Page 4 of Mistletoe and Malice
Shane wasn’t one ofthem. Hadn’t been born with a silver spoon in his mouth. Didn’t have a trust fund. His parents were nobodies, as far as Judge Mulaney was concerned, and his baby girl deserved so much better. Better than this intelligent,self-made man who only had a club membership because he’d overhauled their computer system.
She stood by the table until the guard left the room, knowing he would remain on the other side of the door with its rectangular window. Otherwise, as this was an attorney visit, they would be alone.
“Shane. Have a seat.”
Without a word, he walked to the other side of the table and folded his lanky frame into the hard, metal chair opposite her. He’d been more muscular the last time she’d seen him with Cait, before spending two years in a cell waiting for trial and another month in diagnostic processing after the verdict. He’d been delivered here thirteen days ago, his new place of residence.
He cleared his throat. “I wasn’t sure you would come. Considering.”
Nodding, she swallowed. She’d changed her mind a few times over the past week, but her conscience wouldn’t let her go. She had to at least hear what he had to say, knowing how desperate he had to be to reach out to her, someone who had loved Caitlyn.
“I have to admit, I was a little surprised to get your letter.”
His chuckle held no humor. “I’m quite sure. I don’t know—there’s nobody—my defense team—” He stared up at the ceiling for a long moment before bringing his anguished gaze back to her. “I don’t know where else to turn, Miss Hudson.”
“Call me Riley. Like you did—” She bit her lip.
Tears flooded his eyes. “Before.”
“Yes.” She studied him for a moment, the plea in those eyes otherwise devoid of joy. Of peace. “How are you holding up?”
He shook his head. “I don’t belong here. I know you hear that a lot, but I don’t.”
He was right. She heard that a lot. Sometimes it was true, but more often, it was not. Thankfully, she could usually determine within an hour if she was being played.
“My savings are gone,” he continued. “And I still owe thousands to my defense team. My parents have depleted their savings, taken out loans, and put a second mortgage on their house to help cover my legal costs. And, to be honest, I wasn’t impressed with the way they handled my case to begin with.”
Neither was she, but she held her tongue, having learned early on not to burn bridges. She would likely need his former team’s assistance in providing her with all they’d done in their efforts to prove himNot Guilty.
Which was their first mistake. They didn’t argue he wasinnocent, only that the prosecution didn’t have enough to overcome reasonable doubt. An argument the jury clearly disagreed with.
“And I don’t belong here.” The vehemence in his voice matched the intensity in his eyes. “I did not kill Caitlyn. We hadn’t been together long, but I was crazy about her. I believe she felt the same.”
“So, you didn’t send the flowers?”
“I didn’t. I don’t know where they came from or what the note meant.Give me a second chance. I can’t live without you?Why would I send a card like that when we weren’t having any problems?”
“She hadn’t broken it off with you after her dad gave her his ultimatum?” A fact that hadn’t surprised Riley when Cait told her about the icy reception Shane received upon being introduced to her father. Caitlyn had stood her ground then. But had she changed her mind as the weeks wore on with no contact from her family?
“No. I told her I didn’t want to come between her and her father, but she said she was done with him controlling her life.I told her if God had it in His plan for us to have a permanent future together, I could take care of her. I made a good living with excellent potential for career growth. We would’ve been fine if we ever got mar?—.”
His voice broke and tears fell down his cheeks. This man had loved her friend. And he was correct. Cait had been just as crazy about him.
She crossed her arms on the table and leaned in. “Who do you think killed her?”
With a slow shake of the head, he pulled a tissue from the box in the middle of the table and swiped at his eyes and nose. “I have no idea. She was so kind and funny and beautiful. Everybody I knew loved her. I can’t think of one person who would be that angry. To do that to her.”
Riley couldn’t either, but it wasn’t a random killing.
Someone had targeted Caitlyn. Someone angry enough to continue plunging that knife into her body long after she was dead.
Contemplating the man on the other side of the table, her mind reeled. Time to reach her own verdict. Was Shane Everett guilty? Or an innocent man doing someone else’s time?
Chapter Two
Ah.The perfect day for retail therapy.
Riley raised her face to the mild November sun and smiled as she exited the shoe store in Houston’s River Oaks shopping district, clutching another bag.
