Page 104 of M for Murder

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W hen Lawrie arrived home, Kylan wasn’t there, though given the circumstances that didn’t surprise him. Poor Kylan, she’d been lucky enough to evade death once and now she was being forced to look it in the face again. The cops dragging him in to be questioned had been a mistake. How was he supposed to keep an eye on her when he was locked in a prison cell?

Kylan had come through for him though, providing him with two rock solid alibis. He had known he would be able to count on her if the going got rough. She hadn’t yet discovered the truth, which meant she must still trust him. Now, all he had to do was find her.

The rude Federal Agent, Hickok, hadn’t confirmed her whereabouts, which meant that they probably still suspected him. Of course, they couldn’t prove a thing. As for Kylan, if he knew her as well as he thought he did, she had probably gone to her sister’s place in Seattle, thinking she would be safe there.

Upstairs in the spare bedroom, he pulled the suitcases out from under the double bed. Finding one that was bulging with clothes, he dropped it onto the mattress and unzipped it.

Inside, lying on top was Emma Keeley’s short, figure-hugging blue dress; the one that she had liked to wear to tease him. The one she had been wearing on that last night.

He stared at it for a long moment before dropping to his knees. Burying his face in the dress, he inhaled the scent of the still perfumed fabric and allowed himself to remember the way she had looked with her shiny dark hair and her milky-coloured complexion, ice-blue eyes and blood-red lips.

Realising he was wasting time, he tore himself away from the memory, dropped the dress back into the case and left the room, stopping only to collect his wallet and keys before he left the house.

As he started the car engine he thought again of Emma. And then briefly of Scott Jagger, Rufus Lind, Catherine Maloney, Kevin North and Justine Orton. He wiped the images of their faces from his mind, trying to concentrate fully on the present.

He had to find Kylan, darling sweet Kylan.

Hickok had been reluctant when Rebecca told him she wanted to go to Seattle.

He had decided after Lawrence Parker had been released that it might be safer to put Kylan under police protection until the killer had been caught, but when Rebecca had volunteered to go and collect her, he hadn’t been at all keen on the idea.

‘You’re really sure you want to drive all that way?’ he asked her, pulling a dubious face.

‘Sure, why not?’

‘Well I could easily get someone else to go pick her up.’

Rebecca narrowed her eyes suspiciously. ‘Are you trying to say that you don’t trust me, Hickok?’ she snapped. ‘Don’t you think I’m responsible enough for the job?’

‘Hey, I never said that.’

He looked a little taken aback, and Rebecca felt guilty. She had been blowing hot and cold with him ever since he’d been over at her apartment on Saturday night, not sure how to deal with the way she felt. Lawrence Parker’s release from jail had just put her on edge.

‘Look, I’m a big girl,’ she added, her tone softer. ‘I’m perfectly capable of driving to Seattle and collecting Kylan.’

‘Okay, fine,’ Hickok nodded. Still, he looked unsure. ‘There are plenty of other jobs you could be doing around here, though,’ he said with a smile. ‘For starters my coffee cup is getting empty.’

Rebecca gave a sarcastic laugh, wondering why she had bothered feeling guilty. ‘Ha ha, you’re so funny, Hickok. Well, I guess you’re going to have to get it yourself, because I’ve got better things to do.’

‘Like driving to Seattle?’

She gave him a sharp look. ‘Why do you have such a problem with that?’

He backed off, hands in the air. ‘No problem, no problem.’

‘So I can go?’

From the scowl on his face she could tell he still wasn’t happy. ‘If you have to,’ he grumbled, evidently not having a good enough case to make her stay.

He watched her slip on her leather jacket. ‘Hey, Angell, what’s the big deal here anyway? I mean, why do you want to go so bad?’

Rebecca shrugged, not really sure that there was one particular reason. It was just something she felt she ought to do. ‘I don’t know,’ she muttered. ‘I guess Kylan knows me. Well… sort of knows me, and it will probably help having another female around. I would imagine after everything that has happened to her, the last thing she needs is a man.’

Hickok grinned at her comment. ‘Hey, we’re not all bad.’

They locked eyes and for a second Rebecca felt another surge of electricity pass between them. Quickly she broke the contact.