The Cat, the Wife and the Weapon

Tom nodded solemnly. “She knows.”

“She finally knows,” Liam said. “Been a long night, Jillian. Sorry to start your day so early—but we need to talk to Finn.” Liam Brennan’s eyes seemed weary, too. He and Kara were dating, so he’d spent quite a bit of time in my house over the previous months. I’d come to like him. He was as passionate about the law as Candace was about evidence.

Candace said, “Liam wants to be here when I speak with Finn. Not the assistant DA’s usual duty, but we’re kinda short on the force with all the budget cuts.”

“Where’s Morris?” I asked, unsure her partner’s absence was the entire reason Liam was here. Substituting a lawyer for a police officer didn’t make sense to me.

“He had to take the day off or be paid overtime.” Candace rolled her eyes. “Wouldn’t want the city council to hear about us wasting resources. Can you get Finn to come out here, Jillian?”

“Could we let him sleep a little longer?” I looked at Tom, who had knelt and was scratching Yoshi behind the ears. “See, he suffered a concussion. He could use the rest.”

“You got him to a doctor, then?” he said. “Will he be okay? Is there anything else we should do for him?”

As I poured ground beans into a filter and made the coffee, I explained to the three of them about the doctor’s diagnosis and Finn’s memory loss.

“Tom said Finn didn’t seem like himself—that is, after I got him talking. If I learned anything last night, it’s that Tom is protective of those he loves,” Candace said.

“Hey,” Tom said. “You kept me hanging around while you booked evidence and went over witness statements. Can you blame me for not being all that cooperative right away?”

Candace led the dog around the counter and took a seat at the breakfast bar. “Let’s say it was a long night for all of us.”

Tom smiled at her. “I did grab a nap while I waited on you, and I know you didn’t have the luxury of even a few minutes’ rest.” He opened the fridge. “I am starving. Got any eggs?”

“I have bread, yogurt, peanut butter and some bananas I put in the freezer before I left town,” I said, while Liam and I pulled mugs from the cupboard. “I haven’t had time to visit the Piggly Wiggly since I came home.”

“I haven’t eaten, either,” Liam said, meeting Tom at the pantry.

Soon they were making breakfast for all of us with what few items I had to offer. While they were doing this, I joined Candace as the coffee brewed.

She said, “You managed to locate Tom after we talked at Belle’s and yet I never heard from you. Were you too busy helping the kid to call?”

“Once I knew Finn would be okay, I had to get him settled in here. Then I tried to reach you,” I said. “When I couldn’t get you on your cell, I talked to B.J. at the station and left a message for you to call me. When you didn’t phone, I figured you were busy.”

“B.J. never told me,” she said. “We kept him late answering calls and he got pretty frazzled—had an early class this morning and was afraid I’d keep him all night. He practically ran out the door when I finally realized he needed to go home. My bad.”

“I did call the station late, though. There’s a reason, too,” I said. “See, I had a little visit from Lydia last night. Of course, you understand it wasn’t exactly a friendly visit. She tried to pressure me into telling her things she seemed to think I knew.”

Candace closed her eyes. “That woman. What is wrong with her? Doesn’t she know she’s a coroner and not a cop?”

“Good question, one I’m not sure will ever be answered,” I said. “She told me about the murder, about Tom having to hang around the police station. She made it sound like you were about to arrest him for murder.”

“Typical Lydia drama,” she said. “Still, a man is dead—brutally murdered. He was found in Tom’s car and Tom didn’t like the guy one bit. I was concerned where the evidence would lead me, as you can surely understand. I get it that Nolan Roth wasn’t exactly an upstanding citizen, but he deserves the same justice everyone else is entitled to. I’m counting on you, on Tom, on Liam and even on this kid to help us get this thing solved. That is if Finn is who Tom thinks he is—the greatest young man who’s ever walked the earth. Are you with me? Will you help me get the truth?”

I reached out and rested my hand on her forearm. “I am totally on board. Until Lydia came here, I had no idea Nolan Roth had been murdered. I was on a mission to help Finn. He is a good kid, Candace. Sometimes you just know when someone’s good and decent. I’m with Tom. Finn deserves all the help we can offer.”

I felt her arm muscles relax beneath my touch. “You understand I have to make my own decision about the kid’s character, right? Because both Tom and Finn were more than a little unhappy with a man who ended up murdered and I can’t ignore that. You get where I’m coming from?”

“Of course,” I said. “But I know you, Candace. You’ll see what we have already seen when it comes to Finn. I’m sure of it.”

“You know what? You are the best thing that ever happened to this town,” she said. “You can put things in perspective in an instant.” She snapped her fingers for emphasis.

Hearing the sound, Yoshi sat at attention. Wonder what he thought was about to happen?

“Coffee’s ready,” Liam said.

“Toast coming up,” Tom said. “You have the following gourmet choices: peanut butter on toast, peanut butter and frozen bananas on toast or your always delicious dry toast.” He pulled four slices from my toaster and hastily dropped them on to a plate.

I helped Liam pour us all coffee. Soon we were sitting at the small table in the nook, munching our food and gulping coffee like it was water from an oasis.

Yoshi sat at Candace’s feet. She’d dropped the leash and put her foot on it to make sure he stayed close. I didn’t have to tell her the cats and the dog hadn’t quite managed to come to an understanding yet. Yoshi almost had this worried look—ears down, blinking a lot. Poor guy. He seemed to understand he was in the middle of a big mess.

At some point, Syrah had taken a spot on the window seat in the living room. This offered him a good vantage point to observe the dog while still keeping an eye on whatever bug was moving outside. Merlot, however, surprised me by plopping down about two feet away from Yoshi. He started what I called his “inquiring” chatter— something Maine coons are known for. Poor dog just kept cocking his head from side to side as they stared at each other.

While Tom started another batch of toast, Liam refilled our coffee mugs.

“I could get used to good-looking men waiting on me,” I said.

Liam sat down and said, “I have three sisters. Comes natural to take care of the ladies. Back to business, however. Since Finn isn’t with us yet and you spent more time than anyone with him yesterday, did he say anything about the gun?”

I said, “Finn says he never put any gun in his backpack.”

Candace looked at me as if I wasn’t ready to graduate from kindergarten. “Sure. So someone else just put it in there when he wasn’t looking. I hate when that happens.”

“You’re going to give him the benefit of the doubt, remember?” I said. “In my opinion, he’s being as honest as he can. And I’m not saying the gun isn’t his. I’m saying he doesn’t remember ever seeing it. You had a concussion last summer. Remember how you felt afterward?”

She briefly closed her eyes, as if recalling the blow to the head that put her in the hospital. “I do. I understand he might not remember. But how far back does his amnesia go?”

Tom hovered near the toaster, but I could tell he was listening to every word.

Candace went on, saying, “The kid was walking around with a loaded gun and a head injury. I have to completely understand what brought Finn here and how the gun ended up in his possession—hear the explanation from Finn himself.”

“So Tom told you about the gun right away?” I said.

Tom said, “I didn’t. My brother decided he wanted to help out. He told her when he called his new best friend Candace at the police station looking for me.”

“Ah,” I said. “Bob. How nice of him.”