“Oh, that. Well, yes, I guess they got something back from some lab or something and said it matched him.” She glanced at Bonnie. “I can’t remember what it was. Something about dust in the house maybe?”
Bonnie nodded. “I don’t get it, though. We was there with y’all, and that house could have passed my meemaw’s white glove test. There wasn’t no sprinkle of dust nowhere.”
Belle angled her head at me. “Dust?”
“Yeah, that’s what we did when Old Man Goodson said it to us. Said they dusted the house and found evidence that it was the husband.”
I finally made the connection, thanks to Old Man Goodson. “Oh, you mean they dusted the house for fingerprints and found Austin’s?”
They both nodded at the same time. “Yeah, that’s it,” Bonnie said. “Why’d they put dust in the house though? Sounds crazy to me.”
Belle suppressed a giggle, and I briefly explained the process.
That time Henrietta whacked her friend on the arm. “I done told you they was talking about another kind of dust, you old fool.”
Bonnie rubbed her arm but ignored her friend. “Anyway, the whole town’s gathering at the sheriff’s office. We’re bringing sandwiches from Millie’s.”
“You might could bring the scones,” Henrietta said.
“And that tumbler of coffee since you won’t be needin’ it here,” Bonnie added.
Belle and I glanced at each other. She grabbed the scones, and I grabbed the coffee tumbler. “Can you drive? I walked here.”
She nodded and asked the ladies if they needed a ride.
Bonnie smiled and wiggled a little in place. “Nope. Old Man Goodson’s picking us up.”
Henrietta wiggled, too. “We got ourselves a double date.”
Belle whispered in my ear. “Isn’t Old Man Goodson married?”
“I thought so,” I whispered back.
Henrietta narrowed her eyes at us. “You think I’m like that friend of yours? You should be ashamed of yourself. I’m no floozy.” She pulled a hanky from her purse and dabbed at her eyes. “Bonnie, let’s go. I don’t need these hussies disrespecting me.” She wrapped her purse strap over her arm and flipped around to leave.
“Henrietta, wait, please.” I rushed toward her. “That’s not at all what we meant. I’m sorry.” I chose my words carefully. “It’s just that the last time I spoke to Mr. Goodson in detail, I had the impression he was married.”
Bonnie jumped to her friend’s defense. “His wife’s been sleeping in the guest room for two years now. Filed for divorce months ago, but she don’t want to leave the house. Says it’s hers, and she’s staying in it. Don’t care what he does with his life. He can stay or go, but the house is hers.”
Belle’s eyes caught mine, and we shared the kind of look only best friends understood. The kind that says, oh crap, we messed up. Her eyes said it was my job to fix it. Her eyes always said that because that was my thing, and I did a better job at being polite and kind.
“Oh, I’m sorry for Mr. Goodson. I can only imagine how hard that must be, but I’m glad he’s got Henrietta to share some happiness with. I’m sure you brighten his day, and I’m so sorry if we offended you. Please, I hope you know we didn’t intend to do that. We would never do that intentionally.”
A smile stretched across Henrietta’s face, and her eyes softened. She stuffed the hanky back into her purse. “Well, I might could see how you’d think otherwise. Most of town knows, but you’re part of the younger crowd, so it might could have skipped right on by you.”
Belle nodded. “It might have. I’m sorry, too, Henrietta. You two certainly deserve to be happy, but may I ask a question?”
Henrietta nodded, though slowly, and I knew she was hesitant to agree.
Belle smiled and pointed to Bonnie. “Old man Gib—I mean, Mr. Gibson is a nice man, but you two ladies are quite the whippersnappers, and a whole lot of women for one man.” She winked at them both. “How is that poor man still alive?”
They both giggled, and for the first time they didn’t need the pink liquid rouge they’d smeared on their faces that morning. It was absolutely adorable and made me giggle, too.
Once Bonnie could speak, she said, “Oh, sweetie, that man couldn’t handle the two of us if he was twins. He’s gone back to get Billy Ray for me.”
We all laughed again.
“Well look at you two,” Belle said. “When we grow up, we definitely want to be like you ladies.”
“Sweetie, everyone wants to be like us,” Henrietta said.
I pointed at them both and then at my eyes. “You ladies better behave. I’m watching you.”
“We’ve done all the behaving required of us. It’s time to have some fun,” Henrietta said.
They both giggled and rushed out of the room.
“We are so going to be them when we’re old,” Belle said, and followed them out of the room.
I trailed behind her, secretly hoping that, at their age, I wasn’t wrapped up in the dating world in any way whatsoever.
Belle stopped me on our way out. “Hey, what about Caroline? Should we tell her class is canceled?”
“I’ll send her a text.”
* * *
Belle questioned the arrest as she drove. “Austin’s fingerprints would be all over Savannah’s parent’s house, don’t you think?”
“Yes, and no. Yes, definitely, at least before we did the decluttering, cleaning and staging, but I’m not sure about after.”
“Is that enough reason to arrest him for murder though?”
“I don’t know. Why don’t you ask your boyfriend?”
“Afraid to ask Dylan?”
“Not afraid, but he’s probably a little busy at the moment. And honestly, I’m trying really hard not to mention the case. I’d prefer he bring it up first.” That was my way of avoiding asking him. It kind of upset me that he hadn’t mentioned any of the fingerprint issue to me the night before, and while I understood his motive, I still couldn’t help but be annoyed.
“How’s that working out for you?”
“Not that great, really.”
“How about this? My phone is in my purse. Would you text Matthew for me?”
“Great idea.” I tapped out a quick text asking the question and mentioned that we were headed that way.
He responded. “Keep this between us please, but the prints were primarily on the front door and the trunk. Found a few on her clothes but that wouldn’t be unusual.”
I replied. “Since Lily and Savannah had just done a major cleaning, would that have eliminated a lot of the previous fingerprints?”
“Technology can uncover latent prints regular cleaning products can’t remove.”
“So, couldn’t those prints have been from months ago?”
“On the door, yes, but the Armstrong’s just bought that trunk two months ago. When we spoke to Austin the day of Savannah’s murder, he said he hadn’t been there on or before that night but apparently, he had.”
I’d read the texts out loud as Matthew responded. That last one made both Belle and I cringe.
“Oh, crap,” she said.
“My thoughts exactly. He must have lied to me.” I filled her in on my discussion with him.
“Oh no, so Savannah and William did have a fling?”
“Well, I don’t know now. I don’t know what to believe anymore.”
She pulled into the parking lot of the sheriff’s office alongside the rest of the county. Packed full of cars and pickup trucks, if I didn’t know better, I’d have thought we were at opening night for a Marvel movie at the drive-in theater.
Old Man Goodson honked as he drove by in his old Chevy pickup truck with Henrietta and Bonnie hanging out the window waving at us.
Belle groaned. “We need a serious life makeover, don’t we?”
“Honey, if you’re comparing us to them, we’ll lose every single time.”
She parked her car on the grass in between the parking lot and the road i
n the last spot available, and we both hopped out, zigzagging our way through the crowd and up to the front where we could get the best view. Belle had no reservations about pushing through everyone, and I just held onto her hand and followed behind her. We landed right next to William and Caroline.
“Oh my gosh, can you believe it?” Caroline asked.
I glanced at William, who quickly looked away.
“Have you seen Heather?” I asked Caroline.
“Not today. I figured we weren’t having class today what with this happening and all, so she probably did, too.” She balanced on her husband’s arm and bounced on her tiptoes, searching through the crowd. “Goodness, I can’t see anything but a blur of heads a mile long, but I’m sure she’s here somewhere.”
“I doubt it,” Belle said. “Hey, William, didn’t you see her earlier today?”
I loved Belle so much.
He gave Belle a look filled with such disdain, I worried he might hurt her.
Belle ran with it, but instead of addressing him directly, used hit him where it hurt, or at least where it would most likely hurt later—his wife. “Goodness, what crawled up your husband’s backside this morning? Did you two have a fight or something?”
She most assuredly had the face of an angel and the soul of a sinner.
Caroline’s head shifted between Belle and William. “Why do you ask that?” She glanced back at her husband and brushed a hand over his cheek. “Darling, is something wrong? Did you see Heather this morning?”
He shook his head. “I just can’t believe this is happening to an old friend, that’s all.”
I smiled at him, my resolve strengthening from Belle’s bravery. “Yes, I’m sure that’s it.”
Caroline eyed her husband. “William dear, you didn’t answer my question.” Her tone was sticky-sweet, but her stiff posture and tilted head said she wasn’t pleased.
He stepped toward her, enveloped her into his arms and kissed her. “I didn’t? I thought I told you I ran into her on my way to Millie’s to get your coffee. It was real quick. Said hi and that was about it. Saw Lily on the way, too.”
“Yep, he sure did. We had ourselves a nice little chat, didn’t we, old friend?”
He nodded. “That we did. Where’d the two of you wander off to after that?”
“Oh, I had to go to Millie’s to get the coffee and things for the class, but I must have gotten there after you. Heather and I talked a bit first and went there together. She said she couldn’t take the class anymore.”
Caroline stuck out her bottom lip. “Oh no, that’s too bad. I know she was wanting to move into one of the condos on the old Redbecker property. She said the class was helping her get ideas for how to decorate. Has herself a big client willing to pay her enough to afford the down payment on one of the one bedrooms there. She’s really excited about it, too.”
“Heather’s buying one of the condos?” I asked.
Caroline nodded. “Can’t believe she hasn’t mentioned it to you. I told her she should talk with you about it. You might could get her a deal even.”
“We definitely could get her a deal,” Belle said. She tapped something into her phone. “I’m texting her about it now.”
I grabbed her arm. “Maybe you should wait on that.”
She clicked the button on the side of her iPhone. “Oh, yeah. Good idea.”
In Belle’s mind a deal was a deal, no matter what personal issues might be involved. Unfortunately, the real world didn’t always work that way. If given the choice, I had a feeling Heather would choose to work with the builder’s agent over us.
Just then Dylan walked onto the front steps of the sheriff’s office with Matthew and another deputy by his side. Belle bounced on her tiptoes. “Oh, this is kind of exciting. Matthew’s first big announcement with the county. Look how cute he looks.” Her eyes sparkled. She hadn’t said it, but it was obvious. Belle was in love.
I had to admit, Dylan looked mighty nice in his brown uniform and hat. All official-like and even a touch sexy. My stomach did a little flip, and I steadied myself to make it stop.
He held up his hands to quiet the crowd. “Everyone, please. I know we’ve all got better things to do, so I’ll make this quick. Yes, we’ve arrested someone in the death of Savannah Emmerson. No, I’m not going to go into any details, but in Bramblett County, we all know word travels fast, so I’m confident y’all will make due on your own just fine.”
The crowd let out a collective moan.
“He really is a cutie pie,” Belle said.
“I know. It’s horrible.”
“Only because you were stupid enough to run and hide with your tail between your legs instead of owning your fears and dealing with them.”
She knew me better than my own mother. “Hush.”
“Emm hmm.”
Dylan nodded to the crowd. “Now, now people. Come on, cut us some slack. This is the way it’s done. You want information, right?”
Several people in the crowd nodded, and I noticed Dylan’s eyes locked with mine. “I’ll get you the information but in due time. Just be patient. When I know you’re safe, I’ll let you know what I can. Okay?”
I nodded, because even though he was speaking to the crowd, I knew his words were meant for me.
He smiled. “Now go on, get out of here and get back to what you ought to be doing.”
The crowd slowly dissipated. Other than a few reporters from the town paper and a straggler or two, no one really stuck around. Belle forced herself around the reporters to align herself next to Matthew. He tugged at one of her belt loops and drew her even closer. I stood in the background not wanting to bother Dylan or make any waves.
Dylan finished with the reporters and came toward me.
My frustration with him not telling me about the fingerprints got the best of me. “That was quick. Did you leave my place and go right to him?”
He shrugged. “This is a murder investigation, Lily. And not that it matters, but I had to wait for the final results from the dusting before doing anything.”
Even though I understood his reasoning, I still didn’t like it. “Do you really believe Austin killed her? Last night you led me to believe William and even Caroline could be suspects, too.”
He removed his hat and rubbed his head. “Do you have some time to talk?”
“Class is canceled, so yes, a little.” I followed him into the building and into his office.
He pulled a chair out on the front side of his desk. “Take a seat.”
He crossed over to his side of the desk and sat down. “I know Matt told Belle some of the details. Has she filled you in?”
“Actually, that was me texting him because she was driving.”
“Okay, then I’ll go from there. I don’t have to remind you that this is confidential, and that we—”
I held up my hand. “I got it.”
He nodded and continued. “Mrs. Armstrong said trouble’d been brewing between Savannah and Austin for over six months. He hadn’t tried to come there in that time, but if he had, neither she nor her husband would have allowed him inside.”
“Ouch.”
“According to her, Savannah made Austin out to be a monster, and Mr. and Mrs. Armstrong encouraged her to leave him. When she finally did, they asked her to come home and help with the house. It was their way of getting her out of that environment.”
“He may have been a monster, but his parents are rich. They’ll get him a big name attorney from Atlanta who’ll poke all kinds of holes in your case. Do you really think those fingerprints are enough to cover reasonable doubt?”
He opened his drawer and pulled out a jump drive. “When our district attorney shows them this, yes.” He popped the little drive into his laptop, pressed a few buttons and flipped the computer my direction.
A scene from what I thought was a very inappropriate movie I would never watch filled the screen, and I immediately threw my hands over my eyes. “Ew, no. Shut that off. I don’
t need to see—” I peeked through my fingers. “Oh, ick. That’s Austin isn’t it?” I pressed the balls of my palms into each eye. “Okay, you can turn it off now, really. I’ve seen enough.”
He flipped the lid of his laptop.
“Validates what Savannah told you and what she told her parents. It also discredits Austin saying he didn’t cheat on his wife. The video is from a private investigator, and the woman is a known prostitute. As Matthew said, we now know he lied to us about not being inside the Armstrong’s house the night Savannah was murdered.”
“But you already knew he was there that night.”
“We knew he was there, not inside the home. Now we know he was, and we’ve connected him to the trunk itself. That’s big Lily. We even have a receipt from when the trunk was purchased, and we’ve verified that with the seller. The timeline fits with the Armstrong’s story. We’ve got him, Lily. He’s our guy.”
It sure sounded like it, but something still just didn’t sit right with me. “What about the font on the notes? Have you heard anything about that yet?”
He shook his head. “We’re still researching. All we know is it’s not a standard font found on any word processing software. I’ve got people checking, but there are thousands of fonts online, and it’s taking time to go through them all.”
I imagined it would. “When’s his bail hearing?”
“Judge will see him late today or first thing tomorrow, but it won’t matter. He’s not getting bail.”
“Why not?”
“Out of towner. Wealthy family. No ties to the area. Too much of a flight risk. Judge won’t let him see the light of day until the trial, and he probably won’t even see it then.”
Chapter 7
“Do you think I can see him?”
He drummed his fingers on his desk. “Why did I know you were going to ask that?”
I wanted to say because he knew me so well, but I settled for, “Because I’m predictable.”
“Or something.” He picked up the receiver on his desk and made arrangements. “Fifteen minutes, but that’s it.”
“Okay. Thank you.”
He led me to the jail, cleared me through the electronic security door and set me in the waiting area behind the glass window. I sat on the stiff metal chair and waited until Austin Emmerson came through the door on the other side.
Decluttered and Dead Page 9
