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“He’s trying to find something, honey.” Suzie got to her feet. “I’ll leave you in peace.”
As she went out, Spencer came in and Katrina bit back a smile at the knowing look Suzie gave her behind his back. Trust her friend to start matchmaking as soon as a handsome guy appeared on the horizon. If only life was that simple.
“I wanted to make sure you were okay.”
She knew he was busy, yet when she looked into his eyes, she saw concern for her well-being and a smile that was both gentle and caring.
In that instant, she knew everything she needed to about Spencer Colton. He was a man who lived according to his values. A strong, honest, genuine man, who put others first and fought for what was right. And he took her breath away.
“I...” Focus. How hard could it be to answer a simple question? “Have you eaten?” Very hard, apparently.
“I’m headed back to the station for a meeting. I’ll grab a bite when I get there.” His smile widened. “Are you okay?”
“I’ve been busy, so I haven’t had much time to process what Hannant told us.” She bought herself a little thinking time by finishing her soda and tossing the can into the trash. “I’m still struggling with what he said about the person who paid him wanting to make me look unreliable. I don’t understand why anyone would want to do that.”
“I guess we’ll find out when we know who’s behind this.” It was a vaguely unsatisfactory answer, but Katrina couldn’t identify why she felt that way. “We’re checking Hannant’s emails to see if we can discover who made contact with him, but I don’t hold out much hope. If, using his or her usual laptop in their own home, a person opens their main email account and sends a message to you, our police technicians will be able to determine where it came from with minimal effort. If, on the other hand, they buy a cheap electronic tablet for cash, take it to a bar, log in to their guest Wi-Fi, create a new email account and send the message from that... Well, it’s almost impossible to trace.”
“The person who first approached Hannant had to know he needed cash,” Katrina said. “And how did they know he wouldn’t go straight to the police? That took some confidence.”
“You’re right. Possibly, Hannant has acted on the wrong side of the law on other occasions in exchange for cash. It’s worth checking out.” He glanced at his watch. “I have to go. What do you want to do about dinner?”
She rolled her eyes. “This obsession with feeding me.”
He laughed. “I make a mean Thai green curry.”
“And with those words, you talked yourself into cooking tonight.”
“I’ll see you at your place later.”
As she watched him leave, Katrina reflected on how easy it would be to start relying on his presence. But that wasn’t her. She didn’t do dependence. And she wasn’t going to count on Spencer sticking around. By protecting her, he was doing his job. Once the person threatening her was caught, life would return to normal for both of them.
On that gloomy note, she cleared away the remnants of her lunch and headed toward the office to grapple with her annoying accounts for another hour or two.
Chapter 9
“It’s good news that Harley Watts is prepared to talk at last,” Marlowe Colton said as she and Ainsley entered Spencer’s office later that day. “We might finally start getting somewhere.”
Spencer shook his head. “I hate to disappoint you, but Harley has changed his mind. He no longer wants a deal in exchange for giving us the name of the person who paid him to send the Colton Oil email.”
He indicated two chairs on the opposite side of the desk to his own seat and his guests sat down.
“In that case, why are we here?” Ainsley asked. “I don’t mean to sound rude, but you’re busy and so are we.”
“I wanted to give you an update on the sting operation we carried out at the hospital.”
“I thought it was unsuccessful?” The half sisters exchanged a glance. “Is there anything more to be said?”
“Not much.” Spencer shared their frustration, but he was determined to be honest about the investigation and not give them any false hope. “The slight figure who entered the floor where your father had been staying matched the one from the original video taken inside the Colton Oil building on the night of the shooting. He was caught on camera again, and I’ve watched it back a few times. He wore a hoodie with the hood up, sunglasses obscuring his face. He came close to the room—actually had his hand on the door handle—but then glanced around and seemed to get nervous. He ran off and leaped out of the second-floor window like an experienced free runner, landing on grass and bolting away.”
“You’re saying he,” Ainsley said. “For all we know, the shooter was a woman. You just said the person in the original footage and at the hospital was slightly built.”
“That’s true. And I’m certainly not ruling out the possibility that it could have been a woman,” Spencer confirmed.
“It could have been Selina who shot Dad.” Ainsley’s attractive face was severe as she talked about Payne’s second ex-wife. “She’s been out to cause trouble since the email arrived.”
“I wouldn’t put anything past Selina if she could gain from it,” Marlowe said. “But we all know she’s on the Colton Oil board because she has something hanging over Dad. Without him, she’s nothing. She’s not going to risk messing up her golden ticket.”
“Man or woman, we lost him.” Spencer did his best to maintain a businesslike approach and not allow his annoyance to show. “Or her.”
