Flesh and Blood by Caroline Burnes

Author:Caroline Burnes
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2013-03-15T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Ten

I left Nathan in the parked van about two blocks from James and Marla’s house. Nella’s disappearance had disturbed me deeply. Bodies—alive and dead—were disappearing into thin air.

As far as I knew, Carlton Frazier’s death had not been reported, or at least the police were keeping the media silent. Since I knew a couple of reporters in town, I found that unlikely. They weren’t the sort of people I’d call easily manageable.

Walking down a sidewalk lined with dogwoods and tallows, I wondered about that fact. Nathan and I had kept an ear open for any hint of the murder. Our conclusion was that the police had not found the body. So who had removed it? And what about Nella? Was she friend or foe? As important as those questions were, I had no inkling what the answers might be.

I was hoping Nella Colson would be able to answer at least one of them.

James and Marla’s home was an older residence that they had spent considerable time and effort restoring. It was in an established neighborhood where lawns were kept immaculate and children played outdoors without fear. There were always watchful parents on the street, but there was also the sound of laughter and bicycles and wagons. The familiar pang of knowing that I would never have Frank’s child struck me, and I suddenly wondered why Marla and James remained childless. I knew it wasn’t by choice where James was concerned. He loved children and made it abundantly clear. Could it be that Marla had been unwilling? Or one of them unable? Perhaps there was more to the root of Marla’s behavior than I’d considered before.

The ten yards of sidewalk that led to the wide front porch of the house was bordered by impatiens and ornamental cabbages. Marla had a gardener, I knew. Her nails were too perfect to allow for much digging around in the dirt. With that sarcastic thought in mind, I walked across the porch and rang the bell.

The chimes echoed in the house. After three minutes, I rang again. There was no answer. I checked my watch because Nathan had an appointment at the college. But I wasn’t willing to give up my search for Nella.

I hadn’t thought to call the sporting goods store. James was most certainly at work. And Marla? Who could tell? I didn’t really want to see either of them. I wanted Nella Colson. I wanted to squeeze the truth out of her.

I pressed the bell for the third time and waited without results. My fingers curled around the doorknob and I turned it. The door opened. Inside, the house was very still and quiet. It was possible that no one was home.

The need for some solid answers pushed me forward. Tiptoeing like a common criminal, I went upstairs. I knew the layout of the house. James and Marla’s bedroom was a jumbled mess, as if they’d gotten out of bed late and hurried off to work. Nothing unusual there.

It was the guest rooms I wanted to check.

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