CHAPTER 15
My cottage swarmed with a forensic team, Teddy the coroner, the entire Peach Cove Sheriff’s Department minus Alex, and the horrible detective. I sat at the bar and waited to be spoken to again. I’d already given my statement to the detective and now he was speaking with Javier, who’d run home and changed into his uniform. Teddy rolled the body out on a gurney through the front door of the cottage, a must since the sand would make it a struggle to wheel it up the side of the dunes. Strangely, and for some odd reason, I kept focusing on how in the world I was going to get the odor out of my house.
I must’ve said it aloud because Mama said from the stool beside me, “You’ll open the windows and doors and steam your floors.”
Slowly, I spun the chair around, facing the kitchen, and put my face in my hands, my elbows on the bar, and kept my tone barely above a whisper. “I know you warned me, and I appreciated it. It would have been nice, though, if you could have given me some clue about the freaking dead body. My life is destroyed. I honestly don’t know how I’m supposed to come back from this one. They have a body and evidence. Motive won’t be hard to establish. She was marrying my ex. Any decent lawyer could run with that. Alex will hate me forever.”
She rubbed my back. “Your life isn’t ruined. I am going to help. I am helping.”
Eddie put his hand on my shoulder. And just like that, my mama and daddy were both consoling me. I tried not to focus on how weird it was that Mama was dead and no one could see her but me.
“Pumpkin,” Eddie began softly, “we’re going to need to take this to the office and get your statement down officially. I’ve called Mr. O’Malley, the attorney in Savannah that I know, and he’s agreed to represent you. Now, it’s up to you if you want to give a statement today without his presence. I’ll be there and will interject if I feel it’s taking a bad turn.”
My heart fluttered within my chest. “Am I going to be charged?” I couldn’t stop the wobble in my voice as I glanced at my father.
He stroked my cheek with the back of his fingers and leaned in closer. His gaze held mine and his tone edged on fierce when he said, “Over my dead body.” His declaration was swift and, from what I could tell, undetected by the others in the room. Eddie meant it, and understanding how hard he’d fight gave me the courage to calm myself and slide off the stool.
My tone sounded stronger when I spoke next, but his face remained pale. “What about my house? You’re not going to seal it off as a crime scene, are you? I can’t be homeless again.” The body was found outside my cottage. Surely that meant I’d be okay to stay here.
“No, I don’t have any plans to do that.” His phone rang and he pulled it from his pocket and checked it. “I’ve got to take this. Trust me.” He squeezed my hand and I nodded before he stepped aside to answer the call. “Sheriff Carter here.”
The energy in the space changed and Mama faded. Her face revealed she hadn’t wanted to leave. A lot of times she disappeared before she felt ready to. She didn’t always have a choice in the matter. I lifted my hand in goodbye and then scratched my face to hide the motion. My sister’s face appeared on the screen as my cell vibrated on the kitchen island, where Javy had placed it after his call to Eddie earlier.
I hit the answer icon. “Hello.”
“Hey, your text was beyond terse. What’s going on?”
“Did you get Hannah to come in and cover my shift?” I slid off the stool and walked around the counter and stood by the refrigerator, keeping my back to everyone.
“Yes,” she said tentatively.
“Good. I’m going to be a little longer than I initially expected. Someone dumped Lucy’s remains, or what we believe to be Lucy, on my deck.”
“Oh my God!”
“Say that again,” Eddie said into his phone, breaking into my and Jena Lynn’s inconspicuous conversation. His tone, more than his words, caught my attention. “I’ll be right there.” Eddie shoved his phone into his pocket. “Deputy Reyes.”
“Listen, I’ve gotta go, but I’ll speak to you as soon as I can. And tell Betsy what’s going on when you see her.” I knew she’d be at work today. She called me before I went to bed, with a play-by-play of her interrogation and how they had nothing on her and were forced to let her go.
“She’s here now. I’ll tell her. And, Marygene, be careful.” Jena Lynn sounded worried.
The detective stayed on the other side of the room while Javier and Eddie conversed. Eddie clapped his deputy on the shoulder before he started for the front door. He paused by the island, and I went to meet him. He pierced me with his blue-gray gaze and placed both hands on my shoulders. “Deputy Reyes will drive you. I have to go. I want you to make your statement. Stick to the facts. Don’t elaborate, and then leave. Go to work or come back home, if you wish. Don’t talk about this case with anyone. You understand?”
“Yes, sir.” He would get no arguments from me.
He kissed me lightly on the forehead and left.
“Is there something I should know, Deputy?” Detective Thornton asked with his brow raised.
“The sheriff received a call from the president of Peach Cove Credit Union. There’s been a robbery attempt. I’ll drive Marygene in and take her formal statement.”
“I can drive myself.” I needed to exercise a little free will when I could. It gave me a sense of control.
“You’re sure?”
I nodded.
“I’ll be right behind you. And, Deputy, I’ll be conducting the interview.” Detective Thornton spoke to a member of the forensic team as I was gathering my things to leave. “Miss Brown.” He paused beside me.
“Yes, Detective.” I repositioned my bag across my body.
“I’ll have the team lock up when they leave. Would you like to give them a key or just lock the bottom lock?”
I walked over to the table behind my sofa and opened the drawer. After extracting my spare set of keys, I handed it over to the detective without compunction. I had every intention of calling Harold’s hardware store and having him send over a locksmith to change the locks ASAP.
He nodded and I forced my legs to carry me out the front door.
Ten minutes later I sat in the little interview room. Everything had to be official and above reproach. No one could accuse Eddie of special treatment. At least from my point of view. Javy, like Eddie, had cautioned me to tell the truth but not to elaborate. Keeping my answers to the point wouldn’t be a problem. Obviously, I wouldn’t mention my and Javy’s conversation regarding a setup, or that we’d had to turn over the bottle of fentanyl. He was a protector by nature, and I wouldn’t betray anyone who stuck their neck out for me in any capacity. Loyal friends weren’t easy to come by. I’d given my statement for the second time and now we were in the questions portion of the interview. Sadly, this wasn’t my first time being questioned. I knew the drill.
“Miss Brown, your account for your day leading up to the discovery of the body leaves a little to be desired. Could you expound upon what you told us?”
“I’ll try. As I said, I’ve recently been released from the hospital and some of the time is foggy.”
“Do your best.” He didn’t sound sympathetic in the slightest.
“Well, when I got home, there wasn’t much food in the house. I met Betsy at the diner for a meal. We chatted with friends and neighbors.” I fiddled with the paper cup on the table marred with scratches.
“This is when you and Mr. Fowler visited Gaskin Funeral Home and spoke with”—he glanced at his pad—“Theodore Gaskin, the island’s funeral director and coroner?”
I nodded. “On the way to see him, I bumped into Paul. He decided to go along with me.”
“What was the nature of your visit?”
The detective’s meaty hands fiddled with the pen. His unexpressive eyes watched me with laser intensity. He gauged everything. I recalled the last statement he ever made to me before leaving the island. He’d been waiting for me outside the diner before he left, with an unpleasant gleam in his eyes. “Something is off about you. I can’t quite put my finger on it.” That day he’d watched me as if I was some caged exotic animal. I recalled the way my skin crawled.
I rested my back against the metal backrest of the folding chair and met his steely gaze. Why was this man so hell-bent on being involved with our island? Of all the cases he could be working right this second, career-making cases, why this one?
“I brought Teddy a baker’s dozen of turtle brownies,” I finally answered. “It’s his favorite.”
“Theodore gave us a statement, Miss Brown. He claims you didn’t have a meeting scheduled. You and Mr. Fowler showed up with questions and accusations.”
“Not accusations. I simply asked an old friend if, in a state of confusion and chaos, he could be certain the bride died. Nothing more than that.” I lifted the paper cup to my lips and was proud when my hand didn’t shake.
This man rattled me more than any other.
“Your father is dating Doctor Lindy Tatum.”
I didn’t react, kept my posture relaxed, and waited for the question while taking another slow sip.
“They’ve been together for about a year, and she is also your primary-care physician?”
Placing the cup back on the table, I left my hands where he could see them. Steady and calm. “That’s right.”
“She organizes the support group you are a part of for battered women.”
“Doc Tatum has done a lot of good for the community, and she has taken over the role, but she didn’t organize the group. Her associate did. When she retired, Doc Tatum stepped up. And it isn’t just for battered women. It’s for everyone in all walks of life that have suffered abuse or oppression. Not that I mind discussing our support group, but I fail to see what is has to do with the body on my deck.”
He clicked the back of the pen slowly several times. “Was Lucy part of your group?”
I shook my head. “Should she have been?” I wondered what secrets Lucy kept that he was privy to. Had I misjudged her rudeness? Perhaps it’d been her survival tactic to keep people at arm’s length. Had she had a tragic past that scarred her and made her mistrust everyone? Or was this man trying to trip me up by playing with my nurturing side?
“Miss Carmichael wasn’t one of your favorite people, was she?”
“I don’t know what you mean.”
“I mean, she was marrying your high school sweetheart and having his baby.” Click. Click. Click.
I worked hard not to focus on the pen. “Alex and I haven’t been together for over a year. Lucy and I weren’t besties, and we were never going to be. She had a different idea of how to treat folks.”
“Meaning . . .” Click.
“Meaning, she was the self-centered type. Everything revolved around her. Like I said, we weren’t going to be best friends. But I was kind to her. I catered her wedding, after all.”
“A wedding she was murdered at.” Click. Click. Click.
“Allegedly murdered at. And if she was murdered, I certainly didn’t kill her.” I slid my hands onto my lap and discreetly wiped them on my shorts.
“Can you explain the fentanyl in your cabinet?” He kept clicking that stupid pen.
My fear gave way to anger. I’d been more than cooperative, and I’d had enough.
“You’ve already asked me that twice, and I’ve answered each time, no, I can’t.” I finished off the last of the water. “Detective, you once told me you’ve worked cases in a lot of small towns.”
He put his pen down on the pad and folded his hands on the table. “Yes. And most towns are the same. Some are better at keeping secrets than others. Instinct, whether wise or not, causes people to protect their own. Eventually, everyone cracks, though. I just have to find the right weakened spot and apply the appropriate amount of pressure. I’m good at my job, Miss Brown.”
“Uh-huh.” I folded my arms. “And all those years of experience taught you anyone is capable of anything. I can understand that. People never cease to amaze me either. Let’s lay this case out, shall we.” I unfolded my arms and opened my hand and held it out for his pen, “May I?”
An intrigued expression floated across his hard features. “By all means.” He handed me the pen, flipped the page, then passed the pad over to me. Probably thinking I’d hang myself if given enough rope.
“A woman that most people disliked is allegedly murdered at her wedding.” I jotted down a timeline like I would if I were putting this up on the whiteboard at home. It’s something I did to work out a case when a deceased needed my help. “A wedding which she orchestrated so she could be the victim in her own murder-mystery-themed reception. Then she vanished into thin air. Later that day the caterer and her employee are nearly killed in an accident involving foul play. The person in charge of the murder mystery reception’s van is also tampered with. Then—and here’s where it gets really exciting—after the caterer is discharged from the hospital, the body suddenly appears at her house, along with an alleged murder weapon. Wow. If that isn’t riveting entertainment, I don’t know what is. The problem is, most murders like this one would be considered a crime of passion. Yes?”
He nodded.
“This is not such a case. This one has been meticulously planned.” I passed the pad back over to him.
He studied it for a moment before glancing back at me. “Looks like you’ve had some practice.”
“I grew up with a father in law enforcement.” I scooted my chair back and stood. “I plan to hold you to your word that you’re good at your job. Because you and I both are aware of how absurd this is.” I pointed to the pad on the table, still open to the page I’d written on. “I didn’t kill her, nor did I put her body on my back porch, if that is indeed her body. Someone is trying to frame me, and I expect you to find out who.” I smoothed out my shirt that had wrinkled from sitting so long. “I’m through here. If you plan to charge me, go ahead and do it. If not, I’m leaving.”
The detective stood and allowed me to register his size. He towered over me. I tilted my chin back and met him glare for glare. We stood there in silence for a few long heartbeats, and for a couple of those, I almost expected my hands to be put in cuffs. Instead, he reached around me and opened the door. “Before you go, can I ask one more question?”
I nodded and folded my arms in front of me.
“Do you have a lot of visitors? Men sleeping over, perhaps?”
I scratched the back of my right hand and glanced behind him at the old-fashioned two-way glass, where I knew Javy stood. His question made me uneasy. On one hand he could be attempting to defame my character, and on the other, perhaps the detective didn’t think I was guilty or he wanted me to believe he didn’t. I refocused on the detective. “I have visitors. My family and friends.”
“Betsy Myers frequents your cottage?”
I locked my emotions down. “Betsy didn’t do this. Alex is her cousin. She likes to spout off, but she loves deeply. She would never, ever hurt a family member and, as you know, this is ripping Alex apart. Besides, Betsy isn’t proficient in bomb making.” I half snorted. “And she certainly wouldn’t be framing me.”
“Do you know anyone who is proficient in bomb making?”
“No.”
“Alex claims Lucy was frightened of the two of you, and, like you say, you grew up with a parent in law enforcement. This does appear to be an obvious setup, and you would know that.”
I gave a bark of laughter; I couldn’t help myself. My nerves were frazzled, and my resolve wavered. “You give me far too much credit. Not to mention there’s no way I’d attempt to blow myself up. Over an ex-boyfriend, no less.”
I took a step toward the open door.
“Your boyfriend, Paul Fowler, ever stay the night?”
I paused midstep and tried to read what he was thinking. The man gave nothing away.
“Paul and I have only been seeing each other a little while. He’s never slept over. Though he was in my house the day . . .” I hadn’t meant to allow my thoughts to trail off. This man had me suspecting the man I’d chosen because he was so different from all the others I’d dated. Paul rarely even raised his voice. Now I worried he might be involved.
“What do you know about Mr. Fowler?”
“I know he’s kind, and if it wasn’t for him, Betsy and I would probably be dead.” Yes, that didn’t make sense. Why would he save us if he’d intended to kill us? Unless he hadn’t meant to kill us. I chewed on my bottom lip.
“Yes, Miss Brown, you see why we have to look at everyone. People always surprise us. We may need to speak to you again.”
“I expect you will. Goodbye, Detective Thornton.” I walked out of the room and into the little hallway and mumbled, “Everyone is a suspect.”