of lightning through a steel rod.
Marla said, “I think he’s in the back.”
“Go fetch him for me, will you?” Jeffrey asked, making his way into his office.
Jeffrey sat in his chair with a groan. He knew he was tempting fate with his leg, keeping it still for a while, but he did not have a choice. His men needed to know he was back on the job, ready to work.
Frank rapped his knuckles on the door and Jeffrey nodded him in.
Frank asked, “How you doing?”
Jeffrey made sure he had the other man’s attention. “I’m not gonna get shot at anymore, am I?”
Frank had the decency to look down at his shoes. “No, sir.”
“What about Will Harris?”
Frank rubbed his chin. “I hear he’s going to Savannah.”
“That right?”
“Yeah,” Frank answered. “Pete gave him a bonus. Will bought himself a bus ticket.” Frank shrugged. “Said he was gonna spend a couple of weeks with his daughter.”
“What about his house?”
“Some fellas at the lodge volunteered to take care of the window.”
“Good,” Jeffrey said. “Sara’s gonna want her car back. Did you find anything?”
Frank took a plastic evidence bag out of his pocket and set it down on the desk.
“What’s this?” Jeffrey asked, but it was a stupid question. There was a Ruger .357 Magnum in the bag.
“It was under her seat,” Frank said.
“Sara’s seat?” he asked, still not getting it. The gun was a man stopper, the caliber enough to blow a hole into someone’s chest. “In her car? This is hers?”
Frank shrugged. “She doesn’t have a permit for it.”
Jeffrey stared at the gun as if it could talk to him. Sara certainly wasn’t against private citizens having weapons, but he knew for a fact that she wasn’t exactly comfortable around guns, especially the kind that could shoot the lock off a barn door. He slipped the gun out of the bag, checking it.
“Serial numbers were filed off,” Frank said.
“Yeah,” Jeffrey answered. He could see that. “Was it loaded?”
“Yep.” Frank was obviously impressed with the weapon. “Ruger security six, stainless steel. That’s a custom handle, too.”
Jeffrey dropped the gun into his desk drawer, then looked back at Frank. “Anything on the sex offender lists yet?”
Frank seemed disappointed that the discussion about Sara’s gun was over. He answered, “Not really. Most of ’em have some kind of alibi. The ones who don’t aren’t really what we’re looking for.”
“We’ve got a meeting at ten with Nick Shelton. He’s got a specialist on belladonna. Maybe we can give the guys something more to look for after that.”
Frank took a seat. “I got that nightshade in my own backyard.”
“Me, too,” Jeffrey said, then, “I want to head over to the hospital after the meeting, see if Julia Matthews feels like talking.” He paused, thinking about the young girl. “Her parents will be in around three. I want to be at the airport to meet them. You’re riding shotgun with me today.”
If Frank found Jeffrey’s word choice funny, he did not comment.
15
Sara left the clinic at quarter till ten so that she could go by the pharmacy before she saw Jeffrey. There was a chill in the air and the clouds promised more rain. She tucked her hands into her pockets as she walked down the street, keeping her eyes on the sidewalk in front of her, hoping her posture and her pace would make her seem unapproachable. She needn’t have bothered, though. Since Sibyl’s death downtown had taken on an eerie quiet. It was as if the whole town had died with her. Sara knew how they felt.
All night, Sara had lain awake in bed, going over each step she had taken with Julia Matthews. No matter what she did, Sara kept seeing the girl laid out on her car, her hands and feet pierced, her eyes glazed as she stared without seeing the night sky. Sara never wanted to go through anything like that again.
The bell over the pharmacy door jingled as Sara walked in, breaking her out of her solitude.
“Hey, Dr. Linton,” Marty Ringo called from behind the checkout counter. Her head was bent down, reading a magazine. Marty was a plump woman with an unfortunate mole growing just above her right eyebrow. Black hairs shot out from it like bristles on a brush. Working in the pharmacy, she knew the latest gossip about anyone and everyone in town. Marty would be certain to mention to whoever wandered into the store next that Sara Linton made a special trip to see Jeb today.
Marty smiled slyly. “You