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“‘We’ meaning Bancroft Development?”
“What are you getting at? What is this?” he demanded.
Savvy hesitated a moment, knowing she hadn’t been cleared to release information on DeWitt, also knowing that the word would be out within a few hours. “Mr. Williamson, we’re investigating the homicide of Owen DeWitt, who was killed sometime between Saturday night and today.”
His sharp intake of breath was a sound of pure fear. “What? How? Who did it? Do you know?”
“We’re hoping you can help.”
“Oh, my God.” He was rattled, but he was still on the phone.
“Do you know anything about a man who goes by Charlie? Even sometimes Good Time Charlie?”
“Charlie . . . no . . . I never heard that. . . .”
“It sounds like there might be something else.” Savannah gripped the receiver tighter.
“There was a guy from work that Owen saw sometimes . . . a real scary dude, but in a way Owen kinda liked, y’know? This guy bragged all the time about stuff he’d done, and lots of times it was kinda . . . raunchy.”
“Sexual?”
“Like real sexual,” Williamson agreed. “Owen was messed up after what happened with Bancroft Development. Kept trying to prove he was right and the dune was safe, but that was a lost cause. Jesus . . . I can’t believe he’s dead,” he whispered in disbelief.
“I spoke to Owen last weekend. He said he went back to Bancroft Bluff several times.”
“Oh, shit . . . oh, shit . . .”
“What?”
“He said the dude was there with some chick, at the Donatella house! Bangin’ her brains loose against a wall.”
Savvy’s throat felt hot. “Did he say that the woman was Kristina St. Cloud? Hale St. Cloud’s wife?”
“Holy . . . God . . . no, he didn’t say that. . . .” Williamson sounded horrified. “But . . .”
“But?” Savvy pressed when he trailed off.
“But there was something funny going on. Owen was kinda tickled about catching them. Like it was a big joke on the Bancroft clan. He didn’t like them much. Coulda been the wife, I suppose,” he said, rolling that over. “Makes sense, now that I think about it.”
“He intimated that he saw them more than once,” Savvy said, struggling to keep emotions under tight lock and key.
“Yeah, I think that’s right.”
“Did he ever act like . . . maybe there were more people there with them at any time?”
“Like, what do you mean? An orgy?”
Savvy hung on to her patience with an effort. “More like this friend of Owen’s was meeting other people there, besides his . . . date.”
“He was no friend of Owen’s. Believe me. The dude was just interesting, but in a way that, like, you wanted to stay ten feet back from him, wherever he was. Just enjoy the show, but keep out of range. That’s the impression I got. Man. You say his name is Charlie?”
“We don’t know his real name,” Savannah said.
“But you think this dude is the one who killed him.”
“It’s a possibility.”
“Shit, I’m glad I got outta there. Those Bancrofts . . . that fuckin’ scary town with the cult and all. I was glad to be on the other side of the mountains from them, but even Portland was too close. Tucson is just fine.”
