Refined To Death by Bartal Vanessa Gray

Author:Bartal , Vanessa Gray
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Dry Creek Press
Published: 2023-01-06T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 18

An officer at the door tried to stop her. He was a new guy, one who didn’t know her dad.

“Jenks,” she said, as if it was a password, which it sort of was because the guy moved aside and let her through.

“Hi, Sadie,” a couple of guys called as she passed them, tossing her a wave. She waved in return, smiling, not pausing until she located Vaslilssa who must have been crying since she and Sadie hung up. On a lesser model, the eyelids would be swollen, face blotchy, throat dry and parched from such copious weeping. Vaslilssa managed to look like she was in the middle of filming a nighttime eighties soap opera, as if she’d just learned who shot JR and couldn’t stand it. Her complexion remained perfect, eyes dewy, lips slightly parted. Several officers in her proximity seemed to be trying to work, but it wasn’t going well for them. One wound the same length of police tape, dropped it, then stooped to re-roll it twice as Sadie approached. Another tripped over a bench and put out a hand to catch himself before he somersaulted completely. Still a third had given up all pretense of working and stood in the middle of the hallway, staring at her slack jawed.

Vaslilssa caught sight of Sadie and sat up, eyes instantly dry. “I can stop the crying now, yes?”

Sadie pressed her lips together and leaned forward to whisper in her ear. “Try to look sad, and don’t speak anything but Russian to anyone, including me, until we’re in my car. Not a word. Nod if you understand.”

Vaslilssa nodded a few times and sat back, crossing her arms. Sadie stood beside her, crossing her own arms and propping her foot against the wall. She should probably go in search of someone official, but there was no need. Only thirty seconds later, Jenks approached, a squinty frown on his lined face, hair rumpled unattractively like someone who’d been ripped reluctantly from sleep. He stopped when he reached them, settling his hands on his hips, causing his shirt to stretch uncomfortably over his middle-aged belly.

“Cooper, why am I not surprised? What have I done to earn the misfortune of your presence?”

“Vaslilssa is a friend of mine,” she said.

His eyes darted between them. “I didn’t think pretty girls could be friends with each other.”

“Only on the weekends. During the week, we make war on men,” Sadie said.

“It’s Thursday,” he told her.

“That must mean I’m here for war.”

“Yes, well your friend is my prime suspect in a murder,” he said.

“What?” Sadie scoffed. “Does she look like she could kill anyone?” They both looked at Vaslilssa who surveyed them with an imperious frown, switching the position of her eight-foot legs and re-crossing her long and perfectly toned arms.

“Yeah, actually. She’s in better shape than most of the guys on my force, and taller, too,” Jenks said.

“She’s a scientist,” Sadie tried.

“Then she’d definitely know where to drive the knife to kill a guy,” Jenks returned. “What else you got? Cause I’m taking her downtown and we’re going to hash this out.

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