Page 26 of Off the Hook

“No. He doesn’t really talk about girls much. But dating in the Keys isn’t easy. And he works all the time. It never seemed strange to me that he wasn’t exactly on the hunt for awoman. Not that he’d have trouble getting one–he’s a great guy. But it’s tough in a small town.”

I could relate. Throwing myself into my work and faintly hoping the right guy would come along someday seemed to be my strategy too, because I sure wasn’t looking for him.

“So you’ve never actually seen how he treats women?” Oscar smirked.

“I’ve seen how he treats me. And his sister. And many other women at the marina or when we’re out. I’ve seen him chatting with girls in a bar and he was always kind and considerate.” Her hands folded on the desk as she took a deep breath. “Listen, I know you’re just doing your job, but trust me, you guys are barking up the wrong tree. Coulter wouldn’t hurt a fly. He loves his family, and worshiped his mother. He’s super protective of his sister, of all his siblings, really.”

“How protective is he?” Oscar spoke up again. “Would he hurt someone to keep a loved one safe?”

“Wouldn’t we all?” Corinne squared her shoulders and looked directly at Oscar. “Aren’t you capable of violence to stop someone from harming someone you love?” She looked back at me. “I’m saying that there is no way Coulter would hurt Kylie. He would have protected her. That’s just who he is.’

Corinne singing Coulter's praises just solidified my gut feeling about him. He was a genuinely good guy.

“How has he been since he got the news of her death?” I asked softly.

“Distraught. I heard him tell Spence he wasn’t sleeping well.”

“Trouble sleeping, huh?” Oscar perked up. “Has he seemed nervous or anxious?”

I knew what he was thinking… remorse often causes that.

“No, he seems sad. Very sad. It’s obvious that he loved her very much, and he’s devastated that she’s gone. Which I’d say is pretty normal, wouldn’t you?”

The subtle challenge to Ramirez tugged at the corner of my mouth, teasing a smile. “Yes, I’d say so,” I answered. “Do you recall anything unusual about anyone else there that evening?”

“Nothing. It was a lovely night. That’s why I referred to it as the last good day.” She lifted a finger to her chin, tilting her head like she’d remembered something. “The only weird thing that happened was the phone call from the Sheriff. He was supposed to stop by after dinner but he called to cancel because there had been an incident, which unfortunately turned out to be Kylie drowned. But we didn’t know that at the time.”

“How did Coulter react to the call?” I asked.

Her lips pursed as she tried to recall. “He said it was a bummer he wasn’t coming, just like most of his brothers and dad said. The Sheriff is a long time family friend.”

“We’re aware,” Oscar said. “So Coulter showed up later than everyone else– except the sister who’s flight was delayed?”

“Ava’s a pilot. She had just finished a flight. And yes, Coulter arrived at least an hour before she did.

“Aftereveryone else had.” Oscar pressed.

“Not longafter everyone else had,” Corinne responded with confidence.

No matter how many ways we asked, Corinne’s answers remained consistent.

Coulter used the dinner as his alibi, but we already knew that Kylie was probably dead before 4pm, when she was supposed to be at work. There was plenty of time for him to have killed her before going to dinner. But he’d shown no signs of an incident. Could he have lost himself in rage, killed the love of his life, then pulled himself together and faked it through the night like everything was normal? I didn’t think so.

We couldn’t shake any more info from Corinne, even though Oscar sure tried. We finally left, no closer to knowing who had caused Kylie’s death.

“Did you believe her?” Oscar asked as we headed north back to the station.

Corinne was a calm, collected, reliable witness in my opinion. I decided that responding with a question was the best answer to his challenge. “Did she give you a reason not to?”

“People lie, you know. All the time. If you don’t know that, then you won’t get far in this profession.”

“I’m well aware, Detective. But my gut feeling was that she was truthful. If you have reason to believe otherwise, other than your own intuition, then I’m all ears.”

But he didn't have a word to say for the short ride back to the station, and I was grateful. I’d heard enough from him.

Frustration gnawed at me as I returned to my desk. My old office chair creaked as I leaned back and pulled out the file to review it one more time. The timeline didn’t preclude Coulter as a suspect. But other than those stray prints instrange places in the mother’s house, there was no evidence that he’d been at the scene either.

I logged on and printed out the updated coroner’s report that had come in while we were gone. Doc had added some extra details.

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