Cat rolled her eyes. “Most men are like that with me. You don’t know how many creeps are out there, Stride.”
“I get it. But no one stands out? No one who was a little creepier than usual?”
She shook her head. “No.”
“Okay, here’s the thing, Cat,” Stride went on, knowing he was about to endure a firestorm of protest. “Until we figure out who this person is and evaluate the nature of the threat, I don’t want you leaving the house alone. When you’re alone, you’re at risk. What happened tonight proves that.”
“Stride! No!”
“I’m sorry. I’m not taking any chances with your safety.”
“It’s summer!” Cat replied unhappily. “What do you want me to do, be a prisoner stuck inside all the time? That’s not fair!”
“I’m not saying you have to stay inside, but I’ve arranged protection. If you want to go somewhere, he’ll drive you. Wherever you go, he goes.”
“Oh, great. Another cop babysitter. The last one was fatter than Guppo and ten years older. He wheezed trying to keep up with me. You think that’s going to keep me safe? Can’t I just agree not to go out alone? If I want to go somewhere, I’ll meet friends.”
“You mean friends like Curt? No. This isn’t negotiable, Cat. It’s a done deal. I already put out a call for volunteers in the department, and I found someone willing to help. His name’s Brayden Pell. He’s off-shift for the next few days, so he can be with you anytime. I’m sorry if it puts a crimp in your social life, but that’s the way it is.”
“I hate this,” Cat said.
“I’m aware. Would you prefer it be me taking you everywhere? Would that be less intrusive?”
Cat frowned. “No.”
“I didn’t think so,” Stride said with a smile. “Listen, give Brayden a chance. I’ve only met him once or twice, but I think you’ll like him.”
“Yeah, sure. When does Officer Nanny get here?”
Stride pointed to the other side of the road, near Cat’s car, where a sunshine-orange Kia Soul, with a squat, boxy frame, pulled up behind Guppo’s cruiser. “Brayden texted me he wasn’t far away. I think that’s him now.”
“Are you kidding?” Cat asked. “A freaking orange Kia? I’m sorry, you want me driving around in a dork car like that? Come on Stride, if you just let me hang by myself, I promise that I’ll—”
She stopped talking.
The door of the Kia opened, and a man in his late twenties got out, bathed in the glow of Stride’s headlights. He had to unfold his legs to pry himself from the front seat, because when he stood up, it was clear that he was taller than six feet. He had blond hair shaved very short on both sides of his head but long and swept back on top. He had dark eyes, pale stubble on his beard line, and a sharp V-shaped chin. He wore an untucked dark blue jean shirt, sleeves rolled up, buttoned to the top, and tight fitting khakis. His build was lean but strong. He spotted Stride’s truck and waved with a relaxed smile.
“Wow,” Cat said under her breath, drawing out the word.
“That’s Brayden Pell. Think you can manage to let him hang around with you for a few days?”
“Wow,” Cat said again.
Stride chuckled. “I’ll take that for a yes.”
10
“Ms. Jantzik?” Serena said when Andrea opened the door. “My name is—”
“I know who you are,” Andrea interrupted. Her blue eyes were hard, and her voice had all the ice of a Duluth January. “I’m not Ms. Jantzik anymore. I haven’t been for years. Jantzik was my name when I was married to my first husband. I’m Andrea Forseth now.”
“Of course.”
“I was also Andrea Stride for a while, but you know that.”
“Yes, I do.”
“You’ve got a fucking lot of nerve coming here,” she went on.
“I realize this is awkward—”
“Awkward? Is that what you call it? The bitch who stole my husband showing up at my door?”
“If I could just explain—”
“Does Jon know you’re here?” Andrea interrupted again. “He just left. Is this supposed to be some sort of good cop — bad cop routine? First him and now you?”
“He doesn’t know I’m here,” Serena said.
Stride’s ex-wife folded her arms across her chest. “Oh, so what, were you following him? Are you afraid he’s cheating on you? Sleeping with me? That would be pretty ironic, wouldn’t it?”
Serena felt slapped, but she hadn’t expected anything less. “I’m really not here to talk about me and Stride, Ms. Forseth.”
“Well, that’s too bad, because I want to talk about it. I’ve wanted to talk about it for six years.”
Serena nodded. “Okay. That’s fair. Say whatever you want.”
“I want to talk about you coming to Duluth and fucking my husband. Jon and I may not have had the best marriage, but that didn’t give you the right to spread your legs for him.”
“You’re right,” Serena admitted, doing her best to stay calm.
“You and your showgirl hair and big tits. Is that the way women get their men in Vegas? Because here in Minnesota, we call that being a whore and a slut.”
“I understand that you may feel that way, and I don’t blame you.”
“I know what happened between Stride and Maggie, by the way. I saw that one coming a mile away. How did it feel, him cheating on you?”
“Awful. It felt awful.”
“Good. Now you know how it was for me. Like I was dirt. Like I was worthless. And you married him anyway? Even after he slept with her? You’re brave, thinking he won’t do it again.”
Serena waited for Andrea to run out of venom. This wasn’t a time for explanations. She could have talked about the walls that she and Jonny had built for themselves, about the guilt and grief that had shadowed their attraction, about the many mistakes they’d both made on the way to realizing they were meant to be together. But none of that mattered. Not to this woman.
“I’m sorry,” Serena said.
“Excuse me?”
“I’m sorry. That’s all. I have no excuses. I’m six years late in apologizing. Jonny did that a long time ago, but I should have done it, too. In person. He and I made a terrible mistake back then. He felt that your marriage was over, and I think you felt the same way, but I was wrong to allow myself to get in the middle of it the way I did. I won’t tell you that I feel bad or that I would take it back, because the fact is, I found the love of my life and I married him. But I’m still sorry.”
“Do you think that changes anything?” Andrea asked.
“No. Not a thing.”
Andrea breathed loudly through her nose. Her face twitched. She was still angry, but she’d already fired both barrels, and she looked too tired to reload.
“So what do you want?” Andrea asked. “Why are you here?”
“Do you mind if I come in? Just for a minute?”
Andrea made no move to open the door wider. “We can talk right here. What is this about?”
“I assume Stride told you about the discovery of Ned Baer’s body.”
The other woman shrugged without replying, but her body language said yes. Andrea knew.
“Did he tell you that he’s been suspended from the department?” Serena asked. “He removed himself from the investigation, because he covered up facts seven years ago and lied about a meeting that he had with Baer shortly before he was killed.”
“So what?” Andrea said.
“I think you know what that meeting was really about.”
“Well, you’ll have to ask him, not me.”
Serena glanced at the quiet street behind her. She understood the dimensions of the challenge she faced. She needed Andrea to open up about the most wrenching personal experience of her life, and Serena was about the last person on earth this woman would ever choose to confide in.