Free Thin Ice by Irene Hannon Page B

and is traveling to different locations alone to do the mailing, hoping to keep us off-balance. Did you have a chance to put together a list of Ginny’s acquaintances?”
    â€œYes. I was going to email it to you tonight. I’ll send it along with the photos—but there’s no one suspicious on the list.”
    â€œWe’ll check them out, anyway. If nothing else, one of them might offer us a lead.”
    â€œWhen will you start talking to them?”
    â€œAs soon as we run some background. I’d like you to put together a similar list for yourself.”
    â€œYou still think this could be about me rather than Ginny?”
    â€œI’m not ruling anything out. This case isn’t following anytypical pattern. Our guy disguises the kidnapping and lets you think Ginny’s dead. He gives you a chance to mourn. Two months later—about the time a lot of people begin to come to grips with their grief and loss—he contacts you to say she’s alive. Your world is thrown into turmoil again. He gives you instructions but makes no demands. Now he’s stringing you along. This sounds like a very deliberate strategy to make life as difficult as possible for you.”
    She stared at him in horror. “I can’t believe Ginny or I could have an enemy that vindictive and malicious and have no clue about his identity.”
    Lance stood and picked up his jacket. He didn’t want to freak Christy out, but she needed to face facts. “I think you better start believing it, especially if you’re right and everyone on the lists you give me comes out clean. The fire and kidnapping wasn’t a random act of violence. Since money isn’t a motive, we have to assume this is personal. That means we’re looking for someone whose life intersected with yours or your sister’s in a very negative way at some point.”
    â€œSo how do we find him?”
    â€œWe dig deeper.” He slid his arms into the sleeves of the jacket and picked up the evidence envelopes. “Before you send me those lists tonight, think hard about anyone you or Ginny crossed paths with who might have even the slightest reason to harbor a grudge. Stretch it if you have to. This person isn’t thinking normally, so a trivial incident to you could be a trigger for a troubled mind.”
    Her knuckles whitened as she looked up at him, her eyes too big for her face, her skin devoid of color. “Okay. But I still don’t think I’ll come up with much.”
    â€œAnything is better than what we have now.” He lifted the envelopes. “I’ll send these in for processing tomorrow morning and call you after I get the results of the autopsy.Now I’ll let you eat your dinner.” He motioned toward the fast-food bag.
    She wrinkled her nose. “I can’t deal with that kind of food tonight. The best I’ll be able to manage is soup. Have you eaten yet?”
    â€œNo.”
    â€œTake this.” She grabbed the bag and held it out.
    â€œI can’t take your dinner.”
    â€œIt will end up in the trash if you don’t—and I hate to waste food. Please. It should be edible if you nuke it.”
    He hesitated. “You’ll eat some soup if I agree?”
    â€œI’ll try.”
    Not the definitive assurance he wanted; Christy was on the thin side already. But his stomach was rumbling. Plus, accepting her offer would save him a trip through a drive-through.
    Someday soon, he was going to have to stock his kitchen and prepare a real meal.
    He took the bag. “Thanks.”
    â€œIt’s the least I can do after all your off-hours work on this case.” She followed him to the door.
    He pulled it open but paused on the threshold. “I want you to be careful until this is resolved.”
    The little color left in her complexion seeped out. “You think this guy might come after me?”
    â€œAnyone who’d do what he’s already