Bennett’s hands had fisted.
“But the next morning, she would barely look at me.” Cameron’s jaw jutted up. “Is that what you want to hear? That I was desperate for her and she couldn’t stand the sight of me…because I wasn’t you?”
“I love her,” Bennett said flatly.
Rage flashed in Cameron’s gold stare. “Why does she love you back? Why you?” Then Cameron shook his head in disgust. “You should have done us all a favor and just let the Greenville Trapper kill your ass.”
Now Bennett fully understood. Cameron hated him. Good to know. I hate his skinny ass, too.
“I’m done here, Detective. You have more questions for me, then you talk to my lawyer. Right now, my friends need me. The friends I never abandoned.” He threw another look of disgust at Bennett and then stomped from the room.
Bennett picked up the manila file and headed back into the bullpen. He saw that Cameron had stopped and was talking animatedly with the chief. Probably making threats. Against me, no doubt.
Then Cameron stormed toward the exit doors.
Bennett approached the chief.
The chief whistled. “Someone sure is pissed off.”
Bennett gazed after the guy. “I don’t trust that guy.”
“Is it personal, though, Detective? Or professional?”
“Personally, I want to beat the hell out of him, sir.” Bennett’s fingers tightened around the file. “And professionally…something is wrong. During that whole interview, his affect was off.”
The chief cleared his throat. “Uh, yeah, he just found out that his friend was murdered. That the killer stole his car and fled the murder scene. The man could be in shock.”
Could be… “I want to dig deeper into his life.” A hell of a lot deeper.
The chief raised a brow. “And this has nothing to do with the fact that the papers have been linking him and Ivy DuLane for years?”
Was he jealous of the guy? Hell, yes, he was jealous of any man who’d gotten too close to Ivy. They’d slept together. And that made him see damn blazing red. But…
But it wasn’t just personal. “I want to dig deeper,” Bennett said flatly. Because something was off. Just wrong.
The chief slapped his hand down on Bennett’s shoulder. “Then go get a big shovel. Do whatever the hell you need to do.” He brought his head in close to Bennett. “Just find out what’s happening in my city.”
He would. And he knew where he wanted to start. “Let’s put a tail on Cameron Wilde…”
***
“Hugh?” Ivy called as she opened the door to her brother’s condo. She always kept a key, for emergencies and those too frequent times when her brother went out for a jog and accidentally locked himself out. He lived just a few blocks from her place, so she’d spent plenty of days running over to help him.
Today wasn’t one of those lost key days.
Today…
“Miss?” Detective Trout reached for her wrist. The light glinted off his blond hair. “Why don’t you let me go in first?”
Hugh hadn’t answered when she’d knocked on the door. Or when she’d called him, again and again. So she’d let herself in. And she could tell by the worry on the cop’s face that he didn’t think they were going to find a good scene inside that condo.
Everyone knows my father killed himself. That was his legacy.
It wouldn’t be Hugh’s. “My brother is okay,” she said fiercely.
“Let me go in first.” Now the cop’s voice was firm.
Ivy stepped back. Her heart was pounding too fast. Her hands were shaking and they just wouldn’t stop. The cop drew his gun and slowly entered the condo.
Hugh, don’t do this. Don’t do this, please!
“Hugh DuLane!” Detective Trout yelled. “I’m with the Mobile PD. Your sister is here—”
There was a groan. A pain-filled sound that tore at Ivy’s chest. She leapt forward, trying to push around the cop.
He pushed her back. “Hugh DuLane!” The detective’s voice was a yell.
Ivy got a good look at the inside of the condo. The place was trashed. Glass shattered. Couch cushions overturned. The TV had been thrown against a wall.
Her hand rose, covering her mouth.
“Leave….” A low snarl.
Her gaze jerked to the left. Hugh was there, standing. Staggering, really. He lifted a hand and put it to the wall for support. “Just…leave.”
No, she wasn’t leaving him. Dodging the cop, Ivy ran to her brother’s side. “Hugh…” She could smell the alcohol wafting off him. “What did you do to yourself?”
His bleary eyes blinked at her. “I only left her for a few minutes, Ives. Just a few minutes…”
She wrapped her hands around him and held on tight.
“Just like with dad…I only left him for a few minutes…and then I heard the boom…”
***