Page 71 of Ice Covered Heart

The sun shone down on them, still low in the sky because it was early. Just after nine a.m.

“It’s bad enough that she’s in the same building,” Shelby said as they approached the dormitory’s entrance. “It would be way too much of a coincidence if she was in the same actual room I used to have.” The parking lot was mostly empty, except for the blue Honda and the patrol car. She’d expected some campus police to be at the dormitory, too, but, so far, she hadn’t spotted them.

Hunter reached for the entrance door.

“May I help you?” A woman’s voice. Brisk. No accent. Not a whole lot of friendliness, either. The voice came from the left. Near one of the big oak trees.

Shelby turned her head automatically, and her eyes locked on the other woman.

Tall. Slender. Blonde. With dark chocolate eyes. Eyes that widened with recognition as she took in Shelby.

“Shelby Carter!” The woman rushed forward. Pearls around her neck. A gold ring on her right hand. Her hands fluttered in the air. “You came back.” Her gray trousers showed zero wrinkles, just like her white blouse. “I’m Kimber Lang.” One of her fluttering hands thrust toward Shelby. “I’m the VP of Public Relations.”

Shelby frowned at her.

“I sent you the invitation to our fountain dedication.” Her fingers wiggled. “I’m the one who has been sending notices to your P.O. Box for the last several months.”

Shelby took the offered hand. Yes, she recalled that the invitations she’d received had been signed with the flourishing signature of one Kimber Lang.

“I appreciate you coming for the big event, though I worry you’ve now traveled all this way for nothing.” Kimber’s slick, red lips pulled down as her hand returned to her side. “This morning, the president of the college informed me that he thinks it would be in poor taste to proceed with the dedication at this point.” A hard swallow. “Poor taste, what with a student dying in the fountain. Not like we’ve spent several hundred thousand on all the work in that green space.”

Hunter cleared his throat. “I think it was more that the student was murdered. Not that Tiffany just died. An important distinction, don’t you think?”

Kimber turned her head toward him. Her long lashes fluttered. “Who are you?”

“Her bodyguard.”

Kimber took a step back. Her hand whipped up and pressed to her chest, over her heart, as if she’d been startled. Her eyes widened as she took in Shelby once again. “I…didn’t realize that you had a bodyguard. I mean…Ahem. Do you always travel with bodyguards?”

“She does,” Hunter allowed, “whenever she’s going back to the town where a psycho tried to kill her once upon a time. When she does that, then Shelby gets round-the-clock protection.”

Kimber’s mouth opened. Then closed. Her head tilted as she swept her eyes over the dormitory building, then back to Shelby and Hunter. “Uh, why, exactly are you here?”

What would get them a pass into the dorm and to Tiffany’s room? Maybe just the truth? Why not try it? “We want to see Tiffany’s room.”

“Why?” Kimber looked utterly confused. “Why would you want to see the dead girl’s room? That’s morbid, isn’t it?”

So much for that pass. In fact, Kimber had just sidled around Shelby and Hunter and positioned herself in front of the dormitory entrance.

“Detective Jonah Campbell is in there now.” Kimber sniffed. “Along with a beat cop. The college president gave them access not too long ago. Luckily, most of our students are gone for fall break, but it is going to be quite traumatic when they return.” Her expression turned considering. “We’ll have to arrange counseling. Perhaps a candlelight vigil…”

“Shelby is helping Jonah with the investigation,” Hunter supplied smoothly. “He told us where he’d be this morning. We came to meet him.”

“You did?”

“Um.” Not a yes or a no from Hunter. He flashed a wide smile at Kimber. “Would you mind taking us in so we can talk with him?”

Well, that had certainly been a far better response than the one Shelby had been working to create. Initially, she and Hunter had figured they’d just walk through the dormitory in order to find Jonah, but this worked so much better.

“You’re helping?” Kimber’s eyes lit up. She leaned close to Shelby and conspiratorially asked, “Is it because you have experience being the victim of a stabbing?”

“What?”

“Oh. Forgot. You can’t hear well.” Kimber cleared her throat once more. “Is this better?” Very, very loud.

Shelby locked her jaw. “That’s great. Thanks.”

She was pretty sure Hunter smothered a laugh.