Page 31 of Night Moves
Okay fine. Londynwasin charge, and Natalie would have to go along with that for now. She breathed deep, and she glanced at Malone for confirmation that she should tell her story.
“Go ahead.” Malone pressed her hand on Natalie’s. “If something becomes problematic for you, I’ll step in.”
Natalie sat forward and shared about Willow’s fingernails, trying her best to keep her emotions out of her voice. “I found that extremely unsettling and suspicious. Then when Willow said her dad had remodeled the house and got rid of their basement, that set off my alarm bells.”
“And according to Drake, you went looking for this basement,” Londyn said.
“And I found it.” Natalie described Tracey’s items sitting on the shelf. “I think he killed her.”
Londyn leaned back, but her expression remained sharp. “I read up on her investigation before coming here, and there wasn’t anything pointing to foul play or to Tracey being hurt. In fact, CCTV footage shows her getting on a bus with the items you say are in the basement.”
“Can I see that footage?” Natalie asked.
“It’s public information, so I don’t see why not.” Londyn tapped the screen on her phone a few times then held it out to Natalie.
Drake shifted closer, and the musky scent that she was coming to associate with him enveloped her, but she ignored it to look at the screen. Just as Londyn had said, a woman fitting Tracey’s description held a tote bag in her hand and a little Gucci bag hung over her shoulder as she climbed the stairs to the bus. She wore the blue polka dot raincoat that was shoved on the shelf in Kirk’s basement.
But, and this was a big but for Natalie, the woman’s face wasn’t visible. “This could be any woman with Tracey’s things.”
“Keep watching,” Londyn replied.
The woman stopped on the top step and looked back over her shoulder, her face fully visible.
Natalie looked at Londyn. “Matches the photos I’ve seen of Tracey though her lips are swollen.”
“Exactly,” Londyn said with a satisfied smile. “And on the lips, I think it was a recent cosmetic procedure gone wrong.”
Natalie dug the pictures from her pocket that they’d printed at the cabin. “Then how do you explain these items I found in Kirk’s basement?”
Londyn examined the photo then looked up. “You took these pictures tonight?”
“Yes,” Natalie said. “Like I said. I think he killed Tracey.”
Londyn’s eyes narrowed. “I agree that it’s suspicious for him to be in possession of these items, but jumping to murder is quite a leap.”
Drake lifted his chin. “Why else would he have them?”
A flicker of a shadow deepened Londyn’s eyes, but she quickly vanished it. “He hired a private detective to find Tracey. Maybe she dumped these items, the detective located them and returned everything to Gentry.”
“This is the first I’m hearing of a PI.” Natalie rubbed tight knots in the back of her neck. “I think he would’ve told me about it. It’s something that would go in his favor in our investigation.”
“Just how did he come on to social services radar anyway?” Londyn asked.
Natalie explained about the neighbor who reported Tracey missing. “Kirk told the police that Tracey couldn’t cope with three children and walked out on them. But the patrol officer thought he was acting odd.”
“Uncooperative?” Drake asked.
Natalie shook her head. “No, but he was furtive and hesitant in his answers. Still, he allowed the officers to look around the house, and they found Tracey’s bloodstained blouse shoved into the back of his closet. He said she’d cut herself in the kitchen, and he was supposed to drop the blouse off for professional cleaning. He claimed he’d forgotten and hid it so she wouldn’t get mad. Then he completely forgot about it.”
“Yeah, I read that in the report,” Londyn said. “The detective’s notes also said he thought Gentry was more eager to find her so he could divorce her and get on with his life than concern for the woman.”
“It sure looks like he found her,” Natalie insisted. She knew she was right about this. She just knew it.
“So you were called in to evaluate the family?” Londyn asked.
“Kind of,” Natalie said. “The neighbor’s call prompted a welfare check. Nothing that would develop into a full-fledged investigation unless I found something. But before I could go to the house, Kirk failed to pick up his children from school and daycare. He, Tracey, and the nanny who was unavailable were the only people on their approved pick-up list, so when it got late, the school called us.”
“Is that normal?” Drake asked.
