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“Who knew grammar was such a double-edged sword?”
“No doubt the deputy hoped those warning letters would give credence to the mobster he’d invented. He probably expected Ashley Katz to jump at the chance to report on the scourge plaguing the good people of Aurelian Hills, and when she didn’t, he had to up his game. That meant actually producing the crime boss. Enter Tom Bennett, the Casanova gigolo romancing Gunn’s daughter.”
One of Conrad’s brows ascended in a show of curiosity. “Casanova gigolo?”
“Just go with it,” she said, on a roll. “Maybe Deputy Gunn took drugs from his daughter and planted them on Tom, maybe Tom already had them. Either way, the deputy seized the chance to arrest the guy, giving him the perfect opportunity to negotiate terms. Pretend to work for the made-up Gentleman or go to prison. But Deputy Gunn intended to betray Tom all along and transform him into the mobster. How better to win the election than to bust a dangerous, up-and-coming crime boss?”
Conrad turned thoughtful. “So Tom figured out his plan and killed him? Or had him killed.”
Here’s where things got interesting. She shook her head. “You saw how cocky the bartender is, not to mention his incredible acting chops. He played the upset victim who’d never heard of the Gentleman to perfection. I doubt Tom was threatened by Deputy Gunn. Both Madeline and Tom mentioned the deputy doing something kind in Tom’s past. I bet Deputy Gunn helped Tom the night his brother perished in that car accident. He had no desire to harm the man, especially irrevocably. And, with his illicit connections and a computer full of blackmail fodder, he was confident he could beat any charge Gunn lobbed at him.”
“This is making sense. Go on.”
“Gunn was in too deep to let Tom live. He may have even convinced himself he was doing the world a favor by getting rid of a man known for blackmailing—who might be blackmailing his own daughter.” Jane stretched to grab a photo of the gunshots in the deputy’s wall. “Plus, this element of the case has been bothering me. What if Gunn made it look as though an altercation occurred, hoping to kill Tom and claim it was self-defense?”
Conrad set her aside and surged to his feet to pace. A sure sign he was following her twisty mental pathway. “So how did Gunn die?”
“I think, well, he drugged himself. Accidentally. Or on purpose. No, accidentally.” She nodded to let him know she’d chosen a final answer.
He blinked at her. “I’m going to need you to explain this one, Jane.”
Happy to. “Gunn understood he had to get rid of the only person with knowledge of the Gentleman’s inauthenticity, but realized he might not beat Tom in a fight. He chose the next best thing. Kill the supposed crime boss with an overdose.”
“And the best vehicle for doing so was his morning coffee?” Conrad finished for her.
She grinned. “Look at that. You got it in one. I may have to return that detective’s badge to you.”
“And I’ll cherish it. But I still don’t understand how Gunn accidentally consumed the drug.”
Easy. “Since he’d worked in law enforcement, he’d witnessed mistakes made by other criminals. To concoct a foolproof scheme, he just needed to do a test run to find out how the drug reacted to coffee. How the beverage looked and smelled. I think he poured himself a mug, plus a second to practice. Something could have distracted him, or maybe he’d been ultra-focused on another part of his scheme. Either way, he forgot there was a second mug.”
“And without thought, he grabbed a mug and drank out of habit.”
“Exactly.” She nodded for emphasis. “He planted evidence in the wrong field and reaped a killer crop.”
“But who shot me? Who sent Ashley Katz the letter?”
“I’m willing to bet Gunn mailed Ashley the letter right before his death, hoping to scare her into retracting her story and relaunching his campaign.”
“Makes sense. The random strands of hair he swiped from his ex-girlfriend's salon were probably meant to be used as evidence at the Gentleman’s crime scenes. Either to add a layer of intrigue, distracting the police and forensics team as they chased a red herring, or incriminate people who’d gotten on Gunn’s bad side.”
“Or both,” Jane said. “As for your shooter, my money is on Tom. You are a lawman he can’t buy or blackmail, and you found him at Hugh’s house. He panicked.” And now, with the truth known and Tom locked away, the future sheriff was safe. All was right in Jane’s world.
Just like that, satisfaction was achieved. Case closed. Suddenly fatigue poured through her, and she yawned. “Well, time for sleepy night-night...in the early morning.”
Conrad chuckled softly. “I need to speak with Barrow. I’m going to brush my teeth and go. Feel free to stay here as long as you wish. My home is your home.”
