random? An impulse crime? Or was it premeditated, executed by someone who’d been stalking them? Maybe someonehad a vendetta, or the Colsons had enemies, Jason wondered as a plate thudded on his newspaper.
“Enjoy,” the cook said.
“Thanks.” Jason bit into his food. It was good. As he chewed, he could see little sense in any enemy theory. It appeared the Colsons were a well-liked, young, blue-collar couple.
But they’d had previous problems. Problems that could’ve been serious, from the way the neighbor had reacted, refusing to talk about them. The supermarket cashier said Maria had trouble conceiving. But how could that be linked to what happened? It made no sense. Then there was the way Grace Garner jumped on him after the news conference.
He must’ve hit on something.
But what?
A secret?
Everyone had them.
Look at his old man. Before Jason was born, his old man had been a Seattle cop. He had to quit the force after only a few years. Jason never knew why. It was something he never, ever, spoke of. Whatever happened, it haunted his father. After failing to make a go of it as a private investigator, he ended up working in a brewery.
Then Jason’s mother walked out on them when Jason was a kid. His old man crawled into a bottle, nearly taking Jason with him. Nearly destroying everything. Jason shut his eyes to the images of that time.
That was then.
His old man was doing better now. He was faithfulto his AA sessions, took early retirement from the brewery, and was a part-time private detective.
In many ways, his father was doing better than he was right now, Jason figured as he finished off his meal. It was rough with Spangler at the paper, seeing him fire Astrid. True, she had it coming, but Spangler was brutal about it. And catching the Colson story in the wake of Spangler’s termination rage didn’t help.
Jason had no one to turn to, really. After Valerie returned from Europe, they were together again. But it was never the same. While he’d quit drinking, he’d withdrawn. They only lasted about six months before Valerie said, “Jason, one of us has to say it: this is just not working. We’ve grown in different directions.”
It was a fact.
So they agreed to go their separate ways without any bitterness. He remembered how she smiled, tears in her eyes, as she kissed him at the airport on her way back to Europe.
That part of his life was finished. Over. Dead.
Forget about it.
He reached for his milk. Despite everything, he felt a little better and was contemplating having a slice of apple pie. Could it be that he’d found hope by way of Detective Grace Garner?
Maybe he should call her right now.
He weighed the idea, reasoning that he needed to check on Maria Colson’s condition before final edition. Jason pulled out his camera phone and began viewing some of the pictures he’d taken during the day, coming to a few of Grace Garner at the news conference.
He remembered how she had smelled mildly like roses when she got in his face today. She had the aura of a strong, bright woman, maybe a year or two older than him. She was attractive. Right, and she was probably married or had a guy, he thought, staring into her eyes.
He clicked to the next image.
Maria and Dylan Colson.
He was going to find out what happened to them.
No matter what it took, he thought later that night, as he continued staring at their faces.
In the darkness, they glowed from his camera phone like ghosts.
16
D etective Grace Garner sat alone in the placid light of the hospital cafeteria searching the cream clouds of her tea for answers.
Several floors above her, Maria Colson remained comatose, her condition unchanged. Perelli had insisted Grace take a break while he and Lee kept vigil, giving her time to study the status of the case.
Dupree should’ve called by now.
A new break had surfaced more than an hour ago out of Sea-Tac International, where a woman traveling with a baby was acting strangely while
“Enjoy,” the cook said.
“Thanks.” Jason bit into his food. It was good. As he chewed, he could see little sense in any enemy theory. It appeared the Colsons were a well-liked, young, blue-collar couple.
But they’d had previous problems. Problems that could’ve been serious, from the way the neighbor had reacted, refusing to talk about them. The supermarket cashier said Maria had trouble conceiving. But how could that be linked to what happened? It made no sense. Then there was the way Grace Garner jumped on him after the news conference.
He must’ve hit on something.
But what?
A secret?
Everyone had them.
Look at his old man. Before Jason was born, his old man had been a Seattle cop. He had to quit the force after only a few years. Jason never knew why. It was something he never, ever, spoke of. Whatever happened, it haunted his father. After failing to make a go of it as a private investigator, he ended up working in a brewery.
Then Jason’s mother walked out on them when Jason was a kid. His old man crawled into a bottle, nearly taking Jason with him. Nearly destroying everything. Jason shut his eyes to the images of that time.
That was then.
His old man was doing better now. He was faithfulto his AA sessions, took early retirement from the brewery, and was a part-time private detective.
In many ways, his father was doing better than he was right now, Jason figured as he finished off his meal. It was rough with Spangler at the paper, seeing him fire Astrid. True, she had it coming, but Spangler was brutal about it. And catching the Colson story in the wake of Spangler’s termination rage didn’t help.
Jason had no one to turn to, really. After Valerie returned from Europe, they were together again. But it was never the same. While he’d quit drinking, he’d withdrawn. They only lasted about six months before Valerie said, “Jason, one of us has to say it: this is just not working. We’ve grown in different directions.”
It was a fact.
So they agreed to go their separate ways without any bitterness. He remembered how she smiled, tears in her eyes, as she kissed him at the airport on her way back to Europe.
That part of his life was finished. Over. Dead.
Forget about it.
He reached for his milk. Despite everything, he felt a little better and was contemplating having a slice of apple pie. Could it be that he’d found hope by way of Detective Grace Garner?
Maybe he should call her right now.
He weighed the idea, reasoning that he needed to check on Maria Colson’s condition before final edition. Jason pulled out his camera phone and began viewing some of the pictures he’d taken during the day, coming to a few of Grace Garner at the news conference.
He remembered how she had smelled mildly like roses when she got in his face today. She had the aura of a strong, bright woman, maybe a year or two older than him. She was attractive. Right, and she was probably married or had a guy, he thought, staring into her eyes.
He clicked to the next image.
Maria and Dylan Colson.
He was going to find out what happened to them.
No matter what it took, he thought later that night, as he continued staring at their faces.
In the darkness, they glowed from his camera phone like ghosts.
16
D etective Grace Garner sat alone in the placid light of the hospital cafeteria searching the cream clouds of her tea for answers.
Several floors above her, Maria Colson remained comatose, her condition unchanged. Perelli had insisted Grace take a break while he and Lee kept vigil, giving her time to study the status of the case.
Dupree should’ve called by now.
A new break had surfaced more than an hour ago out of Sea-Tac International, where a woman traveling with a baby was acting strangely while
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