Love Can Be Murder

think I'm dumb."
    "I don't want to put you in danger."
    She teared up. "Just because I'm not as smart as you, Roxann, doesn't mean I'm stupid."
    "I don't think you're stupid, Angora." Roxann sighed. "Melissa Cape is a woman I helped to relocate away from her ex-husband, Frank."
    The tears evaporated. "And Capistrano wants to send her back?"
    "He wants her to testify against her ex, who shot Capistrano's partner and put him in a coma. Meanwhile, Frank Cape is on my ass because he's trying to find her, too."
    "To prevent her from testifying."
    "Right"
    "Wowee. You're the only one who knows where she is?"
    "Yes."
    "Omigod, this is so much better than my job."
    Roxann glanced in the side mirror, perplexed to see no headlights behind her.
    Capistrano had given up the chase? "The story gets a little more complicated."
    "Okay, but talk slow."
    Roxann counted to three. "I left Biloxi because someone broke into my duplex and typed a threat on my computer screen."
    "So you weren't planning to come to my wedding all along?"
    All roads led back to Angora. "I only received the invitation that day."
    "Oh. Was it the freaky Cape guy who broke into your place?"
    "I thought so, but just now when he confronted me at the carnival—"
    "He was here? Did he hurt you?"
    She shook her head. "He was only trying to scare me. Capistrano got there before anything happened."
    "So Joe saved your life?"
    "I wouldn't go that far."
    "He's really dreamy."
    "Can I finish?"
    "Well, he is."
    "Anyway, when I accused Cape of breaking into my place, he denied it."
    "So he lied."
    "No, he truly seemed surprised."
    "But who else could have done it?"
    "Well, there are other ex-husbands, I suppose, who might have found out where I live, but that would take some doing. Cape is a PI, so he has resources."
    "What did the message say?"
    Roxann exhaled. "It said, 'I've got your number, you fake.'"
    "What does that mean?"
    "I honestly don't know."
    "It sounds personal."
    "I had a problem with a roommate, so she might have come back."
    "She?"
    "Elise James—she was a grad student at Notre Dame when we were freshmen, but I didn't know her then. Did you?"
    Angora squinted. "I...don't believe so."
    "The Rescue program paired us up when I moved to Biloxi."
    "What kind of problem did you have with her?"
    Roxann sighed. "It's personal."
    "Ooh, tell me."
    "Elise...made a pass at me."
    The whites of Angora's eyes shone clear in the semi-darkness of the cab. "She's a lesbian?"
    "Actually, I think she might be experimenting."
    "And you weren't interested in experimenting?"
    "No, Angora, I wasn't."
    "Don't get so testy. Can you find out if this woman broke into your place?"
    "I don't know how to contact her. Elise left the program and they don't know where she is."
    "Are there any other suspects?"
    She quirked a brow—Angora was getting into this. "An old boyfriend from Birmingham crossed my mind. He and I parted on bad terms several months ago."
    "Was he violent?"
    "No, but he had an attitude. And a drinking problem, so anything's possible."
    "You have bad taste in men."
    Roxann checked the side mirror—no Capistrano. " We have bad taste in men."
    "Except for Dr. Carl."
    Roxann had to admit that he seemed to be pulling her toward South Bend, but part of that, she acknowledged, was wanting to escape her current problems. "Capistrano had Frank Cape's car impounded, and he won't be able to pick it up until morning. So to get a jump on him, we'll have to drive all night."
    "Okay."
    "And no more credit cards—the charges are too easy to trace. Whatever cash you need, get it from an ATM while we're here."
    Angora sighed. "Without Trenton's card, I don't have any money."
    "What about your own bank account?"
    "Overdrawn—there were too many wedding expenses."
    Roxann slowed the van. "Angora, I have a little money, but we're going to have to be very frugal for the rest of the trip." An alien notion to her cousin.
    But Angora held her left hand out in front of her. Her enormous engagement ring caught the light. "No we won't."

Chapter Thirteen

    "WELCOME HOME, my dear."
    Roxann walked into Dr. Nell Oney's sweatered embrace, inhaling the woman's signature vanilla scent, grateful beyond words that she hadn't changed over the years. But when she felt the woman's frail bones through the heavy clothing, she realized how much her mentor had aged—more gray in her soft brown hair, more lines around her gentle mouth. Still, she remained an attractive woman, aging gracefully.
    "You look