Storm Gathering by Rene Gutteridge Read Free Book Online Page A

muttering something under his breath. “Come on,” he said, leading him toward the apartment. “Go in there, tell them everything you know. Be helpful. We want them looking at you as a witness, not a suspect, okay?”
    Mick followed him. “Which do you think I am?”
    “Don’t make this personal.”
    “You think I did it?”
    Aaron stopped and faced him, pointing a finger at his chest. “I think you decided a long time ago that you’re not worth much. You bought into that lie, Mick, and you’re living your life like you couldn’t care less if you are alive or dead. You’re worth a whole lot more than you know, and I pray you someday realize this.”
    Mick shook his head and shoved him away. “Nice sermon.”
    Aaron grabbed his arm and with a heavy hand guided him toward the stairs. “Let’s go.”
    Inside the apartment, the buzz stopped when Mick and Aaron walked in.
    Halloway greeted them and growled, “This is ludicrous. Crawford is treating this like a crime scene, and we’ve hardly established that the woman is missing! Look—” he extended his arm behind him—“the forensics guys are here! Crawford is out of his everlasting mind!”
    “Maybe it’s a slow homicide day,” Aaron said, trying to spot Crawford over Halloway’s shoulder. He couldn’t see him.
    “So, you know where this Franks woman is?” Halloway asked Mick.
    “He doesn’t know,” Aaron said.
    “I can speak, Aaron.” Addressing Halloway, Mick said, “I left my number for her. That’s all.”
    Suddenly a booming voice echoed behind them, and Aaron and Mick looked up just in time to see Crawford cross the living room, his face stern and authoritative. He hadn’t even noticed Aaron and Mick near the door yet. He was handing out commands like candy to children.
    Halloway moved aside and Aaron walked forward, Mick behind him. “Lieutenant Crawford, this is Mick, my brother.”
    Crawford’s intense eyes narrowed at Mick. “You were here last night?”
    “Yeah.”
    “Why?”
    “Taylor invited me home from the bar where we met.”
    Aaron was trying to read Crawford’s perplexing expression. Disappointment? Is that what he was seeing? Like Mick had spoken about Crawford’s own daughter. While Aaron watched him carefully, Crawford’s eyes roamed the room, noting the corner where the open window was and then down the hallway, his hands pressed into the lower part of his hips.
    Mick glanced at Aaron with uncertainty. Aaron could only shrug.
    Crawford faced the officers. “Reported missing from work, what, twenty-four hours? thirty-six hours?”
    Aaron nodded.
    “You say you met her at a bar last night. What time?” Crawford asked Mick.
    “I’m not sure. Maybe at nine. We talked at the bar for about an hour. Then I rode home with her.” Mick cleared his throat. “And then I guess I passed out.”
    “Why do you say you guess?” Crawford asked.
    “I woke up this morning with my face in the carpet,” Mick said with a half laugh, nodding toward the living room.
    Nobody else was laughing, and Aaron thought he was going to throw up. What in the world had Mick gotten himself into now? They were going to take him to the station, interrogate him, and if Taylor Franks showed up dead, probably charge him with murder. And all Mick could do was laugh about being drunk.
    “So this was just a one-night fling?” Crawford asked.
    “Not even that,” Mick said. “Nothing happened. We were just talking. You see, my brother here stole my girlfriend and is now marrying her, so we shared sob stories. That’s all.”
    This seemed to agitate Crawford, who stepped a couple of inches closer to Mick. “Sob stories? What’d she say?”
    Mick shrugged, staring at his feet. “Nothing, really. She looked sad when I saw her. That’s what drew me to her. Pretty woman sitting alone, drinking scotch. At first she wanted me to bug off. But then she said we could talk. We just talked about relationships.” Mick glanced at Aaron with hot