Chapter 21

INDIE

The phone fell on the counter as Indie tried to decide whether she should call Seth.

The dilemma was that if she did call him, he would know that Felicity had told her, and she didn’t want to get her new friend in trouble.

She watched the snowflakes land on the tiny balcony through the French doors as she sipped some of her hot chocolate, the rising sun barely visible through the heavy cloud cover.

They had finished their dinner just before eleven the evening before, and Indie had enjoyed spending time with Seth’s best friend.

They had met before, but Seth had always been present when they had lunch together or on the quick stops that they made to the store on their patrol.

But when Felicity had told her about the meeting with Burnsley, she had to confess to Felicity what had happened earlier that day.

Indie realized that she had felt betrayed by Seth because he knew about her past and he was still so secretive about those phone calls.

And she needed to give Felicity an idea of what had happened, because she was Seth’s partner and needed to protect him.

She frowned as her phone buzzed. It was just after six in the morning, and though Grace was worried, there was no way she would call that early on Indie’s day off unless it was an emergency.

Warily, she lifted the device, her frown deepening when she saw Seth’s name. She wasn’t ready to speak to him yet, but Felicity had pleaded with her to hear him out.

With a heavy sigh, she pushed the accepted call.

“Indie?” His voice was hesitant, as she hadn’t said anything. “I can understand that you’re mad, and I’m sorry. Please, can we meet up?”

“Fine.”

She heard him breathe a sigh of relief at her answer. “I’m working till four, but then I have to attend the mayor’s party at seven. Could we meet at Ollie’s?”

Ollie’s had become their spot, and she didn’t want her memories of them spoiled. “Make it Tanner’s. It should be quiet at about five.”

“Okay. Tanner’s,” he agreed.

She was about to disconnect when he said her name again.

“What?” she asked.

“Thank you.” And the call ended.

***

He was late.

Indie checked her watch and saw the minute hand move to twenty minutes past five. He had never been late for their dates, so she knew that something had kept him busy.

She flagged a server to order another glass of red wine when the door opened, and Seth’s width filled the frame, flakes of snow dusting his hair.

Her heart stopped as their eyes met across the bar, the butterflies in her stomach doing a very accelerated version of the ~Nutcracker~.

She had missed him, and it had only been twenty-four hours since they had last seen each other. What state would she be in if she never saw him again?

Her knees melted at the smile he gave her as he walked to the table and sat down.

“Something to drink, sir?” the server asked as he placed Indie’s glass on the table.

“Just some coffee, thanks.” Seth looked at Indie with an apologetic smile. “I’m sorry I’m late. We had to help the state troopers with some runaway cows on the interstate.”

“I figured it had to be work-related.”

“Indigo, I’m sorry I shut you out.” He reached across the table and touched the tip of his finger to hers. “I…um…those calls are difficult to speak about.”

“Why? What can be more difficult than speaking about Ranya?”

He closed his eyes, and she took the time to really look at him. His face was drawn, and the lines beside his mouth were deep.

He looked tired. Even his jaw was covered in stubble, something that was unusual for Seth while he was in uniform.

“The thing is, I never told you the full story about Ranya.”

Indie frowned at his words. ~What more could there be? His daughter died in a car accident two days before Christmas. ~

He reached for her hand again, and Indie allowed him to twine his fingers with hers. “Where do I start, Indie?”

“How are those calls connected to Ranya?”

He nodded as she gave him the lead. “Those calls are from the person detained in El Dorado Correctional Facility.

“She’s the one responsible for Ranya’s death, and I couldn’t tell you because I just wanted to put that part of my life behind me.”

“Seth, you should have told me.”

“I know. But it’s not a pretty story, and I don’t talk about that part of it with anyone. Not even Sarah and Burnsley, and they know what happened.”

“What happened—”

“Seth?” They looked up at a woman walking to their table, a wide smile on her pretty face as she approached.

She was tiny, possibly five-foot-three, her hourglass figure clothed in black pants and a red shirt that spanned a full bosom.

Her black curls twisted down to her hips and swayed with every step. Indie glanced at Seth who had gone very pale, shaking his head as if he had seen a ghost.

“I’ve tried contacting you, tesoro!”

“Seth?” Indie noticed that he seemed frozen in shock. “Seth? What’s going on?” she asked.

“How the hell—?” He looked at the woman, then back at Indie, and she saw the panic in his eyes before he turned back to the woman. “What the fuck are you doing here?”

She gave a high-pitched laugh as she threw her arms around him. “I’ve come to see you.”

“~What~?!” Indie and Seth asked in unison. Indie started pushing her chair back.

“Seth…who is she?” Indie asked him, her heart already shattering even as her mind tried to find answers.

“Oh, I’m Seth’s wife,” the woman answered, her tone nonchalant as she turned his face and kissed him.

Indie was glad she was still sitting because she knew her legs wouldn’t have held her weight at the shock. Seth had a look of horror on his face as he tore himself away from the woman.

“The ~fuck~!” he cried, prying her arms from around his neck.

Indie shook her head, her past flashing through her mind as the scene unfolded before her.

She hadn’t expect this from him! He had drawn her into his life, his family, his friends! ~All~ of them had played along…all of them had made a fool of her.

Seth reached across the table for her hand, but she shook her head as she pulled her hand away, knocking over her wine glass, the shattered pieces resembling her heart.

She fled from the table, pushing through the crowd that had filled the bar, and bounded through the doors.

It was only when the cold wind cut through her gray sweater that she realized that she had left her coat behind.

She briefly thought about going back to fetch it but dismissed the idea immediately and ran to her car, taking the keys out of her pocket.

There was no way she was going to allow Sethford Marshall to make a fool of her again!