Proof of Murder (Beyond the Page Bookstore Mystery #4) - Lauren Elliott Page 0,46
was on the other side of the glass just provided her with the proof she needed to argue at least one of their allegations against her. Wait a second. Her phone had appeared rather quickly from the time they asked her about it.
“Did one of your officers already go to Serena’s house and get that?”
“No, she’s upstairs in the waiting room.”
“Oh, that’s nice and convenient for you.” Addie grinned at whoever it was behind the glass listening.
Marc turned the phone screen toward Addie. “Here, punch in your password, please.” He pulled it away when she reached for it. “I’ll hold it. You just enter your code.”
Addie pressed the digits and sat back, crossing her arms over her chest.
Marc and Ryley huddled head-to-head as they scrolled through her photos. “And you have no idea where Kalea is now?” Marc looked up at her.
Addie shook her head.
Ryley took the phone out of Marc’s hand and studied the pictures. “I can see now why none of Kalea’s fingerprints were found inside the library around the window.”
“Why’s that?”
“Because,” Ryley flashed the screen in Addie’s direction, “in all these pictures she’s wearing white gloves.”
“Yeah,” Addie said, “those are customary to wear when handling vintage books, finger oil on the pages and stuff.”
“So why aren’t you wearing them?”
“I had been taking my shift doing the data entry on the computer. Kalea was reading off the information about the books to me: publisher date, edition, things like that. We took turns doing the research because there was only one computer.” Addie shrugged. “I really couldn’t have typed with them on. Plus, it gave me a better grip on the window latch when I was struggling with it.”
“But Kalea didn’t follow your lead and take hers off when she tried, like in this photo?” Agent Brookes showed Addie the photo where Kalea was lying prone on the window seat, feigning death with her attempt to force the window open.
Addie smiled at the memory, and then her face stiffened. She remembered the conversation her and her cousin had about the gloves. When Addie suggested her cousin take her gloves off so she could get a better hold on the small latch, Kalea changed the subject, and that’s when the silliest photo was taken with her trying to open the window with her foot. Then another memory of the day flashed into Addie’s mind. When they were leaving, Kalea set her handbag on the table, took everything out looking for her cell phone, and then repacked it. Had she also slipped in the Beeton’s first edition of A Study in Scarlet? Was Kalea setting me up for the theft of the books all day?
“Are you okay?” For the first time since her arrest, Marc’s face showed signs of concern for her.
She nodded. “I was just thinking about how silly we were behaving. It felt like the walls were closing in on us, and I guess we just needed to relieve some of the tension.”
There was a tap on the glass. Marc glanced questioningly at Ryley and left the room. A moment later, there was another rap. Ryley remained staunch, but the slight reddening on her neck gave away the fact that even she thought this interruption was unusual during an interrogation. Without a word, she gathered up the folder, Addie’s phone, and evidence bags from the table and exited.
An uncomfortable feeling nestled in Addie’s gut as a headache snaked up the back of her neck and made its home at the base of her skull. Probably a common side effect of spending nearly twelve hours locked in windowless rooms. The only way she did know exactly how much time had passed was because she’d managed to catch a glimpse of the time on her cell phone when she had entered her password. Twelve hours that felt more like eternity. This must be what purgatory was like. She moaned and rested her forehead on the cool tabletop.
The door flew open and Addie jerked upright. “You’re free to go.” Marc shoved her phone across the table toward her.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean the charges against you are pending right now.”
She grabbed her phone and stood up. “And you’re done with this?”
“Yes, we have all the pertinent information from it that we needed.”
Addie glanced over Marc’s shoulder. “Does your sidekick know I’m being released?”
“Yes, Agent Brookes is fully aware.”
“Really?” Addie straightened her shoulders as a sense of vindication shored up her throbbing back. “So, if I have this right, you’re not charging me?”