Justification for Murder by Elin Barnes Read Free Book Online

late.”
    Darcy rubbed his temple. His eye was bothering him again. He nodded for her to continue.
    “The pricks were very small.”
    “Have you narrowed it down? Do you have any ideas what could have been used to make them?”
    She shook her head. “They may have been done with something as common as a pushpin. So no, there are too many things that could have been used to make such small holes.” She reached for a set of color printouts she had taken from the microscope. “See this thing here?” She pointed at one of the holes.
    “Yeah.”
    “Even when you blow it out to this size, you can see that there’s nothing distinctive about it.” Her shoulders hunched over, making her even tinier than she already was. “I’m sorry, Detective. I wish I had better news for you.”
    Darcy left Rachel and walked back to his office, wondering why somebody would have gone to the trouble to puncture the brakes lines of such an old car.

CHAPTER 12
    S affron grabbed the ceramic bowl from the floor and set it on the counter. It was pink and covered in colorful polka dots. In the center the words “Cat’s Food” stood out in royal blue. She filled it with kibble, and Cat jumped onto the countertop, purring while circling and rubbing against Saffron’s arms.
    The bowl made her think about the time when she took her best friend’s little girl to the Petroglyph Ceramic Lounge in Los Gatos several months earlier. Emma and her husband needed some time alone to discuss the different alternatives they faced. She’d noticed a lump in her left breast, and Dr. Leavenworth had strongly recommended doing a biopsy, or removal, rather than waiting another six months. They decided to go for the biopsy, and eight days later they got the results back. It was benign.
    Saffron placed Cat’s bowl back on the floor and remembered the day she had taken Sofia to the ceramic store. They had stopped first to get two big frozen yogurts, filled with sprinkles and hot fudge.
    With dripping cups of halfway-melted yogurt, they entered the Petroglyph store and settled at a table. They almost took more time deciding which ceramic figure they wanted to decorate than actually painting it.
    “I’m not going to tell you what I’m doing,” Sofia said, sitting next to Saffron with a small bowl. She reached for her yogurt and finished it in a few big spoonfuls.
    “Oh no? And why’s that?” Saffron asked, putting some paints on the table.
    “Ouch, ouch,” Sofia complained, closing her eyes and pressing her hand against her forehead.
    “You got a brain freeze? Press your tongue to the roof of your mouth,” Saffron instructed.
    The girl nodded and did, still holding her forehead with her tiny hands.
    “So, why won’t you tell me what you’re going to make?” Saffron asked when the girl’s pain was gone.
    “Because I want it to be a surprise.” Sofia was too young to have a smug smile, but she did.
    Saffron moved a strand of light brown hair out of Sofia’s face. The girl watched her with incredibly large eyes behind matching green-paste glasses. Saffron smiled and began to work. Sofia did the same.
    After a few minutes of deep concentration, Sofia said, “I need some help.”
    “Sure, what is it?”
    “I want to make sure I spell ‘Cat’ the right way.”
    “Okay. Do you want me to help you pick the letters?”
    “Yes!” she said, pushing herself off the table so fast the chair almost fell to the floor. “Sorry,” she apologized, looking embarrassed.
    Saffron smiled, waving her hand, mouthed, “It’s okay.”
    They huddled over the three buckets with letters. Checking one by one took too long, so Saffron grabbed a handful and set them on the table. They both searched.
    “How would you spell ‘Cat’?” Saffron asked.
    “Here, I found a
C
.” Sofia did a happy dance, holding the letter in her tiny hand.
    “That’s excellent. What do we need to find next?”
    “An
A
. Right?”
    “Absolutely.” Saffron picked one and showed it