Magozzi’s voice stopped him.
‘Not even time for that. We’ve got to get back out there before Bill and Alice Warner leave.’
Iris’s brow furrowed a little when Magozzi mentioned the names. ‘The relatives who were on their way to Laura’s?’
Sampson had his coat halfway up his arms, then let it drop to his chair. ‘Relax. Our deputies just checked in from out there. The local doc ended up giving Laura a sedative when she got a little wild, and the Warners are babysitting until she comes around. You’ve got time for a bowl, and you’d be crazy to pass it up.’
Gino was a happy man, already at the stove, working the ladle.
Iris was standing by the door, one boot on, one in her hand.
‘Their last name is Warner?’
‘Right. Bill and Alice. They’re the in-laws… were the in-laws of one of the cops we pulled out of the Minneapolis snowmen. Tommy Deaton. We just found out he was abusing his wife big time.’
‘Oh, man,’ Sampson was shaking his head. ‘This isn’t good. It keeps coming back to Bitterroot.’
‘Tell me about it. Every time we try to get away from this place we keep getting jerked back. I’m starting to feel like I’ve got a rubber band around my ankle and Dundas County is holding the other end.’ Gino delivered a bowl of soup to Magozzi and started slurping his own. Sure, it looked like they had a little time, but Magozzi never took things like that for granted, and he’d be pulling him out the door in a second.
Iris was pulling her second boot on in slow motion, and Magozzi knew how that worked. Back in the days when he still thought jogging was sensible, he’d be humping it around one of the city lakes at a good clip, thinking about a case, and pretty soon he’d find himself moving like a snail. When the mind was really working, the body slowed.
‘Alice Warner was the name on the deed to this house,’ Iris said, straightening and looking at Magozzi. ‘The daughter of Emily, who owned this house and probably killed her husband. And now you tell me she’s the mother- in-law of a murdered abuser? Now I’m really wondering what these women are teaching their daughters.’
Sampson looked at Magozzi. ‘You like the Warners for your two snowmen?’
‘We’re leaning that way.’
‘How sure are you?’
‘Not at all. That’s what we’re going to find out. We’ll tell you the rest in the car.’
32
They didn’t call ahead this time; just stopped at the big gates and waited for Liz, the guard they’d met yesterday, to check them in.
‘We’ve got to get back to Laura’s house, Liz,’ Sampson told her when he rolled down the driver’s window.
She looked tired today, frustrated. ‘You and every other cop in the free world.’ She bent to look in the SUV, nodded at Iris, then Gino and Magozzi in the back. ‘Same crew as yesterday?’
‘That’s right. How many of our people are still out here?’
Liz actually scowled at him. ‘We had to keep the gates open when you people first started moving in so fast. First time since the fence went up. I have no idea how many people came in, or how many went out. Every bit of security we had on the perimeter was gone in a heartbeat.’
‘Sorry, Liz. We didn’t have a choice.’
She found a little smile for him. ‘Yeah, I know that. It’s just a little weird, you know? All these strangers tromping around, and nobody knows who anybody is… We’re not used to that.’
‘We’ll clear out as soon we can.’
They parked next to the few other squads left in the lot, then took the shortest route around the corporate building and followed the narrow road out to Laura’s house.
It occurred to Magozzi that he’d never heard the old woman’s last name. Not that it mattered much at this point, it just seemed a strange omission. You always asked for a full name and the correct spelling, whether you were interviewing a doer or a witness, because if you sent in a report without those details, they’d ship you back to night classes on investigation.
‘Damn, I’m sick of this,’ Gino complained as they slogged through the new snow that just kept piling up. ‘These pants are so wet my legs are getting moldy, and it just keeps snowing.’ He stomped his feet when they made it around the building and hit the little plowed road.
‘How do want to handle this?’ Iris asked as they made their way through the little patch of woods and out into the open. Laura’s farmhouse was visible just ahead.
‘Gino will lead on the interview,’ Magozzi said. ‘We’re feeling our way here, and don’t want to spook them with the recorder, so we’ll need good notes from everybody. Words, yeah, but reactions are going to tell us a lot, too. Wait until Gino closes down his end if you think of something you want to ask.’
Bill Warner opened the front door. He looked exactly as he had that day at Mary Deaton’s house. Neat gray brush cut, good physique, a cop’s eyes in a tired face. He would have been told they’d been here before, of course, but he looked a little surprised to see them back.
Good, Magozzi thought. Got him a little off balance, anyway.
‘Come in, come in,’ he widened the door and gestured them inside. ‘Not fit for man nor beast, and all that. Detectives Magozzi and Rolseth, right? You remember me?’
‘Of course, Mr Warner.’
‘The name is Bill, remember?’
‘Thank you. This is Sheriff Rikker and Lieutenant Sampson, Dundas County. How’s your daughter Mary doing?’
‘As well as can be expected, under the circumstances. We’ve got Tommy’s funeral to go yet, of course, and Toby’s. What happened here tonight isn’t going to make it any easier, especially if there’s some backlash against Laura we have to deal with.’
Magozzi said, ‘I don’t see that happening. It’s Dundas’s call, of course, but we were all on scene and agree that it seems like a pretty straightforward case of self-defense.’
‘A pretty impressive case of self-defense,’ Gino added. ‘She did some fast thinking on her feet for a lady that age.’
Bill nodded. ‘Laura’s a pistol; always has been…’ He faltered then, apparently realizing how inappropriate his choice of words had been. ‘Unfortunately, her mind’s been slipping for years now, but she still has her moments. Can I take your coats?’
Magozzi shook his head. ‘Thanks, no. I don’t think we’ll be long.’
‘Well, come in at least, sit by the fire and warm up.’
Once they were settled, Magozzi looked around. The body was gone, of course, and Iris’s men had collected the area rug. Otherwise the place looked relatively untouched. He saw a few traces of fingerprint powder on some surfaces, but they’d cleaned up pretty well.
Bill Warner followed his eyes. ‘The crime-scene unit left about fifteen minutes ago.’
‘Is Maggie Holland still here?’ Maggozi asked.
‘She left right after they did. Probably went home to pop a Valium or something. I know I would, if I’d had her night.’
Magozzi smiled. ‘Did your wife come with you today?’ he asked, as if he didn’t know the answer.
‘Yes, of course. Laura’s her great-aunt – I’m guessing Maggie told you that. Alice just went back to the bedroom to make sure she was still asleep.’
As if on cue, Alice Warner’s footsteps sounded in the hall, and she stepped through into the living room. She did a little double take to find it filled with people who hadn’t been there when she had left. ‘Hello?’
Magozzi, Gino, and Sampson stood up when Bill introduced them. They hadn’t gotten much of a look at her that first day at Mary Deaton’s house, let alone met her – she’d been totally focused on comforting her daughter when Bill had stepped aside to talk to them. She was almost as tall as her husband, and something about her was very nearly elegant, very self-possessed. She had a strong handshake and a stronger gaze. ‘Detectives. It’s a pleasure to meet you at last. Did Bill thank you for being so kind to our daughter on that terrible day?’
