A Faint Cold Fear by Karin Slaughter Read Free Book Online Page B

have lost another.
    As Jeffrey rounded the corner, Cathy Linton was laughing at something Eddie had said. They were sitting on the back deck, oblivious as they listened to Shelby Lynne and enjoyed a lazy Sunday afternoon the way most everybody else in Grant County was doing today. Cathy sat in a sling-back chair, her feet propped up on a stool as Eddie painted her toenails.
    Sara's mother was a beautiful woman with just a little gray in her long blond hair. She must have been close to sixty, but she still had a lot going for her. There was something sexy and down-to-earth about Cathy that Jeffrey had always found appealing. Though Sara insisted she was nothing like her mother tall where Cathy was petite, curvy where Cathy was almost boyishly thin - there were a lot of things the two women shared. Sara had her mother's perfect skin and that smile that made you feel like you were the most important thing on the planet when it was directed at you. She also had her mother's biting wit, and she knew how to put you in your place while making it sound like a compliment.
    Cathy smiled at Jeffrey when she saw him, saying, 'We missed you at lunch.'
    Eddie sat up in his chair, screwing the top back onto the fingernail polish, grumbling something Jeffrey was glad he could not hear.
    Cathy turned up the music, obviously remembering it from the wedding. She sang along in a low, throaty voice, 'I'm confessin' that I love you…' with such a joyful teasing in her eyes, her eyes that looked so much like Sara's, that he had to look away.
    She turned the music down, sensing that something was wrong, probably thinking he was having an argument with Sara. She said, 'The girls should be back soon. I don't know what's taking them so long.'
    Jeffrey made himself walk closer. His legs felt unsteady, and he knew that what he was about to say would change everything. Cathy and Eddie would always remember this afternoon, this time when their lives had been completely turned upside down. As a cop, Jeffrey had done hundreds of notifications, told hundreds of parents and spouses and friends that their loved one had been hurt or, worse, would not be coming home. None had struck him as closely as this one did. Telling the Lintons would be almost as bad as being in that clearing again, watching Sara break down as Tessa bled out, knowing that there was nothing he could do to help either of them.
    Jeffrey realized they were staring at him because he had been quiet for too long. He asked, 'Where's Devon?' not wanting to do this twice.
    Cathy gave him a questioning look. 'He's at his mama's,' she said, using the same tone Sara had used less than an hour ago with Tessa: tight, controlled, scared. She opened her mouth to ask the question, but nothing came out.
    Jeffrey climbed the steps slowly, wondering how he could do this. He stood on the top step, tucking his hands into his pockets. Cathy's eyes followed his hands, his bloody, guilt-stained hands.
    He saw her throat move as she swallowed. She put her hand to her mouth, sudden tears glistening in her eyes.
    Eddie finally spoke for his wife, giving voice to the only question the parent of two children can ask, 'Which one?'

THREE
    Lena used her twisted ankle as an excuse to lag behind Chuck, knowing that her temper would flare if he tried to make conversation. She needed a couple of minutes to herself to think about what had happened with Jeffrey. Her mind would not let go of the way he had looked at her. Jeffrey had been angry with Lena before, but never like today. Today he'd actually hated her.
    In the last year, Lena's life had been one long series of fuck-ups, from losing her job to sliding on her ass down the riverbed. No wonder Jeffrey had pushed her off the force. He was right; she was unreliable. He could not trust her because time and time again Lena had proved she did not deserve it. This time she might have cost him the man who'd stabbed Tessa Linton.
    'Keep up, Adams,' Chuck tossed over his