A Heart for Murder: a Dean Warren Mystery by Linda Owen

Author:Linda Owen
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: BookBaby
Published: 2019-04-05T14:16:30+00:00

CHAPTER 20

After they convened at the flagpole, Lane drove under the speed limit, a little timid to navigate the wet streets. The rain that had poured during the night had diminished to sporadic sprinkles, but she kept the windshield wipers on.

Sitting next to her, Toby watched the blades dancing rhythmically. “I wanted to tell Mom what we know,” he said. “It was hard, especially when Miss H was so nasty to us.”

“Dad won’t fire her unless we have more proof,” Ethan said. “Maybe he’ll listen to what we learn today.”

Toby selected a pop station on the radio. His eyes wandered to the intersecting streets of downtown, first to the left, then to the right.

“I’ve never cut class before,” Lane said.

“Then it’s about time,” Ethan chuckled. “This is your initiation to our three musketeers club.”

As they passed the Chicken Café, Toby noticed yesterday’s encyclopedia salesman. He was gripping the arm of a frightened woman, who was trying to pull away. Toby’s stomach clinched. He had only a glimpse before they were out of sight, but the woman reminded him of someone he had once seen with his mother at the library.

A gasp cut off his breath. “Lane, it’s him — the man who scared you. He’s scaring someone else.”

“You sure?”

“I saw his face.”

She braked and turned the wheel into a U-turn. “Let’s have another look.”

“Did you tell the police about him?” Ethan asked her.

She shook her head. “I thought you’d tell your dad.”

“We should have. That guy is really suspicious. My gut tells me he’s no good. Dad would call him ‘a person of interest’ in the murders.”

“Maybe it is him,” Lane muttered. “We need to take his picture, Toby. Use my phone.”

When they returned to the street corner, both the man and woman were gone. “Wait. Let me look inside the cafe,” Toby said, hopping out of the car, Lane’s phone in his hand. He returned almost immediately. “There’s no one in there at all.” His eyes searched up and down the street. “His car must have been close by; they disappeared so fast.”

“We can’t phone Dad right now,” Ethan said. “He’d find out we’re cutting school!”

***

The teens focused their attention on the day’s mission. Talking excitedly, they drove twenty minutes on I-10 until they reached the Del Verde exit.

“I found directions on the internet,” Lane said, reaching into her purse for a small piece of paper. She handed it to Toby. The car swerved over the line, but she quickly grabbed the wheel with both hands. “Sorry, guys.”

They entered the Oakhill Subdivision, a sprawling neighborhood of once prestigious homes set in large yards with mature trees. The streets were dry.

“It didn’t rain here,” Ethan observed from the backseat.

They parked in front of a mailbox reading Herman House. Toby stared out the car window at a massive two-story residence in dire need of paint. At one end of the veranda, several white-haired women entertained themselves by knitting and chatting with each other.

Lane searched for Herman House on her iPhone. “It

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