Free Her Grave Secrets (Rogue River Novella Book 3) by Kendra Elliot Page A

looked past Stevie again. “I don’t know. I didn’t hang out with JD very much . . . maybe about once a week. He did some odd jobs at the resort, and I know he was job hunting at the coast and talking of moving over there, but I don’t think he had any leads.” He looked at Stevie with wet eyes. “Oh, God,” he repeated. “Why? I don’t understand!” He covered his eyes, and Stevie pulled him into an embrace.
    Zane looked away.
    Seth caught his eye and lifted one shoulder. What can you do?
    Zane wasn’t going to be an ass and tell Eric to keep his distance or insist Stevie shut down her caring side. He could deal with it.
    “What kind of vehicle does JD drive?” Zane asked Eric. “No vehicle was left here.”
    Eric raised his head, wiping at his eyes. “Ford Ranger. An older one. And I can get you a key to get into his apartment if you need to go through it. Obviously someone drove him out here . . . or else they took his truck.”
    “Makes sense,” agreed Zane. “Now we’ll figure out who.”

    Stevie watched Eric leave with the officers, his shoulders in a deep slump. Her heart broke for him. He hadn’t been particularly close to his younger brother, but they were the only siblings in the family. Realizing she hadn’t seen Bruce in nearly a week, she made a mental note to have coffee with her younger brother. You never know when you’ll lose someone.
    She wasn’t going to repeat the mistake she’d made with her father.
    Zane put a hand on her shoulder. “You okay?”
    She gave him a weak smile. “Just thinking I need to see Bruce.”
    “He’s not involved with JD, is he? They’re about the same age.”
    Stevie blanched. “Lord, no. As far as I know they don’t run with the same crowd. I simply realized I hadn’t talked to him for a while. Seeing a family get shattered like this makes me want to pull mine close.”
    Zane nodded and looked back toward the body and investigators. “I can understand that.”
    “Do you see why I wanted you to reach out to your father?” she whispered. It was an inappropriate time to ask, but she couldn’t hold back the question.
    He met her gaze. “I do. And I see why you feel the way you do. Does it help that I’m thinking about it now? I could go for weeks without a single thought about my father, but now he’s crossed my mind several times a day since you said something.”
    Her heart warmed. “That’s the first step. No pressure.”
    “The barbecue is tomorrow,” he pointed out.
    “It doesn’t matter. There’s no deadline for you to meet. And my mother will happily throw a barbecue whenever he comes to town. It might be better with just family instead of half the town.”
    “I don’t know what’s going on in this town,” Zane said quietly, watching the investigators with JD’s body. “It seems like everything has gone to hell since I took over. What happened to our peaceful Solitude?”
    “It started before you took over. Ever since my father died the balance has been out of whack, and we’re scrambling to bring everything back into line,” Stevie said slowly, thinking of the deaths. “The whole town is struggling. There’s the heat, the murders, and the drugs.”
    “I think it all started with the drugs,” said Zane. “Someone plunged a poison into Solitude, and people are being killed by it. How many more have to die before we get it under control?”
    “Hopefully none,” said Stevie.
    “Damn right,” said Seth, joining their conversation. “I’m glad you were here when Eric got here, Stevie.”
    “Me too,” she said.
    “We need to find the manufacturer,” said Zane.
    “I’m not stopping until we do,” answered Seth. “I just had a call about an arrest we made at the coast a few hours ago. He’s admitted to dealing, and I’m planning to talk to him in the morning. You want to be there?”
    Zane looked at Stevie.
    “We’ll both be there,” she answered.

CHAPTER TEN
    Stevie sipped her cup of Starbucks,