Christy Barritt - Squeaky Clean 07 - Mucky Streak (19 page)

CHAPTER
21

I leaned against the cool marble wall behind me and let my thoughts simmer for a moment.

I considered Garrett as the killer, along with what his motives, opportunity, and means might be.

Usually one of the first suspects was a family member. Check.

Garrett was in town—possibly—on the night his family died. Check.

Garrett
stood to inherit a fortune if everyone in his family died. Check.

He appeared
that he wanted to find answers, but other investigators in this case had died. Check.

Garrett was the one who knew I was coming to Cincinnati. He kne
w a limo was coming to get me. He could have easily arranged for someone to threaten me. Check.

Where I was drawing a blank was when it came to the question of why? Why hire investigators
only to kill them? Why threaten me when he could simply take me off the case?

Was he psychotic? Did he get some kind of pleasure out of it? Did he feel like this threw the police off of his trail?

Something else didn’t make sense. S
omeone had shot at Garrett. The bullet would have hit him if I hadn’t thrown him out of the way.

The questions were enough to make my head
spin.

Applause sounded inside. Was Garrett’s talk over? I still ha
dn’t decided what I would do. Just because someone made a claim online didn’t mean it was true. The accusation could have been made by the real killer as he tried to derail our investigation.

The door opened beside me, and Garrett stepped out.

“There you are!” Garrett reached for my hand. “I thought you’d left.”

“We need to talk,” I muttered.

He dropped his hand and frowned. “Well, yes, I was hoping we might talk again and finish our conversation.”

“About something else.
About the case.”

His gaze shifted behind me, to the people who’d wandered out. To ears that could eavesdrop on this conversation.

He looked back at me. “Might we do that later? Not here.”

I knew this was his big night, and I hated to
rain on his parade. But those accusations were serious. Especially if they were true. “We either talk now or I start screaming.”

“Screaming?”
His eyes narrowed with confusion. Finally, he nodded. “Let’s go somewhere private.”

I shook my head.
“We talk here. You were in town the night your family died.”

He looked around, as if to make sure no one was listening.
Was he afraid of tarnishing his image? Here, he was a golden boy. Everyone worshipped him. He’d almost had me fooled for a moment, as well.

He
lowered his voice. “Yes, I was.”

“
You lied to me.” My voice started rising.

“I
knew how it would look.”

“If you were innocent, you would have
known you’d be cleared.”

He shook his head.
“Innocent men go to jail every day, Gabby.”

“
Were you there when your family was murdered?” The words tasted bitter as they left my lips.

He grabbed my arm.
“Gabby, it’s not like that.
I’m
not like that.”

“If you lie about one thing, who knows what else you’ve lied about.”

“Nothing, Gabby. I promise you.” His eyes begged me to believe him.

“Why are all of these other investigators turning up dead?
Can you tell me that?”

“I have no idea.”

Another realization hit me. “Is that why you hired me? Did you see me as expendable?” I shrugged out of his grasp. “You couldn’t care less if I survived this or not, could you?”

He glanced around
again as a couple of people looked our way. “Gabby, I promise you it’s not like that.”

“Then you better start explaining because I’m about to call the police.”

His shoulders sagged as something close to resignation seemed to burden him. “I didn’t want you to think poorly of me. That’s why I didn’t tell you I was here on the night of the murders.”

“You
didn’t think I would uncover that information?

“I’d hoped you wouldn’t.
The police didn’t.”

“
Then maybe you don’t have every confidence in me.” I turned to walk away, but he grabbed my arm.

“Gabby, it’s not very often that I actually care what a person thinks of me.”

“You’re telling me I’m different? That you actually want to put your best foot forward and make a good impression?” I didn’t believe a word out of his mouth anymore.

“That’s exactly what I’m saying.”
His words resounded with an unmistakable sincerity that threw me off guard.

“Why?”

“Because there’s something special about you. You’re not like all of the other women I meet. You’ve got depth and integrity. I like that.”

He wasn’t going to soften me up that easily. “Why were you here? Why lie about it?”

He sighed, his hands shoved deep into his pockets. “I was meeting a girl, that’s why.”

“And why was that a secret?”

His gaze latched onto mine. “Her name was Olivia.”

“Okay …”

“Olivia Newport.”

Realization washed over me.
“Vic Newport’s daughter?”

His
lips pulled into a tight line. “That’s correct.”

“You were dating?”

“More than that. She was pregnant.”

My eyes widened.
And the plot thickened … again. If this plot got any thicker, it would need gastric bypass surgery.

“Why was all of this a secret? I’m still not following.”

“Mr. Newport didn’t think too highly of me. I was into partying. Flunking out of college. I went through women like someone with the flu goes through tissues.”

“Okay.”

We scooted out of the way and waited for a small crowd to depart. A few people stopped to chat with Garrett a moment, to thank him for his contributions to the world. If they only knew. As soon as the group passed, Garrett turned back to me, a tortured look in his eyes.

“
Before life threw that curveball, Olivia and I were going to break up. We knew it was best for both of us. She wanted to be a fashion model. I didn’t want to be tied down.”

“And then she found out she was pregnant
,” I finished. “That could really throw a wrench in your plans.”

“Exactly. Her dad would have been furious. I had a moment of clarity. I was going to, for once in my life, do the right thing. I was going to ask her to marry me.”

“Wow.” That was unexpected.

“We met at a cabin
my family owns just across the state line down in Kentucky so we could talk. But her mind was already made up. She said she didn’t want to marry me. She wanted to terminate the pregnancy.”

My heart ached at his words. “And?”

“She left, and I stayed at the cabin for the rest of the night, trying to figure out what to do next.”

“Why didn’t you tell the police?”

“Telling the police would mean owning up to the pregnancy. That was the last thing Olivia wanted. Her father would have gone ballistic.”

“He’s the
ballistic type, huh?” I made a mental note of that.

“Some
would say. And, of course, staying quiet had its advantages for me, as well. I was at a party the night before. People have faulty memories. They thought I was there longer than I was, and I didn’t correct them. I stuck with my story that I’d driven in that next morning. Olivia never corrected it.”

“What happened to the baby?”

“She had a miscarriage.” He hung his head as if the remembrance pained him.

“I’m sorry.”

He frowned. “Me too. No one ever understood that I not only lost my family that night, but I also felt like I’d lost my future.”

“You were excited about being a dad.”

“I finally had a reason to live for someone other than myself.”

“I guess you found your p
urpose again when you started GCI.”

He nodded. “The company saved my life. Literally.”

Against my better instincts, I believed him. Still, I had to trust but verify. Any good investigator would. “Where is Olivia now?”

“She’s in New York.
”

“I want her contact information.”

“Of course.”

I stared at him, contemplating my next move. “I
f you keep anything else from me, I’m calling the police and telling them you were in town on the night of the murder. And I’m still sending you my bill.”

Before he could respond,
a commotion sounded inside. The doors burst open, a strange smell leaking out as a crowd of people rushed past.

CHAPTER 22

“What …?” I looked at Garrett.

A random stranger must have heard me because he called over his shoulder, “They told us to evacuate. There’s a strong chemical smell in there. Like a pool … only stronger.”

Screams echoed from the room. I stole a glance inside, over the sea of people flooding out, and saw flames.

Had someone knocked over a candle? Or was that fire set deliberately?

“Go outside. Get
to safety. Now,” Garrett ordered.

“Where are you going?”

“To make sure everyone is okay.”

Before I could say anything, h
e ran inside. I stood there, half tempted to be carried away by the crowds and escape to the sidewalk. I knew I couldn’t do that, though. I covered my mouth with my arm and started after Garrett.

The line between dumb and courageous was sometimes very thin.

The overwhelming scent of chlorine filled my senses as soon as I stepped inside. My eyes watered; my lungs tightened. Flames from a tablecloth spread to the floor, just as the sprinkler system came on.

The last few people scrambled out.

I could hardly see, hardly breathe from the moment I stepped into the conference area. Most of the crowd had cleared, but a fire burned at the stage area. Were there people trapped there?

I coughed as
vapors filled my lungs, but I kept pressing forward.

Tears streamed from my irritated eyes.  I spotted
someone passed out on the floor. A table was on top of her. Had it been knocked over in the mad dash for people to evacuate?

I rushed toward the woman.

Margo.

I grabbed
the table and tugged. It was wedged on the ground, the edge caught on the stage. It barely budged.

“
Someone! I need help over here!” I yelled.

Garret
t appeared. Grit was smudged across his cheeks and his jacket was torn. Without asking any questions, he grabbed the table and maneuvered it out of the way.

I glanced at Garrett, saw the determination on his face. Certainly he wasn’t a killer. A killer wouldn’t rush into a burning building to save virtual strangers … would he?

“Grab her, Gabby!”

I grabbed Margo under her arms and tugged. Thankfully, she easily pulled out.

I took one arm, and Garrett took the other. Together, we carried her outside.

Paramedics rushed toward us and took over.

Firefighters dashed inside the building. A paramedic put oxygen masks on us. I gulped in the clean air.

Garrett pulled his mask down for a moment.

“That was brave of you back there,” Garrett muttered, leaning against a police car.

“Same for you.”

“I think we make a good team.”

“I think we still have a lot more to talk about.”

“You’re probably right.” He nodded toward an approaching detective. “It looks like we have someone else to talk to first, though.”

***

The tension was thick between Garrett and me as he drove me back to the Paladins’ house. I had reservations about riding with him, but the bullet that had been fired at him while at the house was his saving grace at the moment. I just hoped he wasn’t devious enough to think up that crazy scheme himself as a way of solidifying his innocence in all of this.

He put the car in park, not at the Paladins
’ but at a nice little park overlooking the city. I didn’t feel scared. Not really, but I did remain on guard.

“What are you thinking, Gabby?”

“I don’t think that was an accident, despite what the police said.”

There’d been a chlorine leak from the pool, which was below the convention center. The vapors had traveled up and were strong enough that several people had been sent to the hospital.

He sighed. “I’m not convinced it was an accident either.”

“I’m thinking you disappeared for a while at the gala
tonight. Disappeared backstage.” Despite that reasoning, I still didn’t think he was a killer. Still, I had to ask the hard questions, or I’d be a fool.

“Gabby, I always take a moment to do some deep breathing at events like this. It helps me stay cool and in control. I wasn’t
tampering with chlorine.”

I shook my head and stared at the lights of the city ahead. I could see the stadiums, the sparkling skyline, the magnificent bridges.
“There are things that don’t make sense.”

“Talk to me about them. Maybe I can help you figure them out.”

Where did I even start? “Tell me about these other P.I.s you’ve hired.”

He leaned back in his seat.
“I only knew that one of them had died and I assumed it was because of another case he was working on. Not mine. Then today you told me about Bradley. How many others have there been?”

“Three
.”

“
That’s unfortunate.” His words were tinged with a grim grief. He understood loss. He didn’t dismiss their deaths.

I appreciated that.
But I still had more questions. “Why not the police? The FBI? Why would someone only target P.I.s?”

“Your guess is as good as mine. Maybe even better. I have no idea.”

My thoughts still churned. “Why the chlorine tonight? Why was tonight a threat to someone? This person has already warned me to back off.”

“
His earlier attempts to quiet you didn’t work. But this person is getting desperate.”

“But then why in
a roomful of people?” It was one thing to shoot at a P.I. It was an entirely different thing to try and send a message with a group of innocent people. “Unless it was because you were there too. Maybe this person wanted to send a message.”

He raked a hand through his hair. “You
know what? You’re fired, Gabby. I want you off this case.”

I jerked my head toward him. “You can’t fire me.”

“I most certainly can.”

“Well, I refuse
to quit then.”

“I’m withholding all of your money until you agree to back off.”

“I’ll hire a lawyer.”

His head dropped as he swung it back and forth, heavier than a pendulum fit for Big Ben
. “Come on, Gabby. I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if something happened to you.”

“You asked how I keep solving cases? What my secret is? I’m stubborn. That’s my secret. I don’t let things go.”

“I see.”

“Someone wants to keep their secret covered up. They’re willing to take some risks in order to ensure
that they’re not discovered. The good news is that in their madness, they may just end up giving us more clues. Fear makes people do irrational things, even the most brilliant criminals.”

His head popped up. “I think you’re pretty brilliant.”

I would love to bask in his affection and compliments. Losing myself in someone else would be a nice escape. But it couldn’t happen. “Garrett, that kiss shouldn’t have happened. Things are not resolved in my relationship with Riley.”

“I can respect that. I don’t like it. But being faithful is a good quality to have, Gabby.”

My throat squeezed. “Thank you.”

He cranked the engine. “I guess I should get you back home.”

I nodded. “Yeah, I guess you should.”

I kept my gaze focused out the window, wondering why I felt like crying.
Allergies, I told myself. That was my story and I was sticking to it.

“Do you have any tissues? My eyes are probably burning from the chlorine.” Yeah, the chlorine. That was an even better excuse.

“Try the glove compartment.”

I opened it and gasped.

Stuffed into the small space were probably ten different cellphones. Cellphones that someone like the Watcher might have used in order not to be traced.