Page 29 of Forensics of a Fable

“That’s true.” Bel fought the urge to growl her confirmation. “You may use me as a witness.”

“And before you ask me to account for the rest of my evening, the answer is I saw Detective Emerson walking her dog in the dark,” he continued. “It was late, and after finding Alcina Magus attacking her all those weeks ago, I felt it wise to accompany her.”

The sheriff stared at Bel as if she was hiding something, but she returned his gaze with a carefully constructed expression. “After he helped Cerberus save my life, my dog gets excited to see him,” she explained. “Eamon was gracious enough to keep me company.”

“How often does that happen?” Griffin asked, and Bel wasn’t sure if he was asking as her boss or as her overprotective surrogate father figure.

“Just that night,” Eamon answered. “Before that, the detective and I hadn’t spoken since the incident.”

Griffin studied him, searching for the lie before placing a photograph of their Jane Doe before Stone. “Do you recognize this woman?”

“I’ve never seen her.”

“You barely looked at the photo. How can you be sure?” Griffin pushed it closer.

“Let’s be honest, Sheriff.” Eamon leaned forward, his movements casual yet dominant, reminding everyone who the true power in the room was. “You rarely see me in town because I bought this estate to remain out of the public eye. My business consumes my time, as do the renovations, and in my spare moments, I choose to be left alone. I don’t need to look at that photo because I don’t know her. I don’t know many women in Bajka save our beloved detective here, and we all know that’s because she forced her way into my peace.” Eamon studied her with amusement, and Bel resisted the urge to kick him under the table. Arrogant as he was, though, he spoke the truth. People seldom saw him except for the few occasions when he was following her.

“Now, I came here of my own volition because I have nothing to hide. I’m not the man you’re looking for, so I’ll take my leave.” Eamon stood, signaling his cooperation was over. “As always, Sheriff, it has been a pleasure. If you ever need anything, please don’t hesitate to reach out.” He shook Griffin’s hand, nodded at Bel, and then strode from the room with the dominance of a god among men.

“That guy is something else.” Griffin looked at Bel with a confused expression. “But most don’t realize those trails are on the Reale Property, so it’s not exactly a smoking gun. What do you think? Is he involved?”

“Honestly? No.” She shook her head. “We both know Eamon Stone doesn’t need poison to kill someone.”

Griffin’s eyes drifted to her throat. “No, he doesn’t.”

“Plus, we’ve learned our lesson about accusing him of a homicide he didn’t commit.”

Griffin snorted. “That guy freaks me out. I understand he’s rich and reclusive, which accounts for most of his behavior, but there’s something else warning me about him. Something is off with that man, but after seeing how he killed Alcina Magus withhis bare hands to rescue you, I don’t buy him poisoning girls and then leaving them on his multi-million-dollar property.”

“I have to agree.”

“Then again, he is capable of killing, so I’m not crossing him off the list yet.” Griffin fixed her with a meaningful stare.

Bel nodded, desperate to change the subject. “We should run Jane Doe’s fingerprints and DNA through missing persons. Maybe we’ll get lucky.”

“Good idea. Thanks, Emerson.”

Bel took her cue to leave and walked out of the interview room, catching sight of dark clothing just outside the station, and she followed Eamon’s siren call to where he leaned against his expensive yet understated black car.

“How’s your dad?” he asked as she approached. “I like him. I can see where you get your intelligence and fire from. Your goodness too.”

“He’s good. Left to go home today since he was tired of sleeping on my couch.”

“You need a bigger place.” A strange expression flashed over his features, but she wasn’t sure she wanted to know what he was thinking. “I would have enjoyed seeing him again. I guess next time.”

“Inviting yourself to family dinners now?” she teased. Eamon opened his mouth before slamming it shut, and she had the terrifying suspicion that he’d almost claimed he was part of the family.

“I suppose we knew today was coming.” He changed the subject, stepping into her personal space as he loved to do. “Although, I’m still trying to decipher if the deaths on my property mean something or if the killer merely needed the sheds and had no clue they were on the estate.”

“I hope the latter, but we can’t be sure.” Bel stepped closer, invading his personal space in return, and his eyes sparkled with amusement.

“No, I guess we can’t. As long as you know this wasn’t me. I swear to you, I’ll never give you cause not to trust me. I will never give you a reason to hunt me.”

“Evil, but not the evil I seek.”

“Never the evil you seek.” He lifted his fingers and ran them over her jawline with tender worship, and a deep, unrestrained longing filled his eyes. He leaned forward ever so slightly, breathing her in, and then another emotion joined his desire. Concern.

“We’ll go,but we have to stay close to home, okay?” Bel snapped Cerberus’ harness around his wide chest and kissed his beefy head as if he understood her. After Eamon left the station yesterday, she and Gold had worked late, but they found no clues for their second victim’s identity. Nor had they found evidence on her nightgown, the furniture, or the porridge save for the Pentobarbital they already guessed would be there. The breakfast cereal was the kind you could purchase at any grocery store across America, and it had been prepared with only water and white sugar. No Milk, no fruit, no flavors or spices. Nothing to hint at who the killer might be, except that by including sugar, he had once again cared for his victims by making the poisoned food easier to consume.

---