“Having both the feelingsandfacts when you’re trying to answer a question isn’t a bad thing,” he said. “When I solve a case I look for evidenceandthe story that fills the spaces in between. The head and the heart. If you don’t have one, there’s no point in having the other.”
“But we’re not looking at a homicide case,” Theo pointed out. “We’re trying to figure out if the new pharmaceutical company is actually doing their jobs or not. That puts me neck-deep in data, and data doesn’t need a story.”
“Dataplusinterviews from the admin, former patients and staff who worked in the research annex where the drug study was taking placecreatesa story,” Winnie returned just as quickly. “One you are, for whatever reason, ignoring because you think facts and figures are never, ever wrong.”
Darius stifled a sigh. He hadn’t solved the problem but instead thrown more fuel on the fire. He rolled his eyes to County 22 through the windshield.
Then that eye roll went to nothing but focused attention.
A little hatchback was parked on the shoulder of road, emergency lights on, and driver’s-side door wide open. A woman was standing in the middle of the road, coat pulled tight around her.
“Look alive,” he told the kids.
Darius wasn’t in a cruiser, but he reached for the walkie-talkie that was always in his personal vehicle, just in case. He slowed, taking in the details as his passengers did the same but with volume. Their feud turned to joint observation in a snap.
“She doesn’t look hurt,” Theo said from the back seat. “No blood or open wounds. The vehicle seems to be in one piece. The tires aren’t flat. At least not the ones I can see.”
He was right. The hatchback was facing the same direction as traffic but from there didn’t seem to be any obvious reason it was disabled.
“She doesn’t look distressed either,” Winnie added. “Maybe a little excited?”
Darius put down his radio.
He agreed.
The woman didn’t look worried or hurt or even a bit stressed.
She did, however, look familiar.
It was an odd feeling that pressed against Darius as he put on his hazards and pulled over onto the side of the road.
Seven Roads was a small town; McCoy County was bigger, but the faces rarely changed. He had been a career local, born to a woman born to the town, and had rarely left the county limits since. Where they were now wasn’t exactly a hot spot of tourism or even a well-traveled road from simple passers-through.
Maybe she was a relative or friend visiting?
Maybe she was new to town?
Maybe she was just lost.
Either way she wasn’t missing an inch of him. Her stare burrowed into him as he pulled to the shoulder.
Then she smiled.
Darius hesitated for the briefest of moments. That smile? It…
The woman started toward them, her pace obviously slower than the easy-to-see excitement spreading through her.
Darius left the engine running and handed the walkie-talkie to Winnie. The girl took it but threw out one last observation before he had the door open.
“She’s wearing a wedding dress!”
The woman’s steps were slow, but her coat fell open at the movement. She didn’t try to cover herself back up as the white fabric became unmistakable against the backdrop of the old county road.
Why would a woman wearing a wedding dress be in the middle of County 22?
“Stay here.”
Winnie and Theo were quiet as Darius left the warmth of vehicle for the crisp cold of the Georgia winter. It would turn his nose red if he stayed out in it for more than a few minutes. The woman had to have been waiting for a bit: her nose was red as she approached him.
