Apparently, Marie had convinced Jasmine that Stan gave Casey better assignments because she was his favorite. Casey tossed the letters onto the bed. The rest would have to wait till after she’d had a long hot bath. She removed her runners and socks, then started to pull off her T-shirt when someone knocked on the door.
Who the hell was that? Only Lou knew where she was staying. She’d drawn the curtains when she came in, but they weren’t heavy enough to keep the room’s lights from showing through.
The second knock was louder and more insistent. Worry sent a shiver through Casey. Pulling the shirt back down, she tiptoed toward the door and peered through the peephole. Gabrielle. Adrenaline surged and goose bumps rose on her arms. She stepped to the side, away from the door. Had the woman seen her drive away? Had Gabrielle scoured parking lots in search of an old red Tercel?
“What do you want, Gabrielle?”
“I need to talk to you. Please, it’s urgent.”
“Has something happened to your mother?”
“She’s fine. Could you open the door?”
Casey didn’t want to see those cobra eyes again. “I was about to take a bath. Can you phone me in an hour?”
“I’m here now and this won’t take long.”
Not long at all to fire a Glock twenty-seven. “I don’t see why it can’t wait.”
“I’m not leaving until we talk. I’ll camp outside this door all night if I have to.”
Crap. Threatening to call security would be pointless. This was a small, cheap place, probably without security. Casey grabbed her cell phone, stuffed the letters in her bag, and then shoved the bag in a drawer. She peeked through the drapes on the right side of the door. Gabrielle appeared to be alone and empty-handed, but this didn’t mean a companion wasn’t waiting nearby, or that she wasn’t hiding a weapon.
“You can’t contact my mother again!” Gabrielle yelled through the door. “She was so upset after you left that I thought she’d have another stroke. What did you say to her?”
Hannah hadn’t sounded upset on the phone. “Ask Hannah.”
“She’s already forgotten most of it.”
Sure, right.
“She might ask you about Jasmine again,” Gabrielle went on. “Don’t tell her anything, understand?”
“Casey will talk to whoever she wants,” a familiar voice said loudly.
Oh god, it was Lou! If Gabrielle was armed he could be in trouble. Casey opened the door, barely aware of the cool, salty air wafting into the room.
“Hey, darlin’.” Lou stepped past Gabrielle.
“This is Gabrielle O’Reilly,” Casey said to Lou. “Jasmine’s half sister.”
From the recognition and wariness on Lou’s face, he remembered her from Birch’s trailer. He put down his backpack.
“Jasmine wasn’t family, she was trash,” Gabrielle stated. “All she wanted was Mother’s money.”
“Is that what you plan on telling the cops when they ask for your alibi?” Casey asked.
“I have an alibi.” Her cobra eyes glowered.
“Good,” Casey said, crossing her arms, “because they know about your affair with Elliott Birch.”
Gabrielle recoiled. “You’re full of it.”
Lou squeezed Casey’s arm, a warning not to pursue this, but she didn’t want to stop. If the woman had a weapon, she would have revealed it by now, and Casey had no intention of letting her leave without obtaining information.
“We saw you in his trailer eight days ago,” she said.
Gabrielle’s eyes practically popped out of her head. “You were spying on me?”
“Of course not, I didn’t even know who you were until this afternoon.”
“What the hell were you doing there?”
“Walking my dog.”
Gabrielle bit her lower lip. “Have you told my mother?”
“Ask her.”
“Don’t play games with me!”
“I’m not the one who’s been playing.” Casey raised the phone still in her hand. “You have three seconds to leave before I call the cops.”
Gabrielle didn’t move. “What will it take to keep you from telling anyone? I have money.”
“All I want is the truth about you and Birch.” She felt Lou’s arm slip around her.
“We fell in love,” Gabrielle said, “but Mom would have disowned me if she found out.”
Given the way Gabrielle kept fidgeting, Casey figured she was lying. “How and when did you and Birch meet?”
“When I saw Jasmine for the first time, she and Elliott were standing at the front door, arguing about their kid. Jasmine didn’t know who I was.”
“When was that?” Casey asked.
“A month and a half ago.”
Not true. Marie had said she’d been with Jasmine when Gabrielle approached and introduced herself two days before the shooting. Birch hadn’t been anywhere around at that time.
“After Jasmine took off, Elliott and I started talking.” Gabrielle shoved her hands in her pockets. “He was devastated that he couldn’t see his son more often.”
“A custody battle would have been tough to win,” Casey replied, “what with Birch’s drinking and domestic violence history.”
Lou squeezed her arm a little harder.
“What are you talking about? He’s a great dad, and he’s never hit me.”
Give it time, Casey thought. “Word is he’s still a suspect in Jasmine’s murder, that he had someone else shoot her.”
“That’s ridiculous!” Gabrielle stepped back. “Don’t contact my mother again!”
Casey shut the door and turned the deadbolt. “Think we struck a nerve?”
“Just a tad.” Lou plunked onto the bed. “You took a huge chance.”
“I know, but that woman clearly has plenty to hide.” She sat next to Lou. “If Jasmine had found out that Gabrielle was involved with Birch and had threatened to tell Hannah, it’d be a strong motive for murder.”
“You need to tell Corporal Lundy.”
“I already have.” She put her arms around Lou. “I don’t want you to take this the wrong way, and notice how cheerful I sound, but what are you doing here? Did you get my message?”
“Yeah, and I was already on my way.” He smiled tentatively. “I got a couple of guys to take my shifts.” He squeezed her hard. “What was Hannah like?”
“Kind of creepy.” After she highlighted their conversation and told him about Hannah’s transformation after Gabrielle arrived, she described the contents of Jasmine’s letters, including the part about Marie.
“In Marie’s world, my feelings don’t count,” Casey said. “She told Jasmine I was a driven, career-minded prima donna who wasn’t interested in marriage or family.”
“Since you and I don’t live together,” Lou replied, “I guess it only added to her fantasy.”
As his gaze met hers, guilt blanketed Casey. After her divorce, but before they became a couple, she’d told him she wasn’t any good at marriage. Had he wondered if she’d changed her mind? Had she?
“Marie doesn’t understand that I can’t imagine living without you.” Casey placed her hands on each side of his face. “How much I love you.”
He wrapped his arms around her. “I love you too. Always will.”
A lump formed in her throat. “We’ve had some bad moments lately, but it’ll be better.”
“Totally.”
She kissed him until her whole body tingled. When they finally pulled apart, she said, “Who’s looking after the critters?”
“I put a ton of food in their cages.” Lou rubbed her back. “They’ll be fine, and we’ll be back before noon
