don't think he killed Lydia."
Kelly blew a tress of thick, black hair out of her eyes and nodded. "I was hoping you'd agree with me because to be perfectly honest with you, I can't see him killing a fly, much less his wife."
"So as far as I'm concerned, we can wipe Robert Hatchett off our list of suspects."
"We have a list?" Kelly asked, surprised.
"Well, no. Not really," I admitted. "Which means I need to get my rear in gear."
I pulled out into traffic and pointed the car in the direction of the office.
I replayed our conversation with Hatchett in my head as I wove in and out of traffic. I wanted to get back to the office as soon as I could. I needed to call Jason in and find out the truth about what was going on between him and Lydia Hatchett. I also needed to get a better look at the address on the receipts I'd found in Lydia's nightstand and pay that motel a visit.
I thought back to what little I knew about the town of Trinity Grove or the Grove, as people often referred to it.
It was about a forty-five minute drive from the city and was a small, yet booming, tourist town. That was about the extent of my knowledge of the Grove. Even as a child, I'd never vacationed there.
As much as I wanted to believe that this was simply a case of husband-kills-wife-over-affair, I knew that that wasn't the case. Robert Hatchett didn't kill Lydia. I felt it in every fiber of my being.
On the other hand, as much as I hated to admit it, even though I didn't think he killed Lydia, I did have some mixed feelings about Jason King and had ever since he stepped foot into my office.
"So, what's next?" Kelly leaned back in her seat and stared blankly out the windshield.
I glanced over at Kelly then back at the road.
"I need to pay a visit to the motel listed on the receipts and see if the owner or the night manager can tell me something. Like if they remember Lydia or Jason. Then in the morning I'll call Jason and have him come in. He's hiding something, and it's about time he tells me what that something is."
If Jason admitted to the affair with Lydia, but not meeting her out in Trinity Grove, his admission could be a lead in the case that I desperately needed. If they weren't meeting in the Grove then Lydia was meeting someone else, and that someone else could very well be the murderer we were looking for.
CHAPTER FIVE
When we reached the office after about fifteen minutes, Kelly's on-again, off-again boyfriend, Matt, was waiting to take her out to a late lunch. I told her to go and to have fun. There really was no reason for her to stick around. There weren't any clients scheduled for the rest of the day, and I could question the motel manager on my own.
Besides, who was I to deny on-again, off-again true (maybe, but not likely) love?
Mandy was on the phone when I entered the office, so I left her to her business and closed my office door behind me.
There were still a couple of hours left until closing time, so I settled in behind my desk and rummaged through the case file I'd put together. The file hadn't left my desk since I'd taken the case and was now full of financial records for the Hatchett's and Jason King, along with background information for Jason, Lydia, and Robert, along with the receipts I'd found in Lydia's bedroom.
I thought I'd have better luck talking to the motel's night manager seeing as all of the receipts were time-stamped after ten o'clock, which only solidified my suspicions that Lydia Hatchett was in fact having an affair. Why else meet at a motel late at night?
The question was, was she meeting with Jason, and if so, did something happen to give him a reason to kill her? I hated the fact that Detective Black had planted that question in my mind. Jason wasn't a killer. I knew it in my heart. He was a douchebag but not a killer.
I was leaning toward the idea of Lydia meeting another man who we had yet to discover. I just hoped that after paying a visit to the motel I'd be able to change that
Kelly blew a tress of thick, black hair out of her eyes and nodded. "I was hoping you'd agree with me because to be perfectly honest with you, I can't see him killing a fly, much less his wife."
"So as far as I'm concerned, we can wipe Robert Hatchett off our list of suspects."
"We have a list?" Kelly asked, surprised.
"Well, no. Not really," I admitted. "Which means I need to get my rear in gear."
I pulled out into traffic and pointed the car in the direction of the office.
I replayed our conversation with Hatchett in my head as I wove in and out of traffic. I wanted to get back to the office as soon as I could. I needed to call Jason in and find out the truth about what was going on between him and Lydia Hatchett. I also needed to get a better look at the address on the receipts I'd found in Lydia's nightstand and pay that motel a visit.
I thought back to what little I knew about the town of Trinity Grove or the Grove, as people often referred to it.
It was about a forty-five minute drive from the city and was a small, yet booming, tourist town. That was about the extent of my knowledge of the Grove. Even as a child, I'd never vacationed there.
As much as I wanted to believe that this was simply a case of husband-kills-wife-over-affair, I knew that that wasn't the case. Robert Hatchett didn't kill Lydia. I felt it in every fiber of my being.
On the other hand, as much as I hated to admit it, even though I didn't think he killed Lydia, I did have some mixed feelings about Jason King and had ever since he stepped foot into my office.
"So, what's next?" Kelly leaned back in her seat and stared blankly out the windshield.
I glanced over at Kelly then back at the road.
"I need to pay a visit to the motel listed on the receipts and see if the owner or the night manager can tell me something. Like if they remember Lydia or Jason. Then in the morning I'll call Jason and have him come in. He's hiding something, and it's about time he tells me what that something is."
If Jason admitted to the affair with Lydia, but not meeting her out in Trinity Grove, his admission could be a lead in the case that I desperately needed. If they weren't meeting in the Grove then Lydia was meeting someone else, and that someone else could very well be the murderer we were looking for.
CHAPTER FIVE
When we reached the office after about fifteen minutes, Kelly's on-again, off-again boyfriend, Matt, was waiting to take her out to a late lunch. I told her to go and to have fun. There really was no reason for her to stick around. There weren't any clients scheduled for the rest of the day, and I could question the motel manager on my own.
Besides, who was I to deny on-again, off-again true (maybe, but not likely) love?
Mandy was on the phone when I entered the office, so I left her to her business and closed my office door behind me.
There were still a couple of hours left until closing time, so I settled in behind my desk and rummaged through the case file I'd put together. The file hadn't left my desk since I'd taken the case and was now full of financial records for the Hatchett's and Jason King, along with background information for Jason, Lydia, and Robert, along with the receipts I'd found in Lydia's bedroom.
I thought I'd have better luck talking to the motel's night manager seeing as all of the receipts were time-stamped after ten o'clock, which only solidified my suspicions that Lydia Hatchett was in fact having an affair. Why else meet at a motel late at night?
The question was, was she meeting with Jason, and if so, did something happen to give him a reason to kill her? I hated the fact that Detective Black had planted that question in my mind. Jason wasn't a killer. I knew it in my heart. He was a douchebag but not a killer.
I was leaning toward the idea of Lydia meeting another man who we had yet to discover. I just hoped that after paying a visit to the motel I'd be able to change that
Similar Books
