Page 5 of The Dollmaker

Fat raindrops fell. Within minutes the skies would open, and they’d both be soaked. “What can I do for you, Mr.Knox?”

“Roger called me a couple of days ago. He said you’d be at his funeral.”

“He died of a heart attack. How did he know there’d be a funeral?”

“I can’t say for sure, but my guess is he sensed the end was close. RB said you were loyal to a fault. Best way for me to talk to you face-to-face was to wait for him to die. He knew you’d be here.”

Unsettling to think the old man had pegged him. “You could have called me.”

“Better to have this conversation in person.”

“Why?”

“Roger wanted you to have all my files on Kara’s case.” The weary-looking old man shook his head. “I talked to so many people. There was a time or two when I thought I might have something, but none of my leads ever panned out.”

“Why give me the files?”

“RB said you’re one of the best at what you do. He said if anyone could find a hint of foul play, you could.”

“Again, why dig into the case? The medical examiner ruled her death an accident. Overdose.”

“You know RB never believed that.”

“You were the chief of police then. You know there was no forensic data to back up Roger’s suspicions of homicide.”

“I’m not appealing to your logic, but your loyalty to RB. He wanted you to have one more look at the case.”

These files were likely a rabbit hole. A goddamned blind alley destined to loop back to an unrecoverable loss that still bred anger and blame. Jesus, Kara would be alive now if Roger had been a more attentive father. Or, shit, if Sharp had stuck around, not joined the marines, and seen to it Kara lived a full life.

Sharp cleared his throat. “Do you have my address?”

“RB said you lived on Libby Avenue.”

“That’s the old place. I moved out about eight months ago.” He pulled a business card from his pocket. “Send it to my work address. I’m there more than not.”

Knox took the card, flicking the edge with a bent finger. “I looked into everyone who knew Kara, including you.”

“Me?” Sharp had no secrets, so if Knox’s comment was meant to put him on edge, it fell flat. “I was in Iraq when she died.”

“She met people through you. I was interested in them.”

“She also met people at school. At the lake. In the bars where she used her fake ID. You look into all those people as well?”

“I did. Funny you ended up marrying one of her friends. Tessa’s her name, right?”

“We aren’t together anymore.”Separatedwas the legal term, but he wasn’t keen to jab into more wounds today.

“I asked around. She’s doing well. Hear she’s overseas identifying the remains of lost US servicemen.”

Sharp’s patience snapped. “Make your point.”

“When you’re looking at my case files, keep an open mind. I think RB was right.”

“What do you mean, right?”

Knox shoved his hands into his pants pockets as he turned. “Look at the files.”

Sharp blocked the older man’s attempt to leave. “You know who fed her the drugs?”

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