Page 73 of Hell Hath No Fury

“I told him I’d left you at the hotel.” Matthias shot a glance at her. “He didn’t see you, did he?”

“No, but it was close.”

No wonder she’d been in such a hurry to bug out of the hospital.

“Did he say anything else?”

Matthias debated how much to tell her and decided keeping bad news to himself was a poor choice. She’d find out soon enough anyway. “He’s more convinced than ever that Eric’s the killer. He also believes Nell helped him.”

“What? Why? Nell wanted Sonny to buy the farm.” Emma raked her fingers through her short hair. “Okay, maybe she only wants the money to feed her habit. Why would she help Eric, or anyone, kill the man who was going to provide her with a major payday? If anything, she’d want to kill me for standing in her way.”

Matthias fell quiet. Everything Emma just said was a huge admission on her part. Acknowledging Nell’s motivation for selling the property was to buy drugs had to be gut-wrenching. Even the thought of Nell hating Emma enough to want her dead had to rip her heart out.

He waited until they were almost out of the city before he spoke again, his voice soft. “I know Nell isn’t a reliable witness, but we need to find her.”

“I’m open to suggestions on how to do that.” Emma sounded understandably bitter.

“I know. Let’s find out if Winslow can offer any insight on who wanted Jones dead and go from there.”

She didn’t reply.

Later, Matthias thought, he would place another call to Cassie.

* * *

The construction site at the old Powell farm was remarkably quiet when they arrived. Matthias noted only three pickups were parked where a dozen or more had been on Saturday. Sonny Jones’s death must have all but put a stop to the work.

Two men were working under the hood of a dump truck. A third stood outside the unfinished structure nearest the entrance, talking on his phone.

None of them was Patrick Winslow.

Emma didn’t say a word as she joined Matthias at the rear of his Jeep.

“The other day, they were complaining about being behind schedule,” he said.

She gazed toward the plot where the body had been found. “I guess since Sonny was the one pushing them to catch up, the pressure’s off now.”

“Can I help you folks?” The man who’d been on his phone approached, then pulled up short. “You were here on Saturday.” His tone didn’t sound welcoming.

“We were,” Matthias said. “We’d like to talk to Patrick Winslow. Is he around?”

“He was, but he got a phone call a while ago and took off.”

“Any idea when he’ll be back?”

“Nope.”

Not helpful. Matthias tried again. “Any idea where he went?”

“Nope.”

“Could you give him a message?”

“Nope.”

Matthias glared at him, but he didn’t back down.

“Look, the future of this project is up in the air. The only reason I’m here is because my sister-in-law bought that property.” He glanced over his shoulder at the house where he’d been standing when they pulled in. “I’m trying to figure out what trades still need to be brought in to finish the job in case North Star drops the project.”