as busy as my fingers,” Avery said, interrupting Jonah’s thoughts before they could get too out of control.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Avery smirked. “There’s smoke coming out of your ears. Maybe you’ll feel better if you get things off your chest. You’ve had a pretty shitty week. Let’s get out of here and get some fresh air and a bite to eat.”
Jonah’s first instinct was to grab a snack and keep working, but he knew Avery was right. “Fine,” he agreed after a few moments. “But no avocados.”
“I have Benadryl in my desk,” Avery grumbled.
“No avocados or no lunch date.” Oh, shit. Why had he called it that? They’d had lunch together dozens of times since Avery started working for him.
Avery quirked a brow but didn’t correct him. In fact, neither of them said anything until they exited the building.
“I took your advice and talked to Rocky and Felix last night about the situation with Earl Ison and Bo Cahill,” Jonah said, breaking the silence.
Avery stopped suddenly and turned to look at Jonah, who was unprepared for the sudden move. He pulled up short, but Jonah’s momentum carried him a few steps forward. He crashed into Avery hard enough to knock the much smaller man off balance. Jonah’s hands snagged Avery’s waist to steady him, and he didn’t immediately let go.
“That was a close call,” Avery said, placing his hand over Jonah’s racing heart.
“Very close.” Jonah knew he should drop his hands and step away, but he gripped Avery a little harder instead. He might not ever get another chance.
“What do they think?” Avery asked.
Jonah just blinked. What were they talking about again? “Who?”
“Rocky and Felix. What do they think about Earl Ison’s case,” Avery said, looking at Jonah like he’d lost his mind.
Avery had wanted to get Jonah’s blood flowing, and by God, it was rushing south in a hurry. Jonah released Avery and stepped back before he made a bigger fool of himself.
“My partners agree that something isn’t adding up, so Felix is going to request a copy of the case file under Georgia’s Open Record Act,” Jonah said, continuing toward Bytes and Brew. “He said he also has contacts in DeKalb County who will hopefully expedite his request.”
Avery fell into step with him. “That’s great, Jonah. What about Marla? How’s she feeling?”
“She hasn’t been home. I called her last night, and she said she and Betty were in Atlanta making peace with some family members. She sounded so tired. I just wanted to drive to Atlanta and bring her back home.”
Jonah hadn’t told Avery that Marla’s illness was the reason he was pushing so hard to investigate Earl’s case. He saw no reason to keep the information from him now. By the time they reached the café, Avery understood why Jonah just couldn’t let things go.
“You’re a great friend, Jonah.”
“I learned the hard way to never take friendships for granted,” he said solemnly. Jonah could tell by Avery’s expression that he wanted to know more, but he didn’t press him.
“Does she plan to return soon?”
“Monday,” Jonah replied. “I hope to have some answers for her by then.”
Until then, Jonah needed to keep busy to stay out of trouble.
Kendall didn’t come home after his shift at The Cockpit on Friday night, so Jonah was stuck at home with no one to distract him from his thoughts. He’d never been good with idle time. On Saturday morning, Jonah went to the hardware store and purchased paint and a few home-remodeling magazines to get ideas for his kitchen. He spent the rest of the day painting his living room a bluish-gray color that reminded him of the sky just before it rained.
On Sunday morning, Jonah and the rest of Savannah Morning News subscribers got a shocking surprise. On the front page were side-by-side photos of Earl Ison and Lola the Ice Queen beneath a heading that read: Who Really Killed the Queen?
Jonah dialed Felix without reading the article.
“Hello,” Felix said groggily into the phone.
“Thanks for the warning.”
“What are you talking about?” Felix asked.
Jonah was too stunned to speak right away.
“Jonah? You still there?”
“I’m here. I’m referring to the exposé you published in the newspaper this morning.”
“What exposé?” Felix asked, sounding almost shrill.
Jonah read the headline to him. “Front page and above the fold.”
“Oh, fuck,” Felix said, sounding truly horrified. “I got the file late last night from my contact in DeKalb. I spent a few hours going over every detail at least three times, then stayed up until