Reclaim My Life Read Online Free Page B

from?”
    Elizabeth shook her head. “I thought she moved here from Auburn, Alabama, but now I don’t think so. I think that’s where she attended vet school.”
    Wil tried to remember his one visit to Hodges Animal Clinic, when he’d taken his golden retriever for her rabies vaccine. He’d seen a diploma on the wall. What university was it from? It’d be easy enough to search the premises. He made a note to have Brady secure the vet’s office. It’d give his deputy an excuse to string more yellow tape.
    “What time did she leave the restaurant?”
    “We all left together. It must’ve been about seven thirty or so. There were people waiting for a table, so we paid and went to the parking lot, where we chatted another few minutes. Then we said our goodbyes and went our separate ways.”
    Wil scribbled, catching up with his notes. He should’ve brought his recorder but had left it in his desk. He’d not started his day planning for a homicide investigation, but that didn’t excuse his ill-preparedness. Law enforcement officers couldn’t afford the luxury of complacency.
    “When you left, did you notice where Hodges was parked? See her get into her car?”
    “She parked next to the street, the first slot off Main.” Elizabeth stopped for a moment and frowned. “If someone had been hiding in the back of her minivan, we couldn’t have seen him.”
    The missing person’s report included a description of the victim’s minivan. “Anything else you remember her saying, either Friday night or anytime that might help us find her killer?”
    “No. In fact, I can’t imagine anyone wanting to hurt her. Everyone seemed to like her, and she was building a good veterinary practice here. She was as gentle with people as she was with animals.”
    “Well, some animal murdered her.”
    She nodded. “I wish I knew more to help you catch him.”
    He handed her a business card. “Call if you remember anything else, okay? Anything.”
    Frowning, she stared at the card and nodded. “I will, but I’ve told you everything.”
    At a loss to explain why, Wil left the interview discouraged. Sure, he had a couple of leads, but what was Elizabeth Stevens
not
telling him?

    Thank God, he’s gone
.
    Groaning, Elizabeth removed her glasses and scrubbed her face with both hands. All energy drained from her body at Wilson Drake’s departure, and she slumped over her desk. She’d hardly expected one of her new friends to be murdered! What was she—a jinx?
    She reached for the end of the braid she no longer had. Even after more than a year, she cringed when she caught her reflection in a window or mirror. Instead of the image of what her brother called a “reed thin” body, she saw an inflated version of herself, wearing scholarly glasses and a ghastly wig. Except it wasn’t a wig. She’d donated her long, chestnut mane to the Cancer Society and bleached out what remained.
    She knew she couldn’t remain in Kentucky with a price on her head. She’d accepted the offer of entering the Witness Security Program, but she’d underestimated the sacrifices she’d make to stay alive. She’d committed no crime yet lived far removed from all she knew and loved, possibly never to return, taking on a new identity and all it entailed.
    How fair was that?
    How ironic that she now ran the drama department. She’d mastered wearing a mask and acting the part of a fictitious character. So ingrained was her new name and invented biography, she’d all but forgotten she was born Sofia Desalvo. She thought of herself only as Elizabeth Stevens, dowdy professor of English. If she indulged in remembering the woman she used to be, she might slip up and betray herself. Her handler made it clear that she had to stay in role at all times and trust no one.
    The U.S. Marshals selected Drake Springs because of its low profile and nonexistent crime rate. They’d assured her no hit man worth his salt would dare venture there. He’d stand out worse than