Page 165 of Collect the Pieces

Daniel might have killed his grandmother?

Mrs. O’Leary was so nice. She didn’t deserve whatever happened to her. Did she see Daniel coming? How did he do it? I never saw any signs of foul play on her body.

This is why the Baker autopsy is being held up.

Does my father know? Does he suspect Daniel?

I stop and turn.

Jigsaw didn’t follow me into the bedroom.

I find him in my kitchen. He holds out a bottle of water to me, his expression serious. Protective. “Drink this. You look like you’re about to faint.”

“I’m not sure what I am.” I uncap the bottle and take a long swallow, the cool water soothing my dry throat. “Tell me what you heard?”

“They asked you about your ex. Douchwaffle Dan.”

I snort, but the humor dies quickly.

“I can’t believe it. But also, I can.” I stare at Jigsaw, feeling sick. “I can’t believe I ever… oh my God.”

“I couldn’t get every bit of the conversation. My takeaway is they think he’s knocking off little old ladies for profit?” Jigsaw says with a questioning lilt.

I scowl. “Little old ladiesseems disrespectful given the circumstances. They were women who lived full lives, who had families, who…”

“Okay.” He curls his hand around my upper arm and steers me into my theater room. “He may have killedthree elderly womenwho couldn’t easily fight back, in order to steal their money.”

I sink onto the couch, my stomach twisting. “It seems that way.”

His jaw tightens. “They must have a solid case. They shared an awful lot with you.”

My pulse spikes. I press my fingers to my temples. “Oh my God, what if they think my dad was involved? Or me? And that’s why they told me so much, to see if I alert Daniel?”

“Margot. Stop.” He clamps his hand over my thigh, his firm grip grounding me. “I think the younger cop might have been a little suspicious. But the older one definitely wasn’t.”

“What if they were lying to me? Cope love to play games with suspects.”

“True,” he agrees. “But I really don’t think that’s the case. You were honest and helped give them some context for the kind of person he is.”

“But who even told them we dated?”

“You said you met his friends and family. I’m sure one of them remembered you.” He sweeps his gaze over me, slow and deliberate. “I’m guessing there aren’t a lot of beautiful, blonde, female morticians under thirty who work for family funeral homes in the area. Even if his friends didn’t remember yourname, they’d remember those details. Put it together with where the grandmother’s funeral was held, and they probably just went from there.”

I blink.

Oh.

“That makes sense.”

How can he be so calm and reasonable?

He nudges my knee with his. “We have contacts in Empire. I can try to find out who they’re investigating.”

I shake my head. “No, that seems like a bad idea.”

Jigsaw watches me, eyes sharp and assessing. “What are you thinking? Talk to me.”

I let out a short, humorless laugh. “I’m thinking about how I ever let that man touch me.”

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