Fatal Secrets - Desiree Holt Page 0,9

little bit. Maybe after she got the chill out of her bones, she’d dive into a quart of her favorite ice cream, always a cure for misery.

What had she been thinking of, to go to a motel with a man she’d just met whose last name she didn’t even know? Vetted by the owner of a bar she’d never been in before? Smart, Zoe. Real smart. She could be lying in a ditch instead of driving her car.

But she hadn’t gotten that kind of vibe from him. Not even a little. And she couldn’t remember when she’d had better sex.

Or maybe the last time I had sex at all.

She was definitely not in the habit of spending the night in cheap motels with strange men. Chalk it up to frustration and depression at her lack of progress

Okay, time to hit the road.

The steady rainfall had disappeared, leaving behind a bone-chilling mist that crept beneath the skin. She should have pulled her car over in front of Sean’s room last night, but her mind had been on other things. Besides, it was only a few steps away. She blinked as she spotted something on the side of the vehicle. At first she thought it was dirt thrown up from the muddy, unpaved parking lot as people pulled out into the wet night. As she got close to it, however, she saw someone had written in crude letters in black, Stop looking.

For a moment, she froze. Who could have done this? It had to be someone whose safety net she’d pricked during the past few days. Whatever had been used to write the words was dripping down the door like blood. When she ran her fingers over it, she discovered it was some kind of soluble paint. Unlocking her door, she reached in, grabbed a handful of the paper towels she’d stuck in the console yesterday, and cleaned her fingers as best she could. Then she leaned back against the seat, forcing herself to breathe slowly and evenly. She’d have to clean the car when she got home. Maybe the rain would wash a lot of it away. She hoped.

She had a wild thought of hurrying back to the motel room she’d left and waking Sean, but she discarded that idea before it was even fully formed. She didn’t need him in her business, and she’d bet the house he’d want nothing to do with it. People had tried to run her away from stories before. This could be nothing more than someone blowing smoke and have nothing to do with the subject of her book, although she doubted it. In a way, though, it made her feel good. She had to be on the right track for this to happen.

Then another thought struck her. How did whoever this was know where her car was? Had they followed her out here? Waited for the right opportunity when everyone else was gone? The night with Sean was totally unexpected, the stop at the bar very last minute. So, had someone been following her?

Had they been in the bar last night?

A chill slithered down her spine.

She’d rattled someone’s cage all right. Could be anyone. There were all the people who’d been involved in the beginning, everyone from the county prosecutor’s office to the high-profile criminals they were charging to someone who might not even be on the horizon. At least she knew she was heading in the right direction. So, she needed to be careful. No problem. She’d been down this road before. Usually it was someone flexing muscle and figuring they’d scare her off. It hadn’t worked when Justine was killed, and it wasn’t going to work now.

She took a moment to steady her sudden attack of nerves then started her car and backed up. In seconds, with the windshield wipers slapping, she pulled out onto the highway and headed for the interstate. The highway was filled with early morning traffic, and the slickness on the road and the mist in the air didn’t help her driving. She wanted to get home, take a shower, forget what a stupid idiot she’d been the night before, and look at her three days’ worth of meager notes.

But two things kept bugging her. Ten years had passed without any activity about the case she was digging into. She’d had few if any results, so why was someone trying to chase her off?

What did you think? It’s been a long time, and no one’s even looked into