Hidden in the Shadows (26 page)

The left side of her face was mildly swollen, with bruises forming around her cheek and eye, and a small cut in the corner of her mouth. She winced, but held still while he examined her.

“I’m okay. I just got caught in the middle of a brawl between the pastor’s wife and his mistress. At his funeral. Did I ever mention that I hate funerals?” She sat down. She was carrying a towel-wrapped ice pack, which she carefully held up against her injuries.

“Once or twice.” He leaned against his desk, astounded. “Who hit you? For that matter,
what
hit you?”

“I’m not sure. It turned into something of a free-for-all. I think it was Mrs. Jones’s mother’s purse, though. She was aiming for the mistress.”

Ethan came in then, and he had much the same reaction as Wyatt when he saw the bruises. “At least tell me the other guy looks worse.”

The uninjured corner of Stacy’s mouth twitched. “It was an accident. I couldn’t strike back, unfortunately.” She told him the story.

He sat down in the chair beside her. “At a funeral? Damn.”

Before she could say anything else, Gordon knocked on the door. “Sorry I’m late. I…” His voice trailed off, and his body went completely rigid. For long seconds, he just stared at Stacy’s face.

When Gordon shifted an accusatory glare, Wyatt held up his hands. “Little old lady with a purse clocked her.”

The room was quiet as they waited to see what Gordon would say. He was clearly struggling, and opened his mouth several times to speak, but pulled the words back before they left his mouth.

Ethan snickered, and Gordon’s eyes narrowed. “What, you think it’s funny that she got hit?”

“Hell, no. You know better.”

Stacy rolled her eyes. “Are you going to stand there all day, or are we going to get this over with? No offense, Boss,” she said as she turned back around to face Wyatt, who covered his mouth with a hand to hide his own amusement.

“So what started the brouhaha?” Wyatt asked as he returned to his seat. “At the funeral, I mean.”

Gordon’s jaw dropped. “
At the funeral
? That happened to you at a funeral?”

“Yes, it did,” Stacy said. “The whole thing was soap-opera worthy, really. You know they held the pastor’s funeral until today so his brother could fly in from Africa, right? Well, the pastor’s wife apparently got into something before the service, and in the middle of the eulogy, she lost it. She stood up and started screaming at the mistress. That’s all it took. It turned into a multi-generational catfight, with the two women’s mothers joining in. I waded in, and that’s when Grandma swung for the cheap seats. My going down was an effective end to the fight, actually. They were horrified.”

“Did you lose consciousness?” Ethan asked.

“I saw some very pretty stars, and it… um, addled me briefly. But no, I didn’t lose consciousness. And before you ask, I saw a doctor as soon as it happened; there was one at the funeral. I know the signs of head injury. This isn’t my first go-round, and I’m sure it won’t be the last.” She didn’t so much as glance at Gordon.

Wyatt did, though, and what he saw on the younger man’s face confirmed his suspicions. What Ethan had said the other day about how he was enjoying watching Wyatt and Maria fall came back to him, and he disguised his chuckle with a cough.

“You interviewed the mistress, right?” he asked Stacy. Since the pastor’s wife apparently hadn’t known about their relationship, and the pastor himself wasn’t around to be questioned, they had to get their answers somewhere else. The mistress-slash-secretary was the obvious choice.

“Yesterday, yes.”

“So what did you find out?”

“Well, there’s a lot of animosity out there, thanks to the good reverend’s escapades. The woman’s husband has filed for divorce. She swears she never told anyone the truth about her children’s paternity, and she doesn’t think the pastor did, either. However, her husband apparently put two and two together after the birth of the second child. He may have said something to his doctor, because he apparently took the kids in for paternity tests.”

Wyatt frowned. “How long ago?”

“Six months.”

Gordon whistled from where he sat on the couch. “So he’s known for six months that his kids weren’t his? And he’s what, just kept his mouth shut all this time? What the hell kind of marriage is that?”

Stacy shrugged. “I guess he didn’t want to lose face. See, he’s a deacon in the same church. After the pastor killed himself, though, the husband confronted her, and I guess they had a pretty good row. The deacon decided to cut his losses after that.”

Wyatt saw that the other two men had the same surprised expression he was certain was on his face.

“What?” Stacy asked.

“Nothing,” Ethan replied. “People are just amazing at times; that’s all, and I don’t mean that in a good way.”

“Especially the ‘good Christians,’” Wyatt added.

Gordon scoffed. “Please. We’re just programmed, societally speaking, to expect more from people who hold roles we’re taught to respect. They’re still human, and they make the same mistakes the rest of humanity does. They just draw more attention when they screw up.”

“That sounds like experience talking,” Ethan remarked.

The cold glitter in Gordon’s eyes was tinged with bitterness. “It is.”

After a brief pause, Ethan said, “After talking to the rest of the victims, we have several doctors who, thanks to Richard and Jackie, we know use the same transcription service. Prime Transcription, here in Leroy, owned by one Leslie Simms. I find it hard to believe that’s a coincidence.”

“That does sound promising,” Wyatt said. “How do you want to proceed?”

Ethan turned to Gordon. “Didn’t Kathryn run a transcription service before she moved here?”

“She did,” Gordon confirmed. “You want me to pick her brain?”

Wyatt noticed that Stacy had developed a sudden fascination with her watchband, and decided to mix things up a little bit. “Why don’t you do that, Gordon, but take Stacy with you? That way when we question Leslie Simms, Stacy will have a better idea of what to look for. Ethan, are you okay?”

The younger man nodded, his face red as he coughed and cleared his throat. It had been a bonus for Wyatt that, when he had made the suggestion to Stacy and Gordon, Ethan had just taken a large sip of coffee. “I’m fine. Just swallowed wrong,” he managed to say.

Wyatt watched as Gordon sent him, and then Ethan, calculating looks, but he didn’t say anything. Instead, he pulled out his cell phone.

“How’s your schedule this evening?” he asked Stacy without looking at her.

Stacy’s free hand moved nervously against her leg. “Open. Why?”

“I’m texting Kat to see if she’s busy. If she isn’t, maybe we can meet with her tonight,” he replied, his eyes on his phone.

“Sure, that’s fine.”

Ethan cleared his throat. “You should see if she has any of that chocolate cake lying around. Have you tried it, Stacy?”

“What is it with you and caffeine lately? You’re worse than a woman with PMS,” Stacy commented.

Ethan scrambled for a response. When he couldn’t seem to come up with one, Wyatt stepped in. “I think Beth is still having an aversion to coffee.”

Her face cleared, and the grin she sent Ethan had a distinctly devilish glint to it. “Oh, okay. So if I offer you chocolate or coffee, you’ll do my paperwork?”

“Pfft. Not hardly.” But after a beat, he asked, “How much coffee, exactly?”

They all chuckled. Gordon’s phone chirped, and he read the new message. “Hey, Kat’s free. What time and where do you want to meet?”

Stacy played with the bag of ice she held in her lap. “It should be someplace where we can talk without interruption. Why don’t the two of you just come to my house? We can call for some food, say around six?”

“Sounds fine, but since we’re invading your place, I’ll take care of the food. You do have a working kitchen, right?”

“Of course I have a working kitchen. I just don’t use it.”

“Are there any foods you don’t like, or have an allergy to?” he asked.

“No. Well, I don’t do liver and onions, or sushi. Or bugs. That sort of thing.”

His tone droll, Ethan chimed in, “Gordon likes sushi.”

The other man stared at Ethan, puzzled. “How did you…? Oh, that’s right. I’d forgotten about that. The night with Beth, when we went to the Dragon. Before you two were married.”

“I haven’t forgotten,” Ethan said, his brows clashing together in a fierce scowl.

Wyatt could tell Gordon was trying to not laugh. When Stacy looked to him for an explanation, he shrugged. Then her eyes widened, and he could see that realization dawned.

“Wait a minute.
That
night. Okay, I understand.”

It was Gordon’s turn to shoot a fierce look across the room. “What do you know about that night? Not that there’s anything to know,” he hurried to assure Ethan.

She looked from Ethan to Gordon. “Nothing either of you need to concern yourselves with, just girl talk.”

Wyatt whistled. “Stacy, why do I feel like you just put Beth in the doghouse?”

Gordon tried to smooth things over by saying, “Nobody should be in the doghouse. It was just dinner and a kiss.”

“You kissed my wife?” Outraged, Ethan sat forward to glare across Stacy at the other man.

Gordon held up his hands. “She wasn’t your wife then. And we’re talking one kiss.”

Stacy’s smile was condescending as she patted Ethan on the arm. “Don’t worry. She said it was like kissing one of her brothers.” Gordon sputtered a bit. “I’m sure it’s no reflection on your prowess,” she told him insincerely.

Before the teasing could lead to bloodshed, Wyatt stepped in. “Okay, kids. As entertaining as this is, we need to get back on track. Gordon, you and Stacy are meeting with Kathryn this evening. Let’s use the rest of the weekend to find out what we can about Leslie Simms.”

With one last glare at Gordon, Ethan nodded. “Will do, Boss.”

“Good. Then unless there’s something else, I’ll let you get out of here and try to enjoy what’s left of the weekend.”

“How’s Maria?” Stacy asked as they all stood. “I was planning on stopping by this afternoon to check on her.”

“She’d probably be grateful for the intervention. Her parents were on their way over there a short time ago.” He checked his watch. “I’m going to pick her up around four, though, so keep that in mind.”

As the three filed out of his office, Wyatt sat back in his chair and rubbed his face. Whatever happened with the extortionist, he’d built a solid department, staffed with dedicated, talented officers. That they genuinely liked each other enough to tease like siblings was just an added bonus.

Chapter Thirty Six

Monday morning, Stacy commandeered Ethan for the interview with Leslie Simms. When she fumbled with the keys to her cruiser and cursed with frustration, he couldn’t hide his concern. The behavior was completely out of the norm for the usually calm detective.

“You okay?”

She started to make an angry retort, then groaned. “I don’t know – yes. No.” Managing to get the car unlocked, she let him in. She didn’t start the vehicle right away. Instead, she turned to Ethan, her eyes full of questions. The bruises had bloomed across her cheek, and though she’d used makeup to cover them, they were still partially visible.

“Did you know that Kathryn Owen was Gordon’s wife’s best friend in the world?” she asked quietly.

“Um, yeah. I guess I did.”

Her fingers tapping out a rhythm on the steering wheel, she looked through the windshield, not seeing the parking lot beyond.

“Kathryn’s nice, damn it. She was hovering over my bruises like a mother hen. I didn’t expect that. And she was very gracious about helping with the case. Oh,
and
she brought a chocolate cake. No one who looks like her should be able to bake like that. It’s an unfair advantage. I can’t even boil water without burning it.” She started the car and pulled out of the parking lot.

Ethan would have laughed if it hadn’t been for the very real sadness in her eyes. “Stacy, if you didn’t have a job where looking neutral is a requirement, you’d be just as striking as Kathryn is. And if not being able to cook bothers you so much, do something about it. Take lessons. God knows that if Beth can learn to cook, anyone can.”

She shook her head. “It isn’t just that. Anyhow, what we need to do is look for how this woman has her server set up, and what sort of access her employees have.”

Ethan let her redirect the conversation. “Lovely. This is definitely an instance where having Maria along would be useful.”

When Stacy shot him an innocent look and turned into the parking lot of the Lighthouse, he was incredulous. He cursed under his breath. “Wyatt will kill all three of us.”

“Ethan, we need her. She’s an adult, and when she tells me she’s up to going with us, I tend to believe her.”