Chapter 12

Keith sat down quickly. He was feeling light-headed. It was almost like déjà vu. The car was in almost the exact same position as it had been in his dreams. It was on the roof and the nose of the car was crushed up almost tight to the dashboard of the car. No one could have survived the impact.

"Keith, what is it?" Laurie asked as she rushed over to him.

"No, Laurie, get mom in here." Keith said not wanting Laurie to see what he was looking at.

Laurie didn't respond but left the room to do what he asked. He'd turned very pale so something was definitely very wrong.

Keith flipped to the next picture and wished he hadn't. In this picture, a body was just barely visible. The body was unrecognizable, but the long dark hair was very evident. This was all the evidence Keith needed. He knew that it was Anne.

No one could tell him that he wasn't responsible for this.

He turned to the note and was just about to read it when Shirley came flying into the room, Reuben close on her heels.

"Laurie said to come quickly. What is it?" Shirley said as she moved quickly to his side.

Keith wordlessly handed over the pictures. He turned his attention to the note. While his Mom and Reuben studied the pictures in dread, Keith dropped into a nearby chair and began to read.

My love,

It is apparent that the Oregon police need some additional training. How they can miss a broken guardrail when they are looking for a crash victim is beyond me. But, I just wanted to make sure that you knew that the proof of my love is a reality. I have done the unthinkable for you – twice now actually.

On to more pleasant issues. Once again, your show was wonderful though you do appear a bit tired. Please try to get more sleep. I worry for your health if you keep pushing yourself so hard. I have found that being on the road constantly can be quite exhausting. I have picked up the arts of a masseuse and would be only to happy to help you relax once we are together.

Everything is almost ready. The time is near for us to be together. Please know that you are my everything.

Crazy for you,

Juliet

Keith was so numb he couldn't even react to this latest insanity. He simply let his arm drop into his lap and stared at the far wall trying to wrap his head around what he had just seen and read. Did she just admit to killing not only Anne, but someone else? If so, why didn't he know about it? Who could it be? If it was someone close to him, surely he'd know.

"Keith, let me see the note." Shirley asked gently. She was a little surprised by his reaction or should she say his lack of reaction. It was as if he could no longer feel – anything.

Keith handed the note over wordlessly and never looked away from the spot on the wall. As Shirley read the note with Reuben doing likewise over her shoulder, she couldn't suppress a shudder. Reuben put his arm around her as she swayed slightly before letting the note fall down to her side with an arm that no longer had feeling. The pain her son could not feel was knifing through his mother as pains of sympathy.

She had no words of comfort. Her mind was a blank.

"Shirley? Come on, sit down. Over here. That's it, just a little further." Reuben talked to her softly the whole time he guided her to a chair just feet from her equally non-responsive son. He was pondering his next move when there was a knock on the door. He was grateful for the interruption.

He opened it to find the detective from earlier that day. "Detective Johnson, come in." Reuben said as he motioned the detective into the room.

The detective's eyes were immediately drawn to the flowers but just as quickly to the stunned mother and son sitting quietly in chairs next to each other. They both looked shell shocked. "What happened?"

"Well, as you can see, the flowers arrived just as they have in every other city. Just how do you explain that?" Reuben asked peevishly.

"Well, after we arrested the homeless woman, we removed the surveillance. She must have purchased another bouquet after the decoy." Johnson reluctantly admitted.

"You what?" Reuben said in anger. "How could you remove the surveillance when you knew you didn't have the right person?"

"At the time we didn't know that." Johnson said in his defense but realized how lame it sounded even to his own ears. He'd messed this one up, he had to admit, if only to himself.

"Here's the note that came with it. It also came with pictures." Reuben said as he shoved both in the direction of the detective. "The Oregon police shouldn't have any trouble locating Anne D'Angelo once they see those pictures. Juliet practically drew them a map."

"That's what was missing from the first arrest." Johnson said quietly to himself. Unfortunately for him, Reuben heard him.

"Care to explain?" Reuben was truly angry now.

"Umm…well, the homeless woman never gave the undercover policeman a note to send with the flowers. That leads me to believe that Juliet knew we had a sting operation in place. She was just waiting for us to shut it down." Johnson said as if a light bulb had gone off in his head.

"So, once again, she's a step ahead of you." This from Keith who had been listening to the conversation closely.

"It appears that way." Johnson said his embarrassment evident.

"So, not only is Juliet rich and a master of disguise, but she's also very smart. Why can't I place her?" Keith asked the room in general.

"Don't forget crazy." Reuben pointed out helpfully.

xoxo

Reuben was once again in a hotel room with Keith. They'd spent a couple of hours at the police station answering more questions, but no new information was gleaned from their interrogation.

Shirley had reluctantly parted from her son once again, but Keith had insisted that he would be more comfortable away from the younger kids. He told her he was so numb he was sure he could get some sleep. He'd been lying through his teeth, but she'd been so shocked herself by the latest developments that she hadn't noticed.

They were going to talk in the morning about what this latest discovery meant for the remainder of the tour. They would need to go home for the funeral but weren't sure if they could conceivably continue to tour or even if they wanted to. It was decided that they'd all sleep on it and talk in the morning.

Keith pretended to take another half a sleeping pill but had insisted that Reuben take one himself. He didn't want to be watched and Reuben needed his sleep just as much as Keith did. Keith had gotten into bed, rolled away from Reuben and stared at the wall until he was sure Reuben was asleep. He gave it another 15 minutes and then quietly got out of bed and redressed.

The numbness was wearing off and he needed to either regain that numbness or fill his mind with something other than the sick pictures he'd received that night. At first he'd just planned on taking a walk, but while he was getting dressed, he remembered Hope's invitation to stop in at the club in the hotel.

He'd have no trouble getting in because he was old enough. However, he did not want to show his drivers' license at the door or the whole club would know he was there. Could Hope get him in without a hassle and help keep his identity a secret?

He put on a hat, grabbed his sunglasses and went downstairs. He located the courtesy phone and dialed the club number. The bartender answered after several rings and eventually put Hope on the line.

"Don't say my name." Keith instructed before he said anything else.

"Ok, I won't but not because you said so. I have no idea who this is? Is this some kind of a prank?" Hope asked hoping this call did not turn into an obscene one.

"Sorry, it's Keith Partridge but I didn't want you saying my name out loud in the club. You invited me to stop in earlier today and I'd like to take you up on the offer. But, I don't want to be recognized. Can you help me with that?" Keith asked as quietly as he could while still allowing for Hope to hear him over the noise of the club. Thankfully the band was on a break so it was only a dull roar.

"Sure, where are you?" Hope asked excited to have to opportunity to talk to him again.

"In the lobby." Keith told her.

"I'll be right out to get you." Hope said as she hung up.

She swung past the Manager and asked if she could take the rest of the night off. She quickly added that she planned to remain in the club if any emergencies came up but that a close friend was in town. He'd be coming in shortly and she wanted to be able to spend time with him.

Hope was a very good employee and things were running smoothly, so the Manager didn't think twice about agreeing to her request.

Hope walked past the bouncer and wandered out into the lobby scanning the area for Keith. She eventually spotted him leaning against the wall around a corner. Keith noticed her at the same time and took a minute to check out the stunning picture in front of him. He suddenly remembered that she'd said they were having a luau that night. What he hadn't expected was to see Hope in a skirt tied at the waist, a bikini top and little else. Even her feet were bare. She was sexy as hell. If not for her blond hair, she'd have looked like a native.

As he was about to smile his appreciation, a wayward thought crossed his mind – Anne would have looked downright stunning in that get-up. Keith pinched the bridge of his nose and lectured himself, 'you're here to forget, not picture Anne as every woman you see'.

"You alright?" Hope asked as she walked up and noted Keith's frown.

"I'm fine, but I sure could use a drink." Keith smiled at her, feeling like his face would crack from the effort.

"Well, then, right this way." Hope said as she waved her hand the opposite direction that she had come from. At Keith's questioning glance she explained, "We're going to come in from the Manager's office. That way we can avoid the crowd at the bar and get right to the VIP area. You did say you wanted to remain anonymous, didn't you?"

"Absolutely. Lead on." Keith said as he motioned Hope to precede him.

Within minutes, they were ensconced in a booth that had a great view of the stage and the dance floor. The band had started up just moments before and the dance floor was filled with gyrating bodies dancing to the beat. When the waitress showed up, Hope ordered each of them a Mai Tai and glanced at Keith for his nod of approval. He didn't care what it was he drank just so he could regain the feeling of numbness that had deserted him about an hour ago.

While Hope kept shooting sideways glances at Keith, she didn't push for conversation. While the band was playing it would be hard to hear anyway. Besides, Keith seemed pretty absorbed in the show so she just sat and watched both him and the band.

She was a little offended that he hadn't checked her out like he first had in the hallway. His eyes had lit up when he'd first spotted her but then a shadow had come across his face and since then he'd been pretty quiet. Maybe some alcohol would loosen him up.

When the waitress returned, she looked at Keith much more closely. She was pretty sure she should know who he was, but with his hair tucked up under his hat, and his face in shadows, she wasn't able to place him. She shrugged and walked away.

At 1:00 am, the band took its final break of the evening. Keith and Hope had downed two Mai Tai's and were working on number three. Keith was starting to feel a little of the numbness that he so craved. When Hope turned to him to start up a conversation, he was willing to give it a try. After all, his mother had raised him to not be rude.

"So, Keith, what do you think of San Antonio?" Hope started out with a safe topic just trying to get him talking.

"I can't really say. I don't get to leave the hotel very much. We've been lucky so far, the fans haven't figured out which hotel we're staying at, but if they do, then everyone in the family becomes a prisoner." Keith told her.

"Wow, that must really stink." Hope was surprised to hear that he couldn't even go sightseeing.

"It's not so bad. I'm not really in the hotel for all that long. Mostly just to sleep and eat. Otherwise, we're traveling or practicing or performing." Keith shrugged pretty used to life on the road by now.

"No wonder you look so tired. It sounds grueling." Hope said as she looked at his tired face.

"Actually, under normal circumstances I find touring to be very exhilarating. Connecting with the fans is really pretty great." Keith said without enthusiasm making his words hard for Hope to believe.

"So, what's different this time?" Hope caught on quickly to the part he'd left unspoken.

"It's a long story and one I really don't want to talk about." Keith said shortly.

"Sorry, maybe we should change the subject." Hope said quickly. She had somehow brought up a touchy subject but wasn't sure how. All she was sure of was that she wanted to spend more time with him. She'd completely forgotten about his missing girlfriend.

"No, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snap at you. I'm just really tired." Keith apologized. She really was being very nice.

"That's alright." Hope trailed off and searched for a new subject, "So what do you think of the house band?"

"Honestly?" Keith asked and glanced at her quickly to read her face.

"Absolutely! I want your honest opinion." Hope smiled thinking they were pretty good. She'd hired them herself just a couple of weeks ago.

"Well, they could use some more practice. They're sloppy and I've heard several mistakes." Keith gave his honest opinion as a musician and could see by the hurt look on her face that he shouldn't have been quite to truthful. "But they have a lot of potential." Keith added quickly.

"No, I asked for your honest opinion. It just hurts a little when you don't hear what you expected, that's all." Hope put on a brave smile as she reminded herself that he had much more experience in music and would obviously hear things that she would miss. "So, should I fire them and look for someone else?"

Keith sighed and decided to remain brutally honest, "I would. If you want to keep the clientele happy that is."

"That bad?" Hope was surprised by his comments.

"Alright, you asked for it." At Hope's nod Keith continued, "The lead singer is often flat, the bass player is behind the drummer, the keyboard player is a passable musician at best so it's a good thing she's a knockout and the lead guitar player has dreams of being Clapton but sounds like he's using a toy guitar. Oh yeah, and their harmonies sound like a cat fight in a back alley."

"Ouch." Hope winced. "In other words, it's a good thing everybody is drinking."

"Ha." Keith's short laugh surprised him. He hadn't laughed in days. "That can only help, that's for sure."

"I'll start looking for a replacement in the morning." Hope said a little sadly.

"Hey, that's just my opinion. You don't have to fire them on my account. I'll be leaving tomorrow so my wounded ears will heal quickly." Keith assured her with a smile. His first genuine smile in days too. First she'd made him laugh and now he was smiling. He wasn't sure if it was her or the alcohol, but it was helping him to forget.

"You should do that more often." Hope said as she smiled back. It was infectious.

"What's that?" Keith asked as he continued to watch her look at his mouth.

"Smile. You really have a terrific smile. It lights up your whole face." Hope said as she finally looked back into his eyes. It allowed her to see the shadow pass quickly across them. The eyes were the windows to the soul and Keith's soul was definitely wounded.

Keith quickly changed the topic before she could ask him again why he wasn't in the smiling mood. "So tell me about yourself."

"What would you like to know?" Hope was only too happy to go with the flow rather than have that extremely sad look take over his face again.

"Anything. Everything." Keith smiled again though this time it was more forced.

"I'm going to be a senior at UT this fall. I'm majoring in business with a minor in hotel and motel management. I'm originally from Tulsa, but wanted to put some space between me and my parents. They're strict catholic and would both die of heart attacks if they could see me in this get-up." Hope waved her hand down her body drawing Keith's eyes back to the fine display of female flesh.

"My guess is that there are several male heart rates that have increased significantly when looking at you tonight." Keith teased.

"Hah, too bad the one heart rate that I'd like to have increased appears totally nonplussed." Hope looked at him archly.

"Oh, I wouldn't say that. You're having the same effect on me. I'm just better at hiding it than most." Keith automatically reverted to flirt mode when a female opened the door so invitingly.

"Is that so?" Hope looked at Keith through her lashes and threw her best smile in his direction. "How'd you like to see…..well, more?"

"What, here?" Keith was surprised by her pass at him, though he shouldn't have been. He'd had more women make passes at him in the last three years than he could begin to count. Hers was by no means the best, but her argument held great merit. An offer to see more of a body that had caused most of the guys in the place to pant uncontrollably in her wake was inviting to say the least.

"Not likely. I may not have a problem wearing next to nothing in public, but I draw the line at putting on a show. My apartment is only 10 minutes from here. Care to join me for some cocktails and….well whatever else we decide to do?" Hope winked at him.

"You do remember that I'm leaving tomorrow. That this can go nowhere." Keith felt compelled to point out that it would be a one night stand.

"Look, I'm not exactly Miss Free and Easy, but I've been away from my parents for a couple of years now and have been experimenting like most adults do. I also know that neither one of us is in love here. I don't think that we can deny that there's a definite sexual attraction. A strong one on my part at least. I'd like to see where it leads. If you're interested." Hope almost chickened out, but there were several people she knew who would give a kidney just for the opportunity to talk to Keith Partridge for as long as she had. Who knows what they'd be willing to do to get him in bed with them. She wasn't passing up her opportunity; as unexpected as it was.

Keith had wanted to find a way to forget the reality of his life for the night. This looked like a golden opportunity. She wasn't asking for an emotional commitment. That he would not have been able to give, but a physical one sounded like just what the doctor ordered.

As Hope watched several emotions travel across Keith's face, she was sure he was about to reject her. She was totally surprised when he reached over and put his hand behind her head pulling her in for a kiss. It started out soft and questioning but quickly deepened to a raw sexual exchange.

While Keith felt his body react to the responsive woman sitting next to him, he made up his mind quickly. He pulled back and said, "That's an offer I can't refuse."

Hope smiled at him and he smiled back. She slid out of the booth and pulled Keith behind her back toward the office door. They exited into the quiet hotel hallway and out through an employee entrance. She led him to her car and they drove away from the hotel. Keith sat quietly in the passenger seat as Hope drove as quickly as she could to her apartment. She was shivering with excitement by the time she pulled into her parking space.

Once inside, they wasted no time with words simply started kissing and pulling clothes off as they stumbled down the hallway to her bedroom. By the time they reached the bed, they were both naked and Keith entered her eager body immediately. He held out only long enough to know that Hope had achieved orgasm and then quickly followed himself.

Keith pushed himself up and looked down at Hope. Had he shouted Anne's name out loud or just in his head?

Hope smiled up at him and put her hand on his cheek. "Wow, that was fantastic! Can we do that again?"

"Ha, not right now." Keith said as he fell down beside her on the bed and felt his exhaustion begin to take over his body. He was tired in both mind and body for once. Could he sleep, dare he sleep? Before he could decide, his eyes closed and he drifted peacefully into slumber.

"Poor baby, you really are tired aren't you?" Hope said as she got up and found a blanket to throw over them. She wasn't about to try and move Keith to get him under the covers.

Once she'd thrown a blanket over him, she crawled under it herself and snuggled up beside him. She was tired too, but wanted to watch him sleep for a while. He'd be leaving in the morning, if she could keep him here that long even. She'd stay awake and make some more lasting memories for herself.

She grew chilly as the night wore on and got up to put on her fluffy bathrobe before settling back down beside Keith again.

He slept deeply for at least three hours. The alcohol and sexual release had finally quieted his mind enough to sleep dreamlessly for a few hours. Unfortunately for Keith, it didn't last. As his body finally allowed his subconscious free reign once again, Keith's nightmare started in his minds eye once again. It unfolded like every time before. As the inevitable end neared, Keith's body was already fighting to regain consciousness. He was restless and breathing quickly. Hope watched not quite sure what to do. She could tell he was in the throes of a nightmare, but had heard that waking people up from bad dreams could be bad. She moved slightly away just in case he started swinging and watched closely. She jumped back even further when he sat up and screamed, "Anne, no!"

"Keith?" She asked quietly.

She watched his eyes fly frantically around the room and finally settle on her. As realization set in, she watched him look quickly away. "Sorry about that." He mumbled as he made a grab for the slipping blanket. "What time is it?"

"It's around 6:00. Who's Anne?" She couldn't stop herself from asking.

Keith's eyes returned quickly to Hope and just as quickly fell away again. "Where's the bathroom?" Keith asked avoiding the question altogether.

Hope motioned to the door across the hall. Keith wrapped the blanket around himself and got off the bed. He bent down to pick up his jeans on the way by them and shut the bathroom door firmly behind him.

As he looked at himself in the mirror, he couldn't help but ask himself, 'what the hell have you done?'

You just had meaningless sex with a woman you barely know and didn't even use protection. What if she wasn't on the pill?

Partridge, you are an idiot!