by Jolie Cain
“Well, let’s start at the beginning.” He took out a notebook and a pen. “How did you two meet?”
With the low drone of the engines humming in the background, Katherine began haltingly to recount her first meeting with Harper, their first dates, and the beginnings of their sexual relationship. She stuttered and blushed as she explained the more intimate details. Finally she stammered to an awkward halt.
Clay’s hand reached out and tilted her head up so that she was forced to meet his eyes. The gentle understanding and reassurance were almost her undoing. “Please don’t be ashamed of anything you have done, Katherine. There’s nothing wrong with realizing your needs and finding someone who can fulfill them for you. I would never judge you based on something like this, sweetheart. And neither would anyone who knows you. I want you to get beyond the embarrassment you feel, all right? What you and Harper did as consenting adults has absolutely nothing to do with the present situation.”
She nodded her head and smiled weakly. “I hope you’re right. It’s just—well, who knows what set this guy off? Was it because of the type of sex I like? Was he someone we met at the BDSM club we went to? I just don’t know. And … truthfully, I don’t know how the police are going to react. I can already picture the mutterings and shaking heads. The snickers behind my back. To tell you the truth, it’s something I’ve been dreading. Talking to you about it is bad enough. But to the cops?” She pushed her hair back nervously. “So many of them will probably say that I should have expected to get involved with a weirdo since that’s the kind of lifestyle I enjoy.”
Clay grinned at her. “There are bigots in every line of work. I’ll grant you that. And we may run into some in Jackson. But there are also good guys. Let’s not make assumptions, okay? And I’ll do everything in my power to make sure that they take this seriously and don’t jump to any incorrect conclusions. I don’t want them chasing after the wrong guy just because of something they don’t understand. But you’ve got to stay strong. And keep your chin up. Deal?”
She agreed, reassured by his no-nonsense attitude. “Okay.”
Clay turned back to his notebook. “All right. Tell me, did you two have a lot of friends in common? People who knew you both? Did you socialize much?”
Katherine sat thinking about it. “Well, the couple who introduced us, Lawrence and Sharon Mabry, of course. A few other people we knew socially. And he’d met some of my friends. I’d met some of his. We dated for several months, so I guess we knew several of the same people by the end. You know how it is—you go to parties together. Get introduced around. Harper was a big supporter of the artists in Jackson, so we attended a lot of gallery exhibits and openings. He introduced me to a lot of people there. Why?”
“Well, it’s likely whoever killed Harper and is stalking you, knew you both, at least casually. Can you make me a list of everyone you can think of? I know it’s a long shot, but it is something to work on. And the police will probably want the same list, so it will save us some time when we get to Jackson. And, Katherine, be sure to include the people at that club you mentioned. Okay?”
She took the paper and pen he handed her and began doing as he had asked.
Before she knew it the plane had begun its descent to the Jackson airport. After the details of disembarking were completed, they headed into the terminal. Two men stood waiting for them inside. Clay grinned as he caught sight of them. “Good. They made it. Come on, I want to introduce you both to two of my best men.”
As they approached the men, Katherine took the time to study them. The first was a tall lanky blonde wearing scruffy jeans and a faded t-shirt. Beside him stood an even taller very well built African-American clad in an obviously expensive suit. The two men were quite a contrast to one another. The blonde’s easy grin was in direct juxtaposition to the more serious look of his well-dressed companion. Clay shook hands with both men and then turned to introduce them. “Beau, Katherine, I’d like you to meet Richard Joseph Calhoun and Derek Armstrong. Guys, this is Beau Dalton and his lady, Dr. Katherine Montgomery.”
“Hello, Mr. Calhoun.” Katherine held out her hand to shake each of the two men’s.
“Please ma’am, call me RJ.” The blonde smiled flirtatiously, his easy-going manner immediately putting Katherine at ease.
“All right, RJ. And I’m Katherine.”
She turned to the man beside him. His smile was slower to appear, but there was something in his calm gaze that made Katherine feel safe. He had the look of a man who would seldom be taken by surprise in any situation. In fact, both of them did. “You must call me Derek, Katherine.” His eyes studied her carefully before he released her hand, and Katherine felt as if she’d been examined under a microscope.
“Hello, Derek. It’s nice to meet you. Both of you.” She smiled at both men, immediately understanding why Clay had chosen them for the job of protecting her and Beau. Though they seemed to be focused on meeting her and Beau, their eyes were never still, but continuously studied the milling crowd.
Beau shook hands with both men as well, and then they were being guided through the airport and to the waiting SUV.
As RJ took the wheel, the others climbed in. Katherine found herself in the back sandwiched between Beau and Clay. Since neither man was undersized, she had little room to move. They pulled away from the curb, and she couldn’t prevent a little laugh from escaping. When the men looked at her inquiringly, she explained with a shrug. “I just don’t think I’ve ever felt as safe in my entire life as I do right now. It’s almost like being back in the womb.”
RJ burst out laughing as he took in the sight in the rear view window. “I see what you mean, Katherine. It is a bit close quarters back there, isn’t it?”
The other men just grinned and shook their heads. Clay told RJ, “Take us to the police station first. I need to find out if they have any new information. Plus, I’m sure they’ll want to interview Katherine as soon as possible.”
“OK, boss.” RJ replied and steered them into traffic. Clay pulled out his cell phone and called the station so that they would be expected. Soon, they were pulling into the parking lot. RJ waited with the car, while the others all entered the building. Clay walked up to the front desk and spoke to the clerk. He was soon back with them. “We need to see a Detective Remy LeBlanc. He’s expecting us.”
As they were shown into a small office on the second floor, the detective stood. In his late thirties, with dark brown hair badly in need of a cut and a five o’clock shadow darkening his chin, Detective LeBlanc welcomed them with a slight Cajun accent. Clay spoke quietly to Derek, who nodded and turned to wait in the hallway outside. Introductions were quickly made, and the detective indicated that they should sit. He resumed his own seat and spoke to Katherine. “Well, Dr. Montgomery. It’s very nice to finally meet you.”
Katherine managed to summon a nervous smile. Beau was a bit more belligerent. “You’d have met her earlier if you’d taken her seriously.”
Detective LeBlanc nodded. “You’re right, of course. But gettin’ mad ain’t gonna do nobody any good, now is it? We’re all takin’ Dr. Montgomery very seriously now.” He nodded towards Beau. “I understand your frustration, sir, I really do. But we need to move on from blamin’ each other and get to work catchin’ this guy so that your lady is safe.”
Katherine interrupted. “Come on, Beau. That was the police in Gulf Shores. Not here in Jackson. Let’s give Detective LeBlanc a break, okay? We need to cooperate now and not fight.”
Beau backed down, but was still obviously irritated.
The detective turned back to Katherine. “Dr. Montgomery, I’ll need to ask you some questions ’bout Mr. Harper.”
Clay leaned forward and handed the detective the paper on which Katherine had written her list of names. “Here are the people that Katherine and Harper both knew. I’m having my men look into their backgrounds, but I’m sure you’ll want to have your own men do the same.” Katherine gave him a grateful smile as she realized he was trying to
sidetrack the detective from the questions he knew would make Katherine uncomfortable.
Detective LeBlanc smiled tiredly. “I am not averse to havin’ some help on this, Mr. Gentry. Your reputation in this part of the country is well known. We welcome anythin’ you can do to make our job easier. Quite frankly, this department is overworked right now and our resources are strained. And this case is a puzzle for everyone. Although we do have a lead.”
“A lead?” Katherine’s hopes rose. “Who?”
He leaned forward and rested his elbows on his cluttered desk. “Before I tell you, I’d like for you to relate to me th’ details of your relationship with Mr. Hunt, if you don’t mind. I like havin’ as much information as possible in cases like this. You never know what small thing might help us solve the case. And right now it’s just a lead … nothin’ certain.”
So Katherine again related what she had told Clay earlier, only this time with Beau’s hand holding hers firmly as she haltingly told Detective LeBlanc everything he needed to know. The detective’s sharp gaze studied her as she spoke, but his reaction when she finally stopped was not what she had feared. “Thank you, Dr. Montgomery. I know that had to be difficult for you. I ’preciate your candor. I don’t wanna make this more embarrassin’ for you than it has to be, but the more details we’ve got, the faster we’ll be able to catch this man. Tell me, did you and Mr. Hunt visit any of the BDSM clubs in th’ area?” His eyes met hers unflinchingly.
“Yes. We did go to one, but I wasn’t comfortable, so we didn’t continue. I think Harper went without me a few times, though. He seemed to know the people there fairly well.”
“All right. Can you give me the name? I’ll need to check it out.”
“Yes, of course. We went to The Leather Factory a couple of times. It’s over in Rankin County.”
He scribbled the names down and asked, “Is that all?”
“Yes. As I said, it just wasn’t my scene. Harper wanted me to give it a try, but mostly we just watched. And we didn’t really get to know anyone there except very casually. Drinks at the bar, that sort of thing. I don’t really remember many names.”
“I understand, Dr. Montgomery. I’m familiar with this establishment. They cater to very select personnel and usually screen their members pretty close. Of course, that don’t mean that a bad seed can’t get through from time to time. As I said, we’ll check it out.”
Beau interrupted. “So what about this lead that you say you have? Can you tell us who or what it is?”
The detective’s eyes narrowed, and he focused on Katherine. “You have a patient name of Aaron Maxwell, isn’t that correct, Dr. Montgomery?”
Katherine knew her puzzlement was clear. “Yes, of course. But he couldn’t possibly…”
“Mr. Maxwell seems to have disappeared. Coincident’ly, around the same time you left Jackson for Gulf Shores. He also became your patient around the time you indicated the phone calls began.”
Katherine could feel her face become paler. “Oh, my God. You think my patient…”
LeBlanc shook his head.“We don’t know anythin’ for certain, of course. Right now he’s just a ‘Person of Interest’ in our investigation. But he looks very suspicious. He has a couple of arrests for stalkin’ and one conviction. Also, he was charged in one case with assault and battery on the young lady.”
Katherine shook her head. “He never mentioned any of that in our sessions. Of course, we’d only just begun his therapy. Do you really think he could possibly have killed Harper? Honestly, he didn’t seem the type to…”
“Come on, Doctor. You must know as a psychologist that there is no ‘type.’”
She had to agree with him. “You’re right, of course. I guess it’s always difficult to imagine someone you actually know committing such a horrible crime.”
The detective stood, indicating the interview was over. “We really are grateful to you for comin’ in today, Dr. Montgomery. I hate to run you off, but I have to get back to my partner. He’s out right now tryin’ to locate Mr. Maxwell. He’s our prime suspect at the moment, so we are anxious to talk to him.”
They stood and shook hands with the detective. Clay added, “You know that I am going to be looking for this man as well, don’t you?”
Detective LeBlanc laughed. “Just don’t get in the way of me or my men. That’s all I ask. And be sure to contact us if you find out anythin’. Unlike what you may have seen in the movies, we welcome any and all help. Especially in murder cases.”
“Will do, detective. Thanks. We’re going to go by Dr. Montgomery’s office and look around. Then we’ll head over to her apartment. You have my cell phone number so you can get in touch with me if you need to.”
“Yes. Again, we’ll do everythin’ we can, Dr. Montgomery. We’ll find this guy. Thank you for coming back to Jackson and talkin’ to us so quickly. It makes things a lot easier for us.” He met Katherine’s eyes in a straightforward gaze.
“I’m glad to do anything I can to help, Detective LeBlanc.”
Chapter Fourteen
As they left the building, Katherine again was comforted by the presence of the very large, very strong men who took care to surround her and ensure her safety. A quick trip across town, and they had reached the building where Katherine’s office was located. When she entered the reception area, Mary looked up. She rose from her desk with a glad cry and rushed over to enclose Katherine in a motherly hug. “Goodness, Dr. Montgomery, it is good to see you.”
“Thank you, Mary. It’s good to see you, too.”
“I swear, it feels as if you’ve been gone forever rather than a week.”
“I know what you mean. A lot has happened.”
Obviously alerted by the commotion, Jonas emerged from his office and approached the group that had halted near the doorway. “Katherine.” He took her hand in his and squeezed it reassuringly. “I’m so glad to see you safe and sound.” He looked around at her entourage, “And obviously being well looked after.”
She grinned sheepishly and quickly introduced everyone.
Once introductions were over, Clay wasted no time. “We need to look at Katherine’s office, Dr Albritton. I know the police have already examined it, but Katherine knows it better than anyone else. We’re hoping she’ll notice something that they might have missed.”
“Well, of course. It’s right this way.”
Jonas turned and led the way down the hall to the door of her office. They walked inside, and Katherine was taken aback at the sight that met her eyes. She had thought she would be prepared for what she would see, but the sheer amount of damage astonished her. Files were stacked haphazardly on any surface available. The curtains were lying on the floor, as were some cushions. Broken file drawers were randomly pulled out. Her desk was in complete chaos, with papers, pencils, notepads lying everywhere.
“Has anything been taken out or replaced?” Clay wanted to know.
Jonas shook his head from where he stood in the doorway. “No. Since Katherine wasn’t here, we wanted to give her a chance to look things over before we started repairs.“
“Good grief. What a mess.”
“We thought about hiring a cleaning crew, but decided to leave everything as it was for now. Especially since the files are confidential.”
Clay nodded. He indicated to the others to stay near the door and drew Katherine further into the room. “I need you to look around carefully and tell me what you notice. Anything missing? Anything unusual?”
Katherine nodded and forced herself to ignore the wanton destruction and do as Clay asked. She picked up the crystal paperweight that Harper had given her as a gift. It was cracked down the middle. Looking through her desk drawer, she noticed her personal planner was missing, and she told Clay about it. “You didn’t have it with you?”
She shook her head. “No, I forgot it when I left. I realized when I got here that I didn’t have it, but since Abby had everything arranged and planned, I didn’t really need it. And my im
portant phone numbers were in my cell phone.” She looked apologetically at Jonas as he stood near Beau. “I threw my phone into the Gulf after one of the phone calls from the stalker. I’m sure you’ve had to field some calls from my patients. I’m sorry about that. I just reacted without thinking.”
“Please, Katherine. Don’t worry about that. I figured you had lost it or forgotten to charge it. It’s not a problem. There were only a couple of calls anyway.” Jonas reassured her.
“Do you remember who they were from?” Clay wanted to know.
“Yes, Mrs. Ellen Bastrom. She’s an elderly patient of Katherine’s from the free clinic where she volunteers. And Benjamin Wagner’s mother. He’s a young man Katherine’s been working with for about a year now. He’s only thirteen.” Clay nodded and jotted down the information in his notes.
“Anything else?” He looked at her.
She gazed around the room again, and it struck her. “You know, the things that were most damaged … they all are connected to Harper. The painting over there,” she pointed to a picture that had been cut jaggedly across the middle. “I bought it at an art show he took me to. And the small table with the scratches? He helped me bring it here after I purchased it at an auction we attended.”
Beau came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her. “Well, we know it isn’t Harper.”
“No,” Clay agreed. “But it is odd that those are the things that received the most damage. It’s as if whoever it was knew, and maybe was jealous or angry, about your relationship. Could this Aaron Maxwell have known about you two?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know. If he had followed us. Maybe. But some of those things I bought before he became my patient. Could he have been watching me before that?”
Beau tightened his hold. “Maybe that’s why he became your patient. Maybe it was just a ploy so he could get closer to you.”
Clay agreed. “Possibly.”
Katherine shuddered and moved closer to Beau. “Can we go now?” she asked. Being around such pointless destruction was making her uncomfortable. She just wanted to go home to some semblance of normality.