“It’s too bad none of his neighbors will answer the door. I’m sure one of them knows where we can find him.” She waved a hand down the street toward a bar within walking distance. “One of the troopers took a pass through the bar. Victor wasn’t there and no one had ever heard of him before.”
Weston rolled his eyes. “No surprise there.”
Avery scrolled through his criminal record on her tablet. “Victor Haas is a real peach. He’s been arrested for drug possession, theft, assault, and domestic battery. He did three years in prison for robbing a car mechanic shop.” She frowned. “You know, the thefts on campus started after Debra and Victor started dating. Considering his criminal history, it’s not a leap to think Victor might be involved. Did the manager of the hotel say what kind of vehicle Victor was driving?”
“No. In a place like this, no one knows nothing about nothing. But Victor does have a 2004 Ford Festiva registered in his name. We have a BOLO out on it.”
BOLO was short for be-on-the-lookout. Every law enforcement officer in the state would be searching for his car.
Avery tapped her finger against the tablet. “Last night’s shooter used a motorcycle to escape, but that doesn’t exclude Victor as a suspect. He could’ve borrowed or even stolen it. But I can’t figure out any connection he may have to me.”
“Nothing in his criminal record is familiar?” Weston asked.
“No. He was arrested once in Houston, but that was while I was in the academy. As far as I can tell, I’ve never come across Victor before this case.” She pulled up Debra’s photo on the tablet in an attempt to jog her memory, but nothing happened. Avery sighed. “Debra worked on campus for over six months, but I don’t recognize her. I should’ve seen her before. Passed her in the halls, maybe said hello.”
“And how many people does that happen with on a daily basis, Avery? There are over 3,000 students at Harrison University. Just students. That’s not including faculty and staff. It’s impossible for you to know each one of them.”
Weston’s argument was logical, but it did very little to assuage the guilt churning her insides. If she’d recognized Debra on the night of the murder, been able to identify her, then maybe Victor would be in custody now.
Avery flipped back to Victor’s criminal record. “Maybe we were wrong and this case isn’t personally connected to me at all.”
“Too early to say yet. Victor grew up in this area. He may have crossed paths with your dad. Maybe as a juvenile.” Weston glanced at the hotel. “Chances are, Victor didn’t grow up in the best household. This could even be about a family member—Victor’s mom or dad, even an older brother. I’ve got a fellow ranger of mine, Grady West, digging into it.”
“I know Grady. Megan and Luke had a BBQ a few months back, and he was there along with his wife, Tara. She’s very sweet. And their kids are adorable.”
“They are.” He pulled out his wallet and removed a piece of paper. “Maddy, Grady’s daughter, loves drawing pictures for me. This is her latest masterpiece.”
He unfolded the paper. The picture was done in crayon. One figure was huge—obviously Weston—holding the hand of a little girl on a sidewalk. They were both eating ice cream. Avery laughed. “You’re the same size as the buildings.”
“According to Maddy, that’s why I’m not good at playing hide ’n’ seek.”
They laughed. Avery handed the drawing back to Weston and noticed a paper on the ground. It was stark white against the blacktop. Had it fallen from Weston’s wallet when he pulled out Maddy’s drawing? She bent to pick it up.
It wasn’t a piece of paper. It was a photograph, creased and worn at the corners. She flipped it over. A beautiful, dark-haired woman smiled straight into the camera. The joy in her expression wasn’t practiced or fake. It beamed out even though the picture was small.
“That’s my wife,” Weston said. His voice was soft, but there was a catch in his throat. “Melissa. She died five years ago. Cancer.”
“She was beautiful. How did you meet her?”
He was quiet for a long moment and Avery’s chest tightened. Maybe she’d overstepped the line. “Sorry. I don’t mean to pry.”
“No. It’s okay. Melissa and I were in college together. She was smart and witty. A woman of deep faith. Kind-hearted and loyal. She came to every one of my football games. I quit when she got cancer to take care of her. After she died, I couldn’t imagine being on a field knowing she wasn’t in the stands.”
A lump formed in Avery’s throat. The way Weston talked about his wife touched her, and it spoke volumes about him. He was someone who stuck when things were hard. A man of character.
“After Melissa died, I was lost. I had money but no purpose. Grady convinced me to join law enforcement. It was my saving grace.” Weston gently took the photograph from Avery’s hand. “That whole part of my life—the football and my marriage—feels like a lifetime ago. Almost like it happened to someone else. Does that make any sense?”
“It does. You’re a different person now. It’s…it’s like you want to move on, but you don’t know how.”
He tilted his head. “Spoken like a person who can relate.”
She could. Avery had told Weston the bare basics about her ex-fiancé on the first day they met. While trying to narrow down the potential threat against her, they’d had to go through her former boyfriends. Not that there were many. Jeffrey had been her longest and most significant. But she hadn’t gone into the specifics about why they’d broken up or the Internal Affairs investigation that followed.
She hugged her arms around herself. Just thinking about it made
