Page 25 of Forever Gone

Gerry shifted in his chair. “Said somebody broke into her storage unit and stole a bunch of stuff. She called it the last straw. Swore it was me and said she was moving. Told me I shouldn’t contact her again.”

“When did she call?”

“Sunday night. Around eight.”

“What was taken?”

“She didn’t say exactly. Boxes. Personal stuff. Papers, I think. She was yelling most of the time.”

“And what did you tell her?”

“That I had nothing to do with it. Which I didn’t. That was fine by me if she didn’t want contact. She’s always blaming me.”

“Is that the last time you spoke with her?”

Gerry nodded. “Yeah.”

Selena rested her pen against the page.

Washington had taught her to deliver difficult facts cleanly, without softening language until meaning disappeared. Connor approached people differently. He knew which families attended church together, who had grown up on which road, and how grief traveled through a town before official notification reached the next relative.

She left the news to him.

Connor leaned forward. “Gerry, I’m very sorry to tell you this. Karen was murdered last night.”

For several seconds, Gerry did not move.

His mouth opened, then closed. Color drained from his skin.

“How?”

“We aren’t releasing the details,” Selena said. “That protects the investigation. She was attacked at a cabin she had rented.”

Gerry raised both hands to his head and pressed his palms against his temples.

“Jesus,” he whispered. “Lord help us.”

His shoulders began to shake. He bent over the table, covering his mouth as a sob escaped.

Connor let the silence hold.

After a time, Gerry dragged one sleeve beneath his nose and sat upright. His breathing came unevenly.

Selena spoke gently. “I have to ask where you were last night.”

Grief hardened into alarm.

“Well, you ain’t pinning this on me. I was at home.”

“Can anyone corroborate that?”

“Yeah. My roommate, Mel Hinkel. He’s staying with me right now.”

Selena wrote the name. “Mel Hinkel?”

“That’s right.”

“And he can confirm you were home all night?” Selena asked.