by Jill Downey
“Thanks, let me grab my purse.” She came back out moments later and they left hand in hand.
Jesse pulled Faye into his arms. “Finally! I thought we’d never be alone.”
“Let’s get out of here. I’m not lifting another finger.”
“Good idea. Save your energy for more important things.” He wiggled his eyebrows playfully.
Faye set the security alarm then locked the door behind them. “Somehow I don’t think that’s going to be an issue.”
“Let’s get the hell out of here. I want to kiss every inch of you.”
He let her settle in behind him before he kickstarted the bike. She held him tight, craving the feel of his warm body close to hers. Suddenly she wasn’t the least bit tired anymore.
44
Jesse and Faye pulled into the bar parking lot about a quarter till noon.
When they stepped into the bar, the previous night’s chaos still awaited them.
“Apparently the cleaning fairies had better things to do while we were sleeping. I was hoping for a miracle but it’s just as bad as I remembered,” Faye said.
“We’ll have it done in no time.”
“I’ll start by cleaning the tables and then I’ll do the dishes before I tackle scrubbing the floors.”
“Where do you want me?” Jesse said.
“Let’s keep our minds out of the bedroom,” she teased, eyes twinkling.
“Just the way I like my women…insatiable.” Grinning he playfully pulled her against him and kissed her.
She kissed him back then stilled. “I swear I never knew it could be like this. I’ve never considered myself to be overly sexual, not that I didn’t like sex, but I’ve never fantasized continuously about someone like I do with you.”
“I feel like a horny teenager…it doesn’t suck,” Jesse said.
She giggled, then pulled away to begin the dreaded cleanup.
“I’ll round up the trash and take it out to the dumpster. Then I’m going to sacrifice myself for love and clean the bathrooms.”
“No way!”
“Yes, I’ll do it… for you.”
“How about you do the guys’ bathroom, since we know how careless y’all can be with your aim.”
“Hey, don’t lump us all together. I told you my mama raised me right.”
“I’m sure that’s true and all, but I’d rather clean ten women’s restrooms than just one of the mens’.”
“You know when you look at me with those big baby blues, I’d say yes to about anything.”
Faye watched him disappear out the back door lugging the recyclables first. She grabbed a rolling cart and plastic tub from the storage room and began loading it with the empty bottles and glasses from the barroom, wiping the tables off as she cleared them.
Jesse suddenly reappeared, his face drained of color.
“Jesse! What’s wrong?”
“Faye, I need for you to sit down. We have a situation.”
Her face blanched, “Is it Ty? What? Tell me!”
“Faye, when I went out back to take the trash out… I don’t know how to say this…there is a dead body floating right off the dock.”
Faye’s hand flew to cover her mouth. “Oh my God, who? Is it anyone we know?”
His voice grim he said, “It’s not good. It’s the guy from last night. Dave, the one Ty had the altercation with. I’m going to call the police now.”
“Wait! Are you sure its him? How do you know?” Faye was babbling and she knew it but couldn’t seem to stop herself. “Why here? How did he die? I’m going out to look.”
“No!” Jesse shouted, grabbing her arm as she started for the door. “Faye, just no. Trust me, you don’t need to see it. I’m going to be having nightmares for the next ten years—why would you want to subject yourself to that?”
“I need to get ahold of Ty before he gets here. I don’t want him walking into a scene without a warning,” Faye said, pulling out her cell.
Holding the phone to her ear with a trembling hand, she looked at Jesse. “It went straight to voice mail. I’ll try a text.”
“He’s probably picking Addison up right about now. They might already be on their way. Text him then try calling him back and leave a message. I’m going to call the police.”
Jesse went to the back room to place the call leaving Faye alone to call Ty.
“Tyler, this is Faye. We have an issue at the bar. The police are on their way. I just didn’t want you to be blindsided when you got here. Call me. It’s important!”
She felt compelled to go look at the crime scene for herself. Just a quick glimpse. She wasn’t sure if she’d believe it without seeing it with her own two eyes. As she headed for the back door Jesse blocked her, grabbing ahold of her shoulders he gripped them tight.
“Faye listen to me. You-do-not-want-to-go-out-there! It’s not like a TV show. It’s gruesomely real. You’ll regret it for the rest of your life. I won’t let you do it. You have to take my word on this. Plus, it is a crime scene. You don’t want to disturb anything.”
Her eyes flooded with tears. “I can’t believe this is happening. Why here? Maybe he came back to make trouble and fell and hit his head.”
Jesse pulled her into his arms. He tenderly brushed her hair back from her brow. “Shh, Faye, it’s not for us to figure out.” He kissed the top of her head. “We’ll let the cops solve it,” he said, his voice calm and steady. Faye’s entire body trembled in his arms.
“The police are going to want to question all of us. What am I supposed to say when they ask me if I knew the guy?”
“The truth. We had a full bar witness the altercation he and Ty had. If you lie, it’s only going to make things look worse for him.”
“But Ty will think I’m throwing him under the bus,” she said, as Jesse brushed away her tears with his thumb.
“We know Ty and we know he’s innocent. He didn’t do this, and they’ll know it too. It was just a coincidence. Just stick with the truth. It’s always the best idea.”
Ty ran in with Addison trailing behind just as they heard sirens approaching.
45
“What happened?” Ty said, eyes narrowed with concern.
Jesse looked at Faye and she nodded. “Ty, listen, when we got here, I took out the trash…and…there was a body,” Jesse said.
“What? Dude what do you mean a ‘body’?”
“I’m sorry—as in I found someone dead floating in the water right off the dock.”
“H…ol…y…shit! Faye are you all right?”
She nodded, “I didn’t see it. Jess stopped me from looking. It’s shocking enough in my imagination, I’m glad I wasn’t the one to find him.”
“The thing is Ty, I hate to tell you this, but it’s the guy you punched out last night. Your old supplier.”
Ty’s body coiled like a panther ready to leap, “Dave? I’ve got to get out of here man. Why didn’t you tell me that on the phone? Fuck! They’ll think it was me!” He turned to leave, and Jess grabbed his arm.
“Don’t do it man. You can’t run. You’ll look guilty as hell.”
His eyes were wide with panic, “Dude let me go! You know they’re going to pin it on me. I’ll hide out until they find who the real killers are. I can’t be locked up again…I just can’t!”
“You’ve got to calm down and think rationally. Yes, they’re going to have questions for you. But you didn’t do it. If you run or lie…well, they’ll only have one person in their crosshairs and that my friend, will be you. If you cooperate, they’ll be more likely to keep an open mind and do a full investigation.”
Tyler sat down heavily onto a chair and buried his face in his hands. His shoulder shook as he began to sob.
Faye’s heart broke into a million pieces. “Ty I will do everything in my power to make sure this isn’t pinned on you.” She leaned down and held him tightly to her. “You hear me? I’m going to call Kyle right now. He is the very best and he will help you.”
&nbs
p; His voice muffled he said, “Why would he? Your whole family thinks I’m nothing but a trailer park lowlife.”
“No Ty, he doesn’t think that. He will do it.”
Addison who had stood silently taking it all in said, “Ty, if you can’t do it for yourself, do it for me. Listen to what they’re telling you. It’s the truth.”
They all looked at the door with dread when the police charged in. Jesse and Faye went to meet them at the entrance. Jess gave a brief summary of events then led them to the crime scene.
The minute they disappeared Faye dialed her brothers’ number. “Kyle, I need you to come down to the bar right away!”
“Sorry I can’t. We’re entertaining some friends and I’m in the middle of barbecuing chops. Can’t this wait until tomorrow?”
“No! It’s urgent.”
“What’s so urgent that it can’t wait?”
“A dead body, police and Ty could wind up as their main suspect.”
“I’m on my way.”
“Thank you. Be safe.”
He disconnected without saying goodbye and Faye felt like a thousand pounds had been lifted from her shoulders. Her big brother had always had her back and he’d have Ty’s back now. He was the best attorney around and he’d know the best way to handle things.
“Ty, Kyle is on his way. Don’t answer any questions until he gets here.”
The female officer came back inside and approached them. “Mr. Carlisle tells me the victim was a customer of yours?” she said, directing the question at Faye.
“Not a regular, but he’d been in here a couple of times since I’ve opened.”
“Did you know him outside of the bar?”
“No, just from serving him here.”
“What can you tell me about last night?”
Tyler sat with his arms crossed tightly over his chest, His eyes downcast and his jaw set. Addison’s hand rested on Ty’s thigh. Her eyes were glassy with unshed tears. Faye glanced at him before continuing.
“The first time I served him I practically had to kick him out. When I closed up and left for the night, he was waiting outside the bar, acting threateningly. Fortunately, Mr. Carlisle was there to intercede so nothing more happened. He was here a couple other times before last night.”
“Tell me everything you remember pertaining to last evening.”
“Well, he hadn’t been in the bar long,” she glanced at Ty and hesitated before continuing.
“Go on,” the officer encouraged.
“He’d just ordered his first beer when Ty, who works for me” she nodded her head at him, “came from the back with cases of beer to refill the cooler.”
“They exchanged words, he provoked Ty, making insinuating remarks about myself and Addison, who is a waitress here. Ty is very protective of us and unfortunately, he let the guy bait him. A tussle ensued and some blows were exchanged. Jess broke up the fight and he left on his own accord, with an ice pack and a bloody nose. That was the last time we saw him,” a sob caught in her throat, “Until Jess found him this morning.”
She had been jotting down notes then she turned to Tyler. “Can you tell me your version? Why did he pick you to spar with? I want an account of the full verbal exchange between the two of you.”
Faye jumped in, “My brother is an attorney, Kyle Bennett, and he’s on his way. I think its best that he be present when you question Ty.”
“So you’re not going to talk without a lawyer? Got something to hide? We just need to ask a few routine questions. From all of you.”
“Look, Ty had a fight with the guy, and he winds up dead. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know he’ll be a suspect,” Faye said. “That doesn’t mean he’s guilty, it means we’ve watched enough cop shows to see where this is going.”
“Have it your way,” she said. “I’ll get the waitresses’ statement then Mr. Carlisle’s and hopefully the attorney shows up by then.”
Ty who had remained quiet throughout the exchange said, “I can answer your questions. I’ve got nothing to hide. I won’t say anything different either way.”
The cop forced a smile, “That’s a wise decision. If you haven’t done anything wrong, no need to complicate things.”
“Ty, I said no!” Faye said, her voice steely.
“Faye, I know what I’m doing. I’m not playing their game.”
Kyle stepped through the door coming in from the back entrance. Faye got up and practically flew into his arms. “Thank God!”
Kyle, seeing his sister’s stricken face, hugged her protectively, before slinging his arm across her shoulder and walking with her toward the small group.
“I ventured out to the crime scene before I came in, and I see you have the scene taped off. The coroner arrived as I was pulling in.”
The officer nodded hello. “Good to know. I’m officer Randall. I’ve already got the owner’s statement and was getting ready to question the employees.”
“I guess I’m here just in time then.”
Kyle carried himself with a self-assurance that brooked no argument. “Shall we proceed?”
Faye felt such relief at having her brother take over, that it felt like all the air had been sucked out of her. He must have jumped immediately in his car because he was dressed casually in faded jeans and a black tee shirt…with only flip flops on his feet. She was also aware that the police officer seemed slightly shell shocked; her brother just happened to be drop dead gorgeous and built like a Greek god. That had to give them a slight tactical advantage…at least it couldn’t hurt. His cobalt blue eyes were piercing in their intensity. Right now, he had them trained on Ty.
46
Ty visibly stiffened as Kyle studied him. “On second thought, I’d like a word alone with my client before you proceed, would you excuse us please?”
“Have at it,” Officer Randall said, waving her arm wide.
“Come on, son, let’s go outside where we can have some privacy.”
Ty got up, hands in his pockets, and followed Kyle outside.
“I’m royally screwed dude.”
“Talk to me Ty. Who was this guy to you?”
“From my past. I wound up in juvie for dealing. He supplied the dope. When I got busted, I owed him money. Couldn’t pay it back. First time I saw him in the bar I thought he was there to find me, turns out he’d been there before I started working for Faye. He came in last night, rubbed me the wrong way, I lit into him. The rest is history.”
“Unfortunately, it’s not history. They’ll be gunning for you. The faster they can wrap it up into a neat bow the better for them. You’ve got to help us point them in a different direction. Who supplied to him, who he hung out with, anything you can remember.”
“He said he’d seen the photograph of Faye, Jesse and me posing with that statue. It’s in those tourist rags all over town. He said he wanted to come in and see for himself if it was really me.”
“You were his mule but who was he working for. He had to be low on the food chain. Who’d want him dead and why?”
“How would I fucking know?”
“Let’s get something straight right now. I’m here to help you. I’m on your side. Got that?”
“Why would you believe me anyway?”
“Two reasons, one, I trust my sister and two, I trust my own instincts. You might have a chip on your shoulder, but you’re not a murderer. I’d bet my law degree on that.”
Ty didn’t know how to respond. He pinched the bridge of his nose as he tried to drum up the past. “Listen, I was only fifteen, it was pot for Chrissakes, I didn’t hang out with the slimeball. I remember him mentioning that if I was interested in expanding my brand, he could supply me with just about anything I wanted to deal. He mentioned that there was good money in meth. I told him no way. Pot was it for me.”
“Was he always alone?”
Ty closed his eyes in concentration, “One time there was someone waiting in the car. Gnarly, covered in tats, older than dirt.”
“Don’t know man. It was so long ago.”
“Okay, we’re going back in there. Be honest but don’t elaborate on anything. Make it short and sweet. No feelings, opinions, just the facts. Think you can handle that?” Kyle asked, kindly.
“Yeah.”
Kyle clapped Ty on the back and said, “Let’s get this initial interview over with. I can’t make any promises about how they’ll proceed but if they do take you into custody, don’t freak out. I’ve got your back and I’ll make your bail.”
Tears glistened in Ty’s frightened eyes, reminding Kyle that underneath his defensive bravado was a terrified eighteen-year-old kid.
“Ready?”
Ty nodded and followed Kyle back into the bar.
They were greeted by three more officers who been added to the mix. Officer Randall had acquiesced her role as interrogator and an older officer with a shaved head and serious scowl was now asking the questions.
Kyle whispered to Ty, “Easy now.”
Ty looked up at him with a glimmer of trust in eyes that were mirror images of his own. Something twisted in Kyle’s gut. He would do everything in his power to keep this kid safe. He smiled reassuringly then said, “It’s show time.”
47
Faye rocked in Jesse’s arms, inconsolable. After only thirty minutes of questioning, the officer in charge had read Ty his rights, cuffed him and taken him into custody. Despite Kyle’s reassurances that he’d be released on bail, it had shattered her to see him being hauled away. All she could see was his stricken face, utterly defeated. When she’d asked him about notifying his mom, he’d lost it. His strangled ‘no, please Faye,’ had been tormented.
He was in Kyle’s hands now and she had to let go. There was nothing to do. Since the Pelican was now a crime scene, she couldn’t re-open until forensics had done their thing.
They’d taken the video from the security cameras and Faye prayed they’d find evidence to vindicate Ty. Poor Addison had been beside herself and her best friend had come to pick her up. She’d promised to keep in touch. Now the hard part…waiting.