Smoky Mountain Investigation by Annslee Urban Read Free Book Online Page B

me to move on. Still, I should have discussed it with you. I shouldn’t have turned my back on you like I did.”
    “Don’t.” She waved a dismissive hand. “Please, no explanation. We had already broken up. You owed me nothing.”
    How wrong she was. Nick wasn’t about to leave that misconception hanging. “Kylie—” He looked into her eyes, but her gaze swung beyond his shoulder toward the glass door behind him as it squeaked open.
    “Have you found anything interesting?” Kylie’s eyebrows lifted and her hopeful tone bumped up a notch.
    “Not yet.” Dave shuffled into the room. He removed the stack of files from a chair and dropped into it. “We’re still waiting to hear back from the lab. They’re looking over the evidence gathered at the scene. We should have a report by morning.”
    “What is the probability of a fingerprint match?” Kylie divided her hopeful glance between Nick and Dave.
    “Slim.” Dave beat Nick to the punch.
    “Sorry, Kylie.” Nick folded his arms across his chest before he gave in to the urge to reach over to comfort her again. He’d roused enough old feelings...for both of them. “The box was obviously planted for us to find. This guy isn’t going to be careless.”
    “That’s right.” Dave grunted in agreement.
    “And what about suspects?” Nick met Dave’s weary gaze.
    “At the moment, everyone in our graduating class is on our list.”
    Nick nodded. “Good, I was hoping you’d start there.”
    Kylie kneaded her hand across her forehead, pushing it back into her hair. “I don’t know what to do. Leave town. Get a hotel room.”
    A problem Nick could help her with. “My brother’s house. Remember? His guest room awaits. I’m next door in the apartment above the store.”
    “Then again—” Kylie tipped her head and he could just about see the wheels turning. “It doesn’t seem very logical that the killer would come anywhere near my house. He knows the police are anticipating his next move. I’m sure I’ll be safe.”
    Denial or stubbornness? Nick bet on the latter. That hadn’t changed. Nick took a deep breath. “We’re not talking about someone with a rational mind. You shouldn’t be taking chances.”
    “But—”
    “It wouldn’t hurt to be cautious,” Dave ground out.
    Kylie’s eyes skittered back to Dave. “Can’t you have an officer patrol my street?”
    A frown puckered Dave’s brow as he stared back at her, a heavy silence weighting the air around them. “Not often enough to guarantee your safety. Besides, you’re pretty isolated where you live.”
    Kylie pushed her chair away from the table and stood. “Well, then, I guess I don’t have much choice.” She pulled her handbag from the back of the chair. “Nick, if you don’t mind accompanying me to my house to pick up a few things, I’ll take you up on your offer. That is, if you’re sure.”
    “Absolutely.” Nick wanted to say more. Something to make her more comfortable about the new living arrangements. He knew what she was thinking: being thrown together was going to be awkward for both of them.
    Nothing encouraging came to mind. Still, he was glad she hadn’t resisted staying so close to him. It made keeping up with her easier. Whether Nick liked it or not, he was knee-deep in this mess with her, and he vowed to be her shadow.
    “I guess we should get going.” Kylie stepped toward the door, her words pulling him out of his meandering thoughts.
    Nick got to his feet and headed out behind her. After three tours in the Middle East, he understood fear. At times it even consumed him, gripping him to the bone. But now, with a madman after Kylie, fear took on a whole new meaning.
    * * *
    Nick led Kylie in through the side door of his brother’s older clapboard bungalow. There was a small table and chairs in a kitchen and the faint smell of rotting fruit hung in the air.
    “Sorry.” He set her suitcase by the door and turned on the overhead fan. “I stopped by earlier