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She shrugged. “I might have followed you when you followed her out of the Epsteins’ place. I wanted to be sure she didn’t try to coerce you into anything.”
“I thought you admired her.”
“Admiration and trust are two different things,” she said lightly. “Especially when it comes to your freedom. But she did surprise the hell out of me by agreeing to hold processing of any charges against Maureen until she’s no longer in danger. That could be a long time.”
Sam’s heart sank, because that meant his life would be on hold for a long time, too. “Hopefully not, especially if she’s as good at her job as you and Joel seem to think.”
Her nod was brisk. “Here’s hoping. Are you ready for wife number four? She’s home.” Laura pointed at an older Ford with rusted fenders. “That’s her car.”
Sam hadn’t even noticed. “Then let’s go talk to her.”
When they knocked on Veronica Gadd’s door, she opened it with a frown. She was very young, having married Colton when she was only eighteen—just like his other three wives. They’d been divorced for two years and married for less than one, so Veronica was barely old enough to buy alcohol. “I’m not interested.”
“Please,” Sam said. “I’m not selling anything. I wanted to talk to you about Colton.”
Veronica’s expression shut down. “No comment.”
Sam started to put his hand on the door, then dropped it to his side. “I’m not a reporter or a cop. I’m a psychologist. My name is Dr.Reeves. One of the victims was my friend.” Not Colton’s victim, but he didn’t feel bad for the obfuscation.
Veronica’s shoulders sagged. “I’m so sorry for your loss, but I was only married to Colton for a year. I don’t know anything about him. Nothing that could help you, anyway.”
Sam looked over his shoulder. One of Veronica’s neighbors was peeking around her slightly open door. “May we come in, Ms.Gadd? I’d really rather not have this conversation in front of your neighbors.”
Veronica scowled at the neighbor. “Mind your own business, Gertie.” She rolled her eyes. “That woman lives to spy. Look, my place is a mess. I wasn’t ready for company.”
She was nervous about allowing him in and Sam got that. “Could we take a walk, maybe?”
Veronica eyed Laura. “Who’s she?”
Sam glanced at Laura. “She’s my ex. But she’s generously helping me out.”
He’d snagged Veronica’s interest with that tidbit. “Okay. Fine. Let me get my jacket.”
They walked with her down the apartment stairs, waiting until they were outside before Sam spoke again. “This is Laura Letterman. She’s also my attorney.”
Veronica gave Laura a curious look. “There’s a picnic area down the way. It’ll be mostly empty this time of day.”
There was a picnic table near the swing set that they’d seen from the parking lot. The children were gone and it was quiet.
Veronica sat on one of the benches and Sam and Laura sat on the other side. “Thank you,” Sam said. “We won’t take much of your time. As you know, Colton is accused of killing several young women. I was trying to be a Good Samaritan and help the police, and now I’m also a suspect.”
Veronica’s eyes widened. “How?”
“He had a partner,” Sam said bluntly. Kit would probably be angry that he’d disclosed this, but he was growing desperate, a sick urgency twisting his gut. He didn’t want anyone else to die. Plus, Kit’s holding back information hadn’t helped her get these folks to talk. Time for a different approach. “And that man killed my friend over the weekend. I was camping all alone.”
“No alibi,” Veronica murmured. “He set you up to take the fall.”
“Exactly. So, I’m trying to find out who his partner might have been. I was hoping you might know someone Colton was close to. Maybe someone he spent time with.”
Veronica scoffed. “Like Brad Pitt or Prince William?”
Sam sighed. “So, he’s been doing that for a while, huh?”
“I was so stupid. Naive. Maybe I still am, because I’m sitting here talking to you. I should go.”
Laura pulled out her phone, tapped the screen, then handed it to Veronica. “This is an article about Dr.Reeves. He is a psychologist who volunteers with homeless youth at New Horizons. He’s not lying to you. He’s a good man and doesn’t deserve what’s happening to him.”
Sam looked at Laura in surprise, but Veronica said nothing, reading the article carefully before returning Laura’s phone to her outstretched hand.
