Page 21 of In Cold Blood
“How often did that occur?”
“Hardly ever.”
“And do you know what was wrong with the Tahoe?”
“No idea. You’d have to ask the sheriff.”
Noah took a deep breath. “Were you familiar with the route that Luke would take to and from work?”
“He was a county deputy, Noah. It varied from shift to shift depending on where his last call was. I know in some counties they head back to the station but not here. They are done when they roll into the driveway.”
“So, there was nothing about that night that struck you as odd except that he didn’t have Axel and wasn’t using his assigned vehicle.”
“No. He phoned me as he always did. He would have gotten in late that night. I assumed that it would be no different than the nights before. I was awakened in the early hours of the morning by Sheriff Roberts who notified me in person.” Her eyes welled up as that memory came back to her. Noah reached for a box of tissues and slid them across to her. Kerri took a handful and wiped her eyes, sniffing. “You know, when you marry a police officer you sign up for the fact that there may come a day when they don’t come home. I knew that. But nothing prepares you for it. Sometimes I wish the general public knew the true cost. It’s not only the officers that pay but the families too.” She looked around. “The house feels so empty without him.”
Was it coincidental that Axel wasn’t with him? That he was using a different vehicle and one without a dashboard camera? And whatever he encountered out there, it couldn’t have given him cause for alarm as he never called it in.
“Who found Luke?”
“What?”
“Who phoned it in?”
“A passerby. Some woman. They never got a name. She wasgone by the time first responders arrived. Roberts says they’re trying to track her down but with the remoteness of the area and no CCTV, it could be anyone. I think they’ll be hard-pressed to locate her. I’m sure dispatch has the recording.”
He’d want to hear that, and see the full report and speak to those who were first on scene. He also wanted to know where his last call was, as that would give him some indication of whether or not he was within the vicinity of where his body was found — or whether he had gone out of his way, and if he had, why?
“I hate to ask this, Kerri, but was everything okay between you two?”
She raised her eyebrows and scoffed. “They asked me the same thing, Noah. Of course, things were fine. You know we bumped heads from time to time but what married couple who’s been together for as long as us hasn’t? Our disagreements were petty. It was usually pet peeves. Household stuff. Nothing that we didn’t resolve immediately or before we slept. Luke wasn’t one for holding grudges and neither am I.”
“Sorry, I had to ask.”
She looked away, shaking her head.
He didn’t doubt Kerri. She was a straightforward woman. As grounded as any person he had known. Loyal. At times to her own fault. It was because of Luke that he’d asked. Appearances could be deceiving. Whereas to one partner everything might look fine, to the other, it could be like their world was falling apart. Had his brother been faithful to her or had he strayed and kept things to himself?
The cabin,he thought.
Noah fished into his pocket and clutched the key Alicia Michaels had given him.
Since Luke looked identical to Noah, and Alicia had a key to a cabin that belonged to him, a cabin Kerri didn’t know about —it didn’t take any stretch of the imagination to deduce what could have happened between Luke and Alicia. It wouldn’t have been the first time Alicia had been at the center of an almost failed relationship. His thoughts went back to his ex, Lena, and the year after he got out of the military.
If there was ever a time that their relationship should have failed before it had taken off, it was then. Their engagement meant very little. They were early into it. Long tours overseas meant he was away from Lena for a long time and when he returned, she’d told him that she’d seen someone. She said she’d been lonely. Unsure. And was having cold feet about getting married. If he was honest, so was he at that point. Yet for different reasons. After what he’d witnessed in the Middle East, Noah had found solace at the bottom of a bottle. After a few arguments and a crippling case of PTSD, all of which led to multiple trips to the bar, that’s when it nearly went sideways.
Back then Alicia was bartending. Conversation flowed. Humor lifted his spirit and before he knew it, he too found himself in the arms of someone else. Looking back, Noah wasn’t sure if he did it to get back at Lena or whether it was the connection, the way Alicia made him feel. Either way, it didn’t help the situation.
Upon telling Lena, she had a different reaction than what he’d expected.
After a huge argument, she returned a few days later wanting to talk.
They should have called off the engagement right then. Neither of them was ready to get married. They were too young. Too naïve. Yet what should have pulled them apart, did the opposite. She doubled down. Wanted to make a go of it. Foolishly, Noah agreed. He stopped going to the bar. He didn’t show up the night he was meant to see Alicia, and within a month they had left High Peaks and moved south.
Moving didn’t resolve the underlying problems, it only exasperated them.
Many years later, Lena moved out and returned to the county, taking the kids with her. At least when that decision was made, it wasn’t because of someone else and they both agreed it was for the best. She’d been gone two years.
Again, Noah squeezed the key in his pocket.
