had returned from walking Libby. “Mrs. Brandon?” she called out, waiting for a response. “Mr. Brandon?”

The house was silent.

Cautiously standing to test the strength of her legs, she felt steady enough to walk, then went to the dresser across the room to find something more comfortable to wear.

Despite the first time she’d been in his room and picked up dirty clothes, Matthew’s dresser drawers were surprisingly tidy.

Near the bottom, she found a drawer filled with folded T-shirts of varying tones of blue, gray, burgundy, and black. Yet a faded green one in the middle of one stack stood out from the rest. Touching it, feeling how soft and well-worn it was, Katherine decided it was the one she wanted.She could tell that the cotton had been softened by time and wear. And she liked the idea that it was a favorite of Matthew’s.

“Whoa, cool blast from the past.” She smiled, examining the old Seattle Supersonics logo on the front.

Slipping into the bathroom to replace her black t-shirt and hoodie with Matthew’s faded T-shirt, Katherine looked at herself in the mirror, wondering what he would think when he found her in his bed with it on.

Leaving her clothes on the doorknob, she returned to the dresser to restore the jumbled stacks to what they were. Shifting the rest of the pile in the drawer, she noticed some file folders at the bottom.

Assuming they were personal papers, Katherine left them where they were. She didn’t even consider looking at them until she was about to place the refolded shirts back in the drawer and saw the wordsChandler Fire—Investigation Resultswritten on one of the tabs.

Dropping the neatly folded stack of shirts on the floor, Katherine picked up the first file and then one after another until she had all five in her hands, as the thundering rhythm of her heart quickened by the second.

Outside, an old car rumbled down the road, and she stopped to make sure she was still alone. Then she started to read.

** *

When Matthew, Justin Macomb, and Chief Bennett pulled into the diner’s parking lot, Matthew was too tired to notice Katherine’s truck wasn’t there. Inside, The Copperwall wasnearly empty except for Beth Ann, the Fraser twins, and a booth occupied by four silver-haired ladies laughing and drinking coffee.

Seeing them come through the door, Beth Ann rushed over in a panic. “Is everything okay? Where’s Katherine?”

“What do you mean?” Matthew’s brows tightened. “I thought she was here.”

“And I thought she was with you. Didn’t you have today off? I sent Katherine home to be with you.”

“Seriously?” Matthew’s shoulders slumped in disappointed exhaustion. “She’s at home right now?”

Beth Ann nodded.

“That must be the voicemail on my phone. I didn’t check it. I thought it was my folks. We were busy.” Matthew gestured to Justin and Jerome. “We were out on a call. A pretty bad car wreck.”

Beth Ann gasped. “So, it’s true? Dr. Evans was listening to his old police scanner and told Florence about it. Are Kendall and Patrick alright?”

“They’ll be just fine,” Justin jumped in for Matthew’s sake, so he didn’t have to relive the details of another accident. “But now we’re worn out and hungry. Can you bring us coffee and some menus? And pie. We’ll definitely need some pie.”

“I know just what you like,” Beth Ann said as she hurried off, and the men settled themselves onto the soft bench seats of Justin’s favorite booth.

“Ahhh…” Jerome sighed, grateful to be off his feet. “I’m glad that’s all taken care of. I couldn’t handle anything else right now aside from some coffee, pie, and corned beef hash.”

“Me neither, Chief,” Matthew said with the same familiarity he would’ve spoken to his old chief back in Kinsey. Since their talk at dinner the night before, Matthew felt more at ease aroundJerome and liked the effortless camaraderie building between them.

“You look dog tired, son.” Jerome shook his head. “Be honest. Did I make a mistake askin’ you to come out and help?”

“No, I’m alright, sir. All I need now is to eat, sleep, and see Katie. And hopefully not in that order.”

Matthew looked across the room and spotted Beth Ann balancing plates of pie up one arm, menus tucked under the other, and her slim fingers looped through three mug handles. He smiled, recognizing how hard Beth Ann tried to be her best for others.

---