by Raven Snow
“Well, I’m not taking yours,” Rowen scoffed. She was far too attached to her family name.
The door opened, and Ben motioned for them to come inside. Margo and David were already sitting at his cluttered desk. There were no chairs left, so Rowen simply stood. Margo didn’t look like she was ready to start screaming. It looked like she had just finished, actually. That might be a good sign.
“I assume you’re here about Norman Greensmith as well?” asked Ben, frowning at Rowen.
“I’m here for Margo, mostly,” Rowen admitted. “But, yes, I guess I’m here about him, too.”
“He’s in some trouble for running from us,” Ben said. “We were just bringing him in for some questions. I have no idea why he would try to flee if he didn’t do anything. It certainly didn’t do any favors for him as a suspect. I can’t imagine why he would do something like that.”
“Our family has a flare for the dramatic,” said Rowen, glancing at Margo. She hoped her cousin, at least, was finished being dramatic for the day. “Norman isn’t a murderer.”
“I didn’t say he was,” Ben assured her. “I also didn’t say that Jeana had been murdered. We had some new information come to light and just hoped that Norman could answer a few questions for us.”
“What new information?” asked Rowen.
“That he was involved with our missing person,” said Ben. “The two had a romantic relationship… But I assume you already knew that?”
Rowen wasn’t going to lie to the man. She might omit things, but she wasn’t going to lie. “I knew,” she said.
“And you didn’t think this was something I should know?” asked Ben.
“Honestly? No. I didn’t think it was worth mentioning. It was a coincidence that he was in town. It would just confuse matters.” Rowen knew this wasn’t making her sound like the most trustworthy individual.
“That wasn’t for you to decide,” said Ben. He started to say something else, but glanced to the door and lowered his voice. “We have a suspect I like more than your uncle,” he said quietly. “There was a man who Jeana works with. His name is Peter Jacobi.”
Rowen nodded. She knew him, more or less. He was Tina’s boss. “What about him?”
“I think he and Jeana might have been seeing each other at one point in time,” said Ben. “I have no hard evidence. It’s just a feeling I have. The way he talks about her is really telling, I think.”
“That sounds likely,” said Rowen. Maybe she was just looking for anyone to blame other than Norman, but she hoped he was on to something. “You should look into that.”
“I don’t have cause to bring him in,” said Ben. “He’s given his statement many times. When I asked if he was involved with Jeana, he denied it. I don’t have any proof to press the matter. I just have to take him at his word, which I don’t believe.”
“Why tell us?” asked Eric.
Rowen had a feeling she knew why Ben was telling them all of this. “Do you want me to go question him?” she asked.
“Question him?” Ben snorted at that. “Don’t question him. You’re not my deputies or anything. I just thought…Well, maybe you could pay him a visit. Maybe you have a chat with him. You’re good at reading people.”
“You want us to investigate this vigilante-style?” asked David, his eyes widening a bit. It was difficult to tell whether he was intrigued by or hesitant of the idea.
Ben looked at David and raised an eyebrow. “I hardly even know who you are.”
“He’s my brother,” Eric said with a laugh. “He’s been out of town. He’s actually had a run-in with this police station a couple of times.”
Recognition sparked in Ben’s eyes. “That’s right.” He smiled at Eric, as if just now completely acknowledging that he was there. “I hear you might be staying in town for good now, yourself.”
Eric’s smile broadened. “I don’t know about that,” he said. “But I’ll definitely be spending more time here; that’s for sure.”
Ben looked down at Rowen’s hand. She raised it so that he could see the ring on her finger. She hadn’t shown it to him yet. She hadn’t had cause to. He looked at it now and gave a low whistle. “That’s impressive. Congratulations.” Ben gave Eric a wink. “Watch out for yourself. The Greensmith ladies are a handful. I know from experience.”
“Can I take my father home or not?” asked Margo, interrupting them. She seemed a bit impatient. She certainly didn’t look up to sitting through small talk.
“He’s not charged with anything,” said Ben. “Of course you can take him home.”
Margo stood, no doubt ready to collect her father and leave.
“Just be careful,” Ben added quickly. “If you can, don’t let him skip town. That could end poorly for everyone.”
Rowen stood to follow. She didn’t plan on going home with them. If Margo was so determined to help Norman, she would let her. Getting in her way right now would only cause conflict. Besides, she wanted to get to the library before it closed. “I’ll call you tonight,” Rowen told Ben. “I’ll let you know what I think.”
“I appreciate it,” Ben called after her.
Rowen headed straight to the car with Eric. She heard Norman complaining loudly about being detained and noted the annoyed look on the receptionist’s face as they were leaving. She didn’t pause to deal with any of that, though. She kept right on going.
“We’re heading to the library, right?” asked Eric, getting into the driver’s seat.
“You got it,” said Rowen. She hesitated, something drawing her attention. “What’s wrong?” she asked as they pulled out of the parking lot.
Eric glanced over at her. “What do you mean?”
“Something’s wrong,” said Rowen. “I can tell.”
Eric started to shake his head, but must have decided there was no use in hiding it. “It’s just wedding stuff,” he said.
The wedding was coming up in a couple of weeks. Rowen couldn’t say she was terribly worried about it right this second. There were other things on her mind. It was just a small wedding, after all. Still, she tried not to be too callous. If something was bothering Eric, she wanted to be receptive no matter what it was. “What’s up?” she pressed.
Eric kept his eyes on the road. It seemed to be a welcome distraction for him. Whatever was troubling him, it had left him embarrassed. His fair skin was a bit red. “It’s just what Ben said.”
“What? About him dating me?” Rowen asked. She was sure Eric knew that they had dated. “That was a long time ago.”
“It’s not that,” Eric said quickly. “It’s the part about you and your family being a ‘handful,’ I think that’s what he said.”
Rowen rolled her eyes. “Yeah, that was a little rude, wasn’t it?”
“It wasn’t how he said it,” said Eric. “Though, yeah, sort of rude. I’ll give you that. It’s more…” He trailed off, considering. “I don’t know. You and your family are just sort of intimidating, I guess.”
“Intimidating?” Surely that wasn’t the right word for the Greensmith family. “Weird, maybe,” said Rowen. “We’re plenty weird, but I’m not sure about intimidating.”
Eric shrugged. He was silent for a few seconds, his eyes fixed on the road. “I’m just worried I won’t fit in.”
“Is this about the name change thing?” asked Rowen. They had never talked about that in great detail. To be honest, Rowen hadn’t given it a ton of thought. She hadn’t entertained the idea of changing her name for a moment.
“No,” Eric said immediately. “I don’t care if you change your name. Hell, I’d change mine to Greensmith, if you wanted. I’m not attached to the name Richardson or anything. I just don’t feel like much of a Greensmith.”
Rowen grinned. She couldn’t help it. “You would change your name to Greensmith?” she asked, oddly touched by the offer.
“I would if I felt like a Greensmith,” he said. “Your whole family is something else. Even the ones who wander off like Tiffany
or Norman. You’re like a unit. I feel out of place in that.”
“We’re a handful like Ben said, I guess,” said Rowen. “Every big family is, I think. Don’t worry about it.”
Eric didn’t say anything else on the matter. He obviously didn’t stop thinking about it, either. Rowen could tell that it continued to bother him. Unfortunately, she didn’t know what to say to make it better. Instead, Rowen kept quiet until they were at the library. It wasn’t far. “Do you want to wait out here or come in with me?” she asked.
“I’m coming in,” Eric said immediately.
“You know I’m not in any danger in a public library, right? It’s not even closed yet.” Rowen knew how over-protective Eric could be. He had this whole thing about her running off on her own. She hoped he wasn’t slipping into that right now.
“I know,” said Eric, pushing open his car door. “I’m just not sitting out here and waiting for you. It’s boring. Solving a murder is way more exciting.”
“We don’t know if it’s a murder yet,” Rowen pointed out, exiting the car as well.
“Whatever,” said Eric, following her to the front door.
The library looked a lot nicer on the inside when it was open. There weren’t too many people in it. Those that were in it were mostly using the computers. The only person working at the front desk was Tina. She was slumped over, propped up on her elbows and blowing bubbles with her gum. When she spotted Rowen, she smiled.
“Rowen!” called Tina, her shrill voice cutting through the silence of the library and drawing a lot of unwanted attention. “It’s so great to see you here!”
Someone in the library shushed Tina. Tina glared in the general direction of the sound, but was quickly back to smiling at Rowen and Eric as they approached. Rowen couldn’t help but feel a bit sorry for her. There was something tired around the corners of Tina’s eyes that hadn’t been there before the night she had come running through the storm and into the Lainswich Inquirer building. She seemed slightly less carefree now, more world-weary and nervous. It wasn’t a good look for her.
“Is Peony with you?” asked Tina. Those two had been close since the shooting, and even closer since Jeana’s disappearance.
“Just me, I’m afraid,” said Rowen.
“And me,” said Eric, waving his hand in a half-wave.
“Well, it’s good to see you both,” said Tina, sounding a little disappointed regardless. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”
“We’re here on Lainswich Inquirer business,” said Rowen, pulling a tape recorder from her purse. She lowered her voice so as not to draw attention. “It’s about Ms. McCormick.”
A few people at the computers glanced up, even though Rowen had made an effort to keep her voice low. Tina looked down at the desk. “I don’t know what else I have to say about this.” As much as Tina loved being the center of attention, she didn’t seem to have much else to say on this particular subject. She had been questioned nonstop by both the police and Julia Martinez.
“We were actually hoping to speak to your boss,” said Rowen.
“Peter?” Tina glanced over her shoulder. “He’s in the back, eating lunch,” she said. “I guess I can ask him. Wait here.” Tina headed into the back.
“Let me do the talking,” Rowen whispered to Eric once they were alone. “If he asks you anything, just say you’re tagging along.”
“I am just tagging along,” muttered Eric.
“Perfect.” Rowen stood up on her tiptoes and pressed a kiss to Eric’s cheek. “Love you, honey.”
Eric snorted but couldn’t hide the beginnings of a smile. He looked behind the desk as Tina emerged from it.
“He said to come on back,” said Tina. She lowered her voice to a whisper. “I don’t think he’s thrilled. Honestly, I think he just doesn’t want you interviewing me. He’s been on my case about it since this whole thing began—says I’m giving the library bad publicity.” Tina opened the swing door at the side of the counter.
Rowen and Eric headed behind the counter and through the door to the back. The halls were lined with filing cabinets and boxes filled with old library books. They would probably be up for sale during the festival. The library always had a booth there.
Peter Jacobi was at a desk in the back. He had a little portable television set up and a submarine sandwich set out in front of him. The television was playing sports, and he switched it off when Rowen and Eric approached.
“Mr. Jacobi,” said Rowen, putting on her most professional smile. “Rowen Greensmith from the Lainswich Inquirer.” She extended her hand for him to shake. “Sorry to interrupt your lunch.”
Peter stood and shook her hand. He forced a smile of his own. “I know who you are,” he said. “It’s no trouble.” Peter was a short little man with a pointy face and a head of receding red hair. He pushed his glasses up on his nose and sat back down. He motioned to several crates of books. “Sit down wherever you want. You’re not going to hurt anything.”
Rowen took a seat and pulled out her tape recorder. Eric remained standing. “You can probably guess why I’m here,” said Rowen, turning the recorder on.
“The only reason any reporter is here these days,” said Peter. “I’m not sure what I can say now that I haven’t said already.”
“How well did you know Jeana?” asked Rowen.
Peter gave a small shrug. “Well enough,” he said. “She was one of my best employees. I knew her about as well as I know anyone who’s worked under me for an extended period of time.”
Rowen nodded. “And did she have a tendency to go missing like this?”
“I can count the days of work she’s missed on one hand,” said Peter. “She was an excellent employee.”
Rowen already knew most of this. Peter was right. These questions had all been asked before. She was just working her way up to what she really wanted to know. “Was she involved with anyone here at work?”
Peter sat up a little straighter at the insinuation that something like that had been going on right under his nose. “She was always very professional,” he said. “I demand that of my employees.”
“Really?” Rowen couldn’t help but crack a smile. “I grew up with Tina. I can’t imagine she’s incredibly serious.” She wasn’t trying to throw Tina under the bus, but that Tina was more than a little unprofessional was exceedingly obvious to anyone with a functioning pair of ears or eyes.
“Tina does good work,” said Peter.
“She’s also quite attractive,” said Rowen.
Peter raised an eyebrow. He was, no doubt, trying to figure out whether Rowen was implying that his motivations for hiring on the majority of his workforce were sexist ones.
“Jeana was a good looking woman too,” continued Rowen. Jeana was an older woman, but Peter was an older man, and Jeana had looked pretty darn good for her age. Her blonde hair was always in a classy updo. She had a membership at the local gym. She had always put some effort into her appearance.
“I guess she was,” agreed Peter.
“And she didn’t have anyone in her life?” asked Rowen. “No one was with her in a romantic capacity?”
Peter gave another shrug. “I wouldn’t know.”
“But you spent so much time working with her,” Rowen pointed out. “Surely, the two of you talked about your private lives at some point during all those years.”
“I knew she was dating your uncle for a while there, if that’s what this is about,” said Peter, his tone turning a bit nasty. “I mentioned it to the police the last time they questioned me. I didn’t realize he was back in town until recently.”
“That was a long time ago,” said Rowen. “I was wondering if you knew of any potential suitors that might be a bit more recent.”
“That could still be your uncle,” insisted Peter. “His being back in town around the time she goes missing doesn’t strike me as a coincidence.”
“Were you ever interested in Ms. McCormick?” asked Rowen, getting right to it. Bett
er to come right out and ask when doing so might be taken as a tad rude. She could get the best reaction from Peter this way.
“Of course not,” said Peter, flustered. “That would be against the rules. I’ve never slept with an employee.”
“You’re single, though?” asked Rowen.
“By choice,” Peter insisted. “Not everyone chooses to get married, you know.”
“Of course,” said Rowen. She smiled and made a point to change the subject before she could offend him. “What do you think happened to Jeana?”
“I think she’s out there somewhere,” said Peter. “It’s hard to imagine that she was murdered.”