The Guilty Husband

by Stephanie DeCarolis

‘Look, I have to go give the chief an update on the investigation,’ I tell him, brushing off his question. ‘Please don’t forget to let Evidence know this is a rush.’

  ‘You got it, boss.’ Kinnon gives me a mock salute before turning on his heels.

  I roll my eyes and make my way towards Chief McFadden’s office.

  The station house, like most government buildings, is long overdue for some updates. Our utilitarian metal desks are clustered together in the center of the squad room and topped with bulky desktop computers and dusty landline phones. The cement walls are painted a pale green and the old latex paint is slowly peeling away. The Chief has his own wood-paneled office at the back of the squad room, tucked away behind a heavy wooden door.

  ‘Chief? Got a minute?’ I say as I knock on his office door.

  ‘That depends. Have any new evidence on your investigation?’

  McFadden can be an intimidating man, despite his short stature, round waistline, and thinning rust-colored hair. He’s known for his short fuse, but in my experience his bark is usually worse than his bite. I think he has a soft spot for the few female detectives on the force. He’s always been a solid ally but he’s never treated me with kid gloves.

  ‘I might,’ I reply. ‘Lanner and I found a diary in the vic’s apartment. Looks like she was sleeping with her boss. But a bunch of the pages were ripped out of the book. I have Evidence pulling prints now and then I’ll go through all of the entries and see who else we might need to talk to. I definitely want to talk to the boss again first thing tomorrow morning, once Evidence is through with the diary. He told us he barely knew her when we interviewed him earlier.’

  ‘Good,’ the Chief replies nodding his head in agreement. ‘What else are we doing?’

  ‘I have a few of the guys going through CCTV in the areas surrounding the park, but so far we haven’t found any footage of the vic. I took her laptop as well. I have IT going through it now.’

  ‘Very well. Keep me in the loop on this one.’

  ‘No problem, Sir.’

  Chief McFadden went out on a limb giving me this case and so I know that he’s going to be keeping a close eye on my progress. But I don’t mind. This is my chance to show him that I’m capable of running a major investigation on my own. I won’t disappoint him.

  I’m bone-tired by the time I get home. I push open the door to my apartment and drop my bag on the tiny kitchen table.

  ‘Late night?’ Josh calls as he sits up on the couch. His hair is poking out at odd angles and the television is still glowing in front of him. He must have fallen asleep playing video games again. I can’t complain though. Josh works so hard. He recently opened his own gym and he’s been putting in long hours getting the business up and running.

  ‘Yeah. It was a crazy day. But, on the plus side, I got my first major case today. You’re looking at a lead detective.’ I manage a smile despite my exhaustion.

  ‘Wow! That’s amazing! I’m so proud of you, Ali!’

  He pulls himself off the couch and wraps me in a tight hug. Josh and I have been dating for about a year now, and I can’t even begin to count the number of times I’ve mentioned how badly I wanted this chance. He knows how much it means to me, and it feels good see him sharing in my excitement. Josh’s gym took off faster than we ever imagined, so lately it’s been his successes that we’ve celebrated. I’m happy for him, I really am, but I can’t deny that I’m also happy to finally be bringing home some big news of my own.

  ‘What kind of case is it?’ Josh asks.

  ‘Homicide investigation. A woman found in Central Park.’

  ‘Woah! That’s huge! Bet the husband did it.’

  ‘Ha.’ I roll my eyes. ‘She’s not married but I have my suspicions about her boss.’

  I know I shouldn’t be telling Josh too much about the investigation, but I’m wrapped up in the moment of sharing my first big break with him. Besides, I didn’t give him any information that won’t be public knowledge soon enough if my hunch about Vince Taylor is correct.

  ‘How scandalous,’ Josh says, pulling me in for a kiss. ‘I really am proud of you, baby. What do you say we take this celebration into the bedroom?’

  I blush and smile up at him. ‘Yes, lets.’

  Chapter 7

  Vince

  DAY 2

  I wake up to the sound of my cell phone vibrating on my nightstand. I look over at Nicole and she’s still sleeping soundly. She’s probably still recovering from her unusual overindulgence with the wine last night. I swipe my phone off the nightstand and check the caller ID. Jeff.

  I roll out of bed and quietly walk downstairs into my office, shutting the door behind me.

  ‘What’s up, Jeff?’

  ‘I gave some more thought to your … predicament. I think you need to come clean to the cops about your relationship with Layla,’ he advises.

  ‘It wasn’t a relationship. Like I told you, it was a meaningless fling.’

  ‘Well, whatever you want to call it, I think you need to get out ahead of this thing. I don’t trust that a twenty-three-year-old girl kept to herself that she was sleeping with her attractive, millionaire boss.’

  Normally I would taunt Jeff for admitting that I’m attractive, but today I’m in no mood. ‘Ugh, you’re probably right,’ I groan.

  ‘The way I see it, the police have a job to do, which is establishing probable cause to make an arrest. You having an affair with Layla in and of itself isn’t enough to rise to the level of probable cause. However, you are a public figure and these things have a way of coming out. If the police find out you lied about your involvement with this girl, that’s certainly going to look suspicious and bring them that much closer to establishing probable cause. And so it may make sense for you to set the record straight now. But let me be clear, we don’t want to give them more than we have to. We need to be cautious here. You’re under no obligation to help the police charge you with murder.’

  ‘Charge me with murder?’ I swallow hard.

  ‘We’re not anywhere near that bridge yet, so let’s just cross it if we come to it. I’m just trying to prepare you for the worst case scenario. Speaking of the worst case scenario, did you tell Nicole about your involvement with Layla yet?’

  ‘No, I didn’t. I was going to tell her last night but something came up and I just couldn’t do it.’

  ‘I’m coming to get you right now. Let’s go down to the station and talk to this Detective Barnes together. We’ll go over exactly what you are going to say in the car. You’ll have to deal with Nicole afterwards.’

  ‘Okay. Thanks, Jeff. I’ll see you soon.’

  I walk back upstairs to change quickly before Jeff gets here. What does one wear for the day that they blow up their own lives? I eventually decide on a pair of stonewashed jeans and a black polo shirt. I quickly wet my hair and comb it neatly to one side and spray on some of my favorite cologne. I take the time to shave my face and floss my teeth. I need to look clean cut, trustworthy. I may look the part, or at least I hope I do, but my palms are sweating, a sure sign of the tension that’s building behind the facade. I wipe my hands on my jeans and step out of the master bathroom.

  ‘Are you going into the office?’ A groggy Nicole asks, still tucked under our fluffy white duvet.

  ‘Yes, just for a little while. I shouldn’t be long.’

  Nicole nods and nestles back under the blankets.

  I jog downstairs just in time to catch the security footage of Jeff pulling up to the wrought-iron gates at the end of my driveway. I buzz him in and wait on the front steps for him to make his way up the drive.

  ‘Are you ready?’ he asks.

  ‘Ready as I’ll ever be.’

  I slide into the passenger seat of his black Lexus. We drive a few blocks before Jeff pulls onto a side road.

  ‘Just have to get gas,’ he tells me. ‘You want anything?’

  ‘Actually, would you grab me a bottle of water?’ The anxiety of sitting here helpless
ly while on my way to throw some fuel on the fire of a murder investigation has left me parched.

  ‘No problem,’ Jeff says as he climbs out of the car.

  He returns a few minutes later looking ashen. ‘I think you need to see this.’

  He hands me a copy of the World View, a well-known tabloid that has published a handful of photos of me in the past. I see that my face is once again on the front cover.

  Media Mogul a Murderer?

  By Kate Owens for World View

  Vince Taylor, CEO of the well-known tech giant, KitzTech, creator of ultra-trendy apps such as Date Space, Friend Connect, and Secret Message, is at the center of a murder investigation relating to one of his young interns, Layla Bosch (age 23). Bosch’s body was found by a pedestrian yesterday morning along a popular jogging/cycling path in Central Park. A source close to the action confirmed that Taylor (age 39), the married multi-millionaire, was having an affair with the voluptuous victim in the months leading up to her unfortunate death. Was the sexy CEO involved in his intern’s death? We don’t know, but we can’t wait to find out.

  Along with the article, World View has printed the photo of me from the KitzTech website next to a photo of Layla at the intern summer kick-off barbecue. She’s wearing cut-off jeans and a low-cut white tank top and she’s standing in front of KitzTech headquarters, smiling innocently into the camera. She looks impossibly young. I wasn’t even at that barbecue. It’s only attended by the newly hired interns as a way for them to get to know one another, to build camaraderie, before starting their internships.

  I feel the blood drain from my face and my hand starts to shake. I throw the paper into the footwell of Jeff’s car.

  ‘FUCK!’ I shout, slamming my fist again the dashboard. ‘How the hell did World View find out about the affair?’

  ‘Who else knows about it?’

  ‘You’re the only person I told!’

  ‘Well, it certainly didn’t come from me,’ Jeff says. ‘So it looks like Layla wasn’t as careful with your secret as you trusted her to be. That … or the police already know about the affair and they have a leak on their end.’

  ‘I’m fucked!’ I yell. ‘There goes my chance to get ahead of this thing! And what is this bullshit? Can this rag of a publication just call me a murderer like that? Can’t we sue them for libel or something?’

  ‘No,’ Jeff explains calmly. ‘They didn’t actually say you killed her. They certainly suggested it, but they were very careful to phrase their allegations as questions. They’re skirting the line for sure, but at this point you really don’t have a case against them.’

  ‘So what now?’ I drop my head into my hands.

  ‘Now we go to the police and you come clean. It’s still better that they hear the whole story from you.’

  I nod and Jeff starts the car again. We drive to the police station in silence, and I feel like I’ve already been found guilty in the court of public opinion.

  Chapter 8

  Allison

  DAY 2

  I feel almost optimistic as I walk through the parking lot on my way in today, despite the oppressive heat from the morning sun which is already rising off the asphalt in dizzying waves. My plan is to read over Layla’s diary one more time and then go have another chat with Vince Taylor. We’re only on day two of the investigation and I already have a strong lead. I’m feeling pretty positive about it until I see Lanner’s face.

  ‘Have you seen this, Ali?’ He’s calling me by my first name. It must be serious.

  ‘Seen what?’ I take the magazine from his hand. It’s a copy of today’s World View. I read the headline: ‘Media Mogul a Murderer?’

  ‘What the hell?’ I ask aloud slamming the paper onto my desk. ‘How the hell did they find out about Taylor already?’ There goes our upper hand with him. I wanted to take him by surprise with today’s interview. Confront him with the diary before he had a chance to make up any more lies.

  ‘I don’t know, Ali, but the Chief is already asking for you.’

  Shit.

  ‘You were looking for me Chief?’ I ask, standing in his doorway.

  ‘Sit down,’ he instructs. ‘And close the door.’

  I do as I’m told, feeling as though I was just sent to the principal’s office.

  ‘Any idea how World View, of all publications, got a hold of sensitive information about our investigation?’ he asks. I can see his jaw working as he struggles to check his temper.

  ‘No, Sir, I don’t.’ I start making a mental list of everyone who knows what I found in Layla’s diary: me, Lanner, Chief McFadden, and the team down in Evidence. I suppose Kinnon also could have read it before handing it over to be processed. And … there’s Josh. I know I told him more than I should have, but I didn’t give him any names. And he certainly wouldn’t be calling into any tabloids.

  ‘Do some more digging,’ McFadden tells me sternly. ‘Find out if anyone in the victim’s life knew about this affair. I’d hate to find out that someone in this office was feeding sensitive information to the press. But either way, we can’t have reporters knowing more about our investigation than my own detectives.’

  Technically I already knew everything that was printed in the World View article but I get his point. It makes us look like idiots when the tabloids break news about an ongoing investigation before we do.

  ‘Yes, Sir,’ I say leaving his office with my tail between my legs.

  I walk back out into the station room, pretending I don’t notice the whispers swirling around me. Everyone wants to know how the press got a hold of this story and what Chief McFadden had to say about it behind closed doors.

  ‘You okay?’ Lanner asks.

  I ignore the question. ‘Is that diary back from evidence?’

  ‘Yeah, it’s on your desk. No prints on it except the vic’s. But it’s leather so kind of hard to lift prints. Still no way to tell if she tore out those pages herself or not.’

  ‘Thanks. Let’s see if we can get Vince Taylor down here for an interview right away.’

  ‘No need, he’s already here. Showed up a few minutes ago with his lawyer. I put him in interview room two. Thought you might want to be the first one to talk to him.’

  I watch Vince in the interrogation room through the two-way mirror before going in. He’s bouncing his heel nervously in his creamy black leather driving shoes. Could he look more pretentious? His lawyer is furiously whispering something to him. Vince’s head is bent forward and his shoulders sag. A sign of remorse? Or maybe defeat.

  ‘Hello again, Mr Taylor,’ I begin as I walk into the room, taking a seat across from him at the cold metal table.

  ‘Detective Barnes,’ Vince says as he clambers out of the chair, his long legs stumbling under the table as he extends a hand to me.

  I shake his hand coolly. ‘I’m told you wanted to speak with me?’ It’s not time to show my cards just yet. There’s still a chance he hasn’t seen the World View article this morning.

  I see Vince swallow hard, the muscles in his throat working up and down. I post a pleasant smile on my face but in reality I’m studying Vince Taylor closely. Every movement, every twitch, giving away that underneath his smooth, charismatic facade, he’s already breaking.

  ‘Yes,’ his attorney interjects. ‘I’m Jeff Mankin. Mr Taylor’s attorney. My client asked me to bring him down here today to make a statement pertaining to your investigation into Layla Bosch.’

  ‘I appreciate that, Mr Taylor. What was it that you wanted to share with us?’

  Vince looks at me and then back at his attorney before he begins. ‘I, um, had a brief affair with Ms Bosch.’

  ‘Are you saying you were in an intimate relationship with the victim?’

  Vince looks uncomfortable, squirming in his seat, and I can see the tips of his ears turning red. It gives me a sense of satisfaction to see Mr Perfect so shaken. I know I’m on the right track.

  ‘It wasn’t a relationship exactly. It was just … a physical thi
ng,’ Vince corrects.

  ‘Did anyone else know about your affair?’

  ‘No. Definitely not. Not unless Layla told someone, but I don’t think she would have …’

  ‘How is any of this relevant?’ Mankin interrupts.

  I ignore him and continue my questioning. ‘How long did this … affair … last?’

  ‘It started about two months ago, maybe even a little before then. I don’t know exactly. It wasn’t like I intended for it to happen; we just kind of fell into it, and anyway I ended things a few days—’

  ‘Vince,’ Mankin growls. But the words are already tumbling out of Taylor’s mouth. A nervous stream of consciousness that I’ve seen with so many witnesses before him. It seems as though he barely registers his attorney’s warning.

  ‘—A few days before … she died,’ Vince concludes. His ears are burning red now and I notice him pulling at his collar.

  I have him on the ropes, and I need to keep him talking. Let him walk into my trap. ‘And this relationship you had with Ms Bosch, was it serious?’

  ‘He just explained to you that it wasn’t,’ the attorney interrupts.

  ‘And Layla knew that,’ Vince confirms. His attorney shoots him a sharp look.

  ‘Well, Mr Taylor,’ I respond. ‘It’s interesting that you’d say that.’ I toss the evidence bag containing Layla Bosch’s little back diary onto the table. ‘Do you recognize this?’

  ‘No, I don’t,’ Vince says. He keeps his composure but I see his eyes dart to his attorney giving him away. There’s something he’s not telling me. And it seems that he hasn’t told his attorney either because I see Jeff Mankin look back at his client, a hint of anger in his eyes.

  ‘This is Layla’s diary. We found it in her apartment. And oh boy, has it been an interesting read. Seems she had quite a lot to say about you and your “affair” as you call it. Do you want me to read you one of my favorite passages?’

  Vince doesn’t respond. He’s frozen, staring at me in wide-eyed horror as I begin to read:

  ‘Vince told me that he loves me today. And I can’t believe it, but I think I love him too. He told me that we’re going to be together someday. He’s going to do whatever it takes. I just hope he does it soon. I can’t stand the waiting anymore. I’m ready for the world to know about us.’