I See You (Criminal Profiler #2) - Mary Burton Page 0,17
had won a lucrative state contract. We knew we would have to buy more trucks and hire more men, but it also meant the bank was willing to give us the loan. The loan had come through that day, and he figured, why not do something nice for himself and his family. Only a month before, he had had to tell Hadley he couldn’t send her to college. He was planning to tell her she could now go.”
“How did Hadley react about not going to college?” Zoe asked.
“She was really upset, as you can imagine. She had worked harder than her sister and made better grades but was still facing a few years of working behind the counter here.”
“Did Larry Prince have a girlfriend?” Vaughan asked.
Slater hesitated. “That’s out of the blue. Why do you ask?”
“Trying to get a full picture,” Vaughan said. “There’s always more than meets the eye.”
“There was a woman who worked the front desk.” Slater’s tone was reluctant. “They messed around a couple of times, but it wasn’t serious.”
“Did you tell the cops this?” Zoe asked.
“No. It didn’t seem to have anything to do with Marsha.”
“What was the woman’s name?” Vaughan asked.
“Becky Mahoney. After the murders and all the media attention, she moved to Fredericksburg, Virginia. I haven’t seen her in years.”
“Who was Marsha dating?” Vaughan asked.
“There were a few upwardly mobile guys, but she never went out with any of them more than once.”
“What about the ones that weren’t upwardly mobile?” Zoe asked.
“There were a few who worked in this shop. One guy in particular caught her eye. Good-looking kid. Jason Dalton. He could charm anyone, and Marsha was no exception. But Jason was smart enough to know to stay away from the boss’s daughters. And he was more interested in getting enough money together so he could move south.”
“Was Marsha interested in any guys?” Zoe said.
“There were several, but it’s been so long I don’t remember the names. They all liked Marsha, too. Most of them had drug problems or had done time.”
“Do you know where Jason Dalton is now?” Vaughan asked.
“Jason moved south a few months before Marsha vanished. I never saw him again. I haven’t kept up with the other guys.”
“You suspect Jason?”
“No. He was guilty of being poor and maybe stupid like most teenage boys are, but I never saw him as a killer.”
“Was Hadley seeing anyone other than Mark?” Zoe asked.
“How would I know something like that?” Slater countered.
“You’re one of the few people who knew the family well at the time,” Vaughan pointed out.
“Hadley was crazy about Mark,” Slater said.
“That’s not exactly an answer,” Zoe said.
“No, she wasn’t dating anyone else,” Slater said.
Forty-five minutes later, Zoe and Vaughan arrived at Nikki McDonald’s apartment building. Vaughan parked, and they made their way into the lobby. They showed identification to the doorman, who called up to Nikki.
“I hope she saved her pennies,” Vaughan said. “The rent here is not cheap.”
“She’s been out of work four months,” Zoe said. “Her website has had a reasonable amount of hits but not enough to generate advertising to cover this.”
The elevator doors opened, and Nikki stepped off. She wore dark cotton pants, a gray top, and sandals. Her hair was freshly brushed, and her lipstick looked as if it had just been applied.
“Detective Vaughan and Agent Spencer,” Nikki said. “I was beginning to think you both were avoiding me.”
Vaughan grinned. “I said I’d talk to you when I had some information.”
Her eyes sparked. “And you do. Your expression gives it away.”
His smile widened. “Is there somewhere we can talk?”
Nikki rubbed her hands together. “I feel like this is going to be good.”
“It is,” he teased.
“Now I’m intrigued.”
On an intellectual level, Zoe understood Vaughan’s easy style worked well with those he interviewed. It was that charm that had drawn her to him initially. His life was not perfect, but he chose not to haul the baggage around with him. And seeing as she carried enough for two people, it was a welcome relief.
However, she wasn’t so crazy about the way Nikki McDonald leaned toward him when she spoke or the way she touched her hair in a flirty way.
Nikki led them down the hallway to a small waiting room furnished with four large chairs and a coffee table. Five sales brochures fanned across the sparkling glass tabletop. “The building manager uses this for sales meetings, but we can use it.”
The reporter extended her hand to the two chairs and took the one on the other side