Page 25 of Control

I felt the flush creep over my cheeks and looked down for a moment before I murmured, “Thank you.”

Ty sent a warm smile my way. “Alright. Tell me about the people on your list.”

Focus.

I was going to need to have that if I intended to be successful and safe. Getting distracted by a handsome guy who said nice things to me wouldn’t lead me to the truth. And right now, that was what was most important.

So, I pulled out my notebook, flipped through to the list of names, and shared, “First, there’s Annie’s family. Her mom, Monica, her dad, Sullivan, and her brother, Reed. I considered going to them first, but it’s only been a month. I don’t know. I feel like it might be better to give them some more time to grieve, especially since there are plenty of others I can talk to before going to them.”

Ty nodded his agreement. “They might have the most insight, but I agree. It’s no secret Annie’s death hit this town hard. Her family has got to be reeling.”

“Yes. Of course, families can do some crazy things, so I don’t necessarily want to wait too long.”

His brows shot up. “You think they could have done this?”

I shrugged. “I have no idea. Not yet, anyway. I don’t want to believe that’s the case, but I won’t rule them out until I’ve done some digging.”

“Fair enough. Who’s next?”

“Well, Annie’s life was dedicated to charitable causes. She held fundraisers and galas, and she devoted her time to helping at shelters, underprivileged and underfunded spots across town, and even schools. She came into contact with a lot of people, but I think if I start by talking to some of the individuals who she would have been in regular contact with in her philanthropic efforts, we might learn a bit more about the person beneath the public image.”

Ty’s gaze shifted to the pile of papers on the table. “If I recall correctly, you have a list of those organizations in there, don’t you?”

I opened the file, sorted through the paperwork, and pulled out the one with the list Yasmine had compiled. Holding it out to Ty, I explained, “The starred ones are those who she has been working with for years. The highlighted ones are those who she’s had recent interactions with, all within the last year.”

As he reviewed the list, Ty reasoned, “I think the ones she’s been working with for years will be your best bet for uncovering something more personal about Annie. When it comes to those she’s been involved with in the last year, there’s still some potential. If something was going on in her life recently, someone might have witnessed her having a bad day. Either way, I think most of these are worth checking out. Aside from the organizations or her family, what about friends or other acquaintances?”

I sighed. “That’s where it gets tough. Annie had a lot of friends. There are two women who have popped up since they were younger, Clover Moran and Bethany Daniels. Both women are also from wealthy families, but neither family was in nearly the same financial position as the Sanders family. It’s hard to say whether the friendships were deep and meaningful, or if they were all just exposed to the same functions as children simply because of their family status. It doesn’t look like Yasmine had an opportunity to talk to either one of them.”

Nodding, his eyes narrowed in a way that indicated he was thinking about Annie’s friends and where they might fit in, Ty eventually suggested, “I’d move them closer to the top of the list. Long-term friendships are probably your best option for intimate details.”

“Or not,” I argued. “Good friends won’t share secrets.”

“Right. But what if they do? How good of friends are they?” Ty countered.

This guy was good.

So good.

In fact, as we continued to move through the list of individuals and organizations to contact, Ty provided such a wealth of knowledge and insight. He didn’t need to know Annie or me or Yasmine to understand people’s motivations. Ty could read people in a way that I wasn’t sure even I could, and I’d been doing this a long time that I was confident in my ability.

The car accident I’d been in had felt terrifying in the moment, and if I allowed myself to recall the encounter I’d had at the gas station moments before I started racing through the streets of Steel Ridge, I shuddered.

But now I was wondering if perhaps it had been a blessing in disguise. There was no question this story was the biggest of my life, even if I wasn’t officially working on it through the station.

So perhaps getting into that accident and, more specifically, meeting Ty, was precisely what had to happen. Because I felt extraordinarily lucky to have met someone with such a vast skill set, who I, for some strange reason, believed I could trust with my life.

EIGHT

Alana

“So, are you going to just start questioning them?”

I glanced over from the passenger’s seat to look in Ty’s direction. We were heading to the first place on my list, and he had decided to drive. I hadn’t expected it, nor did I like that he was using his gas to drive us around, but I supposed it was possible they’d account for that when it came to billing me.

When Ty offered no additional clarification as to what he meant, I asked, “Questioning them?”

He took his eyes off the road for just a moment to look at me and smile. When his gaze was focused on the road again, he explained, “You mentioned that people might be more willing to talk to you and provide information they might not normally provide, because you aren’t a cop. I guess I’m curious about your approach, and I’m wondering if you intend to conduct this as a police interview of sorts.”

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