Page 138 of It Runs in the Family

I stared at her in disbelief. “You saw something.”

She grinned. “Like I said, I see lots of things.”

“Did you see her friends?”

“She doesn’t have many friends, but she got a boyfriend a couple months ago. That boy’s trouble.”

“So I’ve heard,” I said. “But what makes you say that?”

“Sometimes you can tell just by lookin’ at someone.” She opened a cabinet and pulled out two teacups. “And I saw him hit her a couple of weeks ago.”

I gasped. “What?”

“They were sitting in his fancy car, and I could see them arguing. Then he slapped her face. She got out of the car and started to stumble toward the house, and he got out and followed, jerking her arm and pullin’ her to a stop.” She shook her head. “Got a temper on him.”

“When was the last time you saw her boyfriend?”

“Last night.”

I did a double take. “Are you sure? Deanna said Rebecca didn’t come home last night.”

“Darlin’, I’m sure. And Rebecca wasn’t with him. She hasn’t been home in two nights.”

“How do you know?”

“I can see the corner of the house and a sliver of the window to her room. The light hasn’t been on for two nights.” She made a face. “Well, except for when the other girl showed up in the middle of the night.”

“What other girl?”

“She’s got long dark hair. Lots of curves. She’s been here before, but she showed up around two this morning. She found the spare key in the rock and let herself in. The bedroom light was on for a few minutes, then it turned off and I saw what looked like a flashlight beam boppin’ around the room. Like she was lookin’ for something in Rebecca’s room.”

“Do you know who the girl was?”

She shook her head as she reached for a tea tin on the counter. “Don’t know her name, but I’d recognize her if I saw her again.”

Sweat broke out on the back of my neck as I pulled out my phone and scrolled through my photos until I found a picture of Selena. “Could this be her?” I asked, hoping she didn’t notice my shaky hand.

She leaned over to look at the screen in my outstretched hand, then nodded with a satisfied look. “That’s her. Who is she?”

I took a moment to let her confirmation sink in. Selena was involved in Rebecca’s murder somehow. Whether trying to help her or hurt her, she was tied to her death. “Her name’s Selena.”

“And you just happen to have a photo of her on your phone?” She made it sound like an accusation.

“She’s my cousin.”

She gave me a knowing nod. “Ah, I see.”

I wasn’t sure she did, but I continued. “You said you saw Rebecca’s boyfriend last night?”

“Sure did. He pulled up to the house around nine or so last night. He let himself in through the garage door, and he left about ten minutes later.”

“Was Deanna there?” I couldn’t believe she wouldn’t have mentioned him breaking into her house.

“No, she was gone and got home around ten. He’d been gone for a good half hour by then.”

Thank God. But why had he gone in there without Rebecca, and why had Selena shown up later?

“Did you see Selena leave?”