Page 134 of Ruthless Intent

“I appreciate that. Thanks.”

“Do you need a ride back to town?”

I shake my head. “Thanks, but no.”

“Alright, man.” The window goes up, and he drives off.

I wait until the car is out of sight, then move into a slow run, while I process the entire conversation.

There are documentaries by amateur investigators who have looked at the case. No one told me about those. I file it away as something to raise with Peter when he gets to the house. Maybe I should check them out before the interview starts. See if any of them have stumbled across anything I don’t already know. It’s unlikely, but if Ashley could point out how Detective Holson knew about Louisa’s pregnancy, then there might be something else I’ve missed.

It’s almost five-thirty by the time I get back. I go straight upstairs, and creep into the bedroom. Ashley is a huddled mass in the center of the bed, and I decide not to wake her up just yet.

I still haven’t really thought about what happened between us last night, and more to the point, why it happened.

All I know is that it doesn’t matter how much I enjoyed it, or how good she tasted, I can’t afford to be distracted from the plan.

CHAPTER SEVENTY-FOUR

ASHLEY

When I walk into the kitchen, I’m not sure whether I’m relieved or not to discover Zain isn’t there. His mom is though, and part of me wishes I could distract myself from facing her by dealing with Zain instead, and what happened last night.

But no. Heather Ryder is alone in the kitchen, and she spots me before I can retreat backward out of the door.

“Good morning, honey. Take a seat. Can I get you something to drink? Are you hungry?” Her voice is bright, which surprises me.

“I … umm …” I chew on my bottom lip then blurt out the words I’m thinking. “I’m so sorry about last night. My behavior was unacceptable.”

She pauses in the process of taking down a cup from a shelf, and turns to face me.

“I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t uncomfortable. But it also wasn’t your fault. Zain and Sondra should never have put any of us in that situation. But I also should have expected Sondra to behave like that. And that’s my fault.”

“No. No, none of this is your fault. Zain brought me to your home, and?—”

“Ashley, sit down.” Her voice is gentle, but firm. “No matter what happened, you are my son’s wife, and if I want him to be comfortable here, then you need to be comfortable here.”

“But—”

“We will get through this.” Her voice is firm.

“But it was my fault you lost him for so many years.”

She sighs. “You have convinced yourself that you’re the only reason the jury convicted him. But, there’s a reason there was a retrial, honey.”

“I wasn’t there to testify again. If I had, he might not have been released.”

“I’m not so sure. You’re not a child anymore, so the jury wouldn’t have been swayed by your youth.” She fills a pot with water and puts it on the stove. “There are a lot of discrepancies with the original trial that got swept under the rug. Have you thought about why no one spent too much time trying to find you to go over your initial testimony?”

“I thought they did try to find me?”

“Oh, they made a show of trying, but having you there wasn’t important to either side. If what you had to say was important, then the prosecution would have moved heaven and earth to find you. They didn’t. Don’t you wonder why that was?”

“I haven’t really thought about it.”

In my defense, since that first moment when I heard he’d been released, I haven’t had much time to think about anything.

“Zain is with his lawyer at the moment, and the MO-TV television crew will be here soon. You really should eat before they arrive and start asking questions.” She turns back to the stove and makes tea for us both.

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