Page 33 of Death in the Family
“No doubt she’s had plenty of practice surreptitiously texting in the classroom. Don’t worry about it. I checked her social feedsand texts and she hasn’t shared how she’s spending her Saturday at the river.”
“You confiscated her phone?”
“She said something that bothered me.” I relayed the words she’d spoken in the kitchen as my eyes traveled to the parlor, where Jade now lay curled up on the sofa with her head in her dad’s lap.
“I know what she did,” Tim repeated. “Does she mean Bebe, or Abella?”
“Didn’t get that far. But she’s got a good view of the shed from her bedroom window.”
Tim rubbed his chin. What I needed from him was encouragement. I wanted to hear him agree this was all extremely fishy and warranted caution—to admit at least one of the people on the island was likely a dangerous criminal. What Tim said was, “That might be relevant, if Jasper’s actually hurt.”
“If?”
“We still don’t have proof the blood’s even his.”
“We’ve been over this,” I said, louder than I intended. “The blood is in his bed. The man is missing. The storm—”
“Okay.” Tim showed me his hands. “Just playing devil’s advocate. I’ve gotta do it, you know?”
“No, I don’t.”
“Knock knock.”
Miles, who seconds earlier was in the parlor, now loitered in the hall. “Sorry to interrupt,” he said, “but can I have a minute of your time?”
After my altercation with Bebe, I fully expected Miles to give me hell. Hours earlier he made sure to let me know he was a practicing lawyer. I had no doubt that after Bebe barged into the kitchen, she went straight to Miles to recount all the injustices Jadeendured by my hand. I should have gone after Abella, but my desire to know more about the inner workings of this couple’s relationship kept me rooted in place.
Miles said, “I hear you had a talk with my wife and daughter.”
“If you can call it that.”
“They weren’t cooperative?”
“Not in the least,” I said. “Your daughter was surreptitiously using her phone, despite the fact that you were all instructed not to.”
Miles nodded. This news didn’t surprise him. “Did it interfere with your investigation?”
I wasn’t sure what to say. Jade hadn’t told anyone about Jasper going missing. So far her worst offense was inflicting my burn. “That’s not the point, Mr. Byrd.”
“No, of course not.” Miles sighed. “Teenage girls.”
“Bet she’s a handful. Where’s her mother?” said Tim.
“We divorced when Jade was five.”
“And you got custody?”
Miles gave Tim a sharp look. “Full. I was raised by a single parent, and I turned out just fine. My ex-wife, on the other hand, left us for a prick with a production company in L.A. She was a terrible influence on Jade, obsessed with money and status.”
“No offense,” I said, glancing back at the parlor, “but I’m not sure you traded up.”
My intention was to hack away at his relationship with his cheating wife and wild daughter, a task that shouldn’t have been easy. To my surprise, Miles laughed. “You’re telling me. If Camilla hadn’t insisted, we wouldn’t be here this weekend.”
“Camilla, or Jade?” I said. “I get the impression Jade and Jasper are pretty close.”
Miles blinked at me. “She’s a child. He’s a twenty-six-year-oldman, not to mention her uncle. If Jade told you they’re close, I assure you that’s wishful thinking. He humors her because he’s a nice guy. Maybe she likes the attention—I won’t pretend to understand girls this age—but that’s all there is to it. Believe me, Jade has plenty of boys her own age chasing her back home.”
“Got it,” I said. There was no way I couldn’t. In a single breath Miles had used three different arguments to make his point. There was absolutely, positively nothing weird going on between Jade and Jasper.Talk about wishful thinking.
