Diamonds Blood and Shadows Box Set by Stephanie M Freeman

Author:Stephanie M Freeman [Freeman, Stephanie M.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9798985620702
Publisher: Shadowlilly Publications, LLC

CHAPTER ELEVEN

The scent of jasmine and sandalwood hung heavily in the air. Beth jogged over with Matisse. She kneeled down to unhook his leash and crinkled her nose. “Damn. Cough syrup city. Hey, Pop-Pop.” She stood up and threw her arms around William’s neck and planted a kiss on his cheek.

“Hey, Girly Gal. You taking care of my kid over here?”

Beth shot Willow a look and folded her arms. “She won’t sit still long enough. But things may be looking up.”

William smiled down at the impish little blonde woman

“Oh really? Some little changes for the better?”

“Oh, I wouldn’t call it ‘little.’”

Willow pinched her on the arm before she snatched her jump out bag from her. She’d borrowed a jumpsuit from one of her men. William looked over at her and shook his head.

“You’re swimming in that thing.”

“It’s fine. I just needed something to cover up. They’ll be finished soon so I can grid, but from the smell of things it’s the same guy.”

William turned to face her. “You’ve narrowed it down that far?”

“Size fourteen combat style on every scene. Fibers found male DNA semen to be exact on three scenes. Trace isn’t back on last night, but I did find pooling in the corner with the same scent. On a lark, I sampled the wall in case our friend was feeling a little romantic.”

She looked around at the crowds as she pulled her gloves on. She’d already walked the perimeter asking the kinds of questions she knew that looky loos would ask. The answers were as conflicting as the people. In every crowd there was always one or two people that wanted to be seen. Sometimes they offered pertinent information, but for the most part, they really didn’t add to anything. The only time someone had given her some shred of evidence to work from it had turned out to be the arsonist himself. He would have gone unnoticed if it weren’t for the sheen of lighter fluid on his boots and the stench of it in his clothes. He actually looked surprised when the police approached him and put the cuffs on.

She shook away the memory as she got the green light from Hollis. She came over to him and William followed. He shook the man’s hand and looked up at the charred remains of the building.

“She gonna be okay in there, Frank?”

“Ground floor is a mess. Second floor is no better, but yeah.”

“Any casualties?”

“One. African American woman eighty-six years of age. Ran this sewing shop here for years. People in the neighborhood say she was connected.”

“Jesus. She have family?”

“Near as I can tell, no. Some of the guys are talking about taking up a collection to put her away neat. Real nice lady. Made quilts and did alterations on prom gowns...blankets for babies and the nursing home around the corner. Gave them out to the homeless shelters too.”

“Keep me in the loop on that one. I’ll cover whatever comes up short. Who’s the victim, anybody know her name?”

“Claudette Winbourne.

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