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?“I can’t…imagine.”
?She looked me in the eye, and then looked back in the direction our mugger went.
?“Damn,” she muttered.
26. Multiple Submissions
Sheryl Homes
?An hour later, DeStadler paced the room like a wild animal and stared at the photos on my phone. “At least this time you walked in here, instead of me tracking you down.”
?He glowered at the pair of us.
?“I don’t see what you are upset about, detective,” I attempted, and tried to stare daggers right back at him. “We found important evidence and made an effort to bring it to you. That should count for something.”
?“It’s not our fault it was stolen,” Mark pointed out.
?“And we did bring you the pictures,” I defended.
?“Yeah, very convenient,” DeStadler griped. “You find something that might clear you, and it is mysteriously stolen in broad daylight by a mugger you cannot describe as anything more than ‘tall.’”
?DeStadler’s face was as red as a lobster just out of the pot.
?“Detective,” Mark explained, “I didn’t notice if the pipe you found at the crime scene had the red ‘X’ on the bottom.”
?“You mentioned that, and I can see the ‘X’ on this one in the photo,” DeStadler scoffed and put my phone on the table in front of me. “A point that you bring to us after the fact. If you had mentioned this ‘X’ mark when we first brought you in or when you first saw the pipe we had in evidence, I might’ve bought it. For all I know, you purchased this pipe and put the ‘X’ on it yourself.”
?“Why would I do that?” Mark challenged.
?“To create doubt. You have to admit, even the receipt you showed me is dated after we brought you in the first time.”
?“I have explained that I thought it was lost,” Mark argued. “And that I was paying for it.”
?“Yeah, yeah,” DeStadler grumbled. “And we still have no explanation why your fingerprints were found on the pipe at the crime scene.”
?I interrupted. “There was a second pipe Mark touched at another booth.”
?DeStadler stared at both of us. “You mentioned that when you got here today, and I had someone check up on this Norm Blake. He is just a guy who sells jewelry—no criminal record. Not even an unpaid parking ticket. We don’t have any logical reason to get a warrant for his stuff.”
?Mark held up the lab printout and complained, “We also brought proof that I’d been drugged.”
?“A lab test that you cannot even show was a sample taken from you? Look, we have actual evidence. The gun—”
?“Circumstantial at best!” I announced and folded my arms in defiance.
?“Yes, and what you told me about Jon Kane showing up at Mr. Watkins’ apartment last night is circumstantial as well,” DeStadler growled, and focused his attention on me. “By the way, I distinctly recall telling you not to leave the hotel, and yet somehow you ended up in Watkin’s apartment.”
?I was frustrated at this point. “I think that Jon Kane was trying to find that pipe!”
?“Ah, yes. This mysterious pipe with a magical hidden flash drive,” DeStadler said. “Look, we took a statement from Mr. Kane. On the night of the murder, he was seen at a bar at the hotel until 1:00 AM. Then he went to his room.”
?“Can he prove that?” I snapped.
?“We checked the surveillance video at the hotel. According to the time stamp, Mr. Kane got into the elevator at 1:15 and went to the 12th floor. There is no way he could get downtown in time to kill Mr. Lawrence.”
?Mark rose up in his chair. “There are cameras at the hotel? This
can prove I was carried to my room—”
