A Deep and Dark December(37)
Candy bit her lip as though deciding something, then she turned the dryer off and leaned close. “Keith and Deidre were a couple for a while right before and maybe a little after you and he started going out. I really thought you knew. But this doesn’t have to change anything between you and Keith. You’re so great together and I can see how much you like him and he likes you.”
But it did change things. The vision Erin had of Keith and his mother in that kitchen now had context. Keith had been seeing Deidre and might have gotten her pregnant while he and Erin had been dating. Could Keith be responsible for Deidre’s death? Was that why he’d been so solicitous toward Erin and had shown up at the police station—out of guilt? Who else knew about his and Deidre’s relationship? Did Greg know?
Erin looked up into her hairstylist’s anxious face and felt as though she was expected to make Candy feel better about her revelation. But all she could do was smile weakly and wonder if what she and Keith had shared was real or was their relationship nothing more than smoke and mirrors, the perfect distraction from his affair with Deidre?
“It’s okay,” Erin finally managed with a one-shoulder shrug that was more of a jerk. “No biggie. Don’t worry about it.”
“Oh, I’m so relieved. I don’t want to cause any trouble between the two of you.”
“No. No trouble. No trouble at all.”
Candy switched the dryer back on and began blow-drying Erin’s hair, chatting amiably about nothing in particular. Erin nodded and responded appropriately, but all the while her mind spun.
Keith and Deidre. If Keith was upset over Deidre’s death, he didn’t show it. Had Keith’s insistence on taking things to the next level with Erin been a way to ease his guilt over his relationship with Deidre? Or was it to avert attention away from his and Deidre’s relationship after her death? That would explain why he suddenly wanted to get out of town for a while.
Deidre hadn’t been expecting the man who’d killed her—a married man. At least that’s the impression Erin had gotten from her vision of Deidre and the killer. What if she’d read the vision wrong? The killer was definitely someone who enjoyed his stature in the community. His thoughts about that had been very clear. As Erin had explained to Graham, Keith was well respected and admired in San Rey. He’d earned a reputation of charity and goodness. Getting a married woman pregnant would certainly affect his standing in the community.
Would Keith have killed Deidre to protect his good name? Was Keith the father of Deidre’s baby? Could her pregnancy have played a part in what happened to her?
Erin jumped when Candy turned off the hairdryer. She’d been so absorbed in her thoughts she hadn’t paid any attention and now Candy was frowning at her.
“You’re upset,” Candy said. “I shouldn’t have told you.”
“No, really. I’m okay. I was just thinking about work,” Erin lied.
Candy whisked the color cape off of Erin and rearranged Erin’s hair over her shoulders. “How do you like your new highlights?”
“They’re great. Just what I wanted. Thank you.”
“I should be done around seven. Do you want to go for a drink or something tonight?”
Erin got up slowly, tamping down the urge to flee. Her thoughts had stirred up emotions she had no defense against. She picked up her purse and turned to her friend. “Thanks, but I have plans tonight.”
“With Keith?”
“Yes.”
Candy put a hand on Erin’s arm. “Please don’t let what I said ruin your night with him.”
How could it not? “I won’t. Thanks again for my hair.”
Erin backed away, the rising need to escape making her feel shaky and weak. She paid for her hair and bolted, hitting the sidewalk at a brisk pace. She hardly registered the stares and whispers of the townsfolk as she passed. She turned right on Wicker Street and followed it up and around as it narrowed and the sidewalk gave way to a dirt path. The hard packed earth floated around her ankles as she trudged further up to where expensive homes with ocean views gave way to modest bungalows tucked into the side of the hill, shut off from the impressive vistas.
She spotted the police cruiser parked out front of her small house and slowed her pace, trying to imagine why it would be there. Then she caught sight of Graham leaning against the porch railing, waiting for her. His mirrored sunglasses glinted in the afternoon sunlight, but she knew he watched her progress as she came up her steep front walk. Without a word he peeled off the pillar and followed her into the house, not needing an invitation. She knew why he’d come. He was here to ask her about Keith and Deidre.
She hung her jacket on a hook in the entryway. He did the same and trailed after her toward the kitchen. It was a short walk. These old bungalows tucked into the rolling hills above San Rey were no bigger than a two-bedroom apartment. But there was a little plot of sloping land out back where Erin had envisioned a tiered garden that had cemented her decision to buy. The garden now filled the view from the window over the sink, row upon row of flowers and herbs poured over the boxed edges of the beds. The aroma of fall flowers wafted in, scenting the whole house.
“Iced tea?” she asked, reaching into the refrigerator, stalling. She hadn’t yet processed her thoughts and feelings, let alone come to the point where she could translate them for Graham.