Read Online The Whispering Room by Amanda Stevens - Free Book Online Page B

Betts’s acquittal, according to your theory, was all some master plan by the men in black?” Mitchell thought about that for a moment. “What about Courtland’s brother? Where does his death fit into this whole grand scheme of yours?”
    â€œHis death was a warning. Or an insurance policy. Betts didn’t go to trial until the fall, but Courtlandwould have already been prepping the case in the summer when his brother was killed. Betts ordered the hit, then threatened the rest of Courtland’s family if things didn’t go in his favor. That could be when Courtland started cooperating with the feds.”
    â€œAnd the snakes?”
    Evangeline suppressed a shudder as she turned to stare out the window. The gardens along St. Charles flashed by the window in a colorful blur. “Maybe they wanted to make it look like an accident to anyone but Paul Courtland.”
    â€œOr maybe, like I said, Betts wanted to impress the head honchos.”
    â€œYeah, maybe so.”
    Mitchell was still frowning at the road, deepening the creases in his forehead and around his eyes. He never wore sunglasses and probably didn’t even own a bottle of sunscreen. The skin on his face and arms was like old leather. “So a few days after Meredith Courtland overhears the conversation in the study, her husband moves out and tells her the marriage is over. What do you make of that?”
    â€œIt sounds to me like Paul Courtland was trying to put some distance between himself and his family.”
    â€œYep. That’s what it sounds like to me, too. Or maybe, like she said, she just missed the signals. The trouble between them could have been brewing for a long time. Meredith Courtland wouldn’t be thefirst person to lie to herself about the condition of her marriage.”
    They fell silent for a few minutes while Mitchell negotiated the heavy traffic in the Quarter. As they drove by the liquor stores and souvenir shops on the lower end of Decatur, Evangeline could tell something was on his mind. He was still watching her out of the corner of his eye.
    â€œOkay, spit it out,” she said.
    He suddenly looked uneasy. “How long are we going to ignore the elephant in the backseat?”
    She pretended not to know what he meant. “What elephant?”
    â€œâ€˜I don’t want to end up like that dead cop.’ That’s what she said her husband told those guys that night, right?”
    â€œI guess.”
    Mitchell turned and dropped his chin, as if he were peering at her over the top of invisible glasses. “You guess?”
    â€œAll right, yeah, that’s supposedly what Courtland said.”
    â€œSo let’s talk about it,” Mitchell said impatiently. “Because I know damn well you’re thinking about it.”
    Evangeline closed her eyes as she let her head fall against the back of the seat. It was a relief to finally say it. “What if he was talking about Johnny?”
    â€œYou know that’s a long shot, right?”
    â€œWhy?”
    â€œWhy?” He ticked off the reasons on one hand. “One, Johnny’s not the only cop who’s been killed in this city. Two, we don’t even know that he was talking about an NOPD cop. Three, there’s not a shred of evidence that connects Johnny to Sonny Betts or Paul Courtland.”
    â€œThat we know of.”
    â€œFour… four, ” he insisted when she tried to talk over him. “Johnny’s death was a random act of violence. Tragic and senseless, but that’s all it was. He was at the wrong place at the wrong time.”
    â€œI don’t believe that.”
    â€œI know you don’t, but it happens, Evie. New Orleans is a dangerous place. We don’t call tourists ‘walking ATM machines’ for nothing.”
    He eased his way around a stalled car, and from Evangeline’s perspective, they seemed to squeeze by with only a hair to spare.
    â€œGeorge Mason