“Everyone needs duct tape,” Gus said. “That and WD-40. Two things no household should be without.”

“What do you mean?”

“If it’s stuck together but isn’t supposed to be, you use WD-40. If it’s not stuck together but it’s supposed to be, use duct tape.” He smiled. He was missing one of his lateral incisors.

“That’s funny.” I chuckled a bit. “Tell me, how long have you lived here in Snow Creek?”

“All my life. This used to be my daddy’s store. I don’t have a son or daughter to give it to, so when I go, it’ll close, or maybe someone will buy it from my estate.”

A little more information than I’d wanted. “What about the rope?” I tried to replay the mayor’s purchase over in my mind’s eye. Was it the same kind of rope the masked man had used to bind my ankles? It was white rope, of a normal thickness. It could’ve easily been the same rope, or it could’ve easily been different.

“Maybe Evelyn wanted to hang up some laundry. I have no idea.”

“Evelyn?”

“Yeah, she’s the mayor’s wife.”

I nodded. This wasn’t getting me very far. “Do a lot of people come in here to buy rope and duct tape?”

“Rope and duct tape are two of my biggest sellers. Everybody has need of one or the other at some point. What’s with all the questions?”

“Nothing. I was just curious.”

Of course everyone had need of rope or duct tape sometime in his life. A world-class detective I was not.

“It was nice seeing you again, Gus.”

“I didn’t get your name, ma’am.”

I left the store without answering.

Chapter Nineteen

Jonah

“Look, I—”

Brooke pulled me in against her and smashed her lips to mine.

This would’ve been a dream come true for me…if I’d been fifteen. But I was thirty-eight and in love with another woman. I unclamped from her as quickly as I could.

“Don’t you find me attractive, Jonah?”

“Of course I do. But you’re Jade’s mother. And you’re in the middle of recovering from a terrible accident.”

“I’m so lonely. My fiancé hasn’t contacted me in…I don’t know how long now.”

Nico Kostas. Brooke’s fiancé, and the man Talon had convinced himself was one of his abductors.

“I’m sorry you’re lonely. But I’m not going to do this.”

“You want me. I can see it in your eyes. You spent many nights dreaming about having me in your bed.”

“I won’t deny that. But I can assure you that was long ago, and I haven’t had a dream about you in the last twenty years.”

“Please. I need to know that I’m still attractive. I need to feel a man against me. And you’re so…” She eyed me up and down. “You’re perfect—rugged, dark, and perfect. This is your chance to fulfill an adolescent fantasy.”

An adolescent fantasy? I was so long past adolescence. I’d been forced to grow up at thirteen. As for Brooke? I wasn’t even tempted. Bryce would get a good laugh out of this. When he first found out Brooke was staying at the main house with Talon and Jade, he’d advised me to go for it. Brooke was indeed beautiful, but she was a mess inside. She had been a terrible mother to Jade, had basically abandoned her child for her modeling career, and had fallen in love first with a man who stole her fortune, and second with Nico Kostas, who had probably tried to kill her and was now nowhere to be found.

I removed her hands from my arm and stood, walking away from the couch this time. She wouldn’t be able to get up and follow me, at least not quickly.

“I’m sorry. You’re Jade’s mother, and it would be wrong for me to take advantage.”

Her blue eyes were heavy-lidded. “I’m giving you the advantage.”

Clearly, she was. And if I weren’t in love with Melanie, I might’ve given it a thought. But only a thought. She was Jade’s mother first, and she also wasn’t a very good person from what I knew.

“It wouldn’t be right. Can I get you anything before I go?”

She shook her head. “You know what I want from you.”

“Please tell Talon I stopped by. I’ll call him later.” I walked as swiftly as I could without running to the door.

 

Melanie clutched at my hand as we got off the elevator on the fourth floor of her building. Her neighbor, Lisa, who I’d met a few days earlier, was just coming out of her door with a small dog on a leash. She lit up when she saw me.

“Why hello there,” she said.

“Hello,” Melanie replied.

“Melanie, what’s going on? The police have been around.” Lisa arched her brows. “And here they are again.”

Melanie bit her lip as a uniformed officer stepped off the elevator.

“I’m afraid that’s…classified at the moment,” I said to Lisa. I hurriedly ushered Melanie to her loft, the officer following us.

The door was still roped off with police tape. The policeman unlocked it, and we walked into the loft.

“I’m Officer Loring,” the man said. “Look around. If you need to take anything with you, check with me first.”

Everything was the same. It was in shambles, most likely made to look like a failed robbery.

“I know this is hard for you,” I said, “but you have to figure out if anything is missing. Your insurance guy is going to need to know your losses.”

“I know. I hardly looked at anything when we were here before. I just threw some clothes into my duffel as fast as I could. You’re right. I have to do this.”

“Do you have anything that’s worth a lot? Sterling silverware maybe, or some jewelry?”

She shook her head. “Nothing like that. I have a few pieces of gold jewelry, but they’re nothing.”

“Let’s make sure nothing is missing.”

I followed Melanie into her bedroom. It wasn’t in as bad of shape as the living area, although a few of her dresser drawers had been upended. She found her jewelry box and confirmed that nothing was gone.

“I guess this will be easy,” she said. “The only thing insurance needs to worry about is replacing the ruined furniture and the door lock. At least nothing was stolen.”