He thought he heard a snicker from somewhere behind him. Zoe must’ve crept up the stairs and lurked at the rear of the hallway, taking in the show.
The widow pondered his words. “That won’t be necessary.” She stuffed her license into her purse. “It’s late. I can deal with this tomorrow.”
“Excellent idea.”
She grabbed a long black coat, which was draped over a chair and shouldered past him. In the hallway, she paused and shot a glance toward the rear staircase. “Ms. Chambers, I expect you to be gone by the time I return in the morning.”
Apparently, he hadn’t been the only one to notice the snicker.
To Pete, she said, “Lock up on your way out.”
Once Loretta Marshall left, Zoe moved into the light, a hint of a grin on her beautiful face.
“I guess you overheard my chat with the grieving widow,” he said.
“Actually, I smelled pizza and came to investigate.” She closed the distance between them and slipped into his arms. “Thanks for getting rid of Loretta de Vil.”
It was his turn to snicker. “Now that you mention it, I was trying to figure out who she reminded me of.”
Zoe only then noticed the debris in the secretary’s office. “Holy crap.”
“Do you have any idea what she’s looking for?”
Zoe’s gaze remained on the mess. “Yeah. I do.”
Seventeen
After sharing the pizza with Paulette, Zoe told the weary secretary to go home.
“But there’s so much to do yet,” Paulette protested.
“Pete will help me. You’re exhausted, and I have lots of work for you tomorrow.”
She acquiesced and gave the office one last tearful look before heading out into the night.
Alone with Pete and the vestiges of Franklin’s career as county coroner, Zoe posed the question she’d carried with her all day. “What isn’t Frattini telling me?”
Pete hoisted one of the boxes and headed for the door. “What do you mean?”
“He alluded to some opinions Franklin had about the case.” She paused when Pete stepped into the hall to place the box by the back door. Once he returned, she added, “I gather he only wants me to read what’s in the report and keep my take on it to myself.”
“Have you looked at the report?”
“Briefly.” She glanced around the room. “I’ve been busy.”
Pete nodded. “Yes, you have.” He crossed to another box.
“What I want to know is what isn’t in the report that has Frattini spooked?”
Without answering, Pete stacked two boxes, hefted both, and carried them out to the others.
Zoe blocked his path before he could make a third trip. “You’re avoiding my question.”
“Yeah, I am.” He met her gaze with his stern icy blues. “Frattini’s right.”
“About what?”
“In this case, a lot.” Pete held up a finger. “Your boss nearly blew the case against Landis based only on his opinion.” He held up a second finger. “You should come to your own conclusions drawn from the evidence.” He held up a third. “I should keep my mouth shut and let you and Baronick look at this case with an unvarnished eye.” He closed his hand and let it drop to his side.
“In other words, you aren’t gonna tell me.”
“Not now.”
“When?”
“Later.”
“You’re not being helpful.”
Pete’s mouth slanted into that cockeyed grin that made her want to crawl into his arms and into his bed. “I’m helping you schlep boxes. Isn’t that enough?”
She glowered at him in mock irritation. “I guess it’ll have to be.”
“I’m going to move the Explorer around to the back door so we can start loading.”
“Okay. The Edge is already out there, but you may want to turn it around and back it in toward the door.” Since the smaller Ford SUV was Pete’s personal vehicle, she knew he had a set of keys.
“By the way, I talked to Melvin. Your truck’s ready.”
“Good.” She’d grown to like the Edge but would never admit it to Pete.
“Have you spoken to your brother about helping us move stuff this weekend?”
“Not yet.” She didn’t want to overuse the too-busy excuse even though it was true.
Pete headed for the door, keys in hand. He pointed at her. “Do it now.”
Zoe looked around at the boxes of files and stacks of books. Alone in a funeral home. Five years ago, if anyone had said she’d voluntarily be spending time in a place like this, never mind alone, she’d have told them they were out of their friggin’ mind. Granted, it still freaked her out to an extent, but in the last couple of months, this basement office had grown on her, sales displays of urns notwithstanding.
But the silence tonight felt colder than a grave. Franklin was gone. His ex was taking over his family business—at least Loretta claimed to be. Everything related to the coroner’s office had been stripped from the file cabinets, shelves, and closet.
Wayne was right. She needed a new office. She simply preferred the move to happen on her terms instead of Loretta’s. And after having ample opportunity to scope out what was available.
Zoe shook her head, clearing it of all the things she couldn’t control. She picked up her phone and scrolled to Scott’s number. Before she had a chance to hit the send button, Pete slammed through the back door and into the office, his face pale.
“What’s wrong?”
“I just got a call from Golden Oaks. Pop fell.”
Zoe’s brain chilled. Boxes, books, and offices forgotten, she strode to Pete. “I’ll drive.”
Zoe had to jog to keep up with Pete’s long strides as they headed down Golden Oaks Assisted Living’s second-floor hallway. They found Harry sitting on his bed, cradling his arm protectively, a stern frown on his face, which thankfully was unmarred.
Jenna, the aide, stood over him and looked up as Zoe trailed Pete into the room.
“What happened?” he demanded.
“Nothing,” Harry said defiantly. “I’m fine.”
Ashen, Jenna faced them. “Miss Barbara’s the one who called for us on her pendant.” Jenna mimed a necklace, indicating the alert button all residents wore around
