After lunch, River and Tony decided to turn Jason’s phone over to the police. River felt they needed more on the teachers before tossing their names to the authorities, even though Tony wasn’t convinced it was a good use of their time.
“What if Chris was wrong?” River said. “We could be sullying the names of good teachers. If the police even talk to them, it makes them look guilty. I don’t want to do that unless we’re sure.”
“What kind of evidence do you want?” Tony asked. “Do we investigate the teachers now, or do we wait until we get the pictures back from Scott? We know some of them were at the concert.”
“Let’s wait for the pictures. By the way, don’t you find it odd that some of the teachers attended that concert?” River said. “Do teachers usually go to concerts with their students?”
Tony shrugged. “I guess if it’s a popular band. I mean, if the Beatles were playing nearby, wouldn’t the fans be a variety of ages?”
River grinned at him. “If the Beatles played anywhere, I think everyone would go, including every media outlet in existence. I mean, since not all their band members are still living, that would be a really interesting concert.”
Tony grunted. “You know what I mean. I think some bands transcend age.”
River pulled her notepad close, picked up her phone, and punched in a number. A few minutes later, she disconnected her call.
“According to Kyle, the reason so many people from the school went to the concert is because one of the band members from The Eggheads went to his school.”
Tony nodded. Finally, it made sense. “Which member?”
“The girl. Her name is Andromeda Callcut.”
“Andromeda?” Tony said. “Unusual.”
“I like it,” River said. “Of course, my name seems strange to some people.”
“Maybe we need to talk to this Andromeda. Could anyone in the band be aware of teachers dealing drugs?”
“Maybe . . .” River said slowly. She tapped something out on the keyboard to her laptop. “They’re still playing,” she said. “But now they’re the house band for some bar slash restaurant in downtown St. Louis. It’s called Jimmy G’s.”
Tony wrote down the name of the bar. “Okay, we have several people who could have a reason to hurt Chris. This Mark Loomis person. Teachers who may be selling drugs to students . . . Bonnie Kershaw, Marshall Meakham, Sherman Hadley, and Marilyn Bonners. Hadley is dead, but we know he and Bonnie Kershaw were at the concert. There could have been others, but we didn’t notice them in the photos, and if they were, Kyle didn’t see them.” He sighed. “I’m still not sure any of them knew Chris was onto them, but I see your point. I guess we should be certain.”
River flipped through her own notebook. “Add the pervy English teacher, Alan Levellie, to the group. Jason made fun of him because he’s bald and because he thought Levellie flirted with girls at the school. That could make him angry if Jason was spreading a rumor about him. And then there’s the girl who Jason made fun of. Chloe Crosby.” She looked over at Tony. “We didn’t ask Kyle why Jason taunted her, did we?”
Tony shook his head. “Kyle was convinced she wouldn’t have hurt Chris.”
“But this girl and Mark Loomis were angry at Jason, not Chris. I think we need to take a look at them first. If we can take them off our list, we can concentrate on the people who may have had a more direct problem with Chris.”
Tony agreed with her, but he still wondered if Chris’s association with Jason was the thing that led to his death.
“Hey, we’ve also got to find out who the kid was that Chris called crazy,” he told River. “He said the guy was really angry. He may be our most important lead.”
“Kyle said the guy was so out of it he couldn’t possibly be the person who kidnapped Chris.”
“I know,” Tony said, “but you and I both know that’s not necessarily true. Sometimes the crazier they are, the more dangerous they can be.”
“You’re right.”
“Okay,” he said. “Let’s knock the suspects off our list who probably aren’t guilty.” He smiled at River. “How about a cup of coffee?”
River laughed. “Cool beans! Let’s go.”
WHEN THEY PARKED in front of the coffee shop, River tried to come up with the best way to question the girl, Chloe Crosby. She’d been at a concert with Chris Stover four years ago, and a young man had made fun of her. Kyle hadn’t said why. That’s all they had to go on.
In River’s mind, Chloe wasn’t a strong suspect. Whoever abducted and killed Chris was most likely a man. And he probably couldn’t hold down a job in a coffee shop. His narcissism wouldn’t allow him to deal with complaints or difficult customers. But they still had to check her out. Even if Chloe wasn’t involved, she was there that night. Maybe she saw something that would help them.
They got out of the car and went inside. The coffee shop wasn’t busy. Just a young man on a laptop in the corner and two older women in a booth talking. River and Tony walked up to the counter. River ordered a cappuccino, and Tony ordered a black coffee, of course.
The young woman at the counter was attractive. Dark hair with a streak of pink. Nice build, pretty face. This couldn’t be Chloe. Then River looked at her name tag. Chloe.
River and Tony sat down at a table to wait for their coffee. Once they were seated, River said, “When she brings the coffee, I’ll tell her who we are and ask if we can talk to her for a couple of minutes.”
Tony nodded. “Could Kyle have been confused? Why would Jason poke fun of this gal? She’s very attractive. Nothing odd about her. I don’t get it.”
River shrugged. “I have no idea. Maybe he thought she was stupid. I guess we won’t know until we talk to her.”
Tony nodded but didn’t say anything.
River was trying hard to keep the call from Todd out of her mind. Knowing that there might be someone else out there who had worked with the Strangler stoked the fear that had taken up residence inside her. She couldn’t do anything but keep pushing it back.
She was so lost in her thoughts that she jumped when Chloe came up to the table.
“Here you go,” Chloe said. “A caramel cappuccino and a black coffee.” She sat them down on the table. “Do you want cream?” she asked Tony.
He shook his head. “No, thanks.” He reached into his wallet and took out their card. “I would like to ask you something, though. My partner and I are private investigators. We’re looking into the disappearance of Chris Stover. Someone who was at the concert on the night he was last seen gave us your name. Said you were there. Could we talk to you for a couple of minutes?”
Chloe looked confused. “I remember Chris, and of course, I heard that he’d gone missing, but I don’t know anything about that. I don’t think I can help you.”
“We were told that Jason Needham was being kind of a jerk that night,” River said. “We’re wondering if Jason angered someone who took out their frustration on Chris. You know, blaming the group instead of the real instigator. We’re looking into several possibilities.”
Chloe frowned at them, but after checking out the room to make sure no one needed anything, she sat down.
“Saying Jason was a jerk is like saying Noah’s ark was a little boat.” She looked back and forth between Tony and River. “Is it possible Jason ticked someone off so much that Chris paid the price? Yes, it’s possible. After putting on his own show at the concert that night, Jason left with a girl.” Her forehead wrinkled for a moment, and she looked to her right. A sign that she was combing through her memories. “Ashley,” she said finally. Chloe folded her arms. A defensive move. Why? “I don’t remember her last name, but Kyle MacLachlan would. They dated for a while after she dropped Jason.”
River glanced at Tony. That was new information, but she couldn’t see how it would change anything. The only really helpful thing Chloe had given them was that Jason left before the concert was over. If someone wanted revenge and couldn’t find Jason, as they’d suspected, it was possible they’d taken out their anger on Chris. She’d profiled psychopaths and sociopaths. Some of the things they did made no sense. Unreleased rage could have been focused on Chris if Jason wasn’t available.
“We were told that you were one of the people Jason targeted that night,” Tony said. “But why? Was it something personal? You’re a lovely young woman.”
Chloe’s response sounded like pffft. “Actually, that night changed my life. He humiliated me about my weight. In front of people I went to school with. I was so embarrassed by the things he said that I decided to go on a diet. I lost fifty pounds.” She shrugged. “I know now that people shouldn’t be judged by how they look. I have friends who might be considered overweight, but that doesn’t define them. It’s who they are inside that’s the most important thing.” She smiled at them. “Look, even though I learned I had value even when I weighed more, I’m healthier and happier now than I’ve ever been. I actually owe that to Jason, although he wouldn’t have liked knowing that the torture he caused ended up helping me.” She stood to her feet. “Jason Needham was an evil kid. He enjoyed hurting people. I have no idea what kind of man he’s turned into. Maybe he’s changed. I hope so, but I sure wouldn’t bet the farm on it.”
River thought about telling her that Jason was dead, but she couldn’t. Chloe might feel guilty about sharing how she felt about him, and River didn’t want to do that to her. She’d find out eventually and could deal with it then.
“Before you go,” Tony said, “was there anyone at the concert that night that you saw as threatening? Someone who might have wanted to hurt Chris?”
Chloe hesitated for a moment. “Yeah, there was a really weird guy there. Kept talking to himself. Swatting at the air like he was being attacked by bees or something, you know? He was kinda scary. Jason really let him have it. Followed him around, laughing and calling him a retard.” She frowned. “Sorry, I hate that word. My little brother is mentally challenged. But that’s the word Jason used. That guy got really, really angry. I expected him to attack Jason, but he didn’t. Jason is a big guy. I think that intimidated him.”
Just then, the door to the shop opened and a middle-aged couple walked in. They headed to the front counter.
“Can you tell us anything else about the guy you’re talking about?” River asked quickly.
“Uh . . . it’s been a long time. I can’t remember much.” She paused a moment before saying, “I think he was thin. Longish black hair? Greasy. I do remember thinking that if he cleaned up some, he might have been nice-looking. That’s about it.”
“Would you know him if we showed you a picture?”
“I’m not sure.” Chloe glanced back at the couple. “I’ve got to get back to work, but if you want to bring some photos down here, I can try to pick him out.”
She turned and hurried off, trying to beat the couple to the counter.
“I think we need to identify that guy and find him,” River said. “The sooner the better.”