Page 34 of Whispers Left Behind

Kinsley kicked him under the table.

“I got some forms turned in.” She reached over and snatched the ketchup bottle from his hand. “Don’t believe a word he says, Sherry."

“Seriously, I’m good for now,” Alex said to Sherry before she left their table. His gaze didn’t immediately swing back to Kinsley, though. “Do you know that guy?”

Kinsley peered over her shoulder. She immediately made eye contact with Beck Serra. He was sitting at the opposite end of thebar near the entrance. In the brief moment that she studied him, he didn’t seem to be with anyone, either.

“He’s that reporter who managed to convince my father to give an interview before the Gantz trial.” Kinsley attempted to make herself as comfortable as possible, but she was relatively certain that Alex had caught her unease. “Getting back to the possibility of Jack Hanson being the one to commit the actual murder, it doesn’t explain why the brothers would want to kill Gage Baird. His name wasn’t listed on the life insurance policy.”

Kinsley hadn’t uttered Gantz’s name so many times in such a short period since the trial. Once was way too many in her opinion. In all likelihood, Serra was in town on the belief that Gantz could have been responsible for Hanson’s death. The press release last week should have already forced him to move on to another story. As far as she was concerned, he could crawl back under his rock.

“I remember him now,” Alex said as he picked up another wing. Kinsley had failed to shift his focus. “Serra. Beck Serra. Didn’t he also interview Gantz when—”

“Did I mention that I had to reschedule the interview with Tobias Zayn?” Kinsley asked, not in the least bit apologetic that she had interrupted him. She had lost her appetite, but she forced herself to squeeze some ketchup next to her fries. “As long as there is no change in Gage Baird’s condition, Zayn agreed to meet me up in Halliday.”

“Halliday? Why not the station or the hospital?”

“I want to question J.J. Callahan,” Kinsley replied, relaxing somewhat now that Alex’s focus had swung away from Serra. She was still uneasy at the thought she had attracted unwanted attention from the reporter, but at least Alex had gone along with the switch in topics. “You remember. The farmhand who I mentioned last week. The rancher from Leeds left me a voicemail while I was in Bismarck. Apparently, he wasn’t the onewho met with Gage Baird. There is a third party who handles those types of sales. I have a call into the guy. Anyway, I was hoping that maybe J.J. could shed some light on Gage and Tobias. We might be missing something there.”

Kinsley pointed a fry in Alex’s direction.

“And no jokes about bull semen while I’m eating, okay?”

Alex laughed, forcing Kinsley to return his smile. She couldn’t help but want to find her own rock to crawl under until the press relinquished Gantz’s name from their networks. On the other hand, maybe she deserved to be reminded of her sins every five minutes.

A large, rustic mirror hung between the two restrooms, positioned high on the far wall. Despite its distance, she could still make out Beck Serra at the end of the bar. It was obvious that he was monitoring their booth, though his expression was inscrutable.

Why was Serra still in Fallbrook?

A part of her feared that she was the reason.

Kinsley shifted her gaze back to Alex. She forced herself to pick up her beer as if everything in her life was normal. She was allowing her imagination to run, and that was dangerous. That was when a situation could spiral out of control. She reassured herself that no one but Noah was a witness to what had taken place that fateful night.

No one.

Chapter Sixteen

Kinsley Aspen

October

Tuesday — 9:37 am

Sunlight filtered through vintagelace curtains, casting patterns on the worn linoleum floor. As Kinsley took a seat at the table, she couldn’t help but suspect that Tobias kept his surroundings the same out of sentimentality. The walls of the farmhouse were adorned with framed family photos, some even black and white. Tobias’ wife wasn’t beautiful in the typical sense, but there was something infectious about the woman’ssmile. Her adoration for her husband was obvious from the way the camera caught her staring at him, and vice versa.

“The swelling on Gage’s brain has subsided. The doctors are hoping they can lower his levels of sedation today.” Tobias was standing at the counter pouring freshly brewed coffee into two porcelain mugs. There was a tremor in his hand, but there was also a hint of exhaustion in his voice. “First my granddaughter. Now my grandson. A grandfather isn’t supposed to outlive his children let alone his grandchildren.”

Tobias quietly placed the glass carafe onto the burner. He remained in place for a brief moment with his back to her, but it was long enough for Kinsley to realize he was taking a moment to compose himself.

“I apologize for having to cancel our interview yesterday,” Kinsley said in a soft tone to ease into a difficult conversation.

“I assume it had to do with the investigation.” Tobias picked up the two mugs before making his way to the table. He set one in front of her, but he kept the one with the chipped rim for himself. He didn’t speak again until he had settled in the chair opposite her. “Well? Did you find evidence to put that sonofabitch away?”

Tobias was clearly referring to Sebastian Hanson.

“I know about the three-million-dollar life insurance policy, detective.”

“May I ask where you heard that from?” Kinsley wrapped her hand around the mug for some warmth. “You didn’t mention anything about a policy last week.”

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