[23]

Quinn’s arms felt empty without Maddy in them, but the truth was, he probably needed the space. He knew she was right about everything she’d said. He needed to settle things. With his family—and with God.

She sat back down in her seat and he again took the chair opposite her. They munched on the bag of trail mix in silence, waiting for Daniel’s plane to taxi in.

It wasn’t a long wait and Maddy straightened when she saw Daniel taxi to a stop on the runway. “That’s Daniel.”

They threw their trash away and Quinn handed her the unopened pack of trail mix. “You have pockets.”

“So do you.”

“But I don’t like putting things in them.”

“Just smooshed loaves of bread and water bottles?”

“Yes, just that,” he said without missing a beat.

She rolled her eyes and shoved the mix into her right front pocket. “Let’s go.”

They hurried out to the plane where Daniel had the doors open. He greeted them with a grin. “I hear you two are the heroes of the day.”

Quinn snorted. “Just doing our job.”

Maddy simply smiled and passed her bag to him to stash behind the seat. “Thanks.”

“Welcome. Climb in and let’s get you two home.”

With perfect weather, the flight went about as smoothly as it could, and soon Quinn and Maddy found themselves on the runway in front of Daniel’s hangar. Quinn grinned when he saw his SUV parked outside, and Maddy’s as well. “We have great friends.”

“You’re just now realizing that?” she asked.

“No,” he said softly. “I’ve known it for a while now.”

“Good.”

Katie walked out of the front door and made her way over to them. She hugged each of them. “So glad you two are home and that this ordeal is over.”

Maddy clung to her friend. “Thanks for everything, Katie. We appreciate it so much.”

“You bet.”

Maddy pulled from her friend’s embrace and turned to Quinn. The distance in her eyes cut, but he had no right to complain. He’d done that to her. To them. “Bye, Quinn.”

He swallowed. “Bye, Maddy.”

Quinn ignored Katie’s speculative gaze and raised brow. And he didn’t offer any explanations as he watched Maddy walk to her vehicle, climb in, start it—and drive off.

It was all Maddy could do not to bang her fists against the steering wheel. She’d managed to avoid Katie’s questioning looks. She didn’t mind talking to her friend, but the truth was, she simply didn’t know what to say.

She knew Quinn loved her. He knew he loved her. But she also knew he was right. As much as she hated to be apart, he needed the space. The time to get his baggage unpacked, so to speak. And she would use the time wisely herself, praying and settling her own family issues. She grimaced at the thought, but knew it was what she had to do.

At the next red light, she picked up her phone and dialed Nel’s number. Nel answered on the first ring.

“Hey,” Maddy said. “What did you find out?”

“Great timing, Mads, I was going to give you a try in about five minutes. I got into the safe-deposit box. She’d kept a journal, phone recordings, a laptop, and all kinds of stuff that prove you had nothing to do with that ambush.”

Maddy almost had to pull over. “What?” she whispered.

“I’m taking it in now.”

“Who was it?” she rasped through the lump in her throat and blinked against the tears in her eyes. “Who?”

“It all goes back to your ex-boss.”

“Andrew was behind it?”

“No, Andrew’s ex-wife, Chloe.”

Maddy gasped. This time she did have to pull over. Through her shock and tears and renewed grief at the death of her friends, she managed to get the car off the side of the road and turn on her hazards. “What?”

“It’s a long story.”

“Tell me.”

“Are you driving?”

“No.”

“Kristy had started her journal years before she and Joe were dating and married.” Joe, her partner. Hearing his name pierced her. She focused in on what Nel was saying. “Kristy had pictures and all kinds of stuff. It’s really more like a scrapbook of their lives together. Anyway, after he died, she had a tribute to him on one page and then on the next page there was a picture with two people circled. Andrew and Chloe. They had a fight at Joe’s funeral and Kristy saw it. She wrote a whole entry about it, including the fact that she didn’t understand what the fight was about, but was mad that they would do that at her husband’s funeral.”

“I don’t blame her.” She pressed her fingers against her burning eyes. “I seem to remember seeing them arguing. They were trying to be quiet about it, but you could tell something was wrong.”

“Yes, I noticed it too, but didn’t think much about it. Anyway, Kristy had copies of Chloe’s phone records and had a telephone number highlighted.”

“How’d she get the phone records?”

“No idea, but I traced the number and it went to a burner phone that later turned up in the evidence room at the station.”

“Oh!”

“Long story on how I tracked that down, but come to find out, it belonged to Nico Reyes, who was picked up for a murder last month—and is finally in prison where he belongs.”

Maddy let out another gasp. “Nico Reyes! He’s the one we were after in the raid, the one we’re sure someone tipped off to enable him to set up the ambush.”

“I know.”

“What was Chloe doing calling Nico?”

“That’s what I wanted to find out. I went to talk with her, told her I had evidence that she knew something, and if she came clean, it would go better for her. She broke down. Confessed she was trying to get back at Andrew about the divorce and custody fight. Andrew was suing her for full custody and she was desperate to discredit him in some way. She went up to his office and saw the information on his desk about the raid. She did a little more snooping and came up with Nico’s cell number.”

Maddy gripped the steering wheel as though it was the woman’s neck. “I had given it to Andrew the day before, along with all of the other stuff I had on Nico.”

“She called him and gave the details, and the rest, as they say, is history.”

Maddy leaned her head back and closed her eyes. “I don’t believe this. Did Andrew know anything about all this?”

“No. He’s devastated.”

“Guess he’ll get his full custody now, won’t he?” she whispered.

“Guess so.”

“And Kristy Newman? Did Chloe kill her too?”

“Not intentionally. At least that’s what she claims, and truthfully, I believe her. She said Kristy had figured out what she’d done and confronted her. Told her to come clean. Chloe refused and Kristy left, only to die in a car wreck the next day.”

“Wow.”

“Yeah.”

Maddy cleared her throat. “Okay, so how do I ever repay you?”

“Well, you can rest assured your sister didn’t have anything to do with it.”

Maddy gave a low laugh. “I never believed she did.”

“Not even a little?”

“No. Not even a little.”

“How about resent her a little?”

Maddy found a smile at that. “Yeah. Maybe a little. Actually, it’s not so much resentment as it is hurt.” She paused. “I think she’s the one who put those pictures in the break room.” And had written: Undercover or . . . traitor? on each one after the ambush had gone down. She knew those pictures had just fanned the suspicion flames.

“I’m sorry, Maddy.”

“I am too, but your news more than makes up for the lousy last few days I’ve had.”

“The word will spread fast. Prepare for some apologies.”

“Thanks, Nel.”

“Anytime, Mads.”

Maddy hung up the phone and sat on the side of the road. Tears coursed down her cheeks and all she could think was that she wished Quinn was here so she could share the news with him.

But he wasn’t.

She tapped the steering wheel and let her brain process the shocking news. Chloe Williams had let her take the fall. Chloe. A woman she’d considered a friend. The knowledge of her betrayal hurt, but she would get past it. Somehow. In spite of the hurt, Maddy’s baggage had just gotten a lot lighter. Maybe there was something she could do to shed a few pounds from Quinn’s.