Page 69 of Death on Gallows Path

“So, there wasn’t a fight?” Clara asked with faint disappointment.

“Nothing like that. And no way— I mean, those guys might not mourn him, but no way would they have anything to do with . . . you know.”

We nodded, seeming to accept his certainty, while reserving our doubts.

My thoughts snagged on something else.

His extra punch on they vouched for these Dailey cousins not having anything to do with Damon’s death, but not for someone else.

“Is there something you’re not telling us?” I asked.

“All right, all right,” he said as if I already knew what he was about to say. “He can’t have expected to keep it secret coming here, where he was known, and now that he’s dead . . .”

Clara jumped in. “Damon was fooling around with somebody. Somebody who was married.” She clarified Damon’s status by adding, “Also married.”

I didn’t begrudge her the satisfaction that leaked out around her restraint.

It wasn’t one-hundred percent that the suspected fooling-around-with-Damon woman Rich knew about and the one Clara had seen, then pointed out to me were one and the same. But it sure was a theory worth exploring.

Along with the corollary that the lurking man was her husband.

I suddenly remembered Willow Yost’s different rosy color when Clara asked who else the Swindells hung out with and she said I don’t know anything about that.

That being a certain relationship Damon had with someone?

“Yeah.” Rich confirmed Clara’s statements, without knowing he’d also answered my internal question. “Blanche Alsup — married to William Alsup. You know his mom’s a Dailey and he’s one of the cousins running the car washes.”

Ding, ding. Double motives for William Alsup — Damon presumably cheating with his wife and threatening his family business.

“I don’t know him,” Clara said. “What does he look like?”

“Nothing out of the ordinary. Kind of a big guy.”

Clara shot me a look, reminding me of the bulky shadow we’d seen, along with Willow’s description of the guy who tackled Damon in his garage.

As if he knew the import of that look, Rich said, “But William was here Thursday night. As a matter of fact, he was here with his wife. Him and Blanche being here together is rare enough that it was commented on. They were the last table, making it hard for the staff to wrap up. Not that they seemed to be particularly enjoying each other’s company.”

“Like they were trying to create an alibi?” I asked. “Wait, wait, wait. That didn’t work as an alibi. It left most of the night unaccounted for before Damon’s vehicle was spotted around dawn.”

Rich shrugged unhelpfully. He capped that unhelpfulness by adding, “Need to get this work finished . . .”

Clara produce d a sunny smile and said with absolute conviction, “Sure. We know you’ll be happy to talk to us again when we come back with more questions.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

In the van, headed to her house, Clara said, “I wish we’d known about Alsup and his wife before the ladies left. I’ll message and ask what they know. Sure looks like this elephant resides in North Bend County.”

“With Rich indicating Damon took his shady business practices along with him when he traveled, he could have made enemies elsewhere, too.”

“Wouldn’t it make more sense for an out-of-town enemy to kill him there instead of here? No commute and they’d know the area.”

“Home-field advantage for murder?”

“Nice phrase, you writer, you. Are you going to tell Teague about all this?”

“You think I should?”

“No. I don’t ever think you should. But if you’re going to tell him something and he and the department happen to spend a lot of time chasing leads out of town, that wouldn’t be all bad.”