by K M Morgan
In Crumple’s mind, Dominick certainly had a motive for wanting Scott dead. The question became, had Dominick committed the crime? Crumple drove over to Dominick’s red-brick rental townhome on Citrus Circle to find out.
Crumple began the interview by flashing his police badge and introducing himself. He then broke the news about Scott’s death. Just like with the other two suspects, Dominick looked shocked.
From there, Crumple dove into the meat of the interview.
“Where were you last night?” Crumple asked.
“I was at the bar,” Dominick said.
“Which one?”
“Tipsy McHoolihan’s on Eagle Avenue.”
“Is that so?” Crumple asked.
Dominick nodded.
“Were you there with a friend?” Crumple asked.
Dominick shook his head. “No. I sat in the corner and had some drinks by myself.”
“So, if I drive over to Tipsy’s right now, they’ll be able to confirm that?”
“Yes.”
“All right,” Crumple said. “We’ll see about that.”
***
Crumple drove over to the bar. Unfortunately, he did not get the answers he was looking for. Instead, when he left Tipsy McHoolihan’s, he was wrestling with a fresh set of questions.
As Crumple got back into his car, he headed back over to Dominick Robertson’s place. When he knocked on Dominick’s door a few minutes later, it was safe to say that the suspect wasn’t happy to see him.
“What are you doing back here?” Dominick asked.
“Mr. Robertson, you have some explaining to do,” Crumple said.
Dominick shrugged. “What are you talking about?”
“I spoke with the bar manager at Tipsy McHoolihan’s.”
“Yeah. And?”
“When I showed the manager your picture, he didn’t recognize you. And neither did anyone else who was working last night.”
“I’m sure there’s a good reason for that.”
“Such as?”
“It was really busy there. They probably served hundreds of customers.”
“Speaking of customers, do you happen to have a receipt from your visit?”
Dominick shook his head. “No.”
“Why not?” Crumple asked.
“Who brings a receipt from a bar home? I threw it out.”
“Did you happen to pay with a credit card?”
“No,” Dominick said. “I used cash.”
“So you say. Unfortunately, there’s no security cameras as Tipsy McHoolihan’s, so I couldn’t confirm your alibi with video footage either.”
“That doesn’t mean I wasn’t at the bar.”
“I’m aware of that. But without definitive proof of your whereabouts last night, I’m afraid I can’t help but have my suspicions about you. Especially given your checkered past with Scott,” Crumple said.
Dominick held his hand up. “Let me stop you right there.”
“Why? Is this conversation making you uncomfortable?” Crumple asked.
“No. I just don’t want you jumping to crazy conclusions,” Dominick said.
“It’s not crazy to conclude that you had a beef with Scott. After all, he fired you.”
Dominick shook his head. “I wasn’t fired. I was unjustly let go.”
Crumple squinted. “What was so unjust about it?”
“Scott had it out for me.”
Crumple threw out his arms. “Why is that?”
“Scott was convinced that I told his wife about the affair he was having with Angela Whitaker.”
“Was he wrong?” Crumple asked.
Dominick nodded. “Yes.”
“If you didn’t tell Linda about her husband’s affair, then who did?”
Dominick shrugged. “I have no clue. But you could always ask Linda how she found out.”
“Maybe I will.”
“Why don’t you go and do that?”
Crumple stared Dominick down. “You look like you’re in a hurry to get rid of me.”
“I just don’t like having my time wasted.”
“Trust me. If I thought this was a waste of time, I wouldn’t be here.”
“Look. I had nothing to do with Scott’s death.”
Crumple folded his arms. “Why should I believe you?”
“Because I had no reason to kill him,” Dominick said.
Crumple scoffed. “The fact that he fired you is a pretty good reason in my book.”
Dominick shook his head. “Not in my mind.”
“I’ve seen people commit murder over less.”
“Detective, I didn’t want Scott dead.”
“Why not?”
“Because I was going to sue him for wrongful termination. Once I won my court case, I’d have enough cash to never have to work again.”
“Is that so?”
Dominick nodded. “Uh-huh.”
Crumple pulled out his phone. “What’s the name and number of your lawyer? I want to talk to them.”
“I don’t actually have an attorney right now.”
“How were you planning on suing Scott without an attorney?”
“I hadn’t reached that stage yet. I was just getting everything together,” Dominick said. “Once I was ready to go, I was going to call some lawyers later this week.”
“So what you’re saying is, there’s no way of verifying that you were truly going to file a lawsuit?”
“I’m only going to say it one more time. I was going to sue him. You have to believe me.”
“You’re a murder suspect. I can’t just take your words at face value.”
“Forget you. This conversation is over.”
Crumple shook his head. “You don’t get to decide when we’re done here.”
“Let me ask you this,” Dominick said. “Are you going to arrest me?”
Crumple stared him down. A few seconds later, Crumple replied, “Not at the moment.”
“Then I have nothing more to say,” Dominick replied.
Chapter Eight
Crumple was suddenly fresh out of suspects. He had an abundance of frustration, however. Not to mention, he was incredibly hungry.
Health wise, he knew that getting a high-protein dinner would be best for him. But his stomach had other ideas. At that particular moment, he had a serious craving for sweets. In Cozy Creek, there was no better place to get a treat than Sweet Tooth Bakery.
So, the detective got into his car and drove over to the popular dessert location. When he entered the shop, Granny Annie and Samantha were behind the counter.
When Annie took one glance at Crumple’s face, she remarked, “You look like you could use a cupcake.”
“I’m not going to turn one down,” Crumple said.
“Of course not. You aren’t crazy,” Granny Annie said.
Crumple shook his head. “No. Someone has to be the voice of reason in this town. Especially with all the crazy people in Cozy Creek.”
“Speaking of wackos, I heard that someone murdered Scott Eldridge,” Granny Annie said.
“Yeah. How awful,” Samantha added.
Crumple’s eyes widened. “Wait a minute. How did you hear about the murder?”
Annie threw out her arms. “Are you kidding? In a small town like Cozy Creek, news travels fast.”
“I guess so,” Crumple said.
“I know so,” Annie said.
Samantha nodded. “As a matter of fact, ever since news of the murder broke, it’s the only thing our customers have been talking about.”
“In that case, have you heard any interesting rumors about who the killer might be?” Crumple asked.
Annie held her hand up. “Hold on. Are you actually soliciting gossip from us?”
“I wouldn’t phrase it that way. I just figured since so many of your customers were discussing the murder that maybe you overheard a juicy tidbit or two,” Crumple said.
Annie shook her head. “I’m afraid not.”
“Mostly, people have just been in shock,” Samantha said.
Crumple became deflated. “Oh.”
“You sound really disappointed,” Granny Annie said.
Crumple grimaced. “I’m more frustrated than anything.”
“It was a really rough day on the beat, huh?” Annie asked.
Crumple exhaled before replying, “That’s putting it lightly.”
“How awful are we talking?” Annie asked.
Samantha pointed at the bakery case. “Should I get a second cupcake ready?”
“Don’t get me wrong. I’d love a second one. But that isn’t going to bring me any closer to finding the killer,” Crumple said.
“I wouldn’t underestimate the power of cupcakes if I were you,” Annie said. “Daisy has gotten plenty of interesting ideas while chowing down on our baked goods.”
“It’s funny that you should mention Daisy,” Crumple said. “It would be nice to have her help right about now.”
“I’m sure it would,” Samantha said. “But at the moment, she’s halfway across the Pacific.”
Crumple nodded. “I know.”
“I’ll bet she’s sitting on a beach at this very moment, watching the waves crash against the shore,” Samantha said.
“I wish I was there with her,” Granny Annie said.
“I second that,” Samantha said.
“To be fair, who would turn down a trip to Hawaii?” Crumple asked.
“You’d have to be a total lunatic,” Samantha said.
“It turns out there’s a number of people in this town who fit that description,” Crumple said.
“I’ll bet. The question is, which one committed murder?” Samantha asked.
“I’ll have to get back to you on that one,” Crumple said.
“I wish you the best of luck,” Samantha said.
“And I’ll pray for you tonight,” Granny Annie added.
“Thanks. At this point, I can use all of the help that I can get,” Crumple said.
Samantha grabbed a second cupcake from the display case. “On second thought, you really should take this additional cupcake for the road. It might come in handy.”
Chapter Nine
While cupcakes were being consumed in Cozy Creek, a different type of scene was unfolding on the island of Maui. Daisy and Gavin sat on the beach and stared off into the distance as the sun set on the horizon. They were briefly at a loss for words as they gazed at the red and pink hues that lit up the sky brilliantly.
When Daisy finally did untie her tongue, her response was filled with awe. “Wow. Now that’s a sunset.” She pointed at the sky. “Look how beautiful those colors are.”
Gavin had other things on his mind, though. He gazed at his wife. “Forget the sunset. Right now, I can’t help but notice how beautiful you are.”
Daisy turned to her husband and gave him a kiss.
“You’re so sweet,” she said.
“I’m just being honest.”
“I love you so much.”
“I love you too.” Daisy then turned her focus back to the horizon again. “Seriously, though, have you ever seen a sunset like this?”
Gavin shook his head. “No. It sure is something. You never see a light show like this in Cozy Creek.”
“You sure don’t. And what a shame too. Everyone should get a chance to see something as magical as this.”
“I don’t disagree,” he said. “Then again, the fact that sunsets like this are so rare is part of what makes Hawaii so special.”
“True. This is a one of a kind place. It really is a tropical paradise.”
Daisy squinted. “Why do you sound so surprised?”
“Don’t get me wrong. I’ve heard so many people talking glowingly about Hawaii over the years. But we both know how rare it is for things to actually live up to the hype. So, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect when we got here.”
“In my mind, this more than lives up to all the hype.”
He nodded. “It sure does. Although, maybe I just feel that way because we’re here on our honeymoon. I mean, everything looks better during a blissful time like this.”
“Do you really think this experience would be any different if we were just here on a regular vacation?”
He shrugged. “I don’t know. I would need to come back here sometime on vacation before I could answer that question.”
Daisy smiled wide. “Does that mean you want to come back here on our next vacation?”
“Honestly, I don’t ever want this trip to end.”
“I know what you mean. Unfortunately, this honeymoon isn’t going to last forever,” Daisy said. “Which is all the more reason to appreciate each moment that we’re here.”
“That won’t be a problem.”
“I had a feeling you’d say that.”
“The question is, what do you want to do next?” he asked.
“Do you know what the best part about being on vacation is?” she said.
He threw out his arms. “What?”
“You don’t need to make plans. You can just see where the night takes you.”
He smiled. “I like the sound of that.”
Chapter Ten
The next morning
When Crumple arrived at the police station with bleary eyes, it caught the attention of his co-worker, Deputy Greg Francisco.
Greg was a muscular twenty-nine-year-old who had a square face, a thick mustache, and an athletic build.
“Detective, you don’t look so good,” Greg said. “Did you have a tough night?”
Crumple took a deep breath before responding. “Is it that obvious?”
“The look in your eyes was a dead giveaway,” Greg said. “Although, the fact that you brought in an extra-large coffee and two donuts is pretty telling as well.”
“I suppose you’re right. But let’s be honest. Right now, I need all the caffeine and sugar that I can get.”
“I understand. Cases like this are brutal.”
“You aren’t kidding. This investigation has already taken a toll on my sleep. And my emotions.”
Greg stared at the coffee and the donuts that Crumple was holding. “And your diet.”
Crumple chuckled. “Tell me about it. After all those months of watching my weight, I didn’t just cheat on my diet, I’ve set it on fire.” He took a bite of one of the donuts. “What a delicious way to go down in flames, though.”
Greg squinted. “How does your girlfriend feel about this?”
“She doesn’t know. And I want to keep it that way.”
Greg nodded. “Understood.”
“I have enough on my plate already without getting an earful from my girlfriend.”
“Fair enough.”
“Trust me. There’s nothing fair about any of this,” Crumple said. “But the way I figure it, I can always go back to counting calories in the future. Right now, I can’t lose sight of the fact that the clock is ticking on finding Scott’s killer.”
Greg grimaced. “I hear you. Especially since you’re always telling me how important the first forty-eight hours of a murder investigation are.”
“There’s a reason I always stress that point,” Crumple said. “Statistically speaking, if the killer isn’t caught within the first two days of a murder investigation, the chances of the case going cold increase dramatically.”
Greg looked at the time on his phone. “Which means there’s only about twenty-four hours left before our odds of cracking this sucker take a turn for the worse.”
“With that in mind, do you have any updates for me?”
Greg shook his head. “Not at the moment.”
Crumple winced. “That isn’t what I wanted to hear.”
“I’ll say this, though. We have all hands on deck. The entire department is working on this investigation.”
“Good,” Crumple said. He then scratched his chin. “Although, in a way, that makes the situation all the more troubling.”
Greg shrugged. “How
so?”
“Because it means that there’s over twenty-five people working on this case and we have nothing to show for our efforts.”
“In my experience, things can change in a hurry.”
“Let’s hope they do,” Crumple said.
***
Unfortunately, Crumple wasn’t able to catch any breaks that morning. After the detective poured over the case file for a number of hours, his hunger got the best of him.
With his stomach rumbling, he had a decision to make. He could have just sat at his desk and ordered some food to be delivered. He decided against that, however. After spending the entire morning sitting at his desk, his body felt stiff. He wanted to get out and walk around. In addition, he figured that getting some fresh air would be good for him.
Crumple headed out to his car and took a drive. His taste buds led him to Cozy Creek Pizza on Mercury Avenue. As Crumple swung the door of the pizzeria open, the manager of the shop, Antonio Rizzoli, greeted him.
“Detective, I haven’t seen you in a while,” Antonio said.
“I know,” Crumple replied.
Antonio squinted. “Where have you been?”
“I’ve been spending a lot of time at the salad bar lately,” Crumple said.
Antonio looked at Crumple’s stomach.
“Very impressive weight loss,” Antonio said.
“It isn’t nearly as fun as pounding back beers at a sports bar, but eating at the salad bar does produce results.”
“Don’t get me wrong. It’s great to see you again. But if you’ve had that much success on your diet, what brings you back here?”
“Stress.”
Antonio grimaced. “I’m sorry to hear that.”
Crumple exhaled. “I’m afraid it just comes with the job. And when the going gets tough, I turn to comfort food.”
“If you’re looking for comfort, you’ve come to the right place.”
“I know.”
“With that in mind, do you want the usual?”
Crumple nodded. “Absolutely. If I’m going to turn my back on my diet, I’m going to give it a seriously cold shoulder.” He looked up at the menu board that hung behind the counter. “I want a large sausage, pepperoni, and onions pizza.”
