Page 111 of Kept in the Dark

Jimmy tipped his head and walked away quickly to catch up with the woman.

Trey shook his head and smiled, knowing that if Lauren wasn’t married, Jimmy would probably have a shot with the lady.

Hailey was now walking toward him. “What did she say?”

Trey wasn’t ready to upset Hailey, but she would just have to deal with it. “I can’t tell you because it’s an open investigation.”

Hailey rolled her eyes. “I figured you’d say that. I overheard some of the cops talking. I know it was Ryan.”

Trey shot her a look and then shook his head. “I just can’t figure out where he’s hiding. No one has seen him since your attack, and they still don’t have any leads. How did he get away without being noticed?”

“Well, I was eavesdropping and they’re wondering if he had help from someone. They think it may have been a nurse. Or maybe he dressed up as one to get access.”

Trey eyed her, annoyed by her incessant need to pry and snoop. But even he couldn’t deny her Achilles’ heel was also one of her greatest assets.

“Now I need to find him.”

“I bet my father knows where he is.”

Trey nodded. “I just don’t think he’ll tell me and he’s MIA, too.”

“Do what he does: threaten to blackmail him.”

Trey smiled. “I don’t think that will go over well with a judge or my bosses.”

He sighed. Why would Ryan kill Eli? If Ryan wanted to ruin David, he would blackmail Eli into helping him, not kill him.

Trey was even more confused than when they started this investigation. Nothing made sense and so many pieces overlapped and intertwined with one another, yet still didn’t make a direct connection to the murder of Morgan Gallagher or Nicole House’s disappearance.

He had three working theories, all lacking evidence:

Number one: David killed Morgan and framed Sara, which seemed to be the most likely theory. But it didn’t explain Ryan’s involvement. And that was assuming Lauren lied about David’s alibi.

Number two: Ryan killed Morgan and David was covering for him, as he did for most of his life. It was clear Ryan hated the Gallagher family, especially Morgan. Plus, Ryan had the makings of a killer. It wasn’t a far stretch to think he had done it. If he thought Eli would rat him out, it would explain why he had killed the old man.

And lastly: There could be a third person, like Nicole or Hannah. Nicole had a motive, and no doubt David would cover for her. It would also make sense for them to break up after the murder. After all, killing your lover’s spouse would cause quite the strain on a relationship.

But after hearing about Hannah, it was safe to assume she may be capable of killing Morgan as well. Stalkers were notorious for escalating. Again, David could be covering for her to save his own ass. But neither of those theories explained Ryan’s involvement.

And either way you look at it, David Gallagher was involved. How or how deeply, Trey wasn’t sure.

Despite not wanting to even look at the man, they needed to talk to him. He had avoided them the entire two weeks, claiming to be booked up with meetings all over the county, but Trey didn’t buy it. What better way to avoid saying something incriminating than to simply avoid the people asking the questions. But sooner or later, he’d have to talk to them.

Trey just wanted it to be sooner, before another body turned up.

“So, what now?” Hailey asked.

“Now, I’m going to go interview Hannah. If she was stalking your family thirteen years ago, she may be able to tell us what happened…as long as she isn’t the killer.” Which Trey wasn’t so sure about. “I’ll run you to my house so you can be with Trinity and your sister until I'm done.”

Before Hailey could protest, her phone buzzed, and she reached into her pocket to retrieve it. “Hello?”

Trey couldn’t hear the person on the other end of the call.

Hailey said, “It is. Who am I speaking to?”

A pause as she listened to the other caller.

“What do you mean? Has his wife been contacted?”

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