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He sat across from her and clasped her hand again. “Here’s what happened. Leaving you tucked safe and warm at home was tough, but somehow, I had to do to make a meeting with Barrow. We checked alibis, questioned people of interest, and went over evidence. Tests came back, and many of the hairs discovered at the deputy’s house were cut rather than shed or pulled. But those with roots belonged to eighteen different people. Most notably Denise Allen, the hairdresser ex, Madeline Gunn, the daughter, and Ashley Katz, our fellow file member. We also spoke with Mr. Garfield. When I heard a noise in back, I branched off to investigate. I was shot as I rounded a corner.”
A crime of panic or an act the killer pre-planned? “Was the shooter a man? Woman?”
“I caught the barest glimpse of him from behind. Tall and lean, with dark hair. He used a forty-caliber pistol with a suppressor. The same type of gun on the deputy’s walls.”
Definitely connected to the case. If someone was shooting at Conrad, then he must be on the right track. But that meant Jane was on the right track, too, and so far nothing.
Tall and lean with dark hair described Tom Bennett to a tee. Also the mysterious dark haired man Madeline mentioned. “Did you receive a warning letter before the attack?”
“I did not.”
So… Her thoughts raced a mile a minute, jumping from here to there. “To know the hairs belonged to specific people, you needed to compare two samples. Which means they were in the system. And why did he possess all that hair?” She recalled the pile she’d seen at the Gilded Scissor Salon. “What if the deputy visited his former girlfriend and bagged up a handful of strands? Or maybe Denise gave him a bag.” Eww. But why do such a thing? Why want such a thing?
“The current theory is that there is no theory,” he said and sighed.
“Yes. I concur,” Jane muttered, her gut remaining silent.
“As for your other questions,” Conrad said, “Deputy Gunn had digital files on Allen and Katz with tests run by a private lab he paid for with personal money. He didn’t have a file on his daughter, but we did. When she lived in Atlanta, she spent several months behind bars for drug possession with intent to sell.”
Whoa! Madeline had sold drugs? Perhaps even the exact drugs Tom was arrested for having? More evidence that pointed to the ex-boyfriend being the Gentleman. Or, perhaps, a certain family member… Like his brother.
Tom may have dated Madeline with hopes of recruiting her into his brother’s top secret organization. Because an absent sibling could absolutely be the Gentleman. One brother called the shots, the other did the work.
An opposite theory suggested Gunn confiscated drugs from his daughter and framed Tom.
Jane would start with the brother. “Madeline Gunn told me Tom has a sibling.”
“Yes. Oliver Bennett. Ollie. He died three years ago in a car accident.” Sympathy threaded Conrad’s tone. He understood the pain of losing your family in a wreck. “Thomas Bennett drove the vehicle, and Deputy Gunn worked the case. The deputy’s notes assign no blame to the younger Bennett. The car spun out of control on ice and hit a pole. Other than a few casual run ins, nothing suggests Gunn and Thomas Bennett maintained a relationship afterward. Well, until the CI thing came up. But I digress. We think Thomas lied to Miss Gunn, pretending that his sibling still lived in order to use the deceased Mr. Bennett as an excuse to spend time with other marks.”
“Possible. But why did Deputy Gunn add Oliver to BOSS? Board of Suspects and Shame, according to Madeline Gunn. The deputy had access to the same databases you do and knew the other Bennett boy was dead.”
He shrugged. “Right now, we don’t know if there is a BOSS. We’ve found no sign of its existence.”
“Maybe he kept it in a storage facility?”
“If so, there’s no financial record of renting one.”
“Relocated it?”
“Or destroyed it.”
Well. How disappointing. Perhaps Madeline had lied. Or had the authorities overlooked it? “I’m happy to search the house. I’m as great at finding hidden treasures as I am at homicide investigations. Just ask the little boy who lost his smile. Took me twenty-four hours, but I helped him find it.”
A bemused expression passed over Conrad’s face. “Is that little boy Beau?”
Affection squeezed Jane’s chest. “Yes. And as you have clearly witnessed, he still has it.”
Conrad snorted. “I’ll do my best to get you approved for a tour of the house.”
“Thank you, thank you, thank you. Oh! Before I forget, Madeline thinks Tom is hiding with his girlfriend, who might be Jessica Thacker.”
“As far as we can tell, Mr. Bennett and Mrs. Thacker ended things. He’s already seeing other women.” Conrad traced his thumb over her knuckles. “Tomorrow, we’ll be interviewing the mayor. He might have known about the affair and feared Deputy Gunn would expose the truth, hurting his reputation and pride.”
