by Gina LaManna
“It all started because Tammy thought Travis was cheating on her,” Holden said. “That’s how I knew he wasn’t going to the casino.”
“She told you.”
“Yeah. One of those nights, she actually came to the bar where I worked,” Holden said. “She was all weepy and sad. She was telling me all about how she’d figured out that Travis was lying to her. That he wasn’t going to the casino, wasn’t going out with his guy friends, nothing. She had no clue where he’d go.”
“Did she ever confront him?”
“She had no evidence,” Holden said. “I think she would have if she’d ever turned up a text or something. But it was just a sneaking suspicion.”
“Okay, but he was lying to her. She could have confronted him about that.”
“She sort of snooped to figure that out,” Holden said. “She didn’t want him to know about her snooping. She wanted something more. Real, concrete evidence.”
“Got it. So, she was at the bar with you that night. What happened?”
“Nothing, the first time. I mean, I poured her a few free drinks. My boss was pissed. We’re not supposed to comp any bills unless we have permission. In retrospect, that might’ve been one of the reasons I was eventually fired. I wasn’t really listening when he terminated me.”
“Did she come back?”
“More and more regularly. Every time that Travis was out. You know, for a while, I suspected that she didn’t even care all that much that Travis was stepping out on her. It almost seemed like she liked the thrill.”
“What makes you say that?”
“She’d come in all weepy and sad, but as time went on, she wasn’t even all that sad anymore,” Holden said. “It was almost like she looked forward to her nights out.”
“Or maybe looked forward to seeing you?” I suggested. “When did things progress?”
He shifted uncomfortably. “I don’t know. A month ago, maybe? She’d been hanging out at the bar for a couple of months before that, but only sporadically. Things just happened. She was there until bar closing one night when I finished cleaning up, and then all of a sudden, she was waiting for me by the car saying she didn’t want to be alone.”
“And you were trying to be a gentleman,” Russo said nonchalantly. “After all, it’s just bad manners to leave an inebriated woman outside of a bar at four in the morning.”
“Exactly,” Holden said, gesturing to Russo like he really understood. “You get it, man. I was trying to be friendly. But we were both a little tipsy; we got to making out, and you get the rest of it.”
“There were more interactions?” I asked. “It wasn’t just once?”
“I tried to cut it off right away,” Holden said. “But no, it happened once more. Last week, she tried to visit me at the bar, and I shut her down cold. She made such a scene about it that my boss finally fired me. That, plus I was a crappy employee.”
“That’s why you were ignoring her calls?” I asked. “You were trying to shut her down?”
“Yep. She got me fired and everything. Enough’s enough.”
“So you left your apartment, which you couldn’t pay for, crashed on your pseudo-friend Robbie’s couch, and ignored your parents and your brother’s girlfriend?”
“That’s about right,” he said. “I finally broke down and ordered a pizza today. I thought my parents might’ve cut off my credit card, so I was surprised it went through. I guess my brother’s death must have distracted them from my financial troubles.” Holden looked up then. “Wait a minute. Are you here because you think I killed my brother? I didn’t do it. I didn’t even know he was dead. How could I have killed him if I didn’t know he was dead?”
“Unless you were lying about it,” I said, deciding to go full on with my bad-cop routine and let Russo take the good side. “Maybe you’re lying about the whole thing with Tammy. Are you sure you didn’t want to be with her? All you had to do was get your brother out of the way.”
“Are you crazy, lady? I wouldn’t kill my brother for a woman. Especially not someone like Tammy.”
“Someone like Tammy?”
“I mean, she was fine, but she wasn’t, like, the love of my life or anything,” Holden said. “The only reason we got together at all was because we were both drinking, and the situation was sort of emotional. I was trying to comfort her, and things just happened. It wasn’t like I’d been lusting after her for months.”
“What about Tammy?” I asked. “Did she love you?”
“I don’t know if Tammy understands what love is,” Holden said. “I think she even started to enjoy the sneaking around. She figured Travis was having an affair on her, so why shouldn’t she get back at him? That’s messed up. I didn’t really want to get involved in any of that.”
“It is messed up,” I said to him. “Do you have any idea who your brother might’ve been seeing on the side?”
“No, man. We weren’t that close. He was all lawyer-y and had his life together. I’m the pretty but dumb brother who can’t pay rent. It wasn’t like we ran in the same circles.”
“What about Tammy?” I asked. “Do you think she’d be capable of murdering Travis?”
“Tammy?” Holden stared at me. “Why would she kill him?”
“Well, for starters, she suspected her fiancé of having an affair,” I said. “Maybe she wanted to get revenge on him. Or maybe she was developing feelings for you and thought that if Travis was out of the way, you might be more apt to go all in with her.”
“No. No way.”
“The timing is pretty coincidental,” I suggested. “I mean, you broke things off with her. It sounds like she didn’t want to end things with you. That same week, her fiancé—your brother—ends up with a bullet to his chest. What if she spiraled? Maybe she hadn’t intended to kill him. Maybe she just intended to confront him and things turned south?”
Holden looked a little dubious. “Tammy’s a little messed up, but not, like, psychopath messed up. I just don’t see it. She likes to talk a big game, but honestly, I don’t think she’d have ever broken up with Travis. She just likes things she can’t have.”
“Like you?”
“Yes. In reality, Tammy’s sorta high maintenance. She liked that Travis could provide for her. I couldn’t do that. I’m the brother people go to in order to rebel. Not for a serious relationship.”
“Then who do you think killed your brother?”
Holden looked confused for a moment. “Isn’t that your job?”
“It’s what we’re working on,” I said. “Do you know any friends that I could talk to?”
“The dude didn’t do anything but work and count his money,” Holden said. “I guess if he met someone, maybe it was one of those divorcées who came through his office. I mean, I guess I’d understand how that would happen. Maybe he was just trying to comfort a woman going through a hard time, and things got complicated.”
“Maybe,” I said. “What about Tammy?”
“What about her?” Holden asked. “I guess I should talk to her, huh?”
“Did your parents know about the two of you?”
Holden shifted. “I think my mom might’ve seen Tammy try to kiss me once at a family dinner. We thought we were alone. I was trying to dodge her, but she sort of cornered me. Why, did she say something?”
“Just curious if anyone else knew.”
“Well, did you ask Tammy?”
“I did,” I said, then hesitated. “Holden, there’s something else you should know.”
“Oh, crap. What else did she do? Did she lie about me? Say I asked her to marry me or something? I swear it’s not true. I cut things off.”
“It’s not that,” I said. “Unfortunately, we found Tammy’s body tonight.”
Holden blinked at me. “Dead?”
“Yes, dead,” I said, “in a way eerily similar to your brother’s death.”
Holden raised a hand to his forehead. “You’re kidding me.”
“Can I ask where yo
u were tonight?”
“Here.” Holden jerked his head up. “Dude. I didn’t care about Tammy. I wouldn’t have killed her.”
“Can anyone verify your location earlier this evening?”
“You,” Holden said. “The pizza guy.”
“Before that.”
“No. I was here. Alone.”
I stood. “Thanks for your time, Holden. I’m so sorry to deliver that awful news. It really is tragic, and I’m sorry for your losses.”
Holden seemed like it was difficult for him to find the appropriate words. I felt a pinch of genuine sympathy for the guy. In a situation that assumed Holden actually was innocent of murder, this had to be a true blow. To find out his brother and his brother’s fiancé had both been murdered in one fell swoop—it would be hard to hear no matter how close or distant the brothers had been.
Russo left his card and shook Holden’s hand, asking him to be in touch if he remembered anything else.
Once we were out in the car, I glanced at Jack. “What do you think?”
“I think he’s pretty self-aware,” Jack said. “He told us he’s pretty and dumb—his words, not mine. I have to concur.”
“I got that impression too. Of course, it’s always possible that’s an act. He could’ve committed the murder and rushed home to order the pizza as an attempt at an alibi.”
“Maybe,” Russo said. “But a guy who can’t hold a job, is still getting money from his parents, and gets involved with his brother’s fiancé? My money’s on pretty and dumb.”
Chapter 18
THE NEXT MORNING, THE same group of people who’d been at the crime scene the night before trooped into the conference room. Asha joined us, and once we were all seated, the chief strode in. Coffee cups circled the table, and a pot of plain black coffee sat brewing on the counter along one wall. There were no doughnuts today.
“Another body,” Chief Sturgeon noted. “How’d that happen?”
“We’re working on it, sir,” I said. “Her name was Tammy Banks, and she was the fiancée of the last victim—”
“I read the files,” Sturgeon said. “We didn’t see this coming?”
I gave a shake of my head and quickly gave him a rundown of where we’d gotten with the case, including our theory that Tammy could’ve been the original killer.
“So does this change anything?” Chief Sturgeon asked. “Do we have two killers, or were you wrong about the first?”
“She wasn’t wrong, sir,” Russo said. “We just didn’t have any definitive evidence to bring Tammy in and hold her. Detective Rosetti might still not be wrong. Tammy still could have been responsible for Travis’s death.”
“I didn’t ask you to defend your girlfriend, Special Agent,” Sturgeon said curtly. “Let’s keep moving on this case before we start getting more unwanted media attention.”
Without another word, Sturgeon stormed out of the room.
Russo glanced at me, and I muttered a “Thank-you” in his direction.
“Don’t mind him,” Asha said. “The mayor’s running some sort of reelection campaign this week, and one of his slogans is that crime rates in the Cities are down. It would sort of hurt that campaign if word got out that we let a serial killer run rampant through town.”
“I hate politics,” I said.
“I think I need to pay another visit to Flystone,” Agent Brody spoke up, redirecting our conversation to the case. “After the murder last night, I can’t help but think it’s a sign from him.”
“I disagree,” I said. “Flystone wants attention. He’s bored. His desire is to play a game and entertain himself. We’re playing right into his hands if we visit.”
“I agree with Kate,” Russo said. “He can’t play a game against himself. Solitaire’s not a very fun game. We aren’t going to glean anything from the drive down there that’s helpful.”
“But what if you do?” Chloe asked. She glanced across the table. “I agree with Agent Brody.”
“I’m sure you do,” I said. “Still, Agent Brody, I think we’re only going to egg him on if we give him more face time.”
“We can’t take the risk of not going,” Agent Brody said. “On the off chance he does give us something, it could save someone’s life.”
“And in the very likely scenario that he’s playing a game of cat and mouse with us,” I countered, “someone will be dead by the time we get back.”
“Respectfully, I’d like to disagree and cut the argument here,” Agent Brody said. “I’d like to pay a visit to Flystone. I’ll go by myself. If time’s wasted, it’s only my own. You all can continue on with your investigation up here.”
I looked down at my notes. “I don’t think it’s a good idea.”
“While I agree, this is my jurisdiction if we believe Flystone might be involved.” Agent Brody stood. “After the markings on the body last night, I think it’s very likely that Clint is involved. He could be feeding information to the killer.”
“What are you hoping to get out of him?” I glanced up. “Even if he is involved, he’s not physically doing anything. He’s stuck in prison. Our resources are better spent up here, trying to predict his next victim.”
“Good luck with that.” Agent Brody gave a soft laugh. “They’re random. I don’t know a single FBI profiler who can predict truly random moves.”
“I don’t think truly random exists,” I said. “Not when it comes to cases like this.”
“Detective, I respect you, but I’m working my own Flystone case here.” Brody glanced around the room. “I’m going to take off. I’ll call you once I leave the prison and let you know if I find anything. If anyone would like to join me, they’d be welcome to, though I don’t expect it.”
I could practically feel Chloe itching to raise her hand next to me. I suspected it was only out of the duty she felt to me, as her boss, that she refrained. I glanced her way.
“You want to go, don’t you?”
“I would love the experience,” she said. “Only if it’s okay with you, Detective Rosetti.”
I looked toward Agent Brody. “She doesn’t go into that interview room. Flystone doesn’t see her face. He thinks you’re there alone. Got it?”
Agent Brody extended a hand and shook mine. “Thank you, Detective. I’ll get her back in one piece this evening.”
I wanted to ask if he’d be returning my intern to her own house or to his hotel room, but it wasn’t the time or the place to get into their personal lives. I simply shook Agent Brody’s hand and nodded for Chloe to depart with him. It’d be a good six hours before we heard anything from them one way or another.
If nothing else, it kept me from having to find more tasks to keep Chloe busy today. A good thing, really, since I could feel the time crunch of the murderer closing in on us. In the event this was a serial killer situation, the kills were accelerating. And if it was an isolated incident, leads were growing colder the longer we sat.
Melinda was noticeably absent from the table. She was already at work on the autopsy for Tammy’s body. It’d be a few more hours before we learned anything new from her, and I wasn’t holding my breath.
Jimmy, Russo, Asha, and I were left alone in the room.
I sipped my coffee and glanced around the table. “What do we think?”
Asha sighed. “I’m still working on the license plates from those cars we pulled off the drugstore footage from the first crime scene. Chloe noticed something interesting the other day. One of the windows in the pharmacy had a really shiny glare. We caught a few more partial plates from the reflection in the window during the timeframe of Travis’s murder. I’m running those now.”
“Great,” I said. “I’m guessing there were no cameras to catch any activity from last night’s location?”
“An abandoned parking lot off University Ave.?” Asha shook her head. “Nothing within a three-block radius until a gas station. I snuck a peek from their footage. You can’t see anything from there.”
“I st
ill don’t think it’s random,” I muttered. “The victims can’t be random.”
Russo turned to me. “What do you mean? Tammy and Travis’s deaths? I would agree. I think a couple getting murdered within days of each other is about as opposite of random as we can get. Someone wanted them dead.”
“No, Flystone,” I said. “I’m switching topics. I can’t get over the fact that Brody thinks they’re random.”
“I don’t think he believes that,” Russo said. “Not deep down. I think it’s his way of explaining something he can’t otherwise explain.”
“I just don’t buy it,” I said. “What are we missing?”
“We’ve been looking for links too,” Asha said, “but so far, we’re finding nothing. Granted, it’s a difficult situation because the deaths of the original victims were so long ago at this point. It’s going to be near impossible to connect the dots after all this time has passed.”
“Any similarities between them that you can find?”
“All of them were between the ages of twenty and forty. There was a mix of three women and three men. Four Caucasians, one Black woman, one Asian man.”
“Not much to go on in terms of demographics,” I said. “What about financial status?”
“We’ve got everything from people who owned yachts to people who couldn’t seem to hold down a job,” Asha said. “It doesn’t seem to have anything to do with wealth or lack of wealth.”
“Brody said he looked into everything,” Russo reiterated. “He would’ve checked this all out too.”
“It’s worth looking at with fresh eyes,” I said. “We don’t know when something could crop up, and it will. Asha’s the best.”
Asha gave a thin smile. “I’ll keep digging, but I hate to disappoint you. It’s looking pretty random to me right now.”
I closed my eyes. “Hang on a second.”
The people around me fell silent. “If we’re saying it’s Flystone, then let’s look at the more recent facts. They’re fresh, so we’re more likely to find connections.”
“Right,” Asha said, glancing to Russo, “but we know there’s a connection there. I mean, the two victims were engaged.”
