The River and the Roses (Veronica Barry Book 1)
Page 24
Veronica smiled a little. “Even though Felsen dug up all that stuff from three years ago?”
“I read the case file. They discounted you as a suspect early on, even though you did know more than you should have.” Daniel shifted his weight. “She was pretty bent on pressing assault charges on you, you know.” Veronica’s eyes widened. He held up a hand. “Don’t worry. I talked to her. She’s got enough on her hands right now.”
Veronica sighed and closed her eyes for a moment. The relief she felt surprised her—she hadn’t even realized how much Felsen’s threats had gotten to her.
“You should know, Veronica, that Detective Felsen is under investigation now,” Daniel said. “Internal Affairs.”
Veronica opened her eyes and met his. “Really?”
“Yeah,” Daniel said. He looked sad. “And we lost an undercover cop a few hours ago. I think Felsen was pretty close with him.”
“Jimmy.”
“Yeah, Jimmy Tortero. Some of the gangsters he’d been investigating killed him.”
Veronica had a sinking feeling she already knew the answer to the next question she asked. “Was his cover blown somehow?”
Daniel cocked his head to the side. “Probably. You know what else? We found Evander Collins’s body a block away in a dumpster. He’d only been released a few hours before, too.”
“God,” Veronica breathed. Her eyes filled with tears. “I thought, if I could figure out who really killed Sylvia…”
Daniel nodded. “Yeah. Poor Evander. He just couldn’t catch a break.”
Neither of them spoke for a few minutes. Veronica tried to line up all of the things that had happened into some kind of order. Sylvia, killed by her own son. Grant, the same boy, hurt Angie. Evander Collins, accused because of Felsen planting evidence. Felsen had tried to cover up the murder her boyfriend committed—why? To allow him a chance to catch the criminals he was investigating? And now he was dead. And Felsen, what would happen to her? At least Angie was safe now. At least Veronica had managed to help save her.
At last, Daniel smiled at her.
“So I was wondering. Have any visions about me?” he asked, his tone light.
Veronica’s brow knit. “Um…”
“Like, maybe you and me? Having dinner? With some nice low music, candles? Clownfish swimming in the background?”
“Are you asking me to your place for dinner, detective?” Veronica said, a smile breaking out on her face.
He grinned back at her. “Depends. What does your little voice tell you?”
“At the moment, my little voice is silent, actually,” Veronica said. “But my regular voice says, ‘I’d love to.’”
Daniel’s grin widened. “Okay then. My place. Dinner. As soon as you’re better.”
“It’s a date,” Veronica said.
~~***~~
If you liked The River and the Roses, you can continue with The Fire and the Veil, its sequel. All of Sophia Martin's novels are available on Amazon.
About the Author
Sophia Martin lives in Mount Shasta, CA with her husband, two sons, one dog and two cats. She teaches high school and likes to go hiking and foraging for wild mushrooms. She writes a lot, often about ghosts.
If you would like to have news of Sophia’s writing, consider following her on Twitter @sophiarosehips. You can also like her page on Facebook. She’s always thrilled to hear from readers!
Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
About the Author