They always made her laugh. It was always the highlight of her week.

“Hey.”

Lacey turned to find Kelly Cates regarding her with a touch of trepidation and curiosity. Kelly and her husband Chris owned the gymnastics academy.

“How are you doing?” Kelly’s voice was soft as she pulled Lacey close for a long hug. She’d always been a quiet person. Over the years the woman had lost that conditioned gymnast look. She’d rounded out slightly but still had the pixie face and bobbed blonde hair from long ago.

“All right, I guess. I don’t know what the hell is going on from one minute to the next,” Lacey answered.

Kelly had been on the Southeast Oregon University Gymnastics team with Lacey and had discovered her bleeding on the sidewalk as she’d run to catch up with Lacey and Suzanne. Kelly was supposed to walk to the restaurant with Chris, but he’d changed his plans, so Kelly had been far behind the two girls that dreadful night. She was still one of Lacey’s closest friends. Up there with Michael and Amelia.

What would’ve happened if Kelly and Chris had been right behind them that night? Would Suzanne still be here?

She dropped the thought. Been there, done that.

She smiled at Kelly and greeted another child begging for her attention.

Resentment at Kelly and Chris for not being there when she needed them was something Lacey had struggled to overcome for years. Deep down she knew it wasn’t their fault, but at one time she’d been looking for anyone to blame.

Lacey was envious of the relationship Kelly shared with Chris. They’d dated all through college, just like Lacey and Frank. They’d had their rocky moments in the beginning of the relationship, but Chris was a wonderful man and their marriage lasted. He worshiped the ground Kelly walked on.

Kelly glanced around and lowered her voice. “The police called me about my testimony in the DeCosta trial.” Kelly never saw the attack or the man. All she had testified about was Lacey’s condition when she’d found her. “They think I need to be careful. They said this killer seems to be working down a list of those involved in the DeCosta trial.” Her eyes dilated and her voice wavered the slightest bit.

“Definitely be careful, Kelly. Don’t go anywhere alone and keep your doors locked tight. Might be a good time to go visit your mom in Nevada?”

Kelly nodded. “I’ll mention it to Chris.”

“I’m having a security system installed as soon as possible and I’m staying at my dad’s tonight.”

“Aren’t you scared?” Kelly asked.

Lacey didn’t get a chance to answer. A tall muscular man had snuck up and wrapped his arms around both women’s shoulders, squeezing them in a bear hug. “How’re my two favorite women?” Lacey stiffened and her breath shot out of her. Chris.

She was jumping at shadows.

Lacey punched him lightly in the chest with a shaky arm. Chris was an affectionate kind of guy. Good-looking with naturally tanned skin and reddish-brown hair, he attracted attention from women of all ages, but he had eyes only for Kelly.

“I guess I need to correct that. Sorry Lace, you take third place behind Jessica.”

Lacey was relieved he hadn’t notice her start. “I can handle that.” Jessica was their only child and was spoiled horribly. “How’s she doing? No interest in gymnastics yet?” Lacey knew the fourth grader hated the sport.

Kelly rolled her eyes. “She acts like it’s toxic or something. All she likes is soccer. She’s taking after her dad.”

Chris had played professional soccer for a few years after college. When he blew out a knee, Kelly convinced him to help her open the gym. Surprisingly, he enjoyed coaching a different sport and had an excellent eye for gymnastics. Probably from all the years he spent watching Kelly practice and compete.

“Jess would love to see you, Lacey. Could you come for dinner tomorrow night?”

“I can’t. Tomorrow’s that fundraiser for the Portland Dental Van project. I can’t miss it.”

Kelly nodded, but her eyes still held a trace of worry.

“What’s your take on all these deaths, Lace?” Chris’s brown gaze was unnaturally serious.

“I hate it. The police are warning everyone who was involved in the trial and digging up DeCosta’s past, trying to see who might do a revenge or copycat killing.”

“What about that guy in the paper?” Chris asked. “The one Michael wrote about? Are they going to arrest him? He’s got too many links to the old murders and to the new ones. How freaky is that?”

“Jack Harper hasn’t done anything. He doesn’t have any motivation and there’s no reason to arrest him.” Lacey defended him, but her heart sank a little. She’d been caught off guard by some of the revelations in the article. But he’d stood by her as they showed the police that tape, and he definitely had good instincts about her ex-husband. Plus, she felt safe around him.

To her, that carried the most weight.

Jack ran a finger between his neck and the collar of his tux and tugged. Usually the formal clothes didn’t bother him, but tonight was different. He felt out of his environment at this charity event, adrift. He hadn’t seen Lacey since she’d thrown him out of her house yesterday for harassing that damned reporter. He knew she was coming to the party tonight. His sister had confirmed her name on the guest list.

Jack had forgotten about the fundraiser. He always forgot formal events until his always-efficient sister would call the day before and remind him. He believed Melody’s phone call yesterday was fate offering him a chance to see Lacey on neutral ground. Damn it. He tugged at his collar again. He wasn’t in control of the situation and was grabbing his opportunities where they came.