It was clear by the way his voice shook that he was hanging on to his composure by the tips of his fingers.
A few minutes later, Randolph Drummond, the mortician who doubled as the coroner, arrived wearing a subdued black suit, white button-down shirt and black tie. He carried a medical bag. He stopped a foot away from Veronica’s body to don gloves and booties, then he squatted beside her.
Bella whined. Shane stroked her head. She let out a loud bark just as a commotion broke out near the doors. Two small German shepherd puppies raced out of the center, followed by Titus and Ryder. The older dog circled the puppies, unmistakably in an attempt to corral them.
“Oh, no,” Sophie said.
Gina jumped to her feet. “The puppies are loose. How...?”
Shane snagged Gina by the elbow before she could chase after the puppies. “We need your clothes.”
She blinked at him, then grimaced. “Of course.”
Shane turned to the chief. “Veronica was microchipping the puppies tonight and was supposed to come over to the condo afterward to work with James and Hawk.” K-9 rookie officer James Harrison and Shane shared the furnished condo used by out-of-town rookies. “I’ll call James and let him know what’s going on. Maybe Hawk will be helpful.” James’s bloodhound, Hawk, specialized in crime scene evidence.
The chief held up a hand. “Have him clear Gina’s house before you take her home to change. Bring back her current clothing in an evidence bag.”
“Sir,” Shane spoke up. “Shouldn’t she be taken to the station for questioning?”
Gina let out a small gasp. “You can’t really believe that I...”
The stricken hurt in her eyes stabbed at him, but he couldn’t rule her out as the murderer, not until forensic evidence cleared her. “You had a very good reason to want to hurt Veronica.”
“So did many other people,” she shot back.
“True.” Including the other trainer, Sophie. Could the two women have conspired to murder their boss? Though Sophie had once been a cop, that didn’t mean she couldn’t have colluded with Gina. Hmm. Something to talk to the chief about later.
To Gina, Shane said, “Veronica humiliated you on Friday. And from what I’ve heard, she stole the fiancé of one of your best friends.” He hated throwing the rumor in her face but it went to motive.
“It’s true Veronica did steal Simon from Jenna just to prove she could. It broke Jenna’s heart and caused her to resign and leave, not only the training center but Desert Valley.” Gina squared her shoulders. “And yes, I may have loathed my boss, but I never wished Veronica dead.”
He wanted to believe her. There was something about the young trainer he found very attractive. Even now, she was standing up for herself but not in an over-the-top display of hysterics or viciousness. He respected her quiet confidence in the face of hardship.
Yet his father had always told him that the evidence never lied, only people did. Was Gina lying?
And Dad had said to never make a judgment on innocence or guilt until all the evidence came in. “If your brother is truly after you as you’ve stated, then you should be where you can be protected.”
Earl narrowed his gaze on Shane. “She’s been questioned. She’s innocent until proven guilty. But you’re right, she’s in danger and needs protection. That’ll be your job, Weston.”
Oh, man. He hadn’t expected to be given a protection assignment. What did he know about being a bodyguard? He’d trained to be out on the streets, catching criminals and thwarting the schemes of bad people. Surely the chief would want someone with more experience to protect Gina. “Are you sure—”
Earl arched one eyebrow as he cut Shane off. “Yes.” There was no room for argument in his tone. Then Earl turned his gaze to Gina. “Don’t leave town.”
Gina lifted her chin. “No, sir, I won’t.”
Sophie and Ryder joined them. They’d managed to corral the puppies and now each had one in their arms.
“Where’s Marco, the third pup?” Gina asked.
“He’s probably inside,” Sophie said. “I’ll round him up and put him in the crate with these two.”
“I didn’t see a third puppy when I was inside,” Ryder said. “Just these ones.”
For a moment no one said anything. Then Shane asked, “Could the killer have taken the puppy?”
* * *
Shane thinks I could have killed Veronica! Standing beneath the bright glare of the flood lamps that illuminated the crime scene in garish detail, Gina curled her fingers into fists and pressed them into the sides of her thighs. She stared at Shane as he stepped away to call another rookie—his roommate, James Harrison—and wanted to scream. How could he think she’d do something so horrible?
But it wasn’t as if he knew her, despite their having spent every day together the past twelve weeks. She knew he took his job very seriously, but really?
She inwardly scoffed. What did it matter anyway? So what if the handsome officer had invaded her daydreams over the past weeks. She couldn’t, wouldn’t, allow herself to develop deep feelings for him. There was too much risk involved. And risky behavior was something she avoided. Besides, now that his training had ended, he’d be moving on. As he should.
Forcing her mind away from what Shane thought of her, she tried to focus on the missing puppy, Marco. But the fear of Tim and where he might be made it difficult. His presence loomed, a dark shadow at the edges of her awareness.
“Maybe Marco got out of the yard,” she said, careful to keep her gaze from where Veronica lay in the dirt. Even though the coroner had covered her body with an opaque plastic sheet, Gina didn’t want to look. The image of Veronica’s lifeless eyes, so like Gina’s father’s after Tim had killed him, would haunt her nightmares for a long time to come.
Instead, out of habit—or out of self-defense, as her therapist would most likely observe—she shifted her gaze to the wooded area behind the training center. “The puppy could be in the woods.”
So could Tim. A shiver chased the thought across her flesh.
She turned to look down the residential street flanking one side of the center. “Or in someone’s backyard. Maybe he ran out and someone took him in?”
“Good thought,” the chief said. “As soon as Harmon arrives I’ll have him start searching for the pup. The woods will have to wait until daybreak since we don’t have the manpower to spare.”
“The puppy has a distinct black circular marking on its head, between its fawn-colored ears,” Gina told them. “He’s a very sweet puppy. They all are.”
“Is there a way to check if Veronica chipped the dogs? That would give us a better time line for when she was...killed.” Ryder nearly dropped the wiggling pup. “Hey, settle down.”
“That’s Ricky,” Gina told him. “Mrs. Foxcroft insisted on naming the puppies.
