Her Fatal Hour by Melinda Woodhall

Author:Melinda Woodhall [Woodhall, Melinda]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2021-09-13T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty-Two

Nessa pulled off her coat and hung it on the rack before dropping into her desk chair with a heavy sigh. She’d splurged at lunch, ordering the four-cheese melt with a side of chips, and was already regretting it, knowing she should have stuck with the field greens salad and cup of tomato soup she normally ordered.

Logging into her computer, Nessa saw the email from Charlie Day just as a double knock sounded on the frame of her open door.

She had to do a doubletake as she saw Charlie standing in front of her wearing a pale pink peacoat and knee-high black boots.

“What the heck are you doing here?’ Nessa said, checking the time on the email and comparing it to her watch.

“I sent you an email from the Willow Bay Airport telling you we’d landed,” Charlie said dryly. “Should I assume you didn’t see it?”

Nessa stood and circled the desk.

“I could open the email you sent, or you could just tell me what’s going on,” she said, deciding she was glad to have Charlie in town.

The FBI agent was smart and no-nonsense, and she wasn’t afraid to chase down a killer when called on.

Just the type of agent we need on the team since women associated with Royce Sterling seem to be dropping like flies.

Stepping aside to reveal Tristan Hale standing in the hall behind her, Charlie began to unbutton her coat.

“You want to explain why we're here, Agent Hale?” Charlie asked her partner. “Or should we keep Nessa guessing?”

“The ballistics fingerprint database returned a match on the bullet found during Ava Sutton’s autopsy,” Hale said. “And we believe the gun used in the shooting may have come from an illegal shipment we’ve tracked back to the Syndicate.”

Nessa took Charlie’s coat and hung it on the coat rack in her office as she absorbed the information.

“Okay, so you think whoever shot Ava is involved with the Syndicate’s gun trafficking operations?” she asked.

Hale shrugged.

“Our perp could have sourced the gun illegally from someone in the Syndicate without being directly involved in the operation,” he acknowledged. “But it indicates there’s some type of connection or communication between the shooter and the Syndicate. We need to find out what that connection is.”

Waving the FBI agents toward the chairs across from her desk, Nessa took a seat, thinking of another connection they’d made that might lead them to their perp.

“Did you guys hear the news about Trudy Gellar?” she asked. “She was Violet Ward’s roommate, and now…well, she’s dead. They found her yesterday with her throat slit.”

“And Violet’s the girl Ava tried to warn, right?” Hale asked. “So, you’re thinking Violet was the real target?”

Nessa nodded.

“And Trudy was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

“And do you have any suspects yet?’ Charlie asked hopefully. “Any forensics linking the deaths?”

Wishing she had better news, Nessa winced.

“Not really,” she admitted. “But the Allera Beach police are still investigating the scene, so we’re holding out hope they’ll come up with something.”

She hesitated, then pulled up Ava Sutton’s messages.

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