Chapter 9
Cam’s embrace was nothing short of amazing. Being held in his arms and kissed so thoroughly was better than she’d ever let herself imagine. Especially back when he was off-limits because he’d been dating her best friend.
Yet seeing the flash of regret in his eyes as he broke free of their kiss made her realize he might not feel the same way. She’d kissed him, not the other way around. And maybe she’d imagined the awareness sizzling between them. Not on her side, but on his.
Bending to stroke Bruno’s fur, she reminded herself that he was right about one thing. They needed to stay focused. To figure out a way to clear Cam’s name.
“I think it’s time to head to the river.” She tried to sound casual, as if his kiss hadn’t rocked her foundation. She’d felt far more during their brief embrace than she’d felt for Shawn or any of the other men she’d dated. “Unless you still want to walk to the lakefront.”
“No, actually, I was thinking about Dan Johnson.” He stared out at the water. “I didn’t find him on social media, but it occurs to me that we need to dig deeper to see if he’s ever been arrested.”
“Arrested?” She frowned, worried that he was becoming obsessed with Dan Johnson. “Why would you think he has a criminal record?”
He turned to meet her gaze. “I guess the way he treated Tammy fourteen years ago still bothers me. It was such a rotten thing to do.”
She swallowed a sigh. “Whether Dan has a criminal record or not probably isn’t relevant. Besides, if Dan Johnson had done something in the past, don’t you think Rueger would have taken that into consideration when he began looking into Skye’s murder?”
“No, because there’s no evidence that Dan was with Skye that night. I was her boyfriend, and we argued, which makes me the main suspect.” He tucked his hands into his pockets. “Humor me, okay? We’ll do a quick background check on Dan Johnson, then head to the river.”
Cam took a step toward the road, but Evie didn’t move. “Don’t you need his date of birth to do a background check?”
He stopped and arched a brow. “Yeah, although I’m surprised you know about that.”
She rolled her eyes and fell into step beside him. “The hospital does background checks on all employees. Besides, most women these days check out the guys they’re about to go out with ahead of time. I may have used that simple case search for Michigan residents a time or two.”
He frowned. “That’s smart on your part. You can’t trust anyone these days.”
She tipped her head to the side. “I trust you, Cam.”
He flushed and looked away. “I appreciate that, Evie. Come on, let’s head back to the car. We know Dan is our age, so we can try searching using just his birth year first. That should narrow our search field.”
“Okay.” She wished he could let that altercation with Dan Johnson go. The guy was a jerk, but that didn’t necessarily make him a killer. “Come, Bruno.”
Bruno stayed close to her side as they waited for an opening in traffic to cross Lakeshore Drive. Her stomach rumbled, reminding her they hadn’t gotten their sandwiches either. “I’m sure the Submarine Shop has Wi-Fi,” she said as Cam unlocked the car. “Let’s get lunch and use the computer there.”
“Perfect.” He slid in behind the wheel, started the car, and cranked the air conditioning to high before opening the back hatch for Bruno. After a few minutes, the interior temperature was bearable, and they climbed in and headed toward the high school.
Evie half expected to run into more of their former classmates at the restaurant, but none of the patrons looked familiar. They were either younger kids or families who appeared to be on vacation.
She stood with the computer tucked under her arm as Cam placed their order. Thankfully, nobody seemed to care that Bruno was inside with them. When they were given their sandwiches and soft drinks, Cam led the way to an empty booth near the back.
“Lie down, Bruno. Down.” She pointed to the floor beneath the table. Bruno crawled in and stretched out at her feet. Taking her sandwich and lemonade, she eyed Cam. “If you don’t mind, I’d like to say grace.”
“Okay.” He clasped his hands in his lap and bowed his head.
Leaning forward and keeping her voice low, she prayed. “Dear Lord Jesus, we ask You to bless this food we are about to eat. Please continue keeping us safe in Your loving care as You guide us to the truth. Amen.”
There was only a brief pause before Cam echoed, “Amen.”
“Thanks for joining in.” She unwrapped her sandwich and grinned. “You remembered the pickles!”
“How could I forget?” He cocked a brow. “I still remember how upset you were when I’d forgotten them in the past.”
She flushed. “Sorry about that. Silly to have been upset over something so insignificant in the big scheme of things.”
He shrugged. “Yeah, we were so young. Back then, our biggest concern was wondering if we’d have to put our rescue skills to use. And who was going to find a way to sneak beer into the bonfire party after work. Now . . .” He let his voice trail off.
Now, Cam was a suspect in two brutal murders. She reached over to touch his hand. “Let’s eat, then see what we can find out about Dan.”
He nodded and took a big bite of his meatball sub. She did the same with her turkey sandwich. As they ate, she turned in her seat to scan the restaurant. After running into Jackson, Beverly, and then seeing Dan on the boat, she figured they’d see other classmates sooner or later.
“Hey, is that Marcie Jones?” She frowned as she spied a woman about her age sitting at a table with three kids. The kids were school age, the oldest being about ten or so. Evie shouldn’t have been surprised that so many of their classmates were married with kids.
If she hadn’t stumbled across Shawn’s infidelity, she might have married him and had a kid or two as well. Not that her marriage to Shawn would have lasted.
“Looks like it.” He watched her for a moment. “Do you want to try talking to her?”
She hesitated, wondering how much Marcie would say in front of the kids. Then she shrugged. “Can’t hurt.” She set her half-eaten sandwich down and stood to approach her former classmate.
“Hi, Marcie, how are you?” She forced a smile as Marcie glanced up at her.
“Oh, hi, Evie. I heard you were staying in town.” Marcie waved at her three kids. “I’d like you to meet Joey, Livvy, and Stevie.”
“Nice to meet you.” Evie looked at each of the three kids, then back at Marcie. “You have a lovely family.”
“Thanks. You remember Rick Thomas? We all had chemistry together. He and I started dating a year after graduation, then got married a year later.”
She did remember Rick; he had often joined them for their bonfires. Nice guy who didn’t cause any trouble. She was a little surprised Rick and Marcie had gotten married so young, but that often happened in small towns. “Congrats. I’m happy for you both.”
“Thanks. Rick works up at the hospital as a security guard.” Marcie eyed her kids. “He picked up some extra shifts, so I’m doing my best to keep the kids entertained. Honestly, school can’t start soon enough for me.”
Marcie didn’t ask her to sit, so Evie decided to make this quick. “Have you heard about Skye’s remains being found?”
“I did, yes. It’s awful, isn’t it?” Marcie’s expression was filled with concern. “And right after that, we heard Jasmine went missing. This is the stuff that happens in big cities, not in our idyllic small town.”
Considering Rick was a hospital security guard, she shouldn’t have been surprised by Marcie’s comment. “Oh, how did Rick hear about Jasmine’s disappearance?”
“He knew Jasmine, of course, but he didn’t hear about it until the notice went through earlier today.” Marcia sighed and shook her head. “It’s terrible. We’re all hoping she’s found very soon.”
Evie had no intention of mentioning the dead body they’d found. The news would skip along the town grapevine soon enough. And while there was no reason to suspect Rick of any wrongdoing, Rick had known both dead women, Skye and Jasmine.
“Mom, Livvy’s kicking me,” Stevie complained.
“Am not,” Livvy protested.
“Knock it off, both of you.” Marcie’s voice was stern but reflected a hint of exhaustion. “Finish your sandwiches.”
“Well, I’d better finish my lunch too.” Evie took a step backward. “It was nice seeing you, Marcie.”
“Take care, Evie.” Marcie scowled as Stevie started to cry. “Knock it off, Livvy.”
Leaving Marcie to her kids, Evie quickly returned to the booth. Cam was nearly finished with his meatball sub. “Learn anything?”
“Marcie’s married to Rick Thomas who happens to work at the medical center as a security guard.” She picked up her sandwich and took a bite. After a moment, she added, “I can’t help thinking he knew Jasmine and Skye. He could be more of a suspect than Dan Johnson.”
“Except for the fact that he’s married with three kids,” Cam said dryly. “Although you’re right, his working at the hospital is interesting.”
“I thought so.” She sipped her lemonade, eyeing him curiously. “What do you think? Should we mention our concerns to Rueger?”
“Not yet. I doubt he’ll care what we think. Will you please hand me the computer?” Cam asked. “I want to dig into Dan Johnson’s background while we have internet access.”
She lifted the laptop off the seat and pushed it across the table. He opened it and quickly went to work. Evie finished her meal, then reached down to pet Bruno as he shifted under the table, resting his large solid body against her legs.
“Okay, I think I found him. If this is the right Dan Johnson, his birthday is in April.” Cam fell silent for several seconds, but then his green eyes abruptly widened. “I knew it! I knew he was a jerk.”
“What? Dan has a criminal record?” Evie slid out from her side of the booth, her movement disturbing Bruno. The large dog shifted again, resting his large head on her feet as she joined Cam on the bench seat so she could see the computer screen. “Show me what you found.”