Read Online Hell by Hilary Norman - Free Book Online Page B

last time we met,’ Sam said.
    â€˜Yes.’ Her voice was soft, sadder than ever.
    â€˜You mentioned clubs and the beach,’ Sam reminded her.
    â€˜I still don’t know which clubs,’ she said.
    â€˜Anything else you’ve thought of?’
    â€˜He went to parties, sometimes,’ Gail said.
    â€˜Friends’ parties?’ Sam asked.
    â€˜Mostly not,’ she said. ‘The open kind, I guess – he said he got to hear about them on the Internet, in chat rooms, maybe.’ Her eyes moved to her VAIO notebook on a desk in the corner. ‘As I told you, he sometimes used my laptop, so please feel free to look at it, or take it if you need to.’
    Martinez leaned forward, his dark eyes intent. ‘Did Andy ever mention any chat rooms in particular?’
    â€˜Or any websites you can remember?’ Sam asked.
    â€˜I don’t think so,’ Gail said. ‘But I guess if he visited any of them here, they might still be in the cache.’
    They’d told her on arrival that their search warrant would extend to her private space and property, and she’d said they didn’t need a warrant, that she wanted nothing more than to assist them, but Sam had explained about the wisdom of ensuring search warrants were in place even in cases where consent had been given.
    Few things more soul-destroying to a cop than watching hard evidence rendered inadmissible in court by a technicality.
    â€˜Any other gizmos of yours he shared?’ Martinez asked.
    She shook her head.
    â€˜Your cellphone?’ Sam said.
    â€˜He had his own iPhone.’ She smiled. ‘We went into the Apple store on Lincoln Road last month because I’m thinking of getting the iPad, but Andy was too busy flirting with one of the Genius guys to take much notice of anything else.’ Once again her eyes began to brim. ‘I’m sorry.’
    â€˜Don’t be,’ Martinez said. ‘You’re doing great.’
    â€˜Did he and the Genius guy make contact after that?’ Sam asked.
    â€˜No way,’ Gail said.
    â€˜You’re sure?’ Sam said.
    â€˜He was straight,’ Gail said. ‘Andy said it was a waste.’
    Deep sadness in her eyes again.
    They called a halt, knowing there was no more to be gleaned from her this day, but Sam asked her – knowing it was unnecessary, that the young woman would do little else for a long while – to keep on thinking, going over past conversations, small everyday events.
    â€˜You just never know when something trivial can lead somewhere,’ he said.
    â€˜You think I might have a clue buried someplace in my head,’ she said.
    â€˜It happens,’ Martinez said.
    Her face seemed to alter for an instant, a frown puckering her brow. ‘I don’t suppose . . .’
    â€˜Go on,’ Sam said.
    She shook her head. ‘I feel selfish even thinking it, but it hadn’t occurred to me till just now that I might conceivably be in some kind of danger.’
    â€˜I’d say that was unlikely,’ Sam said.
    â€˜Unless you think you might know the killer,’ Martinez said.
    They were already at the door, ready to leave, but willing to give her another hour or more, and it wouldn’t have been the first time that an innocent afterthought had taken them someplace worthwhile.
    â€˜In a way, I wish I did,’ Gail said. ‘Believe me, if I had the smallest inkling, you’d already know it.’
    Sam believed her.
    Though the days had long gone since he’d taken any stranger at face value.
    Life’s lessons had been too hard.
    A man had to be a damned fool not to heed them.
    He took an hour mid-afternoon to collect Cathy from JWU and bring her back to Sunny Isles Beach, where Saul was waiting at their apartment.
    â€˜The fact is,’ Sam told them, ‘that until Jerome Cooper is either locked up or on a slab at the morgue, I want my family taking special