Page 9 of The Perfect Revenge
"We don't want to keep you away from Emma too long, so we'll try to keep this brief," Jessie said.
“Can’t you just get what you need from the sergeant?”Sterling asked.He didn’t sound put out so much as exhausted.
“Actually,” Susannah said.“We’re here at your request, Mr.Sterling.We’re from Homicide Special Section.And we find that talking to witnesses directly is much more helpful than getting information second-hand.”
For the first time, Sterling bothered to actually focus on them.After a moment, Jessie saw that he recognized her.
“You’re Jessie Hunt.”
“Yes.I’m sorry for your loss, Mr.Sterling, but we’re hoping that we can be of help.”
He looked sheepish.“I feel bad having pressed for your unit now.In the moments after I found her, I couldn’t accept that this could just be an accident or a heart attack or something.I thought it had to be a crime, because Vonnie is—was—so young.”
“Tell us exactly what happened,” Jessie asked, not commenting on the potential foul play involved just yet.
"I woke up at 6:30.I thought it was a little odd that Vonnie wasn't in bed.She usually stays up later than me but I typically get up before her.But it wasn't so unusual that I thought anything of it.I got cleaned up, poked my head into Emma's room to check on her.She was still asleep.Then I came in here to do a little prep work for the day.After about half an hour, I went down to the kitchen to make some coffee.That's when I found her lying on the kitchen floor.I saw that—."
He paused for a moment, as if trying to regroup after reliving the memory of what he’d seen.
"I saw that her eyes were open and knew right away that it was too late to do anything.I kind of freaked out, had a bit of a panic attack.It was all I could do not to start yelling.But some part of me knew that would wake Emma, and I couldn't have that.I rushed outside, thinking I would throw up, but I didn't.After a few minutes, my head cleared enough to call you guys."
Jessie treaded carefully as she asked the next question.
“You said that when you called and asked for HSS to be involved, it was because you couldn’t believe at first that this could be an accident.Was there anything other than the initial shock of the situation that made you think this might be a crime?”
He thought for a moment, then shook his head."No.The doors were locked.I checked because I was worried someone might have gotten into the house.The alarm wasn't on, but that's normal for us.We're really bad about remembering to turn it on at night."
“You said that you would usually go to bed before Vonnie,” Susannah reminded him.“What time did you do that last night?”
"I'd say 8:30.On nights where I don't have an industry event, I really like to crash early."
“And where was your wife then?”
“In the bathroom, getting ready for bed.She usually comes in about fifteen minutes after me.Sometimes I’m still awake.Other times not.Last night I didn’t make it.”
“So you don’t know if she ever actually came to bed last night,” Susannah pointed out.
“I guess not.I just assumed.”
Jessie knew the question she wanted to most ask would reverberate, but there was no way around it.They’d reached the point where they had to be more direct.Still, she tried to ease into it.
“Mr.Sterling, Vonnie was a stay-at-home mom, yes?”
He nodded."She did a ton of volunteering and is on the board of a foundation, but technically, she didn't work.Why?"
“I’m just wondering if she ever mentioned any rivalries, folks who expressed animosity toward her.”
Her attempt at delicacy was ineffective.Sterling’s eyes went wide.
“Why?Are you saying this wasn’t an accident or some random medical thing?”
His voice was strained, and Jessie noticed his hands opening and closing into fists, seemingly involuntarily.
“Please don’t jump to conclusions,” Jessie said quickly.“It’s just that we have to follow every potential lead.”
But it was too late.Sterling, hyperventilating, toppled out of his chair
CHAPTER SIX
