Deadly intentions, p.21
Deadly Intentions, page 21
This had become a game of chess for both sides, and he was going to have to watch every word. For a suspect, the goal was to appear innocent and cooperative, as if there was nothing to hide, while at the same time not offer up anything that would be incriminating. For the detectives, the goal was to sow doubts and uncover inconsistencies that gave the suspect enough rope to eventually hang himself.
He needed to prove to them that he was innocent without saying something they could twist and use against him. Not reacting to their claim about Caitlyn seemed the better option at the moment.
“Nothing to say?” Detective Adams tapped his fingers on the table. “Well, I have plenty I can say. You had an affair with your wife’s coworker, and when Olivia wouldn’t grant you a divorce, you killed her.”
Josh fought to stuff down the anger bubbling in his gut. “I’ve already told you, I didn’t kill my wife.”
“You were smart about it though. You thought you’d get away with murder by tying it to a string of burglaries.” Adams pointed at him. “And you know what? That actually worked. For a while. But not anymore.”
“You’re wrong. And besides, none of this makes sense. If I killed my wife and someone else was convicted for the murder, why would I have started asking questions again? Why would I do anything to draw attention to myself? Why would I do anything at all to try and prove that the men convicted of my wife’s murder were innocent?”
“It doesn’t make sense . . . unless perhaps your partner discovered the truth and decided he wasn’t going to keep your dirty little secret.”
Josh tugged on the collar of his shirt. He couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t believe what they were saying. He tried to calm down. He couldn’t forget that their plan was to spin him in circles until he couldn’t stand up anymore. He couldn’t let that happen.
“What you’re saying isn’t possible,” he said.
But the panic refused to let go. When the detectives had first walked in, he believed he’d have a chance of convincing them he was being set up. Had thought they’d believe him, or at least give him a chance and listen to a fellow officer. But none of that was true.
And how was that even possible? He’d worked with these guys for years. Surely someone would give him the benefit of the doubt. Surely someone would walk through that door and realize that things weren’t adding up. But instead, they were coming at him like they actually believed he was guilty.
“I’ve known both of you for years,” he said. “You can’t actually think I could have killed Olivia. And Quinton . . . he is . . . was . . . my partner.”
“Then tell me why you were there.”
“I was there because he asked me to meet him.” Josh leaned forward and caught Detective Adams’s gaze. “Think about it. You know I didn’t do this, Adams.”
Adams opened the folder and pulled out a photo of him and Caitlyn laughing and pushed it across the table at him. “You say you weren’t having an affair, but this was taken from security footage at Bistro 17 three weeks before your wife was murdered. The two of you look pretty cozy.”
Josh shook his head. That wasn’t possible. Or was it? He worked to place the photo. “There were four of us. Olivia and I went out with Caitlyn and her date. Dinner and then some event at a museum. You can talk to her date. Gary . . . Greg . . . I don’t remember. He’d just told a joke, I think.”
“You have an explanation for everything, don’t you?” Adams pulled out another photo and pushed it across the table, this time of Olivia’s body at the crime scene. “Looking back, I’m actually shocked that you never were on the suspect list after she was killed. Of course, you’re smart. Just not smart enough. Because we know now what happened. You and Caitlyn Lindsey were having an affair and decided to murder your wife. When your partner found out, you killed him as well. It will take very little to convince a jury of that.”
Josh looked straight ahead, avoiding the image of Olivia’s dead body that was already forever imprinted in his mind. “We don’t have to go over it again. I’ve told you what happened.”
“We’ll go over it until you tell us the truth,” Detective Adams said. “Because here’s the thing, Solomon. Everything you’ve told the authorities so far has been a lie. You didn’t return home that night to burglars ransacking your house. No, you killed your wife, then called 911. The neighborhood burglars were the perfect scapegoats, weren’t they? Everyone immediately had their eyes focused on them instead of you. And all you had to do was say you’d seen them fleeing your house. You even went as far as to say you chased them down the road and lost them, and then returned so you could be there as your wife took her last breath. The grieving husband, with his bloodstained shirt from trying to save her would—just as you thought—make for the perfect alibi. It was quite a performance.”
“Except none of that really happened, did it?” Detective Sanchez took his turn. “You killed your wife and watched her bleed to death in your bed.”
“And then I hid the murder weapon in my attic?” Josh shoved the photos back across the table. “Do you actually think I’d be that stupid?”
“Then how would you do it?”
“How would I do it?” Josh drew in a deep breath. “That’s the point. I didn’t do it. I wouldn’t do it.”
He stared at the wall behind the detectives. Fatigue and emotion were starting to play tricks on his mind. He was going to back himself into a hole if he wasn’t careful. After pinning his wife’s murder on him, they could easily guarantee his silence. It wouldn’t be hard to pay someone to kill him behind bars.
The perfect murder.
He shifted his gaze to the one-way window, wondering who was standing on the other side. Wondering if Caitlyn really was sitting in another room right now, like him, being interrogated. He had no way of knowing whether she was here or still on the run. Either way, she was in trouble. Whoever was behind this had long arms. And he’d played right into their hands.
“There’s more behind this than you realize,” he said, needing them to understand what had really happened. “It’s true that the wrong people were convicted for Olivia’s murder. I know that. But I didn’t do it. There was something going on at her lab . . . they were working on a killer virus worth millions of dollars . . . and Olivia wasn’t the only one killed for it.”
Adams glanced at Detective Sanchez and chuckled. “So now you’re actually going to spout off some crazy killer virus conspiracy theory.”
It did sound crazy. He sounded crazy.
“Are you done?” Adams asked. “We know there was no robbery. No armed men who entered your house that night. And definitely no conspiracy at your wife’s lab. Your fingerprints were on the gun that killed her. You killed her.”
“No!”
Josh pressed his hands on the table. He was getting caught up in their game. Playing the hand they wanted. He’d been set up. All the evidence pointed at him, and even the truth he’d discovered had been twisted. Somehow, he’d thought because they were friends he could explain the truth. But the truth was that it didn’t matter what he said. They were planning to take him down no matter what he did.
“I’ve said enough. I want a lawyer.”
“Fine.” Adams scooted back his chair. “You can call your lawyer, but in the meantime, you might want to start praying for your soul. Because according to rumors out of the DA’s office, they’re planning on going for the death penalty.”
27
Josh glanced down at the smear of red on the sleeve of his shirt and felt his stomach roil at the reminder. Quinton’s blood. Why hadn’t he seen that before? The police would say it was more proof he’d been involved in his partner’s murder. His attempts to convince them he was innocent had failed because there was a greater force working against him out there. But no matter how this looked, he wasn’t ready to stop fighting. Not yet.
He rubbed the back of his neck, knowing he looked guilty. And he couldn’t really blame them. The evidence was there. His guilt obvious. They truly believed he’d killed his wife and then his partner who’d gotten too close to the truth. But they were wrong.
How do I make them believe me, God?
The door opened, and a brief sense of relief washed over Josh at the familiar face. Eddie stepped into the room before closing the door.
“I’m trying to decide if this plan of yours is brilliant, or just plain crazy.” He set two coffees down on the table, then slid one of them across to Josh.
“At this point, probably a bit of both.”
“How are you doing?”
“Let’s see.” Josh frowned at the question. “I’ve just been accused of murdering two people, including my wife. Everyone here seems to have turned against me, and even if I do manage to get out of this, my career is over. If I don’t get off, I’ll either be executed or I’ll spend the rest of my life in prison if, that is, I manage to survive the first forty-eight hours.”
“I guess that wasn’t the right question.” Eddie dropped his leather messenger bag on the table, then sat down across from him.
Josh reached for the coffee. “I’ve never seen you in a suit.”
“I’d actually forgotten I even owned one, but I thought I should at least try to look the part of a lawyer.”
“I appreciate your coming, because I need your help,” Josh said, jumping straight to the reason he’d called Eddie and not a lawyer. “At this point, you’re the only person I know I can trust. They killed Quinton.”
“I heard it on the news on the way over here. I’m so sorry.”
Josh didn’t miss Eddie’s gaze stopping on his bloody sleeve. He wanted to shower and change. Wanted to walk out the door like none of this had happened. But none of those things were going to happen anytime soon. He needed to find Caitlyn and make sure she was okay, and on top of that, find the evidence they were innocent.
“First let me say that I’ve read through the file they have on you, and I still believe you.”
“I was hoping you’d say that.”
“You saved my life, and I’d trust you with mine again, but that said, this doesn’t look good.” Eddie had never been one to beat around the bush either. “The DA has some pretty incriminating evidence that’s going to be hard to refute. And if this ends up going in front of a jury . . . I can promise you, those twelve men and women aren’t going to be sympathetic to the idea of a cop who killed his wife and then his partner.”
Josh managed a sip of coffee. “That’s exactly why I need your help, starting with finding a way to get me out on bail.”
“The DA’s pushing for no bail, and more than likely the judge’s going to agree.”
The confirmation that he wasn’t going anywhere felt like a punch in the gut.
“I guess that makes sense. If the assistant DA’s involved in this, he’s going to make sure I’m not going anywhere.” Josh stood up, feeling like a caged animal. “Here’s the other problem. I won’t last a day in prison. Someone wants me dead, and whoever that someone is, I’m pretty sure they decided this was the cleanest way to take care of me.”
Eddie frowned. “I have to admit the same thing crossed my mind. The problem we have right now is that the evidence against you is pretty solid. The murder weapon . . . the signed divorce papers . . . And there’s also Caitlyn Lindsey.”
“I’m assuming they told you she confessed that we were having an affair, and when Olivia wouldn’t sign the divorce papers, I killed her.”
“They did.”
“Do you really think they brought her in, or are they just playing me?”
“Honestly, I think anything’s possible at this point.” Eddie leaned forward. “I tried to call her like you asked but haven’t been able to get ahold of her. I’m thinking either she ditched her phone, or they’re telling the truth and she’s here.”
He was second-guessing his decisions. He’d turned himself in so she could get away. Now everything had backfired against him.
“First of all, the two of us weren’t and aren’t having an affair. I’d hardly spent any time with her until the past few days. And even if they have her, she wouldn’t have confessed to any of that, because it isn’t true.”
“There’s something else you need to know,” Eddie said.
Josh felt his chest tighten. “What?”
“As I was coming in, the detectives told me they’d just been given new information. Caitlyn had been afraid someone was after her, and she’d been run off the road.”
“That’s true. The night I met with her for the first time, she had a bruise on her face. She’d been checked into the hospital for observation, but she left.” Josh struggled to draw in a breath, waiting for the next bombshell. They’d managed to twist everything that had happened so far. This was clearly not going to be any different. “What did they tell you about it?”
Eddie pulled a file from his bag. “According to the information I was just handed, your car was found. They believe that the paint marks on her car match the paint on your car. On top of that, a witness to the accident gave a description of your car.”
“A witness. Of course.” Josh ran his fingers through his hair. “But that doesn’t even make sense. Why would I try to run her off the road?”
“Because she found out you murdered your wife and decided she was going to go to the police. They’re saying you kidnapped her from the hospital and have been holding her until today.”
The room was closing in on him. He wasn’t going to win this. That virus was worth millions, and someone had already made it clear that anyone who got in their way was going to be eliminated. Framing him for the murder of his wife was actually brilliant. Because proving he didn’t do it was going to be far harder than proving he did.
Josh pressed his fingers against his temples. His head pounded like it was in some kind of vise. He sucked in a deep breath. He knew what the detectives were doing. This was nothing more than a mind game. They were trying to play him and Caitlyn against each other, but it wasn’t going to work.
“When you were at my store you mentioned a bioweapon. Is that still what we’re looking at?”
Josh nodded. “Caitlyn found Helen Fletcher’s lab notes and was able to confirm that they’d discovered a virulent virus where the vaccine could generate a more lethal strain of the virus that would spread instead of stopping it.”
“That sounds nasty,” Eddie said.
“Combined with the right researcher and buyer, it would be deadly. We were trying to find out who was behind it and in particular who might be trying to sell the virus.”
“I’m assuming you have a plan?”
“You are my plan. First of all, I need to know she’s safe,” Josh said. “Can you confirm that the police have her in custody?”
“I can confirm that’s their story. Whether it’s true or not, I don’t know.”
“Then I need you to find out if she was arrested, or if they’re lying to me.”
“Okay, what else?”
“If she is still out there, I need you to make sure she’s safe. I did what I could to protect her, but I’m worried about her on her own. I also need evidence.” He knew it was a tall order, but if anyone could pull this off, Eddie could. “Concrete evidence that will trump anything they’ve got against me.”
“Where do you want me to start?”
“We know there are at least three people involved in this,” Josh continued. “The assistant DA Nigel Hayward, Jarred Carmichael from the lab where Olivia worked, and Shawn Stover, aka Jigsaw. The problem is, we don’t have any solid evidence that ties them to Starlighter.”
“Seems like the DA’s office would be a good place to start. I have some contacts there.” Eddie nodded, then pushed back his chair. “We’re going to figure out who’s behind this, Josh.”
A wave of relief washed over him. “Thank you.”
“Like I said, I owe you, but you need to be careful. You know how this works. I will do everything I can to get the evidence you need to clear you, but in the meantime, think twice before you say anything. They’ve already proved that they’re going to do whatever they have to in order to take you down.”
28
Caitlyn shifted in the hard, wooden chair in the back of the library as she accessed the building’s Wi-Fi on the computer Quinton had given them, then felt her heart stop as she clicked onto Channel 13 news. The featured story showed a photo of Josh handcuffed in front of the house where Quinton had been murdered.
HOUSTON COP ARRESTED FOR THE MURDER OF HIS WIFE AND FELLOW DETECTIVE. JUDGE DENIES BAIL.
She quickly scanned the article that included statements from the assistant DA, who had been involved in Olivia’s case, with strong wording that justice would be carried out. There was no mention of her involvement, but this . . . this had to be wrong. She glanced back at the photo. If Josh had been arrested at the house, he hadn’t planned to run. He’d planned to take the fall.
The realization brought with it a wave of nausea. Turning himself in was a death sentence. He’d said it himself. And he’d done it all in an attempt to save her. Which meant she had to do everything in her power to put an end to this. And that had to start with a plan. Not taking any chances, she’d ditched the burn phone she had and bought another one where she’d transferred some of the numbers. Two bus rides and a taxi had brought her to a community library on the other side of Houston, ready to implement the rest of her plan.
She sat back in her chair. Josh had wanted her to leave Houston, but this article only confirmed her decision to stay. He was being set up and she needed to find a way to help him.
Her head pounded as she tried to remember everything they had talked about when they discussed running. No credit cards. No cell phones. No communication with friends. They were going to expect her to contact people in her circle of friends. Her friends on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Somehow it had turned into a game of cat and mouse. She had no idea what the rules were, let alone how to win. Where was she supposed to run? She’d hesitated going too far on her own, which was why she was still in the city. And now she was glad. In the end, she had no doubt that they would find her. She planned to have solid evidence to back up her story when they did.
