Chapter 35
“You’re fucking fired. Get out of here, Charlie!” West roared.
When we arrived at Everleigh’s house, Charlie hadn’t even realized she was gone. Her car was missing, as well as her phone and purse. Surveillance footage showed her leaving the house alone, late last night, not long after she’d arrived home with Charlie.
“West, I’m sorry. She just didn’t tell me. She told me she was staying in for the night and gave me the night off. I was in my house, right here on the property, if she needed me. All she had to do was call and I would have accompanied her anywhere, at any hour.”
“Well, she sure as fuck needed you, Charlie,” West shouted. He was becoming increasingly frantic. We both were. I hadn’t hired Charlie myself, so it wasn’t up to me to fire him. But it was taking all my strength not to rip his head off.
“What now?” I said, as Charlie walked away without another word. Kaylee walked up, putting her phone in her pocket, and handed my phone back to me.
“I discreetly checked with some folks in Austin. The case back there has been closed for years. The killer died behind bars. Nobody is investigating Avett’s death. So, it’s not the cops digging up the past. Have you thought of anyone else it could be?”
“No,” I said, shaking my head. “West? Any ideas?”
“No,” he growled, anger rolling off his frame. “I have my lawyer trying to find Harlan.”
“Good,” I said. “We should see if any of the neighbors have any footage to try to track which way she drove?”
“I can do that,” Rian offered.
“Thanks, man,” West said. Rian patted him on the back and walked out.
“This is fucking killing me,” I muttered.
West glared at me but didn’t say a word. We all had to keep it together now, but I knew I was in for more than a tongue lashing later.
My phone buzzed. I checked it immediately, hoping like hell it was Everleigh.
It wasn’t.
Instead, it was another fucking photograph.
A snap of a long, curly strand of very recognizable blonde hair, displayed beautifully against a swatch of black velvet.
My blood turned cold and the room started to spin.