A Fairy Tale by Shanna Swendson Read Free Book Online Page A

wasn’t the only one to react to the question. For the first time during this interview, Sophie’s steely composure faltered. It wasn’t an extreme reaction, just an overall tensing and a tightening of the muscles around her eyes, and for a split second, she broke eye contact with Tanaka, but it was more of a response than she’d shown thus far. She looked mildly furious, and Michael wouldn’t have been surprised if Tanaka had turned to stone from her glare.
    She lifted her chin ever so slightly, fixed Tanaka with her steady gaze, and said, “You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”
    “Try me.”
    “Okay, then, I had a feeling.” She said it simply and directly, without stammering or looking at all embarrassed.
    Tanaka raised his eyebrows and smirked. “A feeling ?”
    “A wake-up-in-the-middle-of-the-night-knowing-something’s-horribly-wrong feeling.”
    “You mean a nightmare?”
    She shook her head. “No. A feeling. That’s the only way I can describe it. I knew something was wrong with Emily.”
    Tanaka cocked his head, radiating skepticism. “You flew to New York from Louisiana because you had a ‘feeling’ something was wrong with your sister?”
    “My feelings tend to be accurate. It’s a family trait. For instance, my father died of a heart attack in his office. I was out shopping with my grandmother, and right there, in the middle of the store, we looked at each other and knew something was wrong, so we headed to his office. We got there before his secretary found him. So, yes, a feeling is enough for me to take action.” She shrugged. “I figured if I was wrong, Emily and I could have a good laugh and spend some time together, but if I was right, then the sooner I got here, the better.” Her voice took on a sharp, challenging tone. “And, as it turns out, I was right, wasn’t I?”
    Michael was an expert at detecting lies. He spent a good part of his working days asking people questions and trying to figure out how much of what they said was true. Over the years, he’d learned to spot all the little clues that indicated a lie, from body language to facial expression to tone of voice and even the way things were phrased. And it looked to him like Sophie was telling the truth. This wasn’t an elaborate cover-up.
    Tanaka seemed to have the same assessment. His eyes widened, then after a momentary pause, he said, “When did you have this feeling?”
    “At about half past one, my time, so that would have been two thirty here.”
    “So whatever happened to her would have happened at about that time?”
    “That is the way it seems to work, yes.”
    “And whatever that was would have been bad?”
    “I’m afraid so. She was terrified, and it was like she was calling me to come help.”
    “She hasn’t mentioned any stalkers or overzealous fans, has she? To either of you?”
    “I don’t think she’d tell me,” Sophie said. “She wouldn’t want me to worry.”
    “She would tell me,” Michael said, “but she hasn’t mentioned anything.” That earned him a quick glance from Sophie, the first time she’d acknowledged his existence since the interview began. “She once said she was glad to have a cop living upstairs,” he explained.
    “You haven’t received any ransom demands, have you?” Tanaka asked.
    “I believe that’s the sort of thing I would have mentioned up front,” she drawled dryly.
    Tanaka got Sophie’s contact information, flipped his notebook closed, then said, “Thank you for your time, and for your honesty. Now, I’d better get a look at Emily’s apartment. I’ll have to take her computer so we can see if there’s anyone she’s been communicating with.”
    She nodded. “Yes, of course. Detective Murray has a key.”
    Michael stood with some effort. He was long overdue for a painkiller, and he felt like someone was stabbing him repeatedly in the upper chest with a chisel. It would be good to turn the key and the situation over to Tanaka so he could