by Kristi Rose
He studied me. As if my words made too much sense and he couldn’t believe they came from me. Or maybe that was my interpretation when all he was doing was considering his options.
“If Levi did this, then he’ll pay. But if he didn’t, I don’t want him railroaded by DB.” He crossed his arms. “Don’t go home, go directly to her. She needs to know this was important enough for you to drop everything.”
I nodded.
He gave a small smile. “You’re picking up this PI thing, Sam. Well done.”
I laughed. “Now look who’s Wheel of Fortune and who’s Jeopardy.”
Leo snort laughed. “Not in your wildest dreams.”
I gave him a shove then headed for the ladies locker room. I scrubbed my face and patted down my hair before grabbing my gym bag and heading out to LC.
Leo was sitting in his cruiser in the parking lot on his phone. I gave him a wave as I pulled out of the lot and pointed my car toward the Danner’s place.
By the time I arrived, DB and Cody Hinkle, the force’s sergeant, were there. I pulled LC to the side of the yard and stepped out. I was witnessing a family’s nightmare. DB was escorting Levi to the patrol car, his hands behind his back in cuffs. Laura was screaming at DB and crying. A younger girl was standing in the doorway sobbing. I figured her for the younger Danner kid, Lanie. Hinkle was escorting an evidence bag to the second patrol car.
“It’s okay, Mom,” Levi kept saying.
His face didn’t look like it was okay. He looked seconds from crying. He was pale with blotches of red on his cheeks and neck. Like holding his tears back was burning him up from the inside out.
DB opened the patrol door and guided Levi in.
“No!” Laura screamed and bolted for DB, hands raised in attack mode. I was perpendicular to them and took off running. I caught Laura before she made contact with DB.
“Let go,” she screamed as she flailed against me. “That’s my baby.”
“I know,” I said in my calmest voice. “He’s okay. Leo is waiting for him at the station.”
“You can’t take him,” she wailed at a pitch so high I expected dogs to bark. She was fighting with everything she had, straining to break free from my grip.
“Laura,” I said sternly. “You’re scaring him. You’re scaring your daughter.”
Instantly, she crumbled in my arms, wrapping her arms around my neck, her body shaking from her sobs.
“It’s okay, Mom,” Levi said, his voice quivering.
She straightened, still leaning heavily against me. “I love you, Levi. I’ll get you out of this as fast as I can.”
He shook his head. DB slammed the door, cutting off anything Levi might have said in response.
DB approached us. “What are you doing here, Samantha? Come to gloat because you think you’re off the hook?” When he crossed his arms, his biceps flexed.
I curled my lip at him before turning my attention to Laura. “Can you stand?”
“I think so,” she said. She squared her shoulders and took in a deep breath.
I let go and took a step back. “Then go stand with your daughter.” The girl looked barely out of elementary school. “Do you have family you can call? Maybe she should go to them.”
Laura nodded. With shaky hands, she patted at her pants. “I think I left my phone at the shop. Lanie called frantic, and I just dashed over here.” She glanced at the office building. “I’m not sure I even closed the door.”
“I’ll go check. I’ll look on your desk for your phone. You can use mine if you want in the meantime.” I held out my phone.
She shook her head, then moved toward her daughter, opening her arms to embrace her as she approached.
I turned to DB and tsked. “Shame on you.”
“For what? I’m doing my job.”
He was a pompous butthead. “Why didn’t you bring Levi down for questioning?”
“Not that I owe you any explanation, but we were going to. But we served our handy search warrant first, and surprise! We found some questionable items and that, my dumb friend, means Levi Danner is under arrest.”
I snorted in disgust. Then I went to the cruiser, I made sure to bump DB with my shoulder when I passed. I opened the passenger door and leaned in. “Listen to me, Levi. Don’t say anything. Not one word. You understand? Not to anyone. Even if they don’t have on a uniform.”
DB came to the door and started to close it. “Get out of there, Samantha, before I arrest you for obstructing justice.”
I shoved it back open and kept my hand on it. There was no way I would win this one because DB was far stronger. But I was more determined.
“You understand, Levi?”
He nodded, looking like a deer in headlights.
I said, “A lawyer by the name of Tyson Lockett will come. He’ll represent you. You can talk to him.”
Levi nodded.
“Say this name, Levi. Tyson Lockett.”
“Tyson Lockett,” Levi said robotically.
DB was pressing at the door, and I knew he’d squish me. “Nobody but Tyson,” I said as I backed away.
DB slammed the door and glared at me. “What do you think you’re doing?”
“I’m balancing the scales of justice.” I crossed my arms. “He’s just a kid, DB.”
“Who maybe murdered someone.”
“I suppose it’s encouraging you used the word ‘maybe.’ Though, just yesterday, you thought I did it. Keep that in mind.” Score one for me.
“I don’t think. I follow the clues. I follow the evidence.”
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath to gather my wits before I slugged him. I opened my eyes and looked right at him when I said, “Trouble is DB, you couldn’t follow a trail of anything unless it was littered with steroids, naked women, and protein shakes.”
His expression said I bored him. “Your example doesn’t work because that means I could follow a trail.”
I huffed and stomped off to Laura. When I reached her, I said in a low voice, “I’m going to your office to make sure it’s locked up. You make sure Hinkle sticks to the search warrant. Then I’ll drive you to the station. I already told Levi not to speak with anyone, and I’ll call a good lawyer for him. Call family. Bring help.”
She stared at me, eyes round like an owl and glassy, probably from shock. A tear leaked out, another followed.
“Mom,” Lanie said. “What’s happening? Why are they taking Levi?”
Laura leaned the side of her head against the top of her daughter’s. “They think Levi had something to do with Josh’s death.”
Levi’s sister sighed heavily. “That’s just great. Kids at school have been asking if we’re preppers. If we think the apocalypse is coming. Now they’re gonna give me a hard time because my brother is accused of murder.”
21
Monday
Leo was waiting outside the station when we got there. I’d expected him to be inside with Levi. Laura’s in-laws took Lanie to their house, and I drove Laura to the station. Lockett was on his way down from Seattle.
“He doesn’t look happy,” Laura said as she stared at Leo.
That was an understatement. Leo was at Laura’s passenger door as soon as I parked.
“Don’t get out,” Leo said as he opened her door but blocked her from exiting my car. “I have something to tell you, and it’s best you hear it while you’re sitting down.”
Laura gulped, the sound filling the quiet space. “Just spill it.”
“Levi confessed,” he said.
In unison, Laura and I said, “What?”
I said, “I told him not say anything. Lockett is coming down as we speak.”
Laura said, “Confessed to what? Not for killing Josh. That’s impossible.”
Leo’s gaze darted from me to her. “He said he killed Josh.”
She shook her head wildly. “No, that’s impossible.”
I tried to shrink into my seat. Not only did I not want to be witness to this family�
��s grief and troubles, I didn’t want to compound the experience Laura and her family were having. Essentially, I was a stranger to them and seeing their most private problems.
Leo said, “I sent Samantha to help you, Laura. If you say it’s impossible that Levi killed Josh, then you have to take action. Samantha is a private investigator. Let her help you prove Levi is innocent.”
Laura glanced to me, then Leo. “It’s convenient she was once the suspect and now my child is. How hard is she going to help?”
I looked to Leo for a sign that he thought I should speak up. He nodded.
“Laura, I didn’t kill Josh, and even though I knew I was innocent, I wasn’t about to leave my fate to the hands of DB Louney. He designated me as a person of interest only because I was in the room when Josh died. Are you willing to leave Levi’s fate up to DB, his laziness, and the courts?”
Leo added, “Think about how easy it is to misconstrue information. You thought Samantha was guilty because of what? Her… err… husband’s actions? You had no other facts. I can guarantee dissecting and misconstruing your life will happen if Levi goes to trial. Your past, your lifestyle, everything about your family, will be scrutinized and twisted.”
“And how will hiring her stop that? It’ll happen now that Levi’s been brought in,” Laura said.
“The best defense is a good offense,” I said. “You have to go on the offense now. Don’t wait. DB was determined to prove I was guilty, and I needed to prove I wasn’t. That’s how he’s going to approach Levi’s case. I’ve been working the case trying to prove my innocence. I can do that for Levi. I dug into the background of Josh Chapman. Josh wasn’t a nice man. He may have looked upstanding, but behind the scenes, he was committing crimes.”
Laura buried her head in her hands. “What have I done? All I wanted was to bring a positive influence into Levi’s life. He misses his dad, and I thought Josh might fill that void, even a little bit would be a good thing.” Her shoulders shook from her sobs.
Leo and I looked at each other over her bowed head, neither knowing what to do. I patted her shoulder in what I hoped was comfort.
“What happens now that Levi has confessed?” I asked.
Leo’s expression was grim. “They’re processing him now. He’ll have to be arraigned, and the judge will decide if bail will be set. The prosecution is building a case as we speak.”
Laura shot up in a snap. She trembled underneath my hand, and I pulled it back.
She pushed Leo aside and hopped out of LC. She spun to face us. “I can’t believe this is happening. I can’t believe all the damage Josh has done to my family.” She pointed to me, her eyes large and wild. “There’s nothing you can do to help me. You’re bad luck or something. Just stay away.”
Laura put her focus directly on Leo and stuck out her arms, crossing them at the wrist in a gesture that said she expected him to arrest her. “Levi didn’t kill Josh. I did. He confessed to protect me.” She shook her head wildly. “Though how he knew what I’d done is anyone’s guess.”
To Leo’s credit, he didn’t move. Not a flinch. I suppose this was where being a jeopardy smart cop came into play. “And how did you kill Josh?”
Laura heaved, her arms lifting then dropping as she kept them outstretched. “I poisoned him.”
Leo waited. I waited.
She sighed again. “With pesticides. Duh.” Her bravado was fake. After she said it, she’d immediately pressed her lips together, which did nothing to stop their trembling.
I’d put fifty bucks on Laura being a liar. She was too much of a mess. I suppose one could argue that she might be this way because she’d been cornered into confessing, but had she done it, she’d have never let her kid get taken away by the cops. One thing that wasn’t fake was her love for her children.
Leo said, “And how did you use these pesticides?”
“Are you going to arrest me or not? I just confessed.” She jiggled her arms in front of him, her voice wavering.
“Let’s go inside, and we’ll talk. Samantha will go get her mother so you can have a lawyer.” Gently, Leo put a hand on her shoulder.
“Tyson Lockett is on his way. I’ll get my mom until he gets here.”
Leo gave me a nod. “Come on inside, Laura, and let’s get this worked out.”
I waited until they were inside before I hoofed it over to my mom’s office. Her secretary waved me through.
I burst into her office, my hip aching slightly where I’d been hit by the car.
“Samantha,” she said, coming to a stand. “I thought we bought you a gym membership so you wouldn’t be running on the streets. I have one daughter on a ship in the middle of who knows what ocean and one daughter getting run down by hybrid cars but can’t stay off the street. Is it too much to ask for just one of you to be boring and to stay home and do something like knit?”
I sucked in a large breath of air and blew it out slowly as I tried to catch my breath. “I just came from the police station.”
She pressed her palms to her desk as if the hard surface was giving her strength. “I can’t wait to hear this. Should I sit?”
I closed her office door behind me before saying, “Levi Danner was arrested for Josh’s murder. Leo said they discovered nicotine in Josh’s system. There was a vial of nicotine in Josh’s desk with his prints and Levi’s. DB went to Levi’s house today with a warrant and found the same stuff there. He arrested Levi.”
“Oh, dear,” Mom said.
“That’s not all. Laura then confessed to killing Josh. I think she’s making it up. But you need to get to the station. Lockett is on his way, but they need an attorney for now. Can you help?”
Mom sat and buried her head in her hands. “Poor Laura. That woman has the worst luck.” She pressed the button on her desk phone to access her secretary. “Dana, cancel my appointments for the rest of the day, please.”
Mom kept a mini fridge behind her desk and stocked it with goodies. Oddly, she liked her chocolate cold and her water at room temperature. From the fridge I helped myself to a Seattle chocolate San Juan bar and one of the few bottles of water she kept in in there for those of us who liked it cold. I replaced it with the water from her stock by the fridge.
I leaned on the corner of her desk and ate half the chocolate bar in two bites. She took a chunk of my chocolate.
“Leo wants me to help prove Levi’s innocence. I suppose Laura’s now, too.”
Mom reached for more chocolate. “Did she hire you?”
I held the remaining chocolate behind me, not willing to share. “No, I’m not sure what I’m supposed to do now. Can’t butt into their business without their consent.”
“I’ll talk to her, but have Lockett talk to her as well. You need to get started on digging into possible other scenarios as soon as possible. If she doesn’t hire you, she needs to hire someone.”
Ever since DB had announced I was the person of interest without so much as looking into other suspects, I had this sour taste regarding the wheels of justice when left in the hands of law enforcement, and it wasn’t a taste I wanted to have. On the whole, I believed those in law enforcement were good and well-intended, but wondered if the system wasn’t severely jacked up.
“This is a stupid question coming from a PI, albeit a fairly new one, but aren’t all people presumed innocent until proven guilty? DB was ready to throw me in jail and throw away the key.” A frightening thought.
Mom leaned forward and crossed her arms on the desk in front of her. “I don’t want you to think the justice system is broken. It’s not. It’s flawed, I won’t argue that, but when done properly, the system works.”
I played with the foil of the candy bar wrapper. “Is ‘when done properly’ the key?”
Mom gave her words thought then said, “Yes and no. If you were to poll police officers around the nation about how they go about solving a crime, the answers would vary. There’s no right or wrong way. Some officers believe if they have a strong lead, they go
with that until it falls apart, then they go to the next strongest lead. Others chase down every lead, big or small.”
I scoffed. “Chasing down every lead seems like the right way.”
“Sure, but in an investigative situation, time is of the essence. If the officer is chasing down every lead, does a trail go cold in the meantime?” Mom said.
She was right. There was no right or wrong. There were only people doing hard work, trying to find answers. Cops were people, and they weren’t perfect and neither were their methods. Though I still didn’t feel good about DB as he seemed too shortsighted for my taste. “So, DB is a chase-the-strongest-lead-until-it-fizzles kinda cop. Leo is a chase every lead kinda cop.”
Mom nodded. “Neither will make you popular if something in the case goes wrong. And this is where working in the justice system gets hairy. People will always be ready to criticize the cop’s methods, the lawyers, and even those who file the evidence. People’s behaviors, lifestyles, and beliefs are called into question, not just the person on trial, but everyone connected with the case. Justice is rarely a cut and dry situation. Take Laura, for example. If she or her son get charged, you can bet their self-sufficient lifestyle will be used against them.”
“But why? Who cares?” I still didn’t get it.
Mom took another chocolate from the fridge. “Everyone, if it’s the reason the crime was committed. We think serial killers and evil people look different, can be picked out of a crowd. But they aren’t different. They look like everyone else. Focusing on the one aspect that made the evil person different from us is how people come to terms with people they know who commit crimes.” She was matter-of-fact in her explanations. “No one lives a sanitized life that would withstand scrutiny.”
“You and Dad are pretty vanilla,” I countered.
Mom chuckled and said with a mischievous glint in her eye, “Well, we do like to play Mobster and Moll—”
I covered my ears and hummed. “I don’t want to know this,” I said on repeat to wash out the sound of her voice.
She laughed and pulled my hands from my ears. “In all seriousness, you need to think hard about being a PI. Cases like this will haunt you. Sometimes you’ll wonder if you’ve helped a bad person go free. Sometimes you’ll never know, and that’s the really hard stuff to deal with. You’ll also have to deal with people who associate you with the guilty party because you took a job.”
