First things first.
"Do you know where Leo Gordon is?" Tanner asked.
He couldn't be found anywhere. His luggage was still in his condo and his car was still in its parking space. But Leo? Missing. Ashley Monroe hadn't been found, either.
Looking nervous, his gaze darting all around the shabby room, Randy shook his head.
"No, I have no idea. He should be at home packing for New York."
Ken snorted and hopped up from his chair. "If you're lying–"
Easy, buddy. We're just getting started.
"I'm not lying," Randy protested, his hands thrown in the air dramatically. "Why would I do that?"
That was Tanner's cue.
"That's an excellent question. Why would you do that? Why cover for a guy like Gordon?"
"Leo is a good guy. He's my friend."
"Who has had an extraordinary run of bad luck with wives," Tanner countered. "Bibi was the second to die young. His first wife Caroline was only twenty-five."
Randy's face went pale and his shoulders hunched slightly. The guy probably shouldn't take up poker.
"I don't know anything about that."
"Are you sure?" Tanner pressed, sliding a piece of paper in front of Randy. "Because we did some digging into your pasts and it turns out that you and Leo come from the same small town. Add to that, your dad worked for his dad. So let's ask a new question. How long have you known Leo Gordon?"
"Not that long. I didn't really know him back then."
"It's all just a crazy coincidence? You and Leo moving in the same condo building. Leo giving you money for your business."
A vibration in his pocket pulled Tanner away from the interrogation. He didn't like cell phones much and because of that no one would contact him unless it was important. With a quick apology, he checked his phone and saw a text from Logan. It was short and to the point. It was also going to be extremely helpful for this conversation.
"Sorry about that," he apologized again. "Now let's get back to coincidences. You're saying that all of this is just a weird coincidence. Is that correct?"
With a glance at his wife, Randy seemed to have re-centered himself and recovered his confidence. "That's correct. It's a small world. What can I say?"
"So you're going to tell me that it was a different Randy Knight that was Leo Gordon's alibi for his first wife's suspicious death?"
"I–Well–I–"
Ken's mouth opened but Tanner shook his head. Knight needed to figure this out himself without their help. This information was what Logan had texted him about. Randy Knight had been Leo Gordon's alibi all those years ago. He was the friend that Leo had been hanging out and drinking with.
Whatever bravado Randy had gained only moments ago had completely drained away. The man's gaze was down, his shoulders hunched. Tanner didn't prompt him in any way, content to let him figure out what he was going to say next. There was a long time with no one speaking and then finally he raised his head, his face a pasty color.
"It's not what you think."
"That's great. Tell me how it's different, because from where I'm sitting it looks like you and Leo conspired to kill his first wife and then again a few days ago." Tanner had cued up the video on his phone before coming into the conference room. "You're going to want to see this video from a security camera. You and Leo really should have been more careful. You were both captured on tape. You and Bibi walking down the beach and Leo following a while later. That's what cops call evidence, Randy. You're at the very least a person of interest in this case."
Carrie was openly crying now and Maddie was handing her tissues and patting her arm to calm her down. Randy watched the video, his eyes bright with tears.
"Let me tell you how this works where I come from," Tanner said. "I don't know if it works the same here but in my neck of the woods the first guy that starts talking gets the better deal. It can be you or it can be Gordon. Law enforcement really doesn't care much either way. They'll treat you as equals in these crimes even if it wasn't your idea."
"I didn't kill anyone."
Randy's voice was choked, his breathing ragged. He'd aged about ten years in the last five minutes.
"Do you want to tell me about it? Because if Gordon gets in here, he might not be so nice to you and keep his mouth shut. He might tell us his truth before we hear yours. Right now, we have you with Bibi right before she was murdered. Leo isn't on camera until later. He might say that he was covering for you."
Randy's eyes went round and he vehemently shook his head. "I didn't kill anyone. I swear. I would never do that."
Tanner held up the cell phone again. "You were seen walking down the beach with Bibi during the estimated time of death. Were you and Bibi having an affair?"
More sobs from Carrie but Tanner didn't let his gaze waver from Randy.
"No. No way. Uh-uh. Bibi and I were only friends."
"Then why were you walking with her in the middle of the night on the beach? I don't usually do that with friends. These are questions that a prosecutor is going to ask and a jury is going to think about."
Ken looked like he might explode but to his credit he didn't say a word. The tension built as Tanner waited...
Just a moment more...
Be patient...
Almost…
"Leo asked me to get Bibi out of the penthouse." Randy jumped from his chair, his hands holding each side of his head as if it might shatter into a million pieces. "It was all Leo's idea. It wasn't mine, I swear."
There it was. The beginning. People hated silence and eventually would try to fill it.
"In exchange for investing cash into your pizza business," Tanner said. "Do I have that right?"
"It's not like that. Leo gave me that money because we're friends."
Tanner and Ken exchanged a glance. The younger man looked shell shocked.
"And friends do things for each other, right?" Tanner replied. "Is that what Leo told you? This time and all those years ago with Caroline?"
Leaning his hands against the windowsill, Randy's head hung down. "He just asked me to tell the cops that he was with me. I didn't think it was a big deal. Caroline's death was an accident."
"Was it? Maybe. Did you wonder about it though when Leo asked you to lure Bibi out to the condo and then she turned up dead? Did it cross your mind about Caroline?"
Burying his face in his hands, Randy groaned. "I didn't know what he was going to do."
"What did you think he was going to do?"
Randy turned around, his eyes dark with emotion. "He said he wanted to tell her he was filing for divorce."
"On the beach?"
"He thought it would be neutral territory."
"At midnight? He wanted you to get Bibi out to the beach at midnight so he could tell her he wanted a divorce."
"That's what he told me. He told me to take her to one of my investment units and he'd tell her there."
If Logan had told Tanner that lame-ass reason, he would have kicked his best friend in the ass.
"Did you witness Leo strangling Bibi?"
There was a collective holding of breath as they all waited for Randy's answer. Even Carrie, who had been openly sobbing, seemed to quiet down to hear his reply.
"Ye–Yes. When Leo showed up, Bibi started in on him right away, yelling that he was a cheating scum and a bunch of other names. Leo grabbed her by the shoulders and told her to shut up, but she wouldn't. She kept yelling at him. At some point, he wrapped her scarf around her throat and..."
Randy's voice trailed away, clearly not wanting to say the word murder.
"Leo killed his wife? Is that your statement?"
"Yes," he sighed, his tone full of defeat. "That's my statement. It all happened so fast. One minute they were screaming at each other and the next he had her scarf wrapped around her neck. But I don’t think he planned to do it. He was really upset afterward."
"What happened after that?"
"I panicked. I mean...shit.
..Leo had just killed Bibi. I said that we should call 911 and maybe they could revive her but Leo said it was too late. That we needed to make it look like a robbery or something."
Or something. That's what it had mostly looked like.
"Did you help Leo dump the body on the beach?"
Randy nodded, slumping back down into the chair. He appeared spent by his confession, sweat trickling down his forehead.
"Were you the one that broke into my condo yesterday? Did Leo ask you to do that?"
Leo didn't answer, his head hung down.
“He just wanted me to scare you a little bit. He wanted you to back off and leave the case alone.”
It had only made Tanner more determined but then a man like Leo wouldn’t understand that.
"Where is Leo? We can't find him."
Randy didn't answer again but Carrie abruptly stood, pushing her chair back so that the legs scraped against the dingy tile floor. Her makeup was a mess from her tears and she scrubbed at her cheeks with the back of her hand, making it worse.
"I'll tell you where Leo is. He's off to the airport. He dumped his bags at the penthouse and took a cab. He's not going to New York City. He's heading to the Cayman Islands. If you hurry, you might catch him."
She named the airline he was booked on and then her gaze swung to her husband.
"Bibi was my friend. I'll never forgive you for this."
Tanner turned to Ken, who had yet to comment on Randy's confession. "You ready to make your arrest, Sheriff?"
With a little luck, they just might make it before Leo Gordon's plane took off.
Maddie was still sitting with Carrie at the sheriff's station when Leo Gordon was brought in by two highway patrolmen. Randy was in the conference room giving a videotaped statement and Carrie had been inconsolable since he'd confessed to helping Leo lure Bibi out to the beach and also giving him an alibi for his first wife's death.
While Ken was taking Randy's statement, Tanner had been on the phone with Logan giving him an update as to what had happened. Maddie had assumed that Ken and Tanner would jump into a squad car and chase Leo down but they'd instead called the highway patrol and TSA.
Despite being handcuffed, Leo appeared confident, cool, and unruffled when he was marched into the station. He stopped in front of Carrie and Maddie, giving the two women a big smile.
"It will all be fine, Carrie. Don't worry about anything. They have all of this wrong. I've already called my attorney and he'll be here any minute. I promise you Randy will be home soon."
Carrie vibrated with anger, her body visibly trembling. Maddie wrapped an arm around the older woman's shoulder to try and keep her calm. She was afraid that Carrie might lunge at Gordon if she didn't.
"Don't you dare speak to me," Carrie hissed at the smiling man, her fingers tightly clenching a ragged tissue. "You dragged Randy into all of this and now he'll spend the rest of his life in prison. And how could you do that to Bibi? She actually loved you. For real. If you didn't want to be with her you could have just filed for divorce, but you had to have everything your way, didn't you? You're a pathetic liar and I don't ever want you to speak to me again."
"No one is going to prison," Leo insisted. "This is all just a big misunderstanding. You'll see."
The door of the conference room swung open and Randy came out followed by Ken. Randy's eyes were red and swollen and honestly the sheriff didn't look much better. He was pale and sweaty, his hair askew as if he'd scraped his fingers through it one too many times.
"I told them everything."
Randy's voice was quiet but sounded booming in the silent hallway. Maddie watched Gordon's expression closely, but he didn't flinch or even bat an eyelash at his friend's declaration. He looked as if he didn't have a care in the world.
"Told them what?" Gordon asked. "There's nothing to tell because we didn't do anything illegal. This is all a misunderstanding perpetrated by an overzealous retired cop who has a God complex. Just because he caught one serial killer doesn't mean that everyone is a murderer."
It took a second for Maddie to figure out that Leo was talking about Tanner. A God complex? She couldn't think of anyone who fit that description less than her husband.
Tanner ended his call but ignored Leo, instead turning his attention to the sheriff.
"Your deputy Brian needs to speak with you right away."
Ken nodded. "I'll go talk to him. I'll be right back."
The sheriff hurried into the main station, leaving Randy and Leo in the hallway staring each other down. It was awkwardly quiet again but it might just be for the best. Maddie couldn't imagine that anyone had anything constructive to say at a moment like this.
"I'm sorry, honey. I'm so very sorry."
To Maddie's surprise, Randy's apology didn't send Carrie into another fit of sobs. Perhaps the poor woman was simply cried out. She blew her nose and then stepped forward, standing right in front of her cuffed husband.
"Sorry doesn't bring Bibi and that other woman back. Sorry doesn't repair my trust. Sorry isn't going to fix this. You're not the man that I've thought you were all of these years. It was all a lie and I was just the dumb wife by your side–"
Randy was shaking his head, a few tears spilling down his cheeks. "No, no, no. It wasn't like that. It was...it was stupid and I was stupid. We needed the money and I didn't have anywhere else to get it. Otherwise we were going to be bankrupt. Don't you see?"
Her countenance stony, Carrie stood her ground. "I see a man who would rather help take a life than to admit to his own business failures. I would rather have every material thing taken from me than to do what you've done. You're a coward, Randy Knight, and just looking at you makes me sick."
It was Randy's turn to break down into sobs but this time Carrie only watched impassively. At least for now, she was done crying. She'd have to be strong and Maddie didn't envy what the woman had ahead of her.
Ken strode back into the hallway, stopping to address Tanner. "The warrants were served to search Gordon's home and place of business. We found what we believe are Bibi Gordon's wedding rings and her diamond tennis bracelet in Leo Gordon's desk."
For a split second, Leo's mask of nonchalance slipped, revealing apprehension and more than a small amount of anger before he hid it once more.
"Looks like you've got this," Tanner said. "I'm going to take Maddie home. We still have a few days of vacation left."
Reaching out, Tanner slipped his hand into hers and led her down the hall and out into the Florida heat. He was right, they did still have some time left on their vacation but she couldn't imagine seeing Carrie, Ashley, or even Randy or Leo should they get out on bail.
"We're going back to the condo?" she asked after he helped her into the passenger seat of their rental car. "And then what?"
"I'm been thinking about that." He pulled smoothly out of the parking lot. "How about we pack up our stuff tonight and head to New Orleans? Let's get a hotel room and not talk to anyone else at all. Completely mind our own business. I can change our plane tickets."
The Big Easy? Hell, yes.
"I think that sounds like a great plan. Beignets and keeping to ourselves. We vow to speak to no one." She reached over and rested her hand on her husband's muscular thigh. "If you play your cards right, we never have to leave the room."
Let's get out of here.
"I'll hold you to that."
"I'm counting on it."
New Orleans sounded like a terrific place to learn to live life to the fullest.
24
It was almost time to go home to Springwood. Maddie and Tanner had enjoyed their time in New Orleans but they had a flight out first thing in the morning. It would be good to hug and kiss Amanda, sleep in their own bed, and get back into their regular routine.
A routine with one important difference.
Maddie was all about making every second count. Living life and savoring each moment she'd been given. She was a lucky woman and in a way that made her vuln
erable because she had so much to lose. But if she lived her life scared then she'd be wasting all of these amazing gifts.
In a little shop just off of Bourbon Street on her first day in the city, Maddie had found a beautiful little notebook - the cover a riot of colors and the pages a sedate cream. Something had urged her to purchase it and since then she'd taken to writing down each morning at least one thing she was grateful for. It put her in the perfect frame of mind for the day, so she intended to keep it up once they were back home. She'd also started a kind-of bucket list. If she was going to live each day then there were a few items she wanted to tick off her to-do list.
It wasn't anything crazy like climbing Mount Everest or racing at Le Mans, but there were a couple of things she wanted to do. She wasn't completely boring, after all.
She and Tanner were sitting outside at a little cafe, the sound of jazz playing from inside. It was a warm and sultry evening in The Big Easy and the weather change was going to be a shock tomorrow. Right now, she was in a light sundress, sandals on her feet. By dinnertime tomorrow she'd be in sweaters and heavy socks.
"This has been a wonderful vacation," she said, sipping at her coffee. The entrees had been whisked away, leaving a decadent chocolate cake for dessert that they'd both shared. "Not bad for one that started with a murder."
"It's our own fault. We were friendly to strangers," Tanner replied with an almost straight face. "That never goes well."
She'd been thinking about their time in Florida...
"Did I force you to work on the case?"
His brow quirked and his smile widened. "Feeling guilty?"
"A little," she admitted. "I feel like I pressured you into helping Ken Smith when you really didn't want to."
"About that...I think that I was hesitating because I wasn't sure if helping on the case would make me miss my old job. Up until that moment, I'd surprised myself by not missing being sheriff. Sure, I still love a puzzle and solving a case but I don't miss the day to day grind, the paperwork. That's why I was pushing back on doing it. But I've found that I'm really okay with not being the sheriff anymore. I think...no...I definitely know that I'm going to run for mayor when we get home."
Bitter Justice (Cowboy Justice Association Book 12) Page 17
