Page 47 of Inherited Light
“I didn’t notice it was missing until Sunday. I ran over to her house to discuss replacing the ramp with her and by the time I got there the box was already gone. She didn’t know I left it there.”
“Why didn’t you report it stolen?” he asked condemningly.
I slammed my hand down on the table harder than I wanted. “Cat wanted me to, but really? The whole thing wasn’t worth ten bucks. I figured a kid took it.”
“You’re saying your toolbox was lifted from Miss Chávez’s house and used to murder the one guy you can’t stand in all of Little Ivywood.”
I held my hands out to my sides. “I had no problem with Xavier, Noah. You knew him. You knew what a pompous ass he was. He was the one who threatened to kill me on Saturday in front of my kids when he lost the game.”
“And you decided to kill him first?” he asked and I jumped up, pounding my fist on the table.
“No! I did not kill Xavier,” I shouted.
“Can you prove it?” he asked calmly. “It appears your alibi is now null and void.”
I wracked my brain to come up with a way to prove I was innocent. “What time was he killed and where?” I asked. “Or am I not privy to that information.”
“It’s public knowledge. He was killed on the sidewalk in front of Armenston Tower Apartments early this morning, at…” he paused and flipped pages in his book, “2:45 a.m. His roommate heard yelling and by the time he got out to the sidewalk the attacker was gone, and Xavier was brain dead. The roommate called the cops at 2:47 a.m. and we had officers and a rig on the scene at 2:53 a.m. The victim was deceased by the time we arrived.”
“If you had the murder weapon why haven’t I heard from the cops yet? It’s nearly two p.m.”
“We didn’t find the hammer with the body. The killer threw it into the brush, but one of my dogs found it. We were just putting a warrant together to question you.”
I shook my head. “I didn’t kill him. There’s no way I could have killed him and driven back to Martindale by 2:55, it’s not possible, even if I drove like a maniac at 90 mph.”
“Unless you were already in Little Ivywood to start with,” he responded and I threw up my hands.
“I just told you I arrived at the convenience store at 2:55!”
“You also told me Cat has a head injury and can’t be trusted to know the time last night. A good prosecutor will destroy her on the stand if you try to use her as an alibi.”
I paused in my pacing. “Wait, I do have a solid alibi. I called the emergency room at 2:35 a.m. to report her condition to them. I settled her back to sleep and turned her security alarm off at 2:47 a.m. then back on, just to make sure it was active. I checked the perimeter to be certain no one was waiting for me to leave. I got in the truck at 2:53 a.m. to head to the store. I think the alarm company can give you proof of it, too, they should have all the time stamps of when it was set and disarmed. It took me two minutes to get to the gas station where I was for about ten minutes. I arrived at the store at 2:55 a.m. and should be on their surveillance from 2:55 until round about 3:05 a.m. I bought two bags of ice, orange juice, and a package of cinnamon rolls. I drove back to the house and disarmed the alarm at 3:08. Feel free to call the alarm company, the hospital, and the store!” I shouted, collapsing into the chair. I fisted my hair in my hands. “I did not kill Xavier Carellton.”
His clothing rustled as he stood up, but I didn’t lift my head. He lowered his hand to my shoulder as he spoke. “I believe you, Lorenzo, but you know I have to check. I can’t let you leave until I have the information.”
I nodded as an answer and he patted my shoulder once and left the small room. I lowered my forehead to the table and rested it there trying to process what he accused me of doing. My exhausted body and my brain on overdrive fought against each other, but the exhaustion won out, and the pain throbbed in my head. I don’t know how long I had been sitting there, but there was a tap on my shoulder and I jumped, my heart pounding.
“Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you, Lorenzo,” the uniformed officer said.
I checked his nametag quickly then answered him. “No problem, Officer Fields. I must have dozed off. I didn’t get much sleep last night.”
“Detective Jonas asked me to drop these off for you,” he said motioning at the table.
I looked down and there was an icepack, two Advil, and a bottle of water. “Bless him,” I said picking up the icepack. “Tell him thanks for me.”
He nodded and left the room, closing the door behind him. I downed the Advil and held the icepack to my sore neck, grateful when the cold seeped in and numbed some of the pain. My phone rang in the quiet room and I jumped, almost falling backward in the chair. I righted myself then grabbed the phone from the table.
“Hello,” I answered out of breath.
“Ren?” Cat asked on the other end.
“Cat, hi, it’s me, yes,” I answered, scrunching my eyes closed.
“Ren, they said you killed Xavier, but I know you didn’t. You were here with me. Don’t go to the police station!”
She started crying and then her voice became distant. “Lorenzo? It’s Foster, are you all right?”
I sighed heavily. “I’m okay, but I’m at the police station. I stopped down to drop the bulb off and didn’t know about Xavier before I did.”
