Free The Kept Woman (Will Trent 8) by Karin Slaughter

clasped his hands together as he walked toward Sara. ‘I’m trying to think about how to make this more uncomfortable. Should I take off my pants? Burst into song?’
    Sara tried to laugh, but it came out sounding more like a cry. ‘I’m sorry.’
    ‘Don’t apologize to me.’ Charlie’s smile was genuinely kind. He pulled a bottle of water out of one of the many pockets in his cargo pants. ‘You need to drink all of this. It’s officially eleventy billion degrees in here.’
    Sara made herself smile because he was trying.
    ‘Option one,’ Charlie began. ‘Daytime drinking. It has its pros and cons.’
    Sara could only think of the pros. She hadn’t had an alcoholic beverage in over a year. Will hated the taste. ‘Option two?’
    He indicated the building, which was still an active crime scene.
    ‘The drinking is tempting,’ Sara told him, feeling every single word to her core. ‘But let’s talk about what we need to do. Harding’s body can be removed. We’ll need at least four people.’
    ‘I asked for six because of the stairs. ETA is forty minutes out.’
    Sara looked at her watch. Her eyes blurred. She could only guess at the time. ‘They’ll need a few hours to do the prep. I’ll start the autopsy after lunch.’ Betty’s vet would not release her before five, especially to Sara. The man had a chip on his shoulderabout not being a people doctor. ‘I guess the ABO testing is at the top of my list. Do we have Angie’s blood type yet?’
    ‘Amanda said she’d text it to you as soon as she finds out. Meanwhile, I’ve asked one of the techs to collect samples from the blood. He’ll probably take about half an hour. As you can see, the walls are practically black with graffiti, so I told him to just collect what’s visible and triple-check his labels. He’s slow, but thorough.’ Charlie paused for a breath. ‘Until then, you can help me set up the black lights and photograph the luminol reactions, or you can sit in the coolness of the crime scene van and wait for the samples so you can work your magic.’
    Sara longed to be alone in the van, but she said, ‘I’ll help you.’ She took a mouthful of water. Her stomach roiled at the cold liquid. It was the lipstick. She couldn’t get her mind off Angie standing at the mirror in Will’s bathroom, testing Sara’s make-up, taking what she wanted. That’s what Angie Polaski did. She took things that belonged to other people.
    Charlie asked, ‘You okay?’
    ‘Absolutely.’ Sara carefully screwed the cap back on the water bottle. She asked Charlie, ‘What else?’
    ‘We’re still cataloging evidence. That should take three, maybe four days. Harding’s car has cooled down enough to process, though I doubt we’ll find much. The thing is toast.’ He turned around as a tech made his way up the stairs. The young man was dressed in a hoodless Tyvek suit. He wore a hairnet, his ponytail sticking out like an arrow at the back of his head. There was an ornate red and blue cross tattooed on the side of his neck. His chin showed a smattering of a goatee and his eyebrow was pierced.
    Charlie provided, ‘Gary Quintana. He came straight to us from tech school. Super smart, really wants to learn. Don’t let his crazy look fool you. He does foster care for rescue cats. And he’s a vegan.’
    Sara smiled and nodded as if she was actually following what Charlie was saying. She could feel her heart pulsing inside her throat. Her stomach had turned sour. She prayed she would not get sick.
    Charlie clasped his hands together. ‘So I’ve got all my fancy camera equipment and lights and—’
    ‘I’m sorry,’ Sara interrupted. She put her hand to her chest again, certain that Charlie could see her heart pounding underneath. ‘Do you mind if I have a minute?’
    ‘Absolutely. I’ll start setting up in the first room. Just pop in when you’re ready.’
    Sara could barely choke out a thank-you. She walked across the balcony toward the far set of