Officer Jarvis jumped when I knocked on his car window. He saw me and pressed a hand to his chest, took a couple of deep breaths, and put his window down. "Are you trying to give me a heart attack at nine in the morning?" he asked.

I shook my head with a fond smile. "Jimmy and I just wanted to talk to you." Kev's eyes shifted to look behind me before returning. "It's about Ben," I said quietly. My heart felt like it was on the verge of thumping out of my chest, and I felt so guilty about this, but I knew it was what had to be done.

Kev nodded and stepped out of the car. He was alone this morning, so he just leaned on the car. "Okay, let's hear it."

"Remember when I told you he tried to sabotage my board?" I asked, my voice shaky.

He nodded. "There's nothing I can do about that without evidence of some sort, really."

"I figured as much, but that's not where I was going with this." He gestured for me to continue. "Well, he knows what I know now." I felt Jimmy's hand tighten on mine and realized I hadn't exactly told him that part. "I'm worried Rob's going to destroy evidence if someone doesn't get to searching his office soon."

Kev sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. "There's nothing I can do, Brenda," he told me with something like a plea in his voice. 

"Think, Kev!" I gripped Jimmy's hand harder. "There has to be something. He tried to follow me last night when I was heading home. He's disappeared. He told me to stop or he was going to make me stop investigating."

That seemed to capture his attention. "He threatened you?" he said at the same time as Jimmy. I grimaced, realizing there was more than one thing I hadn't told my fiance. My husband-to-be. 

That sounded so weird.

"He did, but that's part of why I need to find him. I don't really know what he or Rob will do, but I have a feeling that it was Rob's cousin David that tried to hurt me that time I came to you when I told you someone tried to prank me. He's a reporter here and is working with Rob and Ben. He's as unpredictable as any of them. It has to be his car that I saw."

Kev gave me a skeptical look. "I don't know him, but assuming that you're right, I can't do much personally."

I crossed my arms, letting go of Jimmy's hand, and gave him my best glare. "I'm beginning to think you don't want to help," I said in a challenging tone.

His eyebrows rose. "Of course I want to help. I helped you already! Remember those papers I gave you?"

"Right, the papers. The police report and the insurance policy. I'll give you the report, but the insurance? That wasn't a contract."

"I can't give you the contract!" His voice was raised and there was a little bit of desperation in there, too.

I couldn't blame him. But then, he doesn't know that Jimmy and I had been following him all morning, trying to find a good time to talk to him and saw him meeting up with Ben and Rob. I took a step towards Kev, my heart pounding, knowing I was passing the limits of how I should be acting towards a cop. "Maybe you could ask Rob for it. Since, you know, you're such good friends. Or maybe Ben. I'm sure my brother would give it to you. After all, he never says no to a good officer like yourself."

He blanched and stared at me. "What are you talking about?"

"How much do they know?"

"What?"

"How much do Ben and Rob know? I assume you've been talking to them. We did see you three being all friendly about half an hour ago."

His hand inched towards his gun and I knew my time was limited. "I don't know what you're talking about."

I took a deep breath and forced out the suspicions I'd been harboring since we saw them, but once the first words were out, I found they flowed like a river. "You've been telling them what I've been up to. That's how Ben knew what was going on with me long before I ever got caught by Rob. That's why he messed with my board, too, isn't it? You'd told him what I was up to and even planted that thought there I bet. You knew everything long before I called you and that's why you weren't surprised by anything. I don't know how they roped you into this, but I-"

"Enough!" he shouted, pulling his gun from its holster. "Take a step back, Miss Anderson." I did it immediately. "Fine, yes, I told Ben. I was concerned about you. They promised me a few hundred to not help you figure them out. Rob doesn't want to go to jail and your brother's only worried about you. I didn't tell him to mess with your board - Rob did. I didn't know what they did when I told him, but I had to go along with it for the money. I want to surprise Kathy with a trip to the one place she's always wanted to go for our honeymoon and I needed what they were offering."

I exchanged a glance with Jimmy. "How could you do that to me, Kev?" I asked in a small voice. I swallowed and looked him in the eyes. "Because of that I could have been killed. If I hadn't noticed something was wrong I could have been badly injured or worse." 

My words and expressions affected him. It was obvious. Regret showed in his face and slowly he brought his hands to his face and rubbed it. I yanked Jimmy's arm down as he began to reach for the firearm Kev still held. After a long moment he lowered his hands and mumbled, "I'll help you and I'll give the money back. I haven't done anything with it." He pinched the bridge of his nose. "I honestly haven't felt right since they gave it to me." He returned the gun to his holster and pointed at me. "Don't tell my boss about any of this."

"I won't as long as you help me," I told him, glaring at him again, but it was undermined by the grateful smile I gave him and the tears that wormed their way from my eyes. We were all silent for a long moment until I broke it. "What's next?" I asked him.

He shook his head and fiddled with a button on his shirt nervously. "Well, the next step is going to my boss and telling him what's been going on." He rubbed his nose and looked between me and Jimmy. "You go talk to that lady - Heather, I think you said - and try to get her to come in."

I smiled at him. "Thank you," I said quietly.

Kev heaved a deep sigh before returning my smile and patting my shoulder. "You're welcome, and I'm sorry." His smile dropped and he sighed again.

---

"We need to talk," Jimmy told me as we walked through the park, holding our boards. When I peeked at him I could see he was upset, and I realized that was why he hadn't been holding my hand since we left Kev. 

I led us over to a bench and we knocked the snow off and sat. "What about?"

He sucked in a deep breath and held it for a long moment before releasing it. "Why didn't you tell me any of that stuff?" He looked at me and I could finally see the hurt I could hear in his voice. "Why didn't you tell me Ben knew and that he threatened you?"

I rubbed my hands together. It was cold, but that wasn't why. "I wasn't sure how to tell you, and I didn't want you to worry about me."

Jimmy stared at his lap, a mirror of my posture. "I want you to tell me everything, you know. I don't like you hiding things from me."

I gnawed on my lip. "I wasn't trying to hide anything from you," I told him quietly after a long moment. I picked at my nails. "I'm sorry."

He reached for his skateboard that rested against the bench next to him. "I love you Brenda, and I really want us to work, but the only way that can happen is if you tell me things."

I looked up at him but he wouldn't meet my eyes. "It only happened the day before you proposed," I pleaded, my heart sinking.

He sighed and paused. "So you waited two days to tell me you were threatened by your own brother."

"At least I didn't wait for a month or until something bad happened," I said in a small voice.

He looked at me, hurt prominent in his eyes, and I suddenly wished he hadn't. I couldn't take it. "How do you think I feel finding out my fiancee kept something so big from me when she's, not telling me, but telling someone else?" He stood and answered his own question before I could. "Not good." He scrubbed a hand throught his hair and looked around. He walked off a couple of paces before coming back and sitting next to me. "I love you, Brenda," he said again.

"I love you, too, Jim," I told him. "I want us to work, too. I can't see myself with anyone else. I've loved you for so long now that I'm more than positive I want to spend my life with you."

He turned to me, dropping his board and taking my hands in his. "Then tell me stuff, Brenda." He had a touch of desperation in his eyes. "I don't like you keeping stuff like this from me."

I swallowed. "I won't, Jim. I'm sorry." I rested my head on his shoulder and felt him rest his head against mine for a moment before putting a finger under my chin to raise my head and kiss me. 

---

Heather answered the door and lit up when she saw us. "Hey, there!" she said cheerfully. "I was wondering when you'd stop by again. Come in, come in." She stepped aside for us to pass by and closed the door once we were in the foyer. I began taking off my coat and hung it up on the rack, Jimmy following suit. "I was just in the kitchen. Follow me."

We walked into the kitchen and I took a seat at the island, patting the stool next to me. Jimmy sat as she turned to us, wiping her hands on a dishtowel. "This is my fiance, Jimmy," I told her.

She smiled even bigger. "Congratulations!" She came around the island and hugged me and then hugged Jimmy, who stiffly returned it. "Oh, you guys are so cute together!" She went back around to where she'd been standing. "Now, to what do I owe this pleasure?"

Jimmy reached over and took my hand. I began playing with his fingers. The whole way over I'd been thinking about what to say, but I still had no idea how to do this. "Well, I wanted to ask you to do something, but I have to explain first." I knew I was stalling, but I couldn't help it. How come no one ever told me that sometimes doing the right thing makes you feel guilty? It was really making me feel that way now. "Um, remember how my brother was charged with theft?" She nodded. "Well, he didn't do it, but he helped someone else do it."

"Where are you going with this, Brenda?" she asked gently.

I stilled my fingers and tightened my grip on Jimmy's hand. "I need to do the right thing, and at the moment, the right thing is making sure Ben does the time he deserves, as well as Rob." My eyes met hers and I saw the moment she understood what I said.

Her jaw tightened and she looked away. Several silent moments passed and it lasted so long I began to wonder if she was okay. Finally her eyes closed and she sighed heavily. When they opened again, she looked at me and said, "How can I help?"