Free Don't Go Home by Carolyn Hart

in a spasm of emotion.
    Alex Griffith had been her younger brother. They’d grown up on the island, knew island joys. Did she have a sudden memory of a laughing boy running across the sand, perhaps holding a starfish?
    â€œI know.” Her voice broke. “But it seems wrong that I’m standing here, doing nothing. No one is helping his wife. I don’t know what happened but if she’s there and Alex is dead . . . This is dreadful. Someone needs to be with her.” She looked past Lou. “Annie, canyou help? Can you go and tell her that we’ll wait for her, take her home with us?”
    Lou’s usually genial face struggled between official displeasure and human kindness. “Ma’am, witnesses are requested not to speak to each other.” He shot a hopeful glance at Annie. “Are you supposed to wait here, too?”
    Annie spoke to Lou, but she looked for a long instant directly into Marian’s dark eyes. “I’m free to go. As I told Billy, I don’t know anything about Alex Griffith or what he did this evening. My only contact with him this morning was to discuss the event tonight. I don’t know anything else.”
    Marian took an unsteady breath. She pressed a tight fist against one cheek.
    â€œI’m sorry I don’t know anything helpful. This was just a business connection for me.” Again Annie looked directly at Marian.
    Marian gave an almost infinitesimal nod.
    Annie contrived to look earnest. “Lou, I know you need to stay with Joan and Leland since you are by yourself.” Hyla hadn’t come back to the Griffiths’ room so she must be inside the inn. “I’ll be glad to go and tell Billy that Joan wants to help Rae.” A pause. “If that’s all right.”
    Lou looked appreciative. Order had been maintained as he had been directed but compassion could be facilitated. “Yeah. Thanks, Annie.”
    Annie didn’t look toward Marian as she turned to retrace her steps, but she felt she could sense relief. Eventually Billy would discover whether Alex had told Rae about Marian’s angry visit, but that would be hearsay, not the direct testimony of someone who’d heard the bitter exchange.
    Annie realized as she reached the oyster shell path that she had made a decision to protect Marian. She knew why. She wouldn’t believe—couldn’t believe—didn’t believe—Marian could kill anyone, not even a man she obviously hated.
    Annie tried to hide her inner turmoil as she neared the patio. She’d promised Max she would never, ever again be involved in any crime investigation. But that was all right. She wasn’t involved in an investigation. She was removing herself from an investigation. As Max pointed out, Billy Cameron was a good, effective, careful policeman. Leave the work to him. Gladly. She was on the far side of the patio wall when she heard Billy’s voice.
    â€œWhat happened to the patio door?”
    Annie stopped. Marian was now feeling relief, but perhaps she felt safe too soon. She wanted to hear Rae’s response.
    â€œ. . . actually he laughed. He didn’t say what happened, just that he intended to send the bill for the patio door to someone he knew rather well a long time ago. He said”—Rae paused—“the animals were getting restless, which suited him just fine. I think he’d been on the phone with people today. He went off early this morning and didn’t get back until four. I sat in a cabana at the pool and read and tried not to think about tonight. He didn’t tell me where he went or who he talked to. I know he saw some people. When he came back late this afternoon, he was keyed up, like something unexpected had happened. But he knew I didn’t want him to dump on people so maybe that’s why he didn’t have a lot to say. I asked him one last time not to talk about people tonight. He told me I was