Never Sorry: A Leigh Koslow Mystery (16 page)

And just who had left whom? She thought that Tanner had left Stacey. After all, why wouldn't he? The woman was a shrew from birth. Leigh had never liked her, and she couldn't believe he did either, not really. But there he had been in the cabin, crying, rocking her. Could it be? Did he
still
love her?

"What are you thinking, Koslow?"

Leigh shook her head. "I don't know what's going on in Tanner's head, no. But I know he's not a killer. If he were, Stacey would have been dead a long time ago."

"You seem awfully sure of yourself," Maura said carefully.

"I am. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go find him."

"No, you're not," Maura answered firmly. "Tanner has a busy day in front of him. You don't even know where he is—he could be in the hospital or the county jail."

"He's been falsely arrested!" Leigh cried indignantly. "He'll need a lawyer, and bail money."

Maura sighed. "Look, Koslow. You've got to stop taking personal responsibility for this man. You've got the hots for him—fine. But you've got to think about your own situation. He's been arrested for murdering his ex and he may be guilty. He may have had something to do with Carmen's death, too."

Leigh's eyes blazed. "That's crazy! I was with him that whole night, remember? I'm telling you, he didn't kill anybody."

"Then let him prove that. He's a big boy. He can get his own lawyer, hit up his own friends for bail. You've got to stay out of it. The fact is, anything and everything that ties you up closer with Tanner just makes you look guiltier."

Leigh took a deep, sulky breath. Maura was right. She was having enough trouble saving her own hide. If she wasn't careful, she could make things worse for both herself and Tanner.

"Fine," she said tiredly. "So what am I supposed to do now?"

"Talk to your lawyer," Maura answered firmly. "Tell her everything that happened today. And if you go to see Tanner later"—she lowered her voice for emphasis—"take your lawyer with you."

Leigh looked up at her friend. Maura had always been good at beating things into or out of one's head as needed. "Thanks for rushing up here," she said somewhat sheepishly. "I really didn't intend to make you rescue me at two police stations in one week."

Maura shrugged. "Par for the course, Koslow."

***

Leigh pulled into the parking lot of her apartment building with a heavy heart. She was free, but Tanner would be spending the night in jail. If, of course, he made it out of the hospital. It was wrong. Why should she get so lucky? Her cousin had jumped to pay her bail, and had the wherewithal to do it. Did Tanner have any rich friends or family? She doubted it. All she knew about his family was that they raised beef cattle in Alabama. And he'd never mentioned any close friends outside of the zoo.

He was alone. Leigh parked, opened the front door, and headed for the stairs. Not that she was a health nut, but the elevator was slow and she hated waiting, even if it meant walking up four flights. Suddenly remembering that she should be on the lookout for reporters, Leigh glanced around, but there were none to be seen. She began trooping up the stairs, but when her calves started aching by the second floor, she decided to take a temporary detour to Warren's. Maybe he had some of that great peach iced tea brewed up. Maybe he was even cooking dinner.

She knocked on his door, subconsciously licking her lips. When she heard female laughter from within, she started to retreat, but the door opened.

"Hey, Leigh!" Warren said cheerfully. He was wearing cycling shorts and a T-shirt, looking sweaty and flushed from exercise. Behind him on the couch sat an almost unrecognizable Katharine Bower, also in biking gear, and also sweaty and flushed. She was sipping a peach iced tea.

"I'm sorry," Leigh said unconvincingly. "Did I interrupt something?"

"Yes," Warren laughed. "In a few more moments I would have had Ms. Bower here turned into a first-class Democrat. She's lucky you dropped by."

"It'll never happen, Harmon," Katharine quipped, not looking as if she felt at all lucky.

"We've been biking up at Moraine State Park," Warren explained. "Great weather for it. Would you like some iced tea?"

Leigh shook her head. "I can't stay. I've got to—"
What? Call my lawyer? Right
. Her lawyer was obviously having a good time on a Saturday afternoon. She didn't need to hear Leigh's problems this second. "I've got to do some work for Hook. I'm behind, you know."

"Is that why you're back already?" Warren said casually, taking a seat on the couch next to Katharine. "Kathy said you were going to Tanner's cabin for the day."

Now she's "Kathy", is she?
"My lawyer and I will need to talk later," Leigh retorted. She wasn't telling her legal woes to anyone with good muscle tone. She would wait for the return of the real Katharine Bower, the one that was cool, composed, and uncomfortably dressed. Bidding the twosome a hasty farewell, she headed back to the stairwell to tackle two more flights. She was now not only depressed about Tanner, she was annoyed, too. Why did her lawyer have to have a thing for Warren? Lawyers should be celibate, like priests, so that they could concentrate on their jobs. She pushed her key into the lock with a vengeance, opening her door.

I bet he fixes dinner for her, too.

***

Maura Polanski hadn't left Butler when Leigh did, but had doubled back into the state police barracks. She had no trouble finding the employee break room in the basement, nor Sara Jean, who lounged inverted on the ragged couch, her long legs draped over its back.

"Polanski!" she effused, swinging her feet over with ease. "Long time, no see, woman!"

Maura smiled. Sara Jean was some sort of relative, or so they had always assumed. All they really knew was that they had both grown up in Avalon and tended to show up at the same reunions. Sara Jean stubbed out her cigarette in a candy wrapper and banked the wad off a
No Smoking
sign into the trash can. "Good aim," Maura praised.

Sara Jean shrugged. "Practice." She motioned for Maura to sit down. "So how are things in Avalon? Have they made you detective yet?"

Maura's teeth clenched slightly. "Not yet. Everything in Avalon is the same. Except Mom's worse."

Sara Jean shook her head sympathetically. "I know what you're going through, believe me. It was rough with my granddad, but we got through it. You ever need a relief person, you call me, you hear?"

Maura nodded, then changed the subject. "Thanks for calling me about Leigh. I'm surprised you remembered her name."

Sara Jean laughed. "After all that mess in Avalon last summer? How could I forget? No, when I heard her name on the news, I knew it was your friend. So when I found out she was coming in here, I figured you'd want to know."

Maura smiled appreciatively. Sara Jean had a good heart, but hopelessly loose lips. How she had managed to secure a job as a police records clerk was a mystery, but Maura suspected it had something to do with her libido. "So what's up?" the policewoman prompted.

"Guy knifed his ex," Sara Jean said simply. "Got him plain as day. Blood all over him, moaning about how she'd left him. Classic." She reached into her pocket and lit another cigarette. "Classic," she repeated.

Maura sighed. "Do you know how long the woman had been dead when they found her?"

Sara Jean looked at the ceiling as she considered. "Seems like I heard she wasn't stiff yet when they picked her up."

Probably less than five hours.

"Your friend reported it," Sara Jean continued. "Sounds like she's got a thing for this guy. You think he did that woman at the zoo, too?"

Maura winced slightly. "I hope not. Was there anything you heard about this case that didn't fit? I mean, that might make you think he
didn't
do it?"

Sara Jean shook her head. "They didn't find the knife, but he could've got rid of it easy enough."

"Anything else?"

Sara Jean shrugged. "They were asking about another car for a while—some woman down the road saw somebody shooting off like a bat out of hell earlier. But she didn't get a license or anything. It was probably just some drunk coming down from one of the hunting cabins."

Maura was quiet for a moment. "You remember what kind of car?"

Sara Jean shook her head. "I could look it up if you want."

Maura shook her head. Listening while Sara Jean shot her mouth off was one thing. Asking her to look in confidential files was another. "Thanks, cuz. You know my number, right?"

Sara Jean grinned. "You know I do."

***

Leigh paced around her apartment for exactly three minutes before heading back down to Warren's. She knocked on the door loudly.

"Come on in!" Warren yelled cheerfully. Leigh obliged. He and Katharine were still sitting next to each other on the couch, smiling as if they shared some private joke.

"Mike Tanner's ex-wife was murdered today," Leigh announced without preamble. "And the police think he did it."

Chapter 12

Katharine Bower's peach iced tea spewed forward about three feet, most of it over the Wall Street Journal on the coffee table. Warren leapt up to fetch a towel, glancing unkindly at Leigh as he went.

"Tanner did
what
?" Katharine cried.

"I didn't say Tanner did anything," Leigh said defensively. "Being arrested for murder doesn't make you guilty, you know."

"He's been arrested?" Katharine asked, choking a little.

She nodded.

Warren took a firm hold of Leigh's arm and maneuvered her into a chair. "Sit down and start talking." He handed one towel to Katharine and began salvaging the Wall Street Journal with another.

Leigh took a deep breath. She really didn't want to go through everything again, but what choice did she have? She had to tell Katharine, and Warren wasn't going anywhere. She squirmed uncomfortably and began, noting that her chair was wet.

Warren listened without comment; Katharine asked a million questions. But when Leigh had finished, the lawyer seemed pleased. "You did good," she said approvingly. "You could have sealed your own coffin with this one, but you used your head. And almost hitting the dog was a heck of a nice break."

Leigh would have liked to bask in the moment, but she felt too bad about not helping Tanner. "Can't we do anything for Mike?" she asked plaintively.

"The good doctor can get his own damn lawyer," Warren said sharply. "Katharine's going to concentrate on saving your butt, remember?"

Assuming this would not be a good time to see if her lawyer could represent someone else on the same tab, Leigh kept her mouth shut.

"We need to talk to Tanner right away," Katharine said firmly. "I shouldn't have let you see him on your own in the first place, but what's done is done." She looked at her watch. "Hey Warr—mind if I use your shower? Leigh and I can just take off from here."

Warren smiled. "Sure. Whatever you need. There are clean towels in the hall closet."

Leigh looked at him with disgust. If a friend asked to use her shower, she'd say yes also, but only after she spent twenty frantic minutes picking up personal items and scrubbing the shower. And what was this "Warr" business?

Katharine grabbed her tote bag and headed for the bathroom, while Leigh headed for the kitchen and a glass of peach tea. As she returned with it, she noticed that Warren had settled back on the couch and was watching her. After a moment, he spoke. "Tanner could very well have done it, you know."

"He could not!" she responded testily, plopping herself into the chair opposite him. "You met him. Did he seem like a murderer?"

Warren studied her face. She hated it when he did that. This time, however, his mind-reading abilities worked to her advantage.

"No," he said finally, with a small sigh. "If you really think he's innocent, I suppose I trust your judgment."

She smiled.

"Not about everything, mind you. You've obviously misjudged him in other ways, but I think you'd know if the man was violent."

"Tanner's a lamb," Leigh said, sipping her iced tea thirstily. "He can blow his top and yell, but he's not the type to hurt something weaker than he is. I can tell by the way he is with his patients." Her mind backtracked to Warren's other comment. "And what do you mean—misjudged in other ways?"

Warren looked at her again for a moment, then shook his head. "Look, Leigh. I hate to burst your bubble, but don't you think you could be a bit more objective about this guy?"

Her blood pressure rose. "
Meaning
?"

"Meaning that you're seeing the same idyllic hero you saw when you were a kid. He was unattainable then—a fantasy. Now he's interested in you, and you've convinced yourself it's destiny. But it's not, Leigh. It's still just a fantasy."

Leigh's eyes blazed. "You don't know anything about it."