AllFreeNovel
Share Us
She eyed me suspiciously. “You know Carolyn?”
“Yes. We’re very good friends.”
“Carolyn doesn’t have friends. Her boyfriend wouldn’t allow it.”
“I know,” Rae said softly. “That’s why I came. I’m not sure if you’re aware, but Carolyn passed away recently. I’m afraid it was rather horrific.”
I stared in fascination as Rae manipulated this woman with her words and soft demeanor. She was very good.
“Please, I haven’t seen her in so long. I was hoping someone could give me some answers.”
Mrs. Kranski eyed me warily. “And who are you?”
“I’m…her ex-husband, ma’am.” I threw the last bit on, hoping to sound more respectful like Rae, instead of going after this woman hard and dragging the information out of her. I was out of practice from my military days, but even then, I was better with brute force than gentle handling.
Mrs. Kranski sighed heavily. “You’d better come in. I’m not sure how much help I can be, but I’d do anything for Carolyn.”
We were in. I followed Rae inside, careful to let her take the lead. I couldn’t screw up this opportunity for us. Mrs. Kranski led us through her house to the kitchen at the back. She had a great view of the gardens from her porch, which also happened to look right over into Williams’ back yard.
“That garden is my pride and joy,” Mrs. Kranski said as she looked out the window beside me. “You know, Carolyn and her son spent many days over here with me.”
“Really?” That didn’t sound like Carolyn at all. Then again, I didn’t really know her. “I can’t picture her gardening.”
“Oh, she didn’t at first. Those manicured nails would have gotten dirty,” she said with a grin. “But I shoved a pair of gloves at her and made her help me. She really struggled those first two years. She didn’t fit in with Michael the way he wanted.”
“What do you mean?”
“He wanted someone refined. I don’t know it for sure, but I think the only reason he brought her to live with him was because of Theo. He would never marry her, though. She wasn’t what he was looking for, and he made that perfectly clear. And that poor boy. I can’t tell you how many times I heard Michael yelling at him.”
Anger welled inside me, mostly at myself for allowing this to happen. But I shoved it down. I wouldn’t help anyone if I was fuming over things I couldn’t change.
“I haven’t seen Theo in months. Did he go to live with family?”
My eyes flicked to Rae, hoping she could answer this for me. I was at a loss for how to move forward.
“Mrs. Kranski, part of the reason we’re here is because Theo is missing.” The woman placed a hand over her mouth and tears welled in her eyes. “That poor boy. He was so sweet.”
She shook her head and took a seat. Her grief was overwhelming. For a woman that was just the neighbor, she seemed a lot more involved in their lives than I would have thought. Rae sat beside her and placed a comforting hand on her back. Damn, she was so good at this.
“Mrs. Kranski, is there anything you can tell us about Carolyn that may help?”
She squeezed her eyes shut and took a deep breath. “I’ll tell you anything you want to know. I just don’t understand what happened.”
“What about Michael?” I asked, taking a seat. “Was he abusive?”
Her gaze snapped to mine. “Michael?” She huffed out a laugh. “No, he was hard on her, but I never saw any signs of abuse.” She cocked her head to the side in thought. “Then again, he was very demanding that she always look her best. I guess there could have been emotional abuse.”
She shook her head, clearly flustered by discussing this. Rae placed her hand on Mrs. Kranski’s. “What can you tell us about the time Carolyn disappeared?”
“Disappeared?” She laughed. “Michael said she packed her bags and left. He said she didn’t like living here and went to stay with her mother.” She glanced outside in thought. “I guess that was about a month ago now. I remember there was a town car parked outside the house for several days. They parked on the street, which is unusual in this neighborhood. I thought it was strange, but thought whoever it was must be a client of Michael’s. He has some very high-profile clients.”
She had no idea who his clients were. If what we were assuming about Michael was correct, she was lucky she wasn’t dead just for being friends with Carolyn.
“You said they parked on the street?” Rae asked.
“Yes, almost right in front of my house. I thought it was strange that they didn’t park in front of Michael’s, but…” She trailed off, still staring out her window.
“Mrs. Kranski, I saw you have a security system. Do your cameras face the street?”
