sorry. I’ll just—” She bent to retrieve the pad, her cheeks burning, but Andrei’s hand was there first and she touched the back of his long, sturdy fingers. Another shock raced through her hand up into her arm and she lurched backward into a stack of baskets, sending them toppling over onto the stone floor. When her foot hooked a basket handle she pitched forward, landing hard against the person she’d been struggling to get away from.
Andrei caught her, a low chuckle rumbling in his chest. “Are you always this nervous around men?”
“No.” Not men. Just you. What was it about Andrei Lagios that had her flustered so badly she was either fighting mad, passing out or panting? Whatever it was, it had to stop. She wasn’t interested in this or any man for that matter. Heck, she was six months pregnant and probably looked like she’d swallowed a basketball. What man would be attracted to that?
Jocelyne squared her shoulders and stepped free of Andrei’s hands. “I’ll make that list for you. Upstairs.”
When she emerged from the darkened staircase into the well-lit kitchen, she inhaled the fresh, reassuring scent of biscuits, cleansing her senses of the cobwebs of the basement and the confusion of stumbling into the cop. For several long moments she stood breathing in and out until she had her body and mind calm and in control.
A strong hand on her arm sent all her control flying out the window. “You need to eat something before you pass out again.”
“I will, just as soon as I jot down the names of the people I can remember.”
“Tell you what.” He led her to the table and urged her into a chair. “You sit. I’ll get you a plate of food while you write that list. Then you can tell me all about it while you eat.”
Before she could protest, the door swung closed behind the infuriating man.
Jocelyne could take care of herself. She didn’t need a man waiting on her or treating her like she was fragile or unable to fend for herself. She was an expectant mother and soon would have a baby to look after. She’d darn well better get tough to take care of her child. Pulling her thoughts out of the dining room, where Andrei gathered food, she set a pen to the paper and wrote.
In a few minutes, she had half a page of names. All people she knew or had grown up with. The acids roiled in her empty belly, a sinking feeling killing her appetite. Was the Seaside Strangler one of them?
Her hand hovered over the names of people she knew who frequented the inn. By the time Andrei returned with a plate of scrambled eggs and toast and set it down beside her, she’d finished, the effort exhausting her more than she wanted to admit.
Andrei leaned over her shoulder and peered down at the list.
His proximity made her nerves jangle. The thought of a killer amongst them, coupled with a hunky cop hanging over her shoulder, gave her a panic attack that threatened to overwhelm her. She pushed back, bumping into Andrei as she rose. “I need to finish with the breakfast crowd.”
Andrei handed her the plate. “Take the food with you. You need to eat.” When she took the plate, his hand fell to her arm. “Let’s keep this between the two of us. The less people who know about the henbane the better chance we have of finding our killer.”
“What about my mother?”
“Promise me you won’t tell anyone, including her.”
She nodded, her stomach knotting into a tight clench. If she didn’t get some food in her empty stomach, she’d embarrass herself in front of him.
“Eat. We’ll talk later.” He dropped his hand from her arm and left the kitchen through the back door.
ANDREI STRODE INTO THE RCPD half an hour later, a scowl marring his brow. “Captain!”
“In here!” Captain Swanson shouted from inside his office.
Without acknowledging the other policemen scattered around the building, Andrei made a beeline for the captain, entering his office without waiting to be invited. After he closed the door behind him, he paced in front of his supervisor’s desk. “I found the source.”
The captain leaned forward. “So soon?”
“Hazel Baker has an herb garden in the basement of Cliffside Inn.” Andrei stopped pacing and faced him. “Henbane is one of the herbs she grows in that garden.”
“Hazel Baker.” Captain Swanson leaned back in his chair and scrubbed a hand down his face. “Half the town thinks she’s crazy, but she can’t be the killer. Our only surviving victim identified the Seaside Strangler as definitely male.”
She had been the intended second victim of the Seaside Strangler but, fortunate for her, she escaped.
“That’s right. However the basement isn’t locked during the day. Anyone with knowledge of the hallucinogenic qualities of the henbane could have stolen leaves from that plant.”
“Question is who?” The captain pinched the bridge of his nose.
Andrei pulled a folded piece of paper from his front breast pocket and tossed it on the desk. “That’s a list of people who frequent the inn and the reasons they do, along with the current residents. We need to interview every one of them and get their whereabouts on the nights of Angela’s, Cora’s and my sister’s disappearances. And we need to canvass the staff.”
Just the thought of his sister, Sofia, caused a surge of anger and pain to well up inAndrei’s throat. He swallowed hard past the knot of emotion, the backs of his eyelids burning. Even if he’d wanted to continue, he couldn’t. Instead he grappled with the grief and impotent fury, his fists clenched with the need to kill the man who’d taken the life of his sweet little sister.
Swanson stared down at the list and whistled. “This is a pretty comprehensive list. We’ll get started on the interviews right away. I’ll have Mitch Chapman go after the two boarders, the fisherman Alex Gibson and Assistant DA Grant Bridges. Grant won’t be happy, but too bad. I’ll take Mayor Wells and his assistant, Rick Simpson, myself. They’re touchy about everything since Perry admitted to taking illegal bribes. Not to mention his acquittal in Theodore Fisher’s murder.” Captain Swanson snorted. “Hard to believe a public servant in his position would be so low.”
“Unfortunately, it happens all too often. But I know what you mean. It’s disappointing when an elected official, responsible for upholding the laws, not only bends but breaks them.”
“It gives people the impression that politicians think they’re above the law.” For a long moment the captain stared at the list. When he looked up at Andrei, a steely glint shone in his eyes. “This is the first real lead we’ve had in this case. This could be the break we need.” He smacked his palm to the desk.
Andrei nodded.
“I want you to become a permanent fixture inside Cliffside Inn. I don’t care how you do it, but you need to find out who’s been stealing the plant and nail him.”
The potential for action cleared the blockage in Andrei’s throat, his blood humming in anticipation of capturing the bastard who’d killed Sofia. “Any suggestions on how I’ll hang out at the inn without alerting whoever it is to the fact I’m on to him? Send a cop in there and he’ll back off.”
The
