Page 94 of Her Final Hours
Aiden’s demeanor shifted, his confidence crumbling under Noah’s relentless pursuit of truth. “Of course, that won’t hold up in court, will it?” Noah acknowledged, his voice dripping with irony. “But you made one mistake. You had to get back here so you used your father’s truck. It was a different color at the time. You did a nice job covering up the blue with that white. But now it’s black. How do I know? Because while you didn’t leave prints, you used the truck to force the Mazda into the gorge. You see, white paint was transferred. Not a lot, but enough.”
Noah walked around to the front of the truck, his eyes scanning its surface with a practiced eye. “Passenger side, right?” Noah stated matter-of-factly. “I’m spitting theories, but here’s what I think happened. Pushing Lena’s vehicle in as planned didn’t work, so you had to use the truck. The Mazda got caught on tree roots, so you needed something more substantial.”
Aiden’s head dropped, his shoulder slumping in defeat. “I expect if we were to take a closer look, we would see this corner has had a recent repair,” Noah continued, his words delivering the final blow. Aiden’s expression shifted to one of shock.
“How did you connect the two?” he whispered, unable to comprehend how Noah had pieced it together.
Noah cracked a wry smile, sadness and triumph in his eyes. “Oh, that was all Lena. After her death, the kids were going through some of her photos from her old phone. The one that stopped working and she replaced. And just like you said, she was an investigator. She grew up around these parts, just like me. She knew of Payton’s case, like most people. Even more so because she was married to the person it haunted. That’s why she took this photo,” Noah said, retrieving his phone and showing Aiden a picture of the same truck, once white. The snapshot had been taken inside the garage.
Aiden’s breath caught in his throat as the weight of his actions bore down upon him. “Lena knew about your father before any of us, didn’t she? But she never said anything because she thought you would come clean. She gave you time to do it, right?” Noah concluded now that the truth had finally come to light.
Aiden’s shoulders slumped despondently as his gaze filled with remorse. “Yeah. She wanted me to come clean and tell you I had the truck, but I couldn’t. I just…” His voice trailed off as Noah swiftly interrupted him.
“Tried to protect him,” he said, his tone full of understanding.
Aiden nodded. “I wish it was that easy. I was trying to protect myself,” he admitted, guilt washing over him. “If it got out that a pastor was the son of a man who had solicited minors, I wouldn’t be able to continue here. I didn’t want to believe that he was that kind of man. That the truck was used for those kinds of purposes.”
He let out a heavy sigh, revealing the internal struggle. “My father wouldn’t admit to it. He said it was all lies, a conspiracy started by my mother to get back at him, to tarnish his name. Hewanted me to have the truck. Gave me this spiel that it had been in the family for years, that it meant a lot, and that I meant a lot.”
Noah studied Aiden as he responded. “And yet the cops had enough on him to put him away.”
Aiden nodded in acknowledgment. “I didn’t want to harm Lena. I really didn’t. I loved her. I still do,” he confessed, tearing up. “But she never really got over you. I wasn’t lying about that. Having you return to High Peaks changed her. I guess she wasn’t willing to settle for second best, especially a man who hadn’t been forthright. You might have messed up your marriage, Noah, but you always were honest with her. That’s what she said.” His voice grew somber, revealing a darker truth. “I couldn’t let her leave. I would have been ruined. I didn’t want this to happen; you have to believe me,” he pleaded, his voice trembling. “I had fentanyl on hand given to me from users, those trying to get off it. I slipped some into her drink. She felt nothing.”
Noah shook his head in apparent disbelief. “Otis was transferred to a psych hospital, which he escaped a few years later. They never found him. He would have reached out. Where is your father now?”
Aiden’s gaze dropped, and he sank onto a nearby step, exhausted from sharing his secret with someone else. “High Peaks Cemetery. He died of pneumonia two months after he was out. I had his ashes buried there. Plot number sixty-four.”
A heavy silence settled between them as Noah absorbed the gravity of the situation.
“Is this where you arrest me?”
After a moment, Noah shook his head, his voice firm. “No, you’re not getting arrested here. You’ll turn yourself in and do what Lena wanted you to do. Tell the truth.”
Aiden let out a deep, guttural sigh. Tears rolled down hischeeks. Perhaps somewhere, there was a sense of relief that he would no longer have to bear the secret, even though he would always carry the guilt. “Will you take me?”
Noah nodded in agreement. “Yes,” he affirmed, a sense of duty and resolution emanating from him. Together, they would face the consequences and bring closure to the haunting chapter that had consumed both of their lives.
35
Saturday, May 14, 5:05 p.m.
Spring brought with it a sense of new beginnings.
Inside Ed’s waterfront property, set back from the rippling surface of High Peaks Lake, Noah found himself preoccupied in the kitchen. His attention was fixated on a recent news update of abduction and sex trafficking that had made headlines seven weeks earlier. The weight of the investigation still lingered, mingling now with the subtleness of spring that permeated the Adirondacks.
As Noah leaned over the breakfast counter and scanned the article on a tablet, his eyes occasionally glanced up from the screen, catching glimpses of the vibrant scenery moving beyond the cabin’s window. Outside, he watched Mia and Ethan down by the dock; a smile danced on her face, an expression he hadn’t seen in a long while. While news of Aiden’s involvement in the death of Lena had been a shock, it had brought them closure as a family, though it failed to take away the hole that only timecould heal. Mia had been through so much in her abduction; fortunately, none involved abuse. Lessons were learned through decisions made. Regret was realigning her. The desire to grow up too fast vanished, and with it, her interest in older guys like Teddy. It gave him a smidgen of hope for the future.
Beyond his children, nature unveiled its seasonal transformation, the snow-capped peaks now kissed by gentle warmth from the sun, breathing life into the surrounding wilderness. The tranquil melody of chirping birds and the soothing rustle of leaves blended harmoniously as water lapped against the dock.
It wouldn’t be long before the lake was crowded with visitors boating and swimming.
A gentle breeze carried in the scent of fresh earth, mingling with the tantalizing aroma of a nearby barbecue.
“Noah. Where have you gone?” Ed, the old and forever quirky guy they were staying with until Noah’s prefabricated home was built, stepped into the cabin. Caught off guard, Noah lifted his gaze from the news update. The sound of his voice drew his attention.
“What?”
“I’ll have you know I have burgers and sausages as black as the ace of spades out there. I sent you in ten minutes ago to get the steaks. Where are they?” he said with a mixture of annoyance and amusement.
