AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Yes. Felicity was able to give us a brief description. She said he had a mustache and beard, looked fit, and moved with confidence. He also wore glasses. Something about him didn’t sit right with her the first time she spotted him, so she kept an eye on him during the reception. He remained professional and didn’t seem out of place. Some of the other servers even chatted with him. We’re conducting interviews now to see what was discussed, but so far, it was mundane stuff.” Grady flipped to another photograph taken from the video footage. “But look at this.”
The culprit stood at the edge of the ballroom with a tray. He was within five steps of Olivia’s makeshift command station behind the DJ booth. Although his face was turned down to avoid the cameras overhead, his attention was locked on Olivia, who was busy talking with Susan about something.
Cole’s hands balled into fists. He’d heard the saying “seeing red” but had only experienced it once in his life. The night his parents died. Now, his temper spiked to a level he hadn’t known was possible. Somewhere in the recesses of his mind, an alarm bell went off. He gritted his teeth and sucked in a breath. “Who is he?”
“We don’t know. Chief Sims found the wig, mustache, and glasses in the dumpster outside. We’ve sent it to the lab for processing. Hopefully, we’ll get some DNA from it.” Grady zoomed in on the image. “Is it possible this man is David?”
He studied the culprit, willing his temper back under control. “They have the same size and build, but it’s hard to say definitively since his face is turned down.”
At that moment, Eli came around the corner. Alongside him was Texas Ranger Bennett Knox, another member of Company A. They joined Cole and Grady outside the conference room. Grady filled them in on what they knew so far.
Bennett gestured to the man in the photo. “I doubt that’s David. Emilia and I spent the last half hour interviewing him.” Emilia Sanchez was Bennett’s wife. She was an expert profiler with the state police. “David says that Olivia freaked out after he asked her to have dinner. He was shocked by her behavior. When we shared she was being stalked, he seemed genuinely surprised. I don’t think he intended to upset her.”
“That makes some sense, since David has an alibi for one of the break-ins at Olivia’s house,” Eli added. “He was doing new-hire training at the Intercontinental Hotel. We have witnesses that confirm it and security footage that backs the alibi up.”
Cole's jaw tightened. The analytical side of him knew his colleagues were right. It was possible David had nothing to do with the attacks against Olivia, but he couldn’t shake the feeling that things weren’t that simple. “I don’t want to mark him off the suspect list because of his alibi. Not yet. The last break-in at Olivia’s house—the one David has an alibi for—included theft. The perpetrator stole jewelry. He’d never done that before, even though he’d been in her house multiple times. I still think we could be dealing with two different people.”
Bennett rocked back on his heels. “I’ll ask Emilia to do a complete workup on the case. She can give us a profile of the stalker and confirm or refute Cole’s suspicions about the second person.”
Cole shot his colleague a grateful look. “I appreciate it.”
“What about the chef?” Grady asked. “Randy Higgins is a suspect, right? He could’ve easily poisoned the cake slices.”
“Except he was in the kitchen with dozens of employees when this waiter”—Eli pointed to Grady’s cell phone. The image of the man in glasses was still on display—“delivered the cake slices to Jackson and Felicity.”
“Yeah, but if we’re dealing with two different perpetrators, as Cole suggests, then Mr. Glasses could be working with the chef. Randy drugs the cake slices and Mr. Glasses delivers them.”
He had a good point. Cole considered the options. “We need to be careful before eliminating anyone off the suspect list. Let’s review all the footage from today. Track Mr. Glasses’ movements and interview everyone he interacted with. The priority is IDing him. Fifty grand was withdrawn from Justin’s bank account one week before someone started stalking Olivia. It went to an off-shore account, so we can’t trace it.” Cole growled in frustration. “The way I see it, we have two possibilities. One, Mr. Glasses was hired by Justin to stalk and eventually kill Olivia. This setup is designed to hide Justin’s involvement and make it look like Olivia’s death was the result of a stalker, when it was actually about revenge.”
Eli nodded, his mouth set in a grim line. “Justin wants revenge, that much is certain. He hates Olivia and blames her for his prison sentence.”
“Exactly. The second possibility is that Olivia is truly being stalked—either by David or Randy—and the fifty grand withdrawn from Justin’s account is a happenstance.”
Bennett snorted. “I don’t believe in coincidences.”
“Neither do I, but Justin is a criminal. It’s possible the money has nothing to do with Olivia and he’s involved in some other shady dealing.” Cole wouldn’t dismiss any plausible theory. Doing so could cause him to overlook an important clue that would blow the entire case wide open. He pointed to the man on Grady’s cell phone screen. “We need to identify Mr. Glasses. We know he’s involved. Once we learn his identity, hopefully we can figure out who he’s connected to.”
Cole surmised Mr. Glasses had drugged Jackson and Felicity in order to get Olivia alone. Anything could’ve happened tonight. Cole didn’t know what the perpetrator planned, but he had a feeling his arrival at Oak Gardens had stopped it. “We should review the security footage for anyone who attended the wedding but disappeared when Mr. Glasses showed up, and then reappears after he left. It’s possible he’s been here the whole time.”
“Good idea.” Grady rocked back on his heels. “I’ll do that.”
As much as Cole hated to pull Olivia away from a job she loved, and one she was exceedingly good at, things had gone too far.“And until we have a better handle on this case, Olivia needs to step back from her business. There’s too much risk to innocent people. And to her.”
Eli nodded. “I agree. Her next wedding is mine and Sienna’s. Hopefully, we’ll solve this case before next weekend, but if we don’t, we’ll just make do.”
“We can do better than that.” Tara stepped out of the conference room. The sequins on her navy blue dress sparkled in the light. “I spoke with Olivia and she’s given me all the necessary details to make Sienna and Eli’s wedding a success. Everyone will pitch in to help. Megan, Avery, Claire, Emilia, and Hannah have already replied to my SOS message. We’ll see to the final details and the wedding will be a resounding success.”
The tension eased from Eli’s shoulders, and he gave Tara a brotherly one-armed hug. “Thank you. It means a lot to me. And I know it’ll help calm Sienna’s nerves. Olivia’s been instrumental in keeping Sienna sane during the planning process. There’s so much to do this week, and since I’m in charge of this case, I won’t be much help.”
“We’re all happy to chip in. Leave everything to me.” Tara tilted her head as she moved closer to her husband. She took the phone from Grady’s hand. “Has anyone shown this picture to Olivia? When I was stalked, it was by someone I knew. Chances are this guy has been up close to her at some point… interacted with her…” Her brow crinkled as she gazed up at her husband. “Isn’t that what fuels the stalker?”
“Normally, yes, but this case isn’t stereotypical.”
“Still, Tara has a point.” Cole slid his own phone out of his pocket as he glanced in the conference room. Olivia was staring out the window at the fountain. “Send me the picture. I’ll run it by Olivia.”
The sooner they identified Mr. Glasses, the better. Justin’s warning haunted Cole.
Tik tock, ranger.
