Shadow Of Suspicion

Detective James’s gaze assessed her again, his calm demeanor somehow quieting her trembles. “Your hands are shaking badly. I don’t think it’s safe that you get behind the wheel.”

“But...then I won’t have a car.” She desperately needed some type of control in her life. She felt like everything was being taken away, and so quickly at that.

“I’ll have one of my guys bring it by later. Sound okay?”

Hesitantly, she nodded. If she protested too much, she’d probably only look guilty. Besides, she was awfully shaky. There was no need to add “auto accident” to an already horrible day.

“I guess so. Thank you.”

* * *

Thirty minutes later, Mark pulled to a stop in front of a nice hotel in an upscale area outside of Richmond. He supposed that he shouldn’t go out of his way for a potential suspect, but she was also potentially innocent. In fact, she was technically innocent until proven guilty. He intended to treat her as such.

He remembered Captain Hendricks’s instructions to him: get on her good side and keep an eye on her. The captain hoped Laney would let something slip and she’d lead them to Sarah.

Mark was uncomfortable with deceit. If it could save a life then he was more inclined to justify his actions, though. He knew what it was like to be in Sol’s shoes—to be sick with worry over a loved one’s disappearance. He had to do whatever was necessary to get the girl back.

Their encounter with Sol still stained his thoughts. The man had been in Laney’s front yard. The other officers had taken his gun and restrained him. But he’d still been able to hurl insults at Laney, calling her every name in the book. Her trembles had returned as he’d walked her to his car.

Laney glanced at the front door of the hotel and then back at Mark. “What’s going to happen to Sol?”

“We’re taking him down to the station.”

Lines of worry appeared at the corners of her eyes. “I don’t want to press charges. He’s just reacting out of grief and anxiety. He doesn’t need any more heartache on top of what he’s already experiencing.”

Her compassion impressed him, especially considering her situation at the moment. “I’ll make sure to pass that along.”

“Thank you for bringing me here. I appreciate it.”

Before she could object again, he opened the door and stepped out. He was walking her inside, whether she liked it or not.

Almost hesitantly she seemed to step out. He sensed her shivering beside him as they ventured through the brisk winter air. Darkness had long since fallen, adding even more eeriness to an already tense situation. He grabbed her bag from the backseat and walked with her to the front desk.

“She needs a single,” he told the clerk behind the counter. A table with coffee and cookies waited beside the check-in desk, and the scent of them both made his stomach rumble.

Lauren had loved chocolate chip cookies. She ate some every night before bed and never gained an ounce. At sixteen, she’d been as skinny as a rail without even trying.

The memory made his heart pang.

Laney pulled a credit card from her wallet and slid it across the counter. The police would be tracking all of her financial movements, of course. They were looking for anything that might give them a hint as to what was really going on here. Finances often showed a trail leading to answers.

With her room key in hand, Mark walked Laney to the second floor of the building and watched as the door to her room clicked open. She turned toward him, trepidation in her gaze. “Thank you... I guess.”

He understood her dilemma. She owed him thanks for saving her life, but after he’d interrogated and accused her, he could see why she wouldn’t want to express her gratitude. Gratefulness and bitterness collided.

“Call me if you need anything,” Mark instructed.

Her big, wide eyes looked up at him. “I don’t have a phone.”

“Use the hotel phone.”

She nodded and looped a hair behind her ear. “Of course.”

“Don’t leave town.”

“I can’t. I don’t have a car.”

“We’ll probably have more questions for you.” He felt hesitant to leave—but why? Some kind of instinct urged him to protect her, yet he didn’t want his compassion toward her to cloud his judgment. He had to keep it in check.

“I wouldn’t expect any less.”

Finally, he nodded. “Well, good night, then.”

She seemed to force a smile. “Good night.”

She closed the door, and Mark heard the locks click in place. With Laney safe and secure in her room, Mark started back down to his car. He’d scanned the hotel as they’d walked. There appeared to be three major exits. One at the front, one at the back, and one at the side near the pool area. It would be impossible to keep an eye on all three. But Laney’s room was closest to the side exit, so he needed to position himself for the best angle of that door.

He suspected Laney wouldn’t try anything, that she would stay put for the evening. She probably wouldn’t be getting much rest—she looked too wound up and wired for that. But, just in case she did leave, he parked his car and started his surveillance. And in the meantime, he had his computer with him so he could do more research.

Out of curiosity, he typed in her name on a search engine. A news article about her husband’s death popped up. He cringed at the details.

Nate Ryan had been found stabbed in his bedroom. The killer had never been caught, but authorities thought it was a home invasion gone wrong due to some missing jewelry and cash.

Laney had discovered her husband’s body. He could only imagine how that had messed with her psychological well-being. Every detail of scenes like that would ingrain themselves into the minds of loved ones.

Mark still vividly remembered the first time he’d been called to the scene of a homicide. Every detail was burned into his mind. Since then, he’d learned to compartmentalize better. But he couldn’t imagine finding a loved one like that.

It had been hard enough hearing about the murder of a family member. His sister, Lauren, had been abducted by their stepdad. Ralph had denied his involvement for weeks, but Mark had always known the truth. Six months later, Lauren’s body was discovered in the woods by some hunters. She’d been shot. When his stepfather learned she’d been found, he’d quickly realized—maybe because of paranoia or guilt—that he would be a suspect. His solution was to kill himself—and Mark’s mother.

According to his suicide letter, his stepdad had wanted his mom’s attention all for his own. He and Lauren had been arguing and not seeing eye to eye. His stepdad had decided it would be easier to kill Lauren than it would be to try and work things out.

Anger had burned within Mark for months—for years, truth be told. He’d wished that things could be different, that he could have seen the signs earlier, that he could have predicted the future and saved both his mom and his sister.

Thankfully he’d found Jesus during that hard time. His relationship with God had turned his life around and had literally saved him from the depths of despair that threatened to consume him. He’d been in a bad place, but eventually all of that had led him to go into law enforcement. He’d abandoned a successful career in sales, searching for something that would be more fulfilling and make more of an impact. Being a detective had done just that.

He snapped from his thoughts as he saw movement in the distance near the side exit. Was that... Laney? He straightened, zeroing his gaze on the figure.

A woman stepped from the hotel, looked both ways, and then darted toward a gas station in the distance. It was definitely Laney, he realized. But what was she doing? If she was innocent, why was she acting so suspiciously right now?

He watched carefully as she hurried inside the gas station. She stayed there for six minutes until a cab pulled up and then she jumped into the backseat, and the car pulled away. Wasting no time, Mark followed the vehicle.

Was this the big moment? Would Laney lead him to Sarah? Or would that be too easy?

He stayed a safe clip behind them, trying not to tip Laney off that she was being followed. As the roads became familiar, he realized she was going back to her house. Had she remembered evidence she’d left there? Was she going back to destroy it?

He remained at the corner and watched as the cab dropped Laney off at the curb a moment later. She looked all around her before sprinting toward her house and slipping inside.

Mark waited until the cab pulled away before he approached the house. He withdrew his gun as he slunk toward the front door. He had no idea what he might find inside, and he had to use every precaution necessary. Maybe she really was dangerous, and his gut had been wrong.