Page 70 of Tangled
“Finding anything interesting?” He paused behind the couch.
“She looks like a stereotype of a soccer mom,” she replied, holding her phone up. As much as Brad didn’t like to stereotype, Scarlett was spot-on. Tabitha Henderson had a round face, larger frame, and brown hair that fell to her chin. It was wavy enough to look tousled, but not enough to be called curly. She wore an oversized sweater, jeans, and ankle boots in the picture Scarlett found. She looked as if she could climb into a minivan at any moment.
“I wonder if Karrol hired her because she has some of the same qualities he does?” he mused.
“You mean no one would look at her and think she runs a prostitution service and bribes cops?”
“Yeah, that,” he said, tipping her head up and kissing her. “Good morning,” he said again.
She smiled, slid her hand into his hair, and tugged him back down. “Good morning yourself,” she said when he pulled away. “We don’t know that Karrol hired her at all. There may be layers between them, but I wouldn’t be surprised if her appearance were part of it. She sells Mary Kay, too, by the way.”
“I can’t imagine the young women who work for Sussurri would use Mary Kay, but if they did, that must come in handy,” he said, walking toward the kitchen.
“It’s also a good cover. She can explain away her income and work habits as part of the Mary Kay process.”
He hadn’t thought of that but agreed. He had no idea if Mary Kay consultants made a lot of money, but based on the media portrayal of the business, there always seemed to be the possibility of it.
They were sitting down to eat when Scarlett’s phone rang. Glancing at the screen, she frowned. “It’s Jessica,” she said before answering.
“Morning,” Scarlett said.
“I didn’t call too early, did I?” Jessica asked.
“You didn’t. We’re sitting down to breakfast. You’re on speaker in case you couldn’t tell.”
“I could, but thanks. I talked to Ms. Cowan last night,” she started.
“And?” Scarlett prompted, her hand freezing midway between her plate and the stack of pancakes.
“We were right, Rathwell did go to Gracie’s apartment. Four days before she died.”
“Ms. Cowan was able to tell you that? Down to the day?” Scarlett asked.
“She was. She remembered him. Said he had beady eyes and a cocky aura. She caught him leaving. He told her he was dropping flowers off for his girlfriend.”
Scarlett made a face. “Gracie hated cut flowers. She only liked live plants.”
“Yeah, that’s why Ms. Cowan remembered him. Didn’t think he was much of a boyfriend if he didn’t know that.”
“Is she the kind of person a judge or jury would believe?” he asked.
Jessica chuckled. “Yes. And if they didn’t, she’d have no problems telling them what an idiot they were. I’d actually like to see her under cross-examination. I’d place my money on her making the defense counsel cry.”
Brad smiled at that. He liked Ms. Cowan already. “So, do you think you’ve tied everything together now?” he asked.
“As far as Gracie’s murder is concerned, yes. The problem is, everything except what we have on video is circumstantial.”
“I know we just met, but you sound like you have a plan,” Scarlett said.
Jessica hesitated. “I do. I’ve been playing out different scenarios all night. Unfortunately, I keep coming back to one.”
Brad’s stomach pitched. He had no idea what she was going to propose, but he had a feeling he wasn’t going to like it.
“And that is?” Scarlett prompted.
“I think you need to confront him,” Jessica said. “I think you need to convince him that you’re taking up where Gracie left off.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
