Part 23 (2/2)
”Sure. You know Bernie. He can't stand it if everyone isn't having a good time. Danny will have a blast. It'll be good for him.” Ray disappeared into the closet.
I got out of bed and followed him. ”What did you find out about the flowers?”
He took off his uniform and tossed it in the clothes hamper. ”I saw the dish gardens. They look like the one on Jessica James' kitchen table, but the only other one the florist remembers Maury purchasing besides Erica's was delivered to a girl in Canandaigua. I called her. She and Maury dated for a while, then she broke it off.”
”So Maury didn't give one to Jessica James.”
”I don't think so, unless he paid cash and no one at the florist shop remembers. But they're pretty fascinated by Maury, so it's hard to believe they'd forget.” He pulled on a pair of jeans.
”Did you ask them who else bought a dish garden recently?”
”I did. They're compiling a list of customers. I asked them to fax it to the department. That's all I can do for now. Remember, I'm not supposed to be investigating Jessica James' death.”
Ray headed toward the kitchen. ”Anything left from dinner?”
”We had spaghetti. I'll warm some up for you.” I pulled the leftover dishes out and made up a plate for the microwave.
He sat at the breakfast bar and watched me.
After I slid his plate into the microwave, I leaned against the breakfast bar, my face inches from Ray's. ”Did you hear any more about the partial print on the Camry's remote?”
”It's not Mr. Phillips' print.”
Relief washed through me. Danny's father couldn't be tied to the killing, at least not yet. ”Whose is it?”
”They're still running matches and gathering prints from the car dealers.h.i.+p employees. They ruled out Mr. Phillips immediately.”
”Is the investigation focusing on him?”
”They're pus.h.i.+ng him hard to talk. His lawyer wants a deal, but the prosecutor isn't offering one. They think they have a motive.”
”What?”
”Jessica James' will. She left everything to her closest relative-Danny.”
The microwave dinged as if on cue. I pulled Ray's steaming plate out and set it in front of him. ”I don't understand how that gives his father a motive.”
”Think, Darlin'. Danny is a minor, so his legal guardian, Mr. Phillips, is probably in charge of the inheritance until Danny reaches eighteen. He might have killed her for the money, house, and possessions.”
”He did get caught in her Cadillac Escalade. Maybe he thought he was ent.i.tled to it.”
Ray shoved a forkful of spaghetti in his mouth and chewed for a minute. ”That's the part that bothers me. I can't believe he'd let himself be found in the car after he killed her. He doesn't strike me as stupid.”
”All criminals make mistakes eventually, don't they? Isn't that how you catch them?”
”This guy's been caring for Danny for ten years, Jolene. He hasn't been arrested in all that time, although he has a very spotty work record. It doesn't fit.”
I let Ray eat the rest of his dinner in peace. I could tell his mind was churning through the events of the last few days, looking for the missing link, just as I had been earlier. With any luck, when he found it, it would not lead to Danny's father.
Did that mean I was willing to sacrifice Maury Boor, my sister's husband? I guessed so. But I wished I could talk to Erica about him first. She might have some answers, too.
____.
The next three days pa.s.sed quietly, except for the sound of Sponge-Bob's laugh. If Danny was going to live with us for an extended period, I would need to find a better way for him to pa.s.s the time when he wasn't in school or at the shop. Either that, or he would have to watch television wearing earphones.
Ray pa.s.sed his time working from dawn to dusk. From his silence, I knew the department wasn't making much progress in finding Jessica James' killer.
Sunday night Danny asked to visit his father. Ray took him after dinner. I tried to watch television while they were gone, wondering what more, if anything, Mr. Phillips would share with Danny about the stolen car, his dead aunt, and his inheritance and how Danny would react to the information. I didn't have to wait long to find out.
Ray called me at seven-thirty. ”Can you pick up Danny?”
”Sure. What's wrong?”
”Danny's father has agreed to talk. His lawyer and the prosecution are on the way. The sheriff wants me here.”
”Okay, I'll be right there.”
I grabbed my coat and raced out the door. Snow had begun to fall heavily and an inch or so had acc.u.mulated on the roads. I had to drive the speed limit, and when I got behind more nervous drivers, even less. I arrived at the county safety building full of pent-up frustration. I found Danny alone in the squad room, slouching in a chair with an open soda can next to him.
”Where's Ray?”
Danny pointed toward the interview rooms. ”In there with my dad.”
I sat on a metal chair next to him. ”Do you know what's going on?”
Concern flickered across his face. ”My dad's telling the truth.”
”Do you know what he's saying?”
”Yeah.” Danny cast a final desperate glance back toward the room where his father was. ”I know everything. He never left me at Chuck E. Cheese's. I was with him the whole time.”
I desperately wanted to know what happened but refrained from asking. It didn't seem right to pump Danny when his father was in there laying it all on the line. Ray could tell me later.
I stood. ”Are you ready to go home?”
He looked at me like I was crazy. ”Don't you want to know?”
I dropped back into my seat, feeling relieved that I wouldn't have to wait but apprehensive about what Danny might say. ”Sure.”
He scratched his neck, leaving a dark red mark. ”My dad picked up the Camry at the dealers.h.i.+p outside Geneseo. We went to my dad's friend's house and loaded all our stuff in it. My dad said we were going to move to New York City. A friend of his had a job for him there.”
Danny glanced at me out of the side of his eyes, and I knew it wasn't a legitimate job. Although Danny hadn't admitted it, I figured he knew his dad had stolen the Camry, too. I let it go and nodded, encouraging him to continue.
”We went to see my aunt. I didn't know she was my aunt. My dad said she was going to give him her Cadillac Escalade to sell. She was going to report it stolen to the insurance company.”
Insurance fraud. A great way to make money, as long as no one got caught.
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