AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Oh.”
Sam smiled sadly. “Yeah. She wants to be thorough, especially if anyone from SDPD attends. She wants to speak to some of his former colleagues. Maybe even his ex-wife. I didn’t promise her anything because I remembered you said that the ex-wife was in hospice. I haven’t tried to find her yet. I didn’t think I’d be interfering with your investigation because you already crossed Frankie’s son off your suspect list, but I wanted to be sure.”
“Thank you,” she said, seeming a little surprised. “I have the name of Frankie’s former police partner, but Baz said the man is rather homophobic. Or was, anyway. He might not have nice things to say. I haven’t talked to him yet.”
“I’ll contact him. See if Georgia and I can arrange a visit.”
“By yourselves?” Kit asked anxiously.
Sam frowned. “We’re not in danger outside of Shady Oaks, are we?”
“No.” Again she hesitated. “But if you see a Ford F-250 truck following you, avoid it. And if you can’t, call 911, then me. Especially if the truck is hauling a tiny house.”
That told him what Roxanne was driving and where she was living. All right, then. “I will. I promise.”
“Thank you.”
“What about his ex-wife and son?”
She blew out a breath. “Mrs. White is close to the end of her life, and her son hasn’t left her side. The son changed his name, by the way. Shady Oaks had him listed as Gerald Wilson, but he’s gone by Gerald White since he was a teenager. His stepfather adopted him.”
Ouch. Seemed like the rift between Frankie and his son went deep. “Should Georgia and I not call them?”
Another brief hesitation. “The charge nurse said Mrs. White has periods of lucidity, so you might be able to speak with her. Her son may say no, though, and that’s his right.”
Sam stared at the framed photo of his grandfather Del on his desk. “Frankie was like my grandfather, you know. Gruff exterior, soft heart. It’s what drew me to him in the beginning. They shared a name—Franklin Delano. It felt like fate, me walking into Shady Oaks and meeting him that first day. Frankie made me feel like I had a little more time with my own grandfather. I don’t want to distress Mrs. White at this time, but Georgia said that when Frankie spoke of her, it was fondly. Maybe she’d like to know that.”
“Maybe. Just…be prepared for the son to be hostile. He was estranged from his father for most of his life. He might react poorly to his father’s friends.”
“Okay, we’ll start with the former partner and, depending on how tired Georgia gets, we’ll try the hospice center. Can you text me the information?”
“I will. And, Sam? Be careful. I’m serious.”
“I will if you will. Thanks, Kit.” Sam ended the call and waited until his phone buzzed with her incoming text.
Frankie Flynn’s former partner—Henry Whitfield. There was a phone number and an address in La Mesa.
His phone buzzed again with a second text. Sharon White—Restful Heart Hospice, Lincoln Park.
He’d call the former cop partner first. If Henry Whitfield was overly hostile, Sam wouldn’t subject Miss Georgia to him.
Although Georgia could hold her own. If Whitfield was abusive, Sam would let Georgia have at him. The old cop would definitely be schooled by the end of that confrontation.
Cheered, Sam had started to dial Whitfield’s number when he received a third text from Kit.
Be careful. Please.
It was a small thing, but it made him smile. She cared. Sam knew that she did. He just needed to be patient. For how much longer, he didn’t know. But it would be worth it. She was worth it.
He finished dialing Henry Whitfield, who answered with a snarl.
“If you’re a telemarketer—”
“I’m not,” Sam interrupted before the older man could launch into whatever diatribe he’d planned. “My name is Sam Reeves. I’m a friend of Frankie Flynn’s. You knew him as Frank Wilson.”
A long, long silence. “How did you get my number, son?”
The question was asked warily, but without the anger that Sam had anticipated.
