Free Last Whisper by Carlene Thompson

another cop.
    Vincent made himself smile at Brooke as he shut the door behind his father. “Dad still likes to be in on the action.”
    “I remember that he seemed so strong and capable when I was young,” Brooke said. “He made me feel completely safe at a time when my whole world was falling apart.”
    Vincent nodded. “He was an incredibly strong man, and I’ve heard from quite a few other policemen he was the best cop they ever knew. I always wished I could be more like him.”
    A slow, half-ashamed look twinkled into Brooke’s eyes. “You put Stacy in her place more than once today. I’d say that makes you a
very
strong man.”
    He couldn’t help laughing and motioned for her to follow him into the kitchen as he said, “Is Stacy your closest friend?”
    “Yes, although I haven’t known her for long. But I don’t have many friends. For a while I went through a stage of not having any. I suppose I was afraid if I cared for anyone, they’d be taken away from me.”
    What a sad little girl she must have been, Vincent thought, sympathy springing up in him almost against his will. Firstshe lost her father when she was eight; then three years later her mother was brutally murdered by Tavell, a man Brooke had probably come to trust. No wonder she’d decided to keep her distance from people for a while. They did seem to have a tendency to let her down.
    Which didn’t mean all those losses hadn’t turned her into a hostile, conniving—
    “The note!” she said suddenly, startling him. “What happened to the note we found in my apartment?”
    “It’s tucked in an envelope in my pocket. As soon as Dad gets through gossiping with the guys outside, I’ll take it to them. They’ll get it into headquarters and maybe we’ll get lucky and find some helpful fingerprints.”
    “But what if Robert left the note?”
    “Then maybe knowing his note is in police possession and being checked for fingerprints in an ongoing murder investigation will scare him into backing off.” He looked at her. “You wouldn’t mind that, would you?”
    She looked surprised. “Mind it? I’d love it! Did you think I might be enjoying his attentions?”
    “I didn’t know how serious you were about him,” Vincent said brusquely as he opened a fresh loaf of wheat bread.
    “I don’t remember being serious about him even when we
were
dating.” Brooke sat down at the kitchen table and Elise placed herself daintily at her feet. “He seemed to be a pleasant guy to spend an occasional evening with, but I should have known he was a nut. I always attract nuts.”
    “Oh,” Vincent said, torn between smiling and saying something sarcastic. He opted to let the remark drop. “Would you like chicken or turkey on your sandwich?”
    “How about both? I don’t think I’ve eaten since this morning. At least I don’t feel like I have.”
    “A girl with a healthy appetite.”
    “More than healthy. If my metabolism slows down, I’ll be in trouble. And Vincent, could Elise have a few slices of chicken? She didn’t have any dinner.”
    He turned and looked at the dog. He’d always been partial to dogs and had two dogs of his own being kept by friends inMonterey. “I think we can spare some chicken for a beautiful dog.” Elise’s tail swished as if she understood the compliment. “Would she like turkey, too?”
    Brooke nodded. “Like mother, like daughter. We both have healthy appetites, although she’s as fine boned and slim as most cats, not dogs.”
    Vincent noticed Brooke yawning hugely after she’d eaten her sandwich and drunk a glass of milk. “I think it’s bedtime for Elise,” he managed diplomatically.
    “Bedtime for all of us,” Sam boomed from the doorway. “I have to be at work at the crack of dawn tomorrow. That damned Zach Tavell is on the loose. He murdered the mother of one of the sweetest little girls I ever met.”
    Vincent colored and Brooke looked at him in total confusion. Vincent hadn’t yet explained to