Page 32 of Maverick Detective Dad
Everly nodded, thanked him and turned back to the research on the financials. Noah wrote a text to Hudson, asking him to come to the sheriff’s office so he could go with them to Everly’s. He’d just sent the text when he heard the sound of a man’s booming voice.
“Detective Ryland,” Jared called out.
Noah didn’t have to see the man to know he was riled to the bone. He could hear the anger raging in Jared’s voice. Well, Noah wasn’t exactly in a pleasant mood either, and one way or another, he was going to get some answers from Jared.
Noah got up and went to the door to see Deputy Lawson checking their visitor for weapons, but Jared wasn’t looking at her. His narrowed gaze went straight to Noah.
“What the hell do you want now?” Jared snarled.
Noah decided not to wait to jump right into one of the things he wanted to know. “It’s come to my attention that you don’t need that wheelchair,” he threw out there, and he watched for Jared’s reaction.
Jared’s eyes narrowed even more, but Noah thought he saw some surprise now mixed with the venom. “Who told you that?”
“A very reliable source,” Noah lied. He kept his cop’s gaze pinned to the man, and he added another lie. “I’ve already requested a medical exam to be conducted on you to verify what that reliable source said.”
The seconds crawled by, and then Jared grumbled some raw profanity under his breath. With Deputy Lawson, Noah and Everly watching him, Jared clamped his beefy hands onto the armrests of his wheelchair.
And the man stood up.
Chapter Ten
Everly watched as Jared struggled to get to his feet. But he not only managed it, he also waved off Deputy Lawson when she moved in to help him. The man stood and faced Noah and her with a hot glare.
She’d expected Jared to deny having any mobility in his legs especially since he’d spat out his bitterness about his condition during his last visit. Everly definitely hadn’t thought he would just admit it because an admission like that would make him a prime suspect as the vigilante killer.
“Are you satisfied?” Jared snarled, aiming his disgust at Noah. “Yeah, I can stand up. I can even walk a few steps. That sure as hell doesn’t mean I’m a killer.”
“You lied during an official interview,” Noah pointed out just as fast. He motioned for Jared to follow him back to Grayson’s office. “I’d like to hear why you did that, and then you can try to convince me why I shouldn’t charge you with making a false statement to a police officer, obstruction of justice and anything else I can think of to tack on to that.”
Jared huffed, but after dropping back down into his wheelchair, he followed them into the office. “Why the hell do you think I lied?” the man snapped the moment they were inside, and he didn’t wait for Noah to answer. “Because I knew you’d be looking at me for these murders. Murders I didn’t do.”
Noah looked him straight in the eyes. “Then, you should have told the truth. You should have done everything possible to help me stop the killer from striking again. Instead, you withheld a very big truth, and I have to think you did that because you have plenty to hide.” He leaned in and upped his glare. “Lie to me again. Give me a reason to toss you into a cell.”
Jared opened his mouth as if to return verbal fire, but then it seemed as if he changed his mind as to what he’d been about to say. He huffed, and some of the anger drained from his face.
“I’ve already read you your rights,” Noah reminded him. “Do you want me to repeat them?”
“No,” he snapped, and then went quiet. “I haven’t told anyone I regained some mobility,” Jared finally said. “And like I told you, I can only manage a few steps.”
Noah made a circling motion with his index finger, indicating that he wanted Jared to continue, and he didn’t ease up one bit on his cop’s glare. Everly totally understood why he was riled to the bone. They were in danger. Others likely were, too, and Jared could be responsible.
“I didn’t want anyone in Peace Seekers to know,” Jared went on when Noah and she stayed silent. “Hell, I didn’t want anyone to know because I wasn’t sure it’d last. I saw my doctor, and he’s doing more tests, but he doesn’t know if I can continue to regain movement or if all of this is temporary.”
Everly wished she had ESP, or his medical records, so she could tell if he was lying. It would definitely be to the man’s advantage if the cops thought he wasn’t physically capable of carrying out the murders.
“I want you to give me signed permission to speak to your doctor,” Noah insisted after a long pause.
That tightened Jared’s jaw again. “If I say no, you’ll think I’m guilty.” He paused, his gaze still locked with Noah’s. The moments crawled by before Jared cursed. Then, he nodded. “I’ll call my doctor’s office and let them know you can have access. Can I go now?”
“No,” Noah was quick to answer. “First tell me about the ten thousand dollars you withdrew in cash from your investment account a week ago.”
Jared cursed again, and Everly could see the fierce battle he was having with his temper. “It was a gift to a friend.”
“To Daisy,” Noah supplied.
Jared shrugged but not before Everly saw the fresh surprise go through his eyes.
“Lie to me,” Noah repeated when Jared stayed silent, “and you’ll find yourself in a cell.”
