15
Detective Cavanaugh’s car sat behind Junior’s own in Timothy Fuller’s driveway. Clarence was back, rocking on his front porch, watching on with his coffee mug in hand. He waved as I got out of my car. I returned the gesture, but my attention was mostly focused on the house.
From the front, it didn’t appear as if anything was wrong. I took it as a good sign that an ambulance wasn’t here, and I was pretty sure if it had been earlier, I would have heard it speed away at some point since Meredith lived so close.
Unless someone was dead. An ambulance wouldn’t need to run hot in that case.
I glanced over at Selena’s house as I approached Timothy’s front door. If she was home, she wasn’t outside. I didn’t see a car beneath the carport either.
I knocked on the door, mentally preparing for the worst. Someone had already died on the property once. I wouldn’t be surprised if it had happened again, especially since it was looking more and more like money was involved. Please don’t let it be someone I know.
At my feet, the ceramic Pomeranian still stood watch. I was afraid this was as close as I was ever going to get to Stewie again. The thought didn’t help my mood.
The door opened, and a perplexed Detective Cavanaugh peered out at me. “Mrs. Denton? What are you doing here?”
“I was looking for you,” I said, trying to see past him, into the house. He shifted so his massive frame blocked off my view entirely.
He looked skeptical when he asked, “Why?”
On the way over, I was certain what I had to say would be of dire importance to the case. Now that I was standing there in front of the detective, I wasn’t so sure. What if he arrested me for interfering? What if he went after Amelia? And the more I thought about it, the more certain I became that he likely knew everything already.
Before I could come up with something to say, Junior pushed past the burly detective and shoved a finger in my face. “You!” he shouted. “You did this, didn’t you?”
“Did what?” I asked.
Junior barked a laugh, looked to the sky. “How convenient for you. You just show up here, acting innocent, when we all know the real reason you’re here.”
I looked past the clearly irate Junior, to Detective Cavanaugh. “I honestly don’t know what he’s talking about.”
“You’d better come inside,” Cavanaugh said. “Mr. Fuller, please.” He placed a hand on Junior’s shoulder, and steered him back into the house. Junior complained the entire way, but at least he went.
I followed them inside, but only made it a few steps before I came to a shocked halt just inside the door.
The house was a disaster.
The couch cushions were shredded, as if by a wild animal, as was the couch itself. Anything and everything that could be moved, had been. Even the expensive medical equipment, which I imagined would be going back to a hospital somewhere once the investigation was over, had been opened, electronic parts scattered about the room.
I took another step inside. Peering past Cavanaugh and Junior, I could see the kitchen was in much the same condition as the living room. Alexis stood, bent over, in front of the oven, looking inside. The racks had been pulled free and lay on the floor next to her. Cupboards were open, contents spilled out onto the counter and floor.
“What happened?” I asked, stepping carefully over a broken vase.
“As if you don’t know,” Junior spat.
“Someone broke into the residence,” Detective Cavanaugh said. I noted his hand was still on Junior’s arm, keeping him from leaping at me again. “The back door was jimmied open. They went through the kitchen and living room, but it doesn’t appear as if they made it any farther.”
Did that mean they’d found what they were looking for? Or had Junior surprised them?
“Who would do something like this?” I asked.
“We don’t know yet,” Cavanaugh said, cutting off Junior’s protests before he could get started. “There doesn’t seem to be much in the way of evidence. And with the mess, it’s hard to tell if something is missing.”
“She did it,” Junior said. “Why else would she be here? She’s covering her tracks!”
“I’m doing no such thing,” I said, as much for Cavanaugh’s benefit as Junior’s. “I wouldn’t have known anything was wrong if I hadn’t called the police station looking for you.” I looked to the detective, hoping he believed me.
“She’s a liar!” Junior shouted, jerking his arm free. He paced toward the kitchen, where Alexis joined him, before he spun back around. “It wasn’t enough that your brat murdered Dad, but you had to go and do this!”
“Ben didn’t do anything,” I said through clenched teeth. “Neither did I.”
“So says you,” Junior said. “You only care about ruining my life.”
“I didn’t even know you until yesterday!”
“Right. You conveniently show up whenever I’m around, causing problems for me and my family. What did I ever do to you?”
“Other than accuse me of crimes I didn’t commit? I don’t know, what could it be?”
“That’s enough!” Detective Cavanaugh shouted, face going red. “The both of you need to calm down and keep your mouths shut. Throwing accusations around will get us nowhere.”
Junior crossed his arms as Alexis put an arm around him and pressed her head against his temple. I clenched my teeth closed, lest I say something and get myself into more trouble. Junior was hitting every last nerve I had.
“You two, wait for me in the kitchen,” Cavanaugh said, pointing at Junior and his wife.
“But . . .”
The detective narrowed his eyes. Smartly, Junior cut his protest short and stormed into the kitchen, Alexis in his wake.
Cavanaugh turned to me. “Care to explain to me exactly why you’re here? And don’t give me no bull about just showing up, clueless. You have no reason to be out this way.”
“I didn’t know anyone broke in,” I said, feeling the need to defend myself first. “I was with Duke Billings earlier, and then was with my daughter afterward.” I thought it wise not to bring up Meredith just yet lest Cavanaugh blow up at me. “They can vouch for my whereabouts over the last few hours.”
“Good. I’ll talk to them. It still doesn’t explain why you’re here now.”
“I told you; I needed to talk to you.”
“Okay then, talk.”
Suddenly, I wasn’t so keen on spilling my guts to the detective. Maybe it had something to do with Junior in the other room. Maybe it had to do with the way the detective was glaring at me like I’d personally hired someone to sabotage his investigation. Either way, it took me a moment of hemming and hawing before I got to the point.
I kept my voice low as I filled him in on what I’d learned from Duke, about his return to the scene, just before Timothy’s murder. I told him I’d talked to Meredith afterward, but I left out Amelia’s involvement, not wanting Cavanaugh to come down hard on her.
He wasn’t happy about it, but he motioned for me to continue without much more than a warning look.
I told him about the possibility of Timothy’s stash, about Meredith’s money troubles. I told him about the fight between Junior and his dad, and even mentioned my theory that Junior could have come back to kill Timothy without anyone seeing.
Detective Cavanaugh listened attentively, if not with a scowl of disapproval on his face. When I finished, he didn’t look impressed by the glut of information.
“That’s all?” he asked.
“It is.” I felt small, but refused to back down. “Junior had more of a reason to kill Timothy than Ben. Even Meredith had a better motive, not to mention opportunity.” I hated throwing Meredith under the bus, but it was Ben’s freedom we were talking about.
“They might have,” Detective Cavanaugh allowed. “But that’s for me to decide, not you.”
“It’s not a crime to talk to people,” I said. “Duke and I have known each other for years.”
“And Ms. Hopewell?”
“We’ve had occasion to speak,” I said, face growing hot.
“Mr. Fuller says you’ve been coming around, hounding him about his father’s property,” Cavanaugh said.
“I have not!” I looked past him to find Junior inside the kitchen, watching us. “I came here looking for Stewie, and that’s all.”
“He said you forced your way into the house yesterday.”
My blush deepened. “I might have come in without knocking,” I said. “But I had reason! I heard shouting and thought someone might be hurt.”
“And were they?”
“Well, no,” I admitted. “But he had Stewie cornered. The poor dog was barking his head off, and was scared out of his mind. I don’t think Junior knows how to handle him, yet he insists on taking him, despite his father’s wishes.”
Cavanaugh’s sigh sounded frustrated. “I can’t have you running around town, causing trouble, Mrs. Denton,” he said. He held up a hand, cutting me off before I could speak. “I understand that it’s your son who currently has his feet to the fire. I also understand you are worried about the dog’s well-being. But you have to let me do my job. I can’t do that if every time I turn around, someone is calling me about you.”
“Someone called you about me?”
His eyes narrowed.
“All right, I’m sorry.” I lowered my gaze. He was right. If I kept getting in the way, it wouldn’t help Ben’s cause. Cavanaugh was a police detective. Finding murderers was his job.
“Can I at least see Stewie?” I asked. “I want to make sure he’s okay. The stress has to be getting to him.”
Cavanaugh motioned for Junior to join us. “Where’s the dog?” he asked him.
“What dog?” Junior asked, acting as if he had no idea what I was talking about. Alexis came up to stand next to him, looking confused, as if even she was at a complete loss.
“Stewie,” I said, keeping my voice as level as I could manage. The man was infuriating. “Timothy’s Pomeranian.”
Junior rolled his eyes. “He’s fine.”
“Fine where?” I asked. “Did you leave him alone? Or is someone watching him? You do know he’ll need to go out. And you can’t leave him without fresh food and water.” I wouldn’t put it past Junior to leave him locked up and alone, in a small cage, only letting him out once or twice, and even then, only when necessary.
“I said, he’s fine,” Junior said, and then, to Detective Cavanaugh. “Could you please get her out of here? I’m tired of humoring the woman who obviously broke in and ransacked the place. She was likely trying to steal the dog out from under me.”
I groaned audibly. “I didn’t break in! And even if I had, why would I look for Stewie in the cupboards? You aren’t making sense.”
“Who knows what goes through the heads of people like you.”
My fists clenched and I might have done something stupid, but then I remembered Clarence, sitting across the street, where he seemingly always was.
“I might have proof,” I said, hoping I wasn’t going to make a fool out of myself.
“Proof?” Detective Cavanaugh asked. He looked ready to leap at any opportunity to settle the matter. “Proof of what?”
“That I had nothing to do with any of this,” I said. “The guy across the street, Clarence. He was outside when I pulled up. He might have seen who broke in.”
“They came in through the back door,” Cavanaugh pointed out.
“But whoever it was might have driven by,” I said. “And even if he didn’t see who broke in, he can tell you that he didn’t see my van until I just pulled up a few minutes ago. You’ve seen it. It’s kind of hard to miss.”
Junior didn’t look like he cared whether or not Clarence could prove my innocence, but didn’t protest when Cavanaugh started for the door.
“Then we’ll go talk to him,” the detective said.
All four of us trooped across the street, to where Clarence was still sitting. The old man continued to rock, seemingly unconcerned as we approached.
“Good afternoon to you, Detective,” he said. “I’d offer you some coffee, but I’m fresh out.” He showed us his empty mug. “Didn’t expect guests or I’d have made more.”
“That’s all right, Mr. Ellison,” Cavanaugh said, taking the lead. “We’ll only take a moment of your time.”
Clarence merely nodded. “I figured you might come see me,” he said. “Could hear the ruckus even from here. It’s been wild around here lately. Not sure if I remember it ever being this crazy.” He shook his head, but was smiling as he did so. “What is it I can do for you, Detective?” His gaze moved my way. “Mrs. Liz.”
I didn’t fail to note how he completely ignored Junior and Alexis. By Junior’s scowl, I doubted he missed it either.
“Do you recall seeing anyone enter Mr. Denton’s house today?” Cavanaugh asked. “Or seen someone poking around where they shouldn’t be? A strange car driving slowly by, perhaps?”
“Today?” Clarence asked. “I don’t recall seeing anyone today until you lot showed up.”
“What about late last night?” Cavanaugh asked.
“I’m an old man, Detective. Bedtime comes early for me. If someone was there past dark, I was too busy counting sheep to notice.”
“Did you hear anything?” I asked, earning me a sharp look from Cavanaugh. But at least he listened for an answer.
“There might have been a few thumps earlier this morning,” Clarence said, nodding slowly in remembrance. “I can’t say for sure if it came from the house, but I do recall hearing something. Didn’t pay it no mind, though. Did something happen?”
Cavanaugh ignored the question. “What about Mrs. Denton here,” he asked. “Did you see her today?”
Clarence gave me a fond smile. “Mrs. Liz came and visited me yesterday,” he said. “Saw her a little later, but she didn’t do nothing wrong.”
“Today?” Cavanaugh asked.
“Not seen hide nor hair of her, until now.”
“Liar,” Junior muttered under his breath.
We all ignored him.
“Thank you for your time, Mr. Ellison. If you think of anything else, you have my card.”
“I do.” He patted his shirt pocket, as if it was there. “I hope you figure this thing out, Detective. I miss the quiet.”
We returned to Timothy’s driveway a few minutes later.
“Satisfied?” I asked Junior, unable to stop myself.
He snorted, looked away.
“I’m not,” Cavanaugh said. “You shouldn’t be snooping around, talking to witnesses.”
“I’m sorry,” I said. “I wasn’t snooping.” Well, I suppose technically I was, but I didn’t think of it that way. “He’s the one who saw Ben that day. I wanted to hear exactly what it was he saw, straight from him.”
“I understand why you did it,” Cavanaugh said. “But you need to understand my position. If you were to threaten or attempt to coerce him . . .”
“I’d never do such a thing.” I took a calming breath, stifling the urge to argue, before going on. “I won’t come back,” I said. “Not unless Junior is ready to give up Stewie, who by rights, belongs to me.”
“Hasn’t the poor doggie suffered enough,” Alexis asked, speaking for the first time since I’d been there.
Before I could retort, Cavanaugh held up both hands, silencing everyone.
“You,” he said, looking to me. “Go home. If I need to follow up on anything you told me, I’ll call you.”
I ground my teeth as I nodded.
“And you two,” Cavanaugh said, turning on Junior. “If the dog belongs with her, I expect you to get it to her in the next day or so. I don’t need this petty argument fouling up my investigation.”
Junior looked as if he wanted to argue, but surprisingly, simply nodded.
“I’m going to do my job here, talk to a few people, and by tomorrow, I want your differences worked out. I’m tired of the arguing. A man is dead. Your father is dead,” he said, staring hard at Junior. “I expect everyone to act with a modicum of respect.”
Everyone lowered their gazes in shame. Well, everyone but Cavanaugh, who was in the right, as much as I hated to admit it.
He huffed, turned to Junior. “Now, let’s go inside and see if we can figure out if something is missing.”
Dismissed, I returned to my van. I felt ashamed, and rightfully so. During all of this, I was too concerned about Ben, about making sure he got out of this okay, without ever really considering others who were affected by Timothy’s death.
Junior wasn’t a nice man, just like his dad. But that didn’t mean he didn’t have feelings. As far as I knew, he was hurting inside, which in turn, was causing him to lash out at everyone around him. Alexis might be the only thing keeping him from completely losing it.
As I started up the van, I caught movement at the door. I looked up to find Junior glaring at me, murder in his eye.
Quite suddenly, I no longer felt bad for him.
He slammed the door hard enough to rattle the frame, which I hoped earned him a firm reprimand from the detective, but I wasn’t counting on it.
“Jerk,” I muttered. And then, thinking of how I’d treated Amelia, I amended the comment to include myself.
I backed out of Timothy’s driveway, and turned toward home. It was time to make things right with my daughter.