CHAPTER SEVEN

Haddie leaned on the top of the dividing wall of Grace’s cubby. “Do you have Colman’s financials?”

With smooth black skin and a tight head of curls, Grace had a perfect face. She looked up from her monitor with a tense expression and shook her head. “Josh is supposed to scan that in.”

“Damn.” That would assume he’d remember. Haddie turned toward the empty copy room at the end of the short office of cubicles. “Thanks.”

Haddie’s cubby had a small pile of manilla folders and the list of tasks Andrea had left. She didn’t mind getting stuck in the cubicle some mornings, but today she itched to be moving. She’d driven the RAV4 this morning, primarily to get Liz to work at the crime lab, but it would also make it easier to do interviews. However, she’d ended up here tracking phone data.

She stepped out, walked across from Josh’s empty cubby, and tilted her head, trying to see into the copy room as she approached. He’d disappeared as usual. Files covered the worktable and documents were left in the copy machine’s tray. He hadn’t digitized any of the victim’s finances yet. So, she started leafing through the tabs of the folders on the table.

“Haddie?” Andrea barked from the office behind.

Blush warmed her cheeks as Haddie stepped quickly out of the copy room. “Yes?”

Andrea frowned, standing at the far end of the office, a plain room with three gray cubicles and set of supply shelves, no windows, and only one exit where she stood. She gestured for Haddie to follow before disappearing toward her cubicle.

Last night had turned difficult with Andrea calling and texting to get Mel out of the house, while Haddie dealt with a broken woman who took twenty minutes to get her pants on. Somehow, that had been Haddie’s fault. She’d been able to go home and heat up a frozen pizza before midnight, but it had been a long day.

Longer for Andrea. Her eyes were lightly bloodshot, her face was tight, and her usually perfect bun sat slightly off-center. Two empty coffee cups from different stores sat on the credenza behind where she sat at her desk, and her purse sat between them. Even her perfume smelled weak. Had the woman even slept?

“Did you get anything on my list done yet?” Andrea asked. An accusation, as they both knew Haddie hadn’t moved far down the list.

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

“I checked out the carrier data for the first murder, which fits Mel’s account of the night.” Haddie started wrapping her hair around her fist. She’d gotten side-tracked from Andrea’s list that prioritized supporting Mel’s weak alibis. Instead she’d delved into Mark’s history.

“You’re not focused today. They’ll arrest Mel on the second murder today or tomorrow, I’m sure of it. I need to be prepared for the arraignment.” Andrea tapped her monitor. “I need to count on you. Focus on what I’ve given you, not on the murders.”

Haddie resisted approaching the same argument she’d started last night. Focusing on the alibi made sense, but her gut wanted to dig deeper and find the killer. “I understand.” It would take a couple hours to get everything ready; maybe by then Josh would have done his job and she could peek at the finances.

Andrea nodded and gestured a dismissal.

Grace didn’t look up as Haddie returned. She had two windows open on her monitor, one of the police interviews, and the other her notes. If she questioned Andrea pulling Haddie aside, she didn’t make it her business. As a paralegal, she took her work seriously.

Haddie did too. This time she just saw the situation differently than Andrea. Which wasn’t why she interned here. Focus.

Sitting down, she noticed her phone had a message.

Terry texted, “Lunch? Cafeteria?”

Haddie slid across the phone’s keyboard, replying, “I doubt it. Working on case.” She added a second line, “Just got called out for not staying focused.”

“So, what are you obsessing on now?”

Haddie snorted. “Not obsessing. It’s just that they’re focused on alibi, instead of who actually killed those people.”

“So what’s your plan?”

“Finish the alibi work. Look into the murder.” Haddie glanced up toward the office door, not wanting to be texting if Andrea came back in.

“Not obsessing then.” Terry threw in a laughing emoji.

Haddie glared at the phone. He could be annoying, at least on this topic.

He added a second message. “How can I help, Buckaroo?”

Terry always did this. Busted her chops for obsessing, and then helped with whatever she’d gotten herself into.

“Can you look into the fires? I started, but it got too big. Strange fires, no accelerant?” She added. “I can ask Liz for any data on the fires. Get it to you.”

“Sounds like my thing. The boards are already lit up on it anyway.”

“Thanks.” Haddie tossed her phone beside the keyboard and straightened Andrea’s note with barely a tinge of guilt after being reprimanded. There were too many strange aspects to the first murder. Why did the victim stop and roll down his window at the end of the alley? How did a fire start without any evidence of an accelerant? She couldn’t let it go. She wanted to dig, but instead tapped her nail on Andrea’s post-it with the hastily scribbled bullet points.

Next on the list was to follow the phone tracking for the second murder. Third on the list was to follow up on the camera at the park, the one ATM that should have a clear view of Mel’s parked car. It would be the best help for the alibi. The police hadn’t even checked so the DA didn’t have it.

She picked up the office phone to make the follow-up call, put it back down, and picked up her cell. First, she’d see if Liz had anything to get to Terry about the fires.