“We believe you, Mr. Evans,” Spengler said. They’d had Evans brought out of holding and back into an interview room once Abe Reid had departed for the warmth of Arizona. “Your wife is still alive and is attempting to set you up for murder.”
Evans looked sullenly at Spengler. He’d stayed mostly silent since talking to his lawyer.
“I think you’re saying it wrong, Spengler,” Loren said. He grabbed a chair and dragged it around the table until he could sit right beside Evans. Uncomfortably close, their knees practically touching.
“What should I be saying, then?”
“He hasn’t had only one wife,” Loren said. “Evans here’s been married twice. Two different women. Both dead. Supposedly. Unless…” he trailed off, watching Evans closely. He stared back with no reaction. One of the best poker faces Loren had ever seen, except for Gallo. Gallo had been the best, by far. A master.
“Unless what?” Spengler asked.
Loren waited to see if Evans would fill in the silence. Nothing.
“You remember Detective Abe Reid, don’t you?” Loren asked. “Old guy who handled the investigation on your first wife’s murder?”
Evans nodded slightly.
“He was a smart ol’ dude,” Loren said. “Noticed everything, took a lot of notes. People thought he was nuts, but he had some good ideas. He wasn’t completely bought in on the idea that O’Neil had killed your wife—did you know that?” Loren waited for a response, didn’t get one. “He didn’t think you were being completely honest about what happened. You’d left out important bits. Reid had a dead woman, your story about a guy breaking in, and O’Neil shot through the head. All wrapped up neatly with a bow. Easy to just close up the case and move on.”
“Easy to follow, easy to swallow,” Evans murmured.
“Hey, that’s how your friend Reid put it,” Loren said, leaning back in his chair and slapping a hand against his thigh with delight. “That’s exactly the idea. The best joke is the one easiest to tell, you know what I mean? Simple enough that even a drunk deaf-mute could follow it.”
“Loren?” Spengler said, frowning. “Maybe you could get to the point?”
“You got an appointment to get to, Spengler?”
“No. But your constant yapping is giving me a headache.”
Loren smiled and turned back to Evans, leaned close.
“So Marie is still alive, like you said,” Loren said softly. “You told us ‘I didn’t kill my wife’ and that was the truth, because you’ve only ever had one wife. And she’s alive. Marie is alive, and so is Janice. Because Marie and Janice are the same person, isn’t that right? Twenty years ago Janice faked her death, and she decided to do it again.”
Evans blinked, surprised. It was the first real reaction they’d gotten from him.
“I know your lawyer said to not tell us anything else, so let’s play a little game,” Loren said. “If I’m right, if Marie and Janice are the same person and she’s still alive out there, don’t say anything.”
Evans didn’t say a word.