“Angelo, you can’t do anything to jeopardize your business. Where would I eat? Think how skinny I’d get.”
“But—”
“You don’t want me to eat at Tony’s.” Tony’s was the Italian restaurant in Billerica that I’d seen the coupons for earlier. Angelo always went on about their fake cheese and poor-quality ingredients. I’d eaten there once and didn’t plan on going back again, not that I’d be welcome after an incident when Angelo was in a lasagna bake-off up against Tony himself.
Angelo shrugged. “You’re right. Have you talked to Mike ‘the Big Cheese’ Titone? Maybe he can help.”
I shook my head no. Mike was connected to the Mob, and I wasn’t ever sure if he was the good guy he proclaimed he was or a great liar. He had helped me once too often, and I didn’t want to owe him any more favors than I already did. I’m pretty sure he had a running tally sheet in his head about who owed him what. “I’ll figure it out.”
“What about Seth?” Angelo asked. “He should be doing something.”
“He had to recuse himself,” I said.
“That’s not right.” Angelo shook the rolling pin.
“He’s running for office. Dropping charges would put him in an awkward position,” I said.
More customers came in, so Rosalie and Angelo stood.
“It’s fine,” I said. “We all know that I didn’t do this. It will resolve itself soon enough.” I hoped that was true. But I worried that Officer Jones wasn’t even looking for the Greens. Why would he when he thought I was guilty?
CHAPTER TWELVE
A youngish man wearing a skinny-legged suit with a plaid shirt and red bow tie was adjusting a dull painting of rectangles on the wall of a rental office in the north part of Ellington when I walked in at three-fifteen. This was my third stop after I left DiNapoli’s on my quest to find the apartment complex where the Greens had told me they lived.
“Hi, I’m looking for a new apartment.”
The man smiled. “Then you’ve come to the right place. We have everything from studios to three-bedroom units. And we are pet-friendly. What did you have in mind?”
“My friends Kate and Alex Green loved their unit. Something like that would be perfect.” I had no idea how big or small their place was. They’d told me it was small, but they’d told me a lot of things. Hopefully, they had some connection to this place because I was running out of options. There were only so many apartment complexes in Ellington. Although maybe they lied about that along with everything else. I’d tried the line twice to no avail.
“Oh, I love the Greens,” the man said.
Finally. “Me too.” Make that I’d love to get my hands on the Greens. “Do you have a unit near theirs?”
“Theirs is available,” he said.
“They moved out?” My voice sounded shaky. I didn’t want him to catch on that I was a fraud. “I mean they moved out already? I thought it was going to be a couple of more months.”
“Their house was done sooner than they thought.”
“That’s fantastic for them.”
“Would you like to look at their old unit? The light in it is wonderful.”
“Yes, please.”
“I’m just going to give you the key because I’m expecting someone else.”
Darn. That must mean the place was completely empty or he wouldn’t let me go up there alone. If some of their stuff was still there I might have had a chance to find a clue as to who they really were and where they’d gone. However, without him along it would be easier to snoop. He’d probably wonder why I was looking in the toilet tank. I took the key, found the apartment, and let myself in. Since it was a corner unit it did have nice light, but other than that it was a square beige box with no soul. Beige flooring, beige walls, beige appliances. It overlooked the parking lot and pool. Just in case, I did a quick search. Freezer empty. Refrigerator, a bottle of crusty-looking ketchup. I gave it a shake to make sure there wasn’t anything hidden in the bit of ketchup left. There wasn’t. Dishwasher, stove, and microwave clear. Although from the bits of dirt clinging to everything, I didn’t think they’d be getting their deposit back.
I went through the kitchen cupboards. Under the sink was a bottle of vodka with one swig left. It said something about how desperate I was feeling that I actually considered knocking it back. Wanting to day drink was never a good thing for me. The coat closet had a couple of wire hangers in it. I walked into the bedroom. It was obvious where all the furniture had been because of indentations in the carpet. Bed, nightstand, bureau, all frustratingly gone. I opened the closet and spotted a scrap of paper on the floor.
It was a small rectangle with numbers on it and a safety pin through it. I picked it up. It was probably from a dry cleaner, but which one? I stuffed it in my purse just in case I could think of some way to turn it into concrete information. And yes, I really did look in the toilet tank and felt behind it. The bathroom yielded nothing but some moldy grout in the shower and toothpaste stains in the sink.
I locked the apartment and knocked on the door of the apartment next to the Greens. No one answered. Back in the office I returned the key. A couple sat on chairs against one wall filling out an application.
“What did you think?” the man asked me.
“I’m just not sure,” I said.
He gestured to the couple. “If you’re not going to take it, they probably will. End units are at a premium.”
The couple looked up at me hopefully. At least I was going to make someone’s day. “I just can’t commit today. But thank you for letting me look.”
* * *
I called Michelle a little before four to check in and see how she was doing. We decided to meet at a Dunkin’ Donuts in Lexington. Just far enough from base that we might have some privacy and wouldn’t run in to anyone we knew. I walked in twenty minutes later. The smell of coffee and sweet scent of donuts always made me happy. Michelle was still in her uniform when I joined her with a large iced coffee, cream and sugar required.
“How are you doing?” I asked as I slid into the booth.
Fortunately, Dunkin’s was quiet in the afternoon. There was a man across the way working on a crossword puzzle. He didn’t even look up when I came in. Michelle’s face was understandably pale. Lines around her eyes showed her tension, as did the set of her jaw. She stirred her coffee so hard some slopped over the top.
“I haven’t been arrested. Yet.”
That made one of us. “Do you have friends who are supporting you? Co-workers?” I asked.
“I went to the office after Bristow finally let me go. It was obvious everyone knew. They divided themselves into two groups. One group stared at me like I had two heads. The other made excuses to come into my office like I was some kind of display at a museum.” Michelle fidgeted with a ring on her right hand. “They asked the stupidest questions. Stuff they already knew the answers to, trying to get me to talk about what happened.”
“I’m sorry.”
Michelle lifted and dropped her shoulders. “Actually, there was another group. A few people were concerned about me. Concerned about Blade.”
“What’s next?” I asked.
“I’ll get through the weekend and go to work on Monday. If I’m not in jail. But I’m pretty sure I’ll be persona non grata there.”
“That’s not right.”
“Probably not, but it’s to be expected.”
“I don’t like to think of you being so alone. Do you want to stay with me for a while? I can sleep on my couch.”
“Now if your brother Luke made that offer, I might take him up on it.” Michelle managed a slight smile. Her smile broadened when I made a disgusted face.
“What about other friends?”
“There’s a certain social isolation that comes with being a female in the military. Even more so as you move up in rank. I have a friend who served in the Navy. Back in the day she was the only female on a ship of twenty-five hundred.”
“I have
a few single friends who might trade places with her,” I said.
“Some people considered her an intruder. She was a JAG investigating a drug ring. I know she was happy when she got back home.”
“I’ll bet.” I didn’t envy the job of judge advocate general.
“Although even that was a bit of a goat rope. Her brother had agreed to stay with her kids. But her ex-husband decided her place was better for throwing parties than his, so he kind of took over.”
“Are you kidding me?” I asked.
“I wish I was. Some days I wonder why I chose this life.”
“Because you are smart and capable. The military needs more people like you,” I said. “But that still isn’t helping you sort through all of this.”
“There’s a secret group on a social media site. Female officers from all the branches. We share everything from inspirational quotes to what men to never be alone with. We bitch about the military community, which isn’t always welcoming to women to the point sometimes we’re shunned. We complain about the unfairness of the weight standards. No one takes pregnancy into consideration. Even our uniforms are less forgiving than men’s.”
“It must be hard to retain women then,” I said.
“They leave mid-career twice as often as men,” Michelle said. “I’ve been doing a study. On my own time. Maybe that’s another reason for the IG complaint. Sorry for the whining. I’m just feeling a little down about everything today.”
“It’s understandable. Did you talk to Vincenzo?” I asked. I’d referred so much business to him, I should be getting a finder’s fee.
“Yes.”
“And?”
“He said not to talk to anyone.”
“That’s excellent advice.”
“But Sarah, you know I wouldn’t kill Blade. I might have hated the guy, but I would have dealt with it more head-on.”
It seemed to me murdering someone is about as head-on as you could get. “Did you leave your house last night? After I dropped you off ?” I held up a hand. “Wait. Don’t answer that. I could be forced to testify against you.”
“There’s nothing for you to testify about.” She sipped her coffee. “Do you remember seeing a pair of my running shoes at the top of the steps when you took me home last night?”
“Which steps? The ones to your front door?”
“No, the ones inside. Near my bedroom.”
“I don’t think so. But I wasn’t paying that close of attention.”
“You would have seen them. I almost fell over them this morning when I went downstairs. At the time I figured you’d stuck them there for some reason.”
“I didn’t.” I rethought last night. “I know they weren’t there when I left.”
“They were muddy and had bits of grass clinging to them. The mud was still soft like I’d been out for a run in them recently.”
We stared at each other.
“What if I did do it?”
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
“You didn’t do it.” I wouldn’t admit that her question scared me. “It’s not how you handle things.”
“I’ve had some pretty dark thoughts lately,” Michelle said.
“Everyone has them. Dark thoughts are a lot different than taking action.”
Michelle just stared down at the coffee cup she was squeezing. “It’s not like I have anyone to provide me an alibi.”
“What do you remember about last night?”
“Ugh, it’s so embarrassing.” Michelle stared down at the table. It looked like she wished she could disappear.
“Everyone does something stupid once in a while. Don’t be too hard on yourself.” I’d drunk-texted someone once right after CJ and I broke up the first time. Not my finest moment.
“I remember you tucking me into my bed. And you saying you’d put a glass of water by the bed in case I got thirsty. I chugged it this morning.” Michelle paused.
“You were in no condition to go out running when I left you.” Michelle was an avid runner. Under normal circumstances she could easily make it to Gillganins and back. She ran marathons for fun. “Have you ever drunk-run before? Or do you sleepwalk?”
“I was a sleepwalker when I was a kid, but that was years and years ago.”
“What else do you remember?”
“Not much. This morning I found your note saying you and Luke would pick me up this morning.”
“What time was that?”
“Around six. Have you ever thought about being an interrogator? You’re good at it,” Michelle said.
“Absolutely. I’m going to give up the fun of the garage sale business so I can spend my days scaring people.” I took a sip of my iced coffee. “That means you would have had to go out between say one thirty and five if you were back in bed to wake up again at six.” I thought for a moment. “Realistically the window is probably even smaller than that. What did you do next?”
“I went downstairs to make some coffee and almost tripped over the shoes. I came very close to tumbling down the stairs.”
A chill that had nothing to do with my iced coffee rattled me. “What if someone wanted you to tumble down the stairs? Two birds with one pair of shoes.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Someone kills the major, stuffs his body in your car, uses your shoes, and then plants them hoping you’d fall down the stairs. You’d could have been seriously injured or killed. Then everyone assumes it was you and the case is closed.”
If possible, Michelle paled even more. Maybe I shouldn’t have been so blunt.
“Who knew you were going to be at Gillganins last night?” I asked.
“It was a squadron party, so everyone in the squadron.”
“How many people is that?”
“One hundred and twenty.”
“That’s a lot of suspects,” I said.
“Plus their families and other squadrons were invited.”
“Can you give me a list of all the people in your squadron?” I asked.
Michelle shook her head. “No. It wouldn’t be ethical.”
While her answer frustrated me, it’s why I knew that Michelle didn’t kill Blade. I hoped Bristow would see it that way, too.
I reached across the table and grabbed her hand. “You didn’t do it. We’ll find out who did.”
* * *
I realized after I left Michelle that there must be security cameras around the base that may or may not have captured her leaving between the hours of one thirty and five a.m. So instead of going home I called James to see if he could meet me. James used to work for CJ when CJ was the commander of the base security police force. Thinking of CJ always left a little pang in my heart. I wondered if the pang would ever completely go away.
James had to sponsor me on base because I no longer had an ID that would get me on. But I still went through all of the rigmarole to get a pass, which included showing my driver’s license and proof of insurance. We met in the parking lot behind the Shoppette on Fitch. The Shoppette was a combination 7-Eleven-type store and liquor store. In the military the liquor store was called the Class Six. I had no idea why.
Even when CJ had been the commander, I didn’t know all of the security measures that safeguarded the base. I did know a few ways to sneak on, although not that any of them were foolproof. There was always a risk of being caught. I knew there were cameras around the buildings. At least one at the skate park because kids liked to hang out there. There had to be some around the perimeter, but I didn’t know how many or where they were.
James pulled up in his personal truck instead of one of the base police cars and wasn’t in uniform. He was a few years younger than I was and older than most of his peers because he’d enlisted later in life, not right out of high school. I hopped out of my Suburban and into his truck.
“Off duty?” I asked. James looked better every time I saw him, more relaxed and confident. He’d gone through a rough patch after a deployment, and at the time I’d been scared f
or him.
“For now. We’re all working long hours because of Major Blade’s death.”
“Even though it happened off base?”
James nodded. “There’s plenty of angles to follow up on.”
That news gave me hope. “So Michelle—Colonel Diaz—isn’t the only suspect?”
“That’s not what I said.”
I waited for a moment, but he didn’t add anything.
“So can I watch the tapes from the gate last night?” I knew the gates had security cameras. They made no attempt to camouflage them. Logic told me that Michelle would have had to run out the Travis Gate because it was the closest to Gillganins. I couldn’t imagine her trying to scale the perimeter fence with the razor wire on top of it when she was drunk.
“No. You can’t see them. Everyone’s all over it right now. And it’s a murder investigation.”
His tone said you should know better than to ask. I did, but I had to anyway. “Did you watch them?”
James nodded.
“And?” I asked.
“And nothing. I’m sorry but I can’t tell you anything. And I don’t want you to get in trouble.”
“That’s why you met me?”
“Yes.”
I was disappointed, but understood. “I get that you can’t let me watch them for myself, but what did you see?”
James looked out through the windshield for a moment. There was a good chance he wouldn’t tell me so when he started talking it took me by surprise.
“A figure in a hoodie and sweats ran off base toward Gillganins at two thirty this morning. Someone about the size of Colonel Diaz. But it’s not conclusive. It’s not like there is a clear shot of the person’s face.”
I thought about the muddy shoes Michelle had found in her house. She’d have to tell someone about them. “Thanks, James. Does the medical examiner have a time of death?”
James nodded. “An approximate. A range anyway.”
With any luck it would be while I was still with Michelle. Blade’s body could have been moved or it could have been in the car. Luke had picked us up at the front of Gillganins. We hadn’t been anyplace near her car. “Is it within the range of the person running off base?”
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