Justice Delayed (Memphis Cold Case #1)(49)

“So do I, Counselor.”

He walked outside with them, and the skin on the back of his neck prickled when he didn’t see Andi. Where was she? It was unlike her to miss out on anything. As Laura and Spencer pulled away, Brad turned into the drive.

“Who was that?” he asked as he stepped out of his white Suburban.

“Laura Delaney.” Will scanned the yard. “She was picking up clothes for Wilson’s funeral. Evidently had a key. Have you talked to Andi? She was in the car when I went in the house, and now she’s gone.”

Brad’s face flushed as red as a match head, and for a second, Will thought his friend’s head might explode.

“You brought Andi here? Why? This is police work; she doesn’t belong here. And if Wilson was murdered, Andi might get hurt.”

He’d known Brad wouldn’t like her being at the house, but his reaction went beyond what he expected. “The director approved—” He stopped when Andi came around the corner of the house. “Where have you been?”

Andi ignored his question and planted herself in front of her brother. “I heard that. Just what’s wrong with me being here? Stephanie was my sister too. Besides, I’m a volunteer sheriff’s deputy, and I completed the MPD Citizen Police Academy. And if that’s not enough, your director gave me permission to document this investigation for my cold case series.” She stopped long enough to take a breath and then added, “You should have the email in your inbox.”

Will tried not to laugh. Some sisters cajoled, but not Andi. She got her ducks in a row and laid out her case.

“This case has nothing to do with Stephanie’s, which isn’t even a cold case,” Brad said, shooting a dark look at Will, “but evidently I can’t do anything about you being here.” He palmed his hands up. “Just don’t get in the way. And nothing leaves this site. No photos, no conversations. Nothing.”

She saluted him. “Yes, sir.”

“And try to think before you rush into something,” he added.

That was a low blow, and Will gave her an encouraging smile as he handed her a pair of latex gloves. “Wear these when we go inside,” he said to her, “and if you find anything, let me know.” Then he turned to Brad. “You were telling me about the investigation . . .”

His friend took out a notebook. “The woman two doors down went to church with Lacey and confirmed the ex-husband’s statement that she was there every time the doors opened. A couple of the neighbors believe if it is suicide, the husband drove her to it, and if it’s murder, he did it.”

“I don’t believe she committed suicide,” Andi said.

Neither did Will. “Did any of them mention the mechanic that Lacey was having problems with?”

“Yeah, the neighbor who called Adam Matthews. And the neighbor across the street saw a man lurking in the neighborhood this week. But the description she gave would fit about any white male over six feet tall. The one thing all of them mentioned was Lacey’s depression.” He put the notebook away. “How about you. Did you discover anything at the scene of the wreck?”

“The right tie rod came loose from the steering mechanism, causing Johnson to lose control.”

“An accident?”

“Evidently the state trooper doesn’t feel that way. He called in the TBI to look at it.”

“You’re still trying to pull a rabbit out of the hat, Will. Let’s go in and see if we can find any real evidence.”

Will followed his friend into the house.

“Exactly what are we looking for?” Andi asked.

“A suicide note would be nice. Barring that, anything that gives a clue as to why she died, and evidence she might have been murdered,” Brad said over his shoulder.

“So you do think she was murdered.” Andi’s voice rose in triumph.

He turned around. “No, just covering all the bases until the medical examiner makes a ruling. While he confirmed she was intoxicated with a blood alcohol level of .15, that wasn’t enough to kill a woman of her size. I figure she drank to give herself courage to commit suicide. She even rinsed her wine glass when she finished.”

“Why didn’t she throw the wine bottle away?” Will asked. His gut feeling said it wasn’t suicide.

“That and no suicide note are why we’re looking for more evidence.”

Andi pulled on the gloves. “She may have been drinking when she called me Tuesday morning. She didn’t make a lot of sense, other than insisting that I meet her at the airport.”

Brad gaped at her. “Why haven’t you told me this before?”

“Because when I asked if she was drinking, she said no, that she hadn’t slept in days. Sleep deprivation does that, you know.”

“Do you remember exactly what she said?” her brother asked.

“Not really. Something about a journal she had. I assumed it was things she’d written about Steph.”

“If anything comes to you, write it down. Anything that might give us a clue to her frame of mind.”

Will slipped his hands into a pair of gloves as he crossed the living room floor. It didn’t make sense that a woman who was flying to Hawaii later that day would commit suicide. He stopped to ask Andi a question, and she crashed into him, losing her balance.