For the next few hours, Cade spoke on the phone with several assets and got the same info about Drake Harris and his relationship with Kresley. The average opinion around town was that Drake screwed over Kresley in a big way and she never forgave him. It seemed that she broke up with him and then pretended he didn’t exist anymore. Cade couldn’t blame her for that, not really. What Drake Harris did to her, even if they were basically kids, was distasteful and showed his true character. Cade’s heart hurt for Kresley then and now. He rubbed his hand over his chest as if to ease the ache, then saved his typed notes and moved on to the next item on his to-do list.
Cade’s thoughts were interrupted at a knock on his open door. He looked up and saw Officer Boomer Collins and another man standing there expectantly.
“Hey Boomer, come in. I was just finishing up some notes”, Cade said as he looked at the other man standing there quietly. This man was tired, Cade determined. He had circles under his eyes like he hadn’t slept in days and his 5 o’clock shadow had already turned into dark beard scruff. He was tall, around Cade’s height, and had no emotions in his face or eyes. Boomer walked further in and took a chair closest to the wall, then gestured for the man to have a seat in the remaining chair across from Cade’s desk.
“Detective Cade Grantham, I’d like you to meet Braxton Harris, Fire Captain for the Mercy Springs Fire Department, Station 5. He is also brother to Drake Harris”, Boomer quietly stated.
Cade immediately sat up straighter in his chair and held out his hand. “Hello Braxton. I am so sorry for your loss. I’m working as hard as I can to follow any leads on what could have happened to your brother last night. Any info that you have would help as well. I didn’t want to bother you or your parents right now, nor Drake’s fiancé Claudia. I appreciate you coming down here anyway.”
Braxton took a deep breath and stated, “Thanks. I appreciate it. My family and I are just kind of baffled and numb by the whole thing. This comes out of nowhere right before Drake is to be married. It doesn’t make sense. And where he was killed doesn’t either. I have no clue why he would be at the back door of Whimsy Events at night. Alone. Well, except for some crazy reason that he talked to me about earlier yesterday. I told him he was nuts and to get that shit out of his head now. I’m guessing he didn’t listen to me. Like he ever did any way.” That last part was grumbled under his breath, but Cade heard him just the same.
“What crazy shit was he saying?”, Cade asked slowly.
“Drake called me up yesterday morning, right before lunch, and stated that he was rethinking this whole marriage thing to Claudia. He said after seeing Kresley yesterday, it made him think about what he was missing out on by anchoring himself to one woman. As soon as I heard him say Kres’ name, I tried to shut him down immediately, telling him to leave her alone and not to make waves. I mean, he humiliated her enough in high school with that stupid ass situation he got himself into.”
“Did Drake state he wanted to make advances towards Ms. Anderson?”, Cade asked. The man was dead, but Cade still wanted to beat the shit out of him.
Braxton paused for a moment, then stated, “Not in direct words, but he definitely insinuated it in things he said. Not that I blame him. Kresley is a fantastic person. All of the Anderson girls are. But she deserves better than what Drake could offer. I love my brother, but he was all about himself and no one else. I felt sorry for his fiancé at times because it seemed Drake was so focused on himself that he forgot about Claudia entirely. Which isn’t how a woman should be treated.”
Boomer agreed with that last statement with a grunt and nod of his head. He sipped on a large drink from a local eatery, reminding Cade that he hadn’t had lunch yet.
“We aren’t sure why your brother was at Kresley’s back door after work hours, but we do know that she didn’t invite him to her work place or apartment. She stated that she was surprised to find him there. We found a melted milkshake laying on the pavement beside him and the plastic top on top had written “banana pudding” on it. I’m not sure what significance that has to any of this, but I found it strange.”
Braxton gave his first smile in more than a few days. He looked at Cade, then at Boomer, and leaned in as if he was confiding a secret. “Drake must have stopped by the Ice Cream Spot to get a banana pudding milkshake. He knows that it’s Kresley’s favorite treat, even 10 years later. If he had that with him, then I know for sure that he wanted to talk to Kresley about the idea of getting back together with him or at least going out on a date. Maybe even just a booty call. Knowing my brother, he probably would have been fine with the last suggestion.” Braxton raked a hand over his face, scratching at his beard. “Man, I’m tired. I just got off a 72-hour shift at work and found
