Mystic Park (Finding Home 4)

Alonzo stopped an arm’s length from Leonard. He wasn’t stupid. He straightened to his full height, which was considerably taller than the other man. “Lesson one: stay away from my house. Lesson two: stay away from my woman.” Alonzo stepped back and tipped his hat. “Have a nice night.”

He turned and walked away without a backward glance. Alonzo had parked his car around the corner so he wouldn’t tip off Leonard. It was a lot to go through just to get some guy to leave his fiancée alone. But love made you stupid. Real stupid.

Speaking of stupid, now that he’d dealt with Leonard, how was he going to mend the busted bridge between him and Doreen?

“How was your day?” Two afternoons later, Alonzo greeted Doreen at their front door with a kiss and a glass of lemonade.

“Fine. Thanks.” Doreen accepted both before moving farther into their home. She’d finished a Saturday at Books & Bakery, and a quick visit with Ms. Helen and Benita.

“Is something wrong?” Alonzo locked the front door as he watched her walk away from him. She seemed preoccupied.

“I’m just tired.” Her voice carried to him as she disappeared into the kitchen.

Alonzo winced. That was the same excuse he’d given her for the past two and a half months. What was it they said about payback? It was true. He sought her out in the kitchen. Doreen stood at the counter, pouring herself more lemonade. She replaced the pitcher in the refrigerator.

“Doreen, could we talk?”

“I’d welcome it.” She crossed to the circular ash wood table and sank onto a chair. “What would you like to talk about: canceling our wedding, my moving out of your house, or your threatening Leo?”

I should have known the gutless wonder would go running to Doreen. Alonzo closed his eyes briefly. Some people learn best through repetition.

He squared his shoulders, then took the chair on the other side of the table from her. “After I say my piece, you can decide which of those things you want to discuss first.”

A cautious expression settled into her brown eyes. “All right.”

This is what dread feels like. His muscles had seized. His heart had stopped. His tongue lay like cement in his mouth. Alonzo still didn’t know where to begin his story. He could only pray that inspiration would guide him. “I fell in love with you in high school, although I didn’t know it was love until college. You brought people together. You put a spotlight on issues in the community that needed to be addressed. Every action you took had a positive reaction in Trinity Falls.”

“You give me too much credit.” Doreen raised a hand, palm out. “I didn’t do anything alone. A lot of people helped me, including you and Paul.”

“But you were the driving force. You were the one who got us started and kept us going.”

“That’s debatable, but it’s not what we’re talking about right now.”

“All right.” Alonzo stood and crossed the kitchen. “I went into law enforcement because I wanted to have a positive impact on the community, too. But it didn’t work out the way I’d hoped.”

“What happened?” Her voice invited his confidences.

Alonzo hesitated. His gaze was on the view outside his kitchen window. But in his mind, he saw his old beat in Miami. “Instead of helping to build a community, in the course of my career, I’ve taken lives.”

Doreen gasped. “Alonzo, how?”

He kept his back to her. He couldn’t bear to see her rejection when he told her the truth. “One of the victims was an abusive ex-husband, holding his ex-wife and three-year-old daughter hostage. The second was a bank robber. The third was a home invader. After that, I decided to leave the big city to become a small town sheriff’s deputy.”

His tension built to almost screaming proportion as he waited for Doreen’s reaction. Was this where their story ended for good? Why would someone like her—someone who creates and builds—want anything to do with a man who had blood on his hands? Would they remain friends at least? Or wouldn’t she want any part of him?

“Alonzo, I’m so sorry.” Her hand settled gently on his shoulder.

He started. He hadn’t heard her move. “So am I.” Alonzo turned to her. “The memories of the lives I took are always with me. Always. But the recent police shootings have made them even harder to contain.”

Doreen shook her head fiercely. “Those killings weren’t anything like your experiences. You didn’t kill unarmed people under questionable circumstances. You shot armed and violent offenders who were directly endangering you and other people.”

“It was still murder.” Alonzo turned from her.

“What would have happened to the woman and child who were being held hostage by her ex-husband?”

“He was threatening to kill his daughter if his wife didn’t leave with him.” Sometimes with the memory came the fear and tension from that scene. Alonzo clenched his fist to keep the feelings from building.

Doreen squeezed his shoulder. “How many customers were in the bank when the robber struck?”