Deadly Obsessions (Kensington-Gerard Detective series Book 3)

by K. T. Roberts

  “Did your ex-wife think Carly was the reason for your divorce?”

  “No. She divorced me. She ran off with a guy she’d met.”

  Jessie held her hand against her cheek and listened intently. “Tell me more about this guy at her job—the one that didn’t like her.”

  “Oh, I didn’t say he didn’t like Carly. I just said he was giving her a hard time and she wasn’t pleased with him, but you’ll have to talk to him about that.”

  “We will. Do you have children from your first marriage?”

  “No. Just Carly’s, and like I said before, I don’t consider them my kids. I’m actually glad we never had kids together. My parenting skills would have been much different than hers.”

  “How so?”

  “Well, there’s her oldest daughter, Jennifer. That kid? She’s a loser. Hated me because I wouldn’t put up with her crap, but Carly was always bailing her out by paying these huge bills of hers. She’s a lazy-ass! At twenty-five, she spends her time playing on her computer instead of looking for a job.” Jessie looked at Zach and smiled. His acknowledged nod said he understood the comparison between what the victim accused her husband of doing every day and the daughter.

  “You said she had two kids. What’s the other daughter’s name?”

  “Marilyn. She’s a sweetheart, but she can be a bitch just like her mother.”

  “Now we’re getting somewhere,” Jessie commented, and sat more erect.

  “What do you mean?”

  “You’ve painted your wife as a saint, yet you just accused the daughter and her of being bitches. Would you care to elaborate?”

  “Oh, c’mon, stop playing these word games. She was a bitch when she had PMS. Isn’t every woman?”

  Jessie tried not to react to his blatant politically incorrect remark. “So what did she complain about when she was in that so-called ‘state’?” Jessie flicked her fingers into quotes.

  “Everything, but I criticized her right back.”

  “What things did you criticize her for?”

  “I didn’t like the way she cleaned the house, so I’d leave notes around to let her know what needed to be done over.”

  Jessie’s brows arched. She tried not to show the building anger she felt from his remarks. “Since you weren’t working, did you help her maintain the house?”

  “Hell no. That’s a woman’s job.”

  “When was the last time you left a note?” Zach asked, taking over.

  “I guess yesterday was the last time. And now that she’s dead, I’m feeling pretty bad.”

  “Because you criticized her or because you killed her?” Zach asked.

  “What?” Harlan barked. “Who do you think you’re talking to?” His face flushed as he continued. “How dare you accuse me of killing the only person who gave meaning to my life?”

  “From what you’re saying, Mr. Hawkins, it seems pretty clear that you might have had something to do with it.” Zach said.

  Hawkins’ breathing became more labored as he tried to hold back his anger. He squirmed in his chair and shook his head negatively.

  “Okay,” Jessie said, “let’s move on to the two girls. You said your wife was always bailing her daughter out. Did she ever tell Jennifer she wouldn’t help her financially?”

  “I tried to encourage her to do that, but I doubt she ever did.”

  “Why? Do you think Jennifer killed her mother because she refused to help her?”

  “Why? Is she one of your suspects?” Harlan asked.

  “It’s purely speculation at this point, Mr. Hawkins, but we have to check everyone out.”

  “Were the girls angry when their mother married you?”

  “Not at first, but after I put my foot down and let them both know the free rides were over, that’s when they decided they didn’t like me. I guess that changed after I lost my job. I tried to tell Carly,” he said exasperated. “Without my pay, we needed every cent we had to run the house. I seriously doubt she listened because I really couldn’t say much when I was standing on the unemployment line, so to speak.” His eyes darted across the room when he saw the time. His eyes blinked. “I’m really tired. Can’t we continue this another time?”

  “Just a few more questions and we’ll be done for today.”

  He huffed out a heavy sigh, then picked up where he left off. “I didn’t let their disapproval bother me none. Do I think Jennifer is capable of killing her mother? I wouldn’t put it past her, but as I said, I don’t like ‘em, so I’m not going to say anything nice about either of them.”

  “Give us their telephone numbers and addresses so we can arrange to talk to them.” She slid a pad and pen over to him, “Will you jot those down for me?”

  “They live in Wisconsin, but I’ll call you with the exact addresses after I get home.”

  “Is there any reason for you to suspect they might have killed their mother?”

  “Maybe, if Carly refused. I don’t know.” He humphed.

  “Was Jennifer on drugs?”

  He made a disgusted face. “I wouldn’t put that past her either. I mean, she was always asking for money, so maybe it was a drug problem.”

  “What about the other family members who might have a bone to pick with your wife?”

  “Carly’s five brothers don’t even bother with us. I think the last time she saw any of them was in 2007. That’s seven years ago.”

  “Did she keep in touch with them at least?”

  “I don’t know.” He shrugged. “She did keep in touch with her sister, Charlene. But I’m told that’s typical of twins and they did talk every day.” He stopped talking and swallowed hard. “I guess the operative word now is ‘were’ twins.” He lowered his head.

  “I assume you’ll be calling the entire family to let them know about Carly?”

  “I suppose I’ll have to. But maybe Charlene will call the brothers. I don’t want to talk to them.” Harlan released a deep yawn. “Please, can I go now? I need to let the family know.”

  “Sure, Mr. Hawkins. I guess we have enough for today.” Jessie handed him a business card. “Please call our offices with the names and addresses of those individuals we’ve requested.

  “Can you wait until later this morning to call them? You know, give me time to let them know what happened,” Harlan asked.

  “That’s fine. We still need to see the attorneys at her law firm and do some canvassing.” Jessie looked at her watch. “Let’s say, we’ll hold off calling any of them until three o’clock this afternoon. I suspect they’ll be headed for New York as soon as they get word anyway.”

  “That’s for certain. The kids will want to make sure I plan her funeral the way Carly would have wanted it done. They just don’t think I’m capable of much.” He sighed and rose from his seat. “Please let me know the minute you know anything.”

  “Absolutely.” Jessie shook his hand. “You take care of yourself. We’ll talk soon.”

  “So what do you think?” Jessie asked when Harlan left the precinct.

  Zach shook his head. “I just don’t have enough information yet. I don’t think the witnesses are suspects either. But, it sure is easy to figure out why the family and friends have a problem with ole Harlan.”

  “For sure. By the way, I’ll call his attorney to find out what we can. I’ll let you know what he has to say. My take on Harlan,” she said, “hmm, I’m not so sure I believe him. He was extremely irritated talking about Jennifer. What if he found out Carly did give Jennifer more money? He looks like the type who could chop your head off in one shot.” Jessie touched Zach’s arm until she saw the captain walking toward them again then dropped it quickly. “Okay, we’ll reconvene to set up our evidence board after I check the database for Hawkins.” She nodded to the captain. “Good morning, Captain.”

  4

  JESSIE SLID A DAMP cloth over the surface of the coffee table to remove the accumulation of dust and positioned the piece of furniture in the center of the room with two
large pillows underneath. Sitting on the pillows to have dinner was a favorite of Zach’s. She lit a candle, set the table with napkins and chopsticks, then walked to the CD player and slid in his favorite jazz artist. A nervous feeling ached in her stomach and had her wondering if he was even coming after the way they’d left things earlier in the day. She began humming to distract her thoughts.

  Walking around her spacious home in Gramercy Park, she eyed the furniture in the living room with satisfaction knowing it was the actual antique furniture she’d jumped on during her growing years. Most people viewed returning to your roots as a lack of growth, but she didn’t see it that way. She saw it as being given an opportunity to relive her youth—but only the good times—not the bad. But maybe living there was just what she needed to purge the demons that plagued her memory. Admittedly, it had been those bad parts that made her who she was today—a strong woman who knew where she was going in her career. But in her private life? Not so much. She shook her head. The damn baggage she carried around was hanging on for dear life, and the weight was beginning to wear her down. She needed to do something about it because it had stopped her from moving forward with a lot of things—Zach included.

  Memories of the day she found her childhood home on the market flashed before her eyes. It was indeed a day of bittersweet memories. She had just broken the news to Zach for the second time that she didn’t think living together was going to work out. Zach remained silent when she told him, but witnessing his expression of devastation caused her to run from his bungalow. In hindsight, she was amazed that she found herself in front of the very place she had coined as the house of horrors. She wondered what Sigmund Freud would think of that. At the time though, it had somehow given her comfort—the comfort of imagining her father’s arms wrapped around her when she was hurting. Jessie’ eyes filled with tears. She reached for the box of tissues sitting on the end table and dried her eyes. She liked the fact that she was away from the busy part of the city. What surprised her most was living in the house hadn’t dredged up the old nightmares of abandonment.

  For obvious reasons, Zach did not think so, but quickly tired of fighting about it. After she’d moved out, Zach no longer picked her up in the mornings for work. Now, she took the subway over to the precinct. She didn’t mind, nor would she push the issue with him. If only Zach could accept that she loved him more than anything in the world, but she just couldn’t live with him. She sighed. They worked well as partners, better than anyone of the others they’d tried to partner with. Being partners for so many years, they knew exactly what the other was thinking, when to take notes and when to shoot their ideas down.

  Jessie jumped when the doorbell rang and noticed her heart racing. Rushing to the door, she smiled when she saw his handsome face.

  “I’m so glad you came,” she said.

  “I almost didn’t.”

  His comment pinched a nerve. “So why did you?”

  “Because I love you, jerk.” He was shaking his head in disgust as he removed his jacket and draped it over the sofa. “It is beyond me how anyone as beautiful, as smart, and as sharp as you, can be so dumb.”

  She dimmed the lights and wrapped her arms around him. “I’m not dumb, but I am in love with you. More than I’ve ever loved anyone.”

  He stiffened. “Yeah,” he said, removing her arms, “and you sure showed me how much.”

  “Okay,” she said holding her hand up to stop the conversation, “let’s not start the evening off like this. Come sit down.” She led him into the kitchen and pulled out a barstool. “Want a beer?”

  He nodded and looked around the place without saying anything, but she could tell he was impressed. The last time he was there, the place was crawling with workers.

  “I’m starved,” he said.

  “Me too.” Jessie handed him a beer and watched while he unscrewed the cap and took a swig.

  “Why are you so late?” she asked.

  “The captain cornered me and wanted to know if there was going to be a problem between us. He said he sensed a little tension.” Zach tilted his head to the side. “But being the good friend that I am, I assured him we were adults and he had nothing to worry about.”

  “Zach,” she inhaled and exhaled quickly, “I’m sorry. That’s why I wanted you to come here tonight, so we could talk about this. We have some unresolved issues that need to be answered between us. Why can’t we go back to being friends with benefits? It worked before, it can work again. We’ve always worked so well together wouldn’t it be a shame to have to give that up too? It’s like a double-edged sword.”

  He frowned, his hand bouncing off the kitchen counter. “Christ, Jessie, you just don’t get it, do you? Being a couple is about being able to spend as much time together as you can. It’s a feeling of knowing that the two of you are solid. That no matter what happens in life the two of you will see it through. It’s knowing no one could ever take your place.” His voice lowered, “and it’s waking up to a warm body and holding each other tightly in your arms.” He brought the bottle to his lips and took another swig. “It appears I’ve been deluding myself all this time.”

  “Listen, I told you from the beginning that it was going to take time.”

  “Yeah, and I gave you that time. I’ve been more than patient. I even fixed up my bungalow on City Island so you’d feel like it was perfect for the two of us. But that didn’t satisfy you either. I’ve told you a million times, I’m not your father, and I’m sure as hell not Harwell—I’m not going anywhere. I have no reason to look for another woman. You’re the total package for me and I’m committed to you.” He took another swig of his beer. “In my mind, this thing between us was never a part-time gig, and I just don’t understand how you could even suggest that. You’re such a control freak,” he snapped. “Why is it so hard for you to understand why others don’t think like you? Just because we don’t doesn’t make us weird.” His lips tightened in a thin line. “Look, we can be friends, but don’t hug me, and surely, don’t tell me how much you love me because a relationship on your terms is not love in my book. You don’t have a clue about the true sense of what lo— ”

  She cut him to the quick. “And I told you, just because we were dating didn’t mean it was a forever thing.”

  “Yes, you did,” he nodded. “Silly me for thinking I could convince you otherwise.” A muscle flickered in his jaw as he stood. He put the bottle down on the counter, turned and walked out of the kitchen, grabbed his jacket off the sofa and headed for the door. “I’ll see you at work tomorrow.”

  “Aww, dammit, Gerard!” she said placing her hands on her hips, “Stop acting like a prick.” He never looked back.

  Zach exited the taxi and walked into Wolfgang Puck’s restaurant on Park Avenue in Midtown. The last time he’d been there was with Jessie. That was the first time they’d made love. Releasing a sigh, he gave his name to the receptionist.

  “There’s a twenty-minute wait,” she said.

  “That’s okay. I’ll hang out at the bar. After the kind of day,” he stopped talking and held his hand up, “let’s just leave it at that.”

  “Boy, I totally get that,” she said and turned to help the next person in line.

  Zach ordered a beer on draft as soon as he sat down. He was feeling particularly low and thinking about Jessie was dragging him down even further. He couldn’t believe he was wasting his time dwelling on what might have been. It was not at all productive. Besides, he had more important things to think about. He probably should have called Sandy, a former girlfriend, to see if she wanted to have dinner, but he honestly didn’t feel like being with anyone else. He knew there would be a time when he’d stop caring about Jessie and move on, but right now wasn’t it and he couldn’t pretend. Nor would it be fair to ask another woman out to prove a point when his heart wasn’t in it.

  It seemed like he’d only been there a few minutes when he heard the hostess call out his name. He stood, threw money on the bar and walked out
to the waiting area when he saw his father with a woman. He ducked back into the bar without being seen and watched his father with the woman. They were obviously in love from the way she was looking at him. A queasy feeling attacked his gut and his first instinct was to leave.

  Zach’s father, Alan, was a well-known high profile criminal attorney and the last person he wanted to see, especially tonight. His mood was already angry from seeing Jessie, and now seeing Alan, only made him angrier. An image of his deceased mother came to mind and he wondered if she was in fact watching over him. Maybe she was talking to him from her grave. Knowing he denied her the one thing she wanted the most before she died sent a sharp ache to his gut like he’d been sucker punched. He and his father were both stubborn men, neither making the first move to forgive. Now, years later, too much time and hard feelings had transpired between the two men. As far as Zach was concerned, the likelihood of a reunion was no longer in the cards for them.

  Estranged for many years after Zach refused to follow in his father’s footsteps or marry the girl his father had chosen for him, had given Zach the fire in his belly to be the best detective on the force. Sadly, despite the hard feelings between them, everything Zach did was for his father’s approval. Too bad Alan would never know he achieved that status.

  Zach sucked in a deep breath and blew it out trying to calm his racing heart. The last time he’d seen his father was during Patrick Sawyer’s trial. Alan was Sawyer’s defense attorney. As one of the arresting officers, Zach was the first witness on the stand. He remembered preparing himself for the trial knowing his father would probably be the one to question him even though Alan had an entourage of lawyers who followed behind the man like he was a god.

  Alan had even tricked him into thinking another attorney was going to question him and then at the last minute, he’d dismissed the attorney and he made his grand entrance. Zach should have remembered that was how his father psyched out the witnesses for the prosecution, but he hadn’t. And Alan had taken full advantage of that fact. Fortunately, the prosecutor was just as sharp at her job and Sawyer was sent to prison for the rest of his life.