“What’s it called?”

Julia’s curiosity brought Kate’s head up. The girl’s bruises had faded to yellow, but she was still obviously sore from the accident. At the moment, she was lying on the couch, reading a book. The fact she even wanted to be in the same room with Kate brought a smile to Kate’s lips.

“‘Microseismic Investigation of Rock Fracture and its Application in Rock and Petroleum Engineering.’” Kate raised her brows, a smirk tugging at her mouth. No way that would interest the girl.

“Petroleum’s like oil, right?”

“Yep.”

“Uncle Mitch would probably like that article.”

Kate smiled. “Yeah, he probably would.”

Julia levered herself off the couch.

“You need something?” Kate sat up to help her.

“No. I want to show you something.”

With a sigh, Kate set the papers on the coffee table. She slipped off her glasses and waited. Julia had opted to stay home with her today instead of going shopping with the grandmas, instead of going to a baseball game with Reed and the grandpas. Ryan was at the office for a few hours. It was just the two of them.

And that little fact made Kate shift nervously on the floor. She was probably foolish in getting her hopes up that she and Julia had finally found common ground. But she wanted to think that more than anything.

Julia stepped back into the room and handed Kate a magazine.

“What’s this?”

“Page seventeen. ‘Tertiary Western Cascade Magnetic Arc.’” With slow movements, Julia climbed up on the couch again and laid her hot-pink cast across her middle. When Kate lifted her brows, she shrugged. “The Cascade magnetic arc is the major structural element in the Juan de Fuca-North American plate boundary.”

“How do you know that?” Confusion ran through Kate, followed by amazement Julia would even know how to pronounce those words.

“I read it.”

“You did?”

“Yeah. My mom wrote it.”

Kate swallowed as she looked down at the journal in her hand. On page seventeen, the by-line read, Anne Harrison, PhD.

“Daddy said you drilled that definition into his brain when you were writing it.”

“Did he?” Tears stung Kate’s eyes. Had she really written the article? “I wish I remembered.”

Julia was silent behind her. And then she said, “I remember a lot of things.”

“You do?”

“Yeah. Like how you used to take me to your office at the college and let me play on your computer. Or how you used to drag Daddy hiking with you in the mountains. He never liked that.”

Laughing, Kate glanced back down at the journal. Julia had saved it, all this time. She’d memorized the words, even though she probably didn’t understand what they meant. And today, she’d shared it. Emotions stirred in Kate. “Your dad’s kind of a city boy.”

A smile split Julia’s angelic face. “That’s just what Uncle Mitch says too.” Then her smile faded. “Maybe someday we could go hiking like we used to.”

Hope welled inside Kate’s soul. More than anything, she wanted to bridge the gap between them, but she didn’t want to do anything to make Julia pull back. This was a first step. A big step. So instead of reaching for her daughter and drawing her close like she wanted to do, she squeezed Julia’s ankle. “I’d like that, very much.”

The doorbell rang, and Julia looked up.

Kate pushed up from the floor. “You stay put, queen of the couch. I’ll get it.”

Two men dressed in suits stood on the other side of the door when Kate pulled it open. “Can I help you?” she asked.

The taller of the two pulled ID from his breast pocket. “Ma’am. I’m Detective Peterson. This is Detective Carson. SFPD. Are you Mrs. Harrison?”

Kate pushed the door open wider. Tingling fingers of dread tiptoed up her spine. “Actually, the name’s Alexander. What’s this about?”

His companion’s eyes narrowed. “I recognize you from the newspaper.”

“That’s right,” Detective Peterson said, recognition flickering over his face. “The press conference. You’re the woman without a past.”

Kate doubted they were here to chat about a picture in the paper. “What can I do for you?”

Detective Peterson flashed a smile. “We have a few questions about your accident the other day.”

The accident. Of course. Silly of her to be on edge so quickly. Stepping back, she gestured inside. “Won’t you come in?”

Shoes clicked behind her on the hardwood floor as the men followed Kate into the living room. Julia sat up from her spot on the couch. “Detectives, this is my daughter, Julia. Julia, these men have a few questions about the accident.”

Detective Peterson stepped closer to the couch. “Cool cast. They didn’t have nifty colors like that when I was a kid. You got lots of signatures on it?”

Julia shrugged. “Not yet.”

“Bet you’ll have it filled up before long.” He studied her battered face. “Looks like you got a little banged up. How are you feeling?”

“Okay.”

Detective Carson flipped open a notebook. “Ms. Alexander, can you tell us where you went on Thursday?”

“I was here in the morning. Ryan, Julia, and I drove into the city. We parked in Ryan’s building garage. He went to work, and Julia and I walked downtown.”

“How long were you away from the vehicle?” he asked, jotting notes.

“I’m not sure. A few hours, maybe.”

“Did Mr. Harrison drive the vehicle after you left it in the garage?”

“I don’t believe so, no.”

He continued making notes. “Did Mr. Harrison know you were driving his car?”

“Yes. He knew I was going to take Julia to her softball practice when we were done, then come back and get him.”

“So he knew you’d be alone in the car?”

Her eyes narrowed. “Yes. What’s this about, Detective?”

Peterson stepped up next to Carson and smiled. “Just following up on some conflicting information. Are you living here, Ms. Alexander?”

Kate’s adrenaline jumped. “Not exactly. You obviously read about me in the paper. We’re taking some time getting to know each other again.”

“Of course you are,” Peterson said. “How would you classify your relationship with Mr. Harrison?”

“I don’t know that I would.” Nervous tension ran through Kate at the vague questions. “What does this have to do with my accident?”

“Are you aware Mr. Harrison’s insurance company is grumbling about his repaying the claim he collected after you supposedly died?” Carson asked.

Kate’s stomach clenched. “No. He didn’t mention it.”

“Probably didn’t want to worry you.” Peterson flashed that smile again. For some reason, it did nothing to calm Kate’s nerves.

“Do you know how much that claim was for, Ms. Alexander?” Carson asked. When she shook her head, he raised his brow. “A million dollars.”

Kate’s eyes widened before she checked the emotion.

“That’s a lot of money. Even for a man like Ryan Harrison. Especially five years ago.”

Bile rose in Kate’s throat. Knowing exactly where this was going, she turned toward Julia. “Honey, go upstairs.”

Julia rose from the couch. “Mom—”

Kate ushered her toward the stairs. “It’s okay. I’ll be up in a minute.” She waited until Julia rounded the corner, then set her jaw and turned back to the detectives. “If you’re trying to imply Ryan had anything to do with my accident—”

“The brake line was punctured,” Carson said.

“What?”

“Three holes. Too evenly spaced to be the result of a rock. We pulled the vehicle from the water this morning. You lucked out. If you’d gone in anywhere else along that highway, you’d have dropped right into the ocean, drown before help got there.”

Kate eased down to the arm of the sofa. Someone had tampered with the car. Someone had intentionally tried to hurt her.

And Julia in the process.

“Would have taken a little while for the brake fluid to drip out, which is probably why the brakes didn’t go out right away,” Peterson added. “Whoever punctured the line knew that.”

“Ms. Alexander,” Carson said, “Did you drive Mr. Harrison’s car Tuesday morning?”

Kate’s brain was a mass of confusing thoughts. “No.”

“Did Mr. Harrison?”

“Um.” Why was she having trouble thinking clearly? Tuesday… She’d spent Monday night here. In the guest bedroom. The next day, they’d gone out to see Janet Kelly. She’d had her CT scan. They’d gone back to her house in Moss Beach and made love. She swallowed. “Yes. He went in to his office for an hour that morning, I think.”

“Was he alone?”

“I think so. I don’t know.”

The detectives exchanged glances.

“Do you know this woman?” Carson asked, handing her a photo.

Kate studied the picture and shook her head shook. “No. Should I?”

“Her name’s Janet Kelly. Her body was found yesterday.”

Kate glanced up sharply.

“A black Jaguar matching the one we pulled from the bay was spotted in front of her house around the estimated time of death Monday morning, roughly nine a.m.”

No. That wasn’t right. They’d gotten a late start. They hadn’t reached Janet Kelly’s houseboat until after noon. She swallowed hard, unsure what to tell them, not wanting to give too much away. “You must be mistaken.”

Carson handed her another photo. “How about this man? Do you recognize him?”

Kate’s eyes grew wide when she looked at the photograph of Jake. Steel-gray eyes gazed back at her. Fear tickled the back of her throat. “Yes. Why?”

“Jacob McKellen was a silent partner in Grayson Pharmaceuticals, a Canadian company Harrison’s conglomerate recently acquired,” Carson said coldly. “We pulled his body from the bay last week.”