Page 143 of Another Girl Lost

“You left my place shortly before six a.m. The police report said the attack happened at six thirty a.m.” The devil’s advocate in him couldn’t let go of the counterargument. “The timeline will not help your credibility.”

I drew in a breath. “Margo must have been watching me from her apartment. I’ve seen her looking this way before. She saw me leave. And I’ll bet she followed.”

“The prosecutor will say that’s guesswork.”

“She appears in town just before the anonymous call that led cops to Sandra’s body. And then she lands in the investigating officer’s bed.”

“Again, that’s circumstantial. I’d argue that Margo took a new job, you saw her, and it triggered you. You made the 9-1-1 call, killed Tiffany, and kidnapped Lynn.”

“No. Margo is orchestrating all this.” I shook my head. “Margo has gotten under Dawson’s skin. He has a protective vibe for her. You said he bent the rules to shield his wife.”

“If they are sleeping together, it wouldn’t bode well for him.” He shoved out a breath. “And it won’t help your defense when it’s disclosed that we’re sleeping together.”

“For the record, I slept with you because I like you. Not because I needed a lawyer.”

“I want to believe you and Della aren’t playing a version of the same game.”

“I’m not playing.” I shook my head. “The Della I knew was clever and smart. She knows how to manipulate. She sent me a text luring me to Lynn’s town house so she had time to transport Lynn to my warehouse.”

“What’s Margo’s endgame?”

“Clean up loose ends. Lynn, Tiffany, me.” The statement sounded outlandish.

“Why wait ten years?”

“Maybe she needed time. Escape, recover from her stretch with Tanner, and build a new life. Maybe working human trafficking cases was enough until it wasn’t. She returns out of a sense of guilt or maybe justice for Sandra? I don’t know.”

“Why move in across the street from you?”

“Obsession? Or maybe she likes elaborate games and living on the edge. I don’t know.”

He didn’t respond.

“Dawson showed me a bracelet. It was found with Sandra Taylor’s body, and I didn’t admit this to Dawson, but it was mine. Tanner took it from me. Took everything from me.”

“Not everything,” he said softly.

I wanted to take his hand in mine and tether myself to the present. “I’m sorry I pulled you into this. I didn’t know who else to contact.”

He was silent for a long moment. “Let me make calls. Find out what’s happening.”

“I’m sorry.”

His gaze met mine. “We’ll talk soon.”

Chapter Forty-Four

DAWSON

Saturday, July 20, 2024

5:00 p.m.

When Dawson arrived at the hospital, Margo was in recovery and the doctor reported that she had come through the surgery well. The doctor had repaired muscle and nerve damage and patched her up. She’d recover fully.

He thought back to the night they met. She’d come up to him. Her smile had been infectious. And what happened in that bedroom had bonded him to her. Had she read him and summed him up as a lost soul like Della had Scarlett?

Della. Shit. Now he was thinking like Scarlett.

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