Tyler Anne Snell - Credible Alibi

The man had been so certain of Madi’s guilt, so incensed by it, that he had spit as he’d yelled. His fervor had solidified Julian’s urge to help Madi.

He knew without a doubt that Madi was innocent. He’d felt it in his bones the moment she’d yelled out to him that she didn’t do it. He’d jumped into his SUV and flown to the station, ready to watch as the rest of the department believed her, too.

Yet it didn’t happen.

Or at least, the evidence forced their hands.

The looks across the local deputies’ faces changed as the hours wore on. Julian stayed in the lobby with the flimsy reasoning of being a friend of Madi’s. He waited to be questioned but no one ever came for him. In all the uproar he’d seemingly melted away into the scenery. He’d only had the chance to talk to Jenna to get the quick and short story of what had happened before she’d had to leave. The sheriff and Caleb could be seen, angry and whispering. The entire department’s mood went from determined to find the alternate story to souring. Then on edge. When Julian had seen the lawyer come in through the lobby, wearing a suit and an expression that meant he was in for a rough ride, the need to help Madi had punched through Julian’s gut until he was standing in front of her brother and lying through his teeth.

Now he was standing in front of Madi and telling the same lie.

“I sneaked in an hour before Jenna called you, parking my vehicle off the road and hiding in the trees so no one knew I was there. That’s why you didn’t want to eat dinner with the guests, which is unlike you,” he spelled out. “I was with you in the bathroom when Jenna called. You found the body, but I was next to you. Realizing the cops were going to be involved, I went out the window and made it to my car. Then I pretended to come in for the first time so no one would suspect I’d been there at all.”

Madi’s eyes were wide and blue. Oh so blue.

“And the reason I didn’t want to be caught up in an investigation was because I was worried that it would get me fired before I ever started my job next week.” Julian shrugged. “Not a noble story, but everyone in there knows you didn’t do it so it made sense to them.”

The innkeeper ran a hand over her belly. Her pregnant belly. Julian wanted to ask how far along she was but getting their story straight here, now, was the most important thing they could talk about. As she’d already said, it was a lie that had made the difference between murderer and lead suspect.

“Why?” she finally asked. “You... Well, you don’t know me. This could absolutely get you fired and jail time.” She lowered her voice and took a step closer. Julian could reach out and touch that baby bump between them if he were so inclined. “Why take that risk? Why lie?”

Julian gave her the honest truth.

“You said you didn’t do it and I believe you.”

A look he couldn’t interpret crossed the innkeeper’s expression. Then it transformed back into exhaustion.

“And am I to guess what we were doing together in secret last night?”

Julian felt the heat of their earlier intimate memories burn through him. Just as they had been throughout the last several months. Like lighter fluid thrown into a low flame. Hot, alarming and just a dangerous taste of what else could happen.

“The same thing we did last time I was here,” he answered. “Apparently, Caleb had no idea you and I had been romantic then. I had to tell him otherwise to give credence to my story now.”

Again, Julian wanted to search her expression to find the reason why she’d ended things, why she’d kept him a secret then and the time after he’d left, but he had to focus. Not that he could have gleaned the truth from the woman standing so close to him. Her expression was as guarded as her brothers’ had been when they’d brought her in. Maybe it was a Nash family trait.

“And why did you show up? Outside the fiction you’ve been spinning about our romantic encounter.”

Julian tried to smile, tried to downplay the eagerness he’d hidden from Chance when he’d decided to visit Hidden Hills. This time he lowered his voice.

“I just wanted to say hi before I went on to my new life.”

Madi was quick to comment. She wasn’t smiling.

“And now you’re my alibi in a murder investigation where I’m the lead suspect. If that’s not good—or bad—timing, I don’t know what is.”

Silence stretched between them for a few moments. Madi looked down at her hands on her stomach. Her expression was knotted in thought. When she met his eyes again there was a fire behind them. However, before she could speak, the door to the department swung open.

Caleb took the stairs down two at a time. When he got to them, he clapped Julian on the back and smiled for all he was worth.

“While I’m not exactly happy you waited so long to do it, I’m sure as hell glad you came forward,” he said, reiterating what he’d told Julian earlier. He gave his sister an equally enthusiastic smile. “I’m just glad we can all go home now.”

Madi didn’t share in his exuberance.

“My home is a crime scene,” she pointed out.

Caleb nodded, deflating slightly.

“Good thing that’s not the only home you have here.”

Madi looked like she wanted to say something else but Caleb wasn’t having it. The earlier stress had lifted. Now he was reveling in the lightness. Julian had been there before. He became reacquainted with the feeling at the end of every deployment.

Caleb motioned to his truck and addressed Julian directly.

“Why don’t you two follow me?” he said, already digging out his keys. “Mom and Nina have some beds made up and some breakfast going, depending on how you’re feeling.”

Julian’s eyebrow rose high.

“And where exactly are we going?”

The detective gave them both a grand smile.

“The Nash Family Ranch! Where else?”

* * *

THE SUNLIGHT MET them and followed them across town and right up to and through the entrance to the Nash Family Ranch. The last time she’d talked to Julian, Madi had been avoiding the ranch and her mother out of guilt.

Things hadn’t gotten much better. When she’d announced her pregnancy her mother had been happy, but also angry.

It had created a rift between them, one Madi’s brothers had tried to repair, but they found no easy way to soften either woman. Because even though her situation wasn’t ideal, Madi wouldn’t allow any negativity. No matter if it was a passive-aggressive comment or a wayward glance that held an edge.

Now, though, as the fields passed by on either side of Julian’s SUV and the ranch at the end of Winding Road became closer, Madi wanted to avoid her mother for an entirely new reason. Dorothy Nash had been through the wringer in the past three decades. She’d faced and dealt in heartache like she’d been cursed with bad luck. She’d seen needless violence and pain much more than any one person should have to bear.

And here Madi was, adding another heartache alongside the father of her child, who’d just committed a crime to keep her from being charged as a murderer.

Madi pressed her forehead against the cool of the window. It sounded like the plot to a movie where Harrison Ford would eventually be jumping out of an airplane or from one skyscraper rooftop to another to save the day.

“So, this is the famous family ranch?”

Julian’s eyes had been swiveling as he’d driven through the front gate that ended Winding Road. He was observant, that much Madi knew of the man. She had appreciated this skill during their week together. He’d noticed the shifts in her mood and thoughts with ease. He understood her.

Yet maybe that hadn’t been something special between them. Maybe that was just who Julian was. An observant man who had come into town, flashed his smile and then disappeared.