Page 60 of Hell Hath No Fury

Just as Cassie had pointed out.

“Sorry to tell you, Honeywell, but your friend’s guilty as hell. Once again, your judgment is seriously flawed.”

* * *

Emma paced the hotel room, pausing only to check her credit card online for the fortieth time today. No notifications. No new charges. No breadcrumbs to suggest where Nell was. Or if she was still alive.

I need an oxy and a drink to wash it down.

Nell’s words and the desperation in her voice echoed in Emma’s memory. The combination would slow Nell’s heart and respiration. She would drift off to sleep and possibly never wake up.

And Matthias wanted Emma to take a nap. She almost laughed at the idea.

Something else he said merged with Nell’s words on a repeated loop in Emma’s brain. He’d said this was a marathon, not a sprint.

Emma’s boss at ErieLIVE expected her back at work by the weekend, provided she made her doctor’s appointment on Thursday. It was now late on Monday. If all this wasn’t resolved, if Nell wasn’t found and Eric wasn’t cleared within the next forty-eight hours, Emma would need to beg for more time. She doubted she’d get it and would be forced to make a decision. Abandon her sister and her best friend, or give up her job.

Giving up her position with the news outlet, going back to scrounging work as a freelance photographer, might also mean leaving Erie.

Leaving Matthias.

Leaving the life and love she was only beginning to believe was real. Going back to being alone in the world.

A click at the door put a stop to her downwardly spiraling thoughts as Matthias entered. She swiped her damp cheeks before he could see her tears.

If his expression was any indicator, whatever he’d learned wasn’t good. He flipped the deadbolt, tossed the key card on the desk, and flopped onto the bed with a groan.

“It’s bad,” she said without needing to ask.

“It’s not great.” He told her about the gaping hole in Eric’s alibi and the trash bag full of broken glass, including the blood-covered shard, found in Eric’s car.

“How on earth did it get there?”

“I’d like the answer to that one myself.”

“And where’d the glass come from? There were no broken windows at Eric’s house.”

“Fergusson wouldn’t say anything other than that the lab is still testing it.”

“Sounds to me like they didn’t find any shattered glass at Eric’s office or Sonny’s house either.”

Matthias’s jaw was set, his gaze focused on something other than what was in their room.

Emma sat next to him. “What are you thinking?”

His lips parted, then closed again, as if he was still piecing his thoughts and words together. Another minute passed before he spoke. “Where did the murder take place?”

She sensed he didn’t expect an answer from her.

“If the police found the primary crime scene, Fergusson would’ve told me. A broken window would be obvious. Then again, we don’t know the glass came from a window.”

“Maybe someone shoved Sonny through a glass door.”

“Fergusson doesn’t believe that to be the case.” Matthias still didn’t look at her. “Who’s the anonymous caller that supposedly saw Eric put the trash bag in his trunk, and how did they know what was in the bag?”

She didn’t have an answer.

“With Eric confirmed as being in Cleveland, is it reasonable to believe he could drive back here, kill Jones, clean up the broken glass, bury the body in a downpour, and drive all the way back to Cleveland?”