Page 41 of Keeping Eveline

The thought streamed through Ox’s mind as he picked up his cell phone, noting it was the police detective who was investigating Eveline’s break-in.

Immediately, the ardor living in him to take her to his bedroom and worship her body until he couldn’t think straight cooled, and he was reminded of why Eveline was in his apartment in the first place.

“Matthews here.”

“Kyle, Joe Watson, here. We got a hit on the DNA sample we took from Eveline Durville’s apartment.”

Ox gripped the phone a little tighter. He’d been hoping that they’d be able to trace it back to someone. The fact they had and had gotten a hit so quickly was a good thing.

“Great, who is it? When are you bringing him in?” The chances of him being able to sit in on the interview was unlikely, regardless of his good relationship with the station closest to Alliez’s offices.

Eveline’s apartment wasn’t in their jurisdiction, so the fact Joe was calling was something Ox appreciated.

“We’re not.”

Aware that Eveline was standing not six feet away from him, Ox did everything he could not to let loose the string of obscenities bubbling up in him. “Why the fuck not?” he ground out. So, he let one curse slip through. It was better than what it could’ve been.

“Randall Maxwell is dead, that’s why. Turned up in the morgue with a GSW to the head.”

“Are you kidding me?”

That seemed too damned convenient that the guy who trashed Eveline’s apartment was now dead.

Things were getting weirder and weirder, and Ox didn’t like it one little bit.

“Sorry, wish I had better news for you. As far as we’re concerned, the case is closed. The guy’s DNA was in the middle of Ms. Durville’s bed. All signs point to him committing the break-in. No more for us to investigate. I know it’s not the outcome you were hoping for.”

Ox wanted to say more. They might think the case was closed, but it only had him asking more and more questions.

Like, was the guy working for Gerald?

Or was he working for an associate of Gerald’s and that person had killed him?

Why had he been killed?

“Do you feel that way?” Ox asked instead of the other questions spinning in his head. Joe wouldn’t know those answers because he wasn’t aware of the intricacies of the case involving Eveline and Triple Z Security.

“I think it’s convenient, for sure. There’s every chance this guy is the same one who attacked Ms. Durville the other night.”

Randall Maxwell probably wasn’t the one who’d assaulted Eveline. No, there was more than one person involved. One had just been eliminated.

“What about Randall’s death? Anyone looking into that?”

Silence greeted Ox’s question, and he wished he was having this conversation face-to-face with Joe so he could see his body language. See the way he reacted to Ox’s questions.

Something was off.

“No. The guy’s got a long rap sheet, and it was a self-inflicted shot.”

More red flags were waving for Ox. Not for one second did he believe it was a suicide. It was made to look like it’d been self-inflicted, but Ox would bet the apartment he lived in it wasn’t.

“Right. Any chance I can get a copy of his rap sheet?”

“I’ll see what I can do. Sorry I didn’t have any better news for you, but at least Ms. Durville is safe now.”

Ox gave a non-committal response before disconnecting the call. He trusted Joe the guy had come through for him on many occasions, but this time he was wrong—Eveline was far from safe. If anything, she was in even more danger than she had been when she’d woken that morning.

She was watching him.

---