CHAPTER FORTY-SIX
Miner leaned against the counter as Susan straightened and re-straightened the items on her desk with her good hand. She wore a black skirt and white blouse for Matt and Amy’s funeral. Her daughter, Paige, stood beside her behind the front desk at City Hall. Paige wore Susan’s phone headset and had a pad of paper lined with notes in front of her.
“Paige gonna watch the front for you while you’re gone?” Miner asked.
“Yes.”
“Ellie’s closing the Book Bank for a couple hours,” Paige explained.
“Can’t very well shut down City Hall.” Susan forced a laugh.
“No. I imagine calls will be light.”
The phone rang and Paige picked it up. “Stillwater City Hall, how may I direct your call?” She paused. “I’ll put you through to his voice mail.” She punched buttons on the phone and looked at Miner. “I wouldn’t count on it. Everyone’s calling about Doyle Industries and the rumor Michelle’s been arrested.”
“Susan, where’s Brian?”
“Why?”
“I want to talk to him.”
“What about?”
“Have you seen him?”
“She hasn’t seen him since yesterday morning.”
“Paige!”
“Why would you lie for him?” Paige spat. “He broke your hand!”
“No, he didn’t. How many times do I have to tell you?”
“Paige, if you’ve got this, I need to talk to Susan alone.” Miner lifted the breakaway counter, walked to the door beneath the stairs, and waited for Paige to buzz him through. When the door clicked, Miner opened it and held it for Susan. Reluctantly, she followed.
Miner motioned for Susan to sit in a metal chair next to his desk then settled into his own chair. He leaned back and crossed an ankle over his knee. “Now, Susan, no more bullshit.”
Susan’s head shot up at the profanity. “I’m not—”
“Yes, you are and I’m not judging you for it. Trust me, I’m the last person on earth who would judge someone for lying or stealing or going against their morals for their family. But we’re talking about murder here, and you’ve got three kids to think about.”
“Brian didn’t kill anyone.”
“How are you so sure? He doesn’t have an alibi for Matt and Amy’s murders.”
Susan closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. She didn’t see or hear Jack walk in and stop at the door.
“If he would have just taken me to the hospital, none of this would have happened.”
“What do you mean?”
She opened her eyes and saw Jack. “On the way home from the lake, Brian was livid. I’ve never seen him as angry as he was that night. He was almost as pissed at Eddie as Matt.”
“Why?”
“Before we left the bonfire, Eddie told Brian if he ever hurt me, he’d make sure Brian regretted it.”
“Are you close with Eddie?” Miner asked. He looked to Jack, who stared at the floor with a contemplative expression.
“No. I hardly know him. Of course, Brian got all kinds of ideas, based on Eddie’s reputation. Between Matt and Eddie, I knew I had to do something to divert Brian’s attention.”
“You baited him to get angry with you,” Jack said.
Susan shook her head. “I slammed my hand in the car door when he went into the shop. I begged him to take me to the hospital. I knew by the time we were done, he would have lost a bit of his high, calmed down, seen reason.”
“But Paige took you,” Miner said.
“Brian’s never taken me. I don’t know why I thought this time would be different.” Her face tensed. “Even so, I don’t believe Brian killed Matt and Amy.”
“But he’s involved somehow. Kyle’s implicated him,” Miner said.
“Of course he has.” Her shoulders slumped and she sighed. “I came home yesterday, and Brian wasn’t there. No note, wouldn’t answer my texts or pick up when I called. I checked the caller ID on our home phone and saw the number from a jail and knew.”
She fiddled with her cast. “Over the years, Kyle’s tried to get Brian involved in his stuff, but Brian’s always refused.” Susan looked up and saw Jack. She spoke to Jack as much as Miner. “Brian’s a good man, but sometimes it’s a struggle. He’d see Kyle with a wad of cash after working fifteen-hour days on a job and still barely being able to pay the bills.”
“Did you talk to Brian, after Kyle called?”
“He called. He was high. Drunk. Not making much sense.”
“What did he say?”
“Things were going to be okay from now on.”
“He didn’t get more specific?”
Susan looked down and to the left. “No.”
“Susan.”
“He’s my husband, Miner.”
Jack stepped into the room. “Did he say anything about my brother?”
She closed her eyes, as if blocking out the world would make the truth go away. Finally, she nodded.
“What did he say?”
Her eyes met Jack’s. “That Eddie McBride was our ticket to the good life.”
Jack stared out the window of his office and tried to forget it was his brother who was missing and work the case like the objective cop he needed to be. He had to remind himself that his brother had been undercover for twenty years and had no doubt gotten out of worse scrapes than this. What a conversation that would be, listening to Eddie recount the double life he’d been living for so long. Jack rubbed his face. He hoped they had the opportunity to have it.
Brian Grant was in the wind, with his phone turned off. Based on Brian’s comment to Susan, Kyle’s message had been about Eddie being a narc. If Brian had intercepted Eddie somewhere on his way home, where did he take him? Or, the better question, to whom did he take him? Michelle? Joe? The Pedrozas?
“Okay. I’ll question Michelle about Eddie. How did Doyle react to Eddie being a narc?” Jack said.
“Not surprised. He suspected it. He blames Michelle for everything.” Miner paused. “I think he’s lying.”
“About Michelle?”
“Yep.”
Jack nodded. As much as he didn’t want to, he believed Michelle’s protestations of innocence. The question now became, who’s setting her up? “Me, too. Do you think Joe killed Matt and Amy?”
Miner shook his head. “No. I think he’s making her the fall guy to save his own skin.”
“Christ, this family is fucked up. Doyle gave up his daughter for the murder of his son to save his drug business.”
Miner nodded. “Suspect Joe was so mad about Eddie he didn’t really think his lie through.”
“It’s a stupid play if so. Phone records are the easiest thing to check,” Jack said.
“Criminals are never as smart as they think they are,” Miner said.
Nathan Starling knocked on the door and entered without waiting for a response. His eyes were bright with excitement. “Chief? Sorry to interrupt. But you’re gonna wanna hear this.”
Jack expected Eric Sterry to be in late middle age, on the cusp of retirement. Instead, the man who sat in a chair in City Hall foyer was younger than Jack and much fitter. A cast covered his right leg from foot to mid-thigh. A woman hovered over him, concern written all over her face. They wore funeral clothes.
Jack went forward and held out his hand. “Mr. Sterry?”
“Jack McBride?”
“Yes.”
Eric stood with less trouble than Jack would have thought. His wife was ready and eager to help, but Sterry ignored her. He shook Jack’s hand with a vice-like grip. “Sheila?” Sheila Sterry fished an iPhone out of her purse and handed it to Eric.
“I fell on Saturday, as I’m sure your deputy told you. Broke my phone as well as my leg. Sheila went out and got me a new one, and my teenaged son restored it for me. With all the “get well soon” voice mails and texts, it took me a while to find this. Found it this morning. Came here as soon as we could.” He held up the phone showing a voice mail from Matt Doyle. He motioned for Jack to take it.
Miner and Starling stood at Jack’s elbows, silent, while he snapped a glove on his hand and held the phone up an inch or so from his ear.
-Eric, it’s Matt. Sorry to call so late. I should have listened to you. You were right, I was wrong. Dad was just here. I can’t believe I never saw through him before. God, what a mess. I’m such an idiot. I don’t know what to do, who to trust. Chris, maybe, but he won’t go against Michelle. He’s on his way here. Who knows, he may be as crooked as the rest. Call me tomorrow.
The time stamp on the message was 2:35 a.m.
“What did you warn Matt about?”
“My grandfather told me not to hire a Doyle, that he would cheat me. I didn’t believe him. After Matt told me he was starting his own organic produce business, bankrolled by his father, my grandfather told me he’d heard rumors about Doyle being involved in some pretty shady dealings, shadier than the savings and loan or hot oil. He wouldn’t give me details, so all I could do was tell Matt he was making a mistake, that his family wasn’t always aboveboard. Matt got defensive, as I would have. I knew when I heard the message that he’d found out what everyone suspected.”
“He mentioned his brother-in-law. Did he ever talk much about Chris?”
“He liked him okay, but thought he was a pussy. Chris was content to let Michelle wear the pants, make the living, and skate through life. I was pretty shocked when he said he called him. Only thing I can figure is Matt thought he was outside the family business and he’d be an ally.”
“Can I keep this for a couple of days until we can establish chain of possession and download the message.”
“Sure. Whatever you need.”
Jack motioned to Starling, who pulled an evidence bag out of his back pocket. Jack dropped it into the bag.
“I take it you’re going to the funeral?” Miner said to the Sterry’s.
“Yes.”
“Don’t mention the message to anyone.”
“We won’t,” Eric said. “Is it going to help?”
“Yes, it is,” Jack said.
Starling handed the bag to Jack and held the heavy front door open for the Sterrys. Jack turned to Miner and shook his head.
“They’re never as smart as they think.”