Ties That Bind

Chapter 7

"Maddy, we're friends, right?"

"Yes." What was she getting at? Was a speech coming about how she was losing her mind?

"I'm going to be honest with you. You've got to focus on the real evidence first. The house was pretty tidy. Maybe she used a cloth when she put the frame down?"

"Great, if I wanted a lecture on my gut feelings, I would have approached Terry about this." She matched eyes with Cynthia. "So you don't find it odd there are no fingerprints?"

"You think he's involved, the man from the photo?"

Madison hesitated to state it in those exact words, but when confronted with the direct question, she found it hard to keep quiet. "Don't you find it funny this man—" She pointed to the photo. "—who appears to love Laura, hasn't come forward yet?"

"She was just found today."

"It was on the news, and you'd think they'd be in regular contact."

"Okay, if we assume the guy in the photo knows something, where does that get us?"

She knew her friend was trying to appease her until she saw the flash in her eyes, a flicker that ignited the same line of thought in her. They had already checked the frame, but what about...

"The photo itself?" Both women said simultaneously.

*****

MADISON SAW TERRY WAS ON the website for Southwest Welding Products. She sat across from him.

"That took you long enough," he said, his eyes never leaving the screen.

"Did you find anything while I was gone?"

"There are two convention centers in the area. Both administration offices are closed, and their website doesn't advertise any events for Southwest." He looked over at her. "Did Cynthia tell you something about the case?"

"They're working on the evidence. She's got the entire team on it. What about the local hotels?"

"There are five of the main chains, your Holiday Inns, Ramadas, and so on, but there are probably about twenty mom-and-pops. We could be trying to chase down someone who's not in the city."

"But can we afford to trust the office manager's word that there's a conference?"

"I'm not sure why you wouldn't."

"She didn't give me a reason to."

Terry picked up the telephone receiver. "Great. Now I'm going to be stuck here all night."

"It goes with the territory when you're on a case."

"It's just not a good time." His eyes were already on the monitor.

"You going to talk to me about it?"

"Nope." Terry dialed a number.

Why did he expect her to open up to him and mull over her emotions about unsolved cases when he blocked her out? Part of her wondered if Annabelle was cheating on him. It would explain his foul mood, but not his constant urge to be with his wife. Terry seemed to be avoiding eye contact. She'd have to let it go for now.

She pulled up Layton's file to see if there were relatives in the area of the supposed business meeting. Maybe he was staying with them.

"Let's make a bet." Terry still held the phone to his ear.

"Excuse me?" So much for him not talking to her.

"A bet. I say we—" He paused and spoke into the phone. "I'll hold." Back to Madison, "I say we don't find Layton."

They did this with most cases. Maybe it was childish, maybe it wasn't appropriate. She wasn't sure how she felt about it, but she kept doing it. "Sure, I'll take your money."

Terry talked into the phone and hung up a few seconds later. "I'll start on the small hotels. You do the chains." He handed her a printout. "I just called Novistar Hotel."

She looked at the list. Maybe they should wait until they could reach the head office and confirm there was a conference. The only downside was, if Layton were running he could get farther away. But what choice did they have? "Maybe we should wait until morning." She noticed the glimmer of an early night in her partner's eyes. "Don't get excited, I'm not saying we can call it a day." She pulled out the case file. "Officer Walsh noted we might want to talk to a Mr. Hill. There are other avenues to investigate."

"You think the guy from the photo is involved." His statement seemed random, but she recalled how he tried to study her when she came back from seeing Cynthia.

She wasn't in the mood to deny his allegation, so she said nothing. She wasn't fixated on Photo Guy, but he presented questions that required answers.

Terry continued. "Why do you do this every single time? The obvious evidence is in front of you, but you dig for something. It could have been taken at any time. Years ago, even. It's probably nothing."

"Or it may be something. Why is it only me who thinks so?"

"So if you think it's him, why are we here trying to confirm Layton's agenda?"

"I'm not denying the possibility of his involvement."

"Why, because he's the obvious suspect?" He shook his head. "You think the answer's in a photo."

"Answer this then. If they were truly close, like the picture indicates, where is he and why doesn't anyone recognize him?"

"Laura kept him a secret? Doesn't mean he killed her. What this case needs is Layton. We find him, and I guarantee you we'll get some answers."

She nodded. It wasn't the time to confess about her conversation with Cynthia and the fact she was looking closer at the photo. Part of her was angry Terry thought he could tell her what to do.