Page 26 of The Couple’s Secret (Detective Josie Quinn #23)

Twenty-Two

The chime of Josie’s cell phone woke her.

Sunlight streamed through the hotel windows.

She’d left the curtains open because she couldn’t stand waking up in a completely darkened room.

It made her feel too disoriented, brought memories of childhood traumas too close to the surface.

A steady pounding in her head worsened as she sat up.

She hadn’t had a drink after Fanning dropped them off the evening before.

Hadn’t had a drink in years, but it sure felt like she’d spent last night with a bottle of Wild Turkey.

Sleep hadn’t come easy. She’d spoken to both Noah and Wren before bed.

Things seemed normal at home. Or whatever passed for normal these days.

But her anxiety raged on, coupled with the myriad nagging questions about the Tobias Lachlan/Cora Stevens case.

It felt like an endless loop. All questions and no answers.

Her phone went quiet. The sheets were like sandpaper across her bare legs as she tossed them aside. Nothing in the room was conducive to sleep. The mattress was so soft she practically needed a ladder to climb out of it, and the pillow was some kind of medieval torture device.

“Should’ve had the phone sex,” she muttered to herself, reaching for the bedside table. Maybe then she would have been too relaxed to care about the shitty accommodations.

The missed call was from her sister. It was inevitable.

Trinity was the queen of cold cases, and this case was most definitely a crowning jewel.

She’d never done an episode on it, though, and there was only one reason Josie could think of as to why.

Tobias and Cora’s kids hadn’t agreed to be interviewed.

Presenting the facts of a case and the police response was part of her show’s format, but Trinity’s aim was always to elicit tips that hadn’t been offered before, and for that she needed a more emotionally compelling element—grieving loved ones.

Somebody always knew something.

The kids had been interviewed for the Dateline episode but at that time, only two years had passed since the disappearance.

Riley was about to go off to college. Trinity’s show had started a few years later.

Assuming she’d approached them, had they avoided it because of Riley’s fragile emotional state?

The bad blood between the brothers? Or Riley and Jackson’s marriage?

Josie had no doubt that Riley was right.

Their relationship would become a point of morbid fascination, eclipsing the details of their parents’ cold case altogether.

She tried to run her fingers through her sleep-matted hair, without success.

Her phone buzzed again. The thought of dealing with her sister later was laughable.

Trinity was more persistent than Trout when he knew one of them had food.

With a sigh, Josie swiped answer and grumbled, “I can’t talk about the case. ”

There was a beat of silence. Then Trinity scoffed. “Please. I know that. Although it should go without saying that if there comes a point when you can discuss it, I want dibs.”

“Dibs?” Josie rubbed tiredly at her temple. “What are we? Ten?”

“You need coffee.”

“No shit.” She needed a shower, too, and some ibuprofen. Then more coffee.

There was a huff. “I’m calling because Noah told Drake that you want to cancel the vow renewal.”

Josie groaned. “Ugh. We really are in middle school.”

Ignoring the barb, Trinity softened her tone. “I think you should go through with it. You deserve it. Both of you.”

“It’s just that Wren?—”

“I’m going to stop you right there,” Trinity cut in, voice still gentle. “This isn’t about Wren. You were right to postpone it before because she’d just arrived. She’s a bit more settled now. Sure, the three of you have a lot of work to do but I know you, Josie. You don’t think you deserve this.”

She had no response to that. It was far too early, and she was far too uncaffeinated for an impromptu therapy session.

The twin telepathy must have stretched across the miles because Trinity didn’t bother to dive into psychoanalysis. Instead, she said, “Just know that if you cancel this, you’re going to break Mom’s heart. She’s pretty much made this her entire identity.”

Josie laughed. It was true. Noah had worried that Trinity would be the one trying to take over the planning but instead, it was her mother, Shannon, who had been treating it as if it was her own vow renewal—no, her own wedding.

What had started out as a small, simple ceremony was now an affair nearly as big as their ill-fated wedding had been.

After Josie and Noah announced they were going to do it, Shannon bombarded them with calls and texts and a zillion ideas for everything from the venue to the font they should use on their invitations.

Invitations. Shit. They had already gone out. Trinity and Drake lived in New York City. They’d both already requested time off from their very busy jobs to attend. Noah’s brother had probably already booked his flight from Arizona. Surely, they would all understand if the ceremony was canceled.

“Mom missed so much of your life,” Trinity said, breaking into her thoughts.

“Then your wedding was ruined. Don’t get me wrong.

She’s overjoyed that Wren has come into our lives, her first grandchild and everything.

But seeing you two celebrate your marriage properly, with all the trappings and everyone you love in attendance? Josie, she needs that.”

“If you’re going to guilt me like this, you could at least DoorDash me a latte and a dozen cheese Danishes,” Josie complained.

She did feel guilty. Lila Jensen had worked for Shannon and Christian Payne’s cleaning service when Josie and Trinity were three weeks old.

She’d set their home on fire and kidnapped Josie.

Authorities believed Josie had perished in the blaze.

They had no idea that Lila had spirited her away to Denton.

Thirty years later, a cold case knocked Josie’s world off its axis and fate set it to rights, reuniting her with her parents, twin sister, and little brother.

But there was no getting back the time they’d lost or the milestones they’d missed.

“It’s not just Wren,” Josie mumbled. “It’s?—”

She couldn’t bring herself to tell her sister how much Noah was struggling.

It felt like a betrayal. He wouldn’t even talk to her about his trauma or his nightmares.

Was he even in the right frame of mind for something like this?

Just the other night he’d gone from being sweet to cruel in the span of a few minutes.

“You don’t have to tell me,” Trinity said, again practically reading her mind. “Just please, think it over, okay?”

Josie made a half-hearted noise of agreement before hanging up. She’d think about it. Just not right now.

There were funerals to attend.