Marissa leaned closer. “Looks like a silk flower.”
“A Texas bluebonnet,” Jo said.
Brody’s jaw tensed. “The classified ad read: BLUEBONNETS.”
“How did Smith know that she was here?” Marissa said.
Jo took a sip from the water bottle. “I don’t think he knew for sure. I think he rightly guessed if his apprentice was indeed killing that he was going to follow in his footsteps and use a burial site they’d visited before. It would have been a place this killer knew, was familiar with and therefore felt safe here.”
“But if he’d chosen another site,” Marissa countered, “he might not ever have been caught.”
Brody rubbed the back of his neck. “He sent a message to Smith through the paper, and Smith sent one back when he sent us here.”
“I suspect Smith knows Robbie as well as Robbie does himself.”
“They’ve not seen each other in a decade,” Brody said.
“That will add variables to the equation, but Smith made Robbie. Programmed him. If we want to find Robbie, we need to talk to Smith again.”
“I’ll see what I can arrange.”
When the DPS officer dropped Jo off at her house, it was ten minutes to seven on Sunday evening. Brody had stayed at the crime scene but she’d opted to leave, knowing she’d done all she could for now. She had enough time to shower quickly and hustle into town and make her dinner appointment with Lara and Cassidy.
Hair wet and no makeup except mascara, she made it to the restaurant ten minutes late. A miracle.
“Well, you look like something the cat dragged in,” Cassidy said to Jo.
Jo slipped into the booth at the casual, vegetarian Austin eatery, doing her best to look cheery and not fresh from a hurried shower and a crime scene. Sitting across from her was Cassidy Roberts, a tall brunet. Sleek, well dressed and wearing a turquoise bracelet and earrings, Cassidy looked like a successful art gallery owner. And beside her was Lara Church, a petite blonde, wearing a loose top, jeans and no makeup. She looked like an artist. Several of her photographs hung in Jo’s house. The two women were first cousins.
Jo had met Lara and Cassidy last year when she’d been asked to consult on a case. And somehow the three of them, an unlikely trio, had become friends. Tonight they were celebrating Lara’s upcoming wedding to Texas Ranger Jim Beck.
Jo accepted a glass of wine from Lara. “Cassidy, be grateful I took the time to shower.”
Lara frowned. “Jim told me you were at the crime scene.”
Jo took a liberal sip of the wine. “Yes.”
Cassidy leaned forward, a colorful turquoise bracelet jangling on her wrist. “You were at a crime scene?”
“I was.”
“I can’t believe you emerged from behind your desk,” Cassidy teased.
“It’s been known to happen,” Jo said.
“Can I ask for juicy details?” Cassidy asked.
Lara sat back in the booth and sipped her wine. “No, you can’t, Cassidy. I’m willing to bet what she saw wasn’t nice.”
Lara’s controlled tone served as a reminder that she had survived a horrific attack last year. She was far too acquainted with crime scenes.
Cassidy frowned. “Sorry, Lara. Insensitive of me.”
Jo smiled. “I’d rather talk about fun things. Like Lara’s wedding.”
Lara’s smile warmed. “Now that is a subject near and dear to my heart.”
They chatted about the upcoming event, which was to be casual and held at Lara and Jim’s country house. Lara had emphasized from day one that this was to be a stress-free event.
Cassidy sipped her wine. “Jo, have you bought your dress?”
So much for no stress. “Not yet.”
“What?” Cassidy asked. “My God, woman, the wedding is six days away.”
“That’s enough time.” Jo tossed a silent appeal to Lara. “Right?”
Lara indicated her own worn jeans and white peasant top. “Don’t ask me. Cassidy is our fashionista.”
“Mine was ordered and altered weeks ago.”
Jo snatched up a handful of nuts from the bowl on the table. Her stomach had settled and she was now hungry. “Don’t worry, I’ll have something to wear by next Saturday.”
Lara cringed. “Jo, don’t worry over the dress. I don’t want this to be a burden. The wedding is casual. You don’t have to drive yourself crazy. I think you’d look amazing in green but, really, wear whatever.”
Cassidy sat back, her arms folded over her chest. “And I don’t know where you heard that weddings aren’t stressful. They were designed to drive people crazy.”
“I’m not going there,” Lara said. “I am not.”
Cassidy pushed long fingers through her dark hair. “Well, Jo will be if she thinks she’ll find a dress in less than a week.”
“She can wear whatever she wants,” Lara said. “Now can we talk about food? I haven’t eaten since breakfast, and I am starving.”
Jo studied the vegetarian menu. “I’m so hungry I could eat tofu.”
The women laughed and Cassidy was able to flag their waitress. The young girl arrived at the table as Jo scanned her menu. She listened to Lara and Cassidy’s order before raising her gaze. The instant she saw her waitress she froze. She wore jeans and a green T-shirt that read: FIND CHRISTA!
It was after eleven when Jo climbed the steps to her front door, her mind ticking through tomorrow’s agenda at the office. She considered tomorrow’s unread files, brewing a pot of coffee and squeezing more work out of the day.
As she moved to unlock her front door, her neighbor Ted Rucker called out. “Are you on the seven-day-a-week work schedule again? Thought you were going to cut back.”
Managing a smile, she shoved her key in the lock and turned it. “I know it doesn’t look like I’m cutting back, but I really am. This weekend was the exception.”
He shoved back a lock of thick, blond hair with long fingers and laughed as he walked toward her with a large chocolate Lab. “Isn’t that what you said the better part of last year?”
Jo descended the two porch steps and scratched the Lab between the ears. “Hey, Greta. And I meant it. I planned to take this weekend off but work came looking for me.”
“You could have said no.”
“I could have.” It had never occurred to her to say no to Brody. He’d asked, and as if she was a naïve eighteen-year-old she’d come a-running. Not good.
Concern darkened his gaze. “You look beat. Where the heck did you end up?”
The night air here smelled so sweet compared to the crime scene. “I can’t get into the details. But it was a crime scene.”
“You at a crime scene? I can’t picture that.”
“Why not?”
“I remember the look on your face last fall when I buried that dead dog. I thought you were going to be sick.”
A wry smile twisted her lips. “Safe to say, I survived, and I’ve provided my professional opinion to the powers that be.” She patted Greta one last time. “B
y the way, if you see a sparkly little blond hurricane knocking on my door again, pretend you don’t know any details of my life.”
He grimaced. “I spilled the beans to your mother, didn’t I? I should have known. Mention of Winchester’s name about sent her into orbit. That’s why Greta and I happened by. We came to apologize.”
“We?” Jo smiled at Greta as she wagged her tail. “I always took Greta for the silent type.”
Rucker shook his head as he scratched the dog between the ears. “She can be a real blabbermouth at times.”
Jo chuckled. “Did Greta say anything else to my mom?”
“Only that you looked a little stressed.” He grimaced. “She shouldn’t have said that either.”
“No harm, no foul. You and Greta need not worry. My mom might have blown a gasket, but she’s likely forgotten all about it now.”
“Why did the mention of Winchester tick her off? Old boyfriend?”
Boyfriend. She and Brody had gone straight from one strong sexual attraction to married. They’d never really dated. And she’d certainly never called him her boyfriend. “Yeah, sorta like that.”
He leaned close as if they were coconspirators. “No relationship between you two now?”
“God, no.”
“That mean you’re gonna finally stop breaking Greta’s heart and go on a date with me?”
“Last time we talked it was coffee.”
“Greta says I needed to man up and offer dinner. She says there’s got to be a night when you’re not working or chasing that group of teen girls.”
She’d been avoiding Rucker’s dates for months, using her busy life as an excuse. But now she wondered why she’d been putting him off. Her mother had attributed her monastic life to Brody. How many times had she heard, “He ruined you for all other men.” That was, of course, not true. She had dated other men. But in the last couple of years she’d been so busy, she’d not made time for dating. Brody was a professional colleague, at best.
She studied Rucker’s smiling face, noting it was a nice change from Brody’s perpetual scowl, which she’d seen a lot of in the last twenty-four hours. “Rucker, I’m slammed this week and I’ve a wedding to attend on Saturday but I am open weekend after next. We can grab dinner downtown.”