Total pages in book: 105
Estimated words: 99132 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 496(@200wpm)___ 397(@250wpm)___ 330(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 99132 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 496(@200wpm)___ 397(@250wpm)___ 330(@300wpm)
Huck took out a notepad and reached into his drawer, his very messy, disorganized drawer, to find a pen buried in the back. He fished it out and popped the cap off. It was one of those cheap ballpoint pens he liked best. Reliable. Disposable. Nothing fancy.
Abigail glanced at it and smirked. “You need something a little more official than that.”
“I really don’t,” he murmured, eyes on her face, which looked way too much like Laurel’s. “Do you have any idea who’d want you dead?”
“Besides you?”
For fuck’s sake. “I don’t want you dead, Abigail. I just want you out of Laurel’s life.”
“There’s only one way that’s going to happen, Captain,” she said easily, crossing her legs and revealing toned thighs. It was too damn chilly to be wearing a short skirt, considering it was only spring in the Washington mountains.
Huck deliberately kept his gaze on her eyes and not lower. “Besides the threat from Tim Kohnex and your father’s girlfriend, whom I’m going to meet today, who else do you believe wants you dead?”
“Nobody.” She lifted both hands. “Honestly, I have a few exboyfriends, and I brought you a list.” She reached into her bag and pulled out a folded sheet of paper. “But not one of them wants me dead. I ended things amicably, including with Pastor John. You know he has former military experience, right?”
Huck hadn’t known that. He was still waiting for the background checks from the state. “Was he a sniper?”
“I have absolutely no idea,” Abigail murmured, her eyes glinting as if she found the question amusing or irritating. “Maybe both.”
“I want to tell you really quickly, since we have a moment, how sorry I am about the baby.”
“Thanks. We’re all sorry,” Huck said curtly. “Let’s stay with your case.”
Abigail held up one hand, revealing nails painted bright red—a far cry from the polished, restrained look she’d donned for the courtroom. “No, I’m worried about my sister. It’s a good time for you to make a clean break.”
“Excuse me?” Huck said, ice skittering down his back.
“Oh, please. Laurel needs somebody as intellectual as her to keep her interested. She shouldn’t have to dumb herself down every second. You two started a formal life because of the baby, and the baby no longer exists. You need to let her find someone who can challenge her and keep her entertained. While you’re good-looking and no doubt fit, those attributes don’t last forever.”
There was enough truth in her statement that his temper began to spiral, and he forced it down. Ruthlessly. “Dr. Caine, the last person in the world I’d seek dating advice from is you. Let’s stick to who wants you dead. Is there anybody in your past besides these men?” He took a quick glance at the sheet of paper and noticed a notation. “You were married. Very briefly.”
“It was a bit of a fling,” she said with a careless shrug.
Huck read the name again and then whistled. The guy was a venture capitalist, well-known, probably worth a few billion dollars.
“Yes. Let’s just say my divorce settlement was rather lovely,” Abigail said with a smug tilt of her chin.
“Unbelievable.” Huck shook his head. “Well, he could afford a sniper.”
She waved a dismissive hand. “Oh, he doesn’t want me dead. He’d love to get back together.”
Huck almost believed her. The kind of man with that much money didn’t need to hire a sniper to make his problems disappear and would probably just bury them under piles of cash. “Do you have any known enemies at the church?”
“Not really.” Abigail reached into her bag and pulled out several more pieces of paper. “Here are the death threats I’ve received via email. I’m sure Laurel could trace the IP addresses.”
“So can the state,” Huck said. “We’re keeping the cases separate.”
Her eyes widened, voice pitching up with genuine disbelief. “Why? Both my sister and I were attacked within a day of each other.”
“If so,” Huck said, “that leads to the only real connection between you, and that’s the church and your father. Did he have any close friends? Anybody who would kill for him?”
“Not to my knowledge.”
There had to be more victims out there. “How about women other than Uma Carrington?”
“He dated many,” Abigail said, shaking her head. “Several in the church, but Pastor John would know more about that than I would.”
Zeke Caine had taken off on some supposed sabbatical, and nobody had been able to trace him except to a small community in Arizona. “Where has he been this last year?” Huck asked.
“I truly don’t know,” Abigail admitted. “But it’s not something I cared about. As you know, I did not want him to return home, especially once I discovered Laurel.”
Huck had other state officers digging into Zeke Caine. They were working angles Huck couldn’t cover himself, reaching out to local precincts, running Caine’s name through databases, tracking anything from cheap motel receipts to social media pings.