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The rest of Tuesday went quietly. I got cleaned up and got that reading time in with Fitz. After that, I turned on the TV and lazily flipped through channels, but saw nothing I found interesting enough to spend time on. Then I read some more until I finished the book. I jotted down a few notes, thinking it might make an excellent selection for the library’s book club.
Grayson came over in a surprise visit at six o’clock. He tapped lightly at my front door and held up two takeout bags, grinning, when I opened the door. “Did I catch you before you cooked anything?”
I reached out and gave him a hug. “You must have read my mind. I was definitely not planning on cooking anything. I was actually trying to decide between honey oat cereal and frozen pancakes.”
He set the bags of food down on the kitchen table. “Hopefully, this will be better than either of those. The very best menu items that Quittin’ Time offers.”
“Let me see. Those must be the fried chicken platter and their smoked brisket.”
Grayson said, “And two slices of their pecan pie. I almost got an entire pie, but I thought that might be overkill.”
“Speaking of the restaurant, Linus and Zelda gave me their accounts, separately, of how their complementary dinner at Quittin’ Time went.”
Grayson raised an eyebrow. “You could tell me anything, and I wouldn’t be surprised.”
“I still think you might be able to summon a little surprise. As you might expect, their accounts were diametrically opposed to each other. Linus thought a delightful band played at the restaurant. Zelda found the band too noisy and the singer untalented.”
“Maybe the truth lies somewhere in-between,” mused Grayson.
“Linus thought his burger was perfectly grilled and delicious. Zelda wasn’t impressed by her burger whatsoever, although she’d given the staff tons of instructions on how to make it, and probably dire threats if they messed up.”
“Not everyone can handle that kind of pressure.” Grayson put our meals on plates and took them to the kitchen table.
“Linus thought Quittin’ Time was charming,” I started.
“Hold it right there. Charming? Quittin’ Time?”
I said, “He said he always ate at home, except for one lunch foray to the restaurant. I got the impression that it hadn’t been recent. Zelda, of course, rolled her eyes over the restaurant.”
“What did the two of them make of each other?” asked Grayson curiously as he sat opposite me at the table.
“Well, that’s the interesting part. There seems to be no romantic spark at all. But they’re meeting for coffee soon, just to chat.”
Grayson asked, “Chat? About what?”
“Right? It doesn’t seem as if the two of them would have anything at all to say to each other. But get this—according to Linus, they were talking about everything from neuroscience’s effect on the arts to ethics in matters of technology. Oh, and mythology.”
Grayson blinked at me. “What?”
“You heard me. What do you make of that?”
Grayson said, “Okay, I was wrong. You were able to surprise me. Not so much with Linus. I know how much that man reads. Plus, he reads widely—just about everything he can get his hands on. But Zelda? She always seems completely focused on neighborhood issues and things like that. Don’t get me wrong—she’s always seemed sharp. But I’d never considered her any kind of intellectual.”
“That’s where you and I sold Zelda short. Both of her parents were intellectuals, apparently. And then there’s the fact that she won trivia night.”
Grayson nodded. “You’re right. Well, I’m glad she and Linus have made friends. Maybe that will keep Zelda busy and less-inclined to walk around looking for HOA violations.”
We dug into the takeout, eating the mouthwatering food as if it were haute cuisine. Fitz sat contentedly in one of the other chairs, washing his face.
“This is the perfect ending for the day,” I said, taking a sip of beer. “Tell me how things went at the paper today. I know you said you were going to interview some folks and try to get some good quotes for tomorrow’s edition.”
Grayson gave me a wry look. “Well, I’d like to say that everybody I talked to gave me tons of information and now the case is closed. But that’s not entirely the case.”
I smiled at him. “You ran into a few people who didn’t want to talk to journalists?”
“Nobody wanted to talk to journalists. Not today.”
I quirked an eyebrow. “Now, that’s unusual. Ordinarily, you have the ability to charm people in every given situation. I’ve always envied that.”
“This was definitely not one of those days where anyone thought I had an iota of charm. I had a lot of doors shut in my face today.”
I asked, “Did you have any luck with Paige Lee?”
Grayson made a face. “That was the first door that was closed in my face today. But later, the practice’s lawyer gave me a statement on behalf of the clinic this afternoon.”
“Really? What did it say?”
Grayson pulled it up on his phone. “It is with profound sadness that we acknowledge the untimely passing of Kyle Bowman, a valued member of our medical community. Our thoughts and deepest condolences go out to Kyle’s family, friends, and all who knew him at this difficult time.”
“Hmm,” I said. “Nothing about the fact that two of the providers at the clinic have recently died? Or that the clinic was cooperating fully with law enforcement as they investigate the circumstances of Kyle’s passing?”
Grayson took a sip of beer, then smiled at me. “This is why the clinic should have had you write their statement for them. It probably also would have been good to address safety at the clinic, even though Kyle’s death wasn’t on the premises.”
“I got the impression Dr. Lee was very concerned about the business implications of these murders. She’s probably trying to ensure they release as little information as possible.”
“Did you speak with her today, then?”
I nodded, swallowing down a bite of some creamy mashed potatoes. “Dr. Lee came over to Kyle’s street after reporting he hadn’t come into work. I didn’t really speak with her, but I was present when Burton was talking to her. This time, she seemed a lot more shaken than she had at Victor’s death earlier in the week.”
“Do you think she was worried she was in any danger? It’s a valid concern, considering she’s lost the two other providers at her office.”
I said, “I think that was part of it. She talked about security at the office, and Burton is sending a deputy over there to be a presence. But I think it was more than that. Maybe it was the fact that Kyle was so much younger and really just starting out. Regardless, she seemed to be a lot more affected than she’d been before.”
“Did you find out anything else from her?” asked Grayson.
“She didn’t have any alibi for last night or this morning. She did talk a little about Kyle. She’d seen him last night before he left work. Dr. Lee had taken over the supervisory physician role for his rotation and apparently enjoys doing things a particular way. So they were reviewing the day between the two of them. It sounded like Kyle was impatient to get out of there.”
“Did Dr. Lee know why?” asked Grayson.
I shook my head and pushed my plate away, suddenly feeling extremely full. “She didn’t seem to know if it was because it had just been a long day and he wanted to get home, or whether he was leaving to meet somebody.”
Grayson said, “Considering what happened, it sure seems possible that he planned on meeting someone. Did the police say whether Kyle’s door was forced open or whether he let his killer in?”
“No, and I didn’t ask. Maybe Burton can fill us in later.” I paused. “But you know, Kyle was a pretty fit young guy. It’s hard for me to imagine someone being able to force their way into his house and kill him without him putting up some kind of fight. Of course, he’d mentioned the Airbnb he was renting was in poor repair. Maybe the locks weren’t working well.”
Grayson said, “Or maybe Kyle knew more than he was letting on about Victor’s death.”
“That’s definitely possible. Maybe Kyle figured out who the murderer was and decided to blackmail them. It sounded like he was pretty short on funds—he’d been determined for a long time to make the commute from Charlotte instead of renting a place here. Maybe he looked at it as a way of making extra money.”
“Just not the safest way of getting some cash,” said Grayson.
I said, “I also spoke with Roger Driscoll today.”
“You were busy, especially for your day off.”
I said, “It was after I came back from the gym. I did some yardwork in the front yard before I got cleaned up. He was walking past and stopped by to say hi.”
Grayson said, “Had he heard about Kyle’s murder?”
“No, but he’d heard all the sirens this morning when the police and ambulances descended on Kyle’s house. He was curious if I knew what was going on, so I filled him in.”
“Did you find out anything interesting from him?” asked Grayson. He pushed his plate away from him, too, apparently just as stuffed as I was.
“Well, he talked a lot about changing his life and trying to do better. He said he didn’t believe Joel Burns could be involved in Victor’s death.”
Grayson asked, “Did he have any new information that made him come to that conclusion?”
“It didn’t sound like it. It sounded more like he’d remembered that Joel was a friend: a friend who’d gone through just as many hard times as he had. He was sorry he’d thought Joel could be involved in the murder and was planning on trying to reconnect with him.”
“Did Roger say anything about Kyle?” asked Grayson.
“Just that he didn’t know him. That he’d never met him.” I sighed. “I’m not saying that I found Kyle a particularly likeable person, but I do feel really bad about what happened to him. He was wrapping up med school, getting his rotations knocked out. He was trying hard and had a bright future ahead of him. Then it was just ripped away from him. It’s sad.”
Grayson nodded. “He wasn’t that much younger than we are. It always reminds me how easy it is to take every day for granted.” He paused. “And, on that note, how about some pecan pie?” He gave me a boyish grin.
“I was just thinking how stuffed I was,” I said, laughing. “How on earth could I fit in pie?”
“Scientifically speaking, your dessert tube hasn’t been filled up yet.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Scientifically?”
“Well, it seems scientific. At least I think I can find room for pecan pie, and I’m stuffed, too.”
And somehow, we managed to do just that.