Torched: A Thriller by Daniel Powell Read Free Book Online Page A

smart and
hard-working. He saw things differently—analytically, I guess you could say—and
he had such a knack for fixing things. It was uncanny what the man could do
when a problem popped up.
    “But he was also so much
more than that, Mike. He was kind to others, and he had a beautiful smile, and
he could fill a room up with his laughter—which he did often. He loved life,
and people loved him. He was generous and kind—not all buttoned up like some people
think when they think of engineers.”
    “Sheesh, Vi. Sounds like
a hell of a guy. Should I be jealous?”
    Vivian’s smile was sad.
“Not anymore. I don’t think, wherever he is, that he laughs much anymore. And
that’s a shame, really…
    “Anyway, now enter
Vivian Steiger. Awkward, self-conscious, average-in-most-ways Vivian Steiger. A
middle girl sandwiched between brothers that were award-winning athletes. A
daughter to hyper-achieving parents whose love was unconditional, but that
never really felt…I don’t know, never felt authentic . So Vivian’s at
UCF, taking biology courses with the idea of going into veterinary medicine—or
something in that area, she’s not really sure—when she bumps into Ryan Bowles
at a party. Literally, she knocks his drink out of his hand on the porch of the
Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity house and he spills it all over the girl he brought
to the party. It’s a movie set-up, I know, only in this case it really
happened.”
    “And from such
auspicious beginnings blossoms a beautiful romance?”
    Vivian nodded. “In many
ways, yes. Ryan apologized profusely to his date, but she wasn’t listening much
after he couldn’t keep his eyes off Ms. Steiger. That first meeting was
awkward, but it was never uncomfortable between these kids. Things were never really awkward, actually—at least not until much later, when everything fell
apart.
    “So a first official
date—bowling, of all things—evolved quickly into a wonderful relationship. They
were good kids, and they were good together . They were…they fell
genuinely in love.
    “Ryan Bowles excelled in
his classes at UCF; Vivian Steiger discovered that she enjoyed the humanities
much more than biology, and Ryan encouraged her to follow her heart. They were
inseparable for four years, and then they graduated and moved south, to Cape
Coral. Ryan began building bridges, while Vivian worked at an art gallery.
    “There was a marriage,
and some very happy years as they sunk their roots in the Florida Sand.”
    Miguel refilled their
glasses. “I’m sensing a ‘but’ on the horizon.”
    Vivian shook her head.
“Not yet. Things got even better. They had a little baby girl. Her name was
Katie, and she was everything to them. If Ryan’s laugh had filled the
room before, it filled the county after Katie entered their lives. They had
lots of good years together, the three of them.
    “Lots of good years.”
Vivian was crying, her voice little more than a whisper. Miguel reached over
and took her hand, and she swiped away the tears and pressed forward.
    “Katie grew tall and
strong. She…she was out one night with the dog. She did it all the
time—absolutely loved going for walks in the neighborhood. When she didn’t come
home, Ryan and Vivian became worried. They were…they were just heading out to
search for her when the police pulled into their driveway.”
    Vivian sobbed, her
shoulders hitching. She knew she had to tell him—knew that if she was going to
make a clean transition into this new life that he had to understand the things
she had done in her past—but the memories were still so raw.
    “You don’t have to keep
going tonight, Vivian. It’s okay if you need to stop,” Miguel said, but she
shook her head. She swiped the tears from her eyes and pushed forward, her
voice an octave higher with grief. She worried her hands in her lap.
    “Katie died, and so did
the love between Ryan and Vivian Bowles. He tried to hold it together for the
both of them. He’d even