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“I don’t—”
“And don’t tell me you don’t know. I know you do.”
Another sigh. “Fine. It’s calledPerfect Pursuit: Winning at Love.”
“That sounds familiar.”
“If you saw the cover, you’d recognize it. It was on the top of theNew York Timesbestseller list for like two years or something. Anyway, they were both marriage counselors and then they wrote this book, and it went viral. Then they started the show. I’m pretty sure they’ve got a podcast, too.”
“So they give out relationship advice,” Josie said.
“Yeah, pretty much, except I guess the idea is to make it fun or something. You’ve really never seen their show? A few of their clips have gone viral.”
“I haven’t had much time to watch TV the last…”
“Several years?” he filled in.
She laughed. “Yeah, that’s about right.”
A uniformed officer materialized from the darkness between the cruiser and the driveway, replete in drab gray rain gear. Josie cracked her window. After a brief conversation, the officer waved them along.
At the top of the driveway, a small triangular sign announced:This Home is Protected by Summers Security. Beyond that, asphalt gave way to a large expanse of cobblestone which surrounded the massive house. Several vehicles were crowded around a detached three-car garage: three civilian sedans, three police cruisers, an ambulance, and an SUV with the words “Denton Police Department Evidence Response Team” emblazoned across its side. Its hatch was open. Directly in front of it was a canvas pop-up tent. Beside that was a small white pickup truck that belonged to Denton’s medical examiner, Dr. Anya Feist. Josie parked next to one of the cruisers and took a moment to study the windows at the front of the house, stretching from top to bottom and blazing with light. A crime scene tech in white Tyvek gear could be seen snapping photos.
“You ready?” asked Mettner.
They got out and jogged over to a set of wide stone steps presently guarded by another uniformed officer in rain gear. He took down their names and badge numbers on a clipboard he pulled from inside his rain jacket. On the landing at the top of the steps, someone on the team had erected another pop-up tent. Under it was a portable halogen light and several plastic bins marked “Property of Denton PD Evidence Response Team.” Beside the bins, blocking the front door, was yet another uniformed officer. Josie recognized him without reading his nameplate. “Brennan,” she said. “What’ve we got?”
He took out a notepad and flipped some pages, reading from his notes. “911 call came in at six thirteenp.m. from a woman named Margot Huff. She identified herself as the personal assistant of Beau Collins, one of the homeowners. She stated that someone was deceased in the home. We got here and found her, Mr. Collins, and another adult female who identified herself as Eve Bowers, assistant to Dr. Claudia Collins, waiting inside that Lexus over there.” He pointed over their shoulders toward the civilian vehicles grouped around the garage. “The 911 operator instructed them to vacate the premises. It was raining, so they took cover in Mr. Collins’s vehicle.”
“Who found the deceased?” Josie asked.
Brennan said, “Miss Bowers. She arrived here around sixp.m., she says, and went inside to assist Dr. Claudia Collins with party preparations. She relates that when she entered, she found blood in the kitchen and found Dr. Collins deceased in the dining room. She came out here just as Beau Collins and Margot Huff were pulling up.”
“Did Beau Collins or Miss Huff go inside at all?” asked Mettner.
Brennan nodded. “Mr. Collins did, but all three of them say that he was not in there long. A minute, tops. He said he needed to see the body for himself. When we got here, we cleared the house, secured the scene and called in additional units. I got here around six forty-five. The ERT and Dr. Feist were already here. Dr. Feist waited here with me while the ERT got started. The three witnesses were placed in separate cruisers.”
That accounted for the number of cruisers.
“You can send them to the station,” Josie said. “I don’t want them to have contact with one another, though. Separate interview rooms. Make sure they’re comfortable. Get them something to eat and drink. We’re going to be here a while.”
Brennan nodded along with her words. Then he clicked the radio on his shoulder and dipped his chin to speak into it, giving orders to the officers parked in front of the garage.
Mettner said, “You don’t want to talk with them first?”
“No,” Josie said. “They’ll be fine. I want to have a look at what we’re dealing with before we sit down with them.” Looking at Brennan, she said, “What else did you get from their initial statements?”
He flipped more pages in his notebook. “Today is the fifteenth wedding anniversary of the homeowners, Beau and Claudia Collins. As I said, Eve Bowers came to help Dr. Claudia Collins set up for dinner. Mr. Collins and Miss Huff were also here for the anniversary dinner. A video crew was also slated to appear.”
“A video crew?” Josie said.
Brennan looked up from his notes. “Yeah. Apparently they’ve got some show on WYEP. Local celebrities.”
“Mettner told me,” Josie said. “But why a video crew for an anniversary dinner?”
“Ms. Huff said it was for their fans.”
Mettner added, “Their whole schtick is about good relationships. They’re like the models for it. They share a lot of personal stuff on the show and on their social media platforms.”
