The Dying Room by Debra Webb Page B

“Kid still living in Cali?”
    Rob downed the last of his fries. “That’s where things get interesting. As soon as she graduated, she closed up the family home place in Sacramento and took off.”
    “Did you find her current address?” Buddy found himself holding his breath... for Sylvia.
    “This is the part you’re not going to believe.”
    Buddy shook his head. “If you tell me the kid is dead—”
    “No. No.” Rob held up a hand. “She’s
here
.”
    Another of those deep frowns furrowed Buddy’s face. “In Birmingham?”
    Rob moved his head up and down in a slow, firm nod. “She hired a West Coast PI and tracked down her biological mother. Whoever the dad is, she didn’t find him, but she knows who your client is, Corlew. She’s been watching her for the past two months. She works at UAB Hospital.”
    A new kind of tension stirred in Buddy. He tossed payment for their lunch on the counter. “I’m ready to settle up now.”
    Rob tossed back the last of his beer. He followed Buddy outside, retrieved the file and his itemized bill from his car, and handed both over to Buddy.
    “This—minus the price bump—will be in your bank account before the end of the day,” Buddy assured him.
    “Nice doing business with you.” Before climbing behind the steering wheel of his sedan, Rob added, “I want those pics burned or shredded.”
    Buddy waved him off. “Consider it done.”
    When he’d dropped behind the wheel of his Charger and had the doors closed and locked, Buddy opened the large envelope that held Rob’s reports and the photos he’d taken. He scanned the summary report. Buddy wouldn’t deny being grateful finding the girl had been this easy. The problem was, any time something was this easy there was trouble.
    If Miss Addison Devers wanted to know her biological mother, why not talk to her after she’d found her? Buddy could understand some amount of uncertainty, but this went way beyond simply taking some time to take stock or to shore up her courage. This was almost stalking. Had she been following Sylvia around? Buddy studied the photo of Addison. She was a heartbreaker just like her mother. The girl—young woman—could be a runway model. She had the same long legs and killer figure her mother had. Her hair was a darker brown, almost black, and the eyes were different. Addison’s were a cool gray.
    Heaving a disgusted breath, Buddy shook his head. Since his conversation with Dan, he’d done his research on Benton Murdock. The guy had the same almost black hair and those pale gray eyes. Addison also had a chin dimple that matched the one Murdock sported in all his media pics. At least now Buddy knew.
    Murdock was married with two kids in college. The man had political aspirations. Buddy wasn’t sure how well he would take having a secret from the past revealed. Since Sylvia had never listed him as the father, Addison wouldn’t have had any way to locate him.
    Addison had leased a loft apartment in Five Points. She’d been hired after her first interview at UAB. She drove a BMW convertible. A snazzy little red one. Sylvia’s daughter was not only alive and well but right here in the Magic City.
    Was she looking for a relationship with her mother or to get a little revenge for having been given away at birth?
    He had a few good contacts at the hospital. Maybe he’d find out just what Miss Addison was up to and maybe even have a chat with her.
    Buddy placed the photos and reports back into the envelope. Having a client who meant something more than a paycheck made things complicated.
    Unfortunately, this was about to get a hell of a lot more complicated.

 

Chapter 16
    Birmingham Police Department, 1:20 p.m.
    Jess placed Joseph Pratt’s photo on the case board. Lori immediately stepped in to add relevant data beneath the photo. There was a lot they knew about Pratt. Jess shifted her attention to the photo of the judge. The same could be said for Rutledge. Yet, with all that they had