Ethan wanted to ask if Sienna and he had been together, but that could wait for the interview. He’d need to know Franklin’s and Sienna’s exact locations when this ordeal had started.
“It’s me,” someone called out. Rory. “I’m coming your way.”
“Here,” Ethan replied to let the deputy know their location. “We have Dr. Franklin Voss and a client, Sienna Carrington, on the stairs. Livvy and I have checked all but one room—the doctor’s office.”
Since the gunshots had come from this side of the house, it was possible the shooter was still inside. And that was why Ethan waited until Rory had joined them before he went to the door.
Livvy moved, too, quickly taking up position on the other side with Rory, and Ethan leaned over and tested the knob.Like the other rooms, it was unlocked. He threw open the door, automatically moving into a shooting stance. Moving in beside him, Rory and Livvy did the same.
Ethan made a sweeping glance around. And he cursed.
There were no scattered files or toppled furniture in here. But there was blood. Lots of it. And it was pooled around the woman lying on the floor.
Damn it.
She was dead. Ethan was sure of that. The gunshot wound to the head had seen to that.
Chloe’s now lifeless eyes stared up at him.
Chapter Eleven
Sitting in the break room of the station, Livvy finished yet another statement of her account of a dead woman. The second one in as many days.
And both were connected to New Hope.
Until Livvy had seen Chloe lying dead on the floor, she’d believed Chloe could be a killer. That was possibly still true. She could have murdered Ivy all those years ago and then Zadie when she’d threatened to uncover the truth. But if Chloe was truly guilty, then someone had murdered the killer.
Ethan must have finished his statement, too, because he muttered some profanity under his breath and leaned back from the laptop that he’d been using. Not in Grace’s office this time. Things had been too hectic for them to use that space, and they hadn’t wanted to do reports in the bullpen, considering Grace had ordered all three of their remaining suspects to come in for questioning.
Franklin, Anthony and Vernice.
Livvy doubted any of them were happy about being interrogated, but with two deaths, Grace had more than just cause. Maybe something would come out in the interviews that would help them solve this case.
Since Ethan was in the chair across from the sofa where she was sitting, when he looked up, their gazes connected. She managed a smile. Yes, it was barely there, but she wanted to try to assure him that she wasn’t on the verge of falling apart. Sheprobably failed big time, but he returned a lukewarm smile of his own.
“I want to know what Vernice was doing at New Hope,” he said, voicing something that she, too, wanted. “Whoever questions her will certainly ask about that, but no way is Grace going to allow either of us in that interview.”
Livvy nodded in agreement. It was a conflict of interest, which was too bad because she thought she might be able to trigger Vernice’s rage just by walking into the room. Riled people often spilled more than the calm, calculated ones.
The baby kicked, snapping her mind away from Vernice. Livvy hadn’t meant to grunt, but the movement had been a lot stronger than usual and had surprised her.
“Girl kicks,” she said, smiling for real this time. And watching Ethan’s reaction.
He didn’t give anything away. “Are you sure you don’t want to know the sex of the baby? It’ll make it easier to narrow down names. Mellie for sure if it’s a girl, and if it’s a boy, we can come up with a name for him.”
She considered letting him tell her the gender. And dismissed it. Then, she took a huge emotional risk: “I think I’d rather you tell me right after a kiss. A kiss like the one at the pasture fence before Vernice showed up.”
Again, he didn’t react, and Livvy realized she was holding her breath. Heck. Saying that had been a huge mistake. It was too soon. She was pushing too hard. And Ethan wasn’t ready for that.
“All right,” he finally said.
Livvy blew out her breath and got hit with a whole lot of relief. Relief that brought on some guilt because she’d pushed Ethan into saying that.
“No kiss required,” she backpedaled. She had to give him an out so that it didn’t strain their already strained relationship.
“Livvy, kissing you isn’t a hardship.” But his forehead bunched up, and she saw the slight tightness in his jaw.
No hardship, but it still wasn’t easy for him. Not in some ways at least. The attraction drew them together, but most of the time, they were mindless and ruled by lust.
