“I don’t know. He isn’t going to like it when I tell him he has to wait.”
“Something came up, some personal stuff at home. I can’t get away tonight, not without looking suspicious to my wife. Tell Max he doesn’t need to worry. She’s with me, and she’s safe.”
“He’s not worried, Jonas. He’s impatient. You shouldn’t keep him waiting.”
CHAPTER 16
I sat in an office with Seth at the police station. After telling him about Juliette’s death, he hadn’t spoken more than a couple of sentences. I’d prepared for an explosion or an emotional outburst, but at the moment, he preferred staring at the wall to engaging me in conversation.
Across the desk, Ford and a sheriff he named Sanders gawked at us like their heads were so full of questions they might explode. I didn’t want to be there, didn’t want to be interrogated, didn’t want to see Seth in this state of complete brokenness, didn’t want to think about the loss of my sister. I needed to be out looking for Nora, not sitting in a muggy office with no windows.
“Mr. Granger,” Ford said, “we need to ask you some questions.”
Seth said nothing.
I tapped his arm with my finger. “Seth, did you hear what Ford said?”
He grunted something that seemed to be a “yes,” but I wasn’t sure. I glanced at the detective and frowned, hoping he’d exercise some patience under the circumstances. He tipped his head in my direction, indicating he understood, and we all sat there for a minute.
Finally, Seth cut through the silence. “What are you doing to find my daughter?”
Ford tapped a finger on the table. “Mr. Granger, are you sure your wife took your daughter with her when she left this morning?”
“She wasn’t in her room this morning. Where else would she be?”
“In talking to the officers who came to your home, I understand you didn’t see your wife leave with your daughter, correct?”
Seth nodded. “I didn’t see my wife leave, either, but she did.”
“Is there anywhere else your daughter could be, any friends or family your wife might have left her with, perhaps?”
“I don’t think so.”
“Have you made any calls to inquire about her whereabouts?”
I detected a shift in Seth’s eyes—the anger I’d waited for was mounting. I cut in, answering the question for him. “I don’t believe my sister left Nora with anyone. She said Nora was with her in the car when I spoke to her this morning.”
“But you didn’t actually hear Nora, did you?”
“No, I didn’t. And I considered this earlier. Juliette wouldn’t lie about it, though.”
He shifted his gaze to Seth. “Mr. Granger?”
“As I’ve already said, I didn’t know she was gone until I saw the note,” Seth said. “I checked the entire house. What other explanation could there be?”
“There’s no need to get upset,” Ford said. “I’m just trying to get the facts straight so we have an accurate timeline of your wife’s events from the moment you noticed she was missing to now. The more we know, the easier it will be to isolate the best course of action.”
“This is ridiculous! There’s only one course of action here. Figure out who did this to my wife, and, more importantly, find my daughter. Why aren’t you doing anything? Why aren’t you guys out looking for her?”
“We are doing something about it. Everyone in this office is looking into it, making calls, asking around, and seeing what they can find out. Don’t assume because the two of us are sitting here talking to you that nothing is being done. The sooner we get through my questions, the sooner I can get back out there and find some answers.”
“Fine. I’m just ... I’m in a place I never thought I’d be, having a conversation I never thought I’d have.”
“I understand, believe me. Let’s say your wife did leave with your daughter this morning. Can you think of any reason why anyone would harm your wife and take Nora?”
Seth shook his head.
“Were you and your wife having any problems in your relationship?”
“Before today, I didn’t think we had any problems. Nothing major, anyway. Just little things here and there, same as everyone else deals with in a marriage.”
“So, you didn’t know she was going to leave you.”
“No, not at all.”
Ford leaned in close, which I suspected was more for effect than anything else. “Then why do you suppose she did?”
“I don’t know, and I’ll probably never know.”
Ford eyed Seth like he was trying to decide how long to stick with this line of questioning. “Did you and your wife have joint bank accounts or separate accounts?”
“We had joint accounts.”
“Have you ever had separate accounts?”
“Not since we’ve been together. Why?”
“When was the last time you looked at your account?”
“Yesterday. Everything was fine.”
Ford nodded. “I’d like you to do something for me.”
Seth shrugged. “What do you want me to do?”
“Check your bank accounts and see if there’s any money missing.”
“Money missing? Why would there be any—”
He stopped mid-sentence. I expected it was because he realized if he couldn’t predict my sister was leaving him, he also couldn’t predict other behavior that might have transpired as a result of her decision.
Seth fished his cell phone out of his pocket. “I’ll take a look, but first I’d like to know the reason you’re asking.”
“I’d rather not say just yet. I don’t need to know how much money is in there. I just want you to verify your account balances are the same today as they were the last time you checked.”
Seth entered some information into his cell phone and waited. “I know exactly what we have in there. I look at the checking and saving accounts every day. Well, except for today. But today isn’t a typical day, is it?” He paused for a moment, waiting for the account to display on his phone screen. “Everything looks fine. There haven’t been any recent withdrawals, and no transactions have posted today. Nothing’s missing. I want to know why you asked.”
“You own a black pickup truck, don’t you?”
Seth nodded. “Yeah, so?”
Ford opened a folder, slid a photo of Juliette’s smashed-up car in front of Seth, and pointed out the driver’s-side door panel. “We found black paint on your wife’s car.”
Seth stared at the photo, his jaw clenched, hands fisted into balls. “Why are you showing me this?”
“We’re looking at it from all angles right now and are considering the possibility that someone might be responsible for what happened to her.”
Seth shot out of his chair. “I came in voluntarily, looking for answers about my wife’s death, looking for your help in finding my daughter. Why do I feel like you’re talking to me like I’m the one who’s done something wrong?”
“Mr. Granger, you need to calm down.”
Seth’s eyes brimmed with tears. “Calm down? My wife is dead. My daughter is missing, and all you’re doing is talking to me about paint and bank accounts. You want to take a look at my truck? It’s sitting in my driveway at my house, exposed, out in the open. You won’t find a single scratch on it, and you won’t find any missing paint.”
Ford and Sanders exchanged glances.
“There’s no need to get heated, Mr. Granger,” Ford said. “We’re just doing what we have to on our end to find out what really happened to your wife and your daughter. If it turns out foul play was involved, asking questions like this helps us rule you out as a suspect. I know it doesn’t seem like it right now, but that’s what I’m trying to do here—rule you out.” He glanced at Raine. “I’d like to rule you both out.”
Seth remained standing, head bowed.
My heart broke all over again—for him, for both of us. After sitting in silence for so long, I decided I’d had enough
of the detective asking direct questions and giving vague answers, a trait Ford excelled at. “It seems we both want something from each other,” I interjected. “We’ve told you all we know. From here on out, it’s a trade-off. Understand? We tell you something, you tell us something.”
All three men looked at me. Sanders’s demeanor soured. He opened his mouth and started spewing bullshit about how my proposed lack of cooperation could interfere with what they were trying to do. At present, he had no idea who he was talking to, but he was about to. They both were.
Ford waved a hand, stopping Sanders from continuing, and said, “What do you mean, Miss Hart?”
“I know I should have said this before, but I was in shock and feeling out the situation first.”
“What situation?” Ford asked. “And you should have said what?”
“I’m a medical examiner.”
Ford raised a brow. “Didn’t you say you live in St. George?”
“I did.”
“You’re the new ME, the one taking over for Clive Chambers?”
He seemed surprised. I wasn’t sure why.
“Clive is retiring, as you’ve probably heard. I assumed the position last week. Anyway, we don’t have to continue to sit here talking. We have been because neither of us is involved, and neither of us has anything to hide, and we both want answers. You’re here for information. We’re here for information. You help us out; we help you out.”
Ford grimaced. “If you’re an ME, you know it doesn’t work that way.”
“I know it can work that way. If we walk out, anything we discover from here on out, we won’t be sharing, and unless we’re obligated by law, neither of us will cooperate with you any further.”
Seth stared at me like I had a third eye on my forehead. In fact, the others were doing the same.
Ford tapped his fingers on the desk so hard I thought it might leave a permanent dent in the wood. “You won’t agree to help, not even if it helps us find Nora? You need us, not the other way around.”
“Do you think you’re the only ones capable of finding her? I don’t date. I have no husband and no children. I don’t even own a pet. What I do have is a long career and a damn good education in forensic science.”
Ford brought his eyes to mine. “And this is a big deal because ...? We’re the law. We have the experience to get this done. Your input is valued, of course, but your pushy attitude is not going to help with the ... uhh ... situation.”
I laughed, dismissing his words. “I have every intention of finding out what happened to my sister and my niece. I’d like to work together. This police station is small. I’d be willing to bet you haven’t dealt with this kind of investigation often—stuff like this doesn’t happen around here. I know because I looked into it before I took the job. You’re in over your head. I just left a position in Atlanta. I’ve seen more homicides in a single year than you will in your lifetime. I can help you. What you need to decide is whether or not you’re willing to help me too.”
“I don’t know how this turned into a dramatic—”
I bolted from my chair and looked at Seth. “Let’s go.”
We headed for the door. On our way out, I heard Sanders mumble to Ford, “Well, I’ll say this ... woman’s got balls, doesn’t she?”
Damn right.
CHAPTER 17
“Now just hold on a minute, Miss Hart,” Ford said.
I turned. “Why?”
“I’m not finished talking to you yet.”
“I’m finished talking to you. For now.”
I realized I was coming off a lot harsher than I intended, and part of me felt like a jerk for it. It wasn’t how I conducted myself in everyday life, but this was anything but everyday life. It was surreal life, the kind people hope they never have to experience. And here I was. My body felt like an internal flame was burning, hotter and hotter. Every second that ticked by seemed like a second wasted—a second where I could have been doing more to find answers—and I was antsy to get the ball rolling.
“What if I make it worth your while?” Ford said.
I crossed my arms. “I’m listening.”
Ford looked at Sanders. “I’d like to speak to the lady alone, please.
Sanders shrugged, and motioned for Seth to follow him. Seth protested the whole way. I walked back into the office, and Ford shut the door.
He sat down and stared at me with those deep-set eyes of his—eyes like heated daggers. Finally, he said, “I want to show you something. Can we talk for a minute first?”
Curious to see where this new conversation might lead, I nodded. He stood up and stepped out of the room, closing the door behind him. He made a call. The conversation was brief, less than a minute, and then he rejoined me.
“You should have told me who you were when we met.”
“Is that what you were doing in the hall just now, making sure I am who I say I am?”
He smirked at me, which was answer enough. For a moment, it lightened the mood, allowing me to forget the heaviness I’d been feeling.
“I had no way to know whether or not you knew about my transfer,” I said, “and I wasn’t thinking straight. I haven’t since I woke up this morning. You’re right. I should have told you.”
“I’d like to move past it now, okay?”
“If I swap information with you, how do I know you’ll do it in return?”
“You have my word, and I’ve never given my word and gone back on it.”
Though I didn’t know him, I believed what he was saying was true.
He leaned back in the chair and locked his fingers together behind his head. “It’s still too early to know what actually happened to your sister. I have a couple of theories, and a lot of questions.”
“How can I help?”
“Tell me about the last time you talked to your sister.”
I told him.
“How did she seem to you on the phone?”
“Different than usual.”
“Different, how?”
“She sounded tense and scared.”
“Any idea why?”
“I thought it was because she’d just left Seth and the initial shock of it was hitting her hard. I could be wrong, though. I’ve thought about the call a lot today, gone over it a few times in my head, considering not just what she said, but her tone of voice when she said it.”
“And what do you think now?”
“One comment stands out the most. Right before we ended the call she told me she loved me, which is out of character for her.”
“How so?”
“It’s not something she says very often. I can’t think of the last time she said it to me.”
“People are different when they experience a heightened amount of stress. It’s possible her fear induced emotions she usually kept to herself. She’d just left her husband. She was unnerved. Would you agree?”
“I don’t know. It’s not just what she said. It was how she said it. I mean it’s hard to explain. It was almost like she was saying goodbye.”
He nodded to indicate he understood. “Why did your sister want a divorce?”
“Other than saying she wasn’t happy being married to him anymore, I don’t have a lot of details. Juliette has always had a hard time letting people in, even me. I’d compare her to an onion. Peel one layer, and there were still plenty more layers to go before finding the real person inside. I’m not sure anyone ever knew who she really was—not entirely.”
“Not even you?”
“I’d like to think I knew her better than anyone, but maybe it’s what I tell myself to make me feel better. The truth is, after something like this happens, all I can think about is the tremendous amount of guilt I have for not being a better sister. I was a good one, sure. But was I great? I doubt it.”
He shrugged. “Who is, though? We all do our best, and we all fall short. We’re human. It’s the trying that counts.”
“I guess. It’s impossible not to thin
k about how I could have done more and been more involved in her life. I always thought I had plenty of time.”
“What happened to your sister is beyond your control. It isn’t your fault. It probably isn’t Seth’s fault, either. Sometimes it comes down to one simple choice. I know it’s hard right now, but try to give yourself a break. We’ve all been there.”
He went quiet and seemed to zone out for a minute, and I wondered what tragedy he had experienced in his own past.
“What was your sister’s marital relationship like?” he asked.
“It was good at first. I believe she was attracted to Seth because he’s a genuine, kindhearted person, and he truly loved her. At some point, her feelings for him changed. I’m not sure when exactly, but I think she became bored and unfulfilled with the repetitious lifestyle. She always thought she was good at faking it, acting like everything was great, but she wasn’t.”
He raised a brow. “What do you mean?”
“Whenever we spoke on the phone—before all this happened—she pretended everything was great. Even though I suspected it wasn’t, I never let on.”
“You never pressed for details?”
He stared at me like he found it odd that I wouldn’t take the temperature of my sister’s emotional happiness. It was one of a few things about my personality that made me feel more like a man than a woman. I’d never cared to prod and poke, to meddle in others’ lives the way women often did.
“I’d ask if she was doing okay and give her the opportunity to say anything she wanted to say,” I said, “but I always let her be who she needed to be. I knew she wasn’t all right, though. Her voice would pop and crack sometimes when we talked, almost like she was trying not to cry. Who knows? Maybe I should have pushed more.” I paused a moment, then said, “All right, I’ve told you something. What can you tell me?”
“For starters, given the damage done to your sister’s car, it’s hard to tell what could have occurred before her vehicle went over the edge and what occurred after she went over. For example, we don’t know what caused her to veer off the road like she did.”
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