And here was the part I’d been putting together on my own. “You were mean to her because she didn’t have as much money as the rest of you.”
Sabrina balked. “No. I ... that’s rude. I would never be rude.”
Rather than arguing the point, I waited.
“It wasn’t because she was poor,” Sabrina insisted. “She was just ... different.”
“She didn’t have a father,” I said. “Her mother didn’t have money to buy the best clothes and shoes. I’m guessing she had to hold down a job while the rest of you didn’t.”
Sabrina’s expression was dark. “You make me sound horrid.”
I hesitated and then shrugged. “Kids are like chickens. They’ll peck to death the one that is different.”
“Yeah, that doesn’t make me feel any better.” Her gaze was inquisitive. “Don’t bother pretending you aren’t mean to people. I know for a fact you are. You’ve been mean to me.”
“Not because you’re different. I simply prefer working alone.”
“Have you ever considered that Jessica was the one at fault?”
“No.” I saw no sense in lying. “I know how to read a high school bully. You were mean to her because in your mind she didn’t measure up.”
“I ... you ....” Sabrina’s frustration made her sputter. “I wasn’t mean to her just to be mean. She didn’t fit in.”
“And you got your power from messing with her. Listen, I’m not judging you. The teenage years are the worst. You feel as if you’re an adult, but you have none of the power. It’s ... unfortunate.”
“So why do I feel as if you are judging me?”
“I can’t help feeling sorry for Jessica. She was living a really hard life. Even today she tries to do the right thing, take care of her father to the best of her ability. Her life hasn’t been easy, and she shows character.”
“My life hasn’t been easy.”
I couldn’t swallow my snort before it escaped. “Come on. Have you ever worked a day in your life?”
“I’m working now.”
“Are you? It seems you’re playing a game. Now, I’m okay with that. I happen to love a good game ... and you’re starting to play this one correctly. But you have to be self-aware in this line of work. That’s why Duncan always fails.”
“He claims you fail because you’re so full of yourself.”
“And you believe him?”
“I ....” Sabrina worked her jaw and shook her head. “No. You get all the good stories. He wishes he could be like you.”
“Duncan will never get ahead because he can’t see what’s right in front of him. He’s also allergic to hard work. If you want to be successful in journalism, you have to figure out what’s important to you. Holding on to high school grudges certainly won’t help you get ahead.”
“Isn’t that what you do with Commissioner Ludington? People say you’re holding onto a grudge when you go after him.”
I didn’t like that she had a point. “My relationship with Tad is ... very difficult to explain. Part of it does stem from an old grudge. But if that was the only thing fueling our rivalry, it would’ve fallen apart years ago. He keeps adding fuel to the fire, as do I. We’ve grown beyond the past.”
“And you don’t think I’m capable of growing beyond the past?”
“I honestly don’t know. You wrinkled your nose a few times when Ruth was talking about her struggles. You almost looked smug when you heard Jessica was visiting her father. You might want to ask yourself why that entertains you so much. A girl visiting her troubled father isn’t cause for enjoyment.”
“I ... wasn’t entertained.” She averted her gaze.
“Just think about it. You might find that it’s easier to grow when you try to plant new roots rather than nourish the old ones.”
ELIOT GLARED AT MARIO FROM BEHIND THE SHOP COUNTER. They looked as if they were about to throw down.
“Avery!” Mario was shrill when he caught sight of me. “Great to see you. Have I ever mentioned you’re my favorite cousin?”
I rolled my eyes and focused on Eliot. “I need Ray Bennett’s address.”
Eliot appeared surprised by the request. When his eyes drifted to the spot behind me, to Sabrina, his expression shifted to amused. “I can’t. We’ve talked about this.”
“Yes, but we have new information.” I’d thought about how I was going to broach this situation with him and decided for a full-frontal assault. “Ray Bennett is Ruth Shepperly’s brother. Ruth Shepperly is Cal Shepperly’s widow. Apparently Ray and Cal used to run together. And we know for a fact that Ray and Beau shared a difficult past.”
Eliot ceased terrorizing Mario and focused on me. “Are you serious?”
I nodded. “I just came from talking to Ruth.”
“A lead she only had because of me,” Sabrina announced.
“Really?” Eliot pursed his lips and held my gaze. It was as if he was trying to read my emotions from afar. “I take it you guys made a deal.”
“We did. I told her she could hang with me today if she provided actionable information. She did, though she kind of lied about how she got said information. I’m holding up my end of the bargain.”
Sabrina balked. “I did not lie.”
“You said you had a source you couldn’t name.”
“I did. It was me.”
I opened my mouth to argue and then snapped it shut. She had a point, loath as I was to admit it.
“Oh, Avery is speechless,” Mario trilled, brightening considerably. “I never thought I’d see the day.”
I pinned him with a glare. “You know I won’t be here for more than a few minutes, right? As soon as I’m gone, Eliot is going to go right back to threatening to kill you.”
“I’m not afraid of him,” Mario countered. “He’s all bluster. Besides, I’ve been studying Krav Maga on YouTube.” He lifted his arms above his head and perched on one leg, replicating Daniel’s move in The Karate Kid. “I can totally take him.”
As if to prove him wrong, Elliot lightly punched my cousin in the stomach, not hard enough to hurt him but enough to make an impression. Mario’s face turned red as he sputtered. Eliot never moved his eyes from my face. “What are you doing with Ray’s address?”
“What do you think? I’m going to spy on him.”
Eliot sighed. “I don’t know. Ray has never struck me as the dangerous sort, but we have multiple dead bodies. And they did a news break on Van. They’re officially ruling his death an overdose.”
I tilted my head, considering. “That still doesn’t feel right.”
“I agree, but we’re not in charge.”
“In my head, I’m in charge of everything.”
“Oh, I know.” He folded his arms over his chest and regarded me with speculative eyes. “I prefer you didn’t approach Ray without me.”
“No.”
“Avery ....”
“No.” I was firm. “We’re building a life together. You’re insisting on it. That means we have to learn to compromise. I accept the compromise for the halfway house. I’d honestly be frightened if I had to go down there again on my own. I do not have to compromise on this.”
He pressed his lips together and narrowed one eye, allowing the room to fill with silence. Mario, as was his way, spoke first.
“That was a foul,” he announced to Eliot, mostly recovered from the love tap. “You can’t just hit someone without warning in Krav Maga.”
“Shut up,” Eliot snapped, extending a finger in my cousin’s direction. “I’ll show you real Krav Maga in exactly thirty seconds if you’re not careful.”
Instead of retreating, which would’ve been wise, Mario turned his attention to Sabrina. “Do you believe this guy? He’s being physically aggressive with me. I could totally turn him into the police.”
“Maybe you should,” Sabrina suggested. “I mean, only if you hate this job. I’m pretty sure you’ll get fired if you turn him into the police.”
“And the
n you’ll have nothing to do but work at the family restaurant if you want to survive the winter,” I pointed out. “You and Grandpa can’t open that food truck again for months because of the weather.”
Mario scowled. “You just had to remind me of that, didn’t you?”
“That’s what I do.” I pressed the top of my tongue against the back of my teeth and shot Eliot a challenging look. “I’ll find the address through different means if I have to. You keep saying you don’t want to change who I am. Prove it.”
He let loose a sigh and grabbed his phone from the counter. “Fine. I hope you know that I’ll never get over it if something happens to you.”
I’d been gearing up for a fight, so it was a relief when he acquiesced. Maybe this would all be okay after all. “I feel the same about you, but I need to do this.”
Eliot grumbled as he searched through the contacts on his phone. He rattled off the address as I recorded it in my phone. When I ran the address, I frowned.
“His property is less than a quarter of a mile from the train tracks in Roseville.”
Eliot snapped up his head. “I didn’t realize that.”
Slowly, I shifted my eyes to Sabrina, who appeared ready to jump through the roof she was so excited. “Are you ready to head back to the scene of the crime?”
“Am I?” Sabrina clapped her hands. “This is the sort of thing I wanted to be involved in when I decided to be a reporter.”
“It’s exciting,” I agreed, thoughtful. “You’re still going to make zero money.”
“Then maybe I’ll be like you and hook up with a businessman. That way I can have the best of both worlds.”
I was disgusted by the statement. When I risked a glance at Eliot, I found him smirking. He quickly shuttered his mirth, but not fast enough. Mario, on the other hand, had completely recovered from his embarrassment and was bent at the waist, laughing.
“Oh, I think Avery’s head is going to implode before the end of the day,” he laughed. “Maybe I should go with her so I can serve as her bodyguard or something.”
For a moment, Eliot looked as if he was considering the suggestion. All it took was one head shake from me for him to deflate. “I’m not adding another member to this team.”
“If you go out there, Ray is likely to see you,” Eliot warned. “If he is guilty, you could cause him to bolt.”
“That’s a possibility,” I agreed. “It’s also possible he won’t see me and I’ll find what I’m looking for.”
Eliot looked torn. “Just be careful. I have big plans for you. If Ray lays one hand on you, I’ll end up in jail.”
“I’ll be careful.” I smiled as I turned toward the door. Things were finally coming together. “I’ve been doing this a long time. You don’t have to worry about me.”
“Tell that to my heart.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll text every ten minutes or so.”
“That would be a nice change of pace.”
SABRINA WAITED UNTIL WE WERE OUTSIDE to gush.
“He is just the best,” she enthused, rubbing her hands together. “I mean ... the absolute best. He has that long hair, which makes him look dangerous. You just know he’s a total badass in a fight. How do you manage to even think when he looks at you the way he does?”
“It’s not always easy,” I admitted.
“He steals your breath.” Sabrina’s head bob was knowing. “I dated a guy in high school like that.”
I didn’t particularly enjoy having my relationship with Eliot equated to some teenybopper’s dream. “He’s a pain in the ass when he wants to be.” I directed her toward my car. “He thinks he can dictate certain aspects of our relationship.”
“Like what?”
“Like ... stuff like this.”
“He didn’t dictate. He let you go even though you could tell it really bothered him. I think it’s sweet that he loves you the way he does.”
“I find it annoying.” I fixed her with a quelling look. “Listen, you’ve come through with some valuable information. If you keep sticking your nose into my personal business, though, I might still find a way to dump you by the side of the road.”
Sabrina mimed zipping her lips. “Say no more. I’m here to learn from the best, not stick my nose into things that don’t concern me.”
I started toward the other side of the car, stopping when Sabrina decided to ask yet another question.
“What’s the deal with your cousin Mario? Is he single?”
Oh, geez. This day kept getting weirder. “As a matter of fact, he is. I think you guys would make a lovely couple.”
“You mentioned he owns his own business, a food truck or something? Does he make money doing that?”
“According to my grandfather, yes. But Mario isn’t good with money.”
“That’s okay. I’m good with money.” Her smile was benign. “Does he work at the shop on a specific schedule?”
I smelled trouble but decided to file it away for later. “Let’s see what we can find out about Ray, shall we? We’ll discuss Mario’s schedule later.”
“Absolutely. Let’s nail Ray’s ass to the wall.”
I had to bite back a sigh. What had I done to deserve this horror?
25 Twenty-Five
I parked in the same spot as my previous visits, mostly because I figured it was safest. The sheriff’s department was no longer monitoring the site, but the police tape surrounding the area remained.
“What do you think?” Sabrina was all bright eyes and pink cheeks as she watched me drift near the tracks.
“I think I want to see where Ray’s house is in proximity to where the bodies were dumped.”
“You don’t think someone would be stupid enough to toss bodies in their backyard?”
It was a fair question. “No, but Ray might not be all that smart.”
“It seems to me that he would have to be to pull this off.”
“He hasn’t pulled it off ... yet.”
She opened her mouth to speak again, but I pressed a finger to my lips. “It’s quiet time now. Unless you see a bloody weapon in Ray’s backyard, I need you to be quiet until I tell you otherwise. Got it?”
Despite the momentary flash of annoyance in her eyes, Sabrina nodded. She fell into step a few feet behind me, allowing me to take a slow trek down the railroad tracks. Derrick’s team had combed this area, but I still needed to look.
Only four houses backed up to the tracks. The house next to Ray’s ramshackle abode had painted street numbers next to the rear door. I wasn’t sure why anyone would want to do that, but I was grateful all the same. The gate that led to Ray’s yard led to a fence so tall there was no way to look over the sagging wood.
“It’s a privacy fence,” Sabrina offered.
I shifted to offer her a pointed glare and she immediately mimed zipping her lips. I shoved at the gate with my shark-mittened hands. It didn’t open. I studied the lock. I could follow the rules and turn back the way we’d come or call Derrick and tell him what I’d discovered and allow the sheriff’s department to swoop in and grab all the glory. Or I could do what I wanted to do. It wasn’t a hard choice.
I dug in the inside pocket of my coat and came back with the small assembly of tools Eliot had given me months ago. He’d also shown me how to use them. I pulled out the appropriate metal probe that boasted a hook at one end and went to work.
“Are you breaking in?” Sabrina was breathless as she watched me work. “Do you think that’s a good idea?”
I wanted nothing more than to gag her with a really thick bandana, maybe even douse it in chloroform first for good measure. “Shush.”
She shut her mouth, swiveling to look for anyone around. I was willing to break a few rules to get the story. That was never going to change.
I wanted to cry out in triumph when the telltale snick of falling locks sounded. I kept it together and pocketed my tools before pushing open the gate. I gestured with my hand, as if to say “after you,” but she adamant
ly shook her head. It was almost as if she didn’t believe I was about to break the law and didn’t want to be the first through the gate in case it turned out to be some elaborate prank. I was fine with that.
The small backyard was cluttered with junk. An old lawnmower rested on its side in the corner. The yard was overgrown with grass that had gone dormant months ago. I was careful as I stepped through the yard, taking a moment to stick my head through the open door that led to the detached garage. There was nothing of note — at least nothing I was willing to go through, because I figured the place was infested with rats — but a pile of clothing at the entrance caught my eye.
I leaned over and pawed through it, frowning when I took in a pair of oversized rubber boots and what looked to be one of the sharp-edged tools county parolees used to pick up garbage along the street. I tilted the stick to study the sharp end, but there was nothing of note. Then I went back to looking at the boots. I almost missed it on the first glance, but a raised pattern caught my attention just as I was about to drop the boot. When I tilted it, I could just make out the Macomb County Sheriff’s Department logo.
“What does that mean?” Sabrina asked in an exaggerated whisper from behind me. “Is that a clue?”
Was it? Part of me wanted to say no. I had no doubt that Ray had been forced to perform community service a number of times. My heart hammered hard enough to make me think otherwise. I was missing something.
I returned the stick to where I found it, taking a step out of the garage and staring at the house. I considered seeing if I could open the back door and take a look inside, but that seemed far too dangerous. If Ray was there, he would be suspicious. If he caught us, he might kill us, despite the fact that he seemed afraid of Eliot during our brief interaction.
“What do we do now?” Sabrina asked. “I mean ... there’s nothing here.”
I wasn’t convinced we hadn’t found anything, but I knew better than to break into a house with a witness ... at least this particular witness. If I wanted to go through Ray’s things I would have to return when I knew he wasn’t present. I would also need backup in the form of Eliot. My boyfriend might believe I had a warped sense of self-preservation, but he was wrong.
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