I dropped the phone, and it hurtled to the floor.
Murdered?
Oh my God.
I hadn’t liked the way she had been making eyes at Jonah, but I certainly never wished her dead.
I quickly picked up the phone and put it back to my ear. “I’m so very sorry,” I said. “May I ask what happened?”
“Who is this?”
“This is Dr. Melanie Carmichael. I’m a…friend of Jordan’s.”
“The name that came up on the caller ID was Jonah Steel.”
“Yes. Jonah Steel is my boyfriend. I’m using his phone.”
“How does my daughter know the two of you?”
I wasn’t sure how to answer that question. The fact that she had been rooting around in Jonah’s father’s past could very well have been what had gotten her killed.
“Jonah’s father and his uncle were alumni at the school where Jordan works. They had been in touch with her about getting some information.” That seemed tame enough.
“I see. There’s not much to tell you. She was shot in her apartment late last night, apparently. There was no evidence of a forced entry, and the police are investigating now.”
I shivered as chills swept through me. “Again, I’m very sorry for your loss.” I wasn’t sure what else to say.
“Thank you.” Jordan’s father ended the call.
I sat back down at the table. Lucy rested her head on my knee. I absently ran my fingers across her soft head.
Another life had ended. Maybe not technically on my watch, but because of what Jonah and I had been doing. Granted, I didn’t know this for certain, but I had a strong hunch.
My heart broke for Jordan. So young. Oddly, she was probably around the same age as Gina. Most likely killed by the same person.
There was nothing I could do about the yearbooks now. So I would keep them. I would keep them until Jonah came home. And he would come home. I couldn’t think otherwise. I couldn’t allow the words t
o form in my mind.
He had to come home.
“Oh, Jonah,” I said aloud. “Please come home to me. Please. I need you so much.”
I wasn’t hungry, but I walked to the kitchen to fix myself some scrambled eggs.
When I had finished eating, I went back to the bedroom. Talon had texted again, assuring me he and Ryan were fine. I had also missed a call on my cell phone. From Detective Ruby Lee.
Theodore Mathias’s daughter.
This was all too much to deal with.
I didn’t want to talk to her right now. I didn’t want to talk to anyone. But she might have news that would help me find Jonah.
I pushed the button to dial her number.
“Lee,” she said into the phone.
“Ruby, hi. This is Melanie Carmichael returning your call.”