by Jen Talty
“Home,” Doug said.
“Can you prove that?”
“I can,” Jim said. “So can my daughter.”
“Thing is,” Gregory said, “we’ve got an eyewitness that says she saw Mister Tanner’s boat in Paradise Bay the evening before Mary’s body was found. We also have an eyewitness who can put Mary and Bill in Paradise Bay at the same time as Mister Tanner.”
“I wasn’t there, and neither was my boat.”
“That’s not what this witness says,” Gregory said. “We’d like you to come down to the station.”
“Dad,” Stacey said. “Call that lawyer.”
* * *
The Warren County Sheriff’s Office was located on Route 9, north of the Troop G office of the State Police in Bolton Landing where Stacey was currently stationed. She and Jared followed the Sheriff’s car, and Doug and her father followed her, but as soon as she set foot in the station, she and Jared were ushered into a conference room with Gregory, with Dalton nowhere to be found. “Have a seat.” Gregory waved at the two empty chairs on the other side of his desk.
“We’d prefer to stand, thank you,” Jared said.
Stacey agreed. All she wanted was to get the hell out of this room and be with Doug and her father.
“Wasn’t necessary for either of you to come down,” Gregory said, “but since you are here, I’d like to ask you a few questions.”
“Go ahead,” Stacey said.
“You were part of the SCUBA team that found the victim.”
It wasn’t framed as a question, but she answered anyway. “Yes.”
“The victim’s husband works for your father.” Again, Gregory didn’t frame it as a question.
“They are business partners.”
“You all live in the same house?” This time, his tone had changed. Barely noticeable, but Stacey could tell Gregory was amused.
“For now,” she said.
“I’d like a formal accounting of when you were with Douglas Tanner since Thursday.”
“Why?” she asked.
Gregory shook his head. “He’s a person of interest. I’ve got a witness who puts his boat and man with his description in Paradise Bay.”
“Are you putting Mister Tanner in a lineup?” Jared asked.
“It’s possible.”
Stacey didn’t like the sound of that. “I can give you a statement,” she said.
“I’ll have one of the desk officers take it, if that’s okay with you.”
“I’m fine with that,” she said.
“Good,” Gregory said. “Wait here. I’ll send someone right in. Once you’re done, you can leave.”
Asshole didn’t even offer to shake her hand.
She leaned out into the hallway and watched as Gregory had what appeared to be an intense conversation with a female officer. When the conversation was over, the female officer headed in her direction. The woman’s lips were drawn in a tight line. Her cheeks were flushed, and her eyes narrowed. She nodded at Stacey as she passed by, but it was obvious Gregory had said something to upset her. Stacey wanted to know what that was, but thought better of asking, as the female officer was now nose-to-nose with another female officer.
It took twenty minutes for Stacey to give a formal statement. She figured it should get Doug off the suspect number one list. So did Jared. Once the interview was over, she made her way down the hallway, noticing her father had taken a seat in the waiting area.
“Hey, Dad,” she said as she approached him.
He stood, his arms raised slightly.
“You can hug me in my uniform.”
He pulled her in, squeezing with all his might. She sensed confusion and fear in her father’s embrace. Her dad had always been calm, cool, and collected. He’d been a strict father, but a very loving one. He could be the disciplinarian one moment, and then the shoulder to cry on the next. He never told her what to do. He tried to guide her, to push her in certain directions, but if she dug her heels in, he’d go with her in whatever direction she wanted.
“How are you doing?” she asked as they sat on horrible, poorly cushioned brown wooden chairs.
“I’m okay,” he said. “My friend Jillian made it here before we did. She sat with me while they asked me where Doug was over the weekend, and all sorts of questions about Doug, his boat, and his relationship with Mary, then they sent me out here. He’s still back there somewhere with Jillian, being… God only knows what.”
“Jared’s right. It’s just an interview,” she said, though she didn’t believe the sentiment. “So, I get to meet the lunch date.”
Her father smiled. It was nice to see on such a trying day. “I guess so.”
“You like her?”
He nodded. “Don’t scare her away, okay?”
“Me?” The lightness of the conversation lowered her blood pressure. “I would never.”
Her father laughed, but then turned serious. “Doug’s really a suspect?”
“The husband is always a suspect,” she said, “but I think this should clear things up.”
Her father nodded. “Where is Jared?”
“Playing detective. Talking with some people he knows in the office.”
He wrapped his protective arm around her, pulling her as close to him as he could. Some of his fear had dissipated, replaced with something she couldn’t quite put her finger on, but whatever it was, she felt it, too. It was worse than fear. It was a surreal feeling. A feeling that, if she believed in auras, hers had just changed colors and evaporated from her body, leaving her empty and cold. “You weren’t the one who found Mary’s body, were you?”
“No,” she said, “but I did see her, and that won’t be an image I’ll ever forget.”
They were quiet for a few moments, but the station house was abuzz with chatter and activity. Stacey’s phone vibrated in her pocket, but she didn’t want to even look at it.
“So, what now?” her father asked.
“You wait for Doug. I’m going to go back to work when Jared comes out.” She could see him now in the hallway, talking with the same female officer who had been upset by something Gregory said. She gripped her father’s hand. “This is going to blow over.” She kissed her father’s cheek then headed toward the door when Jared waved. “Trust me, Dad. It’s all good.”
* * *
The entire ride to the station, Doug stared out the window while Jim talked to the lawyer, Jillian White. The woman Jim had obviously been seeing for some time, based on the conversation Doug had heard.
As soon as Doug stepped into the station house, Jillian introduced herself and they whisked Doug into a small room. She told him to hang tight, that she was going to go to the interview with Jim, and she’d be back shortly.
Doug assumed he was sitting in an interrogation room. It was just like on TV. There was no two-way mirror, but there was a security camera in the upper right corner. The room was hot. Stifling, actually. They left him in there for at least twenty minutes before Jillian returned.
“Hi, Doug.” She held out her hand for a second time. The sleeves on her white blouse were rolled back. “Sorry you got stuck here by yourself. I wanted to sit with Jim and see where they were going. We’ve got only a few minutes before the detective comes in, so mind if we get right to it?”
“I just want to get out of here.”
“When was the last time you saw your wife?” she asked.
“A couple of weeks ago. I’m not exactly sure. We text, mostly.”
Jillian held a pencil and notepad. “Last text was…?”
“From her? Thursday, to set up the signing of our divorce papers. But I got a weird text from her secretary the other day.”
“When they ask you a question, don’t offer extra information like that. Keep it simple and straightforward. When we have a chance to talk outside of here, you can elaborate.”
He nodded.
“Alibi…?”
“For when?”
“Sorry to keep you waiting,” Detective Gre
gory said as he stepped into the already cramped room. Perspiration beaded at the nape of Doug’s neck, dampening his hair.
“I need to ask you some questions about your wife and what you’ve been doing the last few days.”
“Before my client answers anything, we’d like to know why he’s being asked.”
“His wife was found dead at the bottom of the lake. Her lover is missing, and a lot of blood was found on his boat. We also have an eyewitness who said they saw a twenty-one-foot Boston Whaler in the bay.”
“That wasn’t—”
Jillian cut Doug off. “There are a lot of twenty-one-foot Boston Whalers on the lake. Did they ID my client? His boat?”
“They described a man with long brown hair, and your client has a Boston Whaler.”
Doug felt his heart race out of control as he tried to remember the last time he had his boat out on the lake, much less in Paradise Bay. It was a long drive up to that part. He didn’t go there often, and he certainly hadn’t been up there this past weekend. He wanted to ask the detective if the so-called witness had mentioned the name of the boat, because his, he thought, was unique: Top Knits. It was “stink pot” spelled backward, and since he liked to fish, it was a fitting name.
“That doesn’t mean it was my client,” Jillian said.
“We’re just trying to get at the bottom of what happened,” Gregory said. “Work with us, here.”
“We are,” Jillian said. Her voice was sweet, and she actually smiled. “Ask your questions.”
“So, I understand you were to meet your wife yesterday morning to sign divorce papers, is that correct?” Gregory asked.
“Yes.”
“Why not report her missing? She was your wife.”
Doug opened his mouth, but nothing came out. Maybe he should have reported it. Maybe things would be different if he had. He cleared his throat. “She has stood me up before when we first started the process of getting a divorce.”
“Divorce. It’s a messy business.” Gregory stood near the door, shaking his head. “What was the reason for the divorce?”
“It was mutual,” Doug said, which was the truth. Actually, Mary was the one that finally said the word divorce. He’d just said he was done.
“So, it was amicable.” Gregory took out a small note pad then started flipping through it. “I was under the impression your wife had an affair. That would really piss me off.”
“My client isn’t you,” Jillian said. “Any more questions?”
“Yes,” Gregory said. “When was the last time you saw your wife?”
“About two weeks ago, when I let her into the house to collect the rest of her things.”
“And how did she act? Was she nervous? Angry?”
“She was normal.” Doug had no idea how to answer that question. “I only saw her for about ten minutes.”
“When was the last time you spoke with her?”
“Thursday, but it was a text, telling me she would bring the papers with her this weekend for us to sign.”
“Why was she coming up here?”
Doug glanced between his lawyer, who was scribbling on her pad of paper, and then the detective, who was looking at his own. “She came here with her friend for the weekend.”
“You mean the man she was having an affair with while still married to you? That’s really got to get under your skin.”
Jillian tapped her pencil on the desk. “Any other questions?”
“Just a couple more things,” Gregory said. “Where were you Friday?”
“Working at the Heritage Inn.”
“Saturday?” Gregory asked.
“Same,” Doug said.
“You work on Saturdays?”
“Sometimes.”
Gregory stopped writing and leaned across the table. “Interesting that you say you were at the Heritage Inn, working, when your boat was—”
“Does your witness have the name of Doug’s boat?”
For the first time since Doug met Detective Gregory, he saw anger flash behind the detective’s eyes. Jillian stood, collecting her things, then laced her fingers around Doug’s arm, practically hoisting him out of his chair.
“We’re still talking with this witness.”
“I don’t think there is anything left to ask Mister Tanner,” Jillian said. “If you need anything else, let us know. We want whoever is responsible for Mary’s death to be brought to justice.”
“I would advise your client not to leave the area.”
“We take it under advisement.”
Doug followed his attorney out to the waiting room, where Jim greeted him by the hallway. He looked around for Stacey, but she was nowhere to be found. “I want to see Mary.” A small part of his brain hadn’t accepted that Mary was gone. Without closure, he couldn’t move on. Nor could he properly focus on the reality that the detective he just spoke to honestly believed he’d killed his wife.
“What?” Jillian asked.
“My wife. I want to see her.”
“Why?” Jim asked.
“To make all this real,” Doug said. “My life flipped in an instant and I can’t process it.”
“They haven’t asked you to formally identify her?” Jillian asked.
Doug winced, briefly closing his eyes. “No.”
Jim had placed his hand on Doug’s shoulder. Jim had been more than a business partner to Doug. He was pretty much a late-in-life father figure. Big brother. Best friend. A man Doug could look up to. Even though Doug had paid Jim back for his education and earned his keep in the business, Jim had taken a big risk on Doug. Right now, Doug felt like he’d let him down, big time.
“That means the autopsy isn’t final, which makes me wonder why they brought you down here in the first place. Jumping the gun a bit,” Jillian said. “I’m guessing there are issues with the eyewitness since they didn’t know the name of your boat.”
“Do you?” Doug asked.
“Jim told me,” she admitted. “From what I’ve gathered thus far, they don’t have much. If anything. Except that eyewitness, and that is weak,” Jillian said. “I was prepared for a line up, but they didn’t, so whoever the witness is, the cops aren’t sure about their statement. However, I’ve seen a lot of cases like these in my day, and that detective is going to want to get this case off his desk quickly. That means he’s moving quickly. Could be good. Could be bad.”
“Bad, how?” Doug asked.
“The fact someone told them a boat like Doug’s was seen, though I’m sure more than one was seen. Very popular boat. It tells me they are either ruling him out, but my gut says he’s a real suspect, and maybe they have more, but not enough to make an arrest.”
“This is crazier than me living in the streets again,” Doug said. “I have no reason to kill my wife.”
“Your wife’s death is suspicious, and her lover his missing, and you were in the middle of a divorce.” Jillian said. “That’s a reason.”
“I would never physically harm Mary.”
“The good news is,” Jillian said, “they are the ones who need to prove your guilt, but I don’t like the feel of how they are handling this so far, so I want to take a pre-emptive strike.”
“What do you mean?” Jim asked.
“Our best bet is to find another suspect and redirect this investigation,” Jillian said, turning to Doug. “I’d like to sit down and talk with you for a while. Ask you a lot of personal questions. If this thing takes a turn for the worse, then at least you’ll be prepared.”
“You do this for people who haven’t been arrested on a regular basis?” Doug asked.
“Not often,” she said. “Based on how they have handled this so far, having a lawyer will help protect you in the interview process. Besides, I promised Jim I’d help.”
“I appreciate it,” Jim said.
“Can we meet tomorrow? My office? Or I can come to you,” Jillian said.
“Be better if you came to the site,” Doug said. “We’re already b
ehind on one project, and Jim’s working on another site, so I’d prefer not to lose any time.”
“I can make it happen,” Jillian said. “Try to go about life as usual.”
“That’s not going to be easy,” Doug said. “I got to get out of here.” A crushing pain tore through his chest. He couldn’t get enough air. “I’m going back to work.” He made a beeline for the door, searching his pockets for his keys. Then he realized he hadn’t driven. Jim had. Great. He took in a deep breath, placing his hands on the hood of the truck and closed his eyes.
He was going to take Reese up on his offer for pizza and beer.
Chapter 5
“WHY DON’T YOU stay and hang out for a while?” Doug asked. The pain in his chest subsided, but he still struggled to focus. He didn’t plan on going back to Jim’s house tonight. He needed time and space to think. Time to clear his head. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to be with Stacey. He wanted her in the worst way. Best way. Every way possible. But right now, he needed time to process everything that had happened in the last couple of days. “Reese’s wife and grandmother are out of town for a few days. Reese has the place to himself. ”
Jim looked at his watch “I’m going to meet Jillian.”
Doug smiled. “She’s nice. Hot, too.”
Jim glanced up with an arched brow. “You’re really going to go there?”
“Well, for an older woman, I mean.” The banter helped calm his racing mind. So many questions with no answers.
Jim shook his head. “I’m going to ignore that statement.”
“Seriously. She seems like a good person.”
“She is,” Jim said.
“Where did Stacey go?” Doug asked.
“Back to work, she said.” Jim smiled. He’d always been a proud father. “Weird to see her all grown up in a trooper uniform and acting all cop-like. Seems like just yesterday, I was following the school bus on her first day of kindergarten.”
“She grew up good.” Doug slammed the truck door.
“So did you,” Jim said. “You should text her and tell her you don’t plan on coming home. She’ll worry if you don’t.”
“I will,” Doug said. His chest tightened once more. “Honestly, she’s part of the reason I’m staying here tonight.”