A Deadly Secret

by Debra Sage

  “I agree. This Greg Stevens guy, he blows steam and vents, but I’m not sure if he’s our guy. Then Jack, the security guy, was found over by Amanda’s car the one time. A little suspicious, but he says he was taking pictures of the damage. His brother owns an autobody shop, and that checked out. Not sure if it’s related, but Amanda had two incidents occur not long after Dawn’s murder. Is it somebody after nurses? After hospital staff? Could it be related to the old case that Mark “Blade” Abbott was tied to? Similarities, but not enough, and the city didn’t even have enough to charge him with the crime even though he was their primary suspect,” Alex said.

  Cam chimed in. “Then we have the new possible bone fragments that we just learned about. What about anybody else at the hospital? Anybody you’re watching?”

  Alex responded. “The interviews didn’t give me enough, but I find it interesting that both Greg and Lee both bought new cars directly after Dawn’s death. We should track down where their cars were sold or traded and see if there’s any trace evidence in them. Seems highly suspicious to go car shopping after hearing about the death of a coworker.”

  “Unless—and this is a thing—when people are forced to look at their own mortality, they often make life changes. Even Amanda said she was looking at a getaway. I think it’s the minds way of dealing with the stress and realizing that life is precious and can end anytime,” Bryce added.

  “Yeah, true. When my Aunt Trudy died unexpectedly, my mother was all about wanting to get right with God, and started going back to church. She hadn’t been regular for years, but her sister’s death got her attention and she made a change,” Cam said.

  Alex’s phone buzzed. He turned to answer it. “Okay, thanks. Looks like my guy just showed up. You want to sit in on it?”

  “Sounds good,” Bryce said.

  Alex stood and walked down the hallway. He pushed through the door that led to the front of the station. Blade and his lawyer sat waiting on the narrow row of chairs provided. “Mr. Abbott, right this way.”

  Mark and his lawyer stood and followed Alex back down the hallway. He led them into an interrogation room. Bryce joined them. “This is my partner, Detective Bryce Mitchell. He’ll be sitting in on our interview.”

  Cam sat outside the room, watching the monitor, observing for body language and things that might be missed by those during the interview process.

  “And you are?” Alex asked, allowing time for the lawyer to say his spiel.

  “I’m his attorney, Caleb Levine.” He handed a card to each detective and then started with a list of questions about why his client was being told to give a statement when he had nothing to do with the crime and had already stated that clearly. His business was in Philadelphia, and Mason Ridge was merely a blip on the radar.

  The interview didn’t give them much more, and the lawyer made it clear his client had nothing to say. If they had anything they wanted to know, or if charges were pending, they’d go from there. Otherwise, their meeting was a big waste of time.

  Mark wore a smug grin as he walked out of the station.

  When they wrapped up, Bryce and Cam headed to talk to Dawn’s brother, while Alex went to talk to the jeweler. They’d meet back and talk shop at the end of the day. Hopefully one of them would come back with some useful information.

  Alex glanced at his watch. It would take a solid hour if not more with traffic to pay the jeweler a visit. He could call, but preferred to talk to him in person.

  By the time he got there, he’d felt the events of the day along with the week creeping up on him. He hadn’t been sleeping well, and was constantly thinking about the case, not to mention Amanda. It’s not like he could quit his job and sit by her side to make sure she was okay. It didn’t help matters that from a distance, he could only hope she was fine. He’d stop by and check in on her again later. There was work that had to be done.

  Alex rubbed the back of his neck as he pulled into the strip mall parking lot. Kellerman’s was a small jewelry store tucked on the corner. The anchor store was a pharmacy, and a few other small businesses dotted the stretch. There was a pizza place, a nail shop, an optometrist’s office, and a deli. Getting out of his car, he stretched his long legs, happy to finally stand. It took him seventy minutes to get there. He knew as the day wore on, the drive home would tack on an extra ten or twenty minutes with rush hour starting earlier and earlier these days. The commute wouldn’t be an easy one.

  The store had caged bars on the windows, to help prevent robberies and smash and grabs. The display cases were made of heavy grade glass that was thicker than traditional retailers used.

  An older man looked up when he heard the chimes on the door. “Can I help you with something?”

  “Yes, actually you can. My name is Alex Ramsey. I’m a detective with the Mason Ridge Police Department, just outside of the city. I’m working on a homicide investigation and hoping you might be able to answer a couple of questions. We found a piece of jewelry at the scene of the crime and believe the mark belongs to you. It’s a custom piece.”

  “I don’t do many custom pieces,” he answered cautiously. “I can look at it.”

  Alex pulled out a couple of close-up photos they’d taken at the evidence lab. “Here’s the front and the back. We’ve also enlarged the mark. Closest we found to it was you.”

  The man held the pictures, studied them, then nodded. “Yeah, this is my piece. I made this about a year ago.”

  “Can you tell me who ordered the custom work? I’m looking to narrow some things down.”

  “I can’t tell you. It’s not that I won’t tell you, I just can’t. I don’t know who it was for. Only reason it sticks out is because of the insignia. I’ve made one other piece with the same engraving on it. First time it was on a bracelet. Nothing over-the-top fancy, but classy and elegant. First was a while before this one, maybe a year or two before. Hard to remember, but I’ll look it up. Easy to lose track of time these days.”

  “I’d appreciate anything you’ve got. How’d you do a piece and not know who it was for? Didn’t they have to pick it up and pay?”

  “Cash and courier. Order came through. Money came with it. Delivery went to a courier. I never saw the person who bought the piece.”

  “Interesting way to do business,” Alex commented, pointing out the obvious. “You weren’t the least bit curious?”

  “I deal in jewelry, not drugs. Money is all it takes to buy a piece. There were instructions, cash to cover the cost, and somebody to pick it up. Not the owner of the piece, but the courier. On my end, it was all I needed.”

  Alex nodded. “Not curious at all? You didn’t try to see who it was delivered to?”

  “Curious, sure. Either way, it was a good deal on my end. They were generous with their expenses, and I’d worked with them before. I’m certain it’s the same person. Not many people buy jewelry that way.”

  “Why the anonymity? Why wouldn’t they just show up?”

  “High-profile client? Keeping things under the radar? Maybe an affair? Not a clue, but I’m not in the business of asking questions. Their money spent as well as anybody else’s cash.” He went to his computer and tapped in a few things, searching for information.

  Alex tapped his fingers on the glass case in front of him as he waited.

  “Here it is. The courier was Express Dynamic, down on Fifth Street. Maybe they have more information.”

  “Was there anything describing with that symbol stood for?”

  “Not that I’m aware of. It was hand-drawn if I remember correctly. Sort of showing me what they wanted.”

  “You wouldn’t still have that would you?”

  He shook his head. “Nah, there was no need for it. The jewelry was delivered, there were no complaints, and the information was transferred into my computer. I don’t keep paper files these days. Took me a while to come around to the newer technology, but I’ve grown to love the sparseness of not having stacks and files everywhere on my desk.”
r />   “I see,” Alex said. “Is there anything else you can offer?”

  “Wish I could help you. Sorry to hear about your case. Always a shame to hear about things like that.”

  Alex was grateful that yes, he’d found the right jeweler, but disappointed that there wasn’t more information to go on. He’d head to the courier next, hoping they’d have something on file. He was able to nail down a specific date based on the jeweler’s records.

  He hoped Bryce and Cam were having better luck with the victim’s brother. Alex got in his car and headed toward the courier company’s office, which he’d gotten from the jeweler. If they made the delivery, then they’d have a record of who they delivered to, right? He’d track them down.

  After speaking with the courier company, he was at another dead end. They’d had a fire the previous year and lost a bunch of records. Their outdated system finally went digital after the push they needed, but that meant most of their previous records were gone.

  Chapter 16

  Bryce and Cam hadn’t gotten much out of Dawn’s brother, just that he was enraged that somebody had done that to his sister. He was loaded for bear, and they concluded he didn’t have anything to do with her death. There was no attempt to cover his tracks, and he was willing to talk openly about the situation. He warned them that they’d better find out who killed his sister before he did, or he’d make sure that son-of-a-bitch suffered a slow, painful death at his hands.

  At the end of the day, Alex, Bryce, and Cam went over events, where they stood, and what new information had come from their work.

  “You look beat,” Bryce said to Alex.

  “Yeah, the long drive did me in. I haven’t been sleeping well,” he started.

  “Maybe it’s time to go home and sleep, you know? Come back stronger in the morning. Don’t end up getting sick because you drive yourself too hard. Remember what happened last time?”

  Cam arched an eyebrow. “What happened?”

  “Alex gets a little obsessed at times, until he finds answers. Like a damn bulldog, which is a good thing, but when he’s not sleeping…”

  “Yeah,” Alex answered with a nod. “I wore down is all. Wasn’t sleeping. Same thing. Either way, it’s not like I can turn down my brain when it’s firing all the time.”

  “We’ll go back at it tomorrow morning,” Bryce said. “Cut on out of here. I’ll wrap up the paperwork.”

  Alex relented. He’d done the same for Bryce before. They each had their quirks and issues. Bryce got damn cranky when he forgot to eat. His blood sugar would crash, and everybody in his path got the evil eye until he got something in him. Moody Bryce meant he was a hungry Bryce.

  ***

  Alex decided he’d take a nap, then go meet Amanda when she finished work. It wouldn’t hurt to get a little shut-eye if he could. That was the kicker. He might be tired, but the moment he put his head on the pillow his brain turned on and wouldn’t stop. He’d toss and turn, thinking about possibilities, angles they might have missed, or other avenues worth investigating.

  He’d call and check in with her to see how she was doing. Or maybe he’d text. He didn’t want to badger her at work. He sent a quick message letting her know his plans.

  Taking a short nap. Can I swing by after work?

  Would love that, she answered back.

  Truth be told, he’d be glad to have her in his sights again with the oddities going on. He didn’t like her being home alone after the last incident. Not that she was his responsibility, but he’d taken a shine to her. They’d hit it off, and while they’d only just gotten to know one another a little better, he could see them getting more involved. He hoped she felt the same.

  Her arrived at her place before she did. Relief washed over him as Amanda pulled up safely. He’d prefer it if she stayed at his place, but decided he wouldn’t push the issue. Her sofa would do the job for the time being and at least he’d be there if something else happened. It wasn’t a permanent solution, but it worked for now.

  Amanda smiled. “Hey, it’s nice to see you.”

  He walked up to her and took her bag. “Let me carry that for you.”

  Amanda handed him her tote. “Thanks. Are you hungry? I’m going to have a pizza delivered. Will you share it with me?”

  “Sure, that sounds great. How was your night?” Even in simple blue scrubs, she was adorable. She had a mix of beauty and innocence, a cute dimple when she smiled, and sexy bedroom eyes. She was fresh-faced, without a stitch of make up on. She certainly didn’t need it.

  “Not bad. It was busy, so it keeps the time moving. What about you?”

  “Talked to a jeweler today about a case, and had an interview. I can’t say too much.” And drove. And drove. And drove. It was a long day, but at least he’d gotten the task out of the way.

  “I understand,” she said, unlocking the front door.

  Alex followed her inside and placed her tote bag on the end table by the sofa. Her place was orderly, but not stuffy. He liked that her home was decorated in earthy, natural tones and wasn’t bathed in florals. It was comfortable and looked lived in.

  “Can I get you something to drink? I’m going to take a quick shower after I call in the order. It usually takes them about twenty minutes to deliver. I should be finished by then.”

  “No problem,” he said. “A drink would be great.”

  She walked through the living room to the kitchen and opened the fridge. “Beer? Soda? Water?”

  “Anything’s fine,” he answered.

  She popped the top off a bottle of beer and brought it to him. “I’ll be down in a few minutes.”

  “Take your time.”

  “What do you like on your pizza? I’ll call the order in before I hop in the shower.”

  “I’m not picky. Whatever you like is fine.”

  “You’re sure?”

  “Yeah.” They were settling into who they were and what they meant to one another. They weren’t quite attached, thought he saw that path down the line. He wanted to walk over, run his finger along her sweet, swollen lips and kiss her, but he’d take things slowly. She’d been through a lot.

  She started up the stairs, then turned with a grin. “I’d ask you if you wanted to join me, but somebody has to answer the door if the pizza gets here.”

  A huge smile slipped over his lips. “Let the delivery guy wait.”

  She laughed then disappeared up the stairs. Calling back down, she said, “There’s money on the kitchen table for the pizza.”

  “I’ve got it, no worries.” He was absolutely going to pull her in close and kiss her when she rejoined him. No questions asked. She’d just given him the signal, loud and clear.

  Alex settled onto the sofa and waited as the water turned on above him in the bathroom upstairs. His mind wandered, picturing her wet and naked. He inhaled deeply, and pushed the thought aside for the time being. Slowly, old boy. Go slowly.

  When she made her way back downstairs, she’d changed into soft lounge pants and a T-shirt. Her hair was still wet. Alex stood and greeted her at the bottom of the stairs.

  She couldn’t hide her smile on seeing him there.

  Amanda stepped into his open and waiting arms. Her fragrant shampoo filled his nostrils. She smelled fresh and clean, like a bar of soap. He drew in another deep breath, enjoying her scent.

  “I’ve been thinking about you all day.” Alex stroked her cheek with the back of his hand.

  She gazed into his eyes and admitted, “I kind of like that.”

  He leaned in closer and hovered inches from her lips. She closed her eyes and parted her mouth.

  As he went to kiss her, the doorbell rang. Damn. Let them wait. He pressed his mouth to hers and melted into their kiss. When the doorbell rang a second time, he broke free. With a low groan, he turned to open the door. Talk about bad timing.

  “Pizza delivery.” The lanky guy, no more than college-aged, stood holding their pizza box.

  Alex dug into his back pocket fo
r his wallet. He pulled out a twenty and told the guy to keep the change. With pizza in hand, he closed the door. Dinner could wait. He needed another taste of Amanda.

  “I’m starving.” Amanda stole the box from his hands and headed into the kitchen. The aroma of the cheesy pizza filled the air. She was ready to dig in. After a long shift and not enough time to eat properly, she was more than hungry.

  Alex followed. Okay, so they’d eat, then he’d drink from her sweet lips again. Who could blame him for wanting another taste?

  He loved how comfortable she was around him. She dropped onto a kitchen chair after grabbing napkins and paper plates. “There was this guy today at work, he would not stay put. We kept having to chase him down! Finally, we put a guard with him. He comes for help, then wants to leave. It’s always an adventure.”

  “You must see it all.” He could get lost in her eyes. They were the perfect shade of blue and captured his heart.

  She knew he had a fascinating job as well. “I’m sure you’ve seen your fair share of things too, huh?”

  “More than my fair share,” he said, then took a bite of his pizza.

  “Are you sticking around? Did you pack a bag? Or are you heading back home?” she asked.

  “I’d like to stay, if that’s okay. After the other night, I just want to make sure nobody tries something again. I have a small bag in the car.”

  “About the other night…I probably over-reacted. I mean, I wasn’t hurt or anything, just scared. Either way, it is nice to have you here.”

  “I’m sure we can find something to do to keep us occupied,” he teased.

  “Mm, I’m sure.”

  The slow flirtation continued as they ate. He wanted to take her in his arms and hold her close. He’d grown protective of her faster than he’d anticipated, but he wasn’t complaining. There was amazing chemistry between them, and even if the attempted break-in hadn’t occurred, he’d still want to see her again.