His mom answered right away. “Did you find Kurt?”
“I’m out front.”
“Oh, no,” his mom murmured.
As he made his way up the walkway, she swung open the front door. Her dark hair was tucked behind her ears, her diamond earrings catching the light from the foyer chandelier.
“Are you alone?” he asked, stepping into the house.
“Yes,” she replied. “You don’t look good.”
The fear in her eyes broke his heart.
“We should sit.” Rebel put his arm around her, guided her to the living room, sat beside her on the sofa.
Tears filled her eyes. “He’s gone, isn’t he?”
Rebel’s guts roiled. Another family tragedy, only this time, he was telling her the bad news.
“Kurt was murdered. Kayleen, too.”
She gasped. “What happened?”
“The Alphabet Killer.”
“No, Joaquin.” His mom started crying, and he put his arms around her and held her.
Moments passed before she choked back a sob, steeled her spine. “How do I tell Auntie and Uncle?”
“I gave the detective their contact info. They should hear it from her.”
“This is so heartbreaking,” she murmured. “What else do you know?”
“Mom, I found them deceased.”
After a long silence, she murmured, “It’s like Dad, all over again.”
His stomach dropped. “I know.”
“Will you be working this case?”
“No.”
More silence.
“Did you get a chance to read Dad’s file?”
“Yeah.”
“I hope you find that son of a bitch and you show him no mercy.”
Whoa.
“What wouldyoudo if you found Dad’s killer?” he asked.
She shrugged. “No matter what I did or didn’t do, it wouldn’t bring Dad back.”
“Tell me. What would you do?”
