Deceptive Truth: Cowboy Justice Association (Serials and Stalkers Book 4) by Olivia Jaymes (reading women .txt) 📕

"That's exactly what he'll get," the detective said. "We're going to take him to the hospital for a seventy-two hour hold for observation. I want him to get whatever help he needs. Maybe a psychiatrist can talk to him. Help him remember what happened. In the meantime, we're sending all of the evidence we collected to the state lab along with his car, which will be stripped down and searched. If there's a particle of blood there, we'll find out. We're also talking to any of his friends, neighbors, or co-workers to see where he was the day Lori Waters disappeared."

The detective and West walked down the hall, leaving Jason with Knox.

"You did good," Jason said, slapping Knox on the back. "Looks like you're close to getting your answers. A good doctor can work with Hedgcock and hopefully find out the truth."

Knox glanced at the closed door to the interrogation room. Through the window he could see that Hedgcock had stopped crying and was now standing at the two-way mirror, looking back at Knox. He had to know he was being watched through the glass. "I just feel so badly for him. He seems to really love her."

"It doesn't mean he didn't kill her," Jason replied, his tone gentle. "I can name about half a dozen murderers off the top of my head who supposedly loved their victim."

"He needs help."

"And he's finally going to get it. He probably should have gotten it a long time ago. He'll be assessed at the hospital. The detective is going to notify his family." Jason's phone buzzed in his hand and he checked his screen. "That's Jared. He says that they were able to successfully triangulate where the texts to your girlfriend were sent from. Brett Hedgcock's home."

"They didn't find Lori's phone."

"Maybe it's hidden in his car. Maybe he destroyed it after he sent those texts. Either way, that's where they came from.”

That pretty much sealed it. Brett Hedgcock had killed Lori Waters. Knox turned to look at the man staring back at him through the glass. Brett couldn't see him, of course; he didn't know that Knox was standing only a few inches away. Hedgcock didn't look sad or panicked anymore. He looked...exhausted, as if he'd spent all of his emotion and he didn't have any left.

"What do you want me to do next?"

"We're in a holding pattern until we can build more of a case," Jason replied. "It will take weeks to get the lab results back, and I'm guessing it could take even more time for a doctor to unwind whatever is going on in Hedgcock's mind. I think we put this one on hold until we get more information. Would it be a problem to head back home tomorrow?"

Knox would need to talk to Jenna, but he hoped she'd be up for the trip. It was too soon to take a victory lap. They hadn't found Lori yet, but they'd made progress.

Truth always showed itself in the end.

29

Knox scanned the refrigerator for something to make for dinner. Jenna had gone to visit Anita but she'd be back soon. They needed to eat and then pack so they could get on the road early in the morning. They had a long drive ahead of them.

"Are you sure you don't want to drive back with us?" Knox asked Eli. "You're more than welcome to join us. I wouldn't mind an extra driver on the trip."

Eli grimaced. "I do hate to fly but I don't want to intrude on your couple time. I'd be the third wheel, if you know what I mean."

"I do and you wouldn't be that at all. It's just a drive. We're not planning to elope or anything," Knox chuckled. "Seriously, grab your bag and come with us."

"Jenna might–"

"She brought it up first," Knox said with a shake of his head. "So just pack your bag."

"I don't like be all scrunched up in those airplane seats," Eli said. "Aw hell, I'll go with you. I'll call the office admin and have her cancel the ticket."

"In a few months you'll have enough airline miles to upgrade your seat," Knox laughed. "I rarely fly coach anymore. And if the flight is over four hours then the firm will upgrade you automatically. Logan, Jared, and Jason don't like folding themselves up in those seats any more than we do."

"They seem like good people to work for."

Knox closed the refrigerator in frustration. They hadn't bought many groceries because they didn't know how long they'd stay. Now they only had remnants of food, nothing that would pull together as a meal. "They're the best. I've worked a lot of places and I can easily say that this is the best job I've ever had. Hands down. It's not even a close race."

"Why don't we just order in?"

"I won't argue that. I need to write myself a note so I remember to clean out the refrigerator in the morning before we go. I don't want to leave a mess behind. Jason said not to worry about cleaning. They'll get a service in here after we're gone, but I thought we might give them a hand and strip the beds. Take out the garbage. That sort of stuff."

Eli held up his phone. "I'll make a note of it right now."

Knox dug into a drawer for the takeout menus. "Maybe we should go ahead and order. Jenna's going to be starved when she gets here. I should probably call her brother Tom and see if he wants to join us. She'll want to see him before