Football is Murder (Bee's Bakehouse Cozy Mysteries Book 4) (Bee's Bakehouse Mysteries) (12 page)

“Nothing happened. Just a feeling,” she whispered.

“Okay. Good. Come on back here. I was going to tell you what I found, but it sounds like you need to get out of there quick stat.”

Jessie dialed off and started the car again. Innocuous as Rockfield seemed, she knew, there had been a murder there. Sure, she could say the same thing about Springdale in the past, but there was something different about this.

She just wished she knew what.

* * *

Jessie felt a blast of relief when she walked through the doors of Springdale police department.

“Is the chief in his office?”

Officer Stanley nodded and returned her attention to the elderly couple at the counter.

Jessie carried on through and knocked on the door of the office.

“Jessie. There you are,” he said, looking more excitable than usual.

She threw herself down in the guest chair. Concocting that story at the Reporter office had taken more out of her than she’d realized at the time.

“He didn’t tell you anything?”

Jessie shook her head. “Didn’t mention his visit. I tried to subtly ask if he thought that maybe they had the wrong guy for the crime, but he wouldn’t be drawn.”

Chief Daly tapped his chin. “So that’s not what he spoke to Chad about.”

Jessie sighed. “I’ve been thinking. Maybe Marvin went to see Chad to try and get some sordid details. Chad refused to talk. That’s why he didn’t tell me—there was nothing to tell.”

The chief steepled his fingers and looked at her with a smile. “The same thing crossed my mind too,” he said, before reached over and shuffling a pile of papers at the edge of his desk. “Until I requested this from Rockfield PD.”

Jessie took the piece of paper and stared at it. It was a copy of the visitor log from Rockfield police department. She skimmed down the list looking for Marvin’s name. She found it and stared at the entry. It showed his name, occupation, the person he was visiting. And his entry and exit times. Jessie gasped.

“According to this, he was in there for almost an hour.”

Chief Daly nodded. “Exactly. And there’s more. When I’m interviewing a suspect, I can sit in there with him for as long as it takes to get the information I need. That’s not true for a journalist or other visitor. There’s no way Marvin sat there for an hour if Chad didn’t want him to. We don’t let the media harass people in our custody like that.”

“What do you think happened?”

The chief shrugged. “We’ll get to that. Have a look through the rest of the log for that day.”

Jessie returned her attention to the sheet of paper. She worked her way through the entire list, but there was nobody there who she recognized. There was only one other visitor for Chad, though.

“Marty Williams III? Is that who you mean? I don’t know who that is.”

Coach Daly smiled. “Oh, I think you do. But you know him as Coach Williams.”

“Oh,” Jessie said, staring at the page. She had expected something more dramatic than that. “I guess that’s nothing strange, right? Player gets arrested, coach comes to reassure him.”

“Look at the time, Jessie,” the chief said, clearing his throat.

Jessie glanced down. Two fifteen. “So?”

His eyes widened. “That’s just before I got a call from Rockfield PD telling me that Chad wanted to talk.”

“He asked for you?”

“Trust me. After being interrogated by Chief Carston, you’d ask for me too. So would anybody in his right mind. He’s a bit of a hard case. My point is Chad Denver is silent. Refuses to clear his name or explain how he got that cash. He gets a visit from his coach. Suddenly he’s chatty Cathy?”

Jessie nodded, thinking. “And whatever the coach said to him didn’t take very long to get across. He was only in there for five minutes. What’s going on, Chief?”

Chief Daly shook his head. “I don’t know, Jessie. But I intend to find out.”

Chapter 14

The next morning, Chief Daly was waiting at the curbside as soon as Jessie opened her front door. She rushed down the short path and jumped into the cruiser.

The chief had called her at six in the morning and asked her to accompany him to Rockfield PD. She had been apprehensive at first—it was all very well her sitting in on interviews in Springdale, but what if that wasn’t the done thing over in Rockfield? Plus there was the media attention that the case had attracted. But Chief Daly had been adamant.

“Chief, you don’t need to take me along. If I’m going to be a liability you can tell me—I won’t be offended.”

“Liability,” he laughed. “Oh, Jessie. You must think I’m a lot nicer than I am. I’m not taking you along as a favor to you. I’m taking you because you can slip along undetected. Like with Ms. Rivers. You were able to notice things while I was the dutiful police interviewer. You know how valuable it is to have another pair of eyes?”

“Wait a minute. She’s a suspect now?”

The chief shook his head. “Everyone’s a suspect until we get to the bottom of this. And it may turn out that we’re wrong; that Chad acted alone and he’s now trying to play mind games with us. That’s not outside the realm of possibility.”

Jessie nodded. She’d been so relieved when Chad was arrested, but now it seemed like they had just scratched the surface. She knew the chief was right, though. It could all be an elaborate attempt to rattle the cops into second guessing themselves.

“So you think he’ll talk this time?”

Chief Daly nodded and smiled a private smile. “Oh, I think he will Jessie. I’ve been giving this a lot of thought. Mr. Denver is going to find out he’s not the only one who can play games.”

“How do you mean?” Jessie asked, intrigued.

“Well, say he’s got this all planned out to a tee. He’s drawing other people into his web to make it look as if they’re covering for him. I go in there and tell him that I’ve had a very interesting conversation with his coach. That we know why he’s suddenly talking. Well, if he’s telling the truth, we’re going to have a very alarmed suspect on our hands.”

“And if he’s not?”

Chief Daly sighed. “I don’t know. The benefit of trying to crack public figures is we’ve got access to footage of them that we simply don’t have of the general public. I’ve been watching footage, Jessie. The funny thing is he appears like a straightforward guy. Now, that could be an act for the cameras. But I’ve watched press conference footage going back ten years, as well as YouTube videos of Ravens training sessions. I’ll give him one thing—he’s consistent.”

Jessie sat back in her seat as they drove. The sun was beginning to peek through the clouds. She felt a blast of relief. It seemed to her that this was it—they were about to crack the case. She had to admit she was looking forward to it—now she’d be able to focus on showing Melanie all of the great things she had rediscovered about Springdale since she’d moved back.

* * *

“I’m afraid you can’t go in there, Chief Daly,” an officer said as they approached the lockup area in the Rockfield police department.

The chief balked and Jessie glimpsed the formidable side that only showed through when it was needed. The officer looked a little unnerved, but he stood his ground.

“I’m sorry, Chief Daly,” he whispered, jerking his head toward the lockup. “I’m afraid there’s been another murder.”

“What, Officer Keith?” Chief Daly bellowed. “Does that have to do with our investigation? Your chief called me in to help out; to make sure that you got this thing cracked as quickly as possible. Now, that includes finding the right guy. I’ve got—”

Officer Keith shook his head. “I know we don’t have the right guy.”

“What are you talking about?” Jessie asked shakily, looking between the two officers.

“It’s Gary Gonzales. He plays for the Ravens. Well, he used to. He was found slumped in the back room of a nightclub over on Third.”

Jessie steadied herself against the reception desk. This whole episode was getting more and more sinister by the day.

“Chad still in custody?”

Officer Keith nodded grimly. “Yes, sir. The first thing we did was check the camera feeds from last night.”

“Has word got out?”

“No,” the officer said, shaking his head. “But I don’t imagine it’ll take long. We only got the call less than an hour ago. The vic hasn’t been formally identified, but one of the guys is a fan so he recognized him immediately.”

“You’re sure it’s the same killer?” Chief Daly said, sounding as if he didn’t doubt that for a moment.

“The crime scene investigators haven’t finished, but it looks that way. Body found in a public place. No weapon or visible injuries.”

The chief shook his head and turned to Jessie. He exhaled slowly. “Let’s go.”

Jessie balked. “But there’s been another killing. Shouldn’t we stay and see what we can do to help?”

Chief Daly pursed his lips and Jessie understood from that that she should wait until they were clear of the building to say what was on her mind.

* * *

“I don’t understand,” Jessie said, as soon as they had taken their seats in Kate’s Café in Rockfield and ordered two coffees.

Chief Daly opened a sugar sachet and stirred it into his cup. “Take it from me. It’s best if we give this a couple days to settle. As soon as the media gets hold of it, they’re gonna be all over this street.” He glanced out the window. “Rockfield PD will struggle to get in their door every morning, never mind get any police work done. It’ll be a mess. An innocent man locked up for a crime he didn’t commit.”

Jessie’s heart sank. She wondered if this was the reason why she’d felt so funny every time she walked past his house.

“Why didn’t he tell you? If it transpires that it’s the same killer, then why would Chad go to jail for a crime he didn’t commit? As it stands, this could ruin his career. I don’t get it.”

The chief shook his head. “Neither do I. Trust me, Jessie. I am going to get to the bottom of this.”

“But I thought you said—”

“I said it was best to stay away from Rockfield PD while they worked through this mess. I never said we couldn’t work on the case.”

“What are we going to do?”

He narrowed his eyes and stared into the distance. “It’s not a question of we,” he said.

Jessie’s heart sank. The thought of being excluded from this investigation at this point made her agitated. Chief Daly must have seen her surprise.

“It’s a question of what you can do,” he finished quickly.

* * *

“I can’t do that,” Jessie gasped when the chief had shared his idea with her.

He nodded. She knew he wasn’t happy with her decision, but he had told her that he respected her choice, given the danger involved in the plan.

“It’s…” she flailed around mentally, searching for a way to explain. “It’s… just not something I’d be comfortable with,” she whispered. “Can’t you or one of your officers go?”

He shook his head. “I’m afraid not. After what’s just happened with the case, we’ve got to anticipate that these guys will be lawyering up big time. If a uniformed cop approaches them, it may just be the leverage they’re looking for to go after us for a settlement. Rockfield PD is going to have to play it very carefully from now on.”

I’m the only one who can do this,
Jessie thought. But that wasn’t enough to force her hand. She had to be realistic, she knew. And she didn’t have the stomach for this—she doubted many people had.

“That’s fine, Jessie. We’ll think of another way.”

Jessie couldn’t help but notice the lack of conviction in his voice.

* * *

Later, after she had returned to the Bakehouse and worked the rest of the day, Jessie was relieved to sink into the couch. She and Melanie had fallen into a routine already. She had to admit that it wasn’t unpleasant, even though she felt guilty for spending her time in front of the TV. After an exhausting day, all she wanted to do was relax and chat to her cousin while they watched something totally non-taxing and forgettable.

“What do you want to watch?” Melanie asked, her hand on the remote.

Jessie shook her head. “You choose. After the day I’ve just had, I’d be happy to sit here and watch paint dry.”

“Okay, good point,” Melanie said, shuffling over to make more room. “I spent the day getting my nails done and flicking through some of Julia’s latest book purchases. I’ll be the brain for this evening.”

Jessie smiled gratefully and closed her eye. She had brought back two generous portions of chili for dinner. All she needed to do now was heat up the food and then relax with a movie and a glass of wine.

A moment later, her eyes snapped open.

Melanie had flicked to KTN News, which was covering the discovery of the second body in Rockfield. Jessie was about to ask her to change the channel when she stopped.

Just as the chief had predicted, the street outside Rockfield police department was lined with people. In the background, Jessie could see two other news crews.

“Wow,” Melanie whistled. “There wasn’t half as much coverage of the first murder.”

“You know about the second?” Jessie asked. She’d been careful not to mention it because she wasn’t sure who the chief had told.

Melanie nodded. “Yeah, of course. It was all over the TV when I was in the salon earlier.”

“Wow,” Jessie said, shaking her head. Melanie was right. There had been media coverage of the first murder, but nothing like this. She tuned in to what the anchor was saying back in the studio.

“The double murder of two Ravens players has shocked and scandalized the town of Rockfield. We’ll see what Rockfield PD have got to say soon. Right now we’ll go back to Jenny on the scene. Let’s hear what folk out there are thinking.”

The scene cut to the blond news reporter who was standing with a woman Jessie thought she recognized. It wouldn’t be strange if she did—many people from Rockfield worked in Springdale and came to the café for lunch on weekdays.

“I’m here with Virginia,” the reporter shouted to the camera. “Virginia, tell me a little about the atmosphere in your town today.”

The woman nodded, grim-faced. She stared straight into the camera. “We’re afraid,” she said in a small voice. “Two murders in the space of a week. What makes it worse is the cops seem to have no idea what’s happening. They arrested an innocent man and paraded him in front of us. Now it turns out that the real killer has been out there all along.”