Hometown Detective (Cold Case Detectives Book 6)

by Jennifer Morey

  So he’d let it go all these years. Melody indeed wanted and needed things in life, expensive things. So much that she’d kill to preserve the lifestyle.

  Cal asked if they had a driver and he answered they did and he was the same driver they’d had for nearly a decade. Cal got his name and Roman made a note of it. Melody had likely had her driver take her somewhere she knew she’d intercept Kaelyn. Maybe she’d even arranged to meet Kaelyn. Had she called her when she was on her way and manipulated her into meeting? Maybe she’d lied and said she had information on Glenn and they had to meet somewhere private.

  “Did you ever have any reason to believe your wife may have poisoned Deidra?” Cal asked.

  Hudson shook his head. “Or Glenn’s second wife. I had no reason at all to believe she’d do something like that.”

  She was the diamond-glittering beauty on his arm and that’s all he cared about. He cared about status and reputation. Money.

  Cal studied him awhile as though contemplating all Hudson had said. “Why are you telling us all of this? And with no attorney? Your son insisted on having an attorney.”

  “You questioned my son?”

  “We just finished with him before we brought you in.”

  “My son is innocent.”

  “We found an old tin of powdered ethylene glycol buried in his backyard. Do you know anything about that?”

  “In his...” Hudson looked confused. “Melody must have buried it there, not Glenn.”

  “Are you sure? Wouldn’t Glenn bury evidence implicating his mother? And you. You are his parents.”

  “I would hope Glenn would do what I’m doing right now.”

  “What are you doing?”

  Hudson leaned back against his chair. “Melody withdrew a large amount of money from our account.”

  “When?”

  “Today.”

  “Where is she now?”

  “I’m afraid I don’t know, but I can’t support her if she’s going around committing murder.”

  “You supported her when she staged a suicide.”

  “I told you, I believed it was a suicide and I believed my wife went shopping in Chicago.”

  “But you suspected your wife might have had something to do with her death.”

  “I asked her why she went to Chicago. She liked shopping in different cities. While it came up rather suddenly, I didn’t think it that odd at the time.”

  But he had thought it odd.

  “Did she show you what she bought?”

  “No, and I didn’t think to ask.”

  Roman made another note to check for charges either to their credit cards or debit cards.

  Cal walked behind the chair to Hudson’s other side. “You’re facing charges yourself, Mr. Franklin. Bribery.”

  “For that, I do require an attorney.”

  They were finished for today. Hudson would be convicted of bribery and most likely sent to jail for a period of time, but nowhere near the length Melody would serve.

  * * *

  Kendra should have felt elated that she finally had closure to her sister’s death. Instead, she just felt empty, and full of more questions.

  They waited in a conference room with Cal, who had his laptop open and periodically checked his email for the files on Melody’s calls and purchase record for the day of Kaelyn’s murder.

  At last, he swung his feet off the table and faced the screen directly. “Here it is.”

  Kendra moved to the chair on one side of him and Roman the other. Then they leaned in to read the files.

  Melody had made a call from her cell phone at the time Hudson had said she had called him. The triangulation performed placed her on the highway just outside of Chesterville at a truck stop.

  “The email is from the detective I sent to question Hudson and Melody’s driver,” Cal said. “He kept a log of everywhere he drove them and confirmed he dropped her off at the truck stop with no instructions on picking her up. He’d remembered because he’d thought it was so strange that a lady like her would want to be dropped off at a truck stop.”

  Kendra read through the bank transactions the day of Kaelyn’s death. “There are no purchases from a mall or anything resembling items bought while shopping.”

  “Only fuel,” Roman said.

  Kendra found the fuel purchases. There were only two. One near Chesterville and another near her house. “She left us a tidy trail.”

  “I doubt she ever thought she’d get caught,” Cal said. “The fiber forensics came in today. I bet we’ll find a match to Melody somewhere in their house or car.”

  “We’ve got her.” Roman looked over at Kendra and she saw and felt his deep satisfaction that not only had he solved a tough case, he also did it for her.

  She smiled softly back at him, letting go for just a moment or two to let him know how grateful she was.

  Cal turned his head from one to the other. “Enough ogling. We have to find her first. By now, she’s probably aware we’re about to make an arrest.”

  That made her dangerous, even more now than before. Knowing she was about to be caught, what would she do?

  Chapter 19

  Raelyn gathered her laundry into a basket and left her apartment, a tiny one-bedroom she could barely afford working at the gas station. It was getting late to make a run to the Laundromat, but she was out of socks. Someday she’d have a nice house like her aunt that had its own laundry room.

  She thought about Aunt Kendra on her way down to the parking lot.

  She couldn’t believe the photos she had found had helped with Roman’s case. She’d spoken with Kendra an hour ago and the cops were bringing Glenn and Hudson in for questioning. Had Glenn killed her mother? So far, Aunt Kendra said they had no evidence implicating him. Wouldn’t it be rotten if they never did? Her mother’s murder would go unsolved.

  Her only hope was in Roman. Kendra said he was one of the best detectives out there. Raelyn sure hoped she was right.

  So far, all they had were some bribery violations against Glenn’s dad. Was Glenn protecting his dad?

  She’d have to wait to find out. Aunt Kendra said she’d call after the interviews.

  Her phone rang. Maybe that was her.

  She dumped her basket into the back of her car and pulled the cell out of her back jean pocket. The caller ID said it was Adam, which disappointed her. He hadn’t taken the breakup very well. He still thought they were perfect for each other. Aunt Kendra had shown her how wrong he was.

  She put her phone back in her pocket without answering.

  Aunt Kendra made her feel she was worth something more. Raelyn couldn’t say why or how her aunt did it. Maybe it was the pep talks. Maybe it was the candor about her mother. Maybe it was the way she cared about her. Or maybe it was a combination of everything.

  Kendra was awesome. She’d had a rough adolescence, too, but she’d dug herself out of it and made a decent living for herself. Raelyn wondered if she’d let her work full-time at her shop. She could learn management that way.

  Shutting the back hatch, she headed for the driver’s side when a car drove up beside her. A nice car. A sleek black Mercedes. She paused with her hand on the door handle of her car when she noticed Melody Franklin get out of the driver’s side.

  The woman stood and faced her from the other side of the vehicle, her blond hair combed smooth in a shoulder-length bob, revealing glimpses of dangling diamond earrings. “Well, hello, Raelyn.”

  Something weird struck her about a woman like the prosecutor’s wife being in the parking lot of a low-rent apartment complex. “What are you doing here?”

  Melody walked around the back of her car, heels clicking on the pavement. As she rounded the rear, Raelyn saw her hand was inside her blue-and-black-patterned purse, which looked like it had been custom made for her
dress, a blue fitted business suit. The heels were about three inches and the shoes black. She wore a diamond necklace and watch. The woman liked her accessories.

  But it was her hand that Raelyn watched the closest.

  Just as a tingle of apprehension trickled up the skin of her neck, Melody produced a gun.

  “Get in my car, dear.”

  Raelyn glanced around for anyone who might be able to help.

  “We’re alone,” Melody said, stepping forward with the gun. “Get in.”

  When Raelyn still didn’t move, Melody raised the gun to aim for her head. “I don’t have to take you alive.”

  Believing she had no choice, Raelyn went with her gut and got into the car.

  Melody bent over. “Get into the driver’s seat.”

  Raelyn looked down at the gun aimed at her and complied.

  Melody got in and shut the passenger door. “Drive. I’ll tell you where to go but for now, get to the highway and head for the mountains.”

  Raelyn backed out of the parking space and drove out of the lot, looking in the rearview mirror at her disappearing apartment building. Would her life end this way? She hadn’t even begun to live. Would this crazy woman cut it short?

  Not if she could stop her. What would Kendra do in this situation? Play it cool until she saw a safer opportunity to escape? Try to get information out of Melody?

  The mountains were a good distance away. Melody wouldn’t be able to watch her closely the entire way. Maybe she could wreck the car or something.

  “Why are you doing this?” Raelyn asked. “Why me?”

  “Because you’re important to your aunt,” Melody answered in a lofty tone, calm and composed. “She should have left well enough alone.”

  “What do you want from her?”

  “This is all her fault. I wouldn’t have to resort to this if not for her. The police know too much and now I can’t stay. I have to get away, and you’re my ticket.”

  “Why not just go to the bank and make a withdrawal?” She and her husband had to have enough money.

  “There’s not enough in our accounts for me to live on. I already took everything I could.”

  But she needed more. Raelyn eyed her impeccable attire. Even her purse made a statement. Her husband must have had to spend a lot on a house and everything in it on top of all the other material things a woman like her needed. Wanted was a better word.

  “And you think my aunt has that kind of money?”

  “No, but the detective she hired will be able to get what she needs. Fitting end for them, don’t you think? They’re the ones who caused all of this, so now they’re going to pay.” Melody’s red lipstick slathered lips curved upward devilishly.

  “I hate to break it to you, lady, but you’re the one who has to pay.”

  The smile vanished. “Shut up and drive. I don’t have to talk to you.”

  Raelyn watched the road, keeping an eye out for a place to turn to get help. Would this insane woman try to shoot her in front of a crowd of people? She had to assume yes. She had reached the edge of her desperation to silence anyone who caught on to her evil.

  “You killed my mother because she found out about Deidra?” Raelyn asked.

  “I said shut up.”

  “What does Vikki know?”

  “She and I had lunch one day. I wanted to find out what she knew about my son’s affair with your mother. Turns out she knew everything. She even talked with Glenn about it.” Melody’s face contorted in disgust. “They even agreed to go to marriage counseling.”

  “That’s why you tried to poison her?”

  “She asked Glenn about Deidra’s death. She asked me about it, too. She was getting suspicious, and Glenn came to me and assured me Vikki knew nothing, but I could see he was only trying to protect her. Sooner or later, she’d become too much of a risk. I had to get rid of her.”

  “Like you got rid of my mother?”

  Melody scoffed. “Your mother.” She shook her head incredulously, mockingly so. “Your mother actually thought she could have a man like Glenn, that he’d leave his wife for her.”

  “What makes you so special?”

  “I come from a good family. When Hudson proposed, my father had to approve. Of course, he did. My family has money.”

  “Then why don’t you ask them to pay you off?”

  Melody turned her head and between focusing her attention on the road and glancing at the woman, Raelyn saw condescension. “You’re just like your mother, you know. You think feistiness will overrule heritage.”

  “My mother didn’t need heritage to be a good person.”

  “Do good women have affairs with married men?”

  Raelyn couldn’t argue that hadn’t been wrong. “My mother was in an abusive marriage. She was trying to leave my dad when she was—when you killed her.”

  “Women without family wealth get themselves into situations like that. She had no choice other than to marry a substandard man.”

  “He didn’t present himself as substandard before she married him. He had a drinking problem. You don’t know a thing about my mother. She was strong and full of love. She was a happy, ambitious person until my dad beat that out of her. You killed a good, decent human being. Doesn’t that matter to you?” She knew without asking that a woman like Melody—one capable of heartlessly killing—would not care.

  “What matters to me...” Melody hesitated. Raelyn imagined the pampered woman now faced the reality of her new circumstances. “What mattered to me was protecting Hudson’s career.” She looked over at Raelyn as though beseeching her to understand. “If he’s ruined, then I’m ruined. I couldn’t have that.”

  “And so now that you’ve failed in that endeavor, you’ll do what...go make a new life for yourself in Mexico?”

  “My plans are not your concern. Now, if you don’t shut up, I will shoot you.”

  Raelyn didn’t tell her she’d never get the money, and even if she did, she’d never make it on the run, not a woman like her. She needed a sheltered life, one her rich husband provided.

  “Roman won’t negotiate with you. A detective like that, one with the kind of backing he has, will come in shooting. You should listen to me, Melody. This will go badly for you if you go through with this.”

  “This will go exactly as I say, or you die.”

  Raelyn drove down the highway, the lights of Chesterville fading in her rearview mirror. The cover of darkness would help her, but the isolation might not.

  She stayed silent for a while, until she noticed Melody losing some of her edge. She no longer watched her so intently. Slowly, Raelyn moved her arm to her side, then eased her hand up and into her back pocket. Slipping her phone out, she placed it beside her on the car seat.

  Going still, she waited until Melody looked over at her and then straight ahead before using her thumb to press the main button. Her recent calls were still up on the screen.

  She pressed Call.

  Chapter 20

  Later that night, Kendra sat in Roman’s hotel room as he prepared something microwavable to eat. Her stomach was empty, but she had no appetite. Raelyn still hadn’t answered her phone and she’d called twice. But just then, her cell rang and she saw it was Raelyn.

  “Hey. Where have you been?”

  No one responded on the other end. Kendra heard a funny background noise, like Raelyn was driving in a car and had accidentally dialed her.

  “Raelyn?” she said in a louder voice. That got Roman’s attention. He turned from the microwave to watch her.

  “Raelyn?”

  “Where are we going?” she heard Raelyn ask.

  “What?” Kendra asked.

  “Shut up and keep driving. I’ll tell you when to turn off the highway.”

  Kendra gasped as blood left her head and she felt cold
and shaky with apprehension. She put the phone down and pressed the speaker button.

  “Melody has Raelyn. They’re in a car driving on a highway.”

  Roman came to the table as Raelyn spoke again.

  “This highway goes to Snowshoe. Are you going to your cabin?”

  Kendra stared at Roman. The seconds felt like torturous minutes.

  “What are you going to do when we get there?”

  “If you don’t shut up, I swear I’ll—”

  “All right, all right.” Raelyn said no more but she kept the line open.

  Roman had already gone into action mode. He made a call to Cal and gathered his gun and ammunition.

  Kendra grabbed her purse and held on to her phone as they left the building. They had to reach Raelyn in time.

  * * *

  On the way to meet Cal and his team, Kendra still had Raelyn on the line. Roman heard Melody direct her to turn at the driveway to the cabin. A few minutes later, the car stopped.

  “Get out,” Melody said.

  Roman listened to Raelyn get out.

  “What’s that in your hand?”

  “Nothing.”

  The sound of a scuffle followed. Melody must have gotten out of the car and Raelyn must be trying to hide her phone.

  Roman saw Kendra grip her hands together in frightened apprehension.

  “Who did you call?” Now Melody must have held the phone to her ear. “Hello?”

  Roman put his finger to his mouth, indicating to Kendra not to say a word. She’d already muted her phone so Melody wouldn’t hear anything.

  “Kendra? I know it’s you, you meddling bitch. If you interfere again, I’ll kill your precious niece. You don’t want that, do you? You’ve already lost your parents and your stupid sister. Do you really want to lose the last person you have?”

  If she put one finger on her niece, Kendra would rip the lady’s heart out with her own hands. “Tell me we’re going to get her.”

  “We’ll get her.” Roman reached over from the driver’s side and took her hand. “Don’t unmute the phone.”

  He knew her enough already that he’d predicted she’d say something hostile.