by Cindy Bell
“Yes. I’m sure. If it’s easier, I can record your statement.” Quinn pulled out his phone.
“Wait.” Malcolm took a shaky breath. “If you want to know where I was, that means, you suspect me? You think I killed my own father?”
“I’m just gathering information right now, Malcolm.” Quinn eyed him with some authority. “The best way for me to find your father’s killer is to know the whereabouts of the people in his life.”
“You mean, the potential suspects.” Malcolm shook his head and took a step back. “I’m not saying another word. Not without a lawyer.”
“Malcolm, you can either talk to me here, or I can get a warrant, and you can talk to me two hours from here. Which is it going to be?” Quinn stared straight into his eyes.
“I told you where I was. I have nothing else to say. If that means that you need to arrest me, then arrest me.” Malcolm held his hands out in front of him. “But I don’t think you can. You have no reason to suspect me. I know you don’t, because I know I’m innocent. So, as far as I’m concerned, this conversation is over, and I would like you to leave.”
“Thank you for your time, Malcolm. You will be hearing from me again, very soon.” Quinn held his gaze a moment longer, then turned towards the door.
Nikki ran to the car with Sassy and quickly put her in the car, just as Quinn opened the door to the cabin.
Once Nikki and Quinn were settled in the car, Quinn started it and explained to Nikki what he had discovered as he steered the car down the dirt driveway. She was relieved that he was forthcoming with the information, so she didn’t have to pretend she didn’t know what was going on, or admit that she had been eavesdropping.
“It must have been terrible to have to break the news to Malcolm.” Nikki frowned as she looked over at Quinn.
“It’s not the easiest thing to have to do.” Quinn grimaced. “But it’s news that you only get to deliver once, and as a detective it’s better to deliver it bluntly so that you get a clear reaction. I can tell a lot by the way someone reacts to bad news.”
“What did you find out about Malcolm when you told him?”
“Actually, he seemed genuinely shocked. However, I can’t pin everything on that reaction. He had plenty of time to practice it and get it just right. The fact that he went straight from telling me where he was, to wanting to get a lawyer, tells me that he probably has something to hide.” Quinn turned onto the main road.
“It’s terrible that the two of them reunited, only to be separated again.”
“I’m not so sure it’s the sweet story you’re picturing.” Quinn continued down the highway towards Dahlia. “It’s not likely that a man like Daniel Barclay would go decades without knowing that he has a child out there. I’m sure he knew about Malcolm.”
“If he did, then why didn’t he contact him? Why would he act happy to find him then start ignoring him?” Nikki frowned.
“Maybe he wasn’t happy to find him. The only person who has said that, is Malcolm. Maybe Daniel actually rejected him when Malcolm reached out to him, and Malcolm decided to kill him.” Quinn turned onto the main road that ran through Dahlia. “The point is, even if things seem one way, we can’t assume that it’s the way things happened.”
“Yes, I’m sure you’re right about that.” Nikki pursed her lips. She wanted Malcolm to be innocent because she liked the story he told. But that might not be the case.
“I’ll take you to drop Sassy off, then take you home.” Quinn switched into the turning lane as he approached a red light.
“No, it’s okay. I’d rather walk. Sassy will appreciate the walk after the long drive. Just go ahead back to the station, I know that you have a ton of work to do, especially with this news.” Nikki gave his arm a pat as he switched lanes again. “Thanks for helping me out with Sassy.”
“No problem.” Quinn pulled into the parking lot of the police station, then put the car in park. “Nikki, I hope you understand, I may seem harsh, but it’s my job to be impartial.”
“I do.” Nikki leaned over and kissed his cheek. As she opened the car door, she noticed her foot stuck to the carpet a bit. “Ugh, I think I got some sap on my shoe.” She frowned as she wiped it against the pavement of the parking lot. “Hopefully, it will come off on the walk home.”
“Not likely.” Quinn shook his head. “Sap likes to stick around.”
“Cute, very cute.” Nikki laughed and grabbed Sassy’s leash as she jumped out of the car.
She gave Quinn a quick wave before they walked down the sidewalk. It certainly had been an interesting afternoon.
Chapter 13
Sonia hung up the phone and sighed. She’d spent a lot of time calling friends and business contacts to find out what she could about Martha but had turned up nothing. She had hoped that she would have a new lead to share with Nikki. Instead she had what felt like a dead end. She hoped that Nikki might have discovered something better.
As Sonia walked past the piano in the corner of the large living room, she paused beside it. She could recall a time when she had friends over just about every evening. Someone would play the piano. Someone else would pour the wine. Daniel had been there many times. She could remember his laughter carrying over the melodic notes of the piano. She could remember his smile, the way he flashed it at anyone he wanted to charm. Her thoughts shifted to that horrible moment when Daniel fell to his knees. She hadn’t even heard the gunshot. How was that possible? The thought made her head swim with criticisms and worries. Was her hearing failing? Was she just so fixated on the vase that she blocked out everything else? She had been right there beside him, and yet she was unable to help him.
A knock on the front door jolted her out of her thoughts.
“Sonia? I’m here to walk Princess.” Nikki called out.
Sonia looked towards the door, took a slow breath, then turned and walked towards it. She smiled as she opened the door for her.
“Nikki, I’m so glad you came by. Princess is restless.” Sonia led her inside. “Do you mind taking her for a walk alone? I’m a little worn out myself.”
“Not a problem at all.” Nikki reached for Princess’ leash which hung on a hook near the front door.
“Wait, not until you dish.” Sonia smiled. “You spent all afternoon with Quinn, I know you know something.”
“Unfortunately, I don’t know a whole lot. But we did discover something pretty interesting.” Nikki filled Sonia in on Malcolm being Daniel’s son.
“Are you sure about that?” Sonia shook her head. “It doesn’t sound like Daniel.”
“You don’t think after all of those years of playing the field there could have been a slip up?” Nikki pursed her lips.
“Oh no, I’m sure there could have been. But if there was, Daniel would have taken care of the child. He would have wanted to be part of his life.” Sonia sat down on the couch and sighed. “He didn’t want to have children, but I do believe that if he’d had one, he would have doted over the child.”
“You said yourself that you didn’t really know him that well.” Nikki sat down beside her. “Don’t you think it’s possible that you’re mistaken about this.”
“I guess it’s possible. But it just seems wrong.” Sonia clutched her hands together. “Daniel loved kids, he would play with them every chance he got. He just didn’t want to add to the population. Sometimes I thought he regretted not having one of his own. It just seems off to me.”
“Maybe Malcolm’s mother never told him?” Nikki nodded slowly. “Malcolm said that his mother didn’t tell him who his father was until a short time ago. He did say that Daniel had communicated with him for a while, so it wasn’t as if he rejected Malcolm straight away.”
“And who is Malcolm’s mother?” Sonia looked over at Nikki. “Maybe I know her.”
“Actually, I don’t know.” Nikki shook her head. “Quinn never asked that question. I guess that’s something we could try to figure out, though I’m not even sure where to start. I don’t
think that Malcolm is going to be willing to speak to us about anything at all.” She sighed as she recalled the way that he ended his conversation with Quinn. “He told Quinn he wouldn’t say another word without a lawyer. He seems to be hiding something.”
“That’s all right, Malcolm isn’t our only option to find out the truth.” Sonia pursed her lips. “Leave it to me, Nikki, I can find out who she is.”
“I’m sure you can.” Nikki nodded. “But are you sure you want to do this?”
“Absolutely.” Sonia smiled. “And it means a lot to me that you’re helping.”
“Of course.” Nikki shook her head. “I wouldn’t even hesitate. We need to find out what happened that day.” Her voice faltered, and she glanced sharply away.
“Nikki?” Sonia looked into Nikki’s eyes. “Are you all right?”
“I’m sorry.” Nikki pressed her hand against her chest as she took a breath. “It’s just that when I think of that moment, I can’t help but think of how close you were standing next to Daniel, how if that bullet had strayed even the slightest.” She shook her head. “I don’t even want to imagine it, but it’s all I can think about.”
“Oh sweetheart.” Sonia hugged her. “I appreciate that you care so much, I do, but it’s time to let go of that.” She leaned back and looked into Nikki’s eyes. “You and I, we’re both still here. I’m okay.”
“I’m so glad you are.” Nikki forced a smile. “I know, I’m letting my emotions get out of control. I need to focus.”
“It’s okay to be concerned. I think I’ll be uneasy until we find out who did this. At least then, I’ll be able to have some closure.” Sonia squeezed Nikki’s hand. “So, let’s do just that. Let’s go back to basics. What do we know about that day that can lead us to a suspect?”
“Only two things stick out in my mind. A blue coupe that was blocking the cars in the parking lot, and Rick on his way into the country club. He sounded so upset with whoever he was talking to on the phone.” Nikki shrugged as she looked at Sonia. “It’s not a lot to go on, though.”
“It might lead to something.”
“Quinn is going to try and confirm that Malcolm was Daniel’s son. I think he’ll bring him in for questioning and try and get a DNA test organized. If he manages to get a DNA test done, he’ll have to wait for the results. All of that is going to take time and might lead nowhere. We might as well try to rule out any other suspects in the meantime.”
“What about this blue coupe? Do you know who drove it? Did you get his license plate?” Sonia leaned forward.
“No, unfortunately not. I didn’t recognize him either. It was probably nothing, but I just can’t shake the memory of it. He parked right in the middle of the parking lot during the auction.” Nikki crossed her arms. “I guess it could be a bit of road rage on my part.”
“Well, there’s no way we can find out more about it right now, so that leaves us with Rick. It can’t hurt to talk to him again.” Sonia looked up at the clock on the wall. “He should still be in his office.”
“I’ll take Princess for her walk, then we can head over.” Nikki turned on her heel and headed for the door with Princess at her side.
Sonia watched her go. She felt a ripple of gratitude, paired with a sense of nervous anticipation. Digging into Daniel’s life was fascinating in some ways. But knowing how far she’d drifted apart from someone she once considered a friend, was a hard pill to swallow. She hoped that would never be the case between her and Nikki.
Chapter 14
On the way back from the park, Nikki became aware of a car on the road. It didn’t roll past her, as she expected. Instead it drifted a few feet behind her. She slowed down a little, as Princess explored some grass nearby. Once she got the dog moving again, she realized the car had slowed even more. A quick glance over her shoulder revealed it was a bright blue coupe. Was it the same one? She briefly met the eyes of the driver, and a jolt of fear carried through her. It was the same man behind the wheel, she was sure of it. Was he following her?
“Let’s go, Princess.” Nikki quickened her pace. When she glanced back over her shoulder again, she watched the car turn into Geoff’s driveway. Maybe he was following her, or maybe he was just looking for Geoff’s house.
Nikki scooped Princess up and carried her as she turned around and crept closer to Geoff’s house. She heard the car door slam, then she heard a flurry of angry words.
“You’re not going to get away with this!” The stranger shouted.
“I’ve already called the police. You have no right to be on my property!” Geoff shot back. “You have less than two minutes to get out of here, or you’re going to end up in handcuffs, today. Is that what you want, Sylvester?”
“You know what I want! I want my money!” Sylvester’s voice grew even louder.
Nikki clutched Princess tighter against her and watched as the two men faced off not far from Geoff’s front door.
“I told you I would handle it.” Geoff stepped closer to him. His tone became soothing. “I told you that you would be taken care of, you just need to give it a little time. Everything will get straightened out. With Daniel dead, things are a little chaotic, but it will all calm down.”
“It better.” Sylvester balled his hands into fists. “I’m tired of being patient.”
“Just a little bit longer.” Geoff glanced down the road as sirens blared in the distance. “Get out of here now, Sylvester, or you are going to be asked a lot of questions that you don’t want to answer.”
Nikki gulped as Sylvester turned back towards the car. She felt his gaze skip over her. Had he noticed her? Did he know that she was eavesdropping? She decided not to wait around to find out. She took a shortcut through one of the neighboring properties to get back to Sonia’s house quickly.
“Nikki, are you okay?” Sonia met her in the driveway. “You were gone longer than I expected.”
“I’m sorry.” Nikki filled her in on what she’d just seen, as she let Princess loose in the house. “I think we need to find out what Sylvester’s connection to Geoff and Daniel is. He seems angry enough to want to cause some trouble.”
“Maybe Rick will know something about him.” Sonia led the way to her car. “Hopefully, we’ll get something out of him either way.”
“It sounds like he might have been an investor or a business partner of some kind.” Nikki settled in the passenger seat. As she buckled in, she wondered how many other people they might encounter that had a big problem with Daniel. It seemed to her that he had many enemies, and very few friends. Nikki glanced over at Sonia as she pulled into the parking lot of Rick’s office. At least he had one friend that was on his side.
When they stepped into the office, Rick rushed past them to grab some papers from the printer behind an empty desk.
“Yes? What can I help you with?” He tucked the papers into an envelope and set it on the desk.
“Rick, we were hoping you could help us out by telling us what you remember about Sunday. About Daniel in particular, and where you were in the room when he was shot.” Nikki wasted no time getting to the point. Maybe if she didn’t give him too much time to think about it, she had a better chance of getting the truth.
“What? Why?” Rick glared at her. “Why would I want to remember that?”
“We’re just trying to get a better understanding of what happened that day.” Nikki took a few steps forward but maintained enough distance not to make him uncomfortable. “Mrs. Whitter and I just tried to recreate the morning, just to try to jog our memories. Then I realized I remembered seeing you going inside. And it occurred to me that you might remember something. Maybe you saw someone out of place?” She met his eyes. “You were there when the shot was fired, weren’t you? Do you remember where you were standing?”
“Of course, I was there.” Rick crossed his arms. “I was his assistant. It was my job to be everywhere that he was.”
“I understand that.” Nikki stared into his eyes. “But I’m asking you
exactly where were you in the banquet room at the time that Daniel was shot?”
“Oh, I wasn’t inside.” Rick shrugged. “I had to run back to the truck to grab a piece from the collection that my incompetent laborer overlooked.” He rolled his eyes. “He wouldn’t know art if it punched him in the face. Anyway, I ducked outside I don’t know, for maybe seconds.” He closed his eyes briefly, then shook his head. “I stepped back in, and I heard the commotion. I never heard a gunshot.”
“You stepped back in after the shot had been fired?” Nikki’s eyes narrowed.
“Yes, as far as I know it must have been. Daniel was already on the floor. I thought maybe he’d had a heart attack or a stroke. It wasn’t until I saw him that I realized he had been shot.” Rick sighed. “Then everyone rushed towards me, heading for the door.”
“Wait a minute.” Sonia locked her eyes to his. “What about in that moment when you were trying to figure out what happened to Daniel? Did anyone rush past you then?”
“Uh.” Rick took a slow breath. “Yes, someone did. I didn’t even notice because I was trying to make sense of what was happening. But I felt him bump into my shoulder as he pushed past me.”
“Him? Who?” Nikki stepped closer as her heart pounded. Maybe they had just stumbled upon the killer. Why would anyone rush out of the room before they knew what had happened?
“It was uh, Geoff Wollers.” Rick nodded. “Yes, I remember now. It was Geoff.” Rick looked up at Nikki. “He said something about getting help.”
“Oh.” Nikki’s excitement deflated. Of course, that made sense. Geoff would react to Daniel’s collapse with the urge to get help. He probably hadn’t heard the shot either. “No one else? What about this man?” She held up her phone with a picture on display of Malcolm that she had managed to get from the website for the campground. “Do you remember seeing him?”
“Let’s see.” Rick took the phone from her hand and stared at the picture. “He does look a little familiar. But I don’t think I saw him in the banquet room, or at all that day. To be honest, I don’t think I saw many people. I was in such a frenzy to get everything ready, and my stress level was through the roof. My phone wouldn’t stop ringing.” He rolled his eyes.
