Free Slade's Secret Son by Elizabeth August Page A

didn’t taste right on her tongue. He was a brain-muddler. That was what he was! Realizing that Slade had garnered all of her thoughts again, she curtly jerked her mind back to the reason they were there. “We’re interested in knowing what the current situation is with your fiancée.”
    Henry shrugged. “It’s over. She’s gone.”
    “Gone?” Lisa’s tone coaxed him to elaborate.
    “Isabelle wanted to set the wedding date. I wanted to put it off until you could finish your investigation. I felt pressured so I told my best friend about hiring you. He told his girlfriend who just happens to not like Isabelle and she couldn’t wait to tell her. Isabelle called me and asked if it was true. I decided not to lie and told her that it was. The next thing I knew, I got a special deliverypackage with my ring in it and a note with one word— goodbye .”
    Henry motioned for them to be seated, then headed back around his desk and seated himself. “I thought about it and decided she had a right to get mad. I gave her a day to cool off, then went to her place to see if we could patch things up. Her roommate said she’d used her vacation time for the two week notification to quit her job and gone back home to Ohio.”
    “When was that?”
    Henry frowned thoughtfully for a moment, then said, “It was just before you were shot. I was going to call you and tell you that I didn’t need your services any longer, but I was sort of curious about why she ran so I figured I’d let you continue the investigation when you were well. Now, I’m not interested any longer. She’s part of my past and I figure it’s best to keep it that way.”
    “You haven’t tried to contact her?” Lisa asked, noting that the man didn’t look all that broken-hearted.
    “No. Clearly she has something to hide. That makes her unsuitable wife material. Like I said, at first I was curious about what had caused her to run, but I’ve lost interest. Just send me a bill for services rendered. As far as I’m concerned, hiring you was well worth the price.”
    Thanking Henry for his time, Lisa and Slade left.
    “Looks like this Isabelle Montgomery is a very likely suspect,” Slade said as they drove away.
    Lisa scowled cynically. “And if she isn’t the one after me, she’s lucky to be rid of that man. He’d got the staying power of a snowman in July.” Glancing through the Ogden folder, she found what she was looking for and began punching in a number on her cell phone.
    “Who are you calling?”
    “Her mother lives in Dayton. Figured I’d start there.If she didn’t actually go home , then her mother should know where to find her.”
    When a woman answered, Lisa introduced herself as someone from the personnel office of the company where Isabelle had worked in Seattle, and asked if she could speak to her.
    “I’m her mother. Isabelle is out of town, but I’m expecting her back late tonight,” the woman on the other end informed her. “Can I help you?”
    Lisa said she was calling about a problem with Isabelle’s last paycheck. “It’s nothing serious,” she assured the woman, then adding that she’d call back the next day, she ended the call. “Looks like she did move back home, but she’s been out of town lately. It’s beginning to look more and more like she could be the one we’re after.” Frowning thoughtfully, she added, “Only, Margaret Montgomery didn’t seem the least bit worried about someone trying to contact her daughter.”
    “So maybe she doesn’t know her daughter has anything to hide.”
    Lisa nodded in agreement.
    “Next stop, Dayton, Ohio,” Slade said. “Which way to the airport?”
    Lisa considered protesting about the amount of money Slade was spending to help her find her would-be killer, but bit back the words. He would only give her an indulgent look and tell her that he was doing his duty by her. Besides, she wanted to find her pursuer as quickly as possible so she could be with her son again.
    A