by Raven Snow
“I’m not sure,” Darren admitted. “They were roommates, and they worked together. Beyond that, I couldn’t really say. They never had any complaints. I can only assume they enjoyed their jobs.”
“Was he close to anyone else?” asked Rowen. “Girlfriend? Boyfriend? Best friends?”
“He and Frank got along well. They were both so into technology. And, as I recall, he had something of a crush on Julia.” Darren smirked at that. “But I suppose he shared that with half of Lainswich.”
Rowen made an effort not to roll her eyes. “I know no one has any real theories about what happened to him so far,” she continued, steering the interview in a slightly different direction. “Do you have any theories of your own?”
“Theories?” Darren shook his head. “Oh, I wouldn’t know who to suspect. It’s dangerous to start throwing blame in situations such as these.”
Rowen had expected an answer like that. It would be foolish for him to openly make some sort of guess to someone who might publish that information. “Is there anything you do feel comfortable telling us?” asked Rowen.
Darren inclined his head, appearing to mull it over. “Well, Jerry did have a somewhat strong personality, I guess you could call it. He was loud; he laughed a lot. I loved the man. Most people loved him around here, but I suppose there’s a chance he might have rubbed certain people the wrong way.”
“What do you mean?” asked Rowen, looking for some clarification even though she had a decent idea of what he meant.
Darren was patient, expounding without complaint. “I mean that some people might have mistaken his joviality for cruelty. He was the sort to play pranks and make jokes at the expense of others. It was all in good fun, but I can’t help but wonder if it might have had a hand in his death.”
“I see,” said Rowen. It was good to have an idea of the guy they were looking into.
“I hope you won’t disparage him if you use that in an article,” Darren added, quickly.
“Oh, no.” Rowen shook her head. “We would never. We try to be very respectful of the dead.” Rowen pressed on with more questions before he or Willow could say anything about them actually conversing with the dead--not that that had even worked with Jerry Borowski.
Darren answered the rest of the questions off of Rowen’s list to the best of his ability. He was very open and candid. He was the ideal interviewee, really. Rowen would consider herself blessed if all interviewees were as cooperative as him. It was almost upsetting when her eyes strayed to a picture on the desk. “Is that your wife?” she asked, once they were all done with the questions and going through some generic niceties before leaving.
“Hmm?” Darren’s gaze followed hers. “Ah, yes. That’s my dear Seraphina. She spends most of her time abroad, but she’s actually back in town at the moment.”
“That’s great,” said Rowen. “I know how that can be. My husband still leaves town a lot because of his work. It’s always such a relief when he makes it back home.”
“It is,” Darren agreed, though he didn’t sound much like he meant it. It sounded more like something he felt he was supposed to say.
“You two have any plans while she’s at home?” Rowen stood, putting her recorder back in her purse. Willow did the same, throwing Rowen a puzzled look as she did so.
Darren gave a shrug. “I hadn’t given it a ton of thought. I suppose I’m just enjoying having her back at the moment. Once some of this nasty business about the murder is squared away, I’ll have to take her out on a proper date.” He led Rowen to the door. “I hope your husband takes you out on a nice romantic date every once in a while. A lovely lady like yourself deserves to be spoiled.”
The laugh that came out of Rowen sounded distressingly like a giggle. “He’s great,” she assured Darren. “No complaints from me.” She put out her hand to shake his. “Thanks so much again for taking the time. Maybe we can collaborate on a story some time.”
Darren gave her hand a shake. “That sounds like a fantastic idea,” he agreed. “We’ll do dinner some time and hammer out the details.”
“Great.” Rowen stepped out into the hallway and headed for the exit.
Willow mumbled her own goodbyes and followed close behind. “What in the world was that all about?” she asked as soon as they had taken a turn in the hall.
“What?” Rowen turned before the exit, taking a hallway other than the one that led them back into the parking lot.
“You almost tipping him off about his wife, for starters,” said Willow. “It sounds like their marriage is done. That ship has sailed. Don’t sabotage your husband’s work just to tip him off that she’s about to dump him.”
“I did not sabotage his work.” Rowen was a bit offended she even thought that. “I just… I dunno. He seems like a nice guy. He’s really charming, isn’t he? And kinda good looking for an older man.
Willow rolled her eyes. “Oh, please. He’s a creep. I know creeps, and that’s a creep.”
“You don’t even know him.” Rowen took another turn at random, picking a hall without many people in it so that she could stop and figure out where to go next.
“I’ve known plenty of men like him,” Willow insisted. “Hey, where are we going anyway?”
“That’s a good question.” Right now, Rowen was just desperately hoping no one noticed them and kicked them out. Technically, they weren’t exactly supposed to be here. If Julia Martinez caught them roaming the hallways, she would kick them out in an instant. “Can you text Benji? Ask him where Frank works. That was Jerry’s friend, right? We should probably talk to him and the roommate.” That seemed like a good place to start.
Willow sighed at the demand, but she pulled out her phone anyway. “I hope he doesn’t think I’m just using him,” she mumbled as she dialed. “I actually sort of like the guy.”
Chapter Six
Benji was a good kid. It did seem mean to keep using him like this. Rowen ordered them all pizza delivered to the station for lunch, but that didn’t quite seem like it made up for things. Even Benji seemed a bit wary as he led them back to an office in the back of the building. “We probably shouldn’t make a habit of this, if you’re going to wander around,” he said, forcing a very strained smile as he glanced back at Willow and Rowen. “I could get in trouble if they catch you walking around alone and without a visitor’s badge.”
“Sorry, sweetie.” Willow picked up her pace to walk beside Benji. “Rowen just really needed this stuff for a story, and we’ve been calling nonstop. Mr. Hawthorne was really cool about it. He’s meeting us for lunch sometime soon.”
Benji raised his eyebrows at that, looking a bit impressed. “Seriously?”
Willow nodded. “He talked about maybe even collaborating with us on some stories. There shouldn’t be any more mix-ups with the receptionist again.”
“That’s good, I guess.” Benji opened a door to a large room with a bunch of monitors and computers against a wall. There were tables full of news equipment and camera parts. Frank was sitting at one of the monitors, going through some raw footage of what looked like a traffic accident.
“Just sit it on the table,” Frank said without turning around.
“Huh?” Benji closed the door behind them all.
Frank swiveled around in his chair. “Huh? Oh, sorry. I thought you were Craig. He’s out picking up Chinese.”
Benji cringed. “Again?”
“I ordered pizza,” Rowen interjected. “It should be here soon, I think. There’s enough for everyone.”
“That sounds way better.” Frank started to swivel back around to the monitors but stopped. “What are you doing here?”
“I came to have lunch with Benji,” said Willow, answering even though Frank had been talking to Rowen. “My cousin tagged along because she had some business here.”
“Okay.” Frank turned his chair back around and got to work.
Rowen was continuously forgetting how manipulative Willow could be. She might seem an awfu
l lot like a ditz, but Rowen wouldn’t be shocked if that was all a ruse. Maybe that was how she knew Darren was a creep. She could sense her own. “So, what is it that you do in here?” asked Rowen, moving the conversation along so that she couldn’t dwell too much on thinking negative things about her cousin.
Excitement shined in Benji’s eyes when she asked. “Oh, a ton! Well, I don’t do a lot, since I’m just an intern. Well, that’s not entirely true either. I guess I sort of took over as camera operator after…” He trailed off again.
Frank sighed and turned in his chair. “He’s doing a great job,” he said. “Jerry left some talented shoes to fill, but he’s not half bad.”
Willow gave Benji a reassuring smile. Rowen was surprised to hear from Frank. She was glad to see he was willing to throw the intern a bone. She hadn’t taken him for the sort to comfort his fellow employees upon first meeting him. “I had an interview with Mr. Hawthorne today,” she said before he could turn back around. “He said you and Jerry were close.”
Frank raised an eyebrow. “I don’t know about that,” he said. “We didn’t really hang out outside of work or anything. I liked him fine. We worked well together, but I’m not sure I’d call us close.”
“Well, I’m sorry for your loss either way,” said Rowen. She was willing to believe Darren had fudged things a bit on how well he knew his employees. He probably hadn’t counted on her actually talking to them. Not that this was an especially huge detail. “I know you guys were a team here and all of you must be taking it pretty hard.”
Frank didn’t say anything at first staring at Rowen instead, like he was trying to size her up. It didn’t seem like he quite trusted her. Maybe he thought she was trying to question him for a story. That was a valid concern. He must have decided he didn’t mind much either way. He continued, “I just wish the police had a lead. Instead, they just keep poking around here and asking the same questions over and over, like the answers are going to change.” He shook his head. “I know they’re just doing their jobs, but I can’t say I’m a fan of being on this side of the news.”
“Yeah,” Willow chimed in. “I’m not sure what they’re doing. Ben hasn’t really come to us much on this one.”
“Why would he?” asked Benji. It didn’t seem like he was trying to be cruel. He looked genuinely confused.
Willow looked equally puzzled. “Because of all the mysteries we solve,” she said, like Benji should already know this. “He’s always coming to us on cases. We help crack them.”
“They’re psychics the police consult with,” said Frank. Unlike Benji, he didn’t seem to be making any effort to better understand the Greensmiths. Rowen noted the slight smirk.
“Something like that,” said Rowen. “We do help Ben with cases from time to time. He hasn’t asked for a whole lot of help this time, so we’ve stayed out of it.”
“Sure,” said Frank. He looked over at Benji. “The Chief of Police is dating one of them. He comes to them with stories.”
“That’s not true,” Rowen snapped.
Willow shrugged. “I don’t know. It’s a little true.”
Rowen glared at her cousin. “We help with cases,” she repeated, speaking firmly this time so that it didn’t leave any room for argument. “We absolutely help with cases.”
“Most of them involve you in some way,” Frank pointed out.
Rowen couldn’t argue with him there. “We still help. And we’re not a bunch of charlatans or anything.” She hadn’t liked his tone of voice or what he seemed to be implying earlier.
Frank didn’t look all that concerned with having offended her. “Whatever it takes to get the story, right?”
The door to the room opened, and Craig entered carrying a couple bags of Chinese food. “They screwed up the order again,” he complained as he sat it down on a table. “I got halfway here before I thought to check and had to turn around.”
“Put it in the mini fridge,” said Frank. “We’re having pizza, apparently.”
“Huh?” Craig looked up from the bags, visibly annoyed. That’s when he noticed Rowen and Willow. He frowned. “Does Julia know you’re here?”
“They’re just here for lunch,” Benji said quickly, putting an arm around Willow to indicate why they were here having lunch. It didn’t seem like the boy had had many girlfriends in his lifetime. “And they’re paying for the pizza.”
“They’re here to drill us with questions,” Frank said, knowingly.
“I’m just here with Willow because we were headed to the same place,” Rowen assured him. She didn’t see much point in continuing to dance around the truth, though. “After speaking with Darren, I already have my article. If I hear anything new from you guys, I’d like to add that in… With your permission, of course.”
“Seriously, does Julia know she’s here?” Craig asked again. He pulled out his cell phone, likely to contact her himself.
“Oh, don’t worry about it,” Frank said, waving a hand for Craig to put the phone away. “What harm can it do? They’re a small paper. Throw them a bone.” He inclined his head in Benji’s direction, maybe trying to draw Craig’s attention to his relationship with Willow. As poorly as Frank seemed to think of the Greensmith’s particular witchy set of skills, he did seem to approve of Benji’s blossoming relationship.
Frank glanced over at Benji. The kid was looking awfully torn over everything. What had once been a simple lunch date had gotten a lot more complicated. Office politics probably weren’t his strong suit.
“Fine,” Craig sighed, pocketing the phone. “But if Julia asks, I objected to all of this.”
“She’s probably already gone home,” said Frank, not sounding the least bit concerned about someone else walking in on them. “The time she actually puts in here, I’m not sure why she bothers coming in at all lately.”
“That’s not fair,” Craig shot back. “She’s taking this harder than any of us. You know that.”
Frank turned back to his work. It was unclear whether he “knew that” or not. It looked like he didn’t care enough to argue with Craig, at any rate. The atmosphere in the room had suddenly grown a bit tense.
“So, you were Jerry’s roommate?” asked Rowen, even though she already knew that. This probably wasn’t going to alleviate the awkward mood any, but she might as well get her questions in while she had the chance.
Craig turned to Rowen. He sat heavily in a chair, his arms folded over his chest. “Yeah,” he said, not sounding like he was really in the mood to answer questions.
“Were you two close?” asked Rowen.
“I guess.” Craig shrugged. “He was a good roommate. He paid the rent on time, and he never made a mess or anything.”
Rowen wasn’t sure that qualified as “close.” “So, he didn’t come home at all that night?”
“I thought he was with his girlfriend.” Craig glanced over at Frank, probably to try and gauge whether or not he should be answering these questions. Frank didn’t even bother looking up. He had his headphones on. Craig looked back to Rowen. “He slept over at her place a lot.”
Rowen hadn’t actually heard that yet. That was new information to her. “He had a girlfriend?” she asked. “Who?”
“Tina… I forget her last name. They met on this online dating thing. They’d been seeing each other off and on for a while. She works at the library.”
“At the library?” Rowen repeated, scarcely daring to believe it. She looked at Willow. “Was Tina dating Jerry?” she asked. Tina was a friend of the family. More accurately, she was a friend of Peony and Willow. Peony had saved her life a while back. A murderous ex of Rowen’s mother had been after her life, and she’d taken a bullet for her. If that didn’t cement a friendship, nothing would.
“I knew she was dating a Jerry.” Willow stared back at Rowen, her eyes wide. “I didn’t know it was the same Jerry. How could I?”
“You talk all the time!” Rowen couldn’t believe this was happening. “How did this not come up in co
nversation.
Willow shrugged helplessly. “Maybe we should ask her about it?” she ventured.
“Ya think?” Rowen turned her attention back to Craig who was watching them both with eyebrows raised. “I take it the police already-”
Craig interrupted her. “Yeah… I don’t really feel comfortable answering any more questions. So…” He trailed off and lapsed into silence.
An awkward silence stretched out in the room again. “So, do you guys want to see the new camera they ordered?” asked Benji, making a noble attempt to break the ice.
“Do I?” Willow asked, obviously feigning excitement. Which was fine. Benji didn’t really pick up on the insincerity.
The pizza arrived about halfway through their demo of Channel 2’s latest camera tech. Rowen made a point to eat quickly. She had the distinct impression that they had overstayed their welcome. No one seemed upset to see them leave. Only Benji followed them out, but that might have just been so he could share a kiss with Willow in the parking lot.
Rowen didn’t mind seeing her cousins in their respective romantic entanglements. She minded a bit when they got a little too affectionate right in front of her, though. “All right, that’s enough.” Rowen had to step in after what felt like a solid minute of kissing. “That’s enough of that.” She stepped between the two and pulled Willow off toward the car.
“I’ll call ya later, honey,” said Willow, giving Benji a wink and blowing him a kiss before getting in on the passenger side.
Benji caught the imaginary kiss in his hand and watched them go like a lovesick puppy. “Oh, brother,” grumbled Rowen.
“He’s okay,” said Willow with a shrug. She leaned back in the passenger seat and looked out the window. “So, are we heading to the office or are you taking me back home? Because, I wouldn’t mind going back home.”
“Are you kidding?” Rowen raised an eyebrow at her. “We’re headed to the library.”
“Why?” Willow sighed as realization hit her. “Oh… right.”