Page 11 of Random in Death

The man who answered had a thatch of brown hair threaded with gray. Over his thin build, he wore gray sweat shorts and a T-shirt that read:

BECAUSE

His narrow face had what Eve took to be a weekend stubble. Though he offered a pleasant smile, curiosity filled his hazel eyes.

“Can I help you?”

“Mr. Harbough, I’m Lieutenant Dallas with the NYPSD.” She held up her badge.

Before she could say more, he winced. “Oh Jesus, is she in trouble? Teenagers at a rock club, what could go wrong? Jule! Looks like we’ve got to post bail. Sorry, come in. She’s missed curfew,” he went on, “so the hammer’s going to come down there.”

“Mr. Harbough,” Eve began again as they entered a foyer with a living area through a wide case opening on the right, a smaller den on the left with a set of stairs leading up.

“She’s not answering her ’link.” A woman walked down the hall, frowning at her own ’link. Mixed race, a lot of wavy brown hair with shimmering highlights, and the big brown eyes she’d passed to her daughter.

“That girl is—”

She broke off as she looked up, saw Eve and Roarke.

Her eyes went blank, and her face took on a shade of gray.

“I know who you are. What happened to Jenna? Where’s Jenna?”

“Dr. Harbough—”

“Say it.” Julia reached out to grip her husband’s arm.

“I regret to inform you your daughter is dead.”

“What?” Shane’s voice punched out, breathless and angry. “That’s ridiculous. You need to leave, right now.”

“Shane.” Julia turned, wrapped around him. “Our baby. Our baby.”

“It’s not true. Stop this. Jenna’s fine. She’ll be home any minute. I’m going to go get her. I’m going to go get her right now.”

“Shane.” With tears streaming down her cheeks, Julia pulled back enough to look at his face.

And what he saw in hers had the anger in his draining into shock, denial, and terrible grief.

“No,” he said. “No, no, no.”

As he slid to the floor, Julia went with him, stayed wrapped around him.

“It’s a mistake.” Shaking, he sobbed it out. “It’s a horrible mistake. She’ll be home any minute.”

“Shane. Shane, you have to help me. You have to hang on and help me. We have to know what happened.”

“I don’t believe it. I won’t believe it. Julia, it’s Jenna.”

“I know. I know.” Framing his face now, she kissed his cheeks. “Come on now. Stand up. We have to know. It’s Jenna. We have to know.”

She helped her husband to his feet, then faced Eve. “We have to know what happened.”

“If we could sit down, I’ll tell you everything I can.”

Chapter Two

The living area held style with a few antiques, moody paintings, a fireplace framed in blue-veined white marble.