Page 66 of Hidden
“Care to share what’s so funny?” Chad asked, holding the front door open.
Asher’s laughter trickled to silence. He looked at Ellie, chuckled again, then shook his head. “No, I do not,” he said to Chad. Ellie laughed softly, too. If Asher’s family had even a hint of what they’d been discussing, they’d have a wedding planned by the end of the day. The Warwick men did tend to rush their brides to the altar. Not that the brides seemed to mind. But in her case, Harry would quit if he didn’t get to be a part of the process. Or he’d threaten to, anyway. And she didn’t want to deal with the drama.
Chad eyed them, then, with a shake of his head, he moved aside and gestured them in. Before they stepped through the door, though, Asher bent down and whispered in her ear. “Don’t worry. If or when we get to the whole marriage thing, we can orchestrate how to tell our families—including Harry—so that we don’t kill anyone in the process.”
She was still smiling when she walked into the conference room to find the same group as the day before—Chad, Sabina, Ethan, JJ, and Ava. But the look of frustration on Ava’s face had that smile fading.
“You haven’t found any good leads, have you?” Ellie asked as Asher pulled out a chair for her.
Ava glanced to Sabina, who nodded. “Not great ones, no,” Ava acknowledged. “But we’ve culled a few people out. The incident today puts a different spin on things, though. We’ve spent the afternoon locating the suspects still on our list to see if any of them have traveled to the area.”
“And what have you found?” Asher asked.
“All of the film crew we were looking at are accounted for. Most are working other jobs right now, and none of those jobs are in this area,” she answered.
“Which leaves?” Ellie asked.
“The folks who clean your house and the waitstaff at two of the restaurants you visit frequently who also cater for you. We’ve already cleared the staff at the spa you visit, including the masseuse who sometimes comes to your home.”
Beside her, Asher tilted his head in thought. “I know we don’t have answers yet, but it sounds like you’ve been able to reduce the list to a much smaller group.”
“We have,” Sabina agreed. “And that is the silver lining.” When the room fell silent, Sabina cast a look at Chad. An unspoken communication passed between them, and Chad nodded. Sabina tapped her finger on a folder sitting in front of her. A nervous gesture. One that seemed out of character.
Ellie cast a glance at Asher to find him frowning in his cousin-in-law’s direction. He must have felt the weight of her stare because he turned and caught her eye. Silently, she asked if he knew what was going on. He gave a small shake of his head.
“Sabina?” Ellie said, reaching for Asher’s hand under the table. Sabina met her gaze, but Ellie couldn’t read anything in her expression. “Whatever it is, just tell me.”
She hesitated then took a deep breath. “We had your mother’s information from when HICC handled your stalker case. We felt we needed to look into her for this, too. If for no other reason than to eliminate her from the pool of suspects.”
“Asher and I were talking about her last night,” Ellie said. “I was planning to suggest you do what you’ve already done. I don’t think she’s involved because I don’t think she has the tech-savvy. But I don’t know her, so we felt my assumption was worth testing.”
Sabina’s lips thinned. “You are right in that she doesn’t or wouldn’t have the savvy to do what’s been done.” She hesitated. “I know she isn’t a part of your life, but I’m sorry to have to tell you that your mother passed away two years ago.”
Ellie jerked back at the news, then stilled. It couldn’t be true. Was it some kind of joke? But Sabina, of all people, wouldn’t joke about something like that. Not after her own mother had been murdered.
Her eyes darted around the table to JJ and all the HICC employees. All of them wore identical looks of compassion. Although, JJ’s might have held a bit of curiosity, too.
“I’m not sure what I’m supposed to…I don’t know what to say to that,” she stammered. And she didn’t. She didn’t feel any particular remorse for Evelyn’s death—not any more than she’d feel for anyone else who’d died. But there was a niggling sense of something. Something that felt like a loss.
“You don’t have to feel anything,” JJ said, leaning forward. “You can mourn her or not, and you shouldn’t feel youneedto feel one way or the other. Or even that you need to be consistent in how you feel about it. I will say, though, that in my experience, people in your position may find that they end up mourning the loss of possibility more than the loss of the person. And that’s okay, too.”
That, Ellie thought. That was what she felt. She never really thought she and Evelyn would have any kind of relationship. But with her now gone, that was no longer even a possibility.
She took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. “Okay,” she said. “I know it will probably hit me more later. But right now, all I can think about is that it’s one less suspect.” She winced at how callous the words sounded. But when she glanced around the table, she saw no judgment in anyone’s eyes.
“Again, a silver lining,” Sabina said. “So what it comes down to is we have seven more people we want to look into. Four from the cleaners and three from the restaurants.”
“And the timeline on that?” Asher asked.
“Likely tomorrow, but Sunday at the latest,” she answered.
“Tia and Cody want us to stay at their place,” Ellie said.
“It’s a good idea,” Ethan said, and Chad nodded.
“And not what you wanted to hear, is it Ellie?” JJ chimed in.
Ellie flashed her a wan smile. “No, it’s not. Logically, I know it’s the smart thing. But it feels like running away. Regardless, if you all think it’s the right thing to do, I’ll do it. So long as you don’t also say I have to stay locked up there.”
