Page 43 of Mountain Freedom
Jackson hadme lead him through the house. He was mostly quiet, but he would occasionally ask questions, verifying if something was normal. I was glad he was there, as his presence was the only thing giving me a sense of safety after everything that had happened. But it felt wrong that his first time at my house was walking through it like it was a crime scene. A friend coming over for the first time should be fun, relaxing. It should have been a dinner party or a game night. Or even the Jane Austen movie night I had threatened him with.
Not this.
But we both pretended it was the most normal thing in the world for him to go through my house room by room as I checked to make sure nothing was missing.
It was easy enough, since I had always shared a home and didn’t own many so-called valuables. Very few people would be interested in stealing medical textbooks. As far as I could tell, everything of mine was still there.
When we finished and he had dusted for prints, Jackson stood in my living room, arms crossed, with a look of frustration on his face. “I don’t like it, Allison. It seems like someone broke in just to look around. Nothing’s gone. Nothing’s out of place. But they also didn’t bother to hide the fact that they were here. They could easily have closed the window and at least locked the bottom lock before leaving. You might have second-guessedwhether or not you had set the dead bolt. Whoever was here didn’t care if you knew about it.”
The thought sent chills up my spine. “Why?”
“I don’t know,” he said, shaking his head.
“Any luck with prints?” I asked hopefully.
He shook his head again. “The window and door had both been wiped clean. So he didn’t care if you realized he was here—maybe evenwantedyou to know—but he took the time to wipe away the evidence of his identity.”
“So we’ve got nothing?” My heart sank.
“It’s still a clue,” he said. “I suspect that means he knows his prints are in the system.”
“Does that narrow it down quite a bit?” I asked, biting my lip.
He winced. “Not as much as you’d think. But some.”
“What now?”
“We file an official report. I want to find out where Frank Cross was tonight, after the incident at the clinic.” His eyes softened. “I’m going to find out who did this, Allison. I promise.”
I shook my head. “Don’t make promises you can’t keep. That’s one of the first things we learn in the medical field. If there aren’t any prints, this could be a dead end and we both know it. You shouldn’t promise me differently.”
“I’ll find him,” he said firmly.
His confidence made me smile. “Okay. You’ll find him. Or her.” Another thought crossed my mind, one that felt infinitely less threatening. “Any chance this is a Rosemary Mountain busybody just wanting to poke around in my business?”
He nodded, finally showing me that grin that had been missing since we arrived at my house. “Honestly? Yeah. It’s possible. A few years ago a family moved to town and came home to find one of the neighbors in their house. The woman had broken in just to look around and see what remodeling theyhad done. She was flabbergasted that they had a problem with it.”
Something in me loosened, shifted. “Then I’m going to hope it’s as simple as that. After all, whoever it was didn’t take anything and didn’t stick around to hurt me. So maybe it’s nothing?”
His face darkened again. “I hope so.”
I cocked my head. There was something he wasn’t telling me. “What are you hiding from me, Jackson?”
“Nothing,” he said, his face becoming a mask. “Just don’t let your guard down, okay? Not until we know for sure. Promise me.”
“Okay,” I said, swallowing hard. “I promise.”
He helpedme clean up the mess from where he had attempted to get fingerprints. I delayed him leaving as long as possible, trying to keep him engaged in conversation in an attempt to feel normal. When he left, I would be alone in the house, and there was a fear inside me that I knew would come out to play the minute I was alone.
Jackson seemed to sense it, because when we finally finished and I walked him to the door, he lingered. “Are you going to be okay here tonight?”
“Of course,” I said, even though I could hear the doubt in my voice.
“Allison,” he said, reaching up to touch my face softly. “It’s okay if you’re scared. I don’t mind sleeping on the couch.”
I started to assure him it wasn’t necessary, but I paused. What if I didn’t have to be brave just yet?
“Really?” I asked, hesitant. “I know you have to work tomorrow.”
