he was a gentle, sweet man. He kept a picture of his mother on the visor, and would cry if he saw a dead dog in the roadway. He was a crackerjack marksman, though, and wouldn’t hesitate to kill someone if they threatened the safety of his employer. “The agency is sending two other men,” Marcus told her. “They should be here before you leave for work.”
“But I didn’t tell Rebecca what we were doing,” Carolyn said, reaching for the portable phone on the counter. Things were getting away from her, and like Marcus had pointed out, the situation wouldn’t be resolved overnight. She was worrying about Drew, Veronica’s children, her job, her wedding, the threats, and at the same time, mourning the loss of her friend. When she tried to juggle too many balls, she dropped all of them.
“Bear’s the best,” Marcus said, walking over and placing his arm around her. “Trust me, Rebecca won’t spot him. If she does, I’ll fire him. They promised to get someone to look after John by the end of the day. Since nothing may come of it, there’s no reason to call and distract him. I doubt if I could pass some of the courses John’s taking, and he’s only a sophomore. MIT is a tough school.”
Carolyn returned to the table and robotically spooned the cereal into her mouth, blinking as she realized what was clouding her mind. Going to the police with Veronica’s suspicions about Tyler Bell was a moral dilemma she had already struggled with and resolved. Now everything had changed. She would have to track him down right away. If she thought there was even a remote possibility that he was involved in Veronica death, she would handcuff him and deposit him at the police station.
Had she really withheld information? It was Veronica who’d thought Bell could have been behind the deaths of Robert Abernathy and Lester McAllen, and as far as Carolyn knew, there had been no evidence to support such a premise.
She dabbed at her mouth with her napkin, kissed Marcus good-bye, and headed to the garage. He hadn’t attempted to engage her in conversation while she was eating. He knew she was thinking. When he worked at home, she showed him the same courtesy.
Carolyn would call Drew from the road. All she could do was attempt to move things forward. She had to train herself to investigate Veronica’s murder the way she would any case. Crimes weren’t solved the way they were on TV. Sometimes they took months, even years. If only one piece of the puzzle fell into place, it would be a good day.
CHAPTER 6
Wednesday, October 13—11:00 P . M .
C arolyn and Brad Preston were seated on a bench facing the fountain in the center courtyard of the government center. The sun was out and the temperature was in the mid-seventies. The smoke from wildfires of the day before was gone, moved out to sea by the ocean breezes.
Working in Veronica’s partitioned office all morning had been difficult. Every time Carolyn took her eyes away from the computer screen, she was surrounded by Veronica’s life. There were pictures of Drew and the kids, jokes, Post-it notes, cheap knickknacks the children had given her. She could even smell her cologne, Eternity Moment by Calvin Klein. Drew had given her a bottle for her birthday the previous month. Veronica thought the name was hysterical. She recalled how they’d laughed about it. “How can it be eternity if it’s only a moment?” Veronica had said. “Are people stupid or what?”
She was glad that Brad had suggested they speak outside. On days like this, it was easy to see why real estate prices in Southern California had continued to skyrocket. While most of the country braced for winter, it was spring all year long. “I downloaded everything on Veronica’s computer,” she told him. “I’ll upload it to the machine in my office as well as my notebook. That way, I can work on it at home.”
“Good,” Brad said, squinting in the midday sun. People were streaming in and out of the
“But I didn’t tell Rebecca what we were doing,” Carolyn said, reaching for the portable phone on the counter. Things were getting away from her, and like Marcus had pointed out, the situation wouldn’t be resolved overnight. She was worrying about Drew, Veronica’s children, her job, her wedding, the threats, and at the same time, mourning the loss of her friend. When she tried to juggle too many balls, she dropped all of them.
“Bear’s the best,” Marcus said, walking over and placing his arm around her. “Trust me, Rebecca won’t spot him. If she does, I’ll fire him. They promised to get someone to look after John by the end of the day. Since nothing may come of it, there’s no reason to call and distract him. I doubt if I could pass some of the courses John’s taking, and he’s only a sophomore. MIT is a tough school.”
Carolyn returned to the table and robotically spooned the cereal into her mouth, blinking as she realized what was clouding her mind. Going to the police with Veronica’s suspicions about Tyler Bell was a moral dilemma she had already struggled with and resolved. Now everything had changed. She would have to track him down right away. If she thought there was even a remote possibility that he was involved in Veronica death, she would handcuff him and deposit him at the police station.
Had she really withheld information? It was Veronica who’d thought Bell could have been behind the deaths of Robert Abernathy and Lester McAllen, and as far as Carolyn knew, there had been no evidence to support such a premise.
She dabbed at her mouth with her napkin, kissed Marcus good-bye, and headed to the garage. He hadn’t attempted to engage her in conversation while she was eating. He knew she was thinking. When he worked at home, she showed him the same courtesy.
Carolyn would call Drew from the road. All she could do was attempt to move things forward. She had to train herself to investigate Veronica’s murder the way she would any case. Crimes weren’t solved the way they were on TV. Sometimes they took months, even years. If only one piece of the puzzle fell into place, it would be a good day.
CHAPTER 6
Wednesday, October 13—11:00 P . M .
C arolyn and Brad Preston were seated on a bench facing the fountain in the center courtyard of the government center. The sun was out and the temperature was in the mid-seventies. The smoke from wildfires of the day before was gone, moved out to sea by the ocean breezes.
Working in Veronica’s partitioned office all morning had been difficult. Every time Carolyn took her eyes away from the computer screen, she was surrounded by Veronica’s life. There were pictures of Drew and the kids, jokes, Post-it notes, cheap knickknacks the children had given her. She could even smell her cologne, Eternity Moment by Calvin Klein. Drew had given her a bottle for her birthday the previous month. Veronica thought the name was hysterical. She recalled how they’d laughed about it. “How can it be eternity if it’s only a moment?” Veronica had said. “Are people stupid or what?”
She was glad that Brad had suggested they speak outside. On days like this, it was easy to see why real estate prices in Southern California had continued to skyrocket. While most of the country braced for winter, it was spring all year long. “I downloaded everything on Veronica’s computer,” she told him. “I’ll upload it to the machine in my office as well as my notebook. That way, I can work on it at home.”
“Good,” Brad said, squinting in the midday sun. People were streaming in and out of the
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