Angela Strong - Presumed Dead

“Holly?”

She blinked and turned to him, though her eyes remained distant.

He shouldn’t blame her. She’d had quite a day. “Where are you going after you talk to the police?”

She stared. Maybe she hadn’t heard him. Maybe she was going into shock. “Cedar Glen.”

Good. He tilted his head toward the water, indicating it was time for her to dive in. The sooner she answered police questions, got rid of her ex and was safely at the lodge, the sooner he would be able to see her again. But that didn’t make letting her go any easier.

THREE

Holly stumbled up the beach, her body trembling and dripping from the swim. She didn’t want to talk to anybody. Especially not Caleb.

Preston’s return had hit her like the force of water from a fire hose. And his dismissal had left her feeling much like the crumbling remnants of the cabin. Not to mention the attempts on her life.

“Holly.” Caleb’s brand-new, colorful hiking boots slipped in the gravel as he rushed to her with a fireman’s blanket. “You’re alive. Do you know what happened here? I was scared to death. How’d you escape?”

Holly tensed at his attention. She wasn’t his to worry about anymore. “Calm down, Caleb. I’m fine.” Fine. Ha. Who was she kidding?

“That is such a relief.” He wrapped the scratchy blanket around her shivering shoulders, which would have been nice if he hadn’t kept his arm around her, as well. “I’m just thankful you weren’t in the cabin. Did you go swimming as soon as you got here?”

She shrugged out of his grip and ignored the question. But at least Caleb had been concerned for her welfare and was now acting thoughtful. She would have expected him to take off on their honeymoon with his new girlfriend.

“Thanks for the blanket.” Her teeth chattered. It may be June, but the lake temperature only varied eight degrees from winter to summer.

Caleb tried to wrap his arms around her again.

She shook him off. Not happening. “What are you doing here?”

“The neighbors called your parents when the cabin exploded, and they called me to see if I knew where you were.”

Holly eyed him. Mom must have been really worried about her if she’d asked Caleb for help. Though how had he gotten to her cabin so fast?

“I’m so thankful you weren’t injured. I never got the chance to tell you how horrible I feel about what happened between us, Holly. It was a mistake. And actually I was planning to stay on my boat in hopes you’d call me so I could drive over here, and we might work this out.” He gripped her hand. “Please.”

She grimaced at his touch. There was nothing to work out. Particularly not now that the first man she’d ever loved had shown up alive again. As dishonest as Preston’s death was, his presence reminded her how good they’d had it once upon a time. And Caleb was not once-upon-a-time material. She pulled away.

An officer with a receding hairline strode over. “You’re Holly Fontaine? This is your cabin?”

“My parents own it.” Good, a distraction. Except now she would have to answer a bunch of questions in a way that would somehow leave out Preston’s existence. Maybe she should be the one asking the questions. She’d take on her attorney persona. “What happened?”

“Ma’am, I’m glad to see you survived. My name is Officer Shaw, and I hate to tell you this, but a bomb went off in your cabin earlier today.”

“A bomb?” The idea still shook her.

“Yes, ma’am. Do you know of anyone who’d want to harm you?”

She looked at Caleb. Pretty convenient he just happened to be in the area. The bomber had been talking to someone on the phone. Could it have been him? No. It was more likely the other woman wanted her dead, now that Caleb seemed to want to make things work with Holly.

“What’s your girlfriend’s name?” she asked.

Caleb reeled. “No. That’s ridiculous. She’s not my girlfriend. And she wouldn’t do this anyway.”

Officer Shaw pulled his sunglasses lower on his pockmarked face to look at the other man. “I will check her alibi. What’s her name?”

Caleb shifted his weight side to side. “Denise Amador. But make no mistake, she didn’t do this.”

Holly lifted her chin. “She obviously wasn’t above having photos taken of you two together and sending them to me.”

Caleb’s voice lowered. “You still think she did that?”

The officer chewed at the fingernail on his thumb. “I’m going to need to interview you both separately.”

Holly blew air into her cheeks. None of their old relationship stuff even mattered anymore now that Preston was in the picture. Because Preston was the only one who should have ever been in the picture—the old Preston anyway.

The old Preston never would have left her to talk to police by herself. The nickname “doll” came from the way his parents said he used to like to play with her as much as his little sister liked playing with her dolls. She smiled sadly at the memory. Preston had called her “doll” to get her on the Jet Ski, but not because he wanted to rekindle their friendship.

She focused on Shaw. “That’s fine, Officer. I’m not planning to talk to Caleb anymore anyway.”

“What? Why not?” Caleb held his hands out as a different cop motioned him away. “Is there another man in your life?”

No. Just the shadow of a man. “Goodbye, Caleb.” Preston or no Preston, her main regret with the lawyer was that she hadn’t said goodbye sooner.

Shaw led her toward the police car next to her totaled vehicle. Debris had smashed into it, and the heat had melted everything from her purse to her computer to her luggage. She’d need to go shopping, but could she even get money out of her bank without a license and debit card? Maybe Dad could wire her some cash for the rest of the weekend. She’d hole up at the lodge, waiting for Preston to show up again.

Or had she been knocked unconscious by the blast from the explosion and dreamed the whole Preston thing? That would actually make more sense than his sudden appearance after four years.

“What’s your relationship with Mr. Brooks?”

Blech. Holly didn’t want to even think about Caleb. Had he been cheating on her the whole time? “We were supposed to get married this weekend, but I found time-stamped pictures of him with someone else in my mailbox last week.”

Officer Shaw scribbled notes. “You don’t suspect Mr. Brooks set the bomb?”

She leaned back against the seat. “No. He obviously lacks morals, but he’s not stupid.”

The policeman gave her a hard look.

She shrugged. “We’re defense attorneys. If he’d planted a bomb, he would have made sure he had an alibi far away from here.”

Shaw scratched his head with the back of his pencil. “We will check out his alibi. You really think Ms. Amador would go to such lengths?”

Up until twelve days ago, Holly hadn’t even known the woman existed. “I don’t know.” She thought back to Preston’s suggestions that a former client might be after her. Would he have considered Denise a suspect had he known of Holly’s broken engagement? It didn’t matter now. The police were looking into it. She told Shaw about the blue Jeep before asking for a ride to Cedar Glen.

* * *

The resort had been remodeled since Preston’s last visit. It was a nice change, though it made him sad how easily life went on without him. Holly probably wouldn’t need him around for long, either. Hopefully, she’d kept her word and hadn’t mentioned him to authorities.

She arrived a couple hours later in khaki shorts and a ruffled, baby blue tank top, carrying a shopping bag. Her parents must have wired her some money.

He waited until she’d checked into Cottage 19 before scanning the surroundings and knocking on her door. It would have been safer for her to be in the main lodge, but the place always booked up months in advance.