Dead Air by Michael Bradley

Author:Michael Bradley [Bradley, Michael]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-0-7443-0003-1
Publisher: CamCat Books

23

Rodney reclined in his office chair and tossed a crumpled piece of paper across the desk at Julie Lewis. The wad landed on the center of her desk, and, with a single swift motion, she brushed it off into the trash can. She peered up at him for a moment, and then returned her eyes to the report she’d been reading.

“A pre-paid cell phone,” she announced.

“Damn.” He leaned forward, resting his hands on the desk. After he returned Kaitlyn to the hotel on the previous morning, Rodney had spent Sunday afternoon arranging to have the phone records compiled and analyzed. He’d hoped that it’d give them a desperately needed lead. But of course, the killer used a burner phone. No chance of tracing it.

“Do you feel like this guy is always a step ahead of us?”

Julie set the report down on her desk. “Why are you so sure it’s a man?”

“You think it’s a woman?”

“Could be,” she said. “It’s not unheard of. Remember the Bagby killing?”

He shook his head. It sounded familiar, but he couldn’t recall the details. “Wasn’t that out near Pittsburgh?”

“Yeah, his crazy ex-girlfriend stalked and shot him,” she said. “Or, maybe this whole stalker thing is just a ruse.”

Rodney tilted his head to one side and gave her a puzzled look. “What’s that mean?”

Julie rose from her seat and rounded her desk, perching herself up on the corner of his. “Did you ever think that maybe she had something to do with all of this? Maybe Kaitlyn Ashe knows more than she’s telling us?” She folded her arms across her chest. “Face it, she hasn’t exactly been all that forthright about her past.”

He returned her gaze and raised one eye brow. “You suggesting that she sent those letters to herself?”

She gave a slow shake of her head. “Not exactly suggesting. More like toying with the idea, which seems to be more than you’re willing to do.” She gestured toward him. “She claims that there’ve been numerous letters, but, where are they? She threw them away.” She made air quotes around her last sentence.

He straightened up in his chair, glaring at her through narrowed eyes. Why’d she always have to play the bad cop? Always finding guilt in victims where there was none. But this was beyond even her norm. There was an edge to her voice that threw him. Was she for real? It sounded almost like an accusation.

“Hang on a sec. What are you trying to say?”

“That you’re allowing yourself to be blinded to the possibility that she might have murdered her fiancé. The letters could’ve been all a setup to throw us off.”

There was a tinge of anger in his sigh. “Are you saying I’m not being objective?”

Julie glanced around the office at the other desks. He followed her gaze, noting that most of them were empty. The only one occupied was at the opposite side of the room.

She lowered her voice. “Yes.”

Rodney pushed his chair back and rose to his feet. She didn’t move an inch.

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