92 Pacific Boulevard - Debbie Macomber [116]
A puzzled look appeared on her face. “Who? I’ve never heard of him before. What could I possibly have done to make him target me?”
“This isn’t about you, Faith. I should’ve seen that much sooner. This has absolutely nothing to do with you.”
Faith stared at him in confusion. “I don’t understand.”
“I haven’t got all the answers myself, but I’ll tell you what I think happened and why.”
“Please.” Her eyes implored him to make sense of it all.
“Schaffer was a friend of Dale and Pam Smith, who were the tenants before you. While they were living here, my office received a number of complaints about them. I spoke to Schaffer personally on several occasions. He’s involved with drugs and hangs out with a rough crowd.”
“But…he eventually moved away.”
“I don’t think it was by choice. I can’t say for sure exactly how they did it, but I believe Cliff Harding and Jack Griffin persuaded the Smiths and their gang, including Mark, to leave. They hadn’t paid rent in months and they were bringing undesirables into the neighborhood. Grace was afraid that if she evicted them, they’d trash the house.”
“And you figure Cliff and Jack convinced them to move?”
“True. But I don’t know how.” He gave her a half smile. “You’ll have to ask Grace about that and, when you find out, don’t tell me, okay?”
“Okay.”
“My guess is that Mark, or one of his cronies, left a stash of drugs behind in their rush to vacate the premises. He’s been coming back looking for that. Most likely drugs, but it could be money or something else of value. I assume it’s hidden somewhere in the garage, seeing he’s targeted that area.”
“But he broke into the house first.”
“Either he doesn’t remember exactly where he hid his stash or whatever it is—or he was hoping to get you to move so he’d have time to search after you left. When you didn’t turn tail and run, he had to take his chances, which is why he returned to the house. Then you got the alarm system and he was limited to the garage.”
“It’s over, then.” The relief in her voice was evident.
“I believe so. Ironically, I think there’s a good possibility that whatever was hidden inadvertently got tossed out when Grace and Cliff had the house cleaned and repainted.”
Troy stood up to leave. The cut on his mouth had started to throb and he needed to get to the station to deal with Schaffer.
She walked him to the front door, but stopped him before he could open it.
“You’re safe now,” he assured her.
“I know,” she whispered, then gently caressed his face.
He caught her hand and held it to his cheek. Every instinct he had told him to stay.
She smiled at him. Closing her eyes, she leaned forward and pressed her mouth to his, careful not to touch the injury. He could feel the swelling in his lip but it didn’t impede their kiss.
Troy stepped back to keep himself from pulling her into his arms and kissing her the way he had earlier.
He released her, reluctant to let her go. “We need to talk. Soon.”
“I agree.” There was a warmth in her eyes, an openness in her expression.
As he walked away, he noticed that the pain he’d felt just moments earlier had disappeared.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Gloria Ashton sat in her patrol car with the radar gun in her hand. This spot on Harbor Street was notorious for speeders. Writing tickets was the least favorite aspect of her job, but a necessary one. As the most recently hired deputy, she had her dues to pay. She hoped it wouldn’t be long before she had the opportunity to work directly with Sheriff Davis, the way Weaver and Johnson had on Wednesday night.
Mark Schaffer had been placed under arrest and was currently being held at the county jail. The Cedar Cove Chronicle had done a write-up on the incident. Needless to say, the entire Rosewood Lane neighborhood had heaved a collective sigh of relief.
She was on the last stretch of her seven-to-three shift. A car rounded the corner and, seeing her patrol vehicle, automatically slowed. Gloria didn’t bother to check its speed. Whoever was driving hadn’t gained enough momentum after clearing the corner to reach the legal limit.