Read Online With a Vengeance by Annette Dashofy - Free Book Online Page B

either the car or the truck, they would have to go through the yard to get around his Explorer.
    He climbed out. There was no movement from the house. No subtle stirring of curtains or blinds. Other than a few bird chirps from the maples, all was still. Keeping alert, Pete edged around the blue pickup toward the open garage. He paused at the entrance. Thanks to the heavy shade, he didn’t have to wait long for his eyes to adjust to the dark interior.
    The Hyundai might have squeezed into the teetering structure, but not the pickup. The place looked like part storage shed, part workshop. Sheets of plywood darkened by age occupied part of one bay along with a rickety picnic table stacked with an assortment of poorly kept hand tools. A canoe had been shoved against the back wall. A workbench sported reloading supplies on one end, an array of fishing tackle boxes on the other. Assorted duck and turkey decoys lay scattered about. A massive generator on wheels sat off to one side. But no ATV.
    “Looking for something?”
    Pete turned cautiously to find Livingston standing next to the pickup. Dressed in camo, the man blended into his wooded surroundings. The fact Pete hadn’t heard him approach was unnerving. “Hector. I need to speak to your daughter.”
    Livingston leaned against the truck’s bed, appearing relaxed, although Pete suspected he could spring into action with the speed of a cat if he wanted. “What about?” Livingston asked.
    Pete mirrored the man’s laidback posture, resting his arms on the other side of the Ram’s bed. “I have some questions about the shooting last night. I understand she broke up with a guy before she started dating Curtis Knox, and the guy didn’t take it very well.” Pete wasn’t about to reveal his interest in Lucy as a suspect.
    Livingston grunted what Pete took as a confirmation. “Lucille’s in the house.” He tipped his head in that direction. “Go on in.” Without another word, he pushed away from the truck and ambled into the leaning garage.
    Pete offered his thanks. He passed behind the pickup and almost whacked his shin on the hitch of a low flatbed trailer sticking out from beside the garage. With a quick sidestep to avoid an inevitable bruise, he headed down the fieldstone path to the back porch. The door swung open before he had a chance to knock.
    A petite raven-haired bombshell greeted him with a scowl as dark as her hair. “What do you want?”
    Her so-called fiancé had been shot less than twenty-four hours previous. Pete would have thought her initial reaction to seeing a cop on her doorstep might be to ask if a suspect had been caught. Unless she already knew the answer. “Lucy Livingston? I’m Chief Pete Adams, Vance Township Police.”
    “Yeah?”
    “Mind if I ask you a few questions?” When she didn’t respond, he added, “About your ex-boyfriend.”
    “Curtis isn’t my ex,” she said. “We’re engaged to be married.”
    Pete feigned ignorance of anything to the contrary. “I realize that. I’m referring to the man you were seeing prior to Curtis.”
    Her face softened. “Oh.” She moved clear of the door. “Come in.”
    The kitchen he stepped into was far from modern, but neat and clean. An off-white refrigerator bore a few hand-scrawled memos attached by an odd assortment of promotional magnets. Steam rose from a pot on an avocado green range. A box of store-brand pasta and a jar of pasta sauce sat on a spotless Formica countertop. “Sorry if I’m interrupting your supper. I won’t take up much of your time.”
    Lucy flipped a chrome dial on the stove. “What do you wanna know?”
    Pete eased his notebook from his pocket. “A name would be a good place to start.”
    Her dark eyes shifted. “A name?”
    “Your ex-boyfriend’s name.”
    “Why?”
    Okay. They were going to play this game. “I’ve been told he was upset when you broke up with him to see Curtis. Is that true?”
    She caught a lip between her teeth. “Yeah. He was