Love in the Shadows

Chapter Twenty-Four

(Sam's POV)

We walked quickly out of the house, my head spinning. Something about Dave Lawson's reaction didn't sit right. "Well that was... interesting."

Lucy ran her finger over her lips and I immediately took the hint and closed my mouth.

I stifled a grin at the sarcastic wave that Lucy tossed the camera. Instead realising that it followed our descent and I shivered, I'd never liked the feeling of being watched.

Lucy might be a great deal shorter than me but her legs ate up the driveway and I had to hustle to get to her door before she did. I watched her climb up and take a seat, wanting to reach over and buckle her in, linger over her a little longer. Instead, I shut the door carefully and walked around to my own side.

I waited until my door was closed and then asked, "What the fuck was that?"

She huffed a laugh. "Not yet. Drive."

She waited until we were completely out of the driveway and enroute back to my mom's house before she talked. "Sorry, that camera was state of the art. I didn't want to chance them being able to hear anything or read our lips. But to answer your question, I don't know what that was."

She ran a hand through her curls and then added, "I mean, realistically, I wouldn't want my teenager to talk to the police all by herself either."

I raised my eyebrows at that. "Did you not tell me that your goal was to get there before her parents did."

Her hand reached out and gave me a little shove. "I did. I just wanted to get a moment to make sure she was okay. That was what we promised Stephen, right? I would never have let the questioning get too intense. We weren't even really there for Tanya. We knew that they weren't close. I just wanted an honest reaction."

I had grabbed her hand when she gave me the little nudge, and laced our fingers together. Keeping my other hand on the wheel.

I smiled at the little intake of breath that I heard from my partner in crime. It was becoming apparent that everyone was right. I wasn't alone in my feelings for Lucy, I impacted her just as much as she did me.

Back on track, Sam.

I nodded my head, our thinking aligned. "That was my reasoning too. Stephen was just so worried for her."

Lucy was playing with our fingers and I did my best to focus on the discussion at hand and not how soft her hands felt. "And now? What are you thinking after meeting Brie?"

The cab of the truck stayed silent for a moment. I appreciated the fact that Lucy realised that I needed to gather my thoughts.

"I think that something feels off here. Back there with Brie, her lack of reaction to one of her peers being missing, doesn't fit. Then with her parents, their over reaction. None of it feels right. But, it's not just what happened at the Lawson house. There's something off here, in Lake Ridge."

Lucy squeezed my fingers. "Agreed. Did you find that Dave and Sylvie seemed scared?"

I pulled into my mom's driveway. Rolling my eyes at the fact that not only were my mom and aunt home, but there were two extra cars in the driveway. Wolfe and Tasha were sitting on the porch, staring expectantly at my truck.

They could wait a minute.

I turned towards Lucy and kept her hand in mine. "I did, I mean it could be as simple as being scared that Brie was talking to the police alone but.."

Lucy undid her seatbelt and picked up where I had trailed off. "Yah. But... There was something more going on there and I would really like to figure out what it was. Also I noticed that lack of reaction too, for the first few minutes there, it was like we were talking to a zombie."

Our hands separated as we both got out of the truck. She waited for me to be next to her before adding, "I don't know Sam, in my experience teeneagers are full of drama. They usually show too much emotion."

We left it there but I kept mulling it over as we made it up the porch. Her whimpered if they... rang through my head. She'd never gotten a chance to explain.

Who were the they she'd been talking about and why had she been so emotional about whoever they were?

I made a mental note to talk about it with Lucy later and followed her up onto the porch. Wolfe and Tasha both had a beer in hand and he reached down into a cooler bag and pulled one out for each of us. "The mom's are cooking dinner. So, we figured we'd stay out of the way. How did it go today?"

Tasha was staring, waiting for our answer and it broke my heart to see the lack of hope on her features. She knew that we wouldn't be here if we had found anything significant.

Lucy must've found the same because she took the bottle as she walked past and gave Tash a side hug before they sat down next to each other on the swing. "Thanks, Wolfe." She took a drink before explaining. "Feels like we pulled on all kinds of strings today but nothing turned up, yet."

Tasha nodded, sad and quiet. My mom's head popped out of the front door. "I thought I heard you guys pull in. Dinner's in five, kids."

The door banged as she hustled back in and I knew she was in her element. Although she hated this for Tash, she always loved to have us home and Lucy being here was the icing on the cake.

Wolfe smiled into his beer like his thinking aligned with mine and then focused back on the conversation. "Tell us about some of these strings."

Bringing my beer to my lips, I took a cold sip as I watched Lucy lean forward and fill my two best friends in on our day.

It wasn't until we started talking about Brie that Wolfe really added to the conversation. "Brie was in my grade 9 general maths class. She was full of life. The girl I pass now in the halls, not so much."

Tash interrupted. "But, I don't see how it connects to Tanya."

My mom reappeared. "It's ready."

As we all stood out, Lucy reached out a hand and gave Tash a squeeze. "It probably has nothing to do with Tanya, but it doesn't hurt to chase down every possible connection or comment, no matter how vague. We don't have a whole heck of information to go on, so as of right now we're going to follow it all."

Tash stood there quiet for a moment and then nodded, tears in her eyes.

Lucy walked past us, giving me a sympathetic smile as she followed Wolfe in and left me and Tash for a moment. "What am I doing, Sam? I should be out there looking for her."

I swallowed, wanting to sugar coat it but knowing she could smell bull shit a mile away. "The whole area has been canvassed, Tash. Nothing was found. We've got to wait for some kind of lead at this point. May as well try to eat. Tanya would want you to eat."

I waited till she nodded and then led her inside.

As we sat down at the dinner table, it amazed me how well Lucy fit in. They had left me the seat next to her and as she passed me the mashed potatoes I caught the heart eyes glowing on my moms face.

Wolfe's face was also lit up. He knew she wasn't going to be able to stay cool. My mom was not cool... neither was his.

Oh god. We should have gone out to eat.

I lifted the mashed potatoes, knowing that my mom had added the creamy dill cream cheese, that they would be as fluffy as a cloud. But, I hadn't even taken a bite when my mom was asking, "Lucy did I hear your last name was Baylor?" My stomach riotted as I saw Lucy's cheeks heat.

Fuck, what are you doing Mom?

When Lucy nodded, my mom giggled. "Have you guys thought about the fact that your last names rhyme? Taylor and Baylor. You could just scratch out the B and change it to a T, if you guys get married."

I took a big sip of wine, knowing I was going to need to fortify myself for this meal.

I mean, thank god she's not addressing the serial killer hiding in Lucy's closet but what the fuck mom?