Stolen Daughters by Carolyn Arnold (top novels TXT) 📗

His admission seemed sincere, but Amanda was still interested in getting a better feel for the couple. “She lives in Madison, Wisconsin. Has been there since September, right?”

“That’s right. It’s where her folks are, but she nested up with some dentist out there. Apparently, they used to be high-school sweethearts. He’s got lots of family money too. She’s not looking back. Trust me.”

It would seem Susan Burke was off the suspect list, but Glenn Burke remained, even if not at the top. He was holed up in some horrible apartment, in debt, with a marriage about to be dissolved. It was time for Amanda to be a little more direct. “There was a young woman found in the house. She had been murdered.” She watched him for a reaction but didn’t get any. She wished she had a picture of Jane Doe to show him, but typically it was frowned upon to show photos taken at a crime scene to civilians—even if they were suspects. “Could you tell us anything about her?”

“No, how could I— Oooh.” His eyes widened as the implication sank in. “You think that I… that I—” He rubbed his jaw.

“You could have been angry with the bank, the direction of your life,” Amanda put out there. “You could have finally had enough.”

He swallowed roughly, and his facial expression soured. “And what? Killed some random girl? And tell me, do killers usually vomit in their mouths?”

She made a show of considering, even though she had to admit that the likelihood Glenn was the person they were after was slim.

“They do?” Glenn blanched, seeming to jump to a conclusion from the silence.

“Uh, maybe you could just tell us where you were this morning from, say, four until six?” Trent asked, covering the time-of-death window and then some.

“I was in bed.”

“Can anyone verify that?” Trent looked ready to write down a name and number.

Glenn shook his head and frowned. “Unfortunately not. My date last night didn’t exactly go according to plan.”

She gave Glenn her card and said, “Call me once you solidify your alibi.”

“How am I supposed to do that?”

“Just speak with your neighbors, Mr. Burke. Maybe someone can confirm you were home.” She got up and stepped into the hallway with Trent.

He closed the door behind them. “I don’t think he did it.”

“Me neither, but sometimes we need more than our gut feelings.”

“What we need is to make some headway,” he mumbled. “So far, we’re not making much at all.”

“That’s how it works sometimes, but we keep asking questions and talking to people, and if we’re doing it right, eventually we get to the truth and we catch a killer.”

They got into the department car, and the clock on the dash told them it was quarter to six. The autopsy was in forty-five minutes, and they had a thirty-minute drive to get there.

“Take us through a drive-thru for something to eat. We’ll chow down on the way, but you’ll need to step on it if we’re going to make it to Manassas in time.” Her phone rang and caller ID came up as Alibi. Otherwise known as Logan Hunter. Long story made short, he’d been her alibi in a previous murder case. Someday she’d get around to renaming the contact. “Detective Steele.”

“Detective. I’ll never get tired of hearing you say that.”

Her belly fluttered, and her core flushed hot at the sound of his voice. Logan was her new… Whatever he was, he was good in bed. “I’m working a case. Is there something I can help you with?”

“Ouch. So cold.”

She laughed at his mocked offense. “Don’t be so sensitive.”

“Easy for you to say, you’re a bad-ass cop.”

Trent glanced over at her, and she pushed closer toward the door, as if the extra half inch would give her the privacy she wanted. “I can’t talk right now.”

“Okay, well, I’ll figure out what to do with this prime rib steak all on my own, then.”

All on my own… Then her mind cleared. It was Thursday night, and he was supposed to be cooking them dinner at her place. “Oh! I’m so sorry. I completely forgot.”

“It’s okay. Really. You got a case. It happens.” He talked like he was a cop and understood the job, but he worked in construction.

“I really am sorry.” Her stomach was grumbling. She’d only been seeing Logan for the last few months, but he was an amazing cook. “I’ll take a rain check if you’re handing them out.”

“For you, I’ll make an exception.”

“Thank you. Again, I’m sorry about this.”

“I’ll make sure you make up for it.” He chuckled and hung up.

Trent looked over at her. “Logan?”

“Just watch the road.” She pointed out the windshield. She could tell that Trent was just expressing interest, but she didn’t exactly want to chat with her partner about her lover. She was uncomfortable enough with the situation she’d found herself in with Logan. It was somewhere between dating and the one-night stand where they had begun. After losing the love of her life, she didn’t believe it would come again. That kind of romance only happened once in a lifetime. While Logan was fun to hang out with, easy to talk with, had culinary skills to rival a gourmet chef, and an incredible sense of humor, what they had was casual at best. That’s really all she wanted out of life at this point. But life had taught her before just how unpredictable it could be.

Ten

He’d been so busy he had missed seeing his work on the six o’clock news. It was about six thirty now, and all the headline stories would be over and done. But he had good reason for being late. Besides client appointments, he had taken care of a personal matter. He smiled thinking about what he had done. It might have been risky, but it had felt right.

He let himself into his mother’s farmhouse. She was puttering around in the kitchen, wearing an apron and singing some Louis Armstrong song