Page 33 of Three Steps Behind

The door opened, but no one appeared.

Harper surveyed the area. There were sliding doors on either side of the front door with vertical blinds pulled opened, and she saw another door across the courtyard. “I’m guessing the one with the buzzer panel.”

“Agreed.” Deck gestured for her to go first, and she strode across the brick courtyard. “I hope she’s willing to talk with us.”

“Me too. It would be good to know what, if anything, Nick was privy to regarding the divorce. I imagine Taylor shared that information with her lawyer, keeping her abreast of the situation. But we’ll see.” She pressed the buzzer.

“How may I help you?” said a voice over an intercom.

“We’re here to see Lindsay Collins,” Deck said.

“Do you have an appointment, sir?”

“No. But it’s under extreme circumstances.”

“I don’t—” the woman began.

“Someone is dead.”

“That’ll do it,” Harper whispered under her breath.

The buzzer went off, and they stepped inside a large foyer with a dark planked floor and a high mahogany counter a hundred feet ahead.

A woman with long, wavy brown hair and deep blue eyes sat behind it. “Welcome to Collins Law Firm. I’m Jessica.”

Deck leaned against the high-top counter. “Hi, Jessica. As I said outside, we’re here to see Lindsay Collins.”

“May I ask who’s calling?”

“Private Investigator Deckard MacLeod.” He held up his badge.

“Oh, you’re located right here in town.” Jessica smiled.

“You got it.”

“I’ve always wondered what it must be like being a PI. Is it at all like the Magnum, P.I. reruns?”

“Sometimes.” He chuckled. “Just lose the Ferrari part.”

“Gotcha. Well, let me try Ms. Collins’s extension. But I’ll warn you, she’s extremely busy.”

“We appreciate you trying. Hopefully, given the circumstances with a young woman dead, she can find five minutes to speak with us.”

“And . . .” Jessica shifted her gaze to Harper. “Who would you be?”

“Harper Grace. I was a close friend of Taylor Jackson’s.”

Jessica frowned. “You’re not saying . . . ?”

“I’m afraid so. Taylor passed seven days ago.”

Jessica held her hand over her mouth. “I’m so sorry. I hadn’t heard, but I’ve just returned to the office after some sick leave. I really am sorry. She was such a nice lady.” Her phone rang, and she answered, explaining the bare details they’d shared.

Deck continued to lean against the counter and gave Jessica one of those smiles—the one that noodled Harper’s legs and stuttered her speech.

Jessica smiled back, still conversing on the phone, then she hung up. “Miss Collins will see you, but she’s mid-brief. She asked if you could take a seat, and she’ll be with you soon.”

Deck gestured for Harper to sit first, then he took the seat beside her.