Afterglow Page 5

  Rachel’s lungs tightened. “I’m sorry it took me so long . . .”

  “Rachel, I’ve been trying to get in touch with you because . . . I found something out. I know this is going to sound strange but . . . I think your fiancé and my fiancé were the same person.”

  Rachel’s breath caught and she stole a glance at Grayson. “That can’t be right. You said your fiancé disappeared a year after mine died . . .”

  Silence stretched as her words hung in the air.

  “Yes, exactly,” Maybell finally said.

  Rachel sat down as everything began to spin around. “What are you saying?”

  “Rachel, I don’t think your fiancé died. I think he disappeared and reinvented himself. I think he conned both of us.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  “Why would you say that?” Rachel asked, still unable to process it all. It seemed so far-fetched that it didn’t seem like a real possibility.

  “Just hear me out. I started looking into my fiancé’s background and discovered he was using an alias. Nothing about him was real. Then I got real nosy. I did an image search online. Mark Murphy’s picture came up. Sure, he looked different. Mark Murphy had shorter hair. He was clean-shaven. A good dresser. Ken—that was his name when I knew him—had shaggy hair, a beard, and he dressed for the outdoors.”

  “Maybe these two men just looked alike.” There had to be another explanation.

  “Let me ask you this, then. Did he have a distinct scar on the bicep of his right arm?”

  Rachel sucked in a breath. “Yes, he did, actually.”

  “Then we’re talking about the same guy.”

  Rachel stared off in the distance a moment, feeling dumbstruck. “What could Mark possibly have to gain by faking his death with me and then using an alias and leaving you at the altar?”

  “That’s a great question. There was only one thing I can think of.”

  “What’s that?” Rachel asked, unsure if she was ready to hear the answer.

  “He was supposed to handle all the deposits for our wedding. But he never paid them. Not to the caterer. Not to the venue. Not for the honeymoon. He took the money and ran. My parents have a good deal of money and shelled out a lot of cash for their only daughter’s wedding. It was all gone.”

  “How much money are you talking?”

  “About twenty-five grand.”

  The pit in Rachel’s stomach grew deeper. “I see. Thank you for sharing that.”

  She said goodbye and ended the call, then shared what she’d learned with Grayson.

  He shook his head with every new detail. “Rachel, I think there’s a lot more to this story than either of us ever anticipated.”

  “Yeah, I think you’re right.”

  The truth was, maybe Mark had never anticipated that Rachel would be naïve enough to come back to Lantern Beach . . . because coming here was what had started unraveling this whole thing.

  Two years of guilt, shame, and grief may have been for nothing.

  Grayson excused himself to head to the bathroom a moment to get a spot of chocolate ice cream from his shirt. As he did, Rachel stood and stretched her legs. The sun had almost disappeared now, and a light breeze cooled the air.

  She glanced at the crowds of people still on the boardwalk enjoying the refreshing evening. The water had been too rough for people to swim today, so they’d found other activities like shopping and eating. She recalled there had been several ocean rescues today because of the rip current.

  She froze.

  A familiar face appeared through the crowd. He stared at her before disappearing in the opposite direction.

  Mark? Had that really been him?

  Rachel glanced back at the bathroom. Grayson still wasn’t out.

  But she needed to find out the truth.

  Making a split-second decision, she headed after the figure in the distance. The crowds surrounded her, closing in, clueless about her mission.

  She paused and frantically looked in every direction. He couldn’t have gotten so far away. Where had he gone?

  That’s when she spotted Mark again, disappearing between two buildings.

  It was time for Rachel to get answers, once and for all.

  As she chased after Mark again, she pulled out her phone. She needed to call Grayson and tell him what was going on. He’d freak out if she disappeared.

  Just as she turned the corner into an alley, something dark went over her head. Before she could scream, someone grabbed her and clamped a hand over her mouth. Another arm wrapped around her midsection and carried her away.

  The phone dropped from her hands as despair bit deeply into her heart.

  What was happening right now?

  Chapter Fifteen

  Grayson finally got the spot from his shirt. As he did, his phone rang.

  It was his friend with information from the wireless company.

  “Hey, man,” his friend said. “I was able to pull a few strings, and I got you that information you were looking for. If anyone asks, you didn’t get it from me.”

  “Thanks. I appreciate it.”

  “I just sent it to your email.”

  Before leaving the bathroom, Grayson glanced at his email and found Mark’s call log.

  There was one number that appeared over and over again.

  Strange. It had a local area code, the same one used in Lantern Beach.

  Out of curiosity, he dialed the number.

  He was shocked at the voice on the other end.

  So shocked that he didn’t say anything.

  Instead, he put the phone back in his pocket and went to find Rachel.

  He had to tell her this.

  Now.

  Rachel sucked in a deep breath as the bag was jerked from her head. She’d been tied to a chair—she could feel the ropes at her wrists and ankles. Her captor had grunted and breathed heavy as he’d tightened the binds around her.

  Her eyes widened when she saw who was standing there.

  Mark.

  He was very much alive and well.

  How could this be?

  Her sadness quickly morphed into outrage. Mark was a con man, wasn’t he? And Rachel had been a part of his scheme. Rachel didn’t understand everything yet, but she would soon enough.

  She glanced around. She appeared to be in a small, dark room. The lights were off. No windows. Vague illumination crept in through a space beneath the door, but Rachel still couldn’t make any many details.

  “Sorry it had to come down to this,” Mark said. “I never thought you would come back.”

  He looked the same—only gone was the charming fiancé and in his place was a cocky, smug punk.

  “You’re alive,” she said. “How? Why?”

  “It’s a long story.” He shrugged.

  “Please, tell me. I need to know what you were up to. Why you would fake your death? Reinvent yourself as someone else? Did you ever even love me? Was this all about the money?”

  “So many questions.” He shrugged again. “A man’s got to make a living.”

  “Certainly there are better ways. Besides, I don’t understand how you made any money off of me. I paid the deposits myself, unlike Maybell.”

  He smiled. “You talked to Maybell, huh?”

  “I did. I can’t believe how much nerve you have.”

  He chuckled. “You still don’t get it. Haven’t put that all together yet, have you?”

  “Put what together?” What in the world was he talking about?

  As she asked the question, someone opened the door and stepped into the space.

  Rachel gaped.

  “Venus?”

  The wedding planner smiled. “Sorry things have to go down this way. But now that you know our secret, you’re a liability.”

  “Wait, you’re in on this too?” Betrayal and fury collided inside her.

  “I never made any of those deposits to the venues, hon.” Venus’s voice sounded sickeningly sweet.

  Ra
chel’s head swerved from Mark back to Venus. “You’re the one Mark was always talking to. You two are . . .”

  Venus slipped her arm around Mark’s waist. “That’s right. We’re together. We love each other. Now, enough talking. It’s dark outside, and we have business to get done.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  Grayson stood by the picnic table where he’d left Rachel.

  She was gone.

  But where?

  He glanced around but didn’t see her.

  “She took off down the boardwalk,” the man at the table beside them said.

  “Was she with anyone?”

  The man shrugged. “Not that I could see.”

  Grayson ran in the direction the man had pointed. The crowds in this area were thick, but he scanned each face.

  He still didn’t see her. He peered into several shops, just to make sure she hadn’t gone inside one.

  He didn’t see her there either.

  Finally, realizing this would be harder than he anticipated, he pulled out his phone and dialed her number.

  That’s when he heard a ringing in the distance.

  Was that Rachel’s phone?

  Grayson searched the area, looking for the phone. It sounded close.

  He paused by an alley between two stores.

  There was Rachel’s phone.

  On the ground.

  Something bad had happened, he realized.

  Something really bad.

  He glanced at the side of the building and sucked in a breath when he saw the white clapboard siding.

  This was Venus’s office.

  Wasting no more time, he dialed the police chief and then paused. If someone had snatched Rachel—if Mark had taken her—where they would have gone? His mind raced through the possibilities and stopped at one.

  He needed to get there.

  Now.

  Mark and Venus had stuffed a rag into Rachel’s mouth. They’d pulled a vehicle up to the loading dock behind the building, thrown a blanket over her, and dumped her into the trunk.

  When they’d taken her out again, she was at the pier. The ferry was closed, and there didn’t appear to be anyone there.

  Mark had expertly been able to pick the lock on the gate, and he’d carried Rachel onto the pier with Venus by his side.

  Without any more words, he’d perched Rachel on the railing. He removed her ties—no doubt to remove any evidence when her body washed ashore.

  As she looked at the angry waves below, everything began to spin.

  She knew exactly what he was planning on doing with her.

  “I’m sorry,” Mark finally said, pulling the gag from her mouth. “I really did like you, you know. I wish you hadn’t come back here.”

  “You don’t have to do this,” Rachel said, trying to lock her legs onto the railing. If only she could hang on. If she could stop all of this.

  She gripped the wood beneath her as a scream lodged in her throat.

  “Unfortunately, we do,” Venus said.

  And then Venus shoved Rachel. Rachel lost her hold and felt herself falling.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Grayson was breathless when he reached the pier.

  Was this it? Was this where they’d taken her? To the very area where Mark had supposedly taken off from when he’d supposedly died?

  Grayson had called Venus’s office and been told she was out. It was her number Mark had called at all hours. They were working together, weren’t they? None of it was real. Mark had just used Rachel to get to her family’s money.

  But Grayson felt certain Mark had appeared again and taken Rachel. That the guy would want to silence her. No doubt he’d schemed and would continue to scam women who had trusting hearts and wealthy parents.

  Grayson noticed Rachel’s shoes and sweater on the pier.

  His heart raced.

  They had brought her here. They were going to make it look like she’d taken a late-night swim, maybe in mourning for what she’d done. It wouldn’t surprise him if they’d even arranged some kind of goodbye letter.

  Without thinking about it any further, he kicked off his shoes and dove into the water. If Rachel was out there, Grayson was going to find her. The police would be here soon—but it might be too late. He couldn’t wait.

  The waves were rough, but he managed to push past them and made it about twenty yards offshore. He treaded water for a moment and glanced around.

  Where was Rachel?

  His gut told him she was out here.

  But he didn’t see her.

  Grayson swam out farther, praying he wasn’t too late.

  A few yards later, he paused again and sucked in some deep breaths. The water was strong and sapping all of his energy.

  When he opened his eyes again, he saw a hand reach out of the water . . . didn’t he?

  He wiped the water from his eyes.

  Yes, that was a hand.

  Rachel?

  Wasting no more time, he swam in that direction. Waves enveloped him, tried to stop him.

  But Grayson kept going.

  As another wave passed, he paused. He looked up just as Rachel’s head bobbed out of the water and then went under again.

  Rachel felt her energy waning. She couldn’t keep doing this anymore. The water was too strong. And she’d never been a good swimmer.

  Then she saw someone.

  Grayson? Was that really Grayson?

  Or was she seeing things? Was she like a woman in the desert seeing what she needed—believing in illusions?

  She wanted to call out to him. But, before she could, another wave pulled her under. She felt the chilly water fill her lungs.

  She tried to push herself to the surface again but lacked the strength.

  As panic seized her, she felt strong arms reach around her waist.

  Then everything went black

  Chapter Eighteen

  Grayson pulled Rachel to the surface. Her eyes were closed, though.

  No. No!

  It couldn’t be too late. It couldn’t be.

  Still struggling to stay above water, he patted her cheeks, lightly at first, then a bit harder.

  Nothing. She looked lifeless. Limp. Near death.

  Oh, Lord. Please, help.

  Grayson was just beginning this journey with Rachel. He’d looked forward to so many years together. To growing old side by side.

  He couldn’t let things end like this.

  Grayson would pull her back to shore and do CPR. He had no other choice. He couldn’t revive her out here in the open waters.

  He just prayed she’d make it until then.

  Struggling against the current, Grayson tried to swim with her toward the shore. But the task felt useless. With every foot he traveled, the current seemed to push him back another two feet.

  Just as despair began to bite deep, he spotted lights in the distance.

  A moment later, a Coast Guard vessel stopped beside them.

  Help had arrived.

  Now Grayson prayed it wasn’t too late.

  Rachel pulled her eyes open.

  Her gaze darted around the room.

  She was in a hospital or clinic, she realized. Hooked up to machines. Being monitored.

  But she was alive.

  Alive!

  As her vision cleared, she saw Grayson appear beside her.

  Grayson . . .

  Tears rushed to her eyes.

  “You’re okay,” he murmured, staring at her with what was clearly love in his eyes. “You’re really okay.”

  “What . . . how?” Rachel couldn’t remember hardly anything except being shoved from the pier and into the water. Everything was murky after that.

  “I found you in the water. The Coast Guard rescued us. They were able to revive you.”

  That was right. Blurry images filled her mind.

  As they did, she sat up with a start. How could she have forgotten?

  “Grayson, Mark is alive—”

  “
I know,” he stopped her. “He and Venus were in this together. They’ve both been arrested by Chief Chambers.”

  More moisture filled her eyes. Could this be over? Could the cloud of suspicion around her finally have been lifted? “Really?”

  He nodded. “Really. It turns out Bruno was in on all of this with Mark. Both he and his brother were conning women with fake romance and false proposals, and then taking money that had been paid for deposits once the wedding planning began. That was all with the help of Venus, of course.”

  “I can’t believe all of this. Why didn’t he use an alias with me?”

  “Apparently, you were his first victim. He refined his process after that.”

  She smiled at her husband, reaching up to touch his face, despite the IV tugging against her wrist. “I’m so sorry you went through all of this.”

  “And I’m sorry you had to go through it. The good news is that we can put it all behind us now.”

  “Thank you so much for supporting me. I know it couldn’t have been easy. There had to have been some doubts.”

  “Every time they started to creep in, I reminded myself that I know who you really are. You wouldn’t have done that.”

  “Thank you for believing in me.”

  He planted a soft kiss on her lips. “I look forward to believing in you for a long time . . . for the rest of our lives.”

  Maybe the afterglow of their new marriage hadn’t faded before it had even begun after all. No, hope was on the horizon . . . and sometimes hope was all a girl needed.

  Complete Book List

  Squeaky Clean Mysteries:

  #1 Hazardous Duty

  #2 Suspicious Minds

  #2.5 It Came Upon a Midnight Crime (novella)

  #3 Organized Grime

  #4 Dirty Deeds

  #5 The Scum of All Fears

  #6 To Love, Honor and Perish

  #7 Mucky Streak

  #8 Foul Play