Page 130 of Left Behind

The detective in charge pointed at an officer. “Find the manager. I want the security footage from the time she entered the building to the moment she went into her room.”

The police began working the case just like they did every random murder in their city, but the world was through with Corina. Her whole life had been about choices, and she’d rolled snake eyes every time.

***

A couple of days later, Wiley was on patrol. He’d dropped his partner, Doug Leedy, off at a dentist about an hour earlier and was on his own until he got the call to come pick Doug back up. So, when his phone rang, he thought it would be Doug. Instead, it was from the chief.

“Chief, what’s up?” he said.

“Wiley, when you get a second, I need you to swing by my office,” Sonny said.

“Yeah, sure. Be there in a few,” Wiley said. He took the turn at the next corner and headed back to the station.

The door to the office was open, but he knocked anyway.

Sonny looked up. “Come in, Wiley, and close the door, will you?”

Wiley frowned. “What’s wrong. What happened?”

“I just got a call from a detective in New Orleans. Corina Dalton was murdered there two days ago. Robbed in her hotel room. They picked up the guy who did it.”

Wiley blinked, then took a deep breath, but said nothing.

Sonny didn’t know how to read the man. The Pope brothers gave nothing away. He glanced down at the notes he’d made from the phone call and continued.

“They were looking for a next of kin and found the recent court records regarding the legal guardianship between you and her. This is a weird situation. Legally, they have to notify next of kin, but she’s only seven. So, I’m telling you. And you can decide when, or if, you ever tell her. They want to know if anyone is claiming the body.”

“Hell no, we’re not claiming the body. And I know I’m not running home to tell Ava anything. If she ever asks…I might. But honest to God, Chief, she has nightmares about the woman. She got herself killed there. They can bury her there.”

Sonny nodded. “They said she’d recently sold her car and banked the money in New Orleans. There’s a little less than four thousand dollars in that account.”

A muscle jerked at the side of Wiley’s jaw. “Then they can bury her with it. Ava’s never going to need that money. It’s tainted, just like the woman it belonged to. Is that all, sir?”

Sonny sighed. “Yes, that will be all.”

“Sir,” Wiley said, and walked out, but the moment he got back in the car, he called Linette. She was off this afternoon and had gone to Bowling Green, so he knew he wasn’t disturbing her at work. The call rang three times before she picked up.

“Hey, honey,” she said.

“Are you where you can talk?” Wiley asked.

“Yes, I’m driving home. What happened?”

“Corina Dalton was murdered in New Orleans two days ago. They were trying to track down next of kin. They saw my name and Ava’s connected to her most recent court case.”

“Oh my God! So do we have to do anything?” she asked.

“Hell no.”

“Are we going to tell Ava?” Linette asked.

“Hell no, again,” Wiley said. “Not unless she ever asks about her, and then I’ll take it into consideration. That woman gave away her child. That nullifies her existence. She chose the path she walked, and now it’s finished.”

“Okay, and I agree,” Linette said.

“I just needed to tell you now. I don’t want to talk about it at home and have her overhear any part of it. You and I are in this together. I’ll always have your back.”

“And I’ll have yours,” Linette said. “I’m just now coming over the mountain. It’s so pretty up here. God, what a place to grow up. I love you. I’ll see you soon.”

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