LITMIR.BIZ

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old girlfriend?”

      Trey nodded.

      “What does she say about all this?” Mack asked.

      “Nothing. You may or may not know that the survivors were injured so severely that none of them had a single memory of what happened after the actual graduation ceremony.”

      “Are you saying someone is after the three of them?” Mack asked.

      Trey shrugged. “I can’t say that the wreck has anything to do with why Dick died, but I’m a cop, and having one man murdered who was in that wreck is one thing. Having two dead within the same month feels like more than coincidence to me.”

      Mack was stunned.

      “Will the coroner be able to tell if my dad was murdered?”

      “I don’t know. But if we can ascertain there’s no mechanical fault with the lift, we’ll have to assume someone lowered it on him.”

      “I know the company Dad used to maintain it. The information is in his office at the house. I’ll get it to you,” Mack said.

      “I’d appreciate that,” Trey said. “When you go through your dad’s things, if you see anything like a journal or a diary, I need to see it.”

      “I’ll go through his things, but honestly I don’t expect to find anything. We got real close after Mom died, and I’d swear on a Bible there were no secrets between us.”

      Trey nodded.

      “I understand, but just keep it in mind, and remember, I don’t want a word of this repeated. If these deaths are related to that wreck, the last thing we want is for the killer to be forewarned that we’ve figured out the connection.”

      Mack was shaken to the core. Here he’d thought the worst thing to happen was that his father had died, but to think he might have been murdered seemed worse, almost obscene.

      “Understood,” he muttered.

      “So I guess you’ll be around the rest of the day?” Trey asked.

      “I’ll be staying in Mystic for sure until after Dad’s services,” Mack said.

      Trey frowned. “I don’t know when the coroner will release the body.”

      “I understand.” Mack glanced out the window at the crowd gathered on the other side of the street. “I never did get the need to witness other people’s grief.”

      “Some thrive on being the first with the latest news, true or not,” Trey said.

      It was the word first that made Mack wonder who’d actually found his dad.

      “Who discovered the body?”

      “Melissa Sherman. That’s her car on that lift, and she took it really hard. She’s blaming herself because your dad offered to work overtime on it last night so she could have it this morning.”

      Mack was in shock. He saw her face in his mind, the way she’d looked when they made love, the way she’d laughed, the way that little mole at the corner of her mouth had always drawn his gaze to the supple curves of her lips, and then the way they’d parted. It hadn’t been pretty, and he still held a serious grudge. It was inevitable that he would now be forced to see her whether he wanted to or not. How bizarre that they would be thrown together again like this.

      “I didn’t know she’d moved back to town,” he said.

      Trey nodded. “Just this year. She inherited the house she grew up in when her mother died. She’s teaching first grade at the elementary school.”

      Mack hunched his shoulders against the sudden ache in his chest. He didn’t want to care about her, but he kept thinking how awful it must have been for her to be the one who found the body. She had always loved his dad, and now she was blaming herself. He couldn’t let that go.

      “Will you talk to her about the lift?” Mack asked.

      “At this point I’m not saying anything more until it’s been checked out, and you can’t say anything about what we talked about, either. Not even to make her feel better. We’ll know the truth soon enough.”

      Mack nodded. “I understand, but I don’t think it’s fair for someone to be living with misplaced guilt, that’s all.”

      “You can talk to her all you want, but not about this,” Trey said. “Again, I’m very sorry for your loss. I’ll make sure the coroner’s office has your contact information. They’ll notify you when they release the body. Here’s my card. Use either number if you need me.”

      “Thanks,” Mack said, and quickly entered the information in his phone. He slipped a card out of his pocket and handed it to Trey. “This has my cell number in case you need to reach me.”

      They looked up just as the coroner exited the building, followed by two men carrying a body bag. Once they put it into the van they slammed the doors and drove away.

      Mack’s voice was shaking. “I guess I need to lock up.”

      “Do you have keys?” Trey asked.

      Mack nodded. “I assume you want everything left as is?”

      “Yes, at least until after I get the lift inspected,” Trey said.

      “I’ll text you the info after I get home.”

      “I’ll seal the entrances after you lock up,” Trey said. “Tell your dad’s employees to stay off the premises until I give the all clear.”

      Mack got out with his keys in hand, went straight to the front door and locked up, then circled the building, making sure the back entrances were locked, as well. When he returned to the front of the station, seeing the yellow crime-scene tape across the doorway seemed surreal. He felt the stares from the crowd across the street but never looked up as he got in his car and drove away.

      * * *

      Marcus Silver was pale and shaken as he came to the breakfast table. He dropped into his chair, and then waved away the maid and the plate of food she was carrying.

      “Just coffee, please,” he said.

      She set the plate on the sideboard and then quickly filled his cup before leaving the room.

      His son, T.J., swallowed a bite of waffle then frowned. “What’s wrong?”

      “I just got some bad news,” Marcus said. “Paul Jackson is dead.”

      T.J. laid down his fork. “What happened? Heart attack?”

      Marcus shook his head. “No, he was crushed beneath a car he was working on.”

      T.J. gasped. “God, dying is a hell of a way to begin the day!”

      Marcus looked up. “Oh. No, it didn’t happen this morning. They think he was working late on a car when the lift failed. The car belonged to Melissa Sherman. She’s the one who found him this morning.”

      T.J.’s heart skipped. Lissa! How odd that she was mixed up in such an ugly death. They had shared a few dates right after she’d first come home, but then she’d refused further invitations. He’d stopped asking, but it still rankled that she’d quit him. He liked to be the one to call the shots.

      “That’s terrible about Mr. Jackson. I’m sorry to hear that. He was one of your classmates, right?”

      Marcus nodded.

      T.J. reached across the table. “Is there anything I can—”

      His father stood abruptly. “Excuse me,” he said, and left the dining room like a man on a mission.

      T.J. stood as if to follow him and then paused. He didn’t know what he could have said to make this better, so he sat back down. He couldn’t help but think how fragile life was, and he was grateful his father was still with him; then he thought

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