The next morning Evan leaned against the wall in the hospital room, listening to Noelle interview Adam Thornton. Noelle could be intimidating but would turn on the charm when needed. She didn’t tolerate bullshit, and anyone who didn’t take her seriously soon regretted it.
Ivy’s ex-husband knew he’d screwed up and was currently putting an incredible amount of energy—and bullshit—into convincing Noelle that what he’d done was no big deal.
Breaking his son’s bedroom window and terrorizing his ex-wife.
No big deal.
Adam’s leg wasn’t broken—just banged up—and the doctor had said his head should be okay in a few days. He had a concussion, a giant bruise on his forehead, and a broken nose. He’d been officially discharged but was still in the hospital, because Evan and Noelle had shown up at the same time as the deputy who was to transport Adam to the county jail. The deputy had agreed to wait until they had questioned Adam.
Evan was already annoyed and impatient with Adam’s question dodging and obvious lies. The sound of his voice was grating, and Evan wondered how Ivy had ever fallen for him.
Evan squinted, studied the man, and acknowledged there was probably something attractive about Adam that would catch a young woman’s attention. And maybe seven years ago it’d been even stronger. Ivy and Adam had only been married for two months, so she had quickly come to her senses. Evan observed something . . . slick about the man. He never quite told the truth and tried hard to convince them how wonderful he was.
Evan suspected Adam was like that in every conversation, not just when questioned by the police.
Adam said he had been at Ivy’s home because he wanted to see West.
“Maybe ringing the doorbell would have been a better idea,” Noelle said with a straight face.
“Yeah. Maybe.” Adam glanced at Evan and then looked out the window.
“Were you planning to take West away?” asked Noelle.
“Nah. Just wanted to say hi. I’d never do that to Ivy.”
“How much did you have to drink before stopping by?”
Adam screwed up his face in thought. “Not sure. I’d been at the brewpub with some friends. We went through a few pitchers.”
“Did one of your friends go to Ivy’s house with you?”
He looked surprised at the question. “No, just me.”
“Did you see anyone else outside the house?” asked Noelle.
Adam sat up straighter in bed. “Why? Was someone else there? I don’t know what they told you, but I didn’t do anything.”
“You broke the window,” said Evan, unable to keep his mouth shut.
“Unless you think someone else did.” Adam looked hopefully at Evan.
Noelle and Evan exchanged a pained glance.
“You hit the car awfully hard,” Noelle said. “Did you think you could physically stop it?”
Adam gently touched his bandaged nose and winced. “Don’t remember what I was thinking.”
“You’re lucky she braked. She could have run you over,” added Evan.
The patient scowled. “I think I tripped and hit the car. Sort of remember falling hard into it.” His eyes widened. “Someone pushed me! I remember feeling something hit my back.”
Evan tensed but kept his face expressionless. “Who?”
“Was her twin outside? Iris woulda pushed me. She hates me. Rowan too.” He looked from one detective to the other, an expectant gaze in his eyes.
“What made them hate you so much that they’d push you into a moving car?” asked Noelle.
Adam’s mouth flattened into a tight line. “Not sure. Not my fault Ivy and I broke up.”
“Do you remember anything else?” Evan asked, irked by the man’s refusal to accept any blame.
“Cops yelling at me. Flashing lights. Pain in my head and leg.”
“You just quietly laid there after hitting the car?” asked Noelle.
“Yep.”
Evan recalled the sergeant’s comment about Adam cursing out his ex as he rolled on the ground. “How often do you go to Rowan’s home?”
Adam hesitated, flushed, and adopted a confused expression. “Why would I go there?”
“You tell me.”
He looked away. “I’ve got no reason to go to Rowan’s home. Haven’t talked to her in years.”
“Interesting. She had an outside prowler the other morning. Her dog let her know. Same way he did yesterday at Ivy’s home.” Evan studied the man. “Thor’s a big dog, you know. She’s trained him to protect her.” The last was an exaggeration, but he wanted to plant a reason in Adam’s head to stay away from Rowan.
Adam appeared very interested in what was happening outside his window.
Evan made eye contact with Noelle. She gave a tiny nod and stood. She was done too.
“Hey. When am I getting out of here?” Adam asked as they reached his door.
“There’s a deputy in the hall, ready to transport you to the jail.”
“My head was banged pretty bad. Probably shouldn’t leave yet.”
“The doctor already signed off, saying you’ll be just fine,” said Noelle. She opened the door and left with Evan on her heels, both of them ignoring Adam’s protests.
In the hallway, she turned to Evan. “What do you think?”
“I think the only reason he was outside Ivy’s home was to hurt her somehow. Either by taking West or causing damage. I guess his drunken brain decided it was time for payback and this was a good way to do it.”
“I agree. Rowan had an intruder also?”
“No one was in the house. Thor acted out of character while looking outside the other day, and she said he did the exact same behavior last night.”
“Adam seemed flustered when you asked.”
“I noticed. I don’t think he’ll stop at Rowan’s again, but I’ll talk to both her and Ivy about security systems. I’ll ask if Ivy has one at their hair salon too. Adam seems like the type to strike out at whatever he can. Especially if he’s drunk.”
“I know the type.” Noelle squared her shoulders. “I need to get back to the cell phone records of Jillian Francis. I’m so glad we’ve pulled in the FBI on this—and I really like your friend Mercy. She’s kicking things into overdrive to get more hands and eyes on these cases. I’m trying to find a connection between Jillian’s and the other two girls’ calls and texts. Somehow these three crossed paths with the same man. I’m determined to figure it out.”
Resolve filled her features, and Evan believed she’d find it.
Evan checked the time. It was nearly noon. “I need to call Shannon Steward and ask if she knew that Ken visited Jerry Chiavo in prison.”
“Did you ask Rowan?”
He grimaced. “I didn’t. As far as I know, Jerry and Ken are connected through Rowan because of something that happened twenty-five years ago. It’s logical to ask her, but something feels off.”
“Feels off with Rowan?”
“Not exactly.” He pulled out the notepad he’d written on after talking with Jerry. “Look. She’s connected to all these cases in one way or another.”
Noelle studied the page, running her finger from Rowan’s name to each of the cases. “But her involvement isn’t deliberate—it’s just where life placed her. She was kidnapped and everything radiates from that . . . although I don’t believe in coincidences, and this is a lot of them, so I see what feels off to you.” She handed it back. “But if she’s in the middle of everything, you should ask her the questions. What’s holding you back?”
“I don’t like so many connections either. I’ve never come across this in a case before, and it’s making me hesitate. I feel like I’m missing something.”
“Talk to her. Maybe she holds our missing piece. If you don’t do it, I will.” She raised a brow at him.
He knew she would. He was being ridiculous. “I’ll call her after I talk to Shannon.”
“Gotta go.” Noelle lifted a hand at him and left, pausing ten steps later to greet a nurse she appeared to know.