except who had killed her sister. “Is this the way you conduct a homicide investigation? Prompting private citizens to put themselves in danger?” She didn’t know why Shelley had trusted him. Always wanted to call Braddock whenever she felt the need to reach out to law enforcement.
I help him out with what’s going on around here and he helps me out
, she’d once told CJ.
He hadn’t helped Shelley; he’d used her.
Just like he’d used CJ.
“I didn’t put you in danger, CJ. You did that all by yourself. But I won’t lie to you. Sometimes”—Braddock stood, pushed in his chair—“we have to take advantage of whatever opportunities are in front of us. The first forty-eight hours after a crime are crucial. You do want to know what happened to your sister, don’t you?”
“Of course.” The son of a bitch. He was turning this aroundon her. “Like you said, I know the people in the village. I grew up there. And the other thing I know for certain is that the police never go out of their way to investigate anything that happens to those people.”
Braddock braced his hands on the table and leaned forward, pressing her with those dark eyes of his. “This is what you obviously don’t know. You don’t know
me
.”
CJ grabbed her bag, slung it over her shoulder. “Maybe I don’t know you as well as Shelley did. But look where that got her.”
She walked out the door.
Someone in the village had to know something.
All she had to do was find that someone.
CHAPTER TEN
“Who’s the old guy?” Ever-present Pepsi in hand, Cooper hopped onto Braddock’s desk and studied the screen monitoring the goings and comings in the lobby. “I thought she didn’t have any family.”
“She doesn’t.” Braddock stared at the monitor. “That was Edward Abbott. Professor over at the university. Retired last year.” CJ’s last words kept echoing in his brain.
Maybe I don’t know you as well as Shelley did. But look where that got her
.
Cooper knocked back a slug of her preferred beverage. “Kind of old for a boyfriend.”
Braddock shoved aside the words—the reality—haunting him. “According to Shelley, he’s a family friend. A father figure, I guess.” Not that Shelley had liked Abbott that much. He’d been a part of their lives since she and CJ were kids.
“Abbott lives around here?”
“Williams Street. Old money. His family was one of the original settlers in Huntsville. He’s the last of the line. Never been married. No kids. My guess is he’s the reason Dr. CJ Patterson rose so high above her humble beginnings.”
Cynthia Jayne Patterson owed a lot to the man, according to her sister. Abbott had taken care of the burial expenses for their mother. Ensured the future Dr. Patterson had gotten whatevershe needed. Braddock wondered if there had been more to Abbott’s relationship with the mother. Maybe one or both daughters were his biological offspring. That would explain his long-term involvement in their lives. Unless, of course, he was simply a guy who exemplified the term
Good Samaritan
. A few of those still existed.
“Father figure?” Cooper arched a speculative eyebrow. “Or perv? Maybe he’s got a thing for the sister.”
“That’s possible,” Braddock allowed. CJ didn’t confide in him. But then, she had her reasons. And those reasons were going to make this investigation a whole lot more complicated. He had no one to blame for that but himself.
“Maybe,” Cooper put forward, “little sister was jealous of how much attention big sister got from pseudo-daddy or sugar daddy, whatever the case might be.”
Maybe. Braddock had picked up on just a hint of envy, but in all the ways that counted, Shelley had idolized her sister. “I don’t think this is about Abbott,” he countered. “What would he have to gain by murdering Shelley? Let’s face it, he’d have a hell of a lot to lose. He’s a very wealthy man. Offing an on-again-off-again prostitute seems a little
I help him out with what’s going on around here and he helps me out
, she’d once told CJ.
He hadn’t helped Shelley; he’d used her.
Just like he’d used CJ.
“I didn’t put you in danger, CJ. You did that all by yourself. But I won’t lie to you. Sometimes”—Braddock stood, pushed in his chair—“we have to take advantage of whatever opportunities are in front of us. The first forty-eight hours after a crime are crucial. You do want to know what happened to your sister, don’t you?”
“Of course.” The son of a bitch. He was turning this aroundon her. “Like you said, I know the people in the village. I grew up there. And the other thing I know for certain is that the police never go out of their way to investigate anything that happens to those people.”
Braddock braced his hands on the table and leaned forward, pressing her with those dark eyes of his. “This is what you obviously don’t know. You don’t know
me
.”
CJ grabbed her bag, slung it over her shoulder. “Maybe I don’t know you as well as Shelley did. But look where that got her.”
She walked out the door.
Someone in the village had to know something.
All she had to do was find that someone.
CHAPTER TEN
“Who’s the old guy?” Ever-present Pepsi in hand, Cooper hopped onto Braddock’s desk and studied the screen monitoring the goings and comings in the lobby. “I thought she didn’t have any family.”
“She doesn’t.” Braddock stared at the monitor. “That was Edward Abbott. Professor over at the university. Retired last year.” CJ’s last words kept echoing in his brain.
Maybe I don’t know you as well as Shelley did. But look where that got her
.
Cooper knocked back a slug of her preferred beverage. “Kind of old for a boyfriend.”
Braddock shoved aside the words—the reality—haunting him. “According to Shelley, he’s a family friend. A father figure, I guess.” Not that Shelley had liked Abbott that much. He’d been a part of their lives since she and CJ were kids.
“Abbott lives around here?”
“Williams Street. Old money. His family was one of the original settlers in Huntsville. He’s the last of the line. Never been married. No kids. My guess is he’s the reason Dr. CJ Patterson rose so high above her humble beginnings.”
Cynthia Jayne Patterson owed a lot to the man, according to her sister. Abbott had taken care of the burial expenses for their mother. Ensured the future Dr. Patterson had gotten whatevershe needed. Braddock wondered if there had been more to Abbott’s relationship with the mother. Maybe one or both daughters were his biological offspring. That would explain his long-term involvement in their lives. Unless, of course, he was simply a guy who exemplified the term
Good Samaritan
. A few of those still existed.
“Father figure?” Cooper arched a speculative eyebrow. “Or perv? Maybe he’s got a thing for the sister.”
“That’s possible,” Braddock allowed. CJ didn’t confide in him. But then, she had her reasons. And those reasons were going to make this investigation a whole lot more complicated. He had no one to blame for that but himself.
“Maybe,” Cooper put forward, “little sister was jealous of how much attention big sister got from pseudo-daddy or sugar daddy, whatever the case might be.”
Maybe. Braddock had picked up on just a hint of envy, but in all the ways that counted, Shelley had idolized her sister. “I don’t think this is about Abbott,” he countered. “What would he have to gain by murdering Shelley? Let’s face it, he’d have a hell of a lot to lose. He’s a very wealthy man. Offing an on-again-off-again prostitute seems a little
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