Forbidden Passion Read Online Free PDF Page B

virtually cleared out, with only a patron finishing dessert at a table in the back.
    But the minute they entered, the room grew silent and Marlena felt the patron’s eyes staring at Dante, an uneasy silence settling in the room.
    Jordie’s mother was wiping tables., the sound of dishes clanging echoing from the kitchen.
    Dante cleared his throat. “Mrs. McEnroe.”
    The older woman glanced up from the table, her short brown hair curling around her chubby cheeks. She dropped the dishcloth on the table, then wiped her hands on her checked apron. “You want something to eat, Sheriff? We might have some of the special left. It’s my chicken ‘n dumplings.”
    “No, thanks,” Dante said solemnly. “We need to talk.”
    Something about his tone must have alerted her to the seriousness of his visit, because her hands began to shake, and she sank into a wooden chair, her face paling. “It’s about Jordie, ain’t it?” A low cry escaped her. “Oh, God, no. When she didn’t show up tonight, I was afraid something bad had happened.” She clawed at her chest, and Marlena rushed to the table and began to stroke her back.
    “Take a deep breath, Ms. McEnroe,” Marlena said gently. “Let’s go in the back.”
    “Tell me,” she screeched. “Is my Jordie all right?”
    Marlena helped her to stand. “Please, let’s go to your office.”
    The woman nodded numbly, and Dante took one arm and Marlena the other and escorted her through a set of double doors through the kitchen, then into a small office crammed with books and a desk overflowing with papers.
    Dante waited until Mrs. McEnroe was seated, then cleared his throat again. “Mrs. McEnroe, I’m sorry to have to inform you, but your daughter is dead.”
    “No. . .no. . .no. . “ She lurched up and jerked at his shirt, her plump body shaking as she began to cry. “No, it can’t be so. Not my baby girl. .
    Dante urged her to sit back down, and she sank into the chair like a rock. “I’m sorry~’ he said in a gruff tone.
    She turned tear-stained eyes toward Dante. “Wh. . . at happened?”
    “I’m afraid she was murdered,” he said in a low voice. “And I need your help to find her killer.”
    “Murdered?” Age lines created deep grooves around her mouth as she shook her head from side to side in denial. “How? Why? Who would want to kill my baby? Everyone loved Jordie.”
    Marlena stroked her back in an effort to soothe her.
    Dante clenched his jaw. “That’s what I’m going to find out, Mrs. McEnroe. I want to make sure this killer never hurts anyone else.” Dante shifted and hooked his thumbs in his belt loops. “Was Jordie seeing anyone in town? Dating anyone that you know of?”
    She wiped at her tears with a shaky hand. “I don’t know. Not that she told me.”
    “Did she own a car?”
    She nodded. “Jordie drove an old pickup that belonged to her daddy, God rest his soul.”
    “I need to look at it, as well as her computer.”
    “The truck’s in the shop right now, put it in two days ago. . .“ Her voice broke. “Jordie didn’t have a computer.”
    Mrs. McEnroe pressed her hand against her chest again, and Marlena knelt beside her. “I’m so sorry. Is there anyone I can call? Family? A friend? Your doctor?”
    “Dr. Joyner,” she whispered. “Tell him to come.” Her voice caught. “And Edith, next door. I need her.”
    Dante reached for his phone, while the woman slumped against Marlena, buried her head in her arms, and began to sob.
     
     
    Dante braced himself against reacting to the woman’s grief, but gave her time to vent her emotions. Finally, about half an hour later, the worst of her sobs had subsided.
    “I have to go see Jordie,” the woman whispered.
      Marlena gave a brisk shake of her head, indicating she didn’t think that was a good idea.
    Dante had to agree. No one should see a loved one in the condition in which Jordie had been left.
    “Mrs. McEnroe, you can’t, not just yet,” Dante said evenly.