Once she understood the process, Joanna’s first thought was whether or not remoting would work with Kristin Marsten. Where could she possibly send her? Out to the little town of Elfrida, maybe? Or up to the Wonderland of Rocks?
Dick Voland went right on talking. “Believe me, you can’t go wrong listening to Thompson. He knows what it’s all about. Of all the instructors the APOA has up there, I think he’s probably tops. You say your classes are going all right?”
Joanna took a deep breath. No wonder listening to Dave was just like listening to Dick Voland. They were two peas in a pod and old buddies besides. Bearing that in mind, it didn’t seem wise to mention that she was bored out of her tree, especially not now when the lounge was filled with most of her fellow students.
“The classes are great,” she answered after a pause. “As a matter of fact, they couldn’t better.”
For the next few moments and in a very businesslike fashion, Dick Voland briefed the sheriff the all latest Cochise County law-and-order issues including the Sunset Inn domestic assault. Try she might, Joanna couldn’t hear any ominous subtext in what Chief Deputy Voland was telling He seemed surprisingly upbeat and positive.
Joanna waited until he was finished before broaching the question she’d been toying with and on since leaving Jorge Grijalva and the Maricopa County Jail the night before. And when she did it, she tried to be as offhand as possible.
“By the way,” she said, “I’ve been meaning ask. I can’t remember exactly when it was, back early to mid-October, you helped a couple of out-of-town officers make an arrest down at the Paul Spur lime plant. Remember that?”
“Sure. That guy from Pirtleville—I believe name was Grijalva. Killed his ex-wife somewhere up around Phoenix. What about it?”
“What can you tell me about the detectives who were working the case?”
“I only remember one of them,” Dick Voland answered. “The woman. Her name was Carol Strong.”
“What about her?”
“I can only remember one thing.”
“What’s that?”
“I’m not sure you want to know.”
“Tell me.”
“Legs,” Dick Voland answered. “That woman had great legs.”
CHAPTER TWELVE
When Joanna hung up the phone, she saw Leann Jessup heading for the door on her way back to class.
“Wait up,” Joanna called after her. “I’ll walk with you.”
As they started down the breezeway toward the classroom wing, Joanna studied her tablemate. Since breakfast, Leann had said almost nothing. During class that day, there had been no hint of the previous day’s lighthearted banter or note passing. Leann had spent the morning, her face set in an unsmiling mask, staring intently at their instructor, seemingly intent on every word. Even now a deep frown creased Leann Jessup’s forehead.
“Are you getting a lot out of this?” Joanna asked
“Out of what?” Leann returned.
“Out of the class. It looked to me as though you devouring
