1 Death Comes to Town by K.J. Emrick Read Free Book Online Page B

can’t stop yourself from wanting to help.”
    For just a moment Darcy let herself enjoy the comfort of her sister’s embrace. Then she stepped back from Grace, careful to keep her smile in place. It just didn’t feel right, lying to her sister this way. “I’m glad you understand. I’m alright, really. I want you to know that. I, um, I have to run now. I can see myself out.”
    She began to walk out of the dining room and then stopped. She turned back to Grace. This was the part of her plan that would be tricky. “Um… I haven’t eaten dinner yet. Could you maybe spare me some leftovers before I go?”
    Grace rolled her eyes at her. When Grace walked into the kitchen Darcy bolted for the front hall in search of the police department keys. A small row of key hooks was attached to the wall just inside the door, with car keys and house keys and there next to them, the keys she needed. Quietly, she grasped them and slid them off the hook and into her pocket. Her throat was dry and her pulse pounded in her ears. She’d done it, though. No turning back
    She waited in the living room until Grace came out from the dining room, a plastic container of something in one hand. She shook her head as she handed the food to Darcy. “Come earlier next time. We’ll set a place for you. You know I love you, right Sis?”
    Darcy could only nod as tears threatened to spill from her eyes. She gave Grace a one armed hug and quickly left. She knew Grace would be furious if she ever found out what Darcy had just done. It was the only way, though. She had to know what had happened to Anna.
    ***
    Darcy went straight to the police department. The place certainly looked deserted. Misty Hollow was a small town, and the police department building was only staffed by two officers from seven at night until eleven, when the midnight patrols came on duty. During those hours the place was locked up and anyone needing assistance had to either call the emergency cell phone that one of the officer’s carried, or push a big yellow call button at the front of the building. It was the only window of opportunity she was going to have.
    She couldn’t see any lights on. At the back she tried one key after another in the lock. The third one worked, and checking left and right just to make sure no one had seen her, she slowly opened the door and quickly stepped inside. She pulled a small flashlight from her pocket and switched it on.
    Something jumped at her from the shadows. Hand over her mouth she only just managed to stifle a scream. She followed the darting shape with the beam of her light until it came to rest on the impassive black and white face she knew so well.
    “Smudge!” she gasped at him and then laughed silently at herself. It was just her cat. How on earth had he managed to get here?
    She calmed her racing heart and went over to the row of filing cabinets. Using the smaller key on Grace’s key chain she undid the lock at the top of the set marked “Current Investigations” and opened it up. At the front of the drawer was a brown accordion folder marked with Anna’s name.
    The file contained a brief report on the fog, which had been so bad that night that the main roads going in and out of the town had been closed. Interesting. A few pages back she located the coroner’s report which said that Anna’s time of death was nine o’clock. That would have been right when the fireworks were going off. The report also said that she had died of two gunshot wounds to the chest. Small caliber. Almost no blood.
    Oh, poor Anna.
    Darcy wiped a few tears away from her eyes. She then set the file down on a nearby table and read the report on Anna’s house. There had been no sign of a struggle, which indicated that Anna probably knew her attacker well. There were also two cups of tea on the table, which would indicate that she had been with someone she knew when she died. Darcy shuddered at the thought that someone she probably saw every day right