Chapter 10
Bryn’s stomach clenched with a sick sense of dread. If Richard Freeman was setting her up to take the fall for embezzlement and murder, then she needed to talk to the police sooner than later.
Yet she knew there was a good chance the local police wouldn’t believe her over Richard, who was a successful business owner.
She abruptly stood and paced the cabin. “We should head back to Madison to discuss this further with the police. I need to get my side of the story on record.”
“Not yet.” Micah’s blue eyes tracked her as she moved restlessly from one end of the room to the other. “We need something we can use in your defense.”
“Like what?” She lifted her palms in a helpless gesture. “I don’t have anything other than the truth on my side.”
He winced and slowly rose to his feet. “I’m sorry to say the truth won’t be enough in the face of the evidence Richard has planted against you.”
Tunneling her fingers through her hair, she resisted the urge to yank on the strands. This was so frustrating. There had to be a way to prove her innocence.
“Let’s grab something to eat. Then we can figure out our next steps.” He searched her gaze for a moment. “Maybe we can dig deeper into that data center. I still think the fact that it’s owned by Jin Yong Wu might be important.”
It was hard to imagine a data center could be related to murder, but she couldn’t come up with another scenario.
And really, the more she thought about it, the more she thought that the data center’s down payment may have been the same amount that was removed from the company’s account.
Had Damien uncovered something nefarious about the data center?
Even if he did, that didn’t mean they’d be able to do the same. Although she supposed it was worth a try. Her stomach was so tight she wasn’t sure she’d be able to eat. Since Micah was obviously hungry, she reluctantly nodded and tried to smile. “Okay. Let’s go.”
He smiled encouragingly and led the way to the door, snagging his jacket along the way.
She grabbed her coat and shrugged into it as she followed him outside.
The air was crisp now that the sun was going down.
Would she manage to remain out of jail long enough to see the flowers bloom? She doubted it.
That was defeatist thinking, but she couldn’t seem to help herself. She and Micah weren’t police officers. Micah might be a private investigator, but that didn’t mean he’d be able to find the evidence they needed to keep her from being tossed in prison for the rest of her life either.
Richard was two steps ahead of them. And she wasn’t sure they’d be able to catch up.
“I wish Damien had confided in me.” She glanced at Micah as he headed back into town. “Maybe if we were still seeing each other, he would have.”
“Don’t blame yourself.” He frowned. “This isn’t your fault. As I said, Richard may have assumed Damien spoke to you.”
“There are other employees besides me.” She thought about the small team that worked for Richard and Damien.
“You know, our graphic designer, Sam, is a Chinese American. His last name is Wong. I hate to assume he’s involved because of his nationality, that seems unfair. He’s really good at his job.”
“We’re not casting blame on anyone at this point, but we would be remiss if we didn’t list the players who could possibly be involved.” He reached over to take her hand. “Anyone else come to mind?”
“Actually, now that you say that, Richard’s wife, Kim, is also Chinese American. I only met her once. She seemed nice enough, but if we’re right about Richard’s involvement, his wife could be a part of this too.” Her pulse kicked up at the thought.
“That makes sense to me,” Micah agreed. “I can run her through my database when we get back to the cabin.”
“Great.” The knot in her stomach loosened a bit. Maybe all they needed was to present a viable alternate theory to the police. From there, they could investigate Richard and his wife, Kim.
Unless, of course, they chose to believe him over her.
There was a small pizzeria in town. Micah pulled in and glanced at her. “Anything you don’t want on your pizza?”
“Anchovies. Everything else is fine.”
“Great, that works for me.” He slid out from behind the wheel. She followed him inside, glancing over her shoulder out of habit. After everything that had happened, she half expected the gunman to pop out and start shooting.
Rather than heading back to the cabin, Micah suggested they stay and eat there. She managed to nod, even though she felt exposed out in the community.
They sat at a small table in the corner of the dining room.
Each table was covered by a red and white checkered tablecloth.
She traced the squares with the tip of her index finger, wondering about Richard’s wife, Kim, and the possibility of a Chinese connection to the murder.
As much as she didn’t believe Sam was involved, she wondered if it might help to speak with the employees in person.
Maybe one of them knew something that could help.
Their pizza didn’t take long. Their server had delivered their soft drinks first, then the pizza. The golden crust and thick layer of toppings looked amazing, and her stomach rumbled in hunger. She caught Micah’s gaze. “If you don’t mind, I’d like to say grace.”
“Ah, sure.” He abruptly dropped the small square spatula and flushed. “Sorry, I forgot.”
“It’s okay.” She bowed her head. “Dear Lord Jesus, we ask You to bless this food. Also, we ask that You guide us to the truth while keeping us safe in Your care. Amen.”
“Amen.” Micah lifted his head and smiled. “That was nice. And we need all the help we can get.”
“Right?” She managed a self-deprecating laugh as he picked up the spatula and scooped two squares of pizza onto her plate. Then he helped himself.
They ate in silence for a few minutes. She noticed that despite Micah’s relaxed posture, he often glanced at the front door. She wasn’t the only one on edge, fearing the bad guys might show up at any time.
“How is everything?” their server asked a few minutes later.
“Very good, thanks,” Micah said with a smile.
“Great.” The woman set their bill down on the table. Micah dug cash from his pocket to pay the tab.
“Maybe I should reach out to my coworkers again,” she said, when they’d finished eating. “Especially Gwen. She probably knows Richard the best.”
“Something to consider.” Micah didn’t jump on the idea as she’d hoped. “Let’s see what we can find out about Kim Freeman first.”
She rose and followed him to the door. “I don’t know her maiden name,” she said as they headed outside. Micah stood for a moment, raking his gaze over the area before opening the passenger door for her.
“I can probably find it.” He closed the door behind her, then went around to get into the driver’s seat. The drive back to the cabin was uneventful, and for the first time in a while, Bryn relaxed. It seemed as if they’d finally escaped the gunmen.
That thought had her wondering if heading back into Madison to talk to her former coworkers would somehow backfire. She wasn’t sure how the gunmen might find them, but at that point, anything was possible. Yet what else could they do? Sitting in a cabin doing nothing wasn’t going to clear her name.
Back in the rustic cabin, Micah sat behind the computer and began to dig into Richard and Kim Freeman’s backgrounds.
She watched in amazement as he managed to identify Richard’s date of birth and the date of his marriage to Kim.
The couple had been together for six years, according to the marriage certificate.
“I can’t believe you can find this level of detail online.” She frowned as Micah identified Kim’s maiden name of Cheng. It wasn’t the same name as the company owner, which may not mean much. “No wonder identity theft is such a big deal.”
“Yeah, it’s nerve-racking to know how easy it is to get access to our personal information.” He smiled grimly. “Putting safeguards into place, like making sure you have two-factor identification and complex passwords, are important.”
She wrinkled her nose. “It’s probably too late for me to change my passwords. Especially for the bank.”
“Can’t hurt.” He gestured to the screen. “Let me work for a while longer, then I’ll turn the computer over to you.”
She nodded and propped her chin in her hand as he dug into Kim Cheng Freeman’s background. After a minute, he sighed.
“She’s clean, right?” She wasn’t surprised.
“Yeah.” He gestured to the screen. “The only interesting thing I found is that she has dual citizenship for both the US and China.”
“I don’t like thinking the worst about people just because of their nationality.” She frowned. “It’s not fair.”
“I know.” He logged out of the system, then turned the computer toward her. “Go ahead and change your banking password.”
She tried to log in but was unsuccessful. Double-checking to make sure she’d typed the password correctly, she tried again.
This time a message popped up that she was locked out of her account and that the issue could only be resolved in person.
“Too late.” She shook her head in disbelief. “The bank has frozen my account.”
“I’m sorry. But I’m sure it’s just temporary.” He took her hand, squeezing it gently. She couldn’t tear her gaze from the message on the screen.
Locked out. She wondered if that meant her bills that were on autopay wouldn’t go through. As if having her house burned down wasn’t bad enough, now this.
If Richard Freeman had set out to ruin her, he was doing an excellent job. By the time this nightmare was over, she’d have no job, no house, a lousy credit score, and no life outside of a jail cell.
She pulled free of Micah’s grip and stumbled away from the computer, battling the urge to throw up. What if this was it? What if her life was really over?
“Bryn, wait . . .” He reached for her. She avoided him, shaking her head and disappearing into the bathroom.