jurors had received threatening phone calls and letters during the trial.”
“Threats?” Lieutenant Tucker stepped closer. “What kind of threats?”
Sarah coughed and closed her eyes. “They were told to vote guilty or else. The young woman, Alayna Brown, I think, was worried that whoever it was would go after her parents.”
“Aunt Sarah.” Melanie kept her voice soft, soothing. “You said another juror was threatened, too. Do you know who? Did she say?”
“No, dear.” The old woman opened her eyes and pierced Melanie with her gaze. “She said that her conscience was killing her. She was afraid that she’d helped to jail an innocent woman and keep a killer free. I think she was worried that whoever wanted you in prison so bad would come after you now that you were free.”
Melanie felt the horror sink into her soul. Would this never end? All she wanted was to try to put her life back together. Somehow, she had found herself in the middle of something dark.
Something deadly.
A footstep stopped outside the door. Melanie frowned, and craned her neck to see who was at the door. When she saw the empty doorway, she shook her head. Great. Now she was hearing things.
“Mrs. Swanson,” Lieutenant Tucker addressed her aunt gently, “I’m going to ask for someone to guard your door during your stay. I’ll do my best to find out who’s behind this. Please trust me.”
“Melly,” the old lady wheezed urgently.
“I’ll protect her, Mrs. Swanson. With my life if necessary.” He leaned over and placed a hand over Sarah’s. When he straightened, he took out his phone and motioned to Melanie that he was going to be right outside the door. She nodded her understanding. She tried to focus her attention on her aunt, but found herself listening in on the lieutenant’s side of the conversation.
“Sir, I know we have limited resources. There needs to be someone here with the aunt. Yes, sir. I believe she’s in danger.”
Melanie’s throat constricted. Poor Aunt Sarah! She had never done anyone harm, and now she had been targeted. Melanie knew this whole mess was her fault.
“I can keep an eye on the niece. We just need cover for the aunt.”
Her face heated at the idea of spending so much time with the irritating lieutenant. She remembered his look of contempt back at the house. He didn’t even care that she insisted she was innocent. Even if she had been guilty, she wasn’t the same woman who went to jail four years ago. Not that Lieutenant Tucker would ever believe her.
“Melanie, child.” Aunt Sarah’s whispery voice broke into her reverie.
“Yes, Aunt Sarah?”
“Sing for me. Please. It’s been so long since I heard you sing.”
Melanie’s breathing hitched. She had forgotten how much her aunt had loved to listen to her. Deliberately, she chose a French aria that she knew her aunt loved. As she sang, she allowed her eyes to close, losing herself in the music. When she opened them again, her gaze was caught by a pair of blue eyes. Lieutenant Tucker had returned, and was staring at her with his jaw dropped.
Embarrassed, she rose awkwardly to her feet.
Lieutenant Tucker straightened and nodded. “Let’s go.”
With a grimace, Melanie said goodbye to Aunt Sarah, promising to visit again soon, and then followed him out. She hadn’t realized how tall he was. But now, trying to keep up with his long strides, she realized he was a good eight or nine inches taller than her own five feet four inches. By the time they had reached the parking lot, she was almost jogging to keep up. What was his hurry? She didn’t remember him walking so fast earlier.
Irritated, she stopped. She planted her fists firmly on her slim hips. And waited.
Lieutenant Tucker was about twenty feet ahead of her when he slowed and glanced around. His expression grew as dark as a thundercloud. He fixed the fiercest glare Melanie had ever seen on her, and she resisted the urge to take a step back. Instead, she lifted her chin, and gave him what she hoped was a defiant scowl.
“What are you playing at, Melanie?” he demanded.
“I’m not going to run after you,” she tossed back at him. “My legs are shorter than yours.”
He huffed. “Of all the—”
A sudden squeal of tires cut off whatever he was about to say. A dark four-door sedan came barreling around the corner of the parking lot. It was headed right for her!
Melanie stood, frozen, filled with the certainty that she was going to die.
Lieutenant Tucker rammed into her with enough force to send her flying six feet before she slammed into the pavement. She lay still for a couple of seconds before sitting up, wincing. The lieutenant was already calling the incident in on the radio clipped to his shoulder. He didn’t get a good look at the license plate, she heard him say.
“We need to look over the security tapes before we leave,” he informed her. “Whoever that was almost killed us with their recklessness. There’s no excuse for accidents like that to happen.”
Melanie was silent. Part of her wondered if it really had been an accident.
* * *
“Do we know where we’re going?” Mel inquired. They had been driving in silence for ten minutes.
“Of course I know,” Lieutenant Tucker replied, his expression bordering on smug. After a few seconds, Mel realized he wasn’t planning on saying anything more.
“Well, could you tell me where?”
“I could. Don’t know why I should, though. You’re a civilian.”
Mel sputtered in confusion. “Well, because... Jace!” She nearly yelled the last as she caught his satisfied smirk. Then her face reddened as she realized she had slipped up and called him by his first name. “I mean Lieutenant.”
“Jace is fine.”
She gave him her most mutinous glare.
He relented. “Fine. We’re going to an apartment complex on Sassafras Street. That’s Alayna Brown’s last known address.”
Startled, Melanie couldn’t help asking, “You mean you’re going to let me talk to her?”
He shrugged. “Why wouldn’t I?”
“Well,” Melanie said, “if you’re investigating the threats—which you are, right?” Jace nodded. “Then is it okay for me to be there? I mean, it’s not like I’m a police officer.”
Jace’s derisive snort in response irritated her, but she stayed quiet, waiting for him to answer. “You’re right that I usually wouldn’t bring a civilian along while I went to take someone’s statement,” he said at last. “But these are unusual circumstances. You seem to be in danger. I promised my chief I would look after you. I have to question Alayna, and I can’t leave you unsupervised, which means you have to go where I go. And anyway, your aunt said that Alayna was worried about you. She might be more willing to talk if you’re there.”
Satisfied, and more than a little apprehensive, Melanie sat back and allowed the silence to swallow them as Jace turned off the interstate and headed toward the city limits.
“Your voice is incredible.”
Taken aback, her eyes swiveled back to Jace. His expression clearly said he hadn’t meant to tell her that. In fact, he refused to glance her way.
“Thank you.” Really, what else was there to say?
“That was an unusual song choice.”
Jace apparently hated mysteries of any kind.
“My aunt has loved that song forever. I grew up listening