Twenty minutes later, Tiffany and Steve sat in a small, barren room opposite Senior Constable Jones and Sergeant Harris. In an effort to calm her nerves, Tiffany tried hard to control her shaking body with a few slow and deep breaths, but to no avail. She was shivering as if she was freezing, and her skin was cold and clammy.
The officers introduced themselves to Steve.
“Good meeting you,” Steve said. “I’m Steve Casey, and a good friend of Tiffany’s.”
Tiffany looked over to him, grateful for his company.
Harris leaned forward, placing his elbows on the table. “I’d like to clarify again this is purely a conversation to collect information. Miss Cahill is free to reply to questions at her will. Nothing will be recorded.”
Steve looked at Tiffany, giving her an almost imperceptible nod.
“Okay,” she replied to Harris.
“You knew Thomas Terrill as Hudson?” Jones asked, as she slid a photo across the table towards Tiffany.
She nodded.
“You were in a relationship at the time?”
“A brief encounter is what I’d call it.”
Harris met her gaze, acknowledging her reply, then asked, “When did you see him last?”
“About a year ago.”
“Why did you stop the contact?”
“The evil bastard beat me into unconsciousness.”
Although both Harris and Jones kept their expressions straight, Tiffany was sure she saw something like surprise and sympathy on Jones’ face.
“After that?”
She shook her head.
“We have a file note regarding an incident a few weeks later.”
Steve placed a hand on her shoulder and ran it up and down her back in a soothing stroke, calming her with a slight rhythmic move. Tiffany let out a long breath.
“Not one of the police’s finest moments,” she said, trying hard to convey some humour when she didn’t feel any.
Harris met her gaze, but remained silent.
Closing her eyes, she said, “If it’s all in a file, I suppose it’s not necessary for me to retell the details, is it?”
“Any contact with Thomas after that incident?”
She shook her head again. “Thankfully, no.”
“Ever talked to anybody about him?”
Her eyes shot open and with a shrug, she replied, “Possibly my brother, but I doubt it. Hudson’s not worth wasting even a second of my life on. Hard to believe I’m here because of him.”
“To your knowledge, would your brother have talked to anybody about him?”
“I’d say no for the very same reason. Got him into enough trouble last year.”
Harris nodded. “Miss Cahill. How good is your knowledge of cars?”
Surprised by the question, she hesitated. “Next to nothing,” she replied with a frown.
“Would you know where to find the brake cable?”
She shrugged. “I had no idea there was a cable. Isn’t it just the foot pedal?”
Harris smiled and looked at Steve. “Have you ever met Thomas Terrill?”
“No, sir,” Steve said without hesitation. “Didn’t know him in person.”
Jones took the photo, and Harris sat back. “Mr. Thomas Terrill was killed in a car accident last week. Although we found drugs in the car, Mr. Terrill’s blood test came back negative. However…” He paused for a moment, possibly letting all the information sink in before he continued. “We found the brake cable had been tampered with. If you know or can think of anything that might assist our investigation, we’d appreciate you telling us.”
She stared at him, taking in every single word. Was Harris implying murder? Hudson was murdered? She thought for a long moment, trying to process the information. “At the moment, I cannot think of anything, most likely because of the uncomfortable situation of being here.” Pulling out the business card he’d given her earlier in the day, she held it up and added, “But I will give you a call if something comes to mind.”
“Please do.”
After a few more pleasantries, they all stood and shook hands. The relief that washed over Tiffany as soon as she exited the room was so intense, it left her dizzy, and she held on to Steve for a moment.
“Are you all right?”
“It’s the adrenaline causing me a rush of light-headedness.”
“Need a drink of water?”
“No. Just let’s get the hell out of here. Can’t say it’s a place I like.”
He chuckled as he checked his watch.
“And you have the appointment to check on Junior.”
Steve placed an arm around her shoulder and with a soft tug pulled her closer to him. Placing a kiss on her forehead, he said against her skin, “I’ll kill you if you spill the beans to anybody.”
“Yes, honey. My lips are sealed.”
As soon as they stepped out of the building, Tiffany said, “I’ll get the bus home. There’s a bus stop only a few minutes from here.”
“Sure?”
She nodded and moved out of his arm. “A hundred percent. You better get to the appointment.”
“I owe you.”
Shaking her head, she replied, “No you don’t. I wouldn’t even know how to thank you for coming along today.”
He took her head into his hands and placed another kiss on her forehead. “Promise me you’ll be fine on that bus.”
“Hudson’s dead, remember.”
“Yes, but the way it sounds it’s not by choice.”
“What are you saying?”
He met her eyes. “Yes, what am I saying? More importantly, why did I say it?” With a shrug, he added, “The whole thing doesn’t sit well with me, but I suppose I worry too much. Or so I’m told. I’d better go. Don’t forget the barbeque tomorrow.”
A smiled tugged at her lips. “Can’t wait.”
Tiffany walked to the bus stop with Steve’s words playing on her mind. Not by choice. Obviously someone had killed Hudson, aka Thomas Terrill. And, why the two different names?
She exhaled a long breath when she saw the bus coming around the corner. Quickly, she retrieved her card and stepped back.
Not by choice.
A shiver ran down her spine, and she tentatively looked around, not knowing, what she was looking for.
Damn the police for involving her in this mess, and damn Steve for making that remark.
****
Mat loosened his tie and undid the top button of his shirt as soon as he entered the room he’d been staying in at Steve’s. Relieved about the outcome of the meeting with Karen, he kicked off his shoes and threw himself onto the bed while dialling Adam’s number in New Zealand.
“Kia Ora1, my friend. What’s the news?”
Mat smiled. “We’ve got the deal. It’s now up to the lawyers to negotiate the big money.”
“Ka Mau te Wehi! 2.”
Mat rolled his eyes at his friend’s terrible mispronunciation of the Maori words. “Will you stop that, please?”
Adam’s bark of laughter echoed through the phone. It was days like these when he regretted teaching his friend the language. Unlike Mat, whose background was half Maori, half English, and his command of the Maori and English languages fluent, Adam’s parents had moved to New Zealand thirty years ago when he had been a baby.
“I like it,” Adam replied, a chuckle still in his voice. “You won’t be able to teach me for much longer once you move to Queenstown.”
Queenstown. Despite looking forward to moving to the bigger city, his stomach still churned every time he thought about leaving his friend behind. But Adam had settled with his wife just outside Fox Glacier and they were expecting their first child at the end of the year. It was time for Mat to move on, and he was excited about the challenge to extend their business.
Mat gave Adam all the details of the meeting before he hung up. He tapped the phone against his chin as his chat with the mysterious Tiffany drifted into his thoughts. He shut his eyes for a second as he recalled their conversation. Her voice. Her frustration. Or had it been fear?
He lowered his phone and dialled Steve’s number. The phone rang a few times then went to voice mail. Raking his hand through his short hair, another thought came to him, and he got up in search of Steve’s home phone.
It must’ve been his lucky day. Tiffany’s number was stored in the speed dial. Hesitating, he eventually pushed the button and his heartbeat soared with each ringtone, until she finally answered.
“Darling, please tell me you’re going to have a little girl.”
Mat cocked a brow, not sure how to respond. “Should I even bother asking what this is about?”
“What is it with you using Steve’s phone?” she asked, her voice an octave or two higher than this morning.
He gave her a bemused smile. “I was worried about you and wanted to check whether you’re all right?”
There was a moment of silence. “You need to forget that first question, okay?” she almost begged in a whisper.
“Will do. I think if you share a pizza with me, it’ll make it easier to forget.”
Another moment of silence. This one was longer, though, and he wondered if he’d pushed it too far.
“Are you blackmailing me?”
“Nope, only hoping to meet you.”
“For all you know, I could be a bitch. And ugly. And absolutely… absolutely…I could be gay.”
“I’d still like to have this pizza to make sure you’re okay,” he said, surprising himself by his own words, because, truth be told, it wasn’t his thing to date bitchy women or ugly ones for that matter. As for the gay bit, he doubted that very much, otherwise Steve would’ve dropped a hint.
A little laugh escaped her lips. “No wonder the All Black’s just won the World Cup. Persistence seems to be part of your genes.”
“Oh, Tiffany. You like rugby?” He almost drooled.
“With a football-mad-brother I’m not allowed to like any other sport,” she explained with some cheeriness.
He loved the laughter in her voice. And even though there was still the reason she’d been so upset earlier in the day, he was glad he was able to put a little happiness in her voice.
“Are you comfortable enough to give me your address or would you like to meet at the pizza place down the street from here.”
She hesitated. “The pizzeria sounds like a good idea. I could be there in about an hour.”
Excited, he replied, “Deal. I look forward to meeting you.”
She laughed. “This is about the weirdest thing ever. Don’t bring a rose, though. You’ll recognise me when you see a very nervous person coming in.”
“No rose. Got it.”
Mat hung up and made a little fist pump in the air. It wasn’t his first date, so it surprised him how nervous he was. In fact, it wasn’t a date, but a meeting to find out more about Tiffany and to put his mind at ease. After all, she really had sounded distressed earlier that morning.
He had a quick shower and towelled himself off before getting dressed in his jeans, grey shirt, and black shoes. He tried to get hold of Steve on the phone, but again was instructed to leave a message. “Mate, I’m out for dinner. Will catch up with you later. Ka kite.3“
One last check of the time, and he decided it was late enough to leave. The pizzeria was indeed only down the road, so he walked the short distance. As soon as he stepped into the restaurant, the smell of freshly baked pizza, garlic, and fire assaulted him, making his mouth water.
Mat looked around, liking the typical ambience of an Italian eatery. The wooden tables were covered with white and red checked tablecloths, white plates decorated with a green napkin each, and some crunchy breadsticks in a clear glass vase in the centre of the table.
An empty table in the far corner seemed to have a good view of the entrance. After a brief eye contact with the waiter, he made his way to the table, still surprised at the events that led him here.
It wasn’t more than five minutes when a woman entered through the door. Mat knew straight away it was Tiffany and smiled when their eyes met.
Her lips curved into a smile as well, and his whole body was suddenly on alert.