The Sinner by Amanda Stevens Page A

visit.”
    â€œIt’s quite a sight if you aren’t too squeamish. I was particularly impressed by the bone chandelier and the garlands of skulls in the nave.”
    â€œI’ve seen pictures. They’re really very beautiful in their own way.”
    He paused, giving me another glance. “You seem to know a lot about all this.”
    â€œI obviously don’t know as much as you as I’ve never seen the chapel in person.”
    â€œI don’t mean the ossuary. I’m talking about memento mori in general.”
    â€œGiven my profession, it’s only natural I’d be drawn to gravestone art and symbolism. It’s a passion of mine. I’ve done a lot of research over the years.”
    â€œWhich is precisely why I asked for your opinion,” he said.
    By this time we were back inside Seven Gates Cemetery walking side by side through the headstones and monuments and then pausing when we came to the cottonwood grove where we’d talked before. We stood watching the procession pass through the main gate to the coroner’s van parked at the side of the road.
    As the vehicles pulled away one by one, Kendrick’s gaze came back to rest on me, causing little tingles of unease at the back of my neck.
    â€œThank you for coming into the morgue,” he said. “I know that wasn’t easy for you.”
    â€œI’m just sorry I wasn’t more help, but we knew positive identification would be a long shot.”
    â€œIt’s possible you may yet remember something.”
    I thought of those flashing rubies and that waiting silhouette in the shop window, but still I held my silence.
    â€œIf you do remember something, you have my number,” he said.
    I nodded.
    â€œIt’s getting late.” We turned as one to glance at the horizon where the sun had started to sink beneath the treetops. “Not a good idea for you to be out here alone. There aren’t any streetlights along the road and it’ll get dark fast once the sun goes down.”
    â€œI appreciate your concern, but working alone in remote locations comes with the territory.”
    A scowl flickered across his brow. “Yes, but you did just stumble across a woman’s body and her killer is still on the loose. He might start to wonder at some point if you caught a glimpse of him.”
    â€œI didn’t see anything,” I insisted.
    â€œHe can’t be sure of that.”
    â€œThen I’ll be careful. I’ll lock all the gates until I’m ready to leave and I’ll keep my phone handy. Please don’t concern yourself with my safety. As I said, I’m accustomed to working alone in remote places. I know how to take precautions. I’ll be fine.”
    He leaned in a little closer and lifted his hand. My instinct was to recoil, but something kept me rooted to the spot as my breath caught unexpectedly.
    â€œYou have something in your hair.” He plucked a leaf from the tangled strands and let it float to the ground.
    â€œThanks.” I didn’t outwardly react to the contact, but a pulse jumped in my throat. I knew that I should pull away at that moment, step back and take a breath. But I didn’t and neither did Kendrick. Instead, we remained so close I could feel his breath against my face. He smelled surprisingly of mint, a fresh scent that seemed at odds with the direness of his warning. I had the strangest urge to cup my hands around my nose and mouth and draw that cleansing scent deep into my lungs.
    I didn’t understand my fascination for Detective Kendrick. What I felt wasn’t physical attraction or a fleeting infatuation and it certainly wasn’t love at first sight. I was still very much in love with Devlin. I would never want any man as deeply as I desired John Devlin.
    But there was an undeniable pull to Kendrick. He was a curiosity, an enigma. A rebound that I instinctively knew could be my downfall.
    Tread carefully and