Stand (12 page)

I let out a deep breath forcing tension from my body. It was after midnight and I was exhausted. It had been a long day. There was still one thing that was bugging me.

I slumped back in the office chair and rotated around to face Skeet. “Who are you?”

He laughed a little, but didn’t answer me.

“No, I mean it. You run the gym with Moshe, you fit in at a country club, you and Jack are best friends, you were in the military, but all I ever see you do is work out with me.”

It was bugging me. Like an itch under my skin. I didn’t get him. I knew he worked at the gym, but I had never seen him do anything there, and he had been amazingly available to me, as if he had all the free time in the world. When we were at the country club today, he fit in like was born there, but most days he dressed like he was one step away from being homeless. He drove a beat up old pickup, but his guns were top of the line and not cheap. He was an enigma.

“Elizabeth reminds me of my ex-wife.” He shrugged. “My dad likes to golf, so I’ve been in country clubs before. I like working at the gym and working out with you. Jack’s a good guy.” That was it.

I guess he thought that answered my questions. Instead inside I was going. Ex-wife? Dad? Golf? Country Club? I am pretty sure my mouth was hanging open.

I was still staring at Skeet, who had gone back to ignoring me, when Jack stepped into the observation room.

“We’re going to question Elizabeth in the morning. We can get rooms at a hotel, if you’d like to stay.” He was talking to Skeet. At first I wondered why he wasn’t asking us both and then I realized that he knew I wasn’t going anywhere. Skeet was the question. I couldn’t help but grin. I didn’t think Skeet was going anywhere either.

Chapter 23

We got rooms at the Marriott and the first thing I did was get a shower. Afterwards I sent Tammy a text to have her take Max out in the morning. Then I fell into bed. My paranoia has some plus sides, mainly that I always carry spare supplies in my car. I had deodorant, clean underwear, and a spare shirt, so at least I was clean and had something to wear tomorrow. If I dreamed that night I don’t remember it. I slept so deeply I don’t think I even moved.

My cell phone alarm went off at six. I hadn’t had more than five hours sleep at the most, but that was actually pretty good for me these days. I should have bounced out of bed, but being shot at makes a person tired. I dragged myself out of bed and pushed through my yoga routine. Mountain pose, forward bend, cobra, down dog, up dog, plank, breathe. After practicing my poses until they flowed instead of stuttered, I did my best to put myself together. Even with my emergency car kit it wasn’t easy. I had to wear the same pants as the day before, a tank top, hoodie, the same boots, and whatever makeup was in my purse. I used the hotel hair dryer, and then decided I was a lost cause and put my hair up in a ponytail. It wasn’t my best, and it didn’t really go together, but it would do.

By seven forty-five I was in the lobby to meet Jack and Skeet for breakfast. We had a killer to catch.

______

Our plan today was pretty simple: get Elizabeth to confess. So easy, right? Jack was on the phone for most of breakfast, and Skeet isn’t exactly a conversationalist, so there wasn’t a whole lot of talking around the breakfast table.

That was fine with me. I used the time to check the security at my home, check on Max and Kitty, text Tammy to make sure that she gave Max an extra treat. We weren’t usually separated this long. I wasn’t worried about Kitty, but Max usually went everywhere with me. I was a little worried about him. Tammy reassured me that everything was fine. Max was fine. The house was fine. I stopped texting her when she asked me if Skeet or Jack had hit on me yet. She will never give up on finding me a man. I have given up, but Tammy is still holding out.

I pulled a notebook out of my shoulder bag. I wanted to organize my thoughts. I felt like I had almost every piece of the puzzle but one, and that one was key. I have always been a list maker. My mind works best when I have everything down on paper.

The ride to the police station was quiet. I barely paid any attention to Skeet or Jack. Something about this whole case just wasn’t fitting, or maybe it fit too well. It kept spinning through my mind Muriel, Elizabeth, and James. Something wasn’t right. I was either missing something big, or I was overthinking everything. Honestly, either was possible.

When we reached the station I asked for a room or a corner and some tape. They found me a closet. Well, they claimed it was an office, but considering that I could touch the walls with my arms stretched out and there were no windows, I’m pretty sure it was a closet. There was an old office chair, that was a little creaky and leaned a bit to the left, and a small table. That was it. It worked for me though. I left the door open so I didn’t feel completely claustrophobic, put some Beatles on my iPod, and got to work. I started with the facts.

Muriel Fitzgerald died in 2008. She drew up her last will in 2006 after she started getting sick. She used an unknown lawyer and no one in her family knew about the will. She died of a wound infection from possible neglect.

Elizabeth Fitzgerald was Muriel’s sole heir. She hired Muriel’s last caregiver. She hired Johnson, Lewes, and Ferguson in 2009 to discredit the last will done up by Muriel Fitzgerald, based on her frame of mind at the time the will was done. The settlement was worth millions.

James Barnes, Junior Partner at Johnson, Lewes, and Ferguson was assigned a small part of the Fitzgerald case. He suspected Elizabeth Fitzgerald of neglect, possibly even the murder, of Muriel. He claimed he was threatened and had to run in order to save his life. He went missing in 2009 and was shot and killed yesterday.

Lori Claret had an affair with James.

I stepped, okay there wasn’t room to step, I leaned back. Papers lined the right wall of the closet.

Who was I missing?

I added James’ family, the other people I had talked to at the law firm, and Muriel’s caregivers and groundskeeper.

I leaned back again. “Let It Be” was playing. I hummed along under my breath. I was still missing something. I read over my information beginning to end, piece by piece. I was on my third read through with no inspiration.

I spun my chair to face the other wall and pulled out another piece of paper. What were the facts and what was I supposing.

Fact: Muriel was dead.

Supposition: She was murdered.

Supposition: Elizabeth killed or conspired to kill her.

Fact: James was murdered.

Fact: James and Lori were having an affair.

Fact: James and Lori were blackmailing Elizabeth for Muriel’s murder.

Supposition: Elizabeth killed or conspired to kill James.

I sat back and looked at my list. It all seemed pretty fair to me. The suppositions were based on facts, and interviews; they were not random stabs in the dark.

“
Yellow Submarine
”
played while I switched from one wall to another. I had found my gap. It would require another supposition. I added it to my wall.

Supposition: Elizabeth wouldn’t get her hands dirty.

Supposition: There was someone else manipulating, taking advantage, or hiding behind the scenes. That person would get their hands dirty.

Supposition: That person would kill again to cover up what they had done. Elizabeth could be next.

I was stretching it with my last few suppositions, but in my gut it felt right. Like I had found the piece I needed. I wondered if in the end this all came down to money for someone who didn’t care about Muriel, or Elizabeth, or James; but did care about several million dollars.

It was time to get Jack.

I had been focused on my walls for longer than I thought. It was almost lunch. I was leaving my “office” when I saw Jack down the hall. He was coming to look for me. Elizabeth had just come in. They were ready to question her, and he knew I would want to observe.

“Wait. There’s something I want to show you.” I pulled him into the “office.” It was barely big enough for two. We were squished together and turning from wall to wall was a little difficult.

Jack looked at it for a few minutes and nodded his head. He called the lead detective over and the two of them talked in the hallway for a while. Detective Carter didn’t look very happy, but eventually Jack came back to me.

He smiled as he approached me. “No one can fault your logic. They ordered pizza, let’s have lunch.” He led me away from the office. “We’ll question Elizabeth afterwards. It will do her good to sit and wait.”

I was going to have at least half an hour to talk to Jack and Detective Carter before they questioned Elizabeth.

Five minutes into my first slice of cheese pizza I was embarrassed to discover both Jack and the detective had already thought there was someone else involved. My breakthrough wasn’t really a breakthrough.

Detective Carter looked at me across the table with a sneer, “Of course, I am going to try and find out who was working with Elizabeth.”

I didn’t know how to respond. I looked over at Jack. He gave me one of those smiles that felt like an apology. “It’s not our first investigation, Char.”

Ouch. Well okay, he had a point. I knew Jack respected my opinion, but this was the detective’s case and we needed to work well with her. My intuition shouted this was more complicated than just asking Elizabeth about her accomplice. I felt like somewhere in the last few days I had found or heard something important, but that fact was lost, swirling in my subconscious. Faced with the hostility of the detective I decided discretion was the better part of valor and I would be best served at that moment by keeping my mouth shut.

We ate our pizza, Skeet and I silently. After lunch we walked toward the back of the police station to the interrogation room. Elizabeth and her lawyer were there. Jack and Detective Carter started questioning her. Skeet and I made ourselves comfortable in front of the monitors. I didn’t last long leaning back in the chair before curiosity and nerves had me sitting up and glued to it like a kid to a candy store window.

The detective opened the questioning turning on the recorder then by introducing herself and Jack, giving the date, time, and location, and naming Elizabeth and her counsel. I was still a little subdued from being chastised at lunch so I was, for the moment, happy to just observe.

“Ms. Fitzgerald, thank you so much for coming in to speak with us. I apologize for the inconvenience and the difficulty of these questions we have to ask. We will try to get this wrapped up as quickly as possible.” Detective Carter’s tone was conciliatory and polite. She seemed like she was apologizing to Elizabeth for a delay in car service rather than a murder investigation. It was the perfect tone to take with Elizabeth. Perhaps I had underestimated Detective Carter.

Elizabeth nodded her head as if she was the queen of England.

“We have some questions to ask you regarding the investigation into a lawyer here in D.C., James Barnes. Are you familiar with him?”

I expected Elizabeth to look to her lawyer, but she smiled and said “James Barnes, yes, he’s a lawyer who worked with my law firm.” Her face and eyes were completely blank and innocent. She smiled at Jack and the detective like a third grader happy to help. I didn’t know what was happening here, but it was not what I had expected. Elizabeth was comfortable in her innocence. Comfortable being questioned.

Jack took over.

“When did you last see James Barnes?”

“Oh it’s been years. He isn’t my lawyer. He worked at the firm. I don’t even think he works there anymore.”

Elizabeth’s lawyer didn’t even appear concerned. Whatever we were missing, this interview wasn’t going to help. I looked over at Skeet. He was sitting straight up and looked more invested than he had in a while.

“What do you think?”

“Let’s go take a look at your wall.”

Skeet and I left the observation room while the interview was still in process. We had a final piece to put in place. My subconscious had been twirling and jumping in the background. I thought I might have the answer. I just wanted to take one last look.

Chapter 24

Charlotte Marshall wasn’t responding the way the woman wanted her to respond. She wasn’t afraid and cowering. She wasn’t hiding and backing down. She wasn’t even paying any attention. She wasn’t even in the state! She was off playing detective. It was completely unacceptable.

The woman paced her office. For the last few weeks she devoted time, money, and energy on Charlotte Marshall and she wanted her dead. She wanted her to suffer, to bleed.

The woman’s perfectly maintained true red hair fanned out behind her as she spun. She calmed herself by counting the diamonds in her tennis bracelet. When her breathing was even and controlled she stepped behind her desk and gracefully sat in the white chair. She pulled the antique phone towards her and made a call. She had another job for Grant. It was time for Georgia Layeen to deliver a more personal message.

Chapter 25

Back in the “office” Skeet and I stared at the walls. Skeet studied one side while I studied the other. The sense that the answer was here taunted me.

“Who’s this?”

Skeet’s voice startled me from my reverie. I turned to see him pointing at one of my lists. The room wasn’t large enough to require more than a turn before I was standing in front of the paper he pointed at. It was the list of other players I had written earlier the day.

“Those are all the other people I could think of that might be remotely involved.”

“Tell me about them.”

I pointed to the first one. “Jeannie Barnes, Jimmy’s wife, full time mother, part time interior designer. She was the first to report Jimmy missing. She claims to know nothing about his work. I haven’t talked to her since the beginning. I had a good impression of her, but what bugs me now is that she didn’t indicate in any way that he was having an affair. I find it hard to believe there were no signs he was seeing another woman.”

Skeet nodded, he was listening.

“You met Martin Soren, the groundskeeper, and Richard Francis, Muriel’s lawyer, with me, Bernice was the first caregiver, and Anna the second.”

“Right, but who are these two?”

The last two names on the list.

“Norma is a secretary at Jimmy’s law firm. I spoke with her for a few minutes when I went to question Lori Claret.”

“Cindy Carter was Jimmy’s former assistant. I spoke with her the first time I went to the law firm. She admitted to calling me and trying to get me to stop asking questions.”

Skeet and I looked at each other. Synapses fired. We both turned at once and tried to get out of the office, resulting in a shuffle at the doorway. We finally burst through. I yelled for Jack. I don’t know what I thought yelling for him would accomplish, it’s not like he was waiting for me. Skeet is much more level headed – he just headed back toward the interrogation room. Jack was in the hallway walking toward us. They must have been taking a break a from questioning Elizabeth.

In my gut I knew this was it. The answer I had been looking for the missing puzzle piece.

I got to Jack first. Skeet was following sedately. I started babbling the second I saw Jack. While he was trying to make sense of what I was saying Skeet approached and cut right to chase.

“There is someone else you should bring in for questioning.”

I love how he gets to just say that. If I said that I would have to explain why and how I came to that conclusion. Skeet says question them, and that’s that.

I was a little annoyed, but I tried to focus on the positive. Jack was listening to Skeet, and Detective Carter would listen to Jack. I showed him my wall, and the names, particularly Cindy Carter. Jack tore my list from the wall and together with the detective strode back into the interrogation. Skeet and I followed, returning to the observation room.

“Elizabeth, again so sorry to keep you waiting.” Jack had his most charming smile on his face. As the recipient of that smile a time or two, I knew just how effective it could be. Elizabeth practically pushed her breasts out of her shirt in an effort to help him. I’m not sure what she thought her breasts were going to do, but I have to give her credit for the effort.

“Do you know someone named Cynthia Carter, I believe she goes by Cindy?”

If I hadn’t been glued to the observation monitor I might not have seen the crack in Elizabeth’s façade. It only lasted a fraction of a second, but it was there. She leaned back, no longer attempting to share her silicone enhanced breasts with Jack.

“Cynthia Carter?” She mused in a tone of pure innocence. “No, I don’t believe I know anyone by that name.”

She must have given her lawyer some signal, because he leaned forward and started asking why we were asking these questions and what we were getting at, and his client was very busy, etc
etc.

I tuned out. They weren’t going to get anywhere with Elizabeth. She was too accomplished a liar. I fished my cell phone out of my pocket. It was about two thirty in the afternoon.

“Cindy should be at work.” I commented as I looked over at Skeet. He grinned at me. Grins from Skeet are a rare thing. He scowls, glares, and stares, but he rarely grins. They are infectious. I couldn’t help it. I grinned back. Neither one of us were going to be left out of the action this time.

By the time Jack and the detective had done whatever it was that they needed to do. I don’t know coordinate something, talk to a judge, do cop things. Skeet and I were ready, coats on, keys in hand. We were going with.

Detective Carter rolled her eyes and sighed when she saw me. I don’t think she minded Skeet so much, but I clearly annoyed her. Jack just gave me that Jack look of his that said he knew I was going to be here. It was a look I knew well. It was a look I was actually pretty fond of.

I am sure Jack would have rather drove with Skeet and I, but he rode with Detective Carter. Skeet and I followed, and I’m sure we had much more fun.

Even with city traffic we were at the law firm in less than fifteen minutes. We all parked in the same parking garage where I had been less than a week ago.

Detective Carter gave Skeet and I a disapproving look.

“Wait out here.” She could have at least said please. Since it was freezing cold out, I decided we would let them go ahead, and then follow. I am pretty sure Jack knew that was my plan.

Skeet didn’t even wait a few minutes, about ten seconds after they left us, he walked inside after them. I hustled to catch up. I wasn’t waiting outside by myself.

We had just made ourselves comfortable in the lobby when Jack and Detective Carter exited the elevators. Cindy Carter wasn’t with them.

“Where is she?”

Jack didn’t look happy. “She left about half an hour ago. She got a phone call and rushed out. I think Elizabeth got to her.”

“So what next? Where do we go next?” While Jack spoke with us, Detective Carter stepped away to use her phone. She spoke for a few minutes before coming back to join us.

“We have a team going to her home address.” Detective Carter informed us. “We also have her boyfriend’s address. He is a registered gun owner. Same type of gun that was used to kill Jimmy. We’re going there. You want to come with us?”

“Absolutely.” As if I would say no.

While we drove, I ran through scenarios in my mind. Cindy and Elizabeth were working together, to some degree. Did Cindy and her boyfriend threaten Jimmy? Did Cindy approach Elizabeth or did Elizabeth approach Cindy? Who had the idea? They seemed like such an unlikely pair.

It was a twenty minute drive to the boyfriend’s house. I didn’t even know his name. Detective Carter had never said. He was just Cindy’s boyfriend. How odd. We parked a few houses down. Jack, the detective, and a few officers would approach the house. Skeet and I were given strict instructions to stay at the car.

We watched them get ready. Watched them approach the house and knock on the front door. Jack called out. I was so intently focused on the scene in front of me that I didn’t notice the scene playing out next to me until the barrel of a gun pressed to the back of my head.