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“And where did she go?” Trent asked.
“Tipsy Moose Alehouse.”
Amanda was very familiar with the place. It was where she’d met Logan. “What time was this?”
“Right after she finished work at five.”
“Do you know when she got home?” Amanda was piecing together a timeline.
“She texted at ten saying she had more than a few drinks and ended up getting dinner too. But she said she’d just gotten in and couldn’t wait for tomorrow… today.” His eyes blanked over.
What he told them was easy to verify with a look at Jane’s phone, but they could also tell from Lee’s. “Would you be able to show us that message on your phone?”
“Ah, sure.” Lee pulled out the device, swiped to the correct screen, and showed it to Amanda and Trent.
“Did she say why her week was stressful?” Amanda wasn’t sure how the answer might affect the investigation.
“A couple of orders came in with the wrong finishes—not Jane’s fault but still a headache. It might not sound like a big deal, but she’s selling high-end furniture where she works. We’re talking thousands of dollars for a couch, and there are more custom options than Starbucks offers for coffee.”
That’s saying a lot!
Lee continued. “It takes months for orders to be fulfilled. Customers are required to put down fifty percent upfront and pay the remaining upon delivery. One of those customers canceled their order and demanded a refund. The other was none too happy and said they’d wait but requested a deep discount for their trouble. All this reached Jane’s boss. The errors weren’t her fault, but she still got in crap for not redeeming both sales.”
“Sounds like she had a tough boss,” Trent said.
Lee nodded. “The guy’s a real asshat.”
“This question might strike you as odd, but did you or Jane know Felicity Kelley?” She’d exercised patience getting to this point but couldn’t wait any longer.
“Felicity Kelley? Isn’t that the author of The Romeo Killer? Oh my god.” Lee slapped a hand over his mouth.
Amanda suspected he was putting the pieces together—the murders in the book, how he had found his girlfriend.
Lee dropped his arm. “I read the book, and the guy—the killer—murders women by stabbing them in the heart. And I found Jane in the exact same way he left his victims.” He met Amanda’s gaze, his eyes widened. “Is someone out there copying the murders from the book? Why my Jane?”
“There are many answers we have yet to figure out, Mr. Steedman.” She kept her tone even and calm. The last thing they needed was for him to run off to the media in a panic, shouting serial killer. “We will need the time of your meeting, along with the client’s name and phone number.”
Lee gave them that information and added, “We were together from five until midnight. Long meeting, but it’s not like I could get away. Please only call him if it’s absolutely necessary. But you have my word, I would never do anything to hurt Jane.”
Amanda handed her business card to Lee. “We’re very sorry for your loss. If you would like counseling or someone to talk to, let me know and Victims Services, a unit with the PWCPD, can come out and talk with you.”
“That won’t be necessary. I’ll get through somehow.”
Amanda recognized the tough front from enforcing it herself after Kevin’s and Lindsey’s deaths.
Lee pocketed Amanda’s card. “Does this mean I’m free to leave? Not that I have any idea where I’m going now. Guess I should call the hotel and cancel the booking.”
“You are free to leave,” Amanda told him, her heart hurting for the man. She and Trent walked toward the house.
Lee pulled out of the driveway just as the ME’s van parked in front of the house.
Amanda turned to Trent. “We need to hit the bar and confirm if Burr was there last night. Someone on staff could have seen her leave with a man or noticed one paying her attention.”
“Agreed, but I don’t think they’re open for a couple hours yet. Eleven thirty, I believe.”
“That’s right. Well, there’s lots to keep us busy until then.”
She entered the house with Trent; Rideout and Liam weren’t far behind.
