Dangerous Waters. Sandra Robbins

a pocket on the inside back cover and pulled it free. “What is it?”

      “A photograph.” Brad held the picture up, and Laura leaned forward to examine it. They gazed at the image of a young couple standing next to an automobile. The man’s arm circled the woman’s waist, and her head was tipped back as she gazed at him. Her long blond hair hung down her back.

      “I’ve never seen either one of them before. Who are they?” Laura asked.

      Brad turned the picture over and smiled before he held it up for her to read what was written on the back. “‘Johnny Sherwood and Sylvia Warner before she married Daniel Hill.’ This is the first time I’ve seen a picture of her, and I had no idea she got married. Every time she’s mentioned in the file, her last name is Warner.” Brad pulled the photograph back and wrinkled his brow as he studied. “Sylvia,” he whispered. “Where are you now?”

      “Do you think she might still be in Memphis?”

      Brad shrugged. “I couldn’t find a trace of her before. But that was six months ago. Maybe I should try again.” He pulled his cell phone from his pocket and punched in a number. “Thompson, this is Brad Austin. Do you still have all that information I gave you some time back on a woman named Sylvia Warner? I need you to run that search again, but this time use the name Sylvia Hill. I just found out she got married.” He paused a moment as he listened to the person on the other end of the line. “That sounds good. Anything you can find. I’m down in evidence storage, but I’ll be back in my office in a few minutes.”

      When he ended the call, Laura stood up. “Who was that?”

      “A guy who’s a computer wizard.”

      “Does he work for the police department?”

      Brad smiled. “No. He’s freelance, and he helps me out from time to time. He couldn’t find anything before. Maybe something will show up with her other name.” He looked at the picture of Johnny and Sylvia once more before he put it in his pocket and closed the notebook. “I’ll put this evidence back, and then we’ll go to my office to wait for his call.”

      Her uncertainty earlier about looking into her parents’ case had disappeared since opening that file. All she could think about was the possibility that Sylvia Warner might still be in Memphis, and she could be the first lead in finding her parents’ killer.

      A small ray of hope began to take root in her heart, the first she’d felt in nineteen years. At least it was a start, and she didn’t intend to give up until this cold case was solved.

      * * *

      Brad glanced at his watch and tried not to sigh. He didn’t want Laura to see how impatient he was to hear back from Thompson. The truth was he didn’t know how much longer he could sit still. He’d tried to hide his excitement over this first lead by looking over some files, but he really had been staring at the same page for the past fifteen minutes.

      Laura fidgeted in the chair across the desk from him and folded her hands in her lap. “What’s taking him so long?”

      “I’m sure he’s doing a very thorough job. You can’t rush these things, you know.”

      She sighed and pushed to her feet. “Don’t pay any attention to me. I’m just champing at the bit to find Sylvia.”

      “Me, too, but it may take...” The ring of his cell phone interrupted his words. He jammed the phone to his ear. “Austin.”

      “Hey, man, I may have some information for you.”

      Brad pulled a notepad closer and picked up a pen. “What did you find?”

      “Well, the reason I couldn’t find Sylvia Warner anywhere is because her name changed when she married Daniel Hill. They were married in New Orleans about two years after she left Memphis. But afterward she dropped off the radar because she started using her middle name, Anne, with her married name.”

      “So she’s going by Anne Hill now?”

      “She was, but Daniel died about a year ago. I couldn’t find any work records for her during the years she was married, but she got a job a few months ago right here in town. I guess she had to take her old name back because of social security. Anyway, she’s living off of Poplar Avenue and working in a barbecue restaurant close to downtown. I’ll text you the addresses.”

      “Great. Thanks a lot, man. I appreciate this.”

      “No problem. Catch you later.”

      Brad disconnected the call and within seconds the text arrived with the addresses. He held up the phone. “Looks like we may have located Sylvia. Want to go with me to talk to her?”

      Laura jumped up from the chair. “Oh, do I. I can’t believe he found her.”

      He nodded. “That’s the way it is when you’re working a case. Leads come from the last place you’d expect. This time it was a picture. What do you say we check out the workplace first?”

      “Sounds good to me. Let’s go.”

      Minutes later they were on their way to Ribs and More Barbecue near downtown. Brad watched Laura out of the corner of his eye. She hadn’t glanced his way since they left the station. In fact she’d been so silent, it was beginning to bother him. He hoped she wasn’t dwelling too much on what had happened to her last night.

      He tightened his grip on the steering wheel and cleared his throat. “I’ve been thinking, Laura. Maybe it’s not safe for you and Grace to stay at your house for a while.”

      She swiveled in her seat and stared at him. “Grace won’t be there for the next week. She left for London yesterday afternoon right after we taped the interview. She’s on an assignment for the television station.”

      “Well, this concerns me even more. Your abductors had no problem finding where you work. I imagine they know where you live, too. It’s too dangerous for you to be there right now. Is there any safe place you can go?”

      She thought for a moment. “My aunt and uncle who raised Mark and me live in California now. But maybe Charles and Nora McKenzie wouldn’t mind if I stayed with them. Their house is big enough.”

      “I remember them. They used to come see you and Mark play sports when we were in school. He was working in your father’s office when your parents were killed.”

      “Yes, he interned there when he was in law school and went to work for my father when he graduated. His wife, Nora, was our nanny. She’s the one who was with us when the bomb exploded. I don’t know what we would have done if it hadn’t been for her. She had the police and firefighters there within minutes. They’ve remained our closest friends since that time.”

      “I heard Charles is doing well in his law practice. Your dad would be happy for him.”

      She nodded. “Yes, he would. He said Charles was born to practice law, and he was happy he had a small part in helping him get started in his career. Charles had been working for Dad about two years before the explosion.”

      “And you think they’d let you stay with them?”

      “I know they would. They live in a beautiful house out in East Memphis. In fact, they tried to get me to move in with them when I first came back, but I wanted a place of my own. And of course I wanted to live with Grace. I’ll give them a call later.”

      He glanced at his watch and pointed up ahead. “The restaurant is right up here. Since it’s past lunchtime, we can find a table and order a sandwich while we look around.”

      She smiled. “Memphis barbecue sounds great. It will only get better if Sylvia is working.”

      As Brad pulled the car into the restaurant parking lot, he looked over the vehicles parked beside the building. It was well past lunchtime, but there appeared to be a crowd inside. His stomach growled at the tangy smell of barbecue sauce drifting through the air when they climbed from the car.

      Laura