AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Mathias called, “Hallie, we don’t need coffee. It’s fine.”
“No, no,” she called back. “She’s just made a little mess. I’ve got to get paper towels from the basement.”
Mathias rolled his eyes. He stood up and used his shirtsleeve to dry his face. Letting out a shaky breath, he said, “Let me see what’s going on in there. This damn cat.”
Josie stood as well, following him. It felt slightly better to stand after having been in the same position for so long. Over his shoulder, Mathias said, “Sorry. Are you a cat person?”
In the kitchen, one of the lower cabinets hung open. On the floor, Flynn lay on her back, her front paws gripping the edge of the cabinet door. On the counter, a sugar bowl and a cup of coffee had spilled. Three paper towels soaked up some of the coffee.
Josie said, “I like cats, but I’m more of a dog person. You don’t like Flynn?”
Mathias looked down at the cat. “Flynn doesn’t like me.”
As if on cue, the cat hissed. Effortlessly, she flipped onto all fours. Her upper body disappeared inside the cabinet. A second later, something shiny pinged against the tile. Flynn turned, coiled her body like a spring, and then pounced on it. She batted it around until Mathias snatched it from the floor. Brow furrowed, he looked inside the cabinet. “She’s got all kinds of junk in here.” He reached in and pulled out a black ballet flat. “Random shoe,” he muttered. “Just one. Bottle cap. And here. A random glove. A singular glove.”
Josie’s heart stuttered. A distant ringing began in her ears. She stared at the bottle cap as he placed it onto the counter. It was gold-colored, shaped like a miniature king’s crown. The cap to a bottle of Crown Royal. Her ribs ached as her breathing sped up. She took the glove Mathias handed her and turned it over. Gray. Knit. The initials S.E. in black thread.
Black ballet flat. Keri Cryer.
Crown Royal cap. Garrick Wolfe.
Gray knit glove with initials on it. Sharon Eddy.
“Mathias,” Josie choked. “What’s that in your hand? That you took from Flynn?”
He opened his palm and stared at a gold ring. “Random ring?” he said.
“Are you sure it’s random?”
He pinched it between his thumb and forefinger and brought it closer to his face. Josie watched all the color drain from his skin.
Wedding band. Piper Tobin.
Just as Hallie appeared at the top of the basement steps, Mathias looked up at her. Through gritted teeth, he said, “Why do you have my dead wife’s wedding band?”
FORTY-SEVEN
Hallie tried to keep the smile pasted on her face, but it faltered.
Mathias held the ring out. “Where did you get this?”
Josie pointed to the bottle cap. “And this. A Crown Royal bottle cap. Garrick was drinking Crown Royal the night he was stabbed.” She motioned toward the glove. “And this. This is one of the gloves that Sharon Eddy was wearing when she was killed.” She pointed to the ballet flat on the tile. “And that is Keri’s shoe, isn’t it?”
Mathias turned to Josie, realization dawning. He licked his lips, swiveling his head slowly back toward Hallie. Josie could see his chest shudder when he took in a breath. “Hallie,” he said. “You better start talking right now.”
She held her hands out toward him, palms up, as if begging. “It’s not what you think.”
“What did you do?” His voice was quiet at first, calm. When she didn’t answer, he yelled. “Hallie! What did you do? Did you kill Piper? Did you kill Keri? Garrick? What the hell is going on here?”
Her face changed from innocent and remorseful to hateful and angry in seconds. “I had to do something. You kept trying to move on without me.”
“What are you talking about?” he said.
She stomped her foot in time with her words, causing Flynn to retreat to the cabinet. “I’m talking about our family!”
“What family?”
A flush colored her cheeks. Rage twisted her features. Josie put a hand to her waist, but her holster wasn’t there. She wasn’t on duty. She was injured. In that moment, as panic made it more difficult to breathe, the pain in her side reminded her of this fact.
