Barrett looked through the observation window into the interview room.Olivia Stewart sat at the metal table with her hands folded in her lap.She was waiting for them to come in.Barrett noticed that she sat stiffly, pressing her fingers together.
"What's the approach?"he asked, though he already had a good idea.
Sullivan kept his voice low."Start general.Her care routine, Celia Ann's health in the final months.Let her tell the story the way she told it before.Then I introduce the pharmacy records and ask her to explain the inconsistencies."He tapped the file folder."I flagged the refill dates that don't match the prescribed dosages."
Barrett nodded.That was the core of it.If Olivia had been giving Celia Ann her medications correctly, the refill timeline would have been consistent.
"What about the money?"Barrett said.
"I'll bring it up if there's an opening," Sullivan said."But the primary focus is the medications.I want her rattled, not cornered.If she feels cornered, she asks for a lawyer and we lose the momentum."
"Understood."
Sullivan looked at Barrett."You know her.You've sat across from her before.Watch for the tells."
"I will."
Sullivan opened the door to the interview room, and Barrett followed him in.
*****
Olivia looked up as they entered.Her gaze went to Sullivan first, then to Barrett.
"Ms.Stewart, thank you for coming in," Sullivan said, settling into the chair across from her.He set the file folder on the table and placed his coffee mug to the side."I'm Detective Sullivan.I believe you've met Mr.Anson."
"Yes," Olivia said.She looked at Barrett as he took the seat beside Sullivan."We met at my apartment with Cadie."
Barrett nodded."Good to see you again."
The pleasantry was deliberate.He wanted her to feel that this was a conversation, not an interrogation.Sullivan had set the room up that way.The lighting was even, the chairs were the same on both sides of the table, and there were no files spread out to suggest a mountain of evidence.Just a single folder, closed, resting beneath Sullivan's hand.
"As I mentioned on the phone," Sullivan said, "we're following up on matters related to the estate settlement.Your insight as Celia Ann's caregiver is valuable, and we appreciate your time."
"Of course," Olivia said.She folded her hands on the table."Anything I can do to help."
Sullivan began with broad questions.How long had Olivia cared for Celia Ann?What did a typical day look like?What were Celia Ann's primary health concerns?The questions were gentle and open-ended, designed to let Olivia talk and to establish a baseline for her story.
Olivia answered the way Barrett expected.She described her nearly four years with Celia Ann, the daily routines of medication management, meal preparation, and appointments.She spoke with the practiced cadence of someone who had told this story before, hitting the same emotional beats she had used at her apartment.She mentioned how close they had become, how Celia Ann was more than a patient, and stressed that the loss had been devastating.
Barrett listened and observed.
"Can you walk us through her health in the final months?"Sullivan said."Specifically, any changes you noticed."
Olivia looked at her hands."She declined gradually.Starting about six months before she passed.More fatigue, sleeping more during the day, less energy overall."She looked up."It was consistent with her age and her heart condition.The doctor said it was expected."
"Which doctor?"Sullivan said.
"Dr.Morrison.He had been her physician for years."
"And you accompanied her to those appointments?"
"Yes, I went to each one," Olivia said."I managed everything, including her medications, her schedule, and her transportation.She depended on me."
Barrett noted the emphasis on the word "depended."It was a word that conveyed Olivia's importance, her centrality to Celia Ann's life.It was also a word that described the very access and control that had made the crime possible.
"Tell us about the medications," Barrett said, keeping his tone conversational."How did you manage the daily routine?"
Olivia turned to him."She took multiple medications, including heart medication, blood pressure medication, and cholesterol medication.I kept a schedule and made sure she took everything at the right times."
