“Detective Lindenhurst,” Mary called out. “I’d like to meet with my client in an interview room before we talk.”
“Do you really think that’s necessary, Ms. DiNunzio?” Detective Lindenhurst turned around with a professional smile. “We’re not going to keep him that long.”
“I do think it’s necessary, but thanks.” Mary smiled back, equally professionally, then took a few steps forward with Simon toward the interview rooms on the right, a line of three doors cracked partway open. “Why don’t I just take him in and I’ll let you know when we’re finished? We won’t be long.”
“Fine, this way.” Detective Lindenhurst led them to interview room A and gestured them inside.
“I’m assuming this will be completely private,” Mary said to him, just to be sure. “Last time I was here, the videocameras weren’t working.”
“It still isn’t.” Detective Lindenhurst smiled, more naturally. “And yes, it will be completely private. Can I get either of you a water or a coffee? We got vending machine coffee. It’s better than it sounds.”
Mary knew it wasn’t. “No thank you.”
Simon shook his head, glancing around as they entered the grimy white box of a room, and Mary closed the door behind them, following his gaze to the stainless-steel chair that was bolted to the floor, which had a pair of handcuffs hanging loosely from one arm. Next to that were two black-plastic chairs and one white, a rickety wooden table, blank Miranda forms, and an actual typewriter.
“Simon, sit down and try to relax. Everything is going to be okay. We’re going to sort this out.”
“Oh God, I hope so.” Simon exhaled with a sigh, sinking into one of the chairs and putting his head in his hands.
“You’re doing a great job staying calm.”
“Thanks, I’m trying.”
“I called your father on the way here, and he said he’ll talk to your cousins.”
“Oh no, he must’ve freaked out.”
“He was upset, but he handled it, and he’s going to stay at the hospital tonight. So he’ll see you when we’re finished here.”
“Thank God Rachel was asleep when the cops came. I have no idea how I would explain it to her.” Simon raked his hair back. “Did you see the nurses? Jenny? Susan? Even Dr. Linda, that’s Rachel’s oncologist. I can’t imagine what they would be thinking. The cops searched me, patted me down, right in front of everyone.”
“They’re allowed to do that for their own safety.”
“It was so embarrassing. At least they didn’t handcuff me.”
“Right.” Mary sat down opposite him, pulling the chair over. “Okay, we don’t have a lot of time, so let’s get to the point. First, the possibility of suicide. Is that something that Todd would do? Do you know any reason he’d commit suicide?”
Simon shook his head, gravely. “It doesn’t sound like him, to tell you the truth. He lets his emotions out. He’s not the kind of guy to carry crap around. I just don’t see him killing himself.”
“Maybe something’s wrong with his ex-wife or the kids. Was there a custody battle or anything? That’s the kind of thing that makes people kill themselves.”
“No, I don’t think they had anything like that, and if so, they were over the hardest part of the divorce. It was all smooth. He has the visitation schedule. That much I know because we worked around it for a company retreat once.”
Mary made a note on her phone. “So that brings us to murder. Somebody must’ve killed him, but why? Does he carry a lot of money on him? He had a Porsche, was he a flashy guy?”
“Totally, he always carried a lot of money. He had a nice Rolex, I know that. So maybe somebody killed him, but it sure as hell wasn’t me.”
“Does he have any enemies that you know of?”
“None that I know of.”
“Okay, the cops must not think he killed himself either, because they brought you in for questioning. They didn’t arrest you, but you’re a person of interest. I’m assuming they called you in because they found out that he fired you, that you’re suing each other, and they’re thinking that’s motive. The good news is that I guarantee you that’s not enough to accuse somebody of murder and you were at the hospital—”
“Mary, there’s something I need to tell you,” Simon interrupted her.
“What?”
“That’s not all they have. I saw Todd today. I talked with him at the country club, in his car.”
Mary felt her mouth drop open. “What? When? How?”
“At the end of the day. I know I shouldn’t’ve done it, I probably should’ve called you first.” Simon’s eyes turned pleading, his eyebrows sloped unhappily down. “But it just got to me. The lawsuit this morning, him making up those lies about me and the company suing me for two million. Maybe it was my breaking point.”
Mary’s throat went dry, but she didn’t interrupt him.
“I thought, things got too complicated, involving lawyers. He and I are old friends, were old friends, and I thought that if we just talked to each other, we could hash it out man-to-man. I thought maybe we could settle it, since you or Bennie or whoever hadn’t been able to.”
Mary knew where he was coming from. Almost every client felt that a lawsuit could be settled if the lawyers just got out of the way, but it was rarely true. Once a lawsuit got filed, opposing sides invested in their side of the story. “So what happened?”
“Todd’s a creature of habit, and it’s Friday. Every Friday night in summer, Todd stops by the club. If it’s a nice day he leaves work early, plays nine holes, and has a drink. If it’s bad weather, like today, he has a drink with whoever’s at the bar.” Simon paused, running a tongue over parched lips. “So after we spoke this morning, I called him.”
“Tell me exactly what you said.” Mary pulled out her phone, scrolled to her notes app, and started a file.
“It wasn’t a long conversation. I said, ‘Todd, I got this lawsuit you filed against me for two million bucks and I think this is getting out of control. Let’s try and settle this face-to-face.’ He said, ‘I’ll give you ten minutes. Meet me at the club at five thirty. We’ll talk in the car.’”
“That’s it?”
“That’s it.” Mary was always surprised at how terse men could be. She needed fifteen minutes to say hello. Plus hugging time.
“So I left the hospital, got to the club, and went around the back, where he parks.”
“You knew the club? You’re not a member, are you?”
“No, but I’ve been with him and I know the drill. You drive in and the clubhouse is on the right, then the tennis courts and the bag drop, but he always parks in the farthest spot in the lot. He doesn’t want anybody to mess up his Porsche.”
Mary typed away. “So you drove there and met with him?”
“Yes.”
“Was anybody else around?”
“No, not that I saw. It was raining like hell. Nobody was on the course or the driving range.”
Mary guessed the club had security cameras, and they would have recorded Simon’s car, including the license plate. “Okay, so then what happened? You got out of your car and got into his?”
“Yes.”
“Was he there waiting for you or did you have to wait for him?”
“He was waiting for me.”
“Was anybody else in his car?”
“No, he was completely alone and there were no witnesses, if that’s why you’re asking.” Simon frowned, turning nervous. “But I swear to you, he was alive when I left him. He was alive.”
“Okay, stay calm. Tell me the rest of the story.”
“So I got in his car, and I said, ‘Todd, what’s the deal? What is going on? You know I didn’t say those things about you, I would never run you down, and I get why you let me go, I know you’re trying to save the company money.’”
“What was your tone like? Were you angry with him?”
“I was, but I didn’t yell or anything. I was really trying to settle this
. I didn’t call him a liar. I was really trying to understand what happened.” Simon opened his palms in appeal. Maybe I talked forcefully, like now, but I didn’t raise my voice. I was trying to negotiate. I’m in sales, for God’s sake. I knew what I wanted out of the meeting. A settlement. Like any deal, I wanted to close it.”
“I understand,” Mary said, hearing the ring of truth in his words. She couldn’t understand how it had turned out so horribly wrong. “So how did he react?”
“He got pissed. He started yelling. He said that it was bullshit that I sued him and he would be damned if he would settle it. He said he wanted his day in court. He wanted to clear his name. And he hoped I had to pay every penny of the two million bucks. Then I got mad.”
“What happened?”
“When he said that, I saw red. I couldn’t help it. He was vicious, vindictive, like he didn’t care about Rachel at all. So I shoved him, and he shoved me back.”
Mary’s heart sank. “So it got physical?”
“Yes, we grappled.”
“What do you mean by grappled?”
“Like we got into a shoving match. Look, I admit it, I wanted to hit him.” Simon’s face flushed. “But I’m not a violent guy. I’m not a fighter. I just shoved him and he shoved me back, then we grappled back and forth, then he shoved me against the car door and said get out.”
“Then did you go?”
“Yes, I came to my senses. I knew fighting wouldn’t solve anything. And he wouldn’t listen to reason. So I got out of the car.”
“How long were you in?”
“Fifteen minutes, tops.”
“What did you do next?”
“I got in my car and drove back to the hospital.”
“What time did you get there?”
Simon frowned in thought. “I’m not sure. Six o’clock, maybe. The traffic was horrible, rush hour in the rain. My dad was still there. Then he left with your father.”
Mary thought a minute. “When you left the club, is there a gatehouse or anything? Was there a guard that would see you when you left?”
“Yes, they have a gatehouse, and you give your name and the member you’re with or meeting. They don’t write it down or anything. Or call. It’s not that strict.”
“But if you don’t say a member’s name?”
“They don’t let you in, I’m sure.”
“Did you see the guard when you left?”
“Yes.”
“Talk to him?”
“No, I didn’t. Just waved.”
Mary tried to think of a question she hadn’t asked. “So you drove away, and he was fine?”
“Absolutely.” Simon’s expression fell into grave lines again.
“Did you see anybody go to the car after you?” Mary was trying to puzzle out the timeline. “We don’t know the time of death, but whoever killed him had to come pretty quickly after you left. Did you see any other cars in the lot?”
“Not that I remember. I didn’t notice. It was pretty empty.”
“Was it totally empty?”
“I don’t think so, I don’t remember.” Simon licked his lips again. “As soon as I pulled into the lot, I drove to his car. That’s all I was thinking about. Him and what I was going to say.”
“Think a minute, try to remember.”
“Remember what?”
“When you drove from the entrance of the lot to his car, did you make a direct line through rows of painted lines?”
“No, I didn’t make a direct line. I drove around the perimeter to the farthest point where he parked.”
“So you took the long way instead of going straight?”
“Yes, essentially I took the two legs of the triangle, not the hypotenuse.”
Mary could visualize it, but didn’t understand his actions. “So why didn’t you just take the hypotenuse? Was it because there were cars in your way? Close your eyes and try to visualize it.”
Simon closed his eyes, then opened them again. “I think it’s force of habit, maybe I’m a creature of habit too. Either way, I drove around the perimeter of the lot. I didn’t cut through directly, like on an angle. I’m not sure if there were cars there but if there were, there weren’t many.”
Mary didn’t say what she was thinking, which was, It only takes one. “There’s something else I don’t understand. If there was nobody else in the lot, why did Todd park in the far corner? If nobody else was there, there’s no danger of anybody bumping into his Porsche.”
Simon shrugged. “I guess that’s force of habit, too. That was his space. We all know it.”
“Did he hold other meetings in the car?”
“Sometimes, like if we went for a drink and were going to talk about something confidential, we’d talk about it in the car before we went into the clubhouse.”
“So you weren’t surprised when he suggested the car, not the clubhouse.”
“Right, I wasn’t.”
“So was this well known within the company, the talking in the car thing? And where he parks?”
“Not the whole company, but the people around Todd know.”
Mary made a note on her phone. “Do you know if he told anybody that he was meeting you?”
“I don’t know.”
“Did he say?”
“No.”
“If he told anybody, who would he tell? Who’s his friend at the firm, er, I mean the company?”
“Nobody, really. He’s a real glad-hander, like a typical sales guy. He has a lot of acquaintances but no good friend.”
Mary couldn’t relate. She had Judy. Or at least she used to. “What about outside the company?”
“Not that I know of, not since his divorce.”
“Is he dating anybody?”
“Not seriously, that I know of. He doesn’t have a problem getting dates. I think that might’ve been what happened between him and Cheryl but we never talked about it.”
“You think he cheated on her?”
“I suspect it.”
“Do you know with who?”
“I’ve no idea but there were one or two times when he wasn’t where he said he’d be. I had my suspicions but I never said anything to him. Or anybody else. I don’t run down my boss, no matter what anybody thinks.”
“Okay, that’s enough for now. I want to keep this short because they’re waiting.” Mary set her phone aside, meeting his worried gaze directly. “Here’s what’s going to happen next. Listen to me carefully.”
“Okay,” Simon said, leaning forward.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Bennie drove east in heavy traffic, encountering rain on the outskirts of Philadelphia. Drops pounded on the windshield, forcing her to slow down for safety’s sake as she turned onto the expressway. She belonged in the city with so much going on, and the time with Declan had recharged her. She even felt better after the nap. She assumed Mary was at the Roundhouse and planned to let her know she was available as soon as she got to the office.
Suddenly her cell phone started ringing, and though she hated to talk on the phone while she was driving, especially in bad weather, she would take the call if it was Mary. She slipped the phone from her bag and checked the screen, surprised to see that it was Mike Bashir calling. She hadn’t spoken with him since he’d become the president of OpenSpace, but his cell phone was still in her contacts because she used to work for him when he headed Joselton Ltd., another of Dumbarton subsidiaries. She had no idea why he was calling, especially since she had been fired, but given what was going on, there was no way she was going to pass up this call.
“Mike, how are you?” Bennie said, picking up.
“I’ve been better. I guess you heard that Todd was found dead today.” Mike sounded more tense than grief-stricken, and as far as Bennie remembered, he wasn’t the kind of guy to tense up.
“I heard, I’m very sorry about that. It was really shocking.”
“I know, it’s awful, but I’m in Scottsdale at a trade show and I got a text from Ernie
, our head of Security, that police showed up at OpenSpace. They have a search warrant and they want to look at everything. There’s, like, six of them and they didn’t even give us notice. Ernie told them to stand down while we checked it out.”
Bennie let Mike talk, realizing that he didn’t know she’d been fired, which wasn’t that surprising. It had been between her and Nate, who was much higher up than Mike, plus Mike had been out of town. The right hand didn’t know what the left was doing, a problem not unique to Dumbarton, in corporate America. Bennie considered filling him in, but her curiosity was piqued, so she kept her mouth shut.
“I mean, I understand why they want to look at Todd’s personnel file or maybe look around his office, but from what Ernie’s telling me, there’s more than that. They want to search my office too. Can they do that? I don’t like that idea, if I’m not there.”
“Yes, as a general rule, the police can search the premises with the proper search warrant, and it makes sense that they would do that in connection with Todd’s death. They don’t know if it’s a suicide or murder yet, do they?”
“I can tell you, it’s not a suicide, that’s not like Todd. I hear you met with him this morning. He didn’t seem like he was on the verge of suicide, did he?”
“No, he didn’t. So you think he was murdered. Who do you think did it? Was it random?” Bennie made a mental note, stockpiling information that she wasn’t completely entitled to.
“No way, I’m sure Simon did it.”
“Why would he?” Bennie steered ahead, dismayed.
“Because Todd fired him. It’s obvious.”
“But murder? That’s an extreme response to a termination, don’t you think?”
“Normally, but everybody knows that Simon has a sick kid and needed the money. We had a blood drive one day, I even gave. When Todd let him go, Simon snapped.”
Bennie let it go for now. “Todd told me that Simon’s sales were trending down and he had lost his edge. Did you agree?”
“I didn’t know enough to agree or disagree. I delegate to my guys. Sales are Todd’s problem. If the numbers aren’t there, he answers to me. If they are, I don’t interfere.”