The Woods | Harvey #1

Chapter 9

She wasn't quite sure when she decided to do it, but by the time Mason dropped her off at the cabin for dinner on his way back from Benson's, she felt like she shouldn't tell Ashton about most of what happened. He didn't need to know all of it, and she was still finding the right cards to play. Besides, all he'd do is worry over her, and she felt like he had enough to worry about with himself.

Inside, she found Hailey watching TV from the sofa next to Ashton. Nicole felt a pang of jealousy but quickly forced it down. She wasn't moving in on Ashton – she hated him, thought he was a killer. That didn't make a relationship.

"Hey," she said.

Ashton's head snapped up to look at her and he grinned, relief coloring his features. "I was beginning to worry."

She returned the smile and walked over. Kneeling in front of the sofa, she took his hand. "Are you feeling better?"

He nodded. "Much." He ran a thumb over the back of her hand. His eyes met hers. He swallowed.

She ducked her head. "Was that Nicole?" her mom called from the kitchen.

"Yeah," she called back.

"Come set the table!"

---

Nicole waited until after dinner. The atmosphere in the home was relaxed, but she couldn't get Ashton away from her parents until they got into a heated discussion over a scrabble word. She took the moment of distraction to go with him onto the deck.

"What happened?" Ashton asked quietly.

Ashton felt like his heart was going to pound straight out of his chest. Nicole took a deep breath. "I got the passwords. Mason actually helped me today. He stood guard for me. I think we can trust him." Mason? Ashton fought a shiver. That guy wasn't all bad, but Ashton had a feeling about him. "I went to the home office and got on his laptop. He'd been researching poisons!" She paused and brushed hair off her face. "Poisons, Ashton." She shook her head.

He nodded gravely. "I thought so."

Still shaking her head, she spoke. "Mason and I went to Benson to talk, and he said it was some type of acid she'd breathed in, and by all rights she should have been okay. But now she's dead." She looked sick for a moment but shivered and the greenish tinge left. "He said she'd been strangled but he didn't know if that's what did her in because he wasn't authorized to do an autopsy, so Mason told him to do it after the viewing tonight. Benson is also someone we can trust. When he was leaving today, he told me you were a great person and to not believe what anyone says about you because you'd never do this. He knows now where I stand, so he's a good ally." She took a breath and seemed to be having a debate in her head.

"In the morning, we'll know just what happened to our friend." She shrugged. Ashton let out a breath. Did his dad kill her? Who helped? A woman had to have been part of it. As much as he hated to admit it, he suspected Trisha. He hated himself for thinking it, but he couldn't help it. There was evidence that it was probably her. He couldn't just overlook that.

Before he could contemplate this further, the front door opened. Mr. Downs stood there. "There you are, Ashton."

He smiled and held out his arms. "Here I am."

"I do believe you promised me a little talk tonight." Ashton nodded slowly. "Let's walk down there by the water." He walked between Ashton and Nicole, forcing them apart. Dutifully, Ashton followed him down to the water. He glanced back once and saw a small smile on Nicole's face as she disappeared in the house.

They walked in silence for a little bit, every second making Ashton a little more nervous. Finally, as they reached the edge of the water, Mr. Downs began talking.