The Stone of Sadness (An Olivia Miller Mystery Book 3) by J A Whiting Read Free Book Online Page B

support. And I sure as heck didn’t intend to stay in Howland for the rest of my life. I wanted a career. I didn’t want to be dependent on anyone else.”
    “So you stopped seeing him?”
    “I stopped our romantic connection, but not because my parents told me to. I was tired of our relationship, his millions of problems, his moods, our fights. The murders gave me an excuse to end it. It shut my parents up too and kept the tuition money coming. But Kenny and I stayed in touch during the time right after the murders. My parents didn’t know that detail. I felt bad for Kenny. He was so alone. He lived with his father…a mean, abusive, hateful drunk. Sometimes I would sneak out at night to see Kenny just so he could talk. He always professed his innocence. The police told him to stick around and not to leave the area, but after a while they had nothing to pin on him and they said he was free to do as he pleased.”
    “Then he moved away?”
    Emily nodded her head. “I met him one night, late. I snuck out and met him in the field behind my house. He said he needed to take off…that everybody in town thought he was a killer. He needed a new start. He had sold his old truck to get some money. I asked where he was going but he said he didn’t know. He said that he would contact me later to let me know where he was. He never did though. That was it. I never saw him after that. I don’t know where he ended up or what happened to him.”
    “You think he could have done something like that? Killed Mary and Kimmy? Was he capable of doing that?” Olivia asked.
    Emily was quiet for a moment. “His temper…especially when he drank…I hate to say it, but now that I’m older and I think back…maybe… maybe he could have.”

Chapter 9
    Olivia had spent hours reading about the murders and the father and son who were left behind. She knew how it was to have someone you loved violently wrenched from your life leaving a gaping hole in your world.
    Olivia’s research had revealed that Mary’s husband, George Monahan, had passed away a few years ago. Mary’s son, Michael, was a dentist, had never married, no children. Olivia found another old article online discussing the cold case of Mary and Kimmy’s murders. The reporter had interviewed Michael Monahan as part of the story. In the news article, Monahan described himself as someone who had a good life, who had no interest in the details of the murders. He believed that dwelling on tragedy was not helpful for anyone and that it was important to move on.
    Olivia stared at her laptop screen as she and Brad Skyped while he ate his lunch at his bookstore.
    “Did you read the article I sent you?” she asked.
    “Yeah,” Brad said between swallows of his sandwich. “It’s pretty clear from the article that Monahan doesn’t need to have the crime solved. He just wants to live his life. He doesn’t want to know the details.”
    “I know.” Olivia’s hand held her chin. “Do you think he’d talk to me?”
    “I don’t think he would want to.”
    Olivia didn’t say anything.
    “I don’t think you should contact him,” Brad said. “He wouldn’t be able to tell you much anyway. He was in kindergarten when it happened and he’s never wanted to know any specifics. He couldn’t tell you anything of worth.”
    “I guess you’re right.”
    “I know you’re disappointed. I know you’d like to connect with him. But I think you should respect how he needs to handle what happened.”
    “I understand.” Olivia said. “Sort of.”
    Brad gave her a look. “How would it help with the case? From the article, it doesn’t seem like he knows much or wants to know much. You probably know more than he does.”
    Olivia could see that Monahan just wanted to move forward and leave the past behind. He didn’t need to know what happened. He was a little boy when the murders took place. Olivia wondered if maybe kids were better at adapting to changes and loss than grownups