Page 8 of Ruthless Cross

Callie lifted her chin as she faced him. "My mom is very upset. Can this wait?"

"It really can't. It's a simple question."

Callie's gaze moved back to her mother, then she said, "Were you and Arthur still arguing about your weekend plans?"

"Yes. That's right. I wanted Arthur to go to a party with me tomorrow night, but he wanted to head down to Palm Springs again. January is too cold in the desert. I didn't want to go. Is that what you wanted to know? I'm sorry if I'm not making sense. I'm so shocked. I feel like I'm in the middle of a nightmare. Is this a dream? Am I going to wake up?"

He wasn't sure what to think of Juliette. She was definitely a mess of emotion, her eyes bloodshot, her nose red. She seemed genuinely shattered, but his simple question had confused her, and Callie had led her mother to an answer.Was there more going on than just runaway shock and grief?

"My mother and I are happy to answer questions tomorrow," Callie said. "But I need to get her home now. Can we please leave?"

He glanced at Savannah and Gage. Gage shrugged, and Savannah gave him a subtle nod, as if to say there was nothing more to be gained at this moment.

"All right," he said. "We'll have a police officer take you home."

"That's not necessary. We hired a limo for the night. I'm sure it's outside," Callie said, pulling her mom to her feet.

"I'll make sure you find it," he said, leading them out of the room.

Callie tried to hurry her mother along, but as they entered the grand hall, Juliette hung back, her gaze returning to Arthur, although his body was surrounded by security and crime scene investigators.

"I still can't believe it," she said.

"Let's go, Mom," Callie said, determination in her gaze as she pushed her mom in the direction of the entrance.

He kept the crowd at bay as they made their way out to the circular drive. A few staff members offered condolences to Juliette, but Callie didn't seem inclined to let her mom stop and talk to anyone.

Finally, they got to the limo. The driver was standing next to the vehicle. He gave them a compassionate look as he opened the doors. He'd apparently heard the news.

Juliette got in first. Callie paused, glancing back at him. "Are you really Arthur's friend?"

"Yes, and I will do everything I can to find his killer." He didn't know if she took his words as a promise or a threat, because while Juliette was a ball of emotion, Callie was completely unreadable. There were dark shadows of worry in her eyes, but he didn't know if that worry was for Arthur or for her mother.

"I hope you succeed," she said.

"I will. No doubt about it."

"How do you know that my mom and Arthur were having an argument?"

"Because their discussion was caught on the security camera." He paused. "What are you worried about?"

"Right now? Everything. My mother's husband died right in front of me."

"Are you concerned for your mother's safety?"

"Should I be?" she countered.

"I don't know," he said honestly.

She frowned. "Arthur's house has a security system."

"Make sure to use it."

"I will."

"And Callie—"

"What?" she asked shortly.

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