Page 27 of Maverick Detective Dad
But then it stopped as quickly as it’d started.
Noah let go of her and backed away as if that heat had scalded him. “Sorry,” he muttered. He groaned and scrubbed his hand over his face. “That wasn’t smart.”
“No,” she softly agreed. Not smart. But since she hadn’t resisted and because her body was burning for even more, she gave Noah an out. “A weak moment for both of us. We’ll pretend it didn’t happen.”
She’d have an easier time pretending there wasn’t a killer out there, but she didn’t want Noah taking on the guilt for this. Not when they already had enough of that to deal with.
There was a knock at the door, and Noah took a moment, no doubt to rein in his composure, and when he finally opened it, Everly saw Deputy Lawson.
“We have a visitor,” the deputy said. “He says he’s Bobby Marshall, and he claims to know both of you.”
Bobby Marshall? Everly had thought they’d have to try to track down the man, but instead he’d come to them. That was good, but she had to mentally shake her head about the claim of knowing Noah and her. She didn’t believe she’d met anyone by that name.
Deputy Lawson stepped to the side so that Noah and she would be able to see the man who was pacing across the reception area. He had pale blond hair, a lean build. And his head whipped up. His gaze zoomed in their direction.
And Everly felt as if someone had knocked the breath out of her.
Judging from the sound Noah made, he was having a similar reaction. That’s because they did indeed know this man. It’d been fourteen years, and he’d only been eleven at the time, but there was no mistaking who he was.
He was the stepson of the woman Everly had killed fourteen years ago.
Although Everly hadn’t known him as Bobby Marshall back then but rather Robert Fleming.
“Detective Ryland,” Bobby greeted, then shifted his attention to Everly. “Miss Monroe. I understand you’ve been trying to locate me.”
There was no hint of anger in his voice or in his cool blue eyes though there had been plenty of that fourteen years ago. Everly recalled him glaring and yelling at her outside the courthouse after the hearing where she’d learned her fate. That she wouldn’t be serving any time for the crash.
You killed my mother, the boy had shouted. And he had continued to shout it until his father had finally dragged him away.
“I assumed you’d want to interview me,” Bobby said, walking toward them.
“He’s been through the metal detector,” Deputy Lawson assured them. “And I went ahead and frisked him as well.”
Everly was thankful for the extra security measures. Especially since Bobby was obviously now a prime suspect for the vigilante killings.
“Could you do a background run on him for me?” Noah asked the deputy, and he didn’t lower his voice.
“Will do,” she assured him, and she went to her desk.
Bobby didn’t seem offended that Noah would have wanted the deputy to do that. Then again, since he was here, he likely knew that he was a person of interest.
With Bobby following right behind them, they went into Grayson’s office. Noah maneuvered Everly to the desk chair and had her sit. Probably because he knew this had shaken her. Also maybe because the desk acted like a barrier between Bobby and her. Noah no doubt recalled the angry boy who’d shouted at her all those years ago.
“How did you know we wanted to talk to you?” Noah came out and asked. Bobby took the visitor’s chair, and Noah sat on the corner of the desk.
“I knew about Jill Ritter’s murder. Megan talked about it during the last meeting. So, when I heard that Daisy had been killed as well, I assumed you’d be talking to everyone in Peace Seekers.”
Everly found herself studying the man, trying to detect any venom. She didn’t hear any in his voice, but the glance he gave her definitely had some ice in it. And for good reason. She’d killed his stepmother, and judging from his reaction years ago at her hearing, he’d been close enough to Helen to be very upset about her.
Or maybe the upset had been because her killer hadn’t gotten any jail time.
“I’d like a list of the members of Peace Seekers,” Noah told the man after a long pause. She didn’t think it was her imagination that Noah was studying Bobby, too, so he could figure out if they were now face-to-face with the vigilante killer.
Bobby shook his head. “I don’t have one. And I only know the names of a few members. Megan Ritter, of course, and two guys, Jared and River.” He paused as well. “I didn’t participate a lot in the group.”
“Why is that?” Noah asked, taking the question right out of her mouth.
Everly was glad he’d asked it. In fact, she needed to take a backseat and let Noah do most if not all the questioning. After all, Bobby hadn’t aimed that anger and hatred at Noah way back when. It’d all been aimed at her, and he might clam up if she pressed him for information.
