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“Me too.”
Kylie walked over to a group of patrons a couple of booths down, asking if they needed anything. Louise watched her for several seconds before turning back to me, a guilty look in her eyes.
“You know more than you told her.”
She pushed out a sigh. “True, but not much. The sheriff’s keeping a tight rein on this case.”
“Was her cousin involved?”
“I know he’s not the victim, but I don’t know about his involvement. I’ll ask a few questions.”
“Do you know if it had anything to do with the laundromat north of Jackson Creek? Suds and Duds? I heard the body was found a few miles from it.”
Her brows lifted. “How do you know that?”
I told her what I’d learned from Nate about TJ Peterman going after the laundromat and Scooter’s. “I don’t know,” I said, “it seems a bit suspicious that TJ wants to keep his daughter’s disappearance a secret after he’s publicly and aggressively trying to shut down the laundromat, an alleged site of drug distribution.”
Her mouth pressed into a firm line. “Agreed. From what I’ve learned, the sheriff’s department has long suspected that Suds and Duds is a hub for drugs, but while they’ve arrested a few low-level dealers, the perps have never ratted out the Morris brothers.”
“That’s weird,” I said with a frown. “You can usually get at least one of them to break. Are the Morris brothers making threats or promises to buy their silence?”
“Maybe both?” Louise suggested. “I haven’t been around long enough to make an educated guess. But you’re right. This all feels related.” She glanced around, then leaned forward and lowered her voice. “The victim was an alleged off the books employee of the Morrises, but no one’s proven it yet.”
“And he was killed the night Ava Peterman was either kidnapped or ran away.”
“She,” Louise whispered across the table. “The victim was a she, which is how I know for certain it’s not Chowder Cunningham.” She cringed. “But I’m pretty sure he has ties to the Morrises.”
“You think he had something to do with the murder?”
She shook her head. “I couldn’t say. It’s not my case. I’m just telling you what I’ve heard around the proverbial water cooler.”
“Shit.” Poor Kylie. She seemed too sweet to be involved with drug kingpins, but then again, you never knew.
“She’s not part of it,” Louise said, reading my mind. “Besides, the Morrises hate Malcolm. If she was messed up with them, they’d never allow her to work here.”
“Why do they hate Malcolm?”
“Who knows? Maybe they think he’s encroaching on their turf, but like I said last night, Malcolm seems to be on the up and up. No sign of criminal activity.”
It occurred to me that he’d taken off on his motorcycle mere minutes after Louise had learned about the murder. What if Malcolm had just heard of it too?
Louise glanced at her watch and reached for her wallet. “I’ve only got a couple of minutes before I have to leave. Tell me about the van.”
I told her everything I knew about it, including that I had the owner’s permission to check inside if we found it.
“You think it was part of the kidnapping?” she asked, flagging Kylie down with some cash in her hand. “Did anyone see it last night?”
“Not that I know of, but then, most people weren’t exactly forthcoming when I knocked on their doors. Still, it’s suspicious.”
“Agreed. I’ll spread the word to keep an eye out for it. I’ll let you know what I find out.”
“Thanks.”
Kylie stopped at the table with a ticket in her hand. Louise handed her the cash without looking at the bill. “Keep the change,” she said, “and call me if your cousin hasn’t turned up tonight.”
“I will, and thank you, Deputy—” She cringed. “Louise.” Pocketing the money in her apron, she headed off to another table.
“I covered your lunch too,” Louise said, grabbing her jacket from the seat.
