Dreaming of the Wolf (Heart of the Wolf #8)(75)

Detective Hanover studied her for a moment, then quietly said, “But they didn’t. Pick them up.”

Her mouth dropped open, then she snapped it shut.

“They’re free still?” Jake asked, rubbing her hand and having assumed that was the case.

“Yes. The police arrived too late. But if you’re a bounty hunter who’s supposed to be bringing them in, why turn their location over to the police?” Detective Hanover asked Alicia.

“I figured they were too dangerous for me to try and arrest.”

“Because you had witnessed Ferdinand Massaro’s murder.”

Jake could hear Alicia’s rapid heartbeat. He felt her clammy hand in his and knew she was trying to make the best of this situation. He wished he could get her the hell out of this nightmare legally, without causing further stress or trouble for her.

“Murdered?” she asked, her voice hollow, and despite knowing Ferdinand had been murdered already, she sounded convincing enough that she hadn’t already had a clue. “The… the night I went to see him?”

Genuine tears filled her eyes. Jake knew they weren’t faked. She must have been terrified to see what she had in the condo, further horrified that she could have ended up like Ferdinand.

“It fits you were there after he was murdered.”

Not before, good. Or maybe the detective was giving her an out to see if she’d let anything slip. If anyone had seen Ferdinand take Alicia into the condo after he’d knocked her out, wouldn’t they have reported it to the police? Maybe not, thinking she was dead drunk.

Hanover’s partner got a call and said into his phone, “This is Brumley. Yeah?” He looked up at Alicia. “All right. I’ll tell Hanover. Yeah, we’re still questioning her. Thanks.” He hung up his phone. “Want me to ask?” he questioned Hanover.

“Don’t tell me it’s about another shooting,” Hanover said dryly.

Brumley said, “Yeah, it is. Seems some hikers thought they’d heard a shot fired and then saw two men in suits coming off a hiking trail near Breckenridge, one with a bloodied trouser leg. The hikers said a woman was standing by a wreath of flowers near the trail.”

“For Missy Greiston,” Hanover guessed, looking directly at Alicia. “So who shot the man, Brumley?”

“My guess?” his partner asked.

“Take your best shot,” Hanover said, never taking his eyes off Alicia.

She remained ramrod stiff.

“Mario’s men came after her on the trail, and met up with Alicia Greiston when she was visiting the spot where her mother had died. Mario’s men threatened her. Miss Greiston defended herself. The men left but, in their usual fashion, didn’t report the gunshot wound. Because of that, there was no crime to report. No real witnessing of a crime. Only circumstantial evidence.”

“Gun casings? Bullet fragments?”

“None.”

“All right.” Detective Hanover slapped his hands on his thighs, rose from the chair, and said, “That about wraps it up. If you think you might have seen someone or something in connection with Ferdinand Massaro’s murder, you’ll let us know, won’t you, Miss Greiston?”

“Of course,” Alicia said softly.

Detective Hanover gave his head a little shake and followed Brumley out the door. Once it was locked, Alicia let out a shaky breath, then looked at Tom and Peter’s grave expressions.

“I didn’t witness any other shootings or killings. I swear it,” she said with a frown, her voice sharp.

They both chuckled darkly.

“Let’s go through my mother’s things, then we can pack up some of my stuff and go. I did want to keep my furniture, though.” She looked at the new couch and love seats she’d bought the previous year and that she’d saved hard-earned money to purchase. And she longed to sleep in her own bed, too.

“No problem. My grandparent’s place has old furniture that needs replacing. We’ll get a moving van and move your things there.” Jake said to Tom and Peter, “You can wait here and make sure no one comes that shouldn’t be here.”

“Want me to rent a moving van? Shouldn’t take anything very big to haul Alicia’s furniture and personal effects back to Silver Town,” Tom said.

Rising from the couch, Jake looked to Alicia for a decision. She nodded. She might as well get this over and done with. No sense in paying rent on a place when she wasn’t going to be living there. “I’ll have to give notice, and I’ll lose my deposit for not giving a month’s notice.”

“It won’t matter. I make enough money for the two of us.” He took her hand and helped her up from the couch.

She gave him an easy smile and looped her finger through one of his belt loops. “I should have asked that right away.”

“I didn’t realize that was the only thing holding you back from saying yes.”

She gave him an annoyed look and a tug on his belt loop as she headed for the stairs. “I don’t recall being asked anything that remotely required me to say yes.”

“Do you want me to call Darien and give him the heads-up concerning our progress?” Tom asked, cell phone in hand.

“Yeah, tell him we’re getting a moving van so it might take a little longer to return home. And you can let him know that we had the shooting incident here at her apartment and gave police statements again. Tell him there’s a little trouble about Alicia’s being sighted at the condo where Ferdinand Massaro died, in case we need to find a lawyer in Denver, and that we’re about ready to go through Alicia’s mother’s things.”