Her Frozen Cry (Detective Amanda Steele)

“Thanks.” He was too, truth be told. He’d stayed slender and had a thick head of hair, which had turned silver early but gave him a distinguished look. She should just get to the point of the visit, but her mouth was so very dry.

“And this is…?” Tony nudged his head toward Trent.

“Detective Stenson,” Trent said. “I’m Detective Steele’s partner.”

“Oh?” He dragged his eyes from Trent to her. “I thought Amanda the Great didn’t take partners on the job? Or is he—”

“On the job,” she emphasized. “And he kind of got thrust on me.” She smirked at Trent, taking advantage of the lighthearted detour. But she couldn’t put off the bad news forever. “There’s something we need to tell you.” She paused there, gathered her strength to see this through. “You might want to sit down.”

“Ah, sure.” Tony’s eyes darted from her to Brad in the kitchen, who had slowed his movements. Tony dropped on the other couch in the room.

“There’s no easy way to say this,” Amanda began, taking her time—more as a favor to him or herself? “I’m sorry to inform you that Alicia was found dead this afternoon in a cabin up in Gainesville. It’s believed she passed last night.”

“Excuse me?” He panted, his eyebrows shooting down in harsh arrows. “That can’t be…. That’s not possible.”

Brad left the kitchen and sat next to Tony. His face was knotted in anguish. “Mom’s… she’s… What…?”

Tony put a hand on Brad’s knee and jutted out his chin. “Tell us what happened,” he said to Amanda.

She recognized the tough front, the armor of steel erected in an effort to protect the heart. But the damage had been done. “We’re unsure as of yet.” The most honest answer she had to provide at the moment.

“What do you mean unsure? How can you not know?”

“How was your wife’s health, Mr. Bishop?” Trent asked.

“Great. She was healthy as an ox.” He shook his head. “She’d kill me if she heard me calling her an ox. But this just makes no sense, but you know that. That’s why you’re here. You work in Homicide. Assume you still do?”

Brad’s eyes widened, and he rubbed his arms. “Mom was murdered?”

Amanda held up a hand. “No one is saying that yet, but her death is being investigated as suspicious.”

“And you’re on this, Amanda? Tell me you are.”

She blinked, trying to suppress the tears that threatened. “I am.” She gestured toward Trent. “We are.”

“Wow. I just can’t believe this.” Tony took his hand back from Brad’s knee and raked it through his hair.

“Did you know she’d rented a cabin for a couple nights?” Trent asked.

“Yes, of course.”

“And why was she there?” Amanda volleyed back.

“She just wanted to clear her head about a few things,” Tony said.

That’s rather vague…“What specifically?”

“She was strongly considering selling New Belle.”

Surprising factoring in her success, but that could explain the financial reports she had with her. It didn’t explain something else, though. “Was she to be working up there?”

“Yes and no.”

“We didn’t find a laptop or tablet. Would she have had either or both with her?” Had someone been in the cabin with her, after all, and taken them?

“No, I think she left both here. She took her phone, though.”

“Did you hear from her since she left?” If she had called or texted Tony last night, it might help narrow down time of death.

“No. And I didn’t expect to. She needed time to herself. I respected that.”

“Why did she want to sell the business?” Trent asked.

“It just had her on the go all the time,” Tony replied. “She wanted to spend more time with Leo. Oh God, Leo, where is he?” Tony looked at Brad, who jabbed a finger toward the ceiling in response. Tony let out a deep breath. “I don’t even know how I’m supposed to tell him about his mom.”

“It won’t be an easy conversation,” Amanda empathized. She didn’t envy Tony that job—at all. It was awkward enough sitting across from her former friend and delivering this news. “When did you and Alicia get married?”

“Six months ago next week.” His face pinched in grief as the realization must have sunk in that he wouldn’t be celebrating that milestone with Alicia. “We just hit it off right away. My divorce from Claudia was working its way through. Alicia had broken up with her boyfriend six months before we met. Neither of us were looking for anything serious, but you can see how that turned out. We completely fell for each other.”

Amanda was curious what had happened with his marriage to Claudia. She felt awkward prying into Tony’s personal business, but this could be a murder case, and there were always injured parties in a separation. Until they knew exactly what had happened to Alicia, all possible motives needed to be considered, which opened the suspect pool to include exes. Given that the two boys had different last names, Alicia had at least two former partners. “I’m guessing things with Claudia and Alicia’s partners ended amicably?” She’d give all parties the benefit of the doubt.

“Relationships have a way of running their course,” Tony began. “Seth Rossi—that’s Leo’s dad—he and Alicia share custody. She lived with him for over ten years. He’s who she broke up with just before we met. Brad’s father was a…” He stopped there, seeming to hesitate about finishing.

“You can say it,” Brad stepped in. “I’m not a kid. My mom hooked up with him in college. I’m the result of a one-night stand. But he’s part of my life,” he added quickly. “Seth too.”

“That’s great to hear.” Amanda gave him a gentle smile.

Trent pointed his pen at Tony. “And your ex-wife? How did things end there?”