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Authors: Darlene Gardner
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leave today,” she
snapped.
“Are you going back today?” he asked.
What did that have to do with anything? “No.”
“Then neither am I,” he said. “I’m going to stay and help
you.”
“No way.” She shook her head. “You think somebody besides Mike
contacted Caroline. I’ve got to conduct the investigation as though it was
Mike.”
Vertical lines appeared on Logan’s forehead. “Why?”
“I haven’t been able to connect any of his friends to Key
West,” Maria said. “Until I rule out Mike, he’s the most likely suspect.”
“And how can you rule him out?”
“By showing around this age progression.” She got a copy out of
her purse and handed it to him.
A muscle twitched in his jaw, but otherwise his face revealed
nothing. He handed the sheet back to her. “Mike would have been a handsome
guy.”
Would have been, not turned out to be.
She swallowed back a retort, reminding herself that she
couldn’t prove Mike was alive. Not yet, anyway.
“So where are we headed?” Logan asked.
“We’re not headed anywhere.” She started walking and he fell
into step beside her. He was only three or four inches taller than her five feet
eight, which was always a surprise. He looked bigger than life. “I’m going to
the downtown branch of the post office. I hit the other branch yesterday.”
She passed a fresh produce store and turned the corner onto
Eaton Street, which was far less crowded than Duval. They passed a coffee shop
and a retro movie theater that was playing first-run films. Maria slanted a
glance at Logan. “You don’t listen real well, do you?”
“Think of me as your sidekick,” he said. “I gather we’re going
to see if anybody remembers him mailing the envelope?”
She sighed and gave in to the inevitable. “Nobody will remember
that, but they might remember Mike.”
The sprawling Old Town post office was in the next block. The
line was at least fifteen people deep, a big difference from the post office
Maria frequented in Lexington. The lines there had been getting shorter while
the number of employees on staff shrank. One of the Lexington tellers blamed the
internet.
“Why didn’t he email the photos? Why did he mail them?” Maria
didn’t realize she’d spoken aloud until Logan answered.
“ Whoever mailed the photos,” he
said, putting emphasis on the first word, “didn’t want someone to track the IP
address back to him.”
“That makes sense,” she said. “I’m getting in line. You don’t
have to wait with me.”
“Sidekick, remember?” He kept by her side, so close she
imagined she could feel the heat of his body. Last night’s erotic dreams came to
mind again. She’d done far too much imagining lately when it came to Logan.
It took more than a half hour to reach the front of the line.
An Asian clerk not much taller than the counter she stood behind called out,
“Next.”
Maria hurried over, the age progression in hand. Logan hung
back but only slightly. She got straight to the point, laying the sheet of paper
on the counter. “Could you please tell me if you’ve seen this man.”
“You want to mail this?” the woman asked.
“No.”
“What do you want to mail?”
“Nothing.” Maria attempted a smile. “I’m looking for this man.
All I want to know is if you’ve seen him.”
The clerk didn’t return her smile. One of her dark brows
arched. “What did he do wrong?”
“Nothing. He’s my brother.” Maria tried not to show her
frustration. Some people were tougher nuts to crack than others. “I only want to
talk to him.”
“How do I know this man wants to talk to you?” the woman asked,
her expression hardening. “We’re very busy. You need to step aside if you don’t
have anything to mail.”
“But you haven’t—”
“I can vouch for my friend.” Logan was suddenly at Maria’s
side, flashing a reassuring smile at the clerk. “She’s been worried about her
brother since he went missing.”
The flint went
snapped.
“Are you going back today?” he asked.
What did that have to do with anything? “No.”
“Then neither am I,” he said. “I’m going to stay and help
you.”
“No way.” She shook her head. “You think somebody besides Mike
contacted Caroline. I’ve got to conduct the investigation as though it was
Mike.”
Vertical lines appeared on Logan’s forehead. “Why?”
“I haven’t been able to connect any of his friends to Key
West,” Maria said. “Until I rule out Mike, he’s the most likely suspect.”
“And how can you rule him out?”
“By showing around this age progression.” She got a copy out of
her purse and handed it to him.
A muscle twitched in his jaw, but otherwise his face revealed
nothing. He handed the sheet back to her. “Mike would have been a handsome
guy.”
Would have been, not turned out to be.
She swallowed back a retort, reminding herself that she
couldn’t prove Mike was alive. Not yet, anyway.
“So where are we headed?” Logan asked.
“We’re not headed anywhere.” She started walking and he fell
into step beside her. He was only three or four inches taller than her five feet
eight, which was always a surprise. He looked bigger than life. “I’m going to
the downtown branch of the post office. I hit the other branch yesterday.”
She passed a fresh produce store and turned the corner onto
Eaton Street, which was far less crowded than Duval. They passed a coffee shop
and a retro movie theater that was playing first-run films. Maria slanted a
glance at Logan. “You don’t listen real well, do you?”
“Think of me as your sidekick,” he said. “I gather we’re going
to see if anybody remembers him mailing the envelope?”
She sighed and gave in to the inevitable. “Nobody will remember
that, but they might remember Mike.”
The sprawling Old Town post office was in the next block. The
line was at least fifteen people deep, a big difference from the post office
Maria frequented in Lexington. The lines there had been getting shorter while
the number of employees on staff shrank. One of the Lexington tellers blamed the
internet.
“Why didn’t he email the photos? Why did he mail them?” Maria
didn’t realize she’d spoken aloud until Logan answered.
“ Whoever mailed the photos,” he
said, putting emphasis on the first word, “didn’t want someone to track the IP
address back to him.”
“That makes sense,” she said. “I’m getting in line. You don’t
have to wait with me.”
“Sidekick, remember?” He kept by her side, so close she
imagined she could feel the heat of his body. Last night’s erotic dreams came to
mind again. She’d done far too much imagining lately when it came to Logan.
It took more than a half hour to reach the front of the line.
An Asian clerk not much taller than the counter she stood behind called out,
“Next.”
Maria hurried over, the age progression in hand. Logan hung
back but only slightly. She got straight to the point, laying the sheet of paper
on the counter. “Could you please tell me if you’ve seen this man.”
“You want to mail this?” the woman asked.
“No.”
“What do you want to mail?”
“Nothing.” Maria attempted a smile. “I’m looking for this man.
All I want to know is if you’ve seen him.”
The clerk didn’t return her smile. One of her dark brows
arched. “What did he do wrong?”
“Nothing. He’s my brother.” Maria tried not to show her
frustration. Some people were tougher nuts to crack than others. “I only want to
talk to him.”
“How do I know this man wants to talk to you?” the woman asked,
her expression hardening. “We’re very busy. You need to step aside if you don’t
have anything to mail.”
“But you haven’t—”
“I can vouch for my friend.” Logan was suddenly at Maria’s
side, flashing a reassuring smile at the clerk. “She’s been worried about her
brother since he went missing.”
The flint went
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