Shadow Of Suspicion

Laney blinked. “What?”

“You heard me. You’re free to go.”

She stared at him a moment before quickly standing, almost as if she feared he’d change his mind. “Okay, then.”

“I’ll drive you home,” Mark said.

“That won’t be necessary. I can—”

“I insist,” Mark said. “It’s for your safety.”

“My safety?” She blinked again. “You think I’m in danger?”

“People don’t take kindly to child abductors. We need to take every precaution possible.”

She stared at him another moment before nodding. “I see. That’s fine, then.”

Mark escorted her outside and into his car. Awkward tension crackled between them as he started down the road. Laney crossed her arms and stared out the window. She was obviously uncomfortable. So was he, for that matter. But he would do whatever it took to find the missing girl.

Rush hour traffic was in full swing, and the sun was already sinking low enough to cause a blinding winter glare as he headed west.

What if Laney was innocent? Allegations like these could turn her life upside down in a way that was hard to recover from.

Then he remembered the text message. He couldn’t overlook that.

“Tell me again what you do for a living, Ms. Ryan.”

She continued to stare out the window. “I work for a company called CybCorp.”

“What exactly do you do for them?” They’d been over some of that already, but it seemed like a safer—friendlier—conversation than bringing up Sarah again.

Build trust. That was what he needed to do if he wanted to find answers. He’d had the opportunity to do that very thing with the man who’d killed his sister. If he could go back, he would go through whatever means necessary to make the man open up. Maybe Lauren would still be alive if he’d tried a little harder, if he’d pressed a little deeper, if he hadn’t given people the benefit of the doubt. He hadn’t been a cop back then, but he’d been in contact with the perp all along; he just hadn’t realized it.

“I’m a programmer. CybCorp handles security for various businesses throughout the country. They’re a smaller company, but they’re reputable and they allow me to work from home.”

“Must get lonely working at home.”

She cut a sharp glance his way. “Let me guess—you’re trying to trap me into confessing I abducted Sarah because I was lonely.”

He shook his head. He actually hadn’t been. He’d just tried to imagine what it would be like being single and also working alone. “I was just making conversation.”

Her shoulders slumped slightly. “I like solitude, believe it or not.”

“You said earlier that you’re not married.” He already knew the answer, but he needed to develop some rapport with her. He’d read the police report—these details didn’t appear relevant to the current investigation but were essential for putting together a psychological profile of Laney.

Laney frowned, staring out the window and rubbing her hands together. “No, I’m not. Not anymore. I’m widowed.”

“I’m sorry.”

“I’m sure you are.” Her shoulders slumped even more, as if the burdens she carried overwhelmed her. “Sorry. You didn’t deserve that one.”

“What happened?” He kept his words soft and light.

“He survived Afghanistan, only to be killed by a home intruder here in the States. He’d only been home for three weeks when it happened.” Her voice cracked and she finished with a deep gulp of air.

“I can’t imagine. How long ago did that happen?”

A new somberness washed over her. “Three years. I was down in Norfolk at the time. I decided to get a fresh start here in Richmond afterward. There were too many memories down there. I had to get away.”

“Makes sense. How did the two of you meet? A computer programmer and a navy SEAL.”

“Proof that opposites attract, I suppose. I was actually in my last semester at MIT. I came with some friends down to Virginia Beach. I nearly got pulled out to sea by a riptide. Thankfully, Nate was there with some of his SEAL buddies. We were an unlikely pair, but Nate wasn’t the type who always had to be macho and tough. He liked watching sitcoms and eating popcorn with melted mints at the bottom and playing old-school arcade games. We were inseparable after that. I graduated and got a job down in Norfolk so I could be near him. We got married four months later.”

“Sounds like a nice story.”

“Yeah, it is...it was.” She absently rubbed her arms. “I know you probably won’t believe me, but I was actually planning on being at that school banquet with Sarah tomorrow night. I’m incredibly sad that won’t be happening. I’d been so looking forward to it.”

“You like Sarah?”

“She’s a great girl. Smart. Curious. Personable.”

“Let me guess. She reminds you of yourself at that age.”

A sad smile tugged at her lips. “Actually, she kind of does. It might sound crazy or maybe even expected. I don’t know. But I guess I did see part of myself in her—my old self, at least. I’m not that person anymore.”

He pulled to a stop in front of her house. It seemed the press hadn’t caught wind of this case because they were surprisingly absent, and, at the moment, all the neighbors were inside their houses. Hopefully that meant no drama. The front door had been temporarily fixed—more to prevent an insurance claim than to be helpful.

Laney’s hand went to the door handle, and she turned toward him. “Thank you.”

He nodded toward her house. “I’m going to walk you in.”

She visibly bristled at his announcement, as if the very idea offended her. “You don’t have to do that.”

“I do,” he insisted. “I need to make sure your door was put back on its hinges and that no one is nosing around your place. Believe me, it happens. No more tragedies today.”

She seemed to hesitate before nodding. “No more tragedies.”

They climbed out of the car and started through the dry grass toward the porch.

At the door, Laney slid her key into the lock and paused, her lungs heaving with what he assumed was anxiety. Inside, there were probably too many bad memories for her. The invasion. The accusations. The interrogation that followed. Besides, the flash bang could shake up the steadiest of personalities.

“Let me go first,” he said.

Before she could argue, Mark slipped past her. He kept his hand on his gun as he walked from room to room. This time, he saw the house through different eyes. No longer as a potential suspect’s place, but instead as the residence of someone whose life had been turned upside down.

He saw pictures on the wall and on the entryway table of Laney with a man whom he presumed to be her deceased husband. He saw the pictures of vacations together. Of Laney in front of the Christmas tree. Of the smiling couple standing in front of a backdrop of autumn-entrenched mountains.

She appeared to have had, at one time, a full life.