Gretchen dropped into her desk chair and adjusted the reading glasses nestled in her short, spiky brown and gray hair. “I’m not sure I want to know. Where are things with the Barnes case?”
Josie sipped at one of the lattes, savoring the warmth as it slid down her throat. Her body hummed in anticipation of the much-needed caffeine hit. “The short answer? Nowhere. The long answer? Let’s see. Two of Maxine Barnes’s former coworkers also told us that she thought she was being stalked but they never saw any evidence of it. One of them thought she might be using drugs.”
“Just like the doctor thought.”
“Yes. Turner and I went over phone, social media, and email records again. We executed a warrant on her home.Talked to her husband again. There was nothing to indicate a stalker. In the meantime, I put in calls to someone at the American Camellia Society, the International Camellia Society, a local botanist, and a local horticulturist about these flowers. No return calls yet.”
“What about the husband’s phone?”
“Still waiting on those records.” If Dr. Jones’s theory about Charles being Maxine’s stalker was correct, perhaps they’d find some evidence there.
Gretchen sighed. “How about the daughter? Any leads there?”
“She broke up with her boyfriend in June. He said it was amicable.”
“Alibi?”
Josie nodded. “He was on vacation with his family in the Outer Banks. I got in touch with several of her friends using her contact list, text and call history, and social media platforms. None of them knew of anyone Haven was having problems with besides her dad. No evidence of any harassment on social media platforms. She hadn’t expressed any fear of a stalker or unusual feelings of being followed or anything like that. Didn’t mention ever seeing or hearing about her mother being stalked.”
The murders could have been random, committed by someone who had seen the mother and daughter at the festival and followed them, but they had to exhaust every avenue of investigation and, in most cases, the best place to start was with the victims’ personal lives.
Gretchen’s desk phone rang and she snatched it up, barking “Palmer” into the receiver. Josie could tell by the way her shoulders pulled taut that she didn’t like what she heard. After hanging up, she snatched her keys from her desk. “We’ve got a potential missing persons case.”
Josie was on her feet already, the grimace on Gretchen’s face setting off alarm bells in her brain. “What kind of missing persons case?”
“A mother and her teenage daughter.”
FOURTEEN
Wrenching her arm from his grip, her mom took a step back, bumping into the side of the couch. With him looming over her, she went tumbling backward, onto the bed of cushions.
“Mom!” she shouted, jumping up and racing across the room.
Before she could reach the couch, he threw out a hand, making contact with her chest. Between her momentum and his force, the impact punched the air out of her lungs. Her body crumpled, knees hitting the hardwood floor. Pain throbbed in the place he’d hit her.
“Stop!” her mom screeched, scrambling to her feet.
His huge body stood between them. Face tight with fury, he roared, “Sit down!”
It was as though he’d slapped her mom. She froze in place, eyes wide, lower lip trembling. The sight made her stomach twist.
“Wait,” she croaked, reaching for the hem of his shirt. “Wait. She didn’t—didn’t do anything.”
He batted her hand away. “I don’t want to hear it.”
“Leave us alone,” her mom said in a shaky voice.
He laughed but the sound was ugly and sinister. “I don’t think so. Get your things. You’re leaving with me.”
The words were out of her mouth before she could stop them. “No! We’re not going anywhere with you!”
They stared one another down for a long moment. Only her mother’s breathing was audible. She tried not to blink, not to show him any weakness. Tried to calm her heaving chest. Instead of barking more commands or advancing on her, he scanned the room, brow furrowing. “Where’s that asshole?”
“He’s on his way. He’ll be here soon. You should go.”
He snorted. “You think he can protect the two of you?”
“I know he can,” she blurted out, rising to her feet. “Go before he gets here or you’ll be sorry.”
