Silent Run - Barbara Freethy [96]
“Mr. Cross won’t be helping anyone. He died seven months ago,” Joe said.
Dylan let out a breath, shocked by the news. “What . . . what happened?”
“He interrupted a robbery in progress at his home and was killed.”
Seven months ago. Just when Sarah disappeared.
“Do you know the exact date?” Dylan asked.
“It was August third.”
And Sarah had disappeared on August fourth. Had Xander’s death sparked her run?
“Did the police catch who did it?”
“Not to my knowledge. I’m sorry, but I have to go. Is there anything else you need?”
“Did Mr. Cross leave behind any family?”
“He had an ex-wife, but I haven’t seen her since the funeral.”
“Do you know her name—where I might be able to contact her?”
Joe hesitated. “Well, her name is Adele Kramer—I don’t have her phone number.”
“Thanks for your help.” Dylan ended the call, his mind reeling from what he’d just learned. Was Xan-der’s death connected to Sarah’s disappearance? Did the robbery at Xander Cross’s home have something to do with Sarah? It seemed more than likely. Unfortunately, the fact that Xander was now dead did not help him find out who was chasing Sarah.
He looked up as Catherine came back into the house. Her cheeks were flushed from her run, her eyes bright and curious. “You found out something, but it’s not good news, is it?”
“Xander Cross was killed seven months ago, the day before Sarah disappeared from an apartment building about three miles away from where he worked.”
“Andy is dead?” Catherine murmured, her eyes turning sad. “That’s tragic. He was so young—my age. I can’t believe it.”
“I’m sorry.”
“How was he killed?”
“He interrupted a robbery at his home. Apparently he left behind an ex-wife by the name of Adele Kramer.”
“Adele Kramer?” she echoed in surprise. “I know Adele Kramer. She was married to Andy?”
“Don’t tell me Adele was another foster kid.”
“No, but Adele went to high school with us. She was Andy’s high school girlfriend the year we all lived together. She was a nice girl from a good family who risked her cheerleader reputation to date the oddball geek. I always liked her. Jessica did, too.”
“So she knew Jessica,” Dylan said thoughtfully. “That’s good. That gives Jessica—or Sarah—a friend in San Francisco, a friend who could have helped her disappear. Maybe even a friend who knows where Caitlyn is.” He started up his computer again. “Time for another search.”
“You don’t have to do that,” Catherine said. “I know how to find Adele.”
“How? You didn’t know how to find Andy or Xander or whatever his name was.”
“Well, I know how to find Adele. She’s an art lover. She works in a museum in San Francisco, and she writes a column for an art magazine. I had no idea she’d married Andy. She certainly never used his last name or talked about him in her column. I thought of writing her a few times, but I didn’t.” Catherine grabbed a magazine off the bookshelf. “I think her e-mail is listed at the end of her article. Yes, here it is.”
Dylan pushed the computer in Catherine’s direction. “You write her. Tell her you need to find Jessica, and you think Andy might have spoken to her before she disappeared. Ask her if she knows anything about Jessica or Sarah or the baby, Caitlyn.”
Catherine typed slowly and deliberately. When she was finished, she hit the send key.
Dylan hoped it wouldn’t take long for Adele to reply, but it was Saturday. She might not check her e-mail until Monday. And that could be too late. He picked up the phone and called Information, but there was no listing for her. They would have to wait. But which was more important, keeping the computer connection open or hitting the road to LA?
He could also call his friends at the San Francisco Police Department. They might be able to tell him more about Xander’s death. He knew Sarah’s departure was connected to it. He was getting closer to finding out exactly what had happened to make her run.
The computer beeped as an e-mail was received. He clicked the button, excited to see a quick reply from Adele Kramer. The message was short. If