Deadly Deceit, page 16
“I’ll place the order,” Jolene offered as she grabbed the cordless phone off the end table. Her cell phone had been obliterated in the blast, and she hadn’t yet replaced it. “Why don’t you go see if Oakley and Cordy want something?”
Once the food had been ordered, Jolene and Christina curled into each other on the couch. Christina sighed as a sense of contentment washed over her. “I love you,” she said, pressing a soft kiss to Jolene’s cheek.
“I love you, too, Christie,” Jolene replied, wrapping her arms around her wife, “I’m sorry for all of this. With any luck, the case will be closed quickly, and we can get on with our lives.”
Christina nodded against Jolene’s shoulder. “I have to go back to work on Monday,” she explained, “LeRoy called me earlier. The school board is getting prickly about my absence.”
“Okay, sweetheart,” Jolene replied. She ignored the stab of pain that struck her heart at the thought of spending her days alone in the house.
“If you need me, though,” Christina went on, “Call. Marcy will make sure the call gets to me. I will come home if you need me.”
Jolene squeezed Christina and pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “I’ll be fine, honey. I will have the Agents here for company.”
Christina sighed. She could hear the melancholy in Jolene’s voice, but didn’t comment on it. She knew that Jolene would rather she stay home and keep her company, but Christina had obligations and responsibilities to attend to. She’d been out of work for almost three months, much longer than was typically allowed for a family emergency.
The couple remained on the couch, cuddled together in the quiet, until the shrill sound of the doorbell shattered the silence.
“Dinner’s here,” Christina said, hopping off the couch to grab her purse.
***
“Welcome back, Christie!” Principal Stoddard beamed as he wrapped Christina in a welcoming hug.
“Thank you, LeRoy,” Christina replied, returning the hug happily. “I’m happy to be back. Jo sends her regards, and thanks you for allowing me to be out for so long.”
LeRoy waved off the thanks. “You are one of our most valuable teachers, Christie. Even if the board had put up a fight about it, I would have made sure you got the time off.”
Christina smile graciously. It warmed her heart that her friends were so willing to go to bat for her. “Did I miss anything of importance while I was gone?”
LeRoy chuckled and shook his head. “Not really. Brett Aldrich got into it with the sub, which created a bit of drama. He has adamantly refused to cooperate with any Chemistry teacher, except you. His parents made a big stink about it to the board.”
Christina frowned. The last thing she wanted was for the Aldrich family to try and get her in trouble again. “What happened?”
LeRoy ushered her into his office and closed the door. “The Aldrich family threatened to withdraw their funding, unless Brett is excused from the class until your return.”
Christina’s eyes bulged, and she dropped into the visitor chair across from the Principal. “Oh, boy.”
LeRoy nodded and leaned back in his chair. “Of course, the board was more than willing to accommodate. Brett has been studying the material, so he doesn’t fall behind. But, he is not required to participate in the classroom, or turn in assignments or tests, until you are back.”
Christina rolled her eyes and huffed out a breath. “LeRoy, that isn’t even in the realm of fair to other students. I don’t have the time to do a one-on-one course with him.”
LeRoy righted himself and rummaged in the drawer of his desk. “You don’t have to, Christie.” He withdrew a piece of paper and handed it across the desk to her. “That is the agreement. Brett and his parents both signed it, promising that, upon your return, Brett will have all assignments completed and ready for grading.”
“What about tests?” Christina asked with irritation, “I can’t give him an accurate grade, without his test scores.”
LeRoy suddenly found his hands quite interesting. “That’s where you might object. Brett is willing to give up his study hall to take all the make-up tests, and do the make-up labs.”
Christina narrowed her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest. “I can’t cancel my classes to accommodate that, Roy.”
LeRoy let out a breath and ran a hand through his perfectly parted hair. “You won’t have to. Brett’s study hall is during your free period.”
“Seriously?” Christina barked, “How am I supposed to prepare for my afternoon classes, set up my labs, and proctor Brett all at the same time?”
“Christie,” LeRoy moved around his desk to sit in the chair beside Christina, “I am begging you. Brett has been working hard to meet his end of the agreement. It won’t take you very long, just this week if all goes well. I will ask Staci and Joe to help you set up the labs. They’ve been helping the sub do it, so I don’t think they will complain.”
Christina glared at her friend. Returning from a leave of absence was hard enough, even with being kept in the loop regarding her syllabus. Now, it was going to be made even more difficult without that free hour to stay caught up.
But, she couldn’t see breaking the agreement that would cost the school half a million dollars in private funding.
“Alright, Roy,” she said with a sigh, “I will go along with this. But,” she added when LeRoy grinned, “I will not enter his grades without the late-work penalty. It’s almost the end of the semester, so he is going to have to accept a ten-percent penalty on each assignment and test from more than a week ago.”
LeRoy’s smile didn’t falter. “The Aldrich family has already agreed to that,” he said, pointing to a paragraph on the page in her hand, “They will accept whatever honest grade you give him.”
Christina handed the paper back to LeRoy and stood. “I need to get to my classroom,” she said, “But, if my wife calls and says she needs me, I am leaving.”
LeRoy joined her and nodded. “Understandable. Tommie is sticking around on campus for a few weeks, just in case you need her. She’s more than happy to step in if you need it.”
Christina thanked the man and stopped by Marcy’s desk on her way out of the office. “Jo wants to know if you and Frankie want to come over for dinner this weekend,” she asked.
Marcy beamed. “Of course! Frankie will be ecstatic. She’s been hounding me about Jo for weeks.”
Christina chuckled. Frankie Crow had been a classmate of Jolene’s, and one of her best friends in high school. Although they didn’t socialize with each other as much as they would like, the friendship between the two was still strong. It didn’t matter how long it was between visits, the two always picked up right where they left off.
“Well, tell Frankie that she is free to drop by and see Jo whenever she wants. I’m sure Jo would love to see her.” Christina waved goodbye to her friend and hurried off to her classroom.
As soon as she stepped inside the room, Christina let out a sigh of relief. It felt amazing to be back in her classroom, and her heart beat faster as a sense of belonging washed over her.
Christina’s classroom, the same classroom that had been hers since the very beginning, was the only place other than her house, that truly felt like home to her.
“Welcome back.”
Christina turned around and smiled genuinely at her least favorite colleague. “Thank you, Staci. I heard you’ve been helping Tommie set up the labs. Thank you for that.”
Staci Lawson shrugged. “You’re welcome. I can’t imagine what you and Joseph were going through, and I thought I would be nice and help. I didn’t realize you were going to be out for so long. How is your sister-in-law doing?”
Christina’s smile faltered, and she had to stop herself from correcting the woman. “She’s doing great. Now that she’s home, everyone is breathing much easier.”
Staci stepped further into the classroom, her arms crossed over her chest. Christina wondered about the sour expression on the woman’s face.
“You can give up the charade,” Staci said, her voice pitched low so anyone passing by wouldn’t hear, “I know she’s not your sister-in-law.”
Christina scrunched her face and canted her head. “What do you mean?”
Staci rolled her eyes and stepped back to close the door. “I know you aren’t married to Joseph. Why are you two pretending?”
Christina’s eyes widened in panic. She’d never thought Staci was smart enough to make that deduction. While quite intelligent, Staci Lawson wasn’t very perceptive. Christina couldn’t remember how many times she’d had to explain subtleties and punchlines to the woman.
“I never claimed to be married to Joseph,” Christina defended weakly.
“Bullshit,” Staci spat, “Everyone here thinks you and Joseph are married. You even showed off wedding photos to everyone!”
Christina sucked in a deep breath and steeled herself. She didn’t know what Staci was playing at, but she wasn’t about to play her game.
“Yes,” she admitted, “Joseph and I shared our wedding photos. They are legitimate photos taken on the day we got married.”
“See?” Staci huffed, “You are still doing it. You’re saying that you and Joseph got married!”
Christina shook her head and smiled. “You are misunderstanding me,” she said, her voice hard, “Joseph and I both got married on the same day. We just didn’t get married to each other. Neither of us has ever claimed to be married to one another.”
Staci narrowed her eyes as she studied the loathsome brunette. Her mind was racing to recall if she’d ever heard Christina or Joseph name the other as their spouse. An uneasy feeling settled in her chest when she realized she couldn’t.
“You took his last name,” Staci accused uncertainly, “Why would you do that, unless you were trying to hide something?”
Christina scrutinized the other woman. It occurred to her that Staci might not know the extent of her deception. Taking a chance, she decided to force the woman to show her hand.
“Staci, Joseph is not my husband. We got married in a double ceremony, to each other’s siblings. Our wedding photos aren’t fake, they are real. We only showed the photos that center on us, because we like to keep our private lives private. You’re right, everyone thinks we are married to each other, and we both have our reasons for not correcting them.”
“Joseph is married to my sibling, which makes his sister my sister-in-law. So, you are wrong in your claim that she isn’t. Just as my siblings are Joseph’s in-laws.”
Staci’s self-righteousness deflated. A pink tint stained her cheeks as she averted her gaze and her shoulders slumped. “Oh,” she muttered.
“Staci, whatever your problem is with me, you need to get over it. I know you have the hots for him, but there is no reason for you to try and start shit with me. Joseph is a happily married man, and you are wasting your time with him. You need to get over your damn self, and start acting like an adult. We aren’t in high school anymore, dammit, we teach it!”
Staci had the good grace to look ashamed of herself. “I’m sorry, Christie. I let myself get all sideways, and I took it out on you.”
Christina crossed her arms over her chest and glared at Staci. “What clued you in to the fact that we aren’t married?” she asked with genuine curiosity.
Staci let out a chuckle. “Joseph did, to be honest. He came back to work sooner than anyone expected him to, and I overheard him telling LeRoy that he needed to be here. He said that you were with her, and would let him know if there was any change. He said he couldn’t have asked for a better sister-in-law than you.”
Christina smiled warmly at Joseph’s words. She felt the same way about him, and knew that if their situations had been reversed, Joseph would be just as devoted to staying by Christian’s bedside.
The first bell of the morning rang, signaling the five-minute warning. Staci offered Christina an apologetic smile and stuck out her hand. “Truce?” she asked hopefully.
Christina shook her hand and nodded. “Truce.”
Staci turned and headed toward the door. Before she turned the knob, she looked back over her shoulder. “I knew Joseph had a twin sister,” she said thoughtfully, “but I didn’t know he had any brothers.”
Christina simply offered the woman a brilliant smile and turned to her white board.
***
“Hi, Baby,” Jolene greeted as Christina walked into the house. “How was your first day back?” she asked as she moved from the couch to help Christina with the armload of folders in her arms.
“It was almost great,” Christina sighed, grateful for the help. She and Jolene set the folders on the table, and Christina willingly allowed her wife to guide her over to the couch.
Jolene took a seat on the coffee table, and pulled off Christina’s heels. Christina groaned as Jolene started massaging her feet. Nearly three months of wearing flat-soled shoes had lessened her tolerance for heels.
“That feels amazing,” she whimpered as she leaned her head against the back of the couch and closed her eyes.
“What made the day ‘almost’ great?” Jolene asked, enjoying the little groans and mews coming from her wife.
“Staci Lawson and Brett Aldrich,” Christina grumbled.
“The rich kid and the Algebra teacher?” Jolene asked curiously.
Christina nodded. Reluctantly, she raised her head and met Jolene’s amused eyes. “What’s so funny?” she asked.
Jolene bit back her grin and shook her head. “Is Staci still after Joseph?”
Christina let out a huff and pulled her feet from Jolene’s hands. She tucked her legs beneath her and glowered at her wife.
“I don’t think so,” she said with a shake of her head, “but she did almost give me a damn heart attack.”
Jolene’s brow quirked. “How did she do that?”
Christina leaned forward and took Jolene’s hands, pulling her into a kiss. Jolene moved from the coffee table to the couch, and pulled Christina against her chest. “Tell me what happened,” she encouraged.
Christina snuggled into Jolene and sighed happily as she explained the conversation with Staci.
“Wow,” Jolene said when Christina was finished, “That woman is definitely something else. How the hell did she manage to get teaching credentials?”
Christina shook her head. “She’s incredibly book smart, but she’s not exactly the most observant of people. Don’t get me wrong,” she added, not wanting to sound disingenuous, “she is a wonderful teacher. She’s invested in her students, and their success, but when it comes to life outside the classroom, she’s a lot like a teenager. If she doesn’t get her way, she makes life miserable for those she thinks has wronged her.”
Jolene shook her head. She would never understand people like that. “What about the Aldrich boy? What did he do now?”
Christina sat up and smiled as she pointed toward the pile of folders on the dining table. “He’s decided that I am the only one he will participate for. He didn’t like Tommie Shaw teaching the class, so he and his family made a stink to the school board.”
“They threatened to pull their funding if Brett had to attend class with Tommie. The board kowtowed to them, resulting in a ton of extra work for me. He did the work, but wasn’t required to hand them in, until I came back. Now, I have ten weeks of assignments from Brett to grade, and will be spending at least the rest of this week using my free period to give him make-up tests and quizzes.”
“I’m sorry, Baby,” Jolene said with a grimace, “I can’t believe the nerve of some people. Just because they have money, they think they should get whatever they want. That boy isn’t going to learn a damn thing that way. All he is going to learn, is that having money will give him his way.”
Christina nodded. “I know,” she admitted, “but I have to give him credit; Brett handed me every assignment that was missing. They are all complete, and in order. I haven’t started grading them, but just from a cursory glance, it looks like he’s really trying.”
“That’s great, Sweetheart,” Jolene smiled. She remembered what a pain in the ass the boy had been at the beginning of the school year, and she was glad that he was putting in the effort to be better.
“So, you’re going to have a late night tonight?” she asked, stroking Christina’s arm gently.
Christina sighed heavily. “Looks like,” she reluctantly admitted. “I have to give Brett his first couple of tests tomorrow. I need to at least get through the assignments covered on those. Maybe if I play my cards right, I really can be done with it all at the end of this week.”
Chapter 13
“I don’t get it,” Cordy Weston said as she tossed aside the file belonging to Officer Hayley Stone, “What exactly did the other Agents do on this case?”
Dani scoffed and cursed under her breath as she flipped through Officer Monica Jones’ file. “Apparently, they just sat on their asses. There are no notes in these case files to indicate that they did any sort of investigating, and the so-called profiler doesn’t even have a written speculation going! This is the sloppiest work I’ve ever seen.”
Dani stood and swiped her cell phone off the table between them. She and Cordy had been going over the files for days, and she was fed up with the ineptitude of the Agents assigned.
“I’m going to call Oakley and check in with her,” she said with a huff, her heels clicking irritably on the cement of the garage floor as she paced.
Cordy chuckled to herself and crossed her ankles on the table in front of her. The cheap desk chairs that she and Dani were using were not even close to comfortable, but leaning back in them made the discomfort a bit more bearable.
She grabbed the last file from the stack, the file belonging to Officer Jolene Preston, and flipped it open.
Jolene’s case was the only one of the bunch that had any substance. The bombing of Jolene’s Marilynn PD cruiser differed only slightly from the others, but it was enough to give the investigation a bit of renewed vigor.
