Read Online forgotten (Twisted Cedars Mysteries Book 2) by CJ Carmichael - Free Book Online Page A

the menu he liked.
    “So—” Wade got down to business as soon as their order was placed. “—where do we stand on the Hammond-Quinpool case?”
    “I’ve got the new gal working on the Hammond bank records which were handed over by the sister. She’s comparing the dates to the travel invoices we subpoenaed from Quinpool Realty.”
    “Good.” What had first given Kyle away was when his new wife realized that he was lying about his business trips and secretly traveling to Sacramento—which was where Daisy’s ATM withdrawals were always made.
    If they were able to match the dates of the withdrawals with the dates Kyle had travelled to Sacramento, that would be a pretty convincing piece of circumstantial evidence.
    “We also got the autopsy results on Daisy Hammond,” Duane continued. “Cause of death was the wound to her head.”
    Wade nodded. The case would have gotten a lot more complicated had Daisy still been alive when she was buried.
    “The Medical Examiner confirmed she had been moved after her death, which is consistent with our theory about her dying at the Quinpool home.”
    “Okay. No surprises there.” But none of it looked good for Kyle. “Any results back from the lab on those hair fibers we found on the tarp?”
    “That’s going to be another week. Same with the blood sample we took from the wall at the Quinpool house.”
    “Any ideas on what we should do while we’re waiting for those results?”
    “An eyewitness account would be nice. I’d like to interview Kyle’s parents.”
    “Agreed. I’d start with the mother, Muriel. She and Jim separated last year. She moved to Portland after that, to live with her sister.”
    “Okay. I’ll see if I can set up something for tomorrow.”
    Duane was more than capable of handling the interview on his own. But he didn’t know the Quinpools the way Wade did. Screw all the work waiting for him at the office. This was more important. “I’ll come with you.”
    Duane’s eyebrows went up. “Yeah?”
    “If Muriel saw Kyle push Daisy—and is willing to testify as much—we’ll have a slam dunk case.”
    “You think she’ll rat out her own son?”
    “My guess is the guilt is getting to her. Why else would she leave her son and grandchildren and a marriage of several decades?”
    Wade didn’t feel good about putting away his old high school friend. But Daisy deserved justice. And that was his job.
    * * *
    After lunch Wade tried calling Charlotte at the library, but was told she was on leave. He had better luck with her cell phone number.
    “Hi Wade, what’s up?” She sounded breathless.
    “You volunteer at the Heartland Women’s Shelter, right?” He could hear sounds of children in the background. And surf. She must be at the beach with Chester and Cory. Until this moment he’d forgotten she’d been approved to take custody of Kyle and Daisy’s children. That must be why she was taking time off work.
    “Yes. I bring them books every two weeks, and I run their book club, too.”
    “That’s what I thought. Thing is, Charlotte, that woman I told you about—the one who was in the truck accident on Friday—is going to be checking in at Heartland today.”
    “So she’s okay? You said she was still unconscious when they sent her to the hospital.”
    “She was in a coma for over a day. Good news is she came out of it. Bad news is she can’t remember anything. The staff at the hospital have been calling her Birdie, rather than Jane Doe.”
    “Poor woman.”
    “Yeah. And it gets more complicated. Birdie had bruises that pre-date the accident. And a tan line on her ring finger suggests she recently removed a ring.”
    “So you think she’s been going through marital difficulties, and her husband may have harmed her?”
    “It’s a theory. And if we’re right, it’s possible our truck driver intervened. Or, at the very least, offered her a ride to get out of a tricky situation. Until her memory returns, and possibly even after