Free Deadly Echoes by Nancy Mehl

a minute,” I said slowly. “But what about the flowers? How can you explain them?”
    He shrugged. “Coincidence.”
    I pointed at his folder. “But the flowers are on top of her. Explain to me how that happened. If a vase of orchids was knocked off the coffee table during a struggle, wouldn’t she have fallen on them? Why aren’t the flowers under her? Did you find any underneath her body?”
    Sykes’s amenable expression changed as quickly as a pop-up thunderstorm. “How do you know where the flowers were found? Even if your niece or your sister’s neighbor mentioned the flowers, I’d be surprised if either one of them looked closely enoughto realize there were no flowers under the body. I’m certain no one from our department shared that with you.”
    Realizing I’d put my foot in my mouth, I struggled to find a way to explain. “Maybe I didn’t know,” I said after a few seconds. “Maybe I was just guessing and wanted to see how you’d react. It’s obvious I was right.” I forced myself to meet his steely gaze without flinching. The last thing I wanted to do was get Paul into trouble.
    â€œAll right,” Sykes said slowly. “I’m going to assume you’re telling me the truth. But a word of warning: interfering with our investigation won’t help us close this case. It will only impede our progress.”
    Trying to keep my voice steady, I said, “Look, Detective. I appreciate knowing you’re working your case . But this isn’t just a case to me. This is my family. I’ve lost my parents and my sister. You can walk away from this when you go home at night. I can’t. How can you tell me not to interfere?”
    Sykes cleared his throat and stared down at his file, his jaw working furiously. It upset me to know that he was angry. I was the one who had the right to be enraged. Just when I was ready to chew him out again, he sighed and looked up at me.
    â€œWe deal with a lot of really bad situations, Miss Miller. Stuff you don’t see living in some small rural town. The only way to survive is to try to keep some distance from the awful things people do to each other. I’m sorry if I come off as uncaring. I assure you it isn’t true. I really am listening to you, but I have to stay professional. It’s my job.” He fingered my sister’s file. “I see your point about the flowers. That bothered me too. Until we’re sure we have the right guy in custody, I’ll keep digging. Now, if I promise to look into any connections I can find between your parents’ case and your sister’s, will you allow me to complete this interview?”
    â€œOf course.”
    He pulled a sheet of paper from the file and stared at it for a moment. “These questions are designed to find some connection to the burglary, in case the man we have in custody isn’t involved. We want to be certain the person who broke in wasn’t someone your sister knew. Usually, thieves break into homes where they know there are valuables that will make their efforts pay off. It appears your sister didn’t have anything worth taking the risk of getting caught—let alone killing someone over. So let’s do this. I’m going to ask about people she knew. Maybe we can find a reason someone might want her dead. Would that satisfy you?”
    â€œI’m afraid I can’t help you, Detective. I don’t know any of her friends.”
    He shook his head. “How is that possible?”
    I explained to him that Hannah had found me just a year earlier.
    â€œWell, this is going to make things much tougher. I don’t suppose you knew anyone she worked with either?”
    â€œNo. She was an administrative assistant for a local law firm. I . . . I can’t remember the name of the firm. I think Kennedy was part of it. I’m sorry. I guess I’m