Page 19 of Lost Hours
Mina had already taken a seat on the far side of the table and rested her hands on top.
He sat across from her and leaned back, acting relaxed when he was anything but at ease in her presence.
She took out a pen and notepad. “Start by recounting the events tonight again.”
He took her through the evening, and she scribbled most of the time without looking up or asking clarifying questions. When he finished, he placed his hands on the table. “That’s everything until you arrived.”
“The same thing you told me earlier.”
“Why would I deviate? It’s what happened.”
“Where were you today between three and five p.m.?” she asked, ignoring his question.
“The medical examiner gave you a window for time of death, I see.”
“I didn’t say that,” she said, tapping her pen on her notepad. “Where were you?”
“That’s simple. We had just finished an investigation, and we were all in a debrief in our conference room at the inn.”
She arched an eyebrow. “The whole team?”
“Well, no.” His gut cramped. “All except Jude. He was on his way back from Portland but on the phone with us.”
“That’s convenient, isn’t it?” That eyebrow rose even higher toward her hairline. “For all of you to alibi each other out for the time of death.”
“I don’t know if it’s convenient, but it’s what happened and where we were.”
She laid her pen on the table. “Do you have any proof of your whereabouts other than vouching for each other?”
Did they?Think, man. Think like an investigator, not a former boyfriend. “We had food delivered. Not sure of the guy’s name, but the food came from Submarine Burgers. You could contact them to confirm.”
She wrote that in her notebook. “That doesn’t help Jude.”
“You could trace the whereabouts of his cell phone at that time.”
“I could, but that would just mean Jude’s cell phone was located in his car. Was he alone or did he have a passenger in his vehicle?”
“Alone,” Nolan said, though he felt like he was ratting out a brother and fellow teammate. But he had to tell the truth, and they would have to find a way to prove Jude hadn’t been near Mayor Sutton at that time.
He waited for her to comment on Jude’s whereabouts, but she remained stone-faced, jotting notes in her book. She looked up. “Now that you’ve had some time to think about it, did you come up with anyone who would want to kill the mayor?”
“No.” He left it at that. If they had been working together, he would suggest they speak to the mayor’s assistant. Daisy Ellington knew everything about the mayor’s work and daily schedule. But until Mina said she would let the team help, he would keep this lead to himself. And Daisy would be the first person he talked to.
His phone rang, and he glanced at caller ID. He looked up and made sure not to let his excitement over the name on his screen color his tone. “It’s the Veritas Center. Want me to answer?”
“Absolutely.” She leaned closer to him, not holding back her excitement.
He accepted the call. “Nolan Orr.”
“This is Sierra Rice at the Veritas Center.” Her businesslike tone didn’t give away the reason for her call. “I’m the partner in charge of forensics for our center. Reid Maddox asked me to call you.”
“Thank you for getting back to me so quickly. Sheriff Mina Park is here. She’s in charge of the murder investigation. Do you mind if I put you on speaker?”
“That would be great,” Sierra said. “You can bring me up-to-date on everything that’s occurred tonight.” Nolan placed his phone on the table and tapped the speaker button, then promptly told Sierra what had occurred. “Sheriff Park is currently conducting my initial interview and will be interviewing my teammates before the night is through.”
“Is the scene secured and will remain so until we can arrive tomorrow?” Sierra asked.
“It’s secure,” Mina said. “And I can make sure it remains that way until further notice.”
