Page 22 of Just Tonight

“What?” Now, Victor looked seriously wary.

“Your girlfriend,” Connor said.

“Harriet? We – we’re not really dating so seriously. We were, but she – she backed off last week. Seems like her mother didn’t approve of me,” he said resentfully.

“When’s the last time you saw her mother?” Connor asked.

“Last week. She had some weird guy in her house who was cleansing the place. I thought it was a load of rubbish. Smoke and mirrors, you know? The problem was clearly in her electrics.”

Cami raised her eyebrows internally. She’d been convinced – for a short while – that Victor must be guilty. But this last comment was making her wonder. He’d said it with such authority, as if he knew better – and he’d said it in a disparaging way that seemed to indicate to her that he thought the mother was still alive.

“You know she was murdered last night?” Connor asked.

The effect of his words was electric. Victor gasped, sitting bolt upright in his chair in horror, and for the first time, forgetting to wiggle his arms in a martyred way, showing how very painful and unnecessary the handcuffs were.

“What?” he said incredulously. “Who, Mrs. Court?”

“Yes. Lisa Court.”

“But that – that’s terrible! I mean, who would do such a thing?”

The words babbled out of him, and in them, Cami detected truly genuine shock.

“We came here to find out if you were involved,” Connor said harshly. “Given the type of footage you watch, that’s a reasonable suspicion, isn’t it?”

"No! Look, I mean, I guess I am kind of – curious about death. I really was also shocked by that video, I never expected to be listening to somebody saying those things. I’m not that kind of guy myself, and like I said, I just got it forwarded! I would never kill anyone! And particularly not Mrs. Court. I was trying my best to get on her good side again so that I could carry on dating Harriet. Harriet’s a great person, you know.”

“And how exactly were you getting on her good side?”

“Well, I sent her a text apologizing for my behavior and that I’d been rude and arrogant. She never replied, but I know she read it," he said hopefully.

That was interesting to Cami. She hadn’t yet looked at the texts on Lisa’s phone. But now, while Connor undid Victor’s cuffs, he got his phone out of his pocket.

“Show us the message,” Connor said.

He scrolled through it and showed them that he had, indeed, sent an apology for having ‘an attitude while the ghost buster was there.’

Cami personally thought his apology could have been better worded. But maybe it showed he had tried.

"And what were you doing last night?" Connor asked. “Can you account for your time?”

"I was here with a friend. We were in the basement together playing a war game. We started at about six and played till midnight. The friend's name is Michael. You can speak to him if you want. He'll confirm it." His face lit up. "And also, the neighbor can confirm it. She knocked on my door at about seven to say that he'd parked in the wrong place and must move his car because it was blocking her way in. So she spoke to me, too.”

Cami knew that Connor would diligently check these statements to make sure they were true. But for now, it did seem as if Victor, though a dodgy individual, had an alibi.

There was the sound of a car arriving outside, and Connor glanced out of the window. He went to the door, and a moment later, two policemen walked in. Connor headed over and quickly greeted them, having a muttered conversation with the taller one, who was clearly the man in charge.

“Cooperate, and they’ll go easy on you,” he said, turning back to Victor. “That kind of material, you’re not the one we want to prosecute. So, like I said – you have the choice. You can stay out of trouble now and not do it again, or otherwise.”

Then he got up, and he and Cami walked out.

She felt despondent that this very strong seeming lead had gotten them nowhere. But then again, she thought, maybe it had.

In fact, maybe this suspect himself had reminded her about something that had been simmering at the back of her mind. What he’d said was solidifying a theory.

“Connor,” she said. “Would it be possible to go to the first crime scene? I want to take a look at Debbie Maynard’s house. I may have a theory about how the killer’s doing this – and it could just lead us to who he is.”

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

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