“Jesus, but who?”
“We don’t have a shortage of suspects. Unfortunately we still have too many, but I’m thinking of the father who sent us the email. The ex-cop.”
“But wouldn’t that have just sent him on Pamela’s trail?”
“Yes, I’m just not sure who else knew though.” With that, she picked up the phone and called him. “Bill, it’s Detective Kate Morgan. I’m calling about that email you got again. Did you tell anybody about it?”
“Sure, a couple people.”
“Anybody in particular?”
He laughed. “Yeah, for sure. You were talking to him today.”
She ended the call, telling Rodney, “I have to go.”
Rodney called out, “Hang on. I’m coming.”
She nodded. “Let’s move fast.”
As it was, Rodney drove, and they headed out to the pizza corner. “Seriously, it’s him, the owner?”
“No, I don’t know anything yet, but he’s one of the people Bill told about the email.”
“Why would Bill do that?”
“Because when he got it, Bill was pretty disgusted. He wanted everything to be within the law,” she murmured.
“Do we believe him?”
“Hell no, I don’t believe him. I don’t believe anybody at this point.”
“So,” Rodney begins, thinking out loud, “Pamela, in her pain, reaches out to the ex-cop and to at least one other person, hoping she can get someone to take action on her behalf? And what? Once this guy gets started, he’s not ready to stop?” He glanced at Kate, then put his gaze back on the road.
Kate shrugged. “Maybe he just figured it was a perfect time for him to get revenge for all those accidents that happened over the years in front of his business. And now that he’d the courage to do something, he would clean the slate and a few other things.”
When they walked into the pizza store, the young kid was behind the counter again.
“Where’s Aaron Carlton?” Kate asked.
“He just went up to his place. He should be back in about five minutes or so.”
She nodded and ordered a slice of pizza. “How’s he been lately?”
“Ha! He’s been on a high, actually happy for a change. I figured at one point in time he might have sold the business or something, he seemed so cheerful.”
“Interesting, sometimes life is like that.”
“Maybe. It’s all good though because you know he’s had a pretty shitty life at times too.”
“Yeah? Why is that?”
“His sister was killed a few years back, maybe four or five years back. Not right now, like all the others, or the ones that are all of a sudden happening. It was like a few blocks up and around.”
“Another traffic accident?”
“No, another cycling accident. He and his sister used to ride together all the time.”
She nodded.