Deadly Obsessions (Kensington-Gerard Detective series Book 3)

by K. T. Roberts

  “It was easy to see he was irked. I wouldn’t be a bit surprised if the two partners send him packing after the probationary period. That ego of his might be a bit too large for that office.”

  “It’s interesting he’s living at the Plaza; the same place the sister is staying. Do you think he’s the mystery man?” Jessie asked.

  “Nah. I don’t. He wouldn’t have offered the names and suggested we look at the surveillance footage if he had anything to do with it. He’s an officer of the court and I seriously doubt he’d be so foolish as to risk a complaint to the Bar Association when he hasn’t been an attorney for that long.” Zach released a low laugh. “He’s in for a shock if he runs into Charlene, especially if he didn’t know Carly had an identical twin.”

  Jessie laughed too. “Oh my God. That’s right. Yeah, he’s going to freak out.”

  “Okay, next on the list is good ole Harlan?”

  “Yeah. Good ole Harlan.”

  Pulling up in front of the apartment building on West 11th Street, Jessie found a space a few blocks away and parked the car. The snow was coming down heavier now, swirling with the wind as it fell silently on the tree-lined sidewalk, hitting the ground and filling the imprints left by others. Jessie continued to trudge through by sliding her feet to make a path. The reflection of the streetlights made the icicles glisten and sparkle like diamonds. She shivered, covered her head with her scarf and pulled it tighter around her neck. Thinking back to her years as a youth playing in the snow, she hadn’t remembered being this cold. “Brrrrrr,” she said.

  “Yeah, I hear ya,” Zach said taking hold of her arm. “Careful, this is real slippery.”

  She thanked him and stuck out her tongue to catch a flake. “Did you ever do that as a kid?”

  “Of course. But my father always told me it was probably dirty from the pollution by the time it hit my tongue.”

  “Parents are like that, aren’t they?”

  “Some are, that’s for sure.”

  She’d always liked this part of the city. This end of the block where the Hawkins lived was typically a quiet neighborhood, and it was a rare occasion when something bad happened.

  Stepping inside the lobby, she rubbed her hands together to warm up. Seeing the beautiful Christmas decorations decked out in full regalia gave her a melancholy feeling. She wouldn’t be spending Christmas with Zach this year. He must have sensed the same feeling because he glanced at her and blew air through pinched lips. The large ceiling to floor Christmas tree located in the center of the lobby was decorated as beautifully and professionally as the tree in Rockefeller Center.

  Jessie broke the ice. “Did you decorate this year?”

  “Nah. I just didn’t feel like it. I’ll be spending the holidays on the island of St. Croix, so I figured it was pointless.”

  A jealous ache squeezed her heart when she realized he wouldn’t be pining over her. For God’s sake, she thought, why did she want that? Taking in a deep breath, she blew it out in a long steady stream and told herself to stop being a jerk. He had a right to do whatever he wanted.

  They approached the reception desk where two uniformed men stood behind a tall mahogany reception desk. The younger one looked up when he heard them. He didn’t even have a chance to ask what they wanted before they presented their identification. “Alright then.” He grinned, “Who are you here to see today?”

  “Harlan Hawkins.”

  “What a travesty. Did you find her killer yet?” he asked, but the stocky older gentleman beside him shot the young man a look. “I’m sorry. I’m not supposed to ask those questions.” Neither detective said anything. “Take the third elevator to the right and stop at the second floor—”

  Jessie gave a casual wave. “Thank you.”

  During the ride up, neither said anything. When the elevator stopped, she was the first to exit and make her way to the Hawkins’ unit. Zach pushed on the doorbell, and sent the dog behind the door on a barking spree. Harlan opened the door on a crack. “Stop, barking, Sophie.” Harlan’s voice boomed, clearly annoyed. “Detectives? Do you have news for me?”

  “Not yet, Mr. Hawkins. But we need to ask you more questions.” Zach said.

  “Okay,” Harlan gave a disgruntled shake of his head, removed the chain link and opened the door. “Come inside, so this darn dog will shut up.” Zach squatted down beside the dog and stuck his hand out for the pooch to smell, and the dog licked his hand.

  “Hiya Sophie,” Zach said and ruffled his hand between the dog’s ears. The dog took that as an invitation for a belly rub, and flopped over.

  “I hate to interfere with this love fest,” Harlan said, “but what can I do for you?”

  The first thing that hit Jessie was the stuffy stagnant smell of the apartment that was decorated as blandly as Jessie had expected—basic white walls that needed a new coat of paint, scenic pictures spaced every so often to fill the emptiness of the room, and furniture that Jessie referred to as ‘no frills’ with straight backs and wooden armrests. Two upholstered recliners were positioned facing the sofa, next to one another with only a table separating them. Harlan gestured for them to sit when he lowered his body into one of the recliners, while Sophie made a beeline for the other. Sophie rested her chin on the arm of the chair and closed her eyes, seemingly content to be sitting in her missing master’s chair. A Christmas tree stood in the corner, the lights blinking in various colors, still unfinished; it was obvious where the decorator had stopped.

  Zach led off the conversation. “Besides having more questions, we’d like to call our team in to do a search.”

  “What for?”

  “You just never know. Maybe your wife didn’t want to frighten you by mentioning that she was being followed or harassed.”

  “I know exactly what was happening with my wife.”

  “Apparently not, Mr. Hawkins, otherwise, she wouldn’t be dead,” Zach said in a rush of words. “It’s very important for us to go through your wife’s belongings to find out if there’s some clue that will lead us to her killer.”

  “I told you, it was those thugs over at Arco Technologies.”

  “I already have a meeting set up with their Human Resources department.” Zach said.

  “And you think they’re going to tell you the truth?”

  “Wouldn’t that be a little silly of them not to tell me the truth?” Zach’s hands went up.

  “Yeah, I guess. But firing me for doing the right thing and then taking away my pension…”

  “We’ve already been over this. Your lawsuit is of no concern to us,” Zach interrupted in an edgy tone. “We have more important issues to discuss today. So tell me what your objection is to having us do a search? Do you have something to hide?”

  Harlan shot Zach an angry look. “Because my wife’s things are all I have left, Detective. I don’t want some investigator rifling through her things with their dirty hands.”

  “Mr. Hawkins, I know you’re distraught over this loss, and I can certainly understand that, but by trying to limit our access to finding possible clues, you’re impeding our investigation. You do know that’s a legal offense, don’t you? Don’t you want to know who killed your wife?” The volume of Zach’s voice rose, “or maybe you already know and don’t want us to find the clues?”

  “Detective,” Harlan said firmly, “that was uncalled for.”

  “Then stop standing in our way. You’re making yourself look pretty bad. And in case you didn’t know, I don’t need your permission to search your house. I’m being nice by asking you.”

  Harlan’s eyes narrowed. “Don’t tell me you actually think I had something to do with Carly’s murder?”

  “I hope not, but I don’t know that yet. You must know husbands are the first suspects. If you’re innocent, then you need to give me something to prove it. I have to be honest, the things you’re saying, and the things your sister-in-law had to say, make you look pretty suspicious.”

  “Are you out of your mind? Wh
at you don’t get is that I loved my wife? We had a wonderful relationship.” He paused and took a breath. “Fine,” he said, slamming his tightened fist down on the sofa, “Do your damn search, but I’ll be following them around to keep an eye on them.”

  “Nope,” Jessie shook her head, “I’m afraid not. You can’t even be present.”

  “How do I know they’re not going to steal something from me?”

  The detectives glared at him. “Seriously, Mr. Hawkins?” Jessie said. “We’re law enforcement for God’s sake. No one is going to steal anything from you.”

  “Oh really? You’re going to sit there and tell me law enforcement officers are above doing bad things?” his voice dripped with sarcasm.

  Zach shook his head. “I won’t dignify that comment with a response. And for the record, the investigators wear gloves while they’re searching through your belongings. So it’s up to you. We can do this the easy way, or we can do it the hard way. It’s your call.”

  “I told you, do your damn search.”

  Jessie dialed the precinct and called for the investigative team. “They’ll be here shortly. Is there some place we can go to continue our discussion other than in your apartment?”

  He made a face after huffing out an angry breath. “There’s a meeting room down in the lobby. I’ll check to see if it’s vacant.” He walked out of earshot.

  Zach raised his brows and Jessie nodded knowing exactly what he was thinking.

  Harlan returned. “The meeting room is available.”

  “Okay, do you have a neighbor who will watch Sophie while they’re investigating?”

  “No. I’ll bring her with us.” The minute he reached for the leash, Sophie came running. Once the leash was snapped into place, Sophie patiently sat and waited for her master to give her further instructions.

  Zach grinned. “Let’s go downstairs now and get started.”

  “Wait just a minute. I’m not leaving my apartment unattended before the investigators get here.”

  “No, you won’t be. Lock the door and tell the guards to let us know when the team arrives. At that time, you can give the keys to our lead investigator who will return them when his search is finished.”

  Harlan’s hands flew up. “Dammit,” his fist pounded the table.

  “You seem to have quite a temper, Mr. Hawkins. Is that what happened to your wife? You were pissed about her lover and you shot her?” Jessie said.

  “What lover?”

  “The one you failed to mention.”

  Harlan’s mouth tightened as they walked inside the elevator and pushed the down arrow. When the doors opened, Jessie headed over to the reception area to tell the guard to let them know when the search team arrived, then joined the others in the meeting room. The room was nicely appointed and consisted of a long dark wooden table with upholstered chairs around the table that were covered in a rust floral print. The rich colors in the rug covering the floor completed the ensemble. Glancing around the room, Jessie noticed a large whiteboard peeking out from behind a wall drape at the far end, and expensive artwork covering the walls. She pulled out a chair and sat down glancing over at Hawkins and watched his jaw tighten with tension.

  Zach broke the ice. “Tell us about the affair?”

  “Oh, I’m sure Charlene gave you quite an earful?” His face turned red. He wasn’t very good at camouflaging his anger.

  Jessie began. “So Mr. Hawkins, if you had such a wonderful relationship, why didn’t you tell us about her affair?”

  Harlan’s mouth thinned in a fine line. “Because it wasn’t any of your damned business to begin with, and frankly, I’d forgotten all about that.”

  “Somehow, I’m having a hard time accepting that you forgot about it. And you know why? Because we’ve heard you’re a bully, that you didn’t let your wife go anywhere except to work and back without you being glued to her side. That doesn’t sound like a man who’s forgotten his wife had an affair. It sounds more like a man who’s insecure and worried it was going to happen again.” Zach said. “Your wife wanted to end your marriage. Is that why you killed her?”

  “I resent your insinuations, Detective.”

  “If you think my demands are unreasonable, you should see what it’s like in the big house.” It was obvious Zach was losing patience. “Like I said, Mr. Hawkins, if you want to go to jail for not answering our questions, it’s your call, but my advice would be to cooperate.”

  “Be my guest,” Harlan said holding his wrists out for cuffs. “Lock me up. I have nothing left anyway, so what difference does it make?”

  They stopped talking when they heard a knock on the door. Sophie took off like a shot for the door and barked. Jessie excused herself and made her way to the door, leaned down and picked up Sophie, then opened it all the way.

  “Hey Jessie, we’re here.”

  She held up her finger for him to wait, turned toward Harlan who reluctantly placed the keys in her hand and gave them to the lead. She was relieved the inspector had shown up when he did. The break in the conversation seemed to melt the icicles. Slowly edging her way around the table, she sat down in the chair next to Harlan. “Listen, Mr. Hawkins,” she touched his arm and spoke in a soft voice, “don’t pay any attention to my partner. He got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning.” She winked at Zach, then turned back to Harlan. “Why won’t you tell us about him?”

  “I just don’t want to rehash it over again. I want to remember Carly for all the wonderful things she was to me. Besides,” he pinched his eyes with his fingers, “it was a long time ago.”

  “How long ago?”

  “Two years…I guess.”

  “Isn’t that the same time frame you got fired from your job? Did the affair have anything to do with it?”

  “I guess you could say that.”

  “You’re not trying to protect the man, are you?”

  “Hell no,” he said firmly. “I hope that bastard rots in hell.”

  “Then tell us about him. How do you know he didn’t kill your wife?”

  “I don’t.”

  “Then help us to know who he is and how we can get in touch with him.”

  He released a string of obscenities; angry he had to talk about it. “It was like forever ago, dammit.”

  “Two years isn’t all that long ago.” Zach added.

  “Well it seems like it for me. I erased it from my mind—put the past behind me.” He paused briefly, then began, clearly irritated by the tapping of Zach’s foot. “Ralph Morton—that’s his name. We met in the Navy and were friends up until the time I found out about the “big event,” he said, his hands squeezing into fists. “He was from Connecticut, but moved here to New York and moved in with me until he could find something else. Carly and I were getting married. I gave him a time limit, but he took advantage of that, used both of us to get what he wanted. The man is extremely clever. Unfortunately, he schmoozed us until we let him stay a little longer, but it lasted a lot longer than either of us wanted. He eventually took the hint and left.”

  “Okay. That must have felt like a slap in the face having your wife cheat on you with your best friend?”

  “You’re damned right it did. For some reason, she didn’t understand that. She apologized and said it was a mistake…like I was supposed to say, yeah, okay. Well, it wasn’t okay with me.” Harlan’s face was flushed from his unresolved anger over his wife’s betrayal.

  “Where does Ralph live now?”

  “I couldn’t tell you. Last I heard, he was shacking up with some woman from Arco who took pity on him because he’d lost his job and had nowhere to go. She got suckered in just like we did.”

  “How did he wind up at the same company you did?”

  “I got him the job. He’d floundered around from one job to the next and kept asking me for money. I finally got so tired of his freeloading that I got him the job because I knew he wasn’t seriously looking for anything. He had a wealthy upbringing. I guess his family cut off
his funds and he freeloaded off his friends expecting the same lifestyle. Anyway, the job was simple enough. I mean, it wasn’t like he didn’t know how to do the job; he was just one of those moochers. I gradually eased off on the friendship after Carly and I got married. He didn’t like that too much.”

  “Okay, now take me to when you eased off the friendship.”

  “Alright.”

  “How did he handle it?”

  “He kept coming around hoping to restore things, but I was done with him. Once I’m done, I’m done and there’s no going back.”

  “Did he know why you were ending the friendship?”

  “He didn’t need me to tell him. He knew quite well.” He curled his lip. “You’d have to be an idiot not to know when someone doesn’t want to have anything to do with you. It’s like crashing somebody’s party.”

  “Now tell me how he came to get involved with your wife if you were no longer friends?”

  “It was more of a getting even kind of thing. He’d always said, ‘paybacks can be a real bitch, Harlan.’ And he was right. It was at our company party. He kept trying to strike up a conversation with me and I blew him off, so he decided to start talking to Carly who didn’t have the heart to walk away. Anyway, we all got drunk. I passed out, and,” his hand flew in the air, “the rest is history.”

  “Had your wife been seeing him before that party?”

  He was shaking his head. “According to her, that night was the first and only time it ever happened.”

  “Were you having trouble in your marriage at that time?”

  “I didn’t think so. We’d had an argument before the party. I didn’t want to go despite my boss telling me it was mandatory. Carly knew how much I hated being around the people I worked with. It was bad enough working with them all day, but she was worried it would make me look bad to refuse the boss’s invitation.” He snorted.