“Drury.” Carter opened his arms.
She leaned in for a guarded hug, something Brycen hadn’t seen in previous exchanges. While she hadn’t yet accepted the possibility that Carter knew more than he let on, she didn’t discount it, either.
“Let’s go in here.” Carter gestured toward an open conference room. “What brings you by? Did anything come out of the Cummingses’ visit?”
Brycen entered the room ahead of Drury, not missing how Carter always sequestered them when they came for visits. He went halfway inside the room and stopped alongside a rectangular table. He turned and faced Carter, Drury doing the same on the other side of the table.
“Evette said she overreacted when she called for help the night you and Noah went to her house,” Brycen said, laying out where he intended this conversation to go.
“The scared ones always have some excuse.” Carter put his hands on his hips above a duty belt packed with handcuff case, gun, cross-draw TASER, magazine pouches, portable radio and collapsible baton.
“Did you talk to Juanita Swanson after Noah’s murder?”
“Who?” He shook his head, hands still on his hips. “Name doesn’t ring a bell. Who is she?”
Brycen kept his face steady while he thought the oversight anything but. What good cop would miss talking to one of Evette’s closest friends after his partner’s murder? He could see not talking to her after the domestic violence call, but not the murder. Family and friends of those last in contact with a victim could reveal things important to a case.
“A close friend of Evette’s,” he finally said. “Juanita went to talk to Evette after Noah’s murder, but Evette downplayed the connection to the domestic violence call, and Juanita forgot about it until now.”
“She reported her missing,” Drury added with a subtle edge to her tone, maybe even a challenge.
Carter looked from Brycen to Drury, his pause indicating he’d noticed. “What connection?”
Brycen didn’t know why he asked.
In his pause, Carter said, “You said Evette downplayed Melvin’s connection to Noah’s murder.”
Either Carter had just made himself appear guilty or semantics had. “I didn’t say Melvin. I said the domestic violence call.”
Carter laughed slightly, nervously. “I meant the same thing. Evette called because of his abuse. What connection? I don’t see one.”
Or was he trying to find out what they’d discovered?
“Did you know Evette has been reported missing?” Drury asked.
He turned to her. “Yes. I was going to tell you.”
Was he?
“Evette told Juanita a man was at her and Melvin’s house when Noah arrived in answer to her call for help,” Brycen said.
Carter frowned, lips curving down and eyes clueless, or appearing so, as he shook his head. “I didn’t see anyone. Who was the man?”
“Were you there?” Brycen asked, all in a calm, even tone, unfaltering.
“Of course I was.”
“Evette told Juanita only one trooper answered the call,” Drury said accusatorily.
Carter’s face softened. “Drury, I was there. Evette and Juanita must have miscommunicated. It’s all in Noah’s report.”
Yes. Noah’s report. Brycen didn’t like the smell of this.
“Did Juanita say who the man was? Did Evette tell her?” Carter asked.
“She didn’t know and Evette didn’t tell her.” Brycen hoped Drury wouldn’t give away that Evette had claimed to be mistaken.
“Is it possible that Noah saw someone there?” she asked.
Carter took a few seconds to think on that. “I don’t know how. He was with me the whole time. But I suppose anything is possible. Could Evette’s friend describe the man?”
“No. Evette didn’t tell her much about him,” Brycen said. “Did Noah investigate Melvin after you left the Cummingses’ residence?”
“Not that I’m aware. What reason would he have had?”
“Depends on what he discovered about the stranger,” Brycen said.
Carter took several seconds before he responded, “I didn’t notice anything unusual.”
“About Noah?”
“About Noah, about the Cummingses. It was a domestic violence call and the wife was too scared to press charges.” He sounded certain, which convinced Brycen he told the truth.
“Noah didn’t go off on his own at all?” Drury asked. “He didn’t seem preoccupied with something he wasn’t telling you?”
Carter shook his head. “No.” He lowered his hands. “He never mentioned anything to me.”
Drury looked down and off to the side, her disappointment showing. Did she believe him? Brycen didn’t. Carter might not have noticed anything unusual about Noah or the Cummingses at first, but if Noah had unearthed something that might implicate him in illegal activities, he’d sure notice then. But Brycen didn’t think he’d caught on until after he discovered Noah had gone on the domestic violence call alone.
“If you want, I can check his last movements again,” Carter said. “Maybe I missed something.”
“That won’t be necessary.” Brycen walked around the table to Drury’s side, putting his hand on her back. She looked up at him and he heard her soft intake of breath as the chemistry between them heated. Just like that, out of nowhere, intense magnetism sparked.
He had to shake off the building heat and desire and turn to Carter. “I’ll take it from here.”
As he guided Drury toward the door, he couldn’t be sure if Carter’s hardening eyes were from insult or menace.
After a few steps to cool off from his hand on her lower back, Brycen noticed she had done the same.
“I can’t believe he’d have anything to do with Noah’s murder,” she said as they made their way to the reception area.
“Maybe he didn’t.”
“He and Noah were close. He came to our house for dinners and football games.”
Most people don’t suspect friends and relatives capable of the crimes that get them arrested. Most criminals play nice to avoid detection, and they’re good at deception.
“He comforted me after Noah was murdered,” Drury said.
Before letting her go out into the storm, Brycen stopped her, taking her hand and drawing her to face him. “First of all, don’t go there.”
She averted her head and he sensed her overanalyzing the whole situation.
“Have you stayed in touch with him?”
“Carter? Only regarding the case.”
“He was your late husband’s friend. You trusted him. He spent personal time with you. That’s the tough part, but if it turns out he’s crooked, we know Noah conducted his own investigation and kept it from him. Our focus becomes what Carter knows. And more important, what Noah knew.”
And hadn’t had time to tell anyone.
Her disgust over Carter faded and their previous, snow-melting encounter chased away darkness. “For a guy with secrets and a depressing career, you sure can be a softie.”
Transfixed by her megawatt smile, Brycen remained speechless for a moment. He hadn’t seen her smile like that. Losing her husband to murder had doused her sense of humor. But for some mystical reason, it had popped out right now.
What she’d said wasn’t so funny, though.
“Put your hood up. It’s stormy out there.”
Her gaze roamed all over his face, smile waning. “And in here, apparently.”
They created a storm all right, and he suspected it would only intensify. What would he do when it did?
Chapter 7
The benefits of belonging to Dark Alley Investigations became obvious to Drury when a sleek helicopter landed on the helipad of the private airstrip where she flew her plane. Tinted windows, shiny black paint—she imagined concealed weaponry and surveillance equipment strategically installed on and in the bird. Brycen would no longer use the resources of the state troopers’ unit. While the cost went up, so did their defenses.
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br /> They had to wait for the storm to pass, and now on this chilly morning, they reached the high-tech helicopter.
Brycen jumped into the back, giving her a hand up after him. His strength brought her bumping against him, and another zing sparked. But he let go to tell the pilot they were ready and then sat across from her. He lifted some vests from the seat beside him and handed her one.
“Put it on under your jacket,” he said. She saw the set of earphones next to her and put them on. He did the same with his pair.
“Buckle up,” the pilot said into the earphones.
Drury fastened her seat belt and Brycen fastened his before digging into a duffel bag, also on the seat beside him. Out came a mean-looking pistol. Next came magazines and holders, then an ankle strap for another gun.
“What’s that? Backup?”
“Kadin never skimps.”
She watched him remove his jacket and put on the bulletproof vest that came equipped with a gun holster. As he put his jacket back on, she slipped into her vest, wondering if she’d really need this and if so, if she should even be going along.
Brycen didn’t seem bothered by any harm that might come their way. No, his confidence came through loud and clear. Besides, he wouldn’t want her alone for Noah’s killer to come after her.
Right now he lifted another gun from the bag and handed it to her. It was smaller than his.
“Ever shoot a gun before?” he asked as she took the gun.
“Yes. Married to an Alaska State Trooper...?”
He smiled slightly. “How good a shot are you?”
“Good enough.” Probably not his caliber, but she could aim well enough. She tucked her gun into one of the holders on the vest. “But your question should be, have you ever shot someone? The answer to that is no. And I hope I never have to.” She didn’t think she could kill another person even if her own life depended on it. She didn’t know. She’d never been in that situation before. She only could imagine how terrible it would be to take a human life.
“Don’t worry. I’m a good shot.” His smile changed to a sexy grin.
She didn’t ask if he’d killed anyone. Odds were he had. “That’s why I hired you, Detective.”
“You hired Dark Alley.”
“Same thing. Stop being bashful.” She slipped back into her jacket, realizing yet again that he brought out her sense of humor.
The helicopter lifted off and flew over the outskirts of Anchorage, flying along the coast toward the remote village. A clear day after the storm had passed; the beautiful scenery below and Brycen’s relaxed mood offered an opportunity to broach a sensitive topic. They had some time before reaching Tate anyway.
“Who is Avery?” she asked.
He instantly tensed and his face lost its pleasant expression. “I told you. Nobody.”
“She must have been somebody at some point.”
He turned back to the window, no longer appearing to enjoy the view.
“Is she the reason you left? Was she your girlfriend?”
“No.”
“Someone who knew your girlfriend?”
He said nothing.
“Did you cheat on her or something?” She really knew nothing about this man, other than his profession and his skewed view on marriage, which had prompted the question. A man who spurned marriage might not have much respect for the sanctity of relationships when he decided they’d run their course and the time had come to move on to the next one.
Slowly he turned back to her and she saw his offense. “No.”
So this did have something to do with a woman, a woman who must either be related to Avery or be one of her good friends.
“What happened?”
“Something personal.”
Giving up, Drury sat back against the seat, her gaze drifting to the front of the chopper and the pilot. Then she remembered the headphones. He’d heard everything.
A few minutes later, they circled the Cummingses’ place. It looked deserted. No vehicles. No movement.
The helicopter landed near the same area as the last time they’d come here.
“I’ll go see if Evette is inside.” Brycen hopped down to the ground.
Since it didn’t appear anyone was here, Drury hopped down with him. He gave her a wry look before heading to the house. He knocked on the door. When no one answered, he turned the knob. The door had been left unlocked. A remote area such as this didn’t require locks, or so some thought.
Inside, trash littered kitchen countertops and a beat-up round wood coffee table. The smell of old food stung her senses. Or was that ketchup that had been left sitting out too long? She followed Brycen over old, shaggy brown carpet that would surely show more stains were it a bit lighter.
Was Evette a clean housekeeper or did the state of the cabin indicate she hadn’t been here in a while?
Brycen searched the kitchen and living room area, lifting a woman’s sweater from a chair and checking the pockets. Finding those empty, he looked over the family pictures set out haphazardly on the traditional fireplace mantel. A pair of women’s shoes sat by the chair, as though Evette had taken them off in trade for a cozy pair of slippers.
Down a short hall with only three doors, one a bathroom, Drury switched on the bathroom light. Hair spray and a container of blush and mascara lay on the counter. Brycen entered the room the kids shared and then the master bedroom—just a slightly larger room than the other. Clothes lay everywhere, on the unmade bed, on the floor, draped over the only dresser and spilling out of the tiny closet.
Drury was accustomed to bigger closet space.
While Brycen opened dresser drawers, Drury went into the closet. Full of clothes. It didn’t appear that Evette had packed anything. Drury dragged out a suitcase and saw a matching one tucked against the wall in the corner.
“Have you found a purse yet?” Brycen asked.
“No.”
That may be a good sign. No purse could mean Evette had taken that with her when she went.
Brycen began lifting clothes and sifting through piles. On a chair in the corner by the only window in the room, he went through the clothes there, digging down to a throw blanket. Under that he found a purse.
Drury’s heart and hope sank.
He opened the purse and lifted car keys and a wallet. As he opened that, his face gave away the confirmation that it belonged to Evette. He put the purse back in place and took out his cell phone, taking photos. He took photos of the closet and anything else that indicated Evette had left with only the clothes on her back.
“What now?” she asked as they left the cabin and headed for the helicopter, the pilot still inside, wearing sunglasses and watching them approach.
“I want to talk to people in the village.”
They got into the helicopter and he didn’t have to tell the pilot where he needed to go. The pilot took them a short distance over the forest. She began wondering if Brycen had prepared ahead of time for this.
She saw the town over the tops of trees, disappearing as the pilot landed in a nearby clearing. When it was safe to open the door and jump out, Brycen did so, turning to offer Drury a helping lift down. She leaned on his shoulders, not because she needed the help, rather because the temptation to touch him urged her.
She stayed close and he didn’t move for a few seconds, feeling the energy between them, seductively pleasing.
Then his lawman mode kicked back in and he stepped back. “This way.”
She walked with him toward the trees, then into them, finding a path that the locals must use to either exercise or reach other destinations. If there were any. She hadn’t seen much from the air. What few houses dotted the landscape were spread apart.
“Did you know this path was here?” she asked.
“I saw it on aerial photos.”
He’d planned ahead.
“Where are we going?”
“To see Evette’s mother. Her sister lives here, too.”
“You don’
t talk much, do you?” And not only about personal things. He volunteered almost nothing. They reached the other side of the forest and the town came into view.
“I had a teleconference with Kadin while you were in the shower. He emailed me the photos.”
Why hadn’t he gotten them before they’d gone to Evette and Melvin Cummingses’ house? Maybe he hadn’t anticipated needing to know the town, as well. She stepped from path to the dirt road, the main road through town. “And you didn’t think I’d be interested in knowing where we were going?”
They passed a diner that also functioned as a convenience store and coffee shop. A few people sat inside, watching them go by with interest. Not many strangers came to this village.
“You knew where we were going.”
“To look for Evette.”
“We are looking for her.” He guided her down a side street. Ahead, four houses lined each side, each with stairs going up to porches and painted different colors. White, yellow, blue and gray. The gray house needed a fresh coat and repairs to the stairs.
Brycen guided her to the yellow house. Up white stairs, they stood before the door and rang the bell.
A round woman, maybe five-three in height, stuck her face between the drape and edge of the narrow window on the door. In rectangular glasses, she had her medium brown hair up in a hair clip.
Brycen showed his business card from Dark Alley Investigations. The woman read the card and then unlocked the door.
“Yes?”
“Mrs. Patterson?”
“Yes.” She looked from him to Drury.
“We’re here to ask you some questions about your daughter, Evette.”
Her face lit up. “Have you found her? Juanita reported her missing for us. She moved to Anchorage a few years back. She told us some disturbing things about Melvin. I always thought he was bad news for her. I’ve asked him to his face what he’s done with my girl and he says he doesn’t know where she went, that she just up and left one night while he was asleep.”
She talked fast.
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