“No, not at all. That doesn’t sound like Naomi,” says Davis.
“Did she mention any problems with her husband?” Tippen continues.
“No, not that I remember.”
“What time did Naomi arrive on Wednesday night?”
“Around seven pm. That’s when we start.”
“And when did she leave?”
“Oh, I believe it was about a quarter to nine.”
“Is that pretty normal for book club?”
“Close, it was a little earlier than normal. We usually go until nine o’clock.”
“Do you know why she left early?”
“I think her husband called her. She received a phone call, or maybe she made a call, I’m not quite sure. She left immediately after, saying she had to go.”
“Did she say why?”
“No, other than she was tired. She did seem kind of distracted during our meeting.”
“How so?” asks Tippen.
“She wasn’t engaged in the discussion like she normally is. She was noticeably quiet that night.”
“Did she ever mention having problems with her marriage?”
“No, nothing like that.”
“Okay, thank you Mrs. Davis. If you think of anything else, please give us a call,” Tippen tells her.
Before going back to the station, Masters and Tippen stop at Popeye’s for a quick late lunch. Masters orders the Spicy Chicken Sandwich, his favorite, and Tippen orders the chicken fingers. Both have large sodas to quench their thirst as well as for the caffeine. They get back to their office at about 3:00 pm.
On their desks are dozens of officer and crime scene technician reports to review. Soon, the autopsy report will be in and forensic results will start arriving after the weekend. Both detectives spend the rest of the day sorting through the reports.
By 3:30 pm the same day, Cooper’s memory is starting to become clearer. He now believes King was visiting him on Wednesday night and having a couple of drinks. He calls King to find out what happened.
“Justin, I know you came over Wednesday night, but I must have passed out. What happened?”
“Ryan,” Justin answers, “like I already told you, I was not at your place Wednesday night. I was there Tuesday night. You are confusing the days.”
“No Justin, I remember because you wanted to talk business and it was the same night Naomi was at book club. Please tell me what happened.”
“I’m sorry man, but I was not there. It was Tuesday night. You were very depressed, probably over Naomi’s affair.”
“I never knew about an affair!” insists Cooper.
“You had a lot to drink Tuesday night. Were you also drinking Wednesday night?”
“Yes, with you.”
“I don’t know what to tell you Ryan, I was there Tuesday night.”
Cooper is now starting to doubt his own memory. Is it actually Tuesday night I am thinking of? After all, he had blacked out and initially couldn’t remember much of anything. Is he now confused? Could he have killed Naomi and just not remember it? No, it can’t be, he says to himself.
“Justin, did you know about an affair?”
“Yes,” answers King, “she told me over a week ago and said she was going to tell you.”
“Who with?”
“She never told me Ryan, sorry.”
“Justin,” says Cooper as he lowers his voice, “do you know what happened to Naomi?”
“I hate to say this Ryan, but I think you were overcome with emotion, had too much to drink, and shot her when she got home Wednesday night.”
“No, no!” responds Cooper in a much louder voice. “I would never have done such a thing. How can you think that?”
“It’s just the way I see it Ryan.”
“You were there that night,” Cooper says sternly, “I remember. You brought over a bottle of rum.”
“You’re talking crazy now, have you been drinking again?”
“No, I’m completely sober.”
“Well, I’ve had enough of this conversation, I’ll talk to you later,” says King as he disconnects the call.
Cooper is a bit shocked and confused. He now remembers King being at his home, but King adamantly denies it. Am I going insane, or is Justin hiding something from me?
Saturday
On Saturday morning, the detectives are back at it. They have scheduled in-office interviews with Lisa Morgan, the administrative assistant for KC Spark Electric, and Richard Cooper, Ryan Cooper’s brother. First up is Lisa Morgan. After introductions, Tippen starts the interview.
“Were you aware of any trouble or problems in Ryan’s marriage?”
“No,” responds Morgan, “as far as I knew, everything was fine.”
“Did you know Naomi Cooper?”
“Oh yes, I had met her numerous times at office parties. She would also stop in the office from time to time. Very friendly.”
“Were you aware of Mrs. Cooper having an affair?”
“No.”
“Can you tell us what Ryan’s demeanor was like in the last week or so.”
“What do you mean?”
“His mood, anything unusual, any changes in personality, that type of thing.”
“No, he seemed fine to me.”
“How well did Justin know Naomi?”
“Very well, they were good friends.”
“Could something have been going on between Justin and Naomi?”
“No, Justin and Ryan are partners and good friends. I don’t believe Justin would do anything like that. And I never saw anything to give me that indication.”
“Thank you for your time, Lisa,” says Tippen as she ends the interview.
Next up is Richard Cooper. Tippen agrees to allow Masters to lead this interview.
“Thank you for coming in Richard,” says Masters, “I’m sure this is difficult.”
“Yes, it is,” Richard responds, “and you can call me Rich.”
“Okay Rich, tell us what you know about Naomi’s affair.”
“Only what Ryan has told me. He said he didn’t know anything about an affair until you showed him the note found in his office. He said he had never seen that note before.”
“How were they getting along otherwise?”
“Goodness, I don’t know. Everything seemed fine to me. I know she sometimes complained about the hours Ryan worked, but other than that I didn’t see any issues.”
“I know this is hard, but it is important,” Masters tells him, “what did Ryan tell you about last Wednesday night?”
“He was shaken up, and it was hard for him to talk about. He said he kept having visions of Naomi lying dead on the floor covered in blood. He could not
