Chasing Strength: A Harper Family Romance Read online

  Once he’d arrived, it had taken Zach plus two officers to restrain Chris, rage coursing through his veins. He’d finally collapsed on the ground, all of his strength spent.

  It had just been the two of them since their parents had died. And then she was gone.

  “I can’t stop looking. Not until the bastard is rotting behind bars.”

  Zach nudged his hip onto Chris’s desk. So much for getting rid of his friend—he was settling in for the long haul. “Do the police have any new leads?”

  Chris shook his head. Despite his daily, and then weekly, calls to the Sheriff’s department and the state police investigating Robin’s murder, there hadn’t been any new information in quite some time. Each call had been more and more discouraging until Chris had taken it upon himself to use the investigative skills he’d spent years honing. He could do a little poking around of his own.

  The few scraps of information he’d dug up had been passed on to law enforcement, but so far, nothing had come of it. “Not much. I haven’t spoken to them in a couple of weeks. I should give them a call. Light a fire under their asses.”

  “I’m sure they’ll contact you if they have any news.”

  Chris wasn’t so sure. If a crime wasn’t solved within the first few days, the trail usually went cold. His years of reporting had taught him that.

  He thought back to last night. If he hadn’t been paying attention, Alexis could have been spirited into the asshole’s vehicle without anyone noticing. Was that what had happened to Robin? Had she left with her killer, thinking he was a safe companion for the night?

  “Kennedy, Wilson, in my office.” Their editor, Larry, yelled at them from his doorway, his voice carrying across the small newsroom to Chris’s office on the opposite wall.

  He and Zach shared a glance. “His highness beckons.”

  Chris laughed at Zach’s well-used but appropriate comment. Larry was all right. He’d probably forgotten more about reporting than Chris would ever know, but Larry was hell bent on “putting the Gazette on the map,” as he would say.

  Chris snatched his notebook off his desk and followed Zach into Larry’s glass-enclosed office. Larry had taken a seat behind his desk. The room wasn’t much bigger than Chris’s, but the cluttered spaces smothered him every time. The walls were lined with file cabinets stuffed so full that several of the drawers hung open, papers poking from the top. More piles cluttered the floor, and Chris added to the chaos when he removed a stack from one of the chairs to sit.

  “Kennedy, where are we on the Main Street burglaries?”

  Nothing like getting right down to business. Not that Chris was complaining. Work was about the only thing that had kept Chris sane. “Not much. Sheriff’s department isn’t finding any clues. Three shops hit in the past week, though, and the owners are concerned.”

  “Well, stay on it… and keep me updated. What about you, Wilson?”

  “I’m all set to cover graduation in two weeks. This year’s class has two graduates headed to service academies, so I planned on writing inserts highlighting their appointments.” Typically, both he and Zach reported more special interest stories than anything else in the sleepy town on the outskirts of Philadelphia where crimes rarely happened, much less rose to the level of Robin’s murder. That was why he’d moved here, after all. Robin had convinced him he’d enjoy the slower pace of the town she’d fallen in love with.

  “Sounds great. We’ll plan six inches for your story the day after graduation. Anything else?”

  Chris and Zach shared a glance and then both shook their heads. “No, nothing.”

  “All right, get back to work.”

  Chris hopped to his feet, beating a quick escape to the door. He’d almost made a clean getaway when Larry’s voice rang out. “Kennedy, get out there and see what you can find out about the burglaries. Sometimes people are willing to talk when they aren’t faced with the gold shield.”

  Chris nodded. “You got it.”

  As he stepped out of Larry’s domain, the ring of his cell phone pierced the air from his office. His strides ate up the distance to his desk and he snatched up the phone, but the screen went dark before he could answer. He tapped a few buttons and saw an unfamiliar number. Oh, well. If whoever called really needed to reach him, they’d call back.

  As if speaking it made it so, his phone rang again from the same unknown number. He swiped across the screen. “Hello?”

  * * *

  Alexis rolled over and grimaced as the bright sun streaking through the open curtains shined on her face. Her hands flew to her head where pain pierced her skull and set up camp behind her eyes. “Oh, shit.”

  She buried her head under the pillow. If she could get a couple more hours sleep, she’d be good as new. Or at least better than the death warmed over feeling that had overtaken her body.

  There was no way she could write with knife-like pain stabbing her brain. With a deadline looming, her editor would not be happy.

  Her attempts to go back to sleep were interrupted by the sound of clicking nails, followed by Bandit’s yips, as he nosed his way into her room. He danced back and forth in front of her bedroom door, a clear sign that it was time to go out.

  She groaned. That was all she needed right now. Damn Serena for sticking her with the mutt. “A few minutes, Bandit. I promise I’ll get up soon.”

  She flopped her head back down and closed her eyes. Her memories of last night were fuzzy. A few fleeting images of walking in her front door and dropping her shoes on the way down the hall penetrated the fog that clouded her mind. But she couldn’t remember anything after that—and not much of what happened before. Had she let Bandit out last night before she’d collapsed into bed?

  What kind of foster mother was she if she couldn’t remember to let the dog out? One who was going to find a puddle wishing her a good morning, that was who.

  She pressed her hands to the mattress and lifted her upper body slowly, keeping her head as straight as possible to ward off the shooting pain. She finally eased herself off the bed and straightened her back, her gaze landing on the mirror over her dresser.

  Who in the hell was that? Dark smudges on her face from makeup long since smeared, her hair darted out in a thousand directions, and the troubled expression in her eyes that had taken up residence in her eyes for far too long glared back at her.

  Her butt plopped onto the mattress and she dropped her head into her hands. She couldn’t keep going like this, drinking herself into oblivion to the point that she didn’t even remember coming home.

  But when she drank, she didn’t feel the pain.

  Bandit yipped and hopped on his hind legs, smacking his paws against her shins.

  “I’m coming. I’m coming. What kind of gift have you left me in the kitchen this time?”

  She dragged herself off the bed, the dress she’d worn out last night twisted around her body. She tugged it back into place and plodded down the hall, steeling herself for disaster. But when she rounded the corner into the kitchen and stepped onto the cool tile floor, everything was in order. No visible puddles and no piles in the corner to greet her.

  She crossed the room and flipped the latch to open the back door, nudging the pup into the cool late-morning air. Serena had suggested she find a house with a fenced-in back yard. Her sister had argued that Alexis would like the privacy, but she’d quickly realized it was all a ploy, a ruse to set Alexis up to take in fosters from Serena’s shelter.

  While Bandit was outside doing his business, Alexis snatched a pod from the basket on her counter, fumbling it into position in her coffee maker. She then slipped a mug beneath the spout. The machine sprang into action, and Alexis drew in a deep breath as she waited for her lifeline to brew.

  When Bandit yipped from outside, she swung the door open for him, the bright sun blinding her. What time was it? The sun was high in the sky, so there was no telling. Where in the heck had she left her phone?

  It was then that she spied the pile on
the kitchen table, both of her shoes, her belt, and… her purse. She didn’t remember dumping everything on the table before she’d passed out, but nothing surprised her anymore.

  She fumbled for her purse and snatched her phone out. A huge crack split the screen. Shit, when had that happened? She didn’t have the time, energy, or money to deal with a new phone. “Please work. Please work,” she chanted as she pressed the button, holding her breath until the screen flashed to life, the image wavy but still readable. Thank God.

  And then she saw the time. 10:00. Damn, she’d slept longer than she expected.

  Another quick swipe displayed a zig-zaggy series of green and blue popups, texts from Jessica, Serena, and Izzy. She couldn’t deal with all of that. Not before she had coffee. Speaking of which… she grabbed her mug and passed the hot liquid under her nose, its delicious scent awakening all of her senses. After a few long sips and several deep breaths, Alexis was feeling almost normal. Well, whatever normal was these days.

  She plopped into a kitchen chair. Well, these texts and emails certainly wouldn’t answer themselves. But before she dove in, she spied a piece of paper tucked under the pile of her belongings, words scrawled neatly in blue ink.

  Good morning, Alexis. After I brought you home, you fell asleep, so I walked Bandit and collected your things before locking your door for the night. Please call or text me when you get this, just to let me know that you’re okay.

  The note was signed Chris. And a phone number was included.

  Her fingers smoothed over the words, but she couldn’t grab hold of her memories through her touch. Chris? Chris? She didn’t think that was the name of the man she was dancing with when Jessica left. No, he definitely wasn’t a Chris. She thought and thought and eventually, a fuzzy image of a dark-haired man flashed in her mind. The man she danced with. But his name was Matt.

  Who in the hell was Chris?

  She couldn’t do this anymore, especially if she’d reached the point that she could barely remember the man who brought her home.

  She stared at the words on the page until the words blurred into a single blob and foggy memories of last night flooded her mind. She had been leaving with that Matt guy and then someone else was there. Fear coursed through her as though she were experiencing it right now. Something wasn’t right. She hadn’t wanted to be there. People yelling… and she’d tried to run.

  And then there was his voice, gentle and soft. Hazel eyes that soothed her, that weren’t harsh and demanding. Words that assured her she’d be okay. Was that Chris? He must have brought her home.

  Had she slept with him? No, she would have remembered that, regardless of how drunk she’d been.

  She sighed, sank bank into her chair, and cleared her mind with another jolt of caffeine. Too many more nights like this and she’d barely be able to function. Drinking and dancing until all hours of the morning just wasn’t working for her anymore. Her publisher was bugging her for the next draft of her novel, but she hadn’t been able to summon her muse in weeks. She was tired, and she looked like death warmed over.

  This was not the life she’d envisioned for herself.

  The doorbell rang. Crap. Maybe if she ignored it, whoever was on the other side of the door would just leave.

  But Bandit was having none of that. He hopped up from his bed and scampered to the front door. Her sister’s muffled voice rang out from the other side. “Hey, Bandit. How ya doing, buddy? Is your Mommy home?”

  Alexis huffed out a huge sigh. The sooner she answered the door, the sooner Serena could deliver whatever tidings she brought with her today. Her twin was always in a good mood, always smiling, and Alexis could only bear so much right now, much less her sister’s perpetual happiness.

  Alexis had never been overly cheery like Serena, but she’d been content with her life once. But now she couldn’t remember the last time she’d felt truly happy.

  Serena knocked more insistently on the door. There was no escaping her sister now. Besides, Serena would just let herself in with her key if Alexis didn’t answer, so she might as well get this over with. She crossed the small living room and swung the door open.

  “Hey, oh, wow. You look terrible.” The smile fell from Serena’s face. “Are you sick?”

  Alexis left the door open and trudged back to the kitchen. “I love you, too, sis.”

  Alexis popped another pod into her coffee maker, sliding Serena’s favorite smiley face mug beneath the spout, and returned to her chair at the table. She spotted the note from Chris and grabbed it, shoving it beneath her leg. She wasn’t ready to share that with Serena… whatever that was.

  Serena fussed with the coffee and then perched on the seat beside Alexis, sliding Alexis’s shoes and purse aside. Then Serena raised her eyes, a worried expression in her gaze. “What happened to you last night?”

  Did Serena know something Alexis didn’t? Other than the incident at the end of the night, nothing came to mind that should have Serena concerned. Or even wary. But she wasn’t about to let her sister know how much of last night was fuzzy. “What do you mean?”

  “Family dinner. Mom’s house.”

  Alexis flopped her head back and instantly regretted the move when a spike of pain shot through her temple. Oh, shit. That was right. She’d had a date with the fam last night. But when Jessica had called, Alexis had jumped at the chance to go out and hadn’t even thought about the dinner.

  All the togetherness with her family was so hard. She loved that her siblings had happy lives with their significant others, but all of them at once could be overwhelming. Usually, Alexis would glom onto Mom at those events and the rest of them would leave her alone.

  “I’m sorry. I meant to come, but then…” She hesitated, not caffeinated enough to answer the inevitable questions about where she had gone last night. “Something came up.”

  Serena’s gaze traveled down and then back up Alexis. It wasn’t as if she could hide the fact she was still in her dress from last night and her hair was pointing in a thousand different directions. “That’s okay. We missed you. Another time.”

  Serena was way too forgiving. And aside from the snarky comment when she first arrived, she hadn’t said word one about how Alexis looked. Either that, or she was more oblivious than Alexis thought.

  Alexis sipped at her coffee, keeping her eye on Serena while she did the same. Serena vibrated in her seat, her hands clenched in her lap.

  Alexis gulped her coffee. She had a feeling she would need it. “What did I miss?”

  Serena thrust her left hand in Alexis’s face. “I’m engaged.”

  Alexis heart kicked up like a drum set, and every negative thought flew out of her head. Her sister, her twin…. was getting married. She grabbed Serena’s hand, the round diamond encircled in gold ornamentation of her ring reflecting the bright sun shining through the window. She couldn’t have picked a better ring for her sister herself. “I’m so happy for you. Chase hit a home run with the ring. This is what you want, right?”

  Serena nodded vigorously. She had recently told Alexis that she’d always felt as if she was living in Alexis’s shadow and Chase was the first person to notice her for herself. That Serena had felt that way blew Alexis away. For Alexis’s entire life, she felt like she was putting on a front, smiling for the camera to hide the unhappiness inside. She’d see her friends with their happy families and wonder why she couldn’t have the same. As far as Alexis was concerned, she tried her best to blend in. To not be noticed.

  Serena’s smile could light up half of Cedar Hill. “This is exactly what I want.” She squealed. “Can you believe it?”

  “I just can’t believe that you found each other after all these years. What are the odds?”

  “I know. But I think it was meant to be.”

  When the photographer who had been assigned to photograph dogs at the shelter turned out to be the boy they’d met in Atlantic City ten years earlier, Alexis had been blown away. Serena had walked away from that single d
ay on the boardwalk convinced she was in love. And maybe she had been, because all this time later, here she was engaged to the same man.

  Serena’s smile fell and Alexis’s heart lurched. Serena might be happy, but something else had her troubled.

  What’s wrong? The words filled Alexis’s mind and transferred to Serena almost unconsciously. As children, she and Serena had discovered that they could hear, or at least feel, what the other was thinking. It was their own way to communicate when the rest of the world didn’t understand.

  But her own mind remained silent. Serena didn’t answer.

  Alexis covered Serena’s hand. “Tell me.”

  Serena worried her bottom lip but wouldn’t look Alexis in the eye. Boy, this must be important. Alexis tried to convey comfort and peace to her sister, but she’d closed her mind. Finally, a sigh burst through Serena’s lips. “It’s just that, uh, I wanted to ask you something.”

  “Anything.”

  “I want you to be my maid of honor…”

  Alexis smiled. She couldn’t wait to stand up beside her sister, but Serena held up her hand.

  “… but I’m worried.”

  “About what?”

  “You.”

  Alexis collapsed into her chair. She’d been able to dodge all but cursory conversations about her lifestyle for a long time now, but she knew better than to think that she’d hidden herself completely from her siblings.

  “What’s going on with you? And before you claim nothing, I know it’s not nothing. I want nothing more than my twin sister beside me when I get married, but not if that’s going to be too hard for you.”

  Way to go for the jugular with a single shot. But Alexis couldn’t deny any longer what she’d been using alcohol to ignore. Especially after the fiasco of last night. “What are you afraid of, that I’m going to stumble drunk down the aisle?”

  Serena sucked in a breath and pain flashed in her eyes.