Wyoming Christmas Stalker by Juno Rushdan

Author:Juno Rushdan
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2022-09-02T16:38:37+00:00

Chapter Eleven

Holden had taken his time driving to the sheriff’s office because he wanted to be in full control when he spoke to Rodney. Not unhinged to the point he unlocked the cell and gave Rodney a reason to press charges against him.

Even if the man might deserve the beatdown he wanted to give him.

He arrived. He waited. He calmed down. Ate breakfast. Sifted through the piles of paperwork on his desk. Started his report on Jared Simpson.

Holden was still waiting on Emma’s medical records. It was the only official way to see if Gary might have ever abused his daughter. But there was another angle to see if the Burks had a history of violence that extended beyond Emma that Holden hadn’t yet explored.

Grabbing his landline, he phoned the hospital. “Chief Deputy Holden from the sheriff’s office. I’d like to speak with Nurse Terri Tipton.”

“Terri is off today. She’ll be back tomorrow afternoon. Is there anything I can help you with?”

A nurse who didn’t know him, much less trust him, wouldn’t be willing to talk off the record and disclose information that was protected by HIPAA. Anything he learned without a subpoena was inadmissible, but he just needed to know if he was barking up the wrong tree.

“My office submitted a request for medical records on a deceased victim, Emma Burk. Do you have any idea when they’ll be ready?” Holden asked.

“One minute while I look that up for you.” After a pause, she spoke again. “I see it here in the system. Since you wanted us to go as far back as possible, it’s taking some time, but they should be available for pickup tomorrow.”

“Great. Can you ask Terri to call me when they’re ready? I needed to speak to her in person and I’d like to kill two birds with one stone.”

“Sure. No problem. I’ll make a note in the system.”

As he hung up and looked back at his report, something Jared had said gave him an idea. He left his office and went into the open space where all the other deputies worked. Ashley wasn’t in yet, so he headed for the next best choice.

“Hey, Mitch,” he said, “something has been bugging me.”

“What’s that?” Deputy Cody asked, spinning in his seat to face him. Not only was he one of their newest recruits, but he was also their only helicopter pilot.

“How Emma Burk got a lift back to the B and B. Somebody drove her there because she didn’t have time to walk. It’s possible Todd went looking for her after Jared called him and he found her on the road. Gave her a lift, thinking he’d talk to her, and they ended up fighting. But what if she called him for a ride? Or someone else? She knew a lot of people. Some of them shady. There might be someone else with a motive to kill her if they knew she was about to divulge their business to McCoy next month.”

“But Starlights don’t have money for cell phones.

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