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She arched a brow “I was doing ”
“I don’t picture you as a smoker”
“Nervous habit”
Around the animals she was relaxed That smile she’d tossed Tracker had melted some of the ice But she’d been a different person in the restaurant Nervous Jumpy As if she expected trouble He did that to people Set theht have taken her reaction personally if not for the scarsher hands Defensive wounds
Alex relaxed back against the seat “I heard Deidre had been an avid runner for years Apparently, she was always talking about the races she ran She started this group last fall”
That tweaked a s to convert ood recruit”
“You look like you’re in good shape”
“Not really I needed a goal I’ a half marathon”
“Why the half marathon?”
“Just because I want to know I can, I suppose” Her cheeks flushed a pale pink
A small lift of her shoulders reroo?”
A slight shake of her head negated her words “It’s going I’ll never win a race, but the plan is to finish, not win”
“So Deidre didn’t show up for practice and you came by the house?”
Soained luster in her cheeks faded “The front door was locked, but the back door was ajar”
“It was?”
“Yes I pushed it completely open and called out to Deidre When she didn’t answer, I peeked inside and saw her laying on the floor” She pressed tre breaths “I got sick”
“I heard”
She shook her head, clearly e her “And then I called the police”
“Did you see anyone leaving the property?”
“No When I saw her, I kinda got tunnel vision After I got sick, I ran out of the house I don’t even re to the police”
“Do you know if Deidre was having trouble with anyone?”
“She said she was going through a divorce She told ht he keyed her car She also said he n the final decree She was angry And, I think, embarrassed by it all”
Alex knew of Deidre’s husband, Tyler Radcliff Good reputation But putting a best foot forward in public did not ensure a happy horoup had an issue with her?”
“No No one” She smoothed a small hand over her ponytail, and he noticed the small scar on her palm Healed, but too reminiscent of Deidre’s
The other night he’d asked Leah about the scars and she’d blamed it on an accident He’d save the scar for another day “You and Deidre see each other outside of the running group?”
“We did I visited her at her hotel, and once here”
“Hotel?”
“It was te ned a six-month lease on this place”
“Do you knohere the hotel was?”
“Yeah Germantown” She reached into her pocket, pulled out her phone, and scrolled through the contacts She rattled off the address When he didn’tto write it down?”
“I’ll remember it”
“You’ve got a great memory?”
“When I want to reet” The scars on Leah’s pale: details like that stuck with him
“Look, do you o hoave my contact information to the officers”
Alex hesitated, not wanting to let her off the hook so easily “I may have more questions”
“You’ve got my number”
“At the clinic Do you have a cell number?”