“Did you touch him, Alex?”
“Yes. I put my hands on his chest… then my ear. I didn’t hear his heart, so I checked his wrist. For a pulse. There was nothing.”
“And then?”
“Called you, I guess. I didn’t know what else to do.”
“You did the right thing, Alex. You did. I have just a couple more questions.
“What was your relationship with your ex-husband?”
“We were friends.”
“You weren’t in love with him?”
“No.” She shook her head.
“You weren’t reconciling?”
“No.” She lifted her gaze to his, pleading. “We were friends, that’s all. I called him.”
“Why?”
She hesitated; he wondered why. “Because of all the stuff that’s been happening. I was sort of… I knew he could help me put it in perspective.”
“And that’s it?”
“Yes.”
He didn’t buy that but didn’t push it. She clasped her hands in her lap.
“Okay,” he murmured, “here’s what happens next. I’m going to have to take you in for an official statement.”
“Take me in?”
“In a situation like this, there’s no way around it.”
She nodded as if she understood, but he sensed she didn’t. That she was still operating on autopilot.
“Can I change first? Get cleaned up?”
“I’m sorry, but I can’t let you do that. Not yet.”
For a fraction of a moment, he thought she was going to ask when. But then she understood. It moved across her features like a cloud. “Do I need a lawyer?”
“You have the right to one. You’re not under arrest, Alex. But because of the circumstances, you are a suspect.”
“A suspect?”
“Yes, in the murder of your ex-husband.”
“Oh, my God.” She brought a hand to her mouth. “But I didn’t do… I couldn’t do… this.”
“Because of our relationship, I can’t bring you in. But nice Deputy Jim here will do that. Right, Jim?”
“Yes, Detective.”
“I’ll be right behind you. With you all the way. Do you understand?”
“Yes. What about Margo?”
“She’ll be fine. I’ll have Tanner keep an eye on her, make certain she has food and water before they leave. I don’t think you’ll be gone that long.”
He smiled to reassure her, though he didn’t know how honest he was being. Depending on what went down at HQ, she could be charged and processed today.
He got to his feet and held out a hand to her. “Are you ready?”
“Some clothes?”
“Sure, tell me where.”
She did and he collected a fresh set, grabbing things that looked comfortable. Of course, if the worst case scenario came to pass, she wouldn’t be needing a change of clothes-she would be wearing a blue jumpsuit.
He slipped his jacket over her shoulders, as much for warmth as to shield her from the curious stares of the crowd that had surely gathered outside. It would include neighbors and passersby, tourists drawn by the flashing lights and the press.
A photograph of her drenched in blood would make a great front page, but innocent or not, it could harm her chances for a fair trial-in court, or in the court of public opinion.
When they reached the front door, he stopped and looked at her. “One last thing, Alex. From here on out, I can’t help you with this. Because of our relationship, I’m going to have to excuse myself from the case. And because of my badge, we won’t be able to see or even talk to each other. Do you understand?”
She did. He saw it in the panic that raced into her eyes. As if she had just realized how much trouble she might be in-and that she was completely alone.
And in that moment, he realized just how much he hated it being this way.
CHAPTER SIXTY-TWO
Tuesday, March 16
9:20 P.M.
Half a dozen people gathered around the video monitor, watching the interview in progress. They’d been going at Alex for some time and she looked a hairbreadth from falling apart.
When they’d arrived at the Barn, the deputy had gotten Alex set up in an interview room. Reed had connected with his sergeant, explained the situation and recused himself from the case. Unfortunately, because of the way current events crisscrossed and possibly linked to Alex, it left a new detective with a whole lot to familiarize himself with. Mac had not been happy about it.
Reed glanced at the sergeant now; he was frowning. “Her story hasn’t altered, Mac. Not from when she first relayed it to me.”
The assistant D.A. agreed. “You know the drill, boys, charge or release.”
“Okay,” Lieutenant Torres said, “let’s get Detective Saacks back in here.” While Mac retrieved the detective from the interview room, the lieutenant went on, “What’ve we got, Team? Lay it all out there.”
Tanner began. Mac and Saacks slipped into the room. “We’ve got a motive. She admits she was angry with him.”
“Spa employees confirmed. They overheard her leaving a nasty message for someone-”
“Clarkson, the deceased.”
“We’ve got that.” Tanner replayed it: “Dammit, Tim! Pick up! I can’t believe you would do thi-”
“That’s it, she didn’t finish,” Tanner said. “My guess is that’s when the spa attendants came in and busted her.”
“She sounded pretty upset.” Lieutenant Torres looked at the assistant D.A. “She left in a huff, before she’d even finished her prepaid services.”
“But she didn’t threaten him in any way,” Reed murmured. “And by her own account, she was angry. She didn’t try to hide that.”
Tanner went on. “And depending on the timeline, we’ve got opportunity.”
Detective Saacks jumped in. “We’re working on establishing a firm timeline.”
Bob Ware, the Coroner’s detective, spoke up. “He hadn’t been dead long when we got there. Lividity was under way, but just under way, and rigor mortis hadn’t even started. By the time I got him to the morgue, body temperature had only dropped by three degrees. Factoring in transporting the body and investigative time, that doesn’t leave a lot of wiggle room.”
The D.A. agreed. “We can make that stick. No doubt.”
Saacks spoke up again. “A neighbor confirmed her version of events. He saw her on her porch about four forty-five P.M. Drinking wine. They didn’t speak. He heard her scream a short time later and was dialing 911 when he heard the first responders’ sirens.”
“Did he happen to notice, was she covered in blood?”
That brought a chuckle from the group.
Cal tapped on the closed door, then poked his head inside. “Tanner, Reed, a moment, please.”
They excused themselves and met him out in the hall. “What’s up?” Tanner asked.
“Thought you’d be interested.” He handed them each a pair of Latex gloves. While they fitted them on, he continued, “Found this in the suspect’s bedroom. It’s a list of all the crazy shit that’s happened since she arrived in Sonoma.”
He handed the yellow legal tablet to Tanner. “She notes having an alibi for one item.” He looked at Reed. “Sorry, man.”
“Not your issue, Cal. But thanks.”
He and Tanner reviewed the list. Reed stopped on the item that read: Max’s house torched. Alibi/Reed. His stomach sank. That didn’t look good.
“What’s this?” Tanner asked. She tapped the very last item on the list: “Remember scrawled in lipstick on bathroom mirror. Stain on hand and sheets.”
Another bizarre occurrence on Alex’s doorstep. “First I heard of it,” he said.
“In her statement, she never mentioned the list or this ‘Remember’ thing.”
“She’s had a little on her mind.”