Page 68 of Bear Creek Valentine
“She’s been seeing a man who lives in her building, and they left late last night in his dark blue Cadillac. Miss Novak has been going along for his drug deliveries, so I thought little about it until I got your call. I’m convinced the van was vandalized by Heather and her boyfriend. Since they used his car instead of hers, and onlyheshowed up on the security tapes, the deputy came to the reasonable conclusion that the damages were done by someone else.”
Aiden nodded.
“Dash and I agree with you, but I don’t see how we can prove anything. His bear could smell both of them, but she must have been busy on the passenger side of the van and out of view of the camera.”
Wahl asked to see the security footage again and rewound a portion of the action several times.
“Look carefully here, where he gets out of the driver’s seat. See that lighter-colored blur behind him? It’s Heather heading toward the van’s passenger side, though it doesn’t look like much. They were moving fast, but notice that as soon as he finished with the driver’s side and front end, he turns to leave. When he reaches the Caddy, you’ll see the same blur behind him as Heather gets in the car.
“Someone elsehadto be simultaneously inflicting damage on the rest of the van, and going by the photographs you took, the breakage pattern on the passenger side and rear of the vehicle was very different. He was swinging a sledgehammer, while Heather probably used a tire iron or something similar. The point is, the timestamp on the video demands a two-person job in order to finish so quickly, which is backed up by the male and female scents Dash picked up,andthe two different types of damage done.”
The picture Wahl painted made total sense to Aiden, though he wasn’t sure what good it would do them.
“So, what’s the next step? How do we stop her?”
Wahl grimaced.
“I’m going to take my evidence to the Sheriff and lay out the case. He may not agree with my conclusions, but I’ll try to convince him. What we need is to catch her in the act, and that’s very difficult to do. Now that she’s working with someone else, the pattern could change and throw everything we’ve learned so far into question. I still have a card up my sleeve, but playing it may tip my hand and scare her off. Unfortunately, it not only leaves you hanging, it means she may avoid being charged with a crime. I’ll do my best, Aiden, but I can’t guarantee this will end the way we hoped.”
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Meanwhile, at the Village Green Apartments
Heather moaned as her new lover, Rafael Delgado, pounded her into the stained mattress. The combination of drug-fueled lust and the fun they’d had trashing theDeliciousvan made him extra horny and demanding. Like most of the denizens of Village Green, he lived outside the conventions of society and on the wrong side of the law. She’d never imagined herself withsomeone like Rafael, but he was good to her, and she needed someone to lean on. Even better, he was willing to help her exact revenge on Aiden Romero for ruining her life.
He came with a few deep grunts while she cried out and convulsed with pleasure. They’d been at it off and on for most of the day; screwing, eating, more screwing, and now finally at rest. In between bouts, they’d been piecing together her coup de grâce and the perfect time to strikeDeliciousfor the killing blow. Rafael, Heather discovered, was not only good in bed but also possessed first-hand experience which would come in handy down the road.
More discussion would have to wait, however, as the exhausted man’s snores indicated he’d be out for a while. Heather joined him in sleep, imagining the day Romero’s dreams came crashing down. She only hoped it hurt like hell.
Chapter 25
Mid-November, Delicious’ Satellite Location
Hudson wheeled in the last stack of boxes from the van and brought the packing list up front to Ginger. He enjoyed interacting with the vivacious, hardworking woman, and put up with her teasing because he always gave it right back.
“Here you go. One of the machines acted up yesterday, and we fell behind on the coffee bars. Skip was working on them when I left and said to expect them with this afternoon’s delivery. Need anything else?”
Ginger scanned the pack list and gave him a thumbs up.
“Looks good, Hudson. I’m a little concerned about my supply of cocoa mixes, though. Now that the Hungry Bear is selling it by the cup, I can barely keep up with customers who want to take packets home.”
He waggled a finger at her.
“And whose fault is that?Youwere the one who suggested it in the first place, so don’t complain now.”
She gave him the hands-on-hips,‘Did you just say that?’look from her waitress days.
“Hmm... I don’t hear Aiden complaining about a twelve percent increase in sales. Maybe if my delivery person worked a little harder, it wouldn’t be a problem.”
Hudson laughed at her sass and backed away.
“Well, if you’re going to be likethat, I’ll just go. See you this afternoon!”
Ginger waved and turned to find her favorite bear shifter standing at the counter, holding an extra-large coffee mug. He was a frequent customer, and one of the nicest people she knew.
“Good morning, Dash. What can I get for you?”
“Hey, Ginger. Give me a Nut Bomb combo box, and a couple of the apple & cinnamon bars for my secretary. Oh, and can you fill this with the Mayan Dark & Spicy hot chocolate?”
