Page 127 of Driftwood Daffodil 3
He nodded.
Simon had been stalking Nova for two years?
“That’s not all.” Romeo said. “Click on the video marked surveillance.”
I looked back down at the phone, found it and hit play.
A video of the courthouse downtown began to play, whoever was filming it was inside a vehicle across the street. I was instantly taken back as I stared at the various reporters standing outside.
I could smell the courtroom and feel the heat, as they all called out“Mr. Mancini, Mr. Mancini, how do you feel about the charges being dropped to manslaughter?”My father walked past them without a word, while I wanted to scream that Kato Ford should get the death penalty.
Then the video zoomed in on a girl in a familiar blue summer dress and I was taken back to another conversation. One that I thought about for two years. Nova was the first person to pretty much tell me to go fuck myself.
“You sure that’s her?” A voice I recognized to be Simon’s asked.
“Yeah.” A female responded. “That’s her.”
“And you can introduce me to her?”
“Yes.” The girl said. “She’s my friend.”
What kind of friend would set someone up with Simon Fisher?
My eyes narrowed when the phone moved and I caught a glimpse of the girl in the passenger seat.
“Wait…” I paused it and zoomed in. “I’ve seen her before.”
Here at the diner. It was that girl Nova hated. What the hell was her name? Sandy, Sadie… Cindy. That was it.
I pointed at the image, “her name is Cindy Fassbender.”
Simon didn’t just stalk Nova, he targeted her. And her friend helped him. Why?
“Cindy Fassbender?” Romeo asked to which I nodded. “Okay, I’ll have Saul pick her up.”
“No wait,” I grabbed him before he could walk away. “Watch her house. Simon might go back there.”
Romeo nodded. “You got it.”
He walked away and I headed into the diner.
GIOVANNI
Ihad my hand on the door, ready to go and get Nova, when something in the parking lot caught my eye. A very familiar truck was in the farthest right stall. Strange considering I brought Nova to work.
My brow arched at the scribbled out word on the hood. How in the hell did that get here? Atlee and I planned for him to pick her up to visit Kato then bring her to my house so she would have no mode of transportation. The last thing I needed was for her to take off in the middle of dinner.
Did Nova go and get her truck? And if so, who took her? I bet it was her blonde friend. I may need to have a word with that guy. Then again it was Nova’s truck. It was probably just as stubborn as her and drove itself here.
My eyes wandered over to Nova who was still talking to the cops. I was caught between pulling her away from them—Simon was mine to deal with, the law could fuck right off—and checking out her truck. It was entirely possible that the cops called her grandmother, who may have come to pick her up. That I wouldn’t have. The only place Nova was going was home with me, which would be hard to accomplish when her legal guardian was here. Meaning, I should deal with that first.
Goddamnit.
With a sigh, I let go of the door handle and headed over.
Someone did indeed drive Nova’s truck here, but it wasn’t her grandmother.
I eyed the girl hunched down in the front seat who was peeking over the steering wheel. And I meant hunched down. That was why I didn’t see her before. Her head was below the bottom of the passenger window. If I had to guess why Nova’s sister was here, I’d say the cops couldn’t get a hold of her grandmother so they called her. That was easy to figure out, but what the fuck was she doing?
