Storm's Cage by Mary Stone (uplifting novels .TXT) 📕

“I don’t know what you want with that piece of shit,” Wendy scoffed, “but he doesn’t live here. He never has. I haven’t said a word to him since the divorce was finalized, and I don’t want a damn thing to do with him.”

Amelia knew a man or two she felt the exact same way about. “I’m sorry, Ms. Ulmer—”

The woman snapped up a hand. “Truesdell. Wendy Truesdell.”

Even as her curiosity mounted, Amelia nodded. “I’m sorry. We didn’t see the name change.”

Though petulance still glinted in her eyes, the curl of her lip eased at the polite apology. “It’s recent. I changed back to my maiden name. Took me a while to get it to go through.”

“That explains why we didn’t see it.” Amelia spared a quick glance to check Joseph’s reaction, but his face was the picture of calm. She returned her attention to Wendy and gestured to the foyer at her back. “Ms. Truesdell, we were hoping we could ask you a few questions about your ex-husband. He’s one of the prime suspects in the case we’re working.”

Even as she stepped aside and ushered them through the doorway, Wendy let out a derisive snort. “So, that sick bastard’s finally going to get what’s coming to him?”

Amelia crossed over the threshold, Joseph close behind. Too close, but she ignored the way he brushed a hand along the small of her back as he turned to pull the door closed.

Gritting her teeth, Amelia followed Wendy out of the foyer, through the living room, and over to the open kitchen. Long rays of sunlight from the windows of a corner breakfast nook fell over granite counters and the stainless-steel appliances.

As Wendy made her way to the end of the bar to pick up a mug, she closed the screen of a matte silver laptop. “Okay. What is it you want to know about Russel? What did he do?”

Amelia inhaled the scent of coffee with devout longing, but she didn’t dare look at the mug. “We suspect he played a part in the murder of an inmate at the prison where he works.”

The look was fleeting, but Wendy’s eyes widened. “Murder? That’s not what I would’ve figured the FBI would bring him down for.”

Joseph’s eyebrow arched. “What did you think we’d bring him down for?”

“The reason I divorced his slimy ass.” Wendy scoffed as she waved a hand to pictures decorating her refrigerator. “That’s me and my daughter, Olivia. We were at a softball tournament she played this summer in that one. She turned thirteen in June. Russel and I got married and moved in together when Liv was ten, and that’s about the time it started.”

Amelia’s heart dropped, and Joseph’s jaw tightened.

Blinking away the glassiness in her eyes, Wendy shook her head. “You know, the same thing happened to me when I was a kid, so you’d think I would have known. I still have nightmares about it, but honestly, it happening to my daughter feels so much worse. Russel, that…that son of a bitch would sneak into Liv’s room at night after I fell asleep.” With a sniffle, she swiped at her nose. “So, that’s what I figured the FBI would take him down for.”

As Amelia opened her mouth to reply, Wendy waved a hand in front of her face. She didn’t appear to be finished with her tale.

“It’s fine, though. I’ll settle for him being put away for the rest of his life for murder.” When her gaze returned to Amelia and Joseph, determination had replaced the pain and helplessness. “What do you need to know?”

Though Joseph’s expression appeared calm and collected, Amelia didn’t miss the spark of ire in his pale eyes. “I’m going to ask you something, and I don’t want you to take it the wrong way, okay?”

Wendy tilted her head as her eyes fixed on Joseph with a look of dread. “Okay.”

“When you found out that Russel had been abusing your daughter, what was the reason you decided not to press charges?” Joseph paused, but he held Wendy’s gaze. “Did Russel threaten you, or did you receive threats from anyone else that kept you from going to the authorities?”

Wendy dropped her gaze to the granite counter. She chewed on her lip as her whole posture seemed to melt. For a moment, it was as if the only thing keeping her upright was the sturdy granite she rested against. Several seconds passed in silence before Wendy seemed to have regained the strength to look them in the eye again.

“No. It was my decision.” She shook her head. “That prick was friends with cops and other prison guards, and my daughter was scared to death when she thought she might have to go to trial. I wasn’t about to put her through that. But to answer your question, no. No one threatened us. I did it to protect my daughter from having to relive her pain in public. I don’t know if you’ve ever seen how those trials go. Innocents, victims…they’re treated worse than criminals. Every tiny misstep they make is brought out for public scrutiny. Sometimes, they even make it seem like the victim deserved it or asked for it. It’s terrible.” Wendy sniffled and dropped her gaze again as she quickly reached for a box of tissues to wipe her eyes.

“I understand completely, Ms. Truesdell,” Joseph said with all the compassion of an android. “Now, when you and Russel were together, did you notice anything strange about his spending habits? Did it ever seem like he had more money than he should, or did he ever make extravagant purchases that you weren’t sure how he paid for?”

Blotting at her weeping eyes, Wendy took a moment to regain composure before answering. “You know, actually, now that you mention it, yes.” The animosity returned to her eyes as she lifted her gaze to meet Joseph’s expressionless face. “When we were still dating, there was this one time when he bought me a pair of Louboutins, supposedly