The Game Changer

by Iona Morrison

  “When it comes to you, I doubt most of them were feeling brotherly.” He grinned. “I sure as hell don’t.”

  “Not to change the subject or anything.” Her face felt hot. “I have to admit my store is looking sharp. I’m excited to get it opened.”

  “I never took you for a scaredy-cat. You face everything put in your path, but you’re timid when it comes to me. Why is that, sweetheart?” He glanced at her.

  “You want the truth?” She looked down at her hands in her lap.

  “What do you think?”

  “I can’t control you, let alone my reaction to you.”

  “Damn right you can’t control me, but the other part, well now, that’s nice to know.” He tapped the steering wheel and smiled.

  She cleared her throat. “I like to control the situations in my life and there you have it. I’m a control freak and a tad on the stubborn side. It’s best you know it now before you get in too deep.” She laughed.

  “I’m afraid it’s already too late for me.” He glanced at her. “I’m in over my head, but I’ll die happy.”

  “Die happy, you’d better not even think about leaving me,” she muttered. “Now do you mind if we change subjects for a while? Rocky Pointe is quite a drive yet.” Her voice sounded shaky to her.

  “Sure, what do you want to talk about?” He gave her a puzzled look.

  “Why, this case, of course.” The thought of a life without him was too much to consider. Love made her feel vulnerable.

  ****

  Matt held the door open for Jessie and smiled when she walked past him. After a short wait, they were ushered into the office of the bank’s president, Bob Sievers. He motioned for them to sit down. Matt showed him his badge.

  “What can I do for you, officer?” Bob asked Matt.

  “We’re looking for any information you can give us on Adriana Foster. As I told you earlier when I called, my partner is an investigative reporter. She’s doing a story on Adriana, trying to keep her face before the public, hoping someone can remember a little detail that could help law enforcement find Mrs. Foster.”

  “Adriana is a great young woman, and we’ll cooperate in any way that we can. I’m holding her position open until she comes back, or we find out more. She was one of the best employees I’ve ever had.” He opened his drawer and took out a notepad. “I took the liberty of writing down some pertinent facts about her after you called this morning.”

  Matt looked over the paper Bob handed him. “This is a great start.” Not everyone’s boss would be so helpful and work with the police. A lot of them saw any police interference as just that…interference.

  “You’re free to ask any one of her co-workers questions. Jayla Conner was one of her closest friends here at the bank. If you’d like, you can use the conference room, and I can send them in one at a time.”

  “I’d appreciate that, Mr. Sievers.”

  “Bob is fine. Let me show you to the conference room.” Bob led them across the hall to a spacious room with a large table. Would you like some coffee or water?”

  “A couple of bottles of water would be great.” Matt pulled out a chair for Jessie. “I want you to ask any questions that you have. Interrupt me if you need to. You often see what I don’t.” He spoke softly in her ear, smelling the floral scent of her hair. “I like the way you smell.”

  “That’s nice to know.” She smiled up at him. “I do have a few questions I’d like to ask.” Jessie pulled her list out of her purse and laid them on the table in front.

  ****

  Most of the interviews were average with little information. Matt wasn’t expecting to get much more out of the day by the time they were finished interviewing the employees. Adriana might have been friendly enough, but she apparently hadn’t shared a lot of personal information with her co-workers.

  A tall man in his early thirties walked into the room next. His neat blond hair didn’t have one hair out of place. In fact, there wasn’t anything out of place. From the perfect crease of his suit and a shirt that didn’t appear to have a wrinkle, it was almost obsessive. Matt watched the man sit in the chair, careful not to mess the crease in his pants. He hadn’t even loosened his tie. Matt was tempted to do it for him. Average would best describe his looks but not his appearance. He was obviously a neat freak who couldn’t take his eyes of Jessie. Matt schooled his features to hide his anger. He was simply staring, and simply rude.

  “Randy Wallis.” He extended his hand to Matt, barely looking at him.

  “Randy.” He stood and extended his hand. “This shouldn’t take long.” Matt took the cap off the bottled water and took a long swig. “How well did you know Adriana Foster, Randy?” It was quick, almost too fast to catch, but Matt saw the strange look flash across his face.

  “I didn’t know her well. I’ve had lunch with her and all the others that hang around her, a few times.”

  “Did that bother you?” Matt watched him carefully. “All the others who were hanging around her.” He noticed Randy’s puzzled look. “Did that bother you?” He asked him again.

  “Not really, she was real popular that way. People just naturally liked her. Would I have liked to have had lunch just once without the whole groupie thing?” He gave a careful shrug. “Sure, it might have been nice.”

  “You do realize she was married and probably didn’t want to eat alone with another man?” Jessie frowned at him.

  “In this day and age, that means nothing. Adriana was a looker, and the bottom line is girls like that don’t hang with guys like me.” He flicked a piece of lint from the sleeve of his jacket.

  Was there a tender nerve under that casual statement? “What kind of guy are you? How would you describe yourself, Randy?” Matt jotted a few lines in his notebook.

  “I’m a hard worker…” He straightened in the chair. “I don’t mingle with a lot of people. I’m an introvert that hates small talk. I figured out early on that Adriana was not for me. As smart as she was, she was messy and a bit scatterbrained. Her desk wasn’t very neat.” His lip curled just a hair. “He still promoted her to VP, though.”

  “Did that bother you?” Matt watched Randy strain to see what he was writing.

  “Sure it did. I’m the one who should have had the job. I’ve been here longer. I’m much more organized.” His voice rose. “She was flighty, but he was fooled by her just like everybody else was.”

  “Who was fooled by her? Do you mean Bob Sievers?” Matt asked.

  “Who else! She fascinated me, but I was taken in. And if you think to pin her disappearance on me you can forget about it.” A faint tinge of red showed on his face. “I have an alibi and she wasn’t worth ruining my life over.”

  “No one was suggesting that you had anything to do with her disappearance, but we will need to verify your alibi. I’m sure you understand.” Matt gave him a neutral smile. “That’s how we rule people out.”

  “Sure, whatever.” He waved his hand.

  “So what’s your theory about what happened to Adriana?” Jessie made eye contact with him. “You must have been thinking about it like everyone else.”

  “Of course I have. I mean it’s a terrible thing that she’s gone.” Randy had visibly relaxed when Jessie asked her question, Matt noticed. “There’s a guy who comes in here every week. He wants change for a twenty every single time. While he waits for the teller, he watches her. When he gets his money, he watches her. And he watches her until he leaves the bank.”

  “Did he ever try to talk to her or anything?” Matt quizzed him.

  “Not that I ever noticed. I think that he’s a strange one, though. He’s a small man, I mean he’s not very tall. Not exactly what you’d call handsome. Eccentric would be my description of him.” He examined his nails.

  “Could you describe him to a sketch artist?”

  “Yes, I never forget a face.” Randy ran his hand over his suit jacket, smoothing it out.

  “You’ve been extremely helpful, Mr. Wallis. If I
think of anything else would it be okay with you if I call?” Jessie glanced at him and then at her notes.

  “Of course, I want to help any way that I can.” He smiled at her.

  As soon as Randy left the room, Matt looked at her. “What did you think of him?”

  “He was odd and a bit of a cold fish. There’s something else, he’s too uptight.” Jessie made a face.

  Matt nodded at Jessie wanting to say more, but the clicking of high heels alerted him that the next interviewee was on her way. Her auburn hair swung loose around her shoulders, a pair of brown glasses framed her hazel eyes, and a pair of dimples made her face memorable. Her voice was the real stand out.

  “Hi, y’all. Bob told me to hurry right on in here and answer any questions y’all might have. I’m Jayla by the way, and just so you know, I’m an implant from Georgia. I thought I would tell y’all because everyone is always asking me. They say I have an accent. To my way of thinking, you Yankees are the one with the accent. I sound normal to me.” She smiled at them and sat down in the chair across from Jessie. “My, oh my, you’re sure a pretty one. It would take a lot of work to get me looking as good as you do, sugar.” Her bracelets banged on the table.

  Matt had to agree with her. “Bob told us you were good friends with Adriana. Can you tell us anything about the last few times you saw her? Was she worried about anything or give any indication that she was?”

  Jayla frowned in concentration. “Well now, let me think. Adriana was the best. A real sweetheart, you know what I mean.” She looked at Matt. “She was excited about her promotion. She earned it—contrary to a few rumblings around here. The customers loved her; most everyone else did except for maybe one or two here or there.” She took a deep breath. “She was just the sweetest little thing, and her husband adored her. Whenever he was in the area, he would come and take her to lunch. Once a week like clockwork, he sent her flowers.” Her face scrunched, turning her lips down at the corners.

  “Do you remember something?” Jessie asked her.

  “A few days before she disappeared she got another flower arrangement with a strange note. She took them right out to the dumpster and threw them away. I remember because they were the prettiest red roses I’d ever seen, and so fragrant. I hated to see those beautiful flowers tossed in the trash like rubbish. But, they weren’t from her husband.” Jayla’s bracelets clanked the table.

  “Do you remember anything about the note?” Matt pressed her.

  “Of course I didn’t read it, but I do remember she was scared. Terrified! She was worried that death had found her again. My heart broke for the poor little thing. She seemed to be real jumpy after that.” Jayla leaned forward in the chair, her elbows on the table.

  “Did you say she was worried that death had found her again?” Jessie wrote on her notepad.

  “As strange as it sounds to me now when I say it, those were her exact words. When I asked her about, she tried to laugh it off and said ‘I meant to say it’s death to my freedom again.’ It didn’t ring true, and she knew that I knew it. She kept trying to reassure me, but I could tell it was eating at her.”

  “How could you tell?” Matt watched her as she answered.

  “Adriana became withdrawn and quiet. She came to work, but it was as if the fun-loving, sweet Adriana was far away. She was real skittish. She was constantly watching the door and anyone who came in it.” Jayla looked at her watch. “Are you finished with me? I have a couple coming in for a house loan in a few minutes. I need to skedaddle.”

  “Just about, I have one last question. Did you ever see a strange patron around who cashed a twenty and always watched Adriana?” Jessie smiled as she asked her.

  “Let me just guess, sugar, who told you that. Randy was jealous of our little Adriana.” She tossed her head, clicking her long red nails on the table. “The man who cashed the twenty has been in every week since as long as I can remember. He still comes in here. That’s how he gets his tip money. He liked looking at her, but he’d never hurt a fly. She was kind to him and always made him smile. He’s simple if you know what I mean, but he wouldn’t hurt a fly.”

  “Thank you, Jayla. If you think of anything else, even if it’s small, give me a call.” Jessie handed her a business card.

  “I sure enough will.” She left the way she came with the staccato rhythm of her heels clicking on the floor.

  Matt stood and stretched. “Let’s get out of here so we can talk. While you gather your notes, I’ll let Bob know that we’ve finished up here and thank him.”

  ****

  As soon as Matt left the room, Jessie put her notes in her purse. She was sifting through what she had heard in the last two interviews. Randy was bitter about the promotion. Jayla didn’t like him. Why not? What was it about Randy that was such a put-off? It gave her something to think about, but nothing stood out yet.

  “Excuse me.” A deep voice startled her. “I was out earlier, and I was told to come in and talk to you.” He walked into the room as if he owned it. He was good looking, extremely so, and Jessie could tell he knew it.

  “Please have a seat.” She motioned to the chair across from her. She didn’t want him next to her.

  He sat looking her over insolently. “So what’s this all about, sweetheart?”

  Before she could reply, Matt spoke from behind her. “She’s not your sweetheart, but she is my partner.” He pulled out the chair by Jessie. “I’m Matt Parker.” He showed him his badge. “My partner is Jessie Reynolds. We’d like to ask you a few questions about Adriana Foster.”

  Jessie hadn’t heard Matt walk in, but she was happy to hear his voice. “How well did you know Adriana?” She watched the two of them size each other up and dig in their heels.

  “Let’s just say not well enough. She was liked by everyone but didn’t give me the time of day.” His handsome face was stony.

  “I might be guessing at this, but it might be the way you treat women that turns them off.” Matt’s face was expressionless except for the flash of anger in his eyes.

  “How in the hell would you know how I treat a woman?” His back stiffened in the chair.

  “I don’t!” Matt leaned forward in his chair. “But your little display with my partner gives me a picture, and I didn’t like what I saw. I doubt Adriana’s husband would have either. So let’s begin this again, shall we? You can start by telling us your name.”

  He nodded. “I’m Jordon Daniels. I’m one of the loan officers here at the bank.”

  “That’s better, Jordon. How well did you know Adriana?”

  “I talked to her. I mean, she was a sweet little package, but like I said, she didn’t give me the time of day.”

  “Did that bother you?”

  “Yeah, sure.” He jerked his shoulders irritably. “I’ve never had any trouble talking to women, but she was a different story.”

  “Did it make you mad enough to do something?” Matt frowned and leaned forward in his chair.

  “I don’t like what you’re insinuating.” Daniels scowled. “I didn’t hurt her if that’s what you mean. Do I need a lawyer?”

  “I don’t know.” Matt kept his voice even. “Do you need one?”

  “No, and I’m not hanging around to listen to this crap.” He stood. “If and when you have some real evidence to tie me to this case, you know where to find me.”

  Matt stood to block his exit. “If I do, you can guarantee I’ll be back. I’d be more than happy to put your sorry ass in jail.”

  Jessie watched the two men, equal in height, square off. Jordon was the first one to back down and left the room. “What was that? There was enough testosterone in this room to start a war.”

  “That guy was a jerk. I didn’t like how he was hitting on you or treating you. I didn’t like him period.” Matt’s eyes were simmering. “Let’s get out of here before I give in to the urge to punch him because it would make me feel good.”

  Chapter 4

  They stopped at a small diner that
overlooked the rocky cliffs for lunch before heading back to Blue Cove. The place was hopping so they took a seat at the counter where they could see all the action of the food preparation. It was too loud to talk seriously, which was okay. Matt was thoughtfully quiet. It gave Jessie time to watch the endless moments of entertainment. Written on the menu was a blurb about the café’s history. The owner was also a teacher at one of the culinary schools in the area. Several students from the school who were studying elements of the food industry worked there along with some of their professors.

  Jessie loved watching their efficiency as they worked as a team. The restaurant advertised organic food made with fresh ingredients that were locally grown. Each student worked several elements from the grill to garnishing. The teacher had to give final approval of the food presentation on each plate before the server brought it out. The owner had found her niche; The Early Bird had gotten an excellent write-up by the food critic Howard Hill. Jessie fully understood why. Her chicken salad on raisin bread was good, and so was her salad tossed with a raspberry vinaigrette. She glanced over at Matt, who was still frowning.

  Watching the students carry on as they prepared the food was a show in itself. There was more heat in that small kitchen than the stove. Jessie chuckled, watching the bantering and flirting going on between the students. A few towel slaps and pinches made for an enjoyable lunch.

  “Are you enjoying yourself?” Matt heard her chuckle.

  “I am.” She ate the last bite of her sandwich. “The students are extremely entertaining.” She watched him place the tip on the counter as he stood up to leave.

  He held the door open for her, and she glanced his way as she swept by him. “Thanks, I enjoyed the whole experience. My meal was excellent.”

  “It’s pretty good. I stop here a lot when I’m in the area. It’s probably not the best place to talk, but we’ll have time on the ride home.”