Read No One Left to Tell for Free Online

‘It’s been years.’
    ‘Ten years,’ Clay said harshly, ‘but for any of us who lived through it, it seems like yesterday. You can be sure this will stir up a lot of fear in the community.’
    ‘Elena wasn’t a random target like the sniper’s from before,’ Paige said. Sitting at her desk, she took a latex glove from her drawer of supplies and pulled it on. She brought the flash drive from her pocket, holding it flat on her palm. Elena’s blood had dried on the gadget.
    ‘Holy hell, Paige,’ Clay whispered, his eyes wide. ‘What is that?’
    ‘Elena’s flash drive,’ she whispered back. ‘She put it in my hand seconds before she died. She made me promise not to tell any cops.’
    ‘So what? This is evidence. You can’t just sit on it.’
    She gave him a disbelieving look. ‘Like you always rush to hand over everything to the cops? You don’t trust the cops any more than Elena did.’
    His face flushed uncomfortably and Paige knew she’d scored a direct hit. Clay had known who’d killed his partner, and for a lot of reasons – not the least of which was the need for his own revenge – had held back information while he investigated on his own.
    ‘Shit,’ he mumbled. ‘Doesn’t mean that’s the right thing to do this time.’
    ‘What part of cops chasing her did we miss here? I mean, who do I hand it over to ? The detective who questioned me? What if he was the cop chasing her?’
    ‘Shit,’ he said again, then sighed. ‘What’s on the damn thing?’
    ‘I don’t know. She died before she could tell me. Whatever it is, somebody killed her over it.’ Paige held it under the desk lamp. ‘I hope whatever’s on here is readable.’
    ‘You’re going to plug that thing into your computer?’ he asked, eyes even wider.
    ‘What, worried about viruses?’
    ‘Along with about a million other things. Look, I did keep information from the cops after I found Nicki’s body, and I was wrong. People died, Paige.’
    Paige leveled him a hard stare. ‘Elena thought the cops planted evidence against Ramon. What if this is proof? The man is in prison for murder, Clay. Now his wife is dead. You can stay or go, but I’m going to see what’s on this damn drive.’
    ‘And if the cops somehow find out?’
    ‘I’ll say I was stunned. In shock. That I couldn’t remember getting it and didn’t check my pocket until later to find it. So stay or go. Choose and make it quick.’
    He rolled his eyes. ‘You know I won’t go. Hell.’
    ‘Okay.’ She opened a box next to her desk and Clay whistled.
    ‘How many laptops do you have in there?’
    ‘Six.’ She pulled one out. ‘Rich kids at the university in Minneapolis throw them out when they get a new one. These old machines are useful if you’re checking out any file that might be a risk. If there’s a virus, you can wipe the drive and not risk your own PC.’
    ‘How did you get them?’ he asked suspiciously.
    ‘Friends who are students. They dumpster-dive occasionally. They’re geeks.’
    ‘And hackers?’ he asked dryly.
    ‘Of course.’ She plugged the drive in the USB port and it opened quickly. ‘ Yes ,’ she whispered.
    ‘That’s a lot of files,’ Clay said, looking over her shoulder.
    ‘Most of them are old, except for these three picture files – saved three hours ago.’ She opened one and stared at the photo of two men drinking beer at a bar. ‘Bingo.’
    ‘It’s a bar,’ Clay said.
    ‘It’s the bar,’ Paige corrected, ‘where Ramon Muñoz claimed he’d been the night of the murder. Ramon’s on the left and the time stamped in the corner is the same time he was supposed to be murdering a college girl on the other side of town.’
    ‘Time codes can be faked.’
    ‘Yes, they can. But this picture never made it into the trial exhibits.’
    ‘Are you sure?’
    ‘I’ve studied every page of the transcripts. Ramon said he was there with a friend.’
    ‘The guy next to him?’
    ‘Yes. The friend denied seeing him