The Night Is Deep (A Liam Dempsey Thriller Book 2) Read Online Free PDF Page B

it.”
    “Was he abusive in some way? Manipulative?” Liam asked.
    “He got in her head. Filled it up with nonsense. She wasn’t the same person after she started dating him.”
    “I guess I’m unclear as to why you think Jenner is responsible for Valerie’s disappearance, Mr. Webb,” Liam said.
    “Valerie went to speak to him the day after Alexandra was found. She wanted to know why her sister had died and Jenner got enraged and pushed her. Said if she ever bothered him again, he’d kill her.”
    “And Valerie told you this?” Liam asked.
    Webb nodded. “I need another drink,” he said, standing and going to the liquor cabinet.
    “Alexandra’s death was ruled a suicide?” Liam asked.
    Owen nodded. “They questioned Jenner and even held him overnight, but in the end there was no evidence that pointed to Alexandra being murdered.”
    “Was Jenner brought up on charges for the threat against Valerie?”
    “No,” Owen said. “Caulston filed a restraining order against him. Jenner’s been out of work and a drunk ever since Alexandra’s death. He’s been the local pariah for the last sixteen years.”
    “Has he ever contacted you or Valerie since then? Ever seen him on your street or close to your home?” Liam said.
    “No. I saw him coming out of a liquor store about a year ago, but that was on the other side of town.” Owen reached back to touch the bandage covering his head. “I never told you about all this, but Alexandra’s death is what caused Val’s agoraphobia. We knew each other in high school, and before Alex passed away Val was vivacious, really outgoing. About a year after it happened, she became withdrawn. We started dating six months after Alexandra died and she was already having trouble leaving her apartment. She dropped out of college shortly after that but she got her degree online. She found a job with a placement company that hired freelance content developers and after using her for a year they hired her on full-time. It worked perfectly for her, but it was probably the worst thing for her disorder.”
    “She didn’t have a disorder,” Webb barked from beside the liquor cabinet. “She was horrified about what Jenner did to her sister and that he’d gotten away with it. She was terrified. I’ll tell you, if this had happened fifty years ago there would have been another kind of justice.” Webb nodded and sipped from his glass. Owen opened his mouth and then shut it before gazing down at the floor.
    “Do you think it’s worth going to visit Jenner again?” Liam asked Perring.
    “The officer that went out to his place said he didn’t think the man was in any condition to have kidnapped Valerie, especially after he found out how much he’d drank at the bar the night before. Plus, we have the bartender saying he was there until closing time,” Perring said. “Unless we get some type of lead, we have no right to get a search warrant for his home.”
    “You’re all gutless,” Webb said. “You know what needs to be done but your hands are laced up with bureaucratic bullshit.”
    “That’s enough, Mr. Webb.” Perring stood. “Until you can maintain a civil tone, I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”
    “This is my daughter’s house, you can’t tell me to do shit, lady.”
    “Rex?” Perring said. Sanders crossed the room and held out his hand toward the doorway.
    “Mr. Webb, please step outside.”
    “Owen, tell these bastards that I have a right to be here.”
    “Caulston, we need to keep calm, right now more than ever. Please, for Val,” Owen said, his voice worn and pleading. The older man wavered and Liam readied himself to leap from his chair in case Webb’s fist came up and connected with Sanders’s jaw. After a long moment, Webb’s shoulders sagged and he set the glass down.
    “For Valerie,” he mumbled, moving to a chair and dropping into it.
    The same uniformed officer that had blocked Webb’s entry to the house stepped into the