AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I’m very busy today,” said Selma, standing and closing her laptop.
“And I’m investigating a murder. My need for expediency trumps your need for control. Now sit down, answer my questions, and we’ll be out of your hair in no time.”
“What is she doing here?” asked Selma.
“Nice to see you, too,” snarked Jessica.
“She is a special consultant with the State Police and has graciously taken time away from her schedule, which truly is busy, to help me out.”
“Fine,” said Selma in a voice that said it truly wasn’t. “What can I help you with?”
“I’m going to assume you heard Gregory Thompson was murdered…”
“Is it murder? I heard he was found dead in a hotel room registered to Jessica.”
“The medical examiner ruled it a suspicious death. He’ll have more details for us when he finishes his autopsy, but he was quite certain that Mr. Thompson had been murdered. Now, can you tell me if you had any financial dealings with the deceased?”
“I don’t have to answer any of your questions without a lawyer.”
“That’s true enough,” said Jessica. “But how do you think that’ll play in the press, not just here in Badger’s Drift but state and nationwide?”
“You wouldn’t,” hissed Selma.
“We both know I would,” Jessica assured her.
“Ladies,” said Thorn patiently. “There’s no need for this. I just have a few questions, Ms. Griffin. You can answer them here or down at the station.”
“I won’t go.”
“Then I’ll put you in handcuffs and give you no choice.”
“The press just loves a good perp walk,” said Jessica with decided malevolence.
“Jessica, play nice. What’s it to be, Ms. Griffin—here or down at the police station?”
“Fine. No, I had no dealings with Thompson—financial or otherwise.”
“Then can you explain why your name was encoded in a secret ledger he kept hidden?”
“If it’s coded, you have no way to know what those numbers stand for.”
Dismissing her answer, Thorn continued, “Have you been up to the Lighthouse B&B in the past few days?”
“No.”
“Can you account for your whereabouts during the time of the murder?”
“At that hour of the morning I would have been at home, where staff can verify my presence or my driver was bringing me in or I was here in the office.”
Thorn nodded, making notes on his pad. “Last question, can you think of anything that might shed some light on why someone would want to kill Mr. Thompson?”
“No, I cannot.” Selma stood again. “Now will you please leave? And I will trust you to keep this meeting confidential.”
“I can’t promise that, Ms. Griffin, but I can say I and my team will try to be discreet.”
Thorn and Jessica retreated to her SUV. Once inside, he looked at her. “I take it you picked up on the wrongness of her answers?”
Jessica nodded. “You didn’t tell her Thompson used numbers instead of names. You never said what the time of death was or even gave a specific range of hours, and the last one was just so you could show she was lying and not answering you truthfully.”
