The Perfect Coed (Oak Grove Mysteries Book 1) by Judy Alter Read Free Book Online Page A

Phillips suggested it might cause trouble if I came to your office. He suggested your home tonight at five-thirty.”
    Rage threatened to explode in Susan. How could Jake invite this man into her home? But instead of anger, she replied with a surprised, “He did?”
    “Yes. Said he’d be there. I’ll only come with your permission, but I thought you might think it the best alternative to coming downtown.”
    “I guess so,” she said reluctantly. Probably it was the best plan. She’d be on home turf, and Jake would be with her. “Sure, that’s fine. I’ll see you there. Did he tell you where I live?”
    “It’s on file. 2115 Greenbriar Lane. Almost out in the country.”
    “Okay.” Susan hung up and sat staring at the phone for a long time, as though it were an enemy. She felt like Big Brother was watching her. He even knew where she lived. Well, of course he did.
    * * *
    Susan rode the moped home—in spite of Jake’s protests—and got there a little before five. Jake arrived just minutes later, with steaks for the grill, potatoes that he immediately put in to bake, and fresh green beans.
    Susan greeted him with a demanding question. “Why hasn’t there been anything in the paper about Eric Lindler?”
    “The boyfriend? They interviewed him today, and they’ve checked his car. Jordan says they found no trace evidence at all. Clean as a whistle. It’ll probably be in the paper tomorrow.”
    “What kind of a car?” she asked.
    “Big old clunker of a ’78 Ford.”
    “So it wasn’t his car that tried to run me down?”
    Jake shook his head. “No, but that doesn’t rule out the possibility, however slim, that he was driving that car. But, Susan, if Missy Jackson was the perfect coed, so is this kid. He’s studying to be a minister, for Pete’s sake, and his grades are excellent. He belongs to Brothers in Christ and a bunch of other church-related things, doesn’t seem to have a life apart from religion… and Missy.”
    Jake was cleaning green beans when Dirk Jordan arrived, a sight that made Jordan break into an unexpected grin.
    “He likes to cook,” Susan said defensively.
    “And she’s no good at it,” Jake added cheerfully. “Want a drink?”
    Jordan declined because his was a business call. He asked the predictable questions about Susan’s near-encounter with a car the night before, and she repeated what she had told Jake. Then she asked, “I hear it wasn’t Eric’s car. His is an old clunker.”
    “And clean of any evidence,” Jordan said. “In your car, however, they found fibers, blood, and wood slivers. The blood belonged to the girl, the slivers probably came from the baseball bat that killed her, and the fibers… some from her clothing were in the front seat of your car.”
    “The front seat?” she echoed.
    “Means she was in the front seat before she was in the trunk. We don’t know if she was alive or dead at that point. She may have been moved from the place she was killed.”
    Susan thought she might never drive the damn car again because she’d always see Missy Jackson sitting next to her. “Moved in my car? Impossible! It was in the parking lot all day, and I had the keys with me.”
    “Did you actually see it?” Jordan asked. “Every second person knows how to wire a car, so where the keys were doesn’t matter.”
    Susan looked at Jake and was grateful that he didn’t chime in with a comment about her habit of not locking her car.
    “What about Missy’s roommate? What kind of car does she drive?”
    Jordan stood up and began to pace around the family room. “I couldn’t find her today—not in her room, not in class. If she doesn’t turn up tomorrow, I’ll put out a missing persons bulletin.”
    Then he turned serious. “Dr. Hogan, you’ve got to tell me about this roommate of yours.”
    She saw Jake staring at her wordlessly.
    “What about her? We roomed together for two years. We were… oh shit, soul mates sounds corny, but we really clicked. We