Wrongly Accused Read online

  He plopped down on the edge of the pool and put his feet in the water. “Come over and test the water, Katydid.”

  Kaitlin hung back, staying next to Noelle. She urged the little girl over, taking a seat on the edge of the pool next to Caleb, leaving enough room between them for Kaitlin. The little girl sat down and then shrieked when she put her feet in the water. “It’s cold!”

  “Probably because the sun is going down,” Caleb said. “I bet it will be warmer tomorrow. See that plastic cover rolled up over there? They put that on at night, and in the morning the sun shines through the bubbles to warm up the water.”

  Kaitlin kicked her feet, giggling as she splashed the adults. Noelle tensed, but Caleb didn’t yell or tell Kaitlin to stop. In fact, he playfully kicked his feet, too, mimicking his daughter.

  “Can I go in farther, Noa? Can I?” Kaitlin pleaded.

  “You can if you hold on to me,” Caleb answered, holding out his hands in a nonthreatening gesture.

  Noelle held her breath as Kaitlin silently stared up at her father. The lure of the water must have been more than she could resist, though, because she nodded.

  Caleb gently lifted her up, as if she weighed nothing more than Kaitlin’s stuffed giraffe, and propped his elbows on his knees for stability. Slowly he lowered Kaitlin into the water, her tiny hands clutching his forearms.

  “It’s c-c-cold,” she said, her teeth chattering.

  “Do you want to get out?” Caleb asked.

  “N-no, not yet.” Kaitlin wiggled around in the water, as if she could swim with her father holding her, and then scrunched up her nose when a bit of water splashed in her face. He grinned and lifted her up and down, like a bobber on the end of a fishing pole.

  She watched Caleb play with his daughter, her reserve melting away. His smile softened his harsh features to the point it was difficult to imagine him doing anything as terrible as killing his wife.

  “Okay, I think that’s enough, Katydid,” Caleb said, lifting her out of the water and setting her back on the edge of the pool. “Your lips are turning blue.”

  “I’ll get the towel,” Noelle murmured, glad to have an excuse to put some distance between them. Why did she suddenly doubt the image the media had portrayed? An eyewitness had watched Caleb kill his wife and then flee the scene.

  An eyewitness who’d disappeared. Why? What did that mean?

  She hid her confusion by wrapping Kaitlin up in the towel. The little girl snuggled against her and yawned.

  “I think it’s bedtime, young lady,” she said, glancing up at Caleb. He nodded, rose to his feet and padded across the concrete to where he’d left his shoes and socks.

  As they made their way back to the room, she reminded herself that it was easy to believe Caleb’s father-of-the-year act because she hadn’t seen him angry. She’d suffered at the hands of an angry man in the past and the last thing she wanted to do was to find herself in a similar situation with Caleb. So far, she had not seen any evidence of his so-called hair-trigger temper.

  And silently prayed that she never would.

  * * *

  Caleb stretched out on the bed fully dressed, and stared up at the ceiling of the small motel room. Noelle and Kaitlin were snuggled together in the other bed, the one closest to the bathroom.

  There were a few things he wanted to do, but he didn’t dare leave until he knew they were both sound asleep. He was fairly certain Kaitlin was down for the count, but he sensed Noelle was fighting to stay awake. Finally her breathing deepened and he waited another hour just to be sure she was asleep before he quietly stood and made his way to the door.

  He held his breath as he opened the door as silently as possible and slipped outside. Had the noise caused Noelle to wake up? He sincerely hoped not.

  First, he needed to swap the license plates on Noelle’s SUV. He drove down the road, looking for a car that he could use for the swap. He was afraid that anyone within the motel parking lot might notice, so he was determined to find a vehicle somewhere else.

  About three miles down the road he spotted a tavern that suited his needs perfectly. He pulled up to a SUV similar to Noelle’s and smiled grimly when he discovered the Illinois license plates. Even better. He made sure the tag was paid up, and then used his Swiss Army knife to swap the plates.

  At least this way, he could buy some time if whoever shot at him had an APB out on Noelle’s car. It wouldn’t work forever, but he’d take what he could get.

  He returned to the motel, relieved to have that task finished. He parked and shut off the car, but stayed in his seat as he turned on his cell phone to place a call to his lawyer, Jack Owens. It was well past midnight, but he didn’t care. He wanted answers.

  The phone rang several times before Jack answered. “O’Malley, where are you?” he asked in a sleep-laden voice.

  “Somewhere safe. I’m sure you know by now that someone tried to kill me,” he said. “What’s going on?”

  “I don’t know, but the police want to talk to you, Caleb. They’ve been hounding me all evening.”

  “Too bad.” The last thing he intended to do was to trust the police. Not after the way his SWAT teammates had been so eager to believe the worst about him. And there was a tiny voice in the back of his mind reminding him that Jack was the only person who’d known he was heading over to pick up his daughter. Granted anyone could have made a reasonable assumption, but still. “Did they find the slugs embedded in the house? And the canister of tear gas?”

  “They haven’t told me much,” Jack confessed. “Other than they want to talk to you.”

  “Kind of hard to shoot at myself, don’t you think?” he asked, trying not to sound as sarcastic as he felt. “I’d estimate the shooter was standing about a hundred and fifty yards away.”

  “I believe you. You’re the sharpshooter. But you really do need to come back, at least long enough to give your statement,” Jack pleaded. “After all, you have nothing to hide. You’re the victim this time, remember?”

  He wished it were that easy, but knew full well it wasn’t. “What are they saying about Noelle Whitman and Kaitlin?” he asked, changing the subject.

  “Not much, at least as far as I know. Although the police want to interview Ms. Whitman, too.”

  Of course they did. And despite the way he’d watched her pray over their meal, he wasn’t ready to trust her completely, either. He sighed, feeling as if the weight of the world were on his shoulders. “I have to go. Let me know if you find out anything about the crime scene,” he said. “I’ll be in touch in a few days.”

  “Caleb—” Jack started, but Caleb pushed the button to end the call, and then turned off his phone not just to avoid further conversation with Jack but to preserve the battery life and to prevent anyone tracing him through the GPS.

  For several long moments he stared sightlessly through the windshield of Noelle’s SUV. He wanted to trust his lawyer—after all, Jack had been the only one to stick by him throughout the entire nightmare of being charged for murder. Of course, Caleb had paid the man a tidy sum of money to represent him, so that might not mean much. But he couldn’t come up with any reason his own lawyer would want him dead.

  No, somehow the attempt on his life outside Noelle’s house had to be connected with Heather’s murder. It was the only thing that made sense. Someone who was afraid he’d discover the truth? Someone who was feeling desperate, now that the so-called eyewitness had disappeared? And why had the guy disappeared? A sudden attack of cold feet about committing perjury? Or something more sinister?

  He took a deep breath and slid out of the car, closing the door behind him as silently as possible. Using the magnetic key, he quietly opened the door and slipped inside. He stood for several long seconds, allowing his eyesight to adjust to the darkness and listening to make sure Noelle and Kaitlin were stil
l asleep.

  Reassured by the steady breathing, he ventured farther into the room, estimating the location of the bed.

  And then nearly fell flat on his face when Kaitlin screamed.

  * * *

  Noelle bolted upright in bed and gathered the little girl close. “Shh, it’s okay, sweetie. I’m here, it’s okay,” she crooned.

  “What’s wrong?” Caleb asked hoarsely.

  “Nightmare. Shh, Kaitlin, please don’t cry. It’s okay, sweetie, you’re fine. Everything’s fine.”

  She felt the mattress dip as Caleb came over to sit beside them. “Is there anything I can do?” he asked softly.

  “For night terrors? I’m afraid not,” she responded, still smoothing her hand down Kaitlin’s back. After what seemed like ages, the little girl’s screams subsided into hiccuping sobs, her tiny face still pressed tightly against her neck. “I’m sure she’ll calm down soon.”

  There was a long pause as she rocked Kaitlin back and forth, still murmuring words of reassurance.

  “She’s done this before, hasn’t she?” he asked.

  “Yes, but not lately.” Not for over six months, but she didn’t tell him that. She’d suspected the gunfire, tear gas and subsequent wild ride out the back of her garage would bring them back. “Unfortunately, with everything that happened today, I’m not surprised they returned.”

  Please, Lord, bring peace to this sweet little girl. She’s an innocent victim in all of this.

  Noelle lost track of time as she held Kaitlin, waiting for her to fall asleep once again. When Kaitlin’s breathing slowed and her tiny body went slack, she stopped rocking and gently lowered the child to the bed. Caleb moved away, and now that her eyes had adjusted to the darkness, she watched him scrub his hands over his face.

  She knew just how helpless he felt; she’d experienced the same thing during those first few months that Kaitlin had come to live with her.

  “Excuse me,” she whispered, making her way into the bathroom. She used the facilities and splashed cold water on her face to brace herself before heading back out to face him.

  Caleb had opened the curtains a half inch, allowing the light from the outside parking lot to shine into the room. He was seated on a chair near the window, holding his head in his hands.

  He lifted his head when she approached. “This is my fault, isn’t it?” he asked.

  Why she wanted to make him feel better, she had no idea. “It’s not your fault someone shot at you.”

  “I can’t stand the thought of Kaitlin being afraid of me,” he whispered.

  “She’s not,” she whispered back. “After all, she let you hold her in the pool, remember?”

  He shook his head. “She wanted to swim so badly I think she would have let anyone hold her.”

  Noelle sank down onto the chair next to him, unable to refute his logic. “She needs a little time, that’s all.”

  He lifted his gaze to hers. “Maybe I can find a safe place for the two of you to stay for a while. Then I’ll head off on my own to try and figure out who’s trying to kill me.”

  As much as she wanted him to let them go, she couldn’t seem to stop herself from arguing. “Don’t you think that’s a job for the police? They have more resources than you do.”

  “Not if they’re in on it,” he muttered. “Don’t you understand? I can’t trust the police, not after the way everything went down. The entire community thinks I’m guilty. And I can’t take the chance the shooter will use my daughter to get to me.”

  “Who is the shooter? And why would anyone do something so terrible? I don’t understand what’s going on, Caleb.”

  He stared at her in the darkness, and she wished she could see his eyes more clearly. Strange that her earlier distrust of Caleb seemed to have faded in the wake of Kaitlin’s nightmare.

  “I don’t understand what’s going on, either,” he said. “Other than someone wants to kill me. Likely the same person who killed my wife. And why wouldn’t that person try to use Kaitlin? She’s my one and only weakness. Anyone who knows me, which includes all the guys on my former SWAT team, would know that I’d do anything to keep my daughter safe.”

  She wasn’t sure what to say to that. “You really think someone on your team killed your wife?”

  “Yes, I do. I’ve thought of nothing but Heather’s murder for the fourteen months and it’s the only theory that makes sense. I know you don’t believe me, but I promise you I didn’t kill her. I’d considered filing for divorce, when I discovered she was cheating on me, but I didn’t kill her. And I especially wouldn’t do that while Kaitlin was sleeping in her bedroom. I wasn’t there that night because I’d moved into a motel room. And no matter what that neighbor claimed he saw, I did not go back to the house to kill Heather.”

  She’d known that Kaitlin being there the night of her mother’s murder had been the source of the child’s night terrors. The poor child had likely woken to the gunshots and had been found covered with blood in her mother’s room.

  After seeing Caleb interact with his daughter, she found it hard to believe everything had happened the way the eyewitness had claimed. That Caleb had killed his wife and then had run away from the house, carrying a gun and leaving his daughter behind.

  A gun that still hadn’t been found.

  Not to mention an eyewitness who’d disappeared.

  Had Caleb really been sleeping in a motel room while someone else killed his wife?

  “You’d better try to get some sleep,” he finally said.

  “All right.” She rose to her feet and crossed over to the bed she shared with Kaitlin.

  But sleep was a long time coming, because for some odd reason, she found she was beginning to believe Caleb was in fact innocent of the crime he’d been accused of.

  But knowing that didn’t reassure her the way she thought it would.

  Because whoever had tried to kill Caleb outside her house was very likely still looking for him. And she was deeply afraid that the killer wouldn’t hesitate to take the life of a woman and child, too, if necessary.

  THREE

  Caleb woke up after five hours of sleep, feeling surprisingly refreshed. Maybe because it was his first night of sleep as a free man. He’d never slept well in jail, too much noise from the other inmates and guards constantly making rounds. Even a low-budget motel room was better than what he’d left behind.

  The sun was up, but it was still early, barely seven-thirty in the morning. Noelle and Kaitlin were sleeping in, so he quietly made his way to the bathroom, gently closing the door behind him. He felt better after a hot shower, but wished he had a razor and toothpaste.

  He planned to make good on his promise to do some shopping right after breakfast. Then maybe they could take Kaitlin swimming again, before they had to hit the road. As much as he wanted to stay here another day, he didn’t dare stick around in one spot for too long. He’d just have to find another motel with a pool for Kaitlin.

  Remembering his daughter’s nightmare made him frown. It had been the first hint of what his daughter had gone through emotionally and psychologically after his arrest. He was sincerely glad to know that Noelle had been there for Kaitlin the past fourteen months. The way she’d soothed his daughter last night during her nightmare had touched his heart.

  Noelle was a much better mother than Heather had been.

  The instant the thought sank in, he thrust it away. He closed his eyes and dragged his hands over his rough cheeks. The demise of his marriage hadn’t been all Heather’s fault and he needed to stop thinking negative thoughts about his former wife. No matter how she’d betrayed him, and violated their marriage vows, she hadn’t deserved to be murdered.

  He shoved the past away and finished cleaning up. When he emerged from the bathroom, Noelle was sitting at the side of the bed
, finger-combing her hair. “Good morning,” she whispered.

  “Morning.” The hint of fear that had shadowed her eyes since he arrived on her doorstep seemed to have vanished. He was afraid to hope that maybe, just maybe, she was starting to believe him. “I thought we’d get something to eat and then find a store. I’m sure you’d like some toothpaste as much as I would.”

  A shy smile bloomed on her face. “Yes, that would be wonderful.”

  Kaitlin opened her eyes and rolled onto her back, a tiny frown furrowing her brow as she looked around in confusion. “Noa?”

  “I’m here, sweetheart,” Noelle said as she pulled the little girl close and gave her a hug.

  He wanted to give his daughter a hug, too, but stayed where he was, hoping she’d remember the way he’d held her in the pool rather than the way they’d escaped the gunman at Noelle’s house. “Hey, Katydid, are you hungry?”

  Kaitlin gazed at him solemnly before nodding her head. “Yes.”

  “Me, too,” Noelle said. “Let’s wash up in the bathroom first, okay, Kaitlin? Then we’ll get some breakfast.”

  Kaitlin let go of Noelle and scrambled off the bed. She went into the bathroom and Noelle grabbed the pink backpack before following his daughter.

  While he waited, he took out his wallet to double-check the amount of cash he had left. Thankfully Jack had stopped at the bank on the way home so that Caleb could draw out a chunk of his savings, partially to pay his legal fees along with having some cash to live on. Good thing, since staying alive was obviously a priority at the moment.

  Heather had made a good living as a model before they’d gotten married, and after Kaitlin’s birth she’d worked out like a maniac to get back in shape to resume her career. He’d tried to tell her she didn’t need to keep modeling, but she’d insisted. The amount of money she made was more than what he made as a member of the SWAT team, but he’d rather Heather would have been content to do something else. It wasn’t as if she was going to be able to model for the rest of her life. But she’d refused to consider a second career. He hadn’t wanted to leave Kaitlin in the preschool center full-time, but Heather had insisted.