Page 21 of Silencing Stolen Whispers
“She’s lying through her teeth about not knowing Hannah entertained the thought of cheating,” Kinsley murmured before taking a sip of her now cold coffee. She grimaced, wishing she had enjoyed more of it. “I think we need to figure out who is offering such services, don't you?”
“Blackmail?”
“Maybe,” Kinsley replied as she reached back into the room and turned off the light, making a mental note to collect the unopened bottle of water first thing in the morning. “It would at least give us a motive, though I have a hard time believing Hannah would resort to blackmail. Maybe it’s the other way around.”
“What do you mean?” Alex asked as Kinsley closed the door.
“What if Hannahdidreach out to the woman, but ultimately decided against paying her? Hannah was the daughter of Katherine and William Scriven. Maybe the woman was trying to extort Hannah. She didn’t pay, and she suffered the consequences.”
“It’s a possibility,” Alex admitted, making no move to join Kinsley when she would have proceeded to their desks. She faced him to remind him of their covert mission in the morgue, but he derailed her train of thought with his inquiry. “What’s going on with you, Kin?”
“What do you mean?” Kinsley asked cautiously.
“You've been off all day. Distracted. Something's eating at you, and it's not just this case.”
A defensive response hit the back of her throat, but she swallowed it.
“I'm fine,” Kinsley replied instead, offering him a smile. “I’m not looking forward to framing Sergeant Waylon, if that’s whatyou mean. Wally isn’t afraid of anyone, and there is a good chance that he will accuse Dominic in front of everyone this Sunday. What then, huh?”
“Is it about Shane?” Alex asked, his voice softening slightly. He hadn’t taken the bait, but she hadn’t realized that he was focused entirely on another hook. “About the rumors?”
“What rumors?” The question came out sharper than Kinsley had intended, her pulse quickening against her will. “What are you talking about?”
Alex's expression shifted from surprise to understanding. He then pressed his thumb and index finger to the bridge of his nose in regret.
“Shit. You haven't heard.”
“Heard what, Alex?”
“Shane's been seeing the new veterinarian. Chloe something.” Alex let his arm drop in defeat. “I thought you knew, Kin.”
The reality of Shane moving on shouldn’t have come as a shock. After all, she had ended things between them close to two years ago. There was nothing in it for him to wait, and she hadn’t given him any indication that she had changed her mind in recent months.
“Good for him,” Kinsley managed to say.
“Is it?” Alex's gaze remained steady. He frowned, as if realizing that they had gotten off topic. “If you didn’t know, then why have you?—”
“I think I messed up, Alex.” Kinsley didn’t specify what she meant by her admission, and Alex obviously assumed she was still talking about Shane. “I think I made a really bad decision, and now I’m stuck with the consequences. I hurt him, and I can’t take that back.”
“You are not a bad person, Kin,” Alex said gently. She closed her eyes, wishing more than anything she could clarify themeaning behind her words. “We all make decisions on the spur of the moment. Tell Shane that you made a mistake, and see if he is willing to give it another go.”
“It’s too late,” Kinsley replied with a light shrug. “Shane is in our department, and it’s against policy to get involved with another detective.”
Kinsley stopped herself from pointing out that Alex had learned that lesson the hard way. Her anger shouldn’t be directed at him. She was furious with herself for taking Gantz’s life while being profoundly relieved that her beautiful niece would never suffer the same fate as his victims.
Kinsley’s sin was her own.
“Sometimes, Alex, we just need to live with the consequences of our decisions.”
8
Alex Lanen
July
Friday — 8:48 am
Alex’s head pounded with the special kind of vengeance reserved for those who had stayed up drinking whiskey well past midnight. The decision had seemed entirely reasonable after successfully breaking into the morgue to steal the box of headbands.
