“Good to meet you.” Lou shook his hand, then turned to Casey. “I thought you might be here. Are you free for coffee?”
“Sure, and then I’ll head home. Stan’s giving me some time off.”
“She deserves it,” Noel said. “Casey’s one hell of an investigator who helped us out a lot.” He turned to his sister. “Didn’t she, Marie?”
Marie’s lips twitched. “You did a great job for Noel, Casey, and I thank you for that.”
But it changed nothing between them. Casey saw the resentment. “You’re welcome.” She struggled to her feet.
As Noel backed up his wheelchair, Marie followed them.
“Marie, wait a sec,” Stan said. “I have an assignment for you.”
Bless him. The last thing Casey wanted was more time with her. Seeing Marie’s disappointment, she tried not to smile.
“I really don’t know how to thank you properly, Casey,” Noel said, joining them outside Stan’s office. “Not many people would go out of their way to help strangers, like you did for me and Hannah.”
“I bailed on you, remember?”
“I think you tried to, but you wanted answers as much as I did.”
“Yeah, well, I was born with an inquiring mind.”
“And a compassionate heart,” Lou added.
“If you two are ever in Coquitlam,” Noel said, “drop by, okay?”
“Absolutely.” Casey put her arm around Lou, knowing it wouldn’t happen.
“Want to join us for coffee?” Lou asked Noel a little too politely.
“Thanks, but Marie’s giving me a ride to the dealership so I can lease another van. The police will have mine tied up a while.”
“Good luck,” Casey said.
“Same to you.”
Lou and Casey didn’t speak until they were in the stairwell.
“It looks like things can finally get back to normal around here,” he said.
“Yeah, maybe, but with Jasmine gone, they’ll never be the same.”
Lou stopped on the steps and squeezed her hand. “They could be better, right? At work and at home.”
Casey kissed his cheek. “Better would be good.” In fact, better would be great. “A lot will depend on how Sunday’s visit with Rhonda goes, and who replaces Jasmine.”
“Then we’ll have to wait and see, won’t we?” He wrapped his arms around her.
“Yeah.” Casey sighed. “Wait and see.”
Acknowledgments
Thanks and gratitude to members of Port Moody’s Kyle Centre Writers’ Group for their insightful comments and for patiently reading every chapter over many months. I always came away with new ideas for improving my manuscript. It was, and still is, a wonderful experience. I’m indebted to every writer and editor at the table.
Thank you to Ruth Linka for believing in my work and for her collaborative approach to publishing. Also, huge thanks to Frances Thorsen and Lenore Hietkamp for their amazing editing skills. I’ve learned a great deal from them.
Endless thanks and much love to Bark, Elida, and Alex for their continued support while I plunged into the world of fiction and forgot about everything else.
Although I use real cities and street names (with one or two exceptions) in this novel, structures and businesses within the cities are often fictional. Mainland Public Transport is a product of my imagination, as is the Silver Groove night club, Cedarbrook Estates trailer park, Barley’s Gym, and Grantwood Manor.
DEBRA PURDY KONG was born in Toronto but has spent most of her life in British Columbia. She has a diploma in criminology from Douglas College and has worked in the security field as a patrol and communications officer. She is the author of three previous mysteries:
Debra has also written more than one hundred short stories, essays, and articles for publications that include
For the past twenty-five years, Debra has lived in Port Moody with her husband, children, and more pets than she can count. More information about Debra and her work can be found at debrapurdykong.com and on her blog at writetype.blogspot.com. You can also follow Debra on Twitter at @DebraPurdyKong.
