Never Tell (May Moore Suspense Thriller 2)

“Coming right up.” May thought Dan mentally shook himself as he turned away.

“Anyway, the favor I need from you,” Kerry said.

“What is it?” May asked, hoping she might have some room to bargain.

“Brandon’s finally managed to get away from work. He’s flying here first thing tomorrow morning. And I still don’t have a car! The day ran away with me. Could you take me to the airport tomorrow so we can meet him?”

May stared at her in consternation.

“I’m sorry. I can’t,” she said. “I’m busy with a case. I’m going to be working on it from early tomorrow.”

“Oh.” Kerry didn’t look that upset. “In that case, could you loan me your car? It would be nice to arrive there with a decent set of wheels. Mum and Dad’s car is really elderly and I like driving fast, as you know. It’s on my to-do list to buy them a new car. I just haven’t actioned it yet,” she said firmly.

May wanted so badly to say no to her sister again. She’d had the whole day to make a plan to get a car. May was busy, she was working, she was on the trail of a murderer. She needed her wheels and she didn’t like the thought of Kerry speeding off in her treasured car.

But she couldn’t refuse. Not when she had a trade-off to make. She’d have to loan her prized wheels to her sister, even though it burned her to do so.

Dan placed Kerry’s beer and her coffee on the bar counter.

May stirred in cream and sugar.

“I guess you can borrow it,” she said reluctantly. “But please, drive it carefully.”

“Don’t worry.” Kerry beamed. “I’ll return it in top condition.”

May wasn’t so sure she’d get it back at all, given Kerry’s driving skills.

“I’d appreciate that. And no speeding fines, please. It’s embarrassing, not to mention illegal, when people see the deputy’s car speeding,” May said firmly.

“Oh, yes. I never thought about that. But anyway, you want to tell me anything about the case?” Kerry then asked, as Dan turned away to serve a new customer. “Perhaps there’s something I can help you with?”

Kerry sipped her beer. May knew what she was thinking. Kerry was always the one who called the shots. Always the one who kicked in and ran things, and the one who made decisions. She didn’t want to tell her anything else because she was sure that as soon as she did, Kerry would be desperate to muscle in.

“It’s a murder case,” she admitted.

“A murder?” Kerry said, her eyes widening. “Oh, how unusual for this town. You’re handling a real case at last! I’m sure it’ll be a great learning experience for you. You’ll learn a lot about running an investigation from the ground up. I can advise you, of course. Perhaps we can go through it quickly. Do you have any leads?”

This was May’s chance.

“I have a lead,” she said.

Kerry leaned forward, interested.

“What is it?”

But May shook her head. She couldn’t tell Kerry. However, she had to ask her for the favor.

“I don’t want to say more. Not in here,” she said, looking around as if one of the nearby locals might overhear if she did. “But I need some background, and I was wondering if you could help provide it.”

Kerry looked surprised, as if she hadn’t expected May to come back at her like that.

“What background?” she asked.

“On one of the murder victims.”

“There’s more than one?” Kerry seemed even more intrigued. “Is this a serial? If so, shouldn’t we be involved? That’s the FBI’s domain.”

“The victims are linked, and they are both involved with the same company, so it points to a motive related to the workplace, rather than a true serial crime,” May said.

Kerry nodded, looking disappointed.

“But the victim I’m looking for some background on is a woman who made frequent trips out of the country and I am wondering if she was possibly a person of interest to the FBI. If you tracked her, or her transactions.”

“Well, you’ll need to tell me the full circumstances,” Kerry said bossily. “I can see I’ll have to get involved. This is definitely not looking like a local issue any longer.”

“No,” May said firmly. “Right now, I just need to know the background. As a favor. Like loaning you the car.”

For a moment, Kerry looked absolutely furious. As if May had outmaneuvered her.

May knew they were all the way back in their sister rival territory. This was a place they seemed to have been their whole life, prompted mainly by their mother’s habit of pitting the daughters against each other in a competitive way, to ensure each one tried their hardest.

May didn’t want her sister to be mad. And she desperately needed her to agree to this. She didn’t want to have to explain anything more, or for Kerry to muscle in on the case.

So she guessed it would come down to how badly Kerry needed that car, and whether she was prepared to put her own ego aside to help.

May sipped her coffee and waited, looking as calm and unbothered as she could. Inside she was shaking. This mattered so much to her.

Kerry didn’t speak. Her face was mutinous.

“Kerry,” May said quietly. “This is really important to me. I need to do this. I want to do it with my team and not get the FBI involved in managing it. If there’s a need for the FBI to be involved, I will call you first, I promise. But at the moment we’re just getting information, and I don’t want to lose this lead. It’s my first chance on a big case. And I’ve never had a chance to work on a murder case that I’m officially managing, as the county’s deputy,” she added truthfully. The previous murder case, her boss had handed over to the FBI.

Finally, Kerry nodded.

“Alright. I’ll help. What do you need to know?”

May felt a surge of relief.

With her sister’s help, she hoped they would uncover information they needed to get further in this troubling case.