Page 15 of Every Deadly Suspicion

Braden’s father, Devon, Chase’s son, had died a few years ago. Braden’s mother, Kelly, was aptly described as flaky. She had left him in the care of his great-grandfather not long after Devon had passed. She took the life insurance check and went to Hollywood to be an actress. Hanna was not sure how things were going for her.

“Have you checked into the mechanic Scott fired? That was an unpleasant episode.”

“He is in the clear.”

“The only other point of friction was a business deal Scott was working on. He wanted to buy a building in San Francisco. He planned to demolish it and build something else. Some crazy activists protested the sale. Have you looked into that?”

“My investigator is in San Francisco now, checking on that very thing.” Hanna knew about the environmental group protesting Scott’s purchase. Terry had e-mailed that it was a dead end. None of the protestors had ever been in Dry Oaks.

“Losing Scott left a hole in my life that will never be filled. Someone needs to pay for snuffing out such a bright light.” She left the office still dabbing her cheeks.

Hanna considered the comment about Marcus. Fox had confirmed that there had been an argument. Strange she thought it had to do with something that Marcus was writing. Marcus hadnot mentioned that. He was usually chatty about his writing projects. If he was writing about the Buckley family with the same kind of exaggeration that he’d written about Joe Keyes, Scott would have good reason to worry.

Hanna had firsthand knowledge about Marcus’s literary talent. He was a shock jock. She had no idea how much he wrote about her father was true. She did know it had made life difficult for her and her mother.

But Scott saying no to a book idea did not sound like a motive for murder. Hanna could see him punching Marcus out; she couldn’t see the reverse. Marcus liked to murder people in print. Usually, people who couldn’t fight back. She would still investigate, she just wasn’t hopeful.

She finished her coffee about the time she got a text from Terry:I’m back and in my office.

Hanna headed to his office and leaned against the doorframe. “Scott’s fiancée was just here.” Briefly, she filled him in on the interview with Fox. “She says Scott was mad at Marcus because he thought he was writing a book about the Buckleys.”

“Really?” Terry frowned. “Funny Marcus wouldn’t mention that.”

“It is. Yet, if Scott was the one who was mad, I’d think Marcus would be the dead one.”

“True. What about the bit concerning Braden?” Terry raised an eyebrow. “Someone taking your kid might be a motive for murder.”

She nodded. “We need to have a conversation with Chase.”

“I have a pretty good picture of Scott’s life and movements in the weeks before he died,” Terry said. “Honestly, I haven’t found anyone with any kind of real motive to kill him. The activists were the graffiti, screaming, making-life-miserable types, but there’s no way they upped their game to murder. They really don’t have the resources.”

“I’ve read your reports. The only thing missing are statements from those closest to Scott.”

“And those closest to the victim are usually the guilty ones.”

Hanna said nothing for a minute. Chase and Everett would have had the best opportunity to give Scott coffee laced with cyanide. Did they have motive? Hanna didn’t want to believe that either one of them did.

Everett had been in her life for as long as she could remember, and she believed him to be a good man. In no way could she conceive that he would murder his own son. She laid this aspect of the investigation on Holmes, recusing herself because she was too close to it.

Now she second-guessed her decision. She was in charge, and it was her job.

“We’ll get the interviews, Terry, even if it means dragging Everett and Chase to the station.”

Back in her office, Hanna provided an investigation update to the mayor. “We’ve run down every lead.”

“I hoped we’d have a resolution by now. It’s been nearly a month since the crash.” Mayor Milton’s tone was not angry or accusatory, but Hanna felt the heat from the spotlight.

“I feel the same.” Hanna switched the phone from one ear to the other, trying not to let her frustration bleed into her tone. “We will keep at it. I won’t let this go cold.”

“I know you all work hard. Thank you for the update, Chief. Everett has been through so much. He deserves to know who killed his son.”

“We all deserve to know who killed Scott.”

Hanna certainly didn’t want the case to go cold—though sadly, right now it was on that road.

CHAPTER 8

AFTER UPDATING THE MAYOR,Hanna opened her e-mail. Amid the work-related senders, a note from Edda caught her eye. That was odd. Edda had Hanna’s personal address; she didn’t need to contact her at work.

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