Love you to Death by Shannon K. Butcher Read Free Book Online

normally be sleeping. “Why wouldn’t he want me to know he was doing that?”
    “Because it logically leads to the next step.”
    “What next step?” she asked.
    “Checking morgues for any Jane Does that have come in since Friday.”
    The image of her sister’s lifeless body lying on a cold metal slab slammed into her, making her sway. The room spun around and Elise held on tight to the toilet to keep herself from spinning away with it.
    “Easy,” said Trent. His voice sounded like it came from a long way off, even though she could feel his strong hands on her arms, anchoring her in place.
    Her stomach gave a heavy lurch, like she was going to be sick again, but nothing came up. Her eyes watered until all she could see was wavering blobs of color, which made her feel even worse. She closed her eyes to shut out the nauseating sight and felt hot tears stream down her cheeks.
    His warm, work-roughened hands slid up and down her arms, holding her steady. His soft, low words of comfort seeped into her, but she didn’t understand them. They gave her something to focus on, something to think about other than the horrifically real images of her dead sister.
    Ashley wasn’t dead. She couldn’t be. Elise would have known if her sister had died, wouldn’t she?
    Elise frantically clung to that notion, gripping it tight in desperation. She needed a shred of hope to help her move on—to keep her strong—so she would use this one. She’d hold it close and let it give her strength.
    Ashley was alive, and Elise was going to find her.
    Slowly, she regained her composure and wiped the tears from her cheeks. Her skin was cold with sweat and her hands vibrated with tension, but at least she could see again.
    Trent was crouched beside her, stroking her spine with a repetitively soothing sweep of his wide palm.
    “Better?” he asked.
    Elise gave a weak nod. “Yeah. Thanks.”
    “I’m sorry,” said Trent. “I guess I shouldn’t have said that.”
    “No. I needed to know. I don’t want to be coddled. If I’m going to find her, I need to know how to do it.”
    “The first thing you need to do is take care of yourself. It’s important that Ashley has a voice to make sure everyone remembers she’s still missing.”
    “Are you saying the police will forget?”
    “No, of course not, but this isn’t their only case. Every time a new one comes in, it pushes Ashley down farther on the list of priorities. You need to be there to keep her at the top.”
    “Believe me, I know how to make myself heard.”
    “I’m sure you do, so long as you don’t get sick. If she
is
in trouble and something happens to you, no one else will be here to champion her.”
    “I’m the wheel that needs to keep squeaking. I get it. This was just a temporary case of nerves. It’s already passed.”
    She pushed away from the toilet, needing to put some distance between her and the nauseating reminder. Trent’s hand fell away, leaving her feeling oddly chilled.
    She washed her hands, rinsed her mouth, and felt him standing behind her. When she glanced in the mirror, she saw the gold flecks in his eyes glittering with concern.
    “I get that. Believe me. But what starts out as a case of nerves can get worse fast. Why don’t you come over to my place for some dinner?”
    The idea of food was immediately revolting. “No, thank you.”
    “You’ve got to eat. Besides, you can show me what you found today. A fresh pair of eyes never hurts.”
    Elise shook her head as she dried her hands and walked to the kitchen for a drink. “I appreciate the offer. I really do, but I have plans tonight.”
    “What kind of plans?”
    “I’m going to Sally’s Bar to talk to anyone who might have seen her Friday.”
    “I don’t think that’s a good idea. Researching her credit card charges is one thing, going out asking questions is something best left to the police.”
    “I’m not going to sit around and do nothing. I can’t. Someone there might know