ever found out about her love life, who knows what he would do?”
“Do you know who she’s seeing?”
“No, but she did tell me she was beautiful and young.”
“She didn’t give a name?”
He thought for a minute. “Seems to me it began with an ‘A’. Amy or Alice or something like that.”
“Alex?”
“Could be. I don’t know, and I don’t care. What I’m trying to do now is extricate myself. I’m going to cut bait while I still have some dignity left.”
“Lovers,” Anthony said.
“ Scheming lovers.”
“Makes sense to me. Big Sis lures her brother here where it will be easy to kill him, and Alex does the dirty deed.”
“I was thinking she might have been a hired assassin.”
“Maybe,” Anthony said. “Or a hired assassin with benefits.”
They now had Alex Williams’s driver’s license. From there Laura was able to access her address. Unfortunately, like most people her age, Alex Williams didn’t have a landline, just a cell phone.
Anthony prepared a warrant to access her cell phone records, even though at the moment they had no way of determining which carrier she used. His motto was Be Prepared. Just in case the Heavens opened and all that info started pouring in.
“More likely,” he muttered, “We’ll have to pry that information out with an escargot fork.”
“You eat escargot?” Laura asked.
“One of my favorite things.”
“Yuck.”
“It’s an acquired taste. Just ask us one-percenters.”
What little evidence they had against Williams was circumstantial and insufficient. Yes, they had her Facebook friendship with Ruby Ballantine, and Joel Strickland’s claim that Ruby and Alex were lovers (which would be filed under “hearsay”), and the fact that Alex had given Laura a phony name and directed her to call a nonexistent friend. None of this rose to probable cause; it wasn’t even close.
But Laura was sure that the calls made to Sean Perrin during his stay at the Madera Canyon Cabins were from Alex Williams.
As Anthony said, who wouldn’t want to go on a moonlight hike with a knockout like that?
She called her partner. “Maybe it’s time for us to rattle Alex’s cage a little.”
“I dunno. If we’re right about her, she’s pure psychopath.” He thought about it. “But if that’s the case, it wouldn’t matter one way or another.”
“She won’t be shaken,” Laura agreed. “But I bet she’d show us what’s behind her mask.”
“Yeah, because she knows we can’t touch her.” He thought about it. “But at least we’ll know who and what we’re really dealing with.”
18: The Lion in Her Den
Alex Williams lived in Tanforan Pointe, an apartment complex in midtown not far from the University of Arizona, where Williams was currently enrolled as a geology major. Beyond that, there were few public records. She’d been born in Las Cruces, New Mexico. She was married for approximately two years to a Nathan James Williams, whereabouts currently unknown. Her birthdate was May 2, 1988. She drove a late model metallic yellow Ford Focus hatchback. And apparently, she was gay. Or at least bisexual.
Or maybe just predatory.
“Who do you think is the brains of this outfit?” Laura asked as they drove past the apartments on Euclid, rounded the block and came at the apartments from the other side.
“Ruby’s got the money. And she’s older, so she might be the straw boss on this cattle drive.”
“But Alex is such a good liar.”
Anthony nodded. “If you look like a sociopath, if you talk like a sociopath—”
“You may just be a sociopath,” they finished in unison.
“I’m guessing they cooked it up together. I wonder what happened first, though, the chicken or the egg? Were they attracted to each other and became lovers and then decided to off Sean? Or . . . ”
“Did they meet somehow because Ruby was looking for a partner? Or a patsy?”
“I don’t think Alex could ever be described as a patsy,” Laura said. “Not the
“Do you know who she’s seeing?”
“No, but she did tell me she was beautiful and young.”
“She didn’t give a name?”
He thought for a minute. “Seems to me it began with an ‘A’. Amy or Alice or something like that.”
“Alex?”
“Could be. I don’t know, and I don’t care. What I’m trying to do now is extricate myself. I’m going to cut bait while I still have some dignity left.”
“Lovers,” Anthony said.
“ Scheming lovers.”
“Makes sense to me. Big Sis lures her brother here where it will be easy to kill him, and Alex does the dirty deed.”
“I was thinking she might have been a hired assassin.”
“Maybe,” Anthony said. “Or a hired assassin with benefits.”
They now had Alex Williams’s driver’s license. From there Laura was able to access her address. Unfortunately, like most people her age, Alex Williams didn’t have a landline, just a cell phone.
Anthony prepared a warrant to access her cell phone records, even though at the moment they had no way of determining which carrier she used. His motto was Be Prepared. Just in case the Heavens opened and all that info started pouring in.
“More likely,” he muttered, “We’ll have to pry that information out with an escargot fork.”
“You eat escargot?” Laura asked.
“One of my favorite things.”
“Yuck.”
“It’s an acquired taste. Just ask us one-percenters.”
What little evidence they had against Williams was circumstantial and insufficient. Yes, they had her Facebook friendship with Ruby Ballantine, and Joel Strickland’s claim that Ruby and Alex were lovers (which would be filed under “hearsay”), and the fact that Alex had given Laura a phony name and directed her to call a nonexistent friend. None of this rose to probable cause; it wasn’t even close.
But Laura was sure that the calls made to Sean Perrin during his stay at the Madera Canyon Cabins were from Alex Williams.
As Anthony said, who wouldn’t want to go on a moonlight hike with a knockout like that?
She called her partner. “Maybe it’s time for us to rattle Alex’s cage a little.”
“I dunno. If we’re right about her, she’s pure psychopath.” He thought about it. “But if that’s the case, it wouldn’t matter one way or another.”
“She won’t be shaken,” Laura agreed. “But I bet she’d show us what’s behind her mask.”
“Yeah, because she knows we can’t touch her.” He thought about it. “But at least we’ll know who and what we’re really dealing with.”
18: The Lion in Her Den
Alex Williams lived in Tanforan Pointe, an apartment complex in midtown not far from the University of Arizona, where Williams was currently enrolled as a geology major. Beyond that, there were few public records. She’d been born in Las Cruces, New Mexico. She was married for approximately two years to a Nathan James Williams, whereabouts currently unknown. Her birthdate was May 2, 1988. She drove a late model metallic yellow Ford Focus hatchback. And apparently, she was gay. Or at least bisexual.
Or maybe just predatory.
“Who do you think is the brains of this outfit?” Laura asked as they drove past the apartments on Euclid, rounded the block and came at the apartments from the other side.
“Ruby’s got the money. And she’s older, so she might be the straw boss on this cattle drive.”
“But Alex is such a good liar.”
Anthony nodded. “If you look like a sociopath, if you talk like a sociopath—”
“You may just be a sociopath,” they finished in unison.
“I’m guessing they cooked it up together. I wonder what happened first, though, the chicken or the egg? Were they attracted to each other and became lovers and then decided to off Sean? Or . . . ”
“Did they meet somehow because Ruby was looking for a partner? Or a patsy?”
“I don’t think Alex could ever be described as a patsy,” Laura said. “Not the
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