Page 86 of Little Girls Sleeping
Pressing the accelerator as hard as she dared, she sped around the familiar corners along the road leading to her house. She veered too close to the opposite lane and an oncoming driver blew their horn at her. She didn’t care. Her first priority was to get home, take care of Cisco and change back into her work clothes. The second priority was to prove Templeton wrong—and to set things straight.
Her cell phone rang.
Taking her foot from the accelerator, she glanced at the screen. It was an incoming call from McGaven. Her stomach churned as she answered.
“Bad news,” McGaven said.
Katie didn’t respond, but instead braced herself for the worst.
“Templeton arrested Mrs. Compton and they’ve already transferred her to the jail. She’s at booking right now.”
“On what charge?”
“Premeditated murder.”
Katie shook her head adamantly, her fists clenched. “On what evidence?”
“Apparently they found material from the coffin in her home, and some paperwork that proved she knew Price.”
“That’s ridiculous. It doesn’t fit. This is a disaster.” She paused. “What about the Matthews girl? She’s still missing.”
“What do you want to do?” he asked.
“I’m just about to get to my house right now. I’ll meet you at the department in a half-hour.”
“See you then,” he said.
Katie disconnected the call. This was her fault for not being thorough in her job. There could have been something she had missed, and if she hadn’t, things wouldn’t be in this mess. It was almost impossible to undo the mistakes once the case began to go through the criminal-justice system.
Damn it.
She took several deep breaths and drove her Jeep slowly up the driveway, noticing that her roses were beginning to bloom. She would be no use if she became emotional—a pitfall of the job. She parked and stepped out, glancing at the roses again. Even though they were yellow, it still made her think about the remnants of red roses in the coffins. She tried to remember where she’d seen some in bloom.
Roses.
Her attention was distracted by her briefcase, which had fallen into the backseat. She stopped and leaned in to retrieve it. As she placed it on the passenger seat to take back to the sheriff’s office, Cisco suddenly began barking. It wasn’t his happy play greeting; it was a rapid bark that indicated someone was near. It was a warning. Katie could see him at the front window, standing on his hind legs, front paws raised, his nails scraping the glass with a horrible high-pitched sound.
She stood still, stunned by Cisco’s behavior, then jogged towards the front door, reaching for her holstered gun underneath her sweatshirt. As she readied herself, she heard a voice behind her say, “Katie.”
A shocking blast of electricity hit her torso and reverberated throughout her body, buckling her legs beneath her. She dropped her gun. A strange buzzing sound filled her head, scrambling her rational thoughts. It was the last thing she remembered before hitting the ground.
Forty-Five
Deputy McGaven was growing impatient waiting for Katie to meet him at the department. He fidgeted and paced around; nothing kept his attention. He hadn’t known her to be late to anything since he had met her; it wasn’t in her personality, especially given the current status of the investigation.
“C’mon, Katie, hurry up,” he muttered under his breath.
Glancing at his watch again, he realized that more than an hour had passed since he had last spoken with her. Something wasn’t right. He called her, but she didn’t pick up.
Maybe she’d stopped to take a shower, he thought. Maybe her battery was dead. Maybe she had a problem with her security system. Maybe Cisco had run away. The more he tried to think of reasons why she hadn’t shown up to meet him and wasn’t answering her phone, the more concerned he became.
Sheriff Scott entered the office with a sour expression on his face. He looked as if he wanted blood.
“Sir,” said McGaven.
“Make it quick, Deputy,” the sheriff grumbled.
“I know there’s a lot going on, but… I can’t seem to get a hold of Katie.”
