Page 11 of Jina

Taking a hot bath in the dark wouldn’t be so bad. All she had to do was avoid falling asleep.

“I’m going on record in saying this is a bad idea,” Cole said, interrupting her thoughts. “But if you insist, I’ll take you home.”

“I insist.” She rested her head back on the cushion, belatedly adding, “Thanks.”

They traveled the rest of the way in silence. Only when he pulled up to the curb, a full block from her duplex, did he ask, “Do you want me to pick you up in the morning?”

“For what?” Then she realized what he meant. “You’re still going to Madison to interview my sister?”

“Yes. As a courtesy, I’ll take you with me as long as you don’t get in my way.” He turned to face her. “I’m not the bad guy here. I’m just trying to find answers to who this dead guy is and how he got buried on your old family farm. Bradley Crow might not be your stalker, but I still need to do my job.”

He was going out of his way to be nice, and most cops would not allow her to tag along on an interview. Biting back a sharp retort, she nodded and forced a smile. “That would be great. Thanks.”

“It’s past two in the morning now, so we won’t hit the road until nine. If that works for you?”

“I’ll be ready.” She pushed open her passenger-side door. “Thanks again.”

“You’re welcome.”

Sliding out of the vehicle, she looked around, then made her way swiftly to the duplex, keeping in the shadows as much as possible. As she silently entered the house, she realized she hadn’t called for a tow truck. Swallowing a groan, she decided to wait until tomorrow morning.

Confessing her role in shooting the stalker hadn’t been as bad as she’d feared. Yes, Cole had been annoyed with her actions, but he hadn’t hammered her over the head about her decision not to go to the authorities.

Yet as she crawled into bed, foregoing the soak in the tub, she knew there would be more to come. Cole might be understanding, but she doubted the rest of the Peabody Police Department would feel the same way.

She forced herself to relax her sore muscles, doing her best not to fixate on the sick feeling in her gut that the mistakes of her past were coming back to bite her in the butt.

The following morning, Cole rubbed his eyes, waiting for the coffee to brew wondering why on earth he’d agreed to bring Jina along while he interviewed her sister, Shelly Strom.

If his boss found out, he’d be toast. Especially if it turned out Jina’s stalker was the dead guy.

He didn’t think she’d lie about not being the one who’d bashed the dead guy’s head in. After all, she was a cop too. Sworn to uphold the law and protect the public. He believed she’d fired her father’s gun to scare him off, and really, it was a miracle she hadn’t killed the guy considering the close range.

Mike Pulaski, the MMA gym manager, had told him about Jina’s role as a sharpshooter for the tactical team. Apparently, she’d honed those skills after the stalker incident. After being a victim twice in a matter of years, he completely understood why she’d chosen the path of becoming a cop.

He even admired her for overcoming her past, but that didn’t mean her role in his investigation didn’t complicate things.

And who was this shooter anyway? He’d dug into Rory Glick’s past, found the guy on the sexual offender registry, and had read the police report. It had given him a surge of satisfaction to learn Glick had suffered a minor concussion from being struck with the laptop.

Score one for Jina.

There was no indication that Glick was in Wisconsin, but he would place a call to the Tulsa PD later to see if they’d had any trouble with the guy. He didn’t think there was enough evidence leaning toward Glick being the shooter to justify a search warrant for his phone or credit card records.

Had Jina’s old stalker returned? But much like suspecting Glick of being the shooter, why would the hoodie stalker show up to tail Jina after all this time? Twelve long years after the fact?

Especially since she hadn’t called the police to have him arrested? In Cole’s mind, the guy had gotten off easy with a minor injury. Why seek revenge now?

Belatedly realizing the coffee was finished, he poured himself a cup and returned to his kitchen table. He jiggled the mouse to bring the computer to life.

Maybe the motive was simple rather than complicated. Jina was stunningly beautiful, probably the most gorgeous woman he’d ever met. Certainly, she’d turned every guy’s head at the MMA gym. Maybe one of those two guys, Glick or the stalker, was just angry that she’d jilted them—shooting one and clubbing the other with a computer.

Anger and resentment could fester over the years.

Maybe one or both had been in jail for a while. And it was only once they’d been released that they’d come after her.

There was also a third possible scenario. That one of Jina’s more recent arrests had gotten out of jail and was seeking payback.

Lots of suspects with few leads to go on. He didn’t think the perp was a fellow cop because as Jina had pointed out, he was a lousy shot. She’d been standing by her Jeep in plain view when he’d fired his weapon.

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