He crossed the room to stand at the front window. Outside, a street lamp cast an amber glow over the sidewalk. Just beyond, the Lotus and Bug sat next to each other, nestled in for the night. He took comfort in the sight. It meant Jess was inside, shades drawn and doors locked. She’d even taken Buttons out for the final time. She’d texted him shortly after nine, and he’d watched her and the dog from the bottom of his stairs.
She was safe. At least as safe as she could be all alone in the house. Her lights had gone off around 9:30, so she was likely already asleep. After all, she’d had an exhausting day. Getting arrested. Spending several hours in jail. Facing an insecure future.
He moved away from the window and strolled to the kitchen. He had some time to kill. Alan was going to arrive at the apartment sometime in the next thirty minutes.
Shane had called him as soon as he’d taken Jess home. He’d been currently working his shift but had promised to come over when he got off at seven. Shane had suggested waiting until later, when there’d be less chance of Branch spotting his car in the Yesteryear Antiques drive.
Pulling in someone from Harmony Grove had its risks, but he’d had a good feeling about Alan right from the start. The whispered words to Jess had fully convinced him. He couldn’t tell the other man who he was and why he was in Harmony Grove, but he could offer his assistance as a former detective with the Columbus Police Department.
Chances were good that Alan could be a valuable contact in his investigation. The young cop had inside access to Branch’s activities. He could roam freely around the police station, pulling files and looking at evidence. And maybe know if someone had tampered with said evidence.
Shane took a cream soda from the fridge and headed back into the living room. Headlights shone through the front window, then clicked off. Alan had arrived.
After inviting the younger officer in and getting him a soda, Shane offered him a seat on the couch, then took the adjacent recliner. “I appreciate your coming. As you can imagine, this morning’s events were pretty upsetting for Jess.”
“I know. They were upsetting for all of us, except Chief. He seemed to be enjoying himself.”
“She insists she was set up.”
Alan studied him. “Are you law enforcement?”
Shane hesitated. The man was perceptive. “I used to be a detective with the Columbus Police Department.” That was the truth, just not the whole truth.
“Columbus, Georgia?”
“Ohio.”
Alan smiled. “Cold country.”
“Yeah. This time of year is much more pleasant here than at home.”
Alan settled back into the couch cushions. “I tend to agree with Jessica.”
“That she was set up?”
“Yeah.”
“Why, other than the fact that your chief seems to have it in for her?”
“Ever since Jessica got back, he’s been spending a lot more time at the station. Whenever a call comes in that might be remotely connected with her, he intercepts it and responds himself.”
“Is that typical for him, responding to calls himself when you and the other officer are available?”
“Not at all, especially by himself. Like when BethAnn’s store was broken into, he said he’d handle it alone. The same thing when Driggers Porcelain was robbed.”
“He’s been the one to respond every time Jess has called, too, except for the time she called you directly. I don’t know if Jess told you, but he showed up right after you left. He wasn’t happy that she’d bypassed him.”
Alan frowned. “It’s definitely suspicious.”
“Have you ever suspected him to be involved in anything illegal?”
“No, I haven’t. I’ve seen him give a really hard time to people he doesn’t like, but I’ve never thought he was crooked.”
“What about now?”
“It’s not looking good. I pulled the file from when BethAnn’s craft store was broken into. Jessica had told me that Chief had spent a lot of time dusting for prints. But all that effort only netted a handful of viable prints. They weren’t in the system anywhere, so they weren’t Jessica’s. Probably BethAnn’s or even Bonnie’s, the high school girl who worked weeknights and Saturdays before Jessica came.”
“You find it odd that Jessica’s prints weren’t anywhere?”
“I do.”
“What do you think it means?” Shane had already come to his own conclusion but wanted to find out what the younger man thought.
“I think he lifted a lot more prints than he reported, and those he had of Jess’s he reported as lifting from the factory.”
Shane nodded. “My thoughts exactly.”
“I’ve looked at that file, too. Everything looks in order, with detailed reports and pictures to back them up. If that’s what Branch did, he wasn’t sloppy with his scheme.”
“During the week I worked at Driggers, I overheard a couple of interesting conversations. Spike was scolding someone, told him to be careful with the boxes and that he wasn’t going to tolerate any more mistakes. The guy asked him if he was going to do to him what they did to the girl.”
Alan’s jaw went slack. “Do you think he was talking about Priscilla Parker?”
“That’s what I suspected. Another conversation involved your chief.” Shane hadn’t seen him, but he’d recognized the voice. He’d know that slow Southern drawl anywhere. “Spike was complaining about someone getting in the way, and Branch told him to just keep being profitable and he’d take care of the girl.”
Alan shook his head. “Looks like that’s exactly what he did.”
“I’d appreciate it if you’d keep your eyes and ears open, pick up anything you can on what Branch might be up to. And anything that might help clear Jess.”
“I’ll do that. I know Jessica had her issues as a teenager, but she doesn’t deserve this.”
“No, she really doesn’t.”
When neither of them had any more to add, Shane thanked him and
