His eyes widened. “Of course not,” he said, angrily. “I don’t need to rely on cheap tricks or threats to get what I want.” He stood up. “Look, you need to look carefully at Nathan Hearne. He’s the only person who gains from April’s disappearance.”
“What are you talking about?” Tony said, also getting to his feet.
“Oh, I guess he didn’t tell you?” Jeffrey’s laugh was nasty and spiteful. “April has a very large trust fund. She told me she didn’t want the money because I disagreed with her engagement to Nathan. Of course, I knew that someday she’d change her mind. It was important to her mother. But Nathan kept trying to talk her into taking the money now and giving it to him. If she disappeared against her will, you should look at him.” He removed a card from his wallet. He hesitated a moment before slapping it down on Tony’s desk. “I’d like to know if you learn anything about what happened to my daughter. I was convinced that she left on her own, to get away from Nathan, but now I’m not so sure. I’m truly worried. I’m her father, you know. Nathan Hearne doesn’t love her, and I do.” Then he turned on his heel and headed for the door without another word.
CHAPTER
TWENTY-TWO
After Jeffrey left, Tony sat down and sighed. “Did we miss something? Could Nathan really be behind April’s disappearance?”
“Then why come to us?” River asked. “It doesn’t make any sense. I think Jeffrey just doesn’t like Nathan. Maybe he was jealous of their relationship. A lot of fathers have problems with their daughter’s boyfriends.”
“You noticed that he likes to be called Jeffrey too, huh?” He shook his head. “I don’t see any reason for Nathan to come to us. I mean, kidnapping April so he can get to her money? How would that work? I’m just not buying it.”
The door to their office opened again and a police officer came in. “Chief Martin sent me to pick up some evidence.”
Tony got up and handed him the bag. The officer took out a piece of paper that Tony signed. Chain of evidence. Crucial when passing off items that could end up as evidence in a courtroom.
“Hey, hold on just minute, okay?” Tony said. He pulled his pad of paper over and quickly wrote something. Then he removed the paper and slid it into an envelope. He handed it to the officer. “Please give this to Chief Martin, okay?”
“Sure. Not a problem.”
River watched Tony hand the envelope to the officer, but she was still thinking about Jeffrey Bailey’s accusation. She had confidence in her ability to read people, but she wasn’t perfect. Could Nathan have fooled them?
“River?”
She looked up to find Tony staring at her. The officer had left.
“You’re still thinking about what Bailey said, aren’t you?”
She sighed. “Yeah.”
“I thought we already decided that Nathan wasn’t involved in April’s disappearance.”
“You’re right,” she said. “Sorry. I just want to make sure we’re not dismissing the possibility out of hand.” She met his gaze. “Why did Nathan tell Jeffrey that he was coming here?”
“Didn’t he say something about trying to keep in touch with April’s father?” Tony asked. “I’m guessing he thought it was the right thing to do.”
“I guess so.”
“It’s getting late. I don’t want your mother and Mrs. Weyland delaying dinner for us. Did you let them know I was coming?”
River shook her head. “I’ll do it right now.” She frowned at him. “Did the note you sent to Arnie have anything to do with our case?”
“I’m not sure. I told him about the reporter Brent Wilkins and how he was connected to the Casanova case. I didn’t want to call him again in case it’s a waste of time. It really is a stretch.”
“But according to our mini-profile, not out of the realm of possibility,” River said.
“That’s why I sent it. Who knows? Okay. I’m going to run to the restroom. Be right back.”
On his way to the bathroom, Tony passed by some of the other businesses on their floor. Some people were already gone for the day. One newer business, TSRS, still had its lights on. Just one guy worked there. When Tony walked by, he looked up and smiled. Tony waved at him, and the guy waved back. Tony wasn’t sure what the guy did, but it looked boring. A lot of paperwork. A job like that would drive Tony nuts. When he was done in the restroom, he headed back to the office. Now everyone was gone, even the guy at TSRS.
He hoped they wouldn’t get to River’s house too late. He’d grown fond of River’s mother and the kind and efficient Mrs. Weyland. Sometimes God sent angels in the form of people. Mrs. Weyland was one of those. Without her, River probably wouldn’t have been able to partner with him in Watson Investigations. He couldn’t imagine his life without her. Even with the specter of the Strangler’s accomplice hanging over their lives, Tony was happier now than he’d ever been in his life. He loved working with River every day, and he also loved what they were doing. As behavioral analysts, they created profiles to help law enforcement narrow down their search parameters. But now, they were the ones looking for the bad guys, solving mysteries, and bringing justice. The only thing he still wanted was . . . River. For more than a friend. He wanted to tell her how he felt about her, but he wasn’t certain if she was ready to hear it. They’d danced around it for a while now. But with the threat of the Strangler’s partner hanging over their heads, was this really the time? He took a deep breath before opening the office door and then smiled when he saw her. “Ready to go?”
She nodded. “Part of me wants to keep digging into these cases.”
“Me too, but I don’t want the gal at the doggy daycare to stay too late. It was nice of her to watch Watson so I could have dinner with you.”
“She’s a saint to put up with your hours.”
He laughed. “Maybe not a complete saint. She’s in love with my dog. She took Watson home with her on some of those nights we worked really late. And she took care of him when I was in the hospital and while we were in Iowa. I think if I was willing to give him away, she’d take him in a second.”
River frowned at him. “You’d never do that, would you?”
He shook his head. “Absolutely not. We’re bonded. I couldn’t live with the notion that he might wait for me to come back to him but I never did.”
He was surprised to see River’s eyes flush with tears. River wasn’t comfortable with tears, although she was getting better. He’d known her for years before he ever saw her cry.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you,” he said.
“No, it’s me. Watson’s kind of grown on me.”
He hesitated a moment before saying, “Maybe I should tell you that in my will, should anything happen to me, I left Watson to you.”
She looked up at him in obvious surprise, her eyes still shiny. “What? I mean, what about your parents?”
“He doesn’t really know them, and he’s crazy about you.”
