Page 36 of An Evil Heart
“What about Emily Byler?” I ask, keeping the question open ended.
“What about her?”
“You had a thing for her.”
Groaning, he slouches in the chair. “This is such a crock of shit.”
“Just answer the question.”
“Yeah, she’s cute. But I don’t have a thing for her. I was just… being a jerk. Messing with Karn.”
“Were you jealous?”
“No.”
“You sure?”
His expression tightens and he doesn’t answer.
“First you lie to me about your relationship about Karn. Then I hear you had a thing for his girlfriend.” I let the statement ride a moment and add, “That’s pretty close to motive.”
Fisher stands so abruptly, he nearly knocks over the chair. “I didn’t kill him!”
Glock comes off the wall. “Sit down.” He points at the chair. “Now.”
Looking defeated, Fisher sinks back into the chair.
I wait a beat. “Who else had a problem with Karn?” I ask.
“No one.” He shakes his head. “That’s why all of this is so crazy. Aden was a solid guy. People liked him. Hell,Iliked him.”
“Except for when he repossessed the truck.”
Then he adds, “You want to know what else is crazy? I think eventually he would have given me my money back.”
“Vernon, did you kill him?”
He raises his gaze to mine. “No, ma’am.”
“Do you know who did?”
“No.”
We lock gazes and for the span of a full minute neither of us speaks. “You’re free to go.”
Behind me, I hear Glock go to the door and open it.
Fisher scoots back the chair and rises, looks from me to Glock. “I need a ride home.”
“Officer Maddox will take you.”
When he brushes past me, I reach out and stop him, lock eyes again. “If I find out you’ve lied to me about anything we discussed, I’ll come for you. You got that?”
“I got it,” he mutters, and goes through the door.
CHAPTER 10
Every case has its own unique personality. Some are orderly from the get-go; not quite cooperative, but the puzzle pieces come together with some degree of congruity. Other cases are a study in chaos. Every move is a misstep. Every lead is a dead end. Every break, a false flag. The murder of Aden Karn falls into the latter category. It’s like trying to put together a puzzle in which the pieces simply do not fit.
