A Second Chance at Murder Read Online Free Page A

my hand as well, introducing himself as Sergio. In contrast to Montserrat, his hand was smooth and warm.
    A desk cop.
    We went through the necessary intake procedures for a missing person, complete with description, last time seen, and various search-and-rescue protocol.
    â€œDo you have something of his for the dog to smell?” Montserrat asked me.
    Becca squeezed my elbow. “It’ll be okay, honey.”
    I retreated to my tent and pulled out Scott’s sweatshirt, pressing my nose against the soft cotton. It smelled like him, a bit of cedar mixed with musk. I choked back a sob and quickly exited the tent. The dog seized Scott’s sweatshirt and sniffed it, growling and howling in between his sniffs. Montserrat nodded and patted him. Then she took the sweatshirt around and let the pack of dogs smell it.
    Montserrat tapped her walkie-talkie and waved to Sergio saying, “
Nos vemos
.” The pack of dogs tore off in the direction of the river, the same path Parker and I had hiked the night before.
    I started to follow Montserrat, but Sergio stopped me. “Wait! Please, I have some questions for you.”
    I hesitated. “But they’re going to try to track my friend down.”
    Becca gave me a queer look, and I realized I had omitted the word
boy
in front of
friend
. What was wrong with me? Just because the cop looked like Antonio Banderas’s younger brother didn’t mean I could throw my boyfriend under a bus.
    â€œSit,” Sergio said. Becca and I went to comply.
    â€œYou are free to go,” he said to Becca, “if you like.” She gave me another look, unsure what to do. “Or if you want to wait nearby, perhaps it is better. I’ll have some questions for you, in a moment.” He nodded toward the tents, implying that he wanted to speak with me alone.
    â€œAll right, I’m happy to help any way I can,” Beccasaid, pinching my arm. “Everything is going to be fine, Georgia. They’ll find him, you’ll see. He’s smart. Maybe he fell and twisted an ankle and is staying put, that’s all.” Becca went to wait in my tent.
    None of what she’d said made me feel any better. If he’d twisted an ankle, wouldn’t we have found him last night or this morning? Sergio indicated the bench at the campsite table. I sat, a splinter sticking into my leg. I made no effort to remove it. The pinching and biting sensation would keep me on my toes. Let’s see what Mr. Banderas the Younger had to say. He took a notebook out of his pocket.
    â€œSo the man who is missing, can you tell me more about him?”
    â€œWhat do you want to know?” I asked.
    He referred to his notebook. “We have a physical description: six feet, one hundred eighty pounds, shaved head, dark eyes.” He glanced up from the notebook. “Correct?”
    I realized that if Scott were standing next to me, he would have said, “And I’m funny, warm, and smart! Tell him that!” The thought made my heart ache and all I could do was manage a nod.
    â€œOkay,” Sergio said. “What is your relationship to him?”
    â€œHe’s my boyfriend,” I said.
    Sergio’s dark eyes held mine for a moment, something flashing through them that I couldn’t read. His lips pressed together and he jotted a note.
    â€œWere you having any problems?”
    â€œNo. We didn’t fight the night he disappeared, if that’s what you want to know.”
    Sergio gave me a strange look, but didn’t say anything. He seemed unconvinced.
    â€œHe didn’t run away from me,” I said. “Do I look that much like an ogre, that I’d chase a man away in the middle of the night? In a foreign country, no less?”
    Sergio waited, watching me as I spoke. I was getting carried away. I knew it. I shouldn’t let it get to me. He was just doing his job. I stopped myself suddenly. Sergio was quiet.
    â€œWhat?” I