Deceptive Truth: Cowboy Justice Association (Serials and Stalkers Book 4) by Olivia Jaymes (psychology books to read .TXT) 📗

The shop wasn't super busy, only a few tables occupied at this time of the day. Knox asked the young female barista how long she'd been working there and that started the conversation rolling. Within a few minutes, he had three of the workers there that remembered Lori.

"She was always really sweet and nice," the young man said, nodding his head. "Never upset or short if there was a long wait. Always polite."

"She had the same order every day," the redhead told them. "We'd see her walk in and she'd wave, always wearing a big smile. She'd ask about us and always seemed to really care what was going on in our lives."

"How sure are you that Lori came in that exact date? You said she came in here pretty much every day," Knox said.

The other young woman who hadn't said much jumped in. "I know for a fact that it was that day. It was the day I had to take my cat to the vet because she was so sick. I thought she wasn't going to make it. She's okay now but I wouldn't forget a day like that. Lori was definitely here."

"Did you tell the detective that?" Knox asked.

The girl shook her head. "No, he never asked me. I never saw him."

"Kelly wasn't scheduled the day that the cop came to ask questions," the young man explained. "He said that he was going to come back to talk to Kelly but he never did."

"I left a message for him at his office," Kelly said. "I told whoever answered the phone what I just told you."

Jenna had already been frustrated with Detective Bauer but now she was just plain mad. He'd ignored an eyewitness. What an asshole.

Knox didn't look any happier than she felt. His lips were pressed together in a thin line and his blue eyes were icy cold.

"When Lori was here with her ex-boyfriend, did you hear what they were talking about?"

"No, but...” the young man's voice trailed off for a moment. "It looked like she didn't want to be here if you know what I mean. She wasn't her usual smiling self. She kept shaking her head no, over and over. Eventually, the two of them stood up and walked out. The guy kept trying to take Lori's hand but she kept shaking him off and pulling it away. That's the last time I saw her. Or him. He hasn't been in either."

This. Right here. This was why she suspected Cal Owens. A peek at Knox's expression didn't tell her what he was thinking, however. He wasn't giving anything away.

"Do you have any security cameras?" Knox asked, his gaze scanning the shop. "Inside or outside?"

"We do but they don't hold the footage for more than twenty-four hours," the redhead said. "The detective asked us that, too."

At least Bauer had done that much.

Knox pulled a business card from his shirt pocket. "If you think of anything else, even if it doesn't seem all that important, give me a call. Day or night. You never know what small details might mean to an investigation."

The baristas promised that they would get in contact if they thought of anything else before Jenna and Knox took their leave, walking back to their vehicle.

"I'm not sure what I expected, but I'm a little disappointed," Jenna confessed. "We didn't learn much of anything that we didn't know before."

"That's how this works. We have nothing and then hopefully we finally find something. Then we follow that something until we find something else."

"What happens if we don't find something else?"

Jenna was afraid to ask the question but she needed the answer.

"We'll find something." Knox's tone was upbeat. Determined. "I'm not going to give up easily."

Neither would she.

13

The words of the workers at the coffee shop kept echoing in Knox's head. His brother Cal had been there with Lori that day. Lori hadn't been happy, had kept saying no, and Cal, as usual, had been trying to talk her into something. He'd probably been pissed off that he couldn't charm her anymore. She'd finally figured out Cal's game and wasn't falling for it again.

But she had walked out with him. Shit. Had Cal offered to walk her to her car? Had she tried to get rid of him but he'd insisted? Damn, Knox didn't like this. After hearing their stories, Jenna had to be thinking the same thing as well.

Cal had a hell of a lot of explaining to do. Knox wasn't going to be nearly as nice as Detective Bauer had been. His brother may have been the last person to see Lori Waters alive and well. Even if he didn't do anything wrong, he still might have important information that could help the investigation.

"I know, I know. Let you do the talking and asking questions," Jenna said with an eye roll when they entered Lori's former workplace. Knox wanted to talk to her co-workers and see what they knew about her life, friends, and yes, Cal.

"It doesn't mean you can't say anything. You're allowed to ask questions too."

Jenna wasn't one that absolutely had to say something though. She was more of a listener.

That would be good because later they could discuss everything they'd learned today.

The people on Lori's "team" at the marketing firm had agreed to sit down with Jenna and Knox and answer questions. According to Jenna, Lori had been well-liked at her workplace and everyone was upset about her disappearance. They wanted to help if they could.

Jenna, Knox, and the four other members of Lori's team gathered in a conference room at the back of the building that overlooked