Emily Kenyon 01 - A Cold Dark Place

swap completely under the radar,” Gloria said. “I’ll dial up Parole and see where’s he’s at “
    She thanked Gloria and looked at the directions she’d printed from the hotel’s front desk computer. Another turn and she’d be at David’s.
    “Take it easy, Emily. Hang in there. Dani fits the profile, you know. A second wife is always a bitch. I ought to know. I’m one myself.”
    Emily laughed a little more, said good-bye, and snapped her cell phone shut. Gloria had already married Dani off to Dave.
    Dani? Let see. Serial killer. New wife. Serial killer. New wife. Toss-up.
    Dani Brewer opened the front door with a stenciled-on smile that could have not been more false. Lancome Retro Rouge? Emily suspected that Dani had seen her car pull up and hurried to the mirror to see what kind of affect she should wear on her reasonably pretty face. She had long brown hair, tousled in a messy bun. In all fairness, her pregnancy did give her the characteristic glow that made plain women appear pretty, and already pretty women undeniably ravishing.
    She’s somewhere between pretty and beautiful on her very best day.
    “Oh, Emily, please come in,” Dani said, stepping back and letting the door skim her bulging belly. “I talked to your office. They said you were over here”
    Emily hadn’t really waited for the invitation; she was already inside. The foyer was cold gray stone, slate. Cold like Dani.
    “Is Jenna here? Nick? How about David?” Emily’s words were rifle shot and she scarcely allowed a breath to intercede.
    “David’s at the hospital.” Dani closed the door. “The kids came and went. Coffee? A soda?”
    “This isn’t a social call.”
    “Can’t we just get along?”
    “Get along? I couldn’t care less about getting along. I want to find my daughter. She was here. Now where did she go?”
    Dani frowned and for a second Emily thought she’d rolled her eyes in annoyance. “I thought we were past that”
    “Dani, don’t mess with me. I’m a mother, and I also carry a gun.”
    Dani led Emily into the kitchen. The stainless gleamed. A set of chef knives stuck in an oak butcher block. “Are you threatening me?” Her eyes were filled with what Emily was sure was an exaggerated affect of terror.
    Emily turned her anger down a notch. She’d pushed too hard. “No, I’m sorry. I just want to find Jenna”
    “Okay. I’m not a mother yet, but I get that. Mineral water?”
    “No thanks” Enough with the refreshments! Where’s Jenna? “Where are the kids?”
    “I think they went to the library or something. Maybe an Internet cafe. They had that car, the one from Jenna’s friend. They were full of questions about Angel’s Nest. David told them what he remembered”
    “Are they staying here with you?”
    “Yes.”
    “And you expect them back later.”
    Dani nodded.
    Emily glanced down at Dani’s bulge. Anger had given way to worry. “I guess Jenna found out about your baby.”
    Dani turned away and opened and poured a San Pelle- grino. “I thought you would have told her about it.”
    “You asked me not to,” Emily said. “You and David wanted to break the news yourself.”
    “I know I-we-said that, but I thought for sure you’d let the cat out of the bag. I would have”
    “Good to know,” Emily said. “It was on my mind, but I just never found the time.”
    “Well, she knows”
    “How’d she take it?” Emily asked, though she hated any assessment coming from Dani.
    “She’s angry. She’ll get over it.” The remark was so glib, so unaware of how a teenage girl would deal with the reali ties that her father, her idol, had impregnated another woman before marriage.
    Emily couldn’t let it go. “Look, Dani, you and I don’t need to be friends. We don’t have to spend any time together whatsoever. I’ll probably never see you again-except at my daughter’s wedding.”
    Dani set her glass down and looked out at Lake Washington. The water was ice blue. She shook her head slightly, looking wounded. “I don’t know why you hate me so much”
    God, you’re better than I thought. David’s in for a wonderful life with you.
    “I don’t hate you,” said Emily. “But I don’t imagine I’ll ever have warm feelings toward you. That’s just the way it is.”
    “I’m sure all of this is hard for you” Dan had let a softer tone into her voice.
    I don’t want your sympathy. I used to babysit kids older than you.
    “Thanks,” Emily said, stiffening as she set