Scarlet Angel (Mindf*ck #3)(22)

“So it’s empty, and this guy is a paraplegic coach helping disabled kids. He survived losing his mother at a young age, his best friend and boyfriend as a teenager, and he’s paralyzed now. Yet he’s the male version of Mother Theresa,” Donny states dryly. “And we’re accusing him of helping a murderer. I repeat: We’re going to hell.”

“Check his van,” I tell him, frustrated. My gut tells me something is up. There was someone in that house, and if he’s not there now, then he’s in the van.

Donny curses before getting out, drawing his weapon as he goes to the back of the van. He reaches out with one hand, testing the door, as I shift my gaze between him and Jacob.

He opens the unlocked door, and I frown. I could have sworn Jacob locked the van.

All that’s in the back of the van is a box marked MEDIA. The entire back is empty other than that.

Donny arches an eyebrow at me, and I wave him back, rolling my eyes. He shuts the doors and gets back in, and we drive away.

“Forget him. Even if he does know who the killer is, there’s no way he’s involved,” Donny says on a sigh.

I drive away, irked. My gut has always been the driving force, and rarely ever do I feel so strongly about something and end up wrong.

Jacob doesn’t even notice us as we pass him. He tosses the ball into the air, getting it to a one-armed little boy on the other end who scores.

By the time I make it back to the office, Hadley is ready to pounce, but I ignore her in favor of moving toward Leonard. “Hey, I need you to pull everything you can find on the Robert Evans case. Let’s see if we can start there, and find out what that damn town is hiding. Somehow, it’s all linked to that. It’s the first domino that set all the others in place.”

He nods, gesturing to his laptop.

“Already working on that. There are so many inconsistencies in that file that it’s ridiculous. Essentially the only thing that convicted him was the DNA at the crime scenes, and even that seems compromised, due to the poor chain of custody the evidence went through. I’m not sure how he got convicted, other than the fact the judge pretty much ignored all the laws set in place to keep things fair and honest.”

“And we know how the Godfather worked things,” I add. “See what you can dig up. Find out why the killings stopped, or even if they stopped. If the unsub successfully framed Evans, he may have just moved towns and changed his MO enough to frame someone else.”

“On it,” Leonard says, going back to work.

I almost run over Hadley when I turn back around.

“Why that look? What’d you find out on Jacob Denver?” she asks me.

She’s wringing her hands, anxious for info. I guess we’re all in knots.

“Nothing. My gut told me there was more to him, but I was apparently wrong.”

“That gut thing gets tricky,” she says, frowning. “What happened?”

“Nothing. Hey, Lisa said she was going to have you look in on someone sending her roses from me?”

“They weren’t from you,” she says immediately.

“I’m aware,” I tell her, confused by how odd she’s acting.

“I mean, there was never anything to state it was from you. Just a dozen roses sent with no card. I guess she just assumed it was you.”

Shaking my head, I look down at the file in front of me.

“Can I go? I’m exhausted and no new leads have come in. I also sent all the forensics I’ve been able to sift through. Some of the rest of it will need a few days to run through the lab.”

I nod, waving her off, and she practically sprints out.

Can’t say I blame her. I don’t enjoy spending so much time here either. Lana has been away on business most of the week, but I finally get at least a little time to myself with her tonight.

As for this case, Delaney Grove people are going to be the end of me.





Chapter 9


If it be a sin to covet honor, I am the most offending soul.

—William Shakespeare



LANA



I hid in a closet from my boyfriend after stupidly spilling a bowl of tacks. I then crawled into a tiny media box in Jake’s van, and hid there for an hour while he did his weekly basketball excursion with his kids that I help fund a special program for. I was stuck there because the box wouldn’t open from the inside.

The prick did that on purpose to teach me a lesson, and I’ll kick his ass later for that.

I’m exhausted and just ready to curl up on the bed until Logan can break away, when I round the hotel hallway and see Hadley glaring daggers at me, waiting by my door.

I wish she’d leave this hotel.

“You!” she hisses.

“What’d I do?” I ask, confused.

“Roses ring a bell?”

I smirk as I push open the door, and she barges by me, ramming her shoulder into mine on the way.

“Want to come in?” I ask dryly.

The door shuts and she whirls around, pointing an accusatory finger at me.

“Don’t get cute, Lana. You sent roses to Lisa. I know it was you. You let her think Logan did it, and now that she knows he didn’t do it, she’s nauseated, certain it was Plemmons.”

I guess Hadley’s humor is on the fritz, because that shit’s funny.