“Over the course of the night, I’m sure he was with lots of girls. That’s the way Devin was. But I don’t remember anyone specifically.”
Serena hesitated. “I’m sorry, Kathy, but if you don’t know anything about the alleged assault, why did you feel that you should come forward?”
The woman said nothing. She found a grimy chew toy in the grass, and she heaved it toward the back of the house and watched as her dog sprinted to retrieve it. Then she continued softly.
“When the allegations came out about Devin, I... I believed them. It’s not like I could prove he did anything, but I’m pretty sure the woman is telling the truth. And I’m pretty sure the rape happened that night, here at my house.”
“Why do you believe that?” Serena asked.
“I had to clean the house the next day,” she replied. “It was a mess, as you’d expect. I didn’t realize anyone from the party had gone upstairs, but then I went into my parents’ bedroom. I found... I found the door to the balcony wide open. Someone had thrown up in the sink in the bathroom. And I had to wash the sheets from the bed. There was blood on them. And semen, too.”
19
From behind his sunglasses, Brayden Pell surveyed the twilight swimmers at Brighton Beach. The evening temperatures were warm, but only a handful of people lingered on the rocky shore, and even fewer braved the cold lake water. A young couple lay on rainbow towels stretched across the granite slabs. Three children, none of them more than ten, hunted for pebbles along the beach below the tree line. An old man swam a slow breast stroke from south to north, unbothered by the chill.
Then there were the three people with Brayden.
He sat on the rocks next to Curt Dickes, who wore a swimsuit adorned with colorful pineapples that came down below his knees. He hadn’t gone near the water; instead, he was glued to his phone. Curt kept the phone angled away so that Brayden couldn’t see what he was typing, and Brayden assumed that Curt had probably committed half a dozen crimes just in the hour they’d been sitting there. It didn’t really matter to him right now. Curt was a minor crook, mostly moving marijuana, fencing stolen merchandise, and running cons on tourists. Every now and then, he’d cross a line and spend a couple of months behind bars. But he wasn’t violent. Brayden also had to admit that he found Curt’s irrepressible self-confidence amusing to watch.
Curt’s girlfriend, Colleen Hunt, waded in the lake with Cat, the two girls talking together as if they were old friends. The water came up to their thighs. Colleen wore a demure, one-piece polka dot swimsuit, and she held her skinny arms across her chest as if she were freezing. Her straight blond hair never got near the water. She looked as if she’d rather be on the beach, but Cat had dared her to swim, and Colleen seemed like a girl who went along with the crowd to be cool.
And then there was Cat.
Cat was dangerous.
Brayden knew that Cat had a crush on him. The girl couldn’t be more obvious about it. He had no intention of doing anything to encourage her, both because of the age difference and because he wasn’t about to incur Stride’s wrath by getting involved with a girl who was the closest thing Stride had to a daughter. Brayden’s only job was to keep the girl safe.
And yet he’d be lying to himself if he didn’t admit that he was drawn to her. The attraction wasn’t really sexual, although physically, she had a look that turned heads and stopped hearts, with her full, flowing chestnut hair, golden skin, and a body with every curve and swell in perfect proportion. She was showing it off now, in a bikini that barely covered anything. Any man who saw her would be hungry for her. As young as she was, Brayden knew that she’d been involved with men and sex in ways that would have shocked him, but it added to her appeal that she’d gone through all of that and could still seem innocent and sensitive.
He felt close to her; they had things in common. She’d gone through a troubled childhood, and so had he. They both had to rise above their pasts and become new people. Brayden knew that it would have been easy to get emotionally attached to this girl, but he couldn’t afford to do that. She was a victim to protect, and that was all.
But even so, she was dangerous.
“She’s something, huh?”
Brayden turned his head, and Curt grinned at him.
“I see you watching Kitty Cat,” Curt went on. “Can’t say I blame you. Girl’s a stunner. Way out of my league.”
“I’m just here to keep her safe,” Brayden said, annoyed that he’d been caught out.
“Sure. Sweet gig. I mean, I love Colly, but Cat? Wow. Always felt good that she thought I was cool. Of course, Stride and Serena would slice me up like sushi if I laid a hand on her. So I don’t go there, no way, no how.”
“Smart choice,” Brayden said.
“Yeah. By the way, I feel bad that Wyatt turned out to be a freak show. Colly and I never would have introduced him to Cat if we’d thought that.”
“We still don’t know if he’s the one who’s stalking her.”
“Maybe so, but when it comes to Kitty Cat, I’d rather be safe than sorry. You keep him away from her, brother.”
Brayden smiled. It was obvious that Curt had genuine affection for Cat. That was a point in the man’s favor.
He glanced at the lake and saw Cat and Colleen emerging from the water, Colleen running for a towel on the rocks, Cat not hurrying at all as she squeezed her wet hair and adjusted both flimsy pieces of her bikini. Even if it was deliberate, she acted nonchalant about putting her body on display. Curt simply enjoyed the show, but Brayden made a point of looking away.
“Oh, man, that felt good!” Cat said as she headed up the rocks toward them. “I love summer.”
“Looks to me like that water must have been pretty cold,” Curt commented, drawing an evil glance from Colleen.
“You sure don’t want to swim, Brayden?” Cat said. “I’d go back in with you.”
“No. Thanks.”
Cat gave a loud sigh, as if that was the answer she expected. “All right, Colly and I are going to get changed out of our suits. We’ll be right back.”
Brayden began to get to his feet to accompany them, but Cat giggled. “Really? You want to come with me for that?”
He felt a blush on his face, and he was sure Cat could see it, too. He looked over his shoulder at the parking lot beyond the trees, and he could see only a couple of cars in addition to his Kia and Colleen’s old Rav4. He checked the tree line and the beach and felt secure.
“All right, go ahead. If you see anything strange up there, you shout, okay?”
“Yes, Stride,” Cat said with a wink.
She grabbed Colleen’s hand, and the two girls headed off together for the parking lot. Brayden followed them until they reached the path above the beach, and then he turned back to the water. He kept his eyes on the lake, because he didn’t want Cat to think he was spying on her.
Curt, who’d been watching him the whole time, let out a long whistle. “Shit, you like her, too, don’t you?”
“What?”
“You’re into Kitty Cat.”
“No, it’s not that.”
“Uh-huh, yeah, whatever you say. Word of warning, brother. Cat may not seem high maintenance, but trust me, she is. Be prepared. Skeletons rattle around in that pretty head of hers.”
“I’m not into her,” Brayden said, knowing he was protesting too much.
Curt grinned again and went back to his phone. Brayden hated telegraphing what he felt about anything, and if Curt could see it, then he was afraid that Cat could, too. And worse than that, so would Stride. He swore to himself to do better and shut it all down. To not let her tease him into conversation and then let out his secrets.