Detective Partners (8 page)

She arched an eyebrow at him. "I find that hard to believe."

"You can believe whatever you want, Goodwin. I don't care." Galen pulled up in front of Alicia's house, put the car in park, and turned off the ignition. "Tell me again the name of this woman we're going to interview."

"Alicia Hunt," Nicole answered. "She's been my neighbor for about four years."

They got out of the car and headed up the driveway. Nicole led the way up the steps and onto the porch. She rang the doorbell and then turned toward Galen. Tilting her head back, she looked up at him. "I think Alicia will be able to help us. From what I understand, she and Marsha talked often. Surely, Marsha told her about this Jeremy. At the very least-" Hearing the door open, she turned. "Hello, Alicia."

"Hi, Nicole."
She glanced past her and smiled at Galen. "Hello."

"Ms. Hunt," he muttered. "I'm Detective Galen Maxwell. Mind if we come in and ask you some questions?"

"Not at all."
Alicia opened the door wider. "Please, come in."

"Thank you," Nicole told her, crossing the threshold. "Were you able to get any sleep?"

"No," she sighed. "Every time I closed my eyes I saw Marsha. What about you? Were you able to go back to sleep?"

"No."

Alicia shut the door behind her. "Would either of you like a cup of coffee?" She grimaced at Nicole. "I forgot that you prefer tea. Would you like a cup? I could make you some."

"No, thank you." Nicole smiled at her
weakly
.

"Thank you for the offer," Galen said, "but I'm fine."

"Then let's sit down." Alicia led the way to the living room, where she settled in a chair and Nicole and Galen took a seat on the couch. "So what do you want to ask me?"

Nicole removed her notepad and pen from the pocket of her coat. "It's about Marsha's boyfriend, Jeremy."

"Her ex-boyfriend," Alicia corrected.

'They broke up?" Nicole sat back against the cushion and crossed her legs. "When did that happen?"

"Last week."

Galen exchanged a glance with Nicole. "Tell me something, Ms. Hunt. When did Jeremy find out that Marsha was pregnant?"

"Please, call me Alicia," she told him. "He found out last week. That's why they broke up. He wanted her to get rid of the baby. He even offered to pay for the abortion and everything. When she refused, he told her that she was on her own and that he never wanted to see or hear from her again. She was devastated. She had given him everything and it was like he threw it back in her face."

"What can you tell us about Jeremy?" Nicole inquired.

"Not much." Alicia rubbed her tired eyes with her hands. "I only met him a couple of times."

"Please, try to think," Nicole urged her. "Think back to your conversations with Marsha. Did she ever mention where he lived or where he worked? What's his last name?"

For several tense moments Alicia stared at the carpet, her brow wrinkled in concentration. "She did say to me once that he's a mechanic. She said he worked at Holton's or was it Hefley's?"

"Hardin's?"
Galen said.

"That's right. It was Hardin's."

He gazed over at Nicole. "I take my car there to be serviced."

"He could've waited on you a time or two," Nicole murmured.

"He could have." He turned his attention to Alicia. "What do-" The phone rang just then, cutting into what he was going to say.

"Should I let it ring?" Alicia asked.

"Go ahead and answer it," Nicole urged her.

"I won't be long." Alicia rose from her chair and hurried from the room.

"After we leave here let's check out Hardin's," Nicole suggested.

"All right."
Galen scratched his smooth jaw.

"Do you think that Jeremy got to thinking and decided the best way to get rid of the baby was to kill Marsha?" she asked him quietly.

"I do," he mumbled. "He was probably afraid she would come after him later for child support."

She nodded in agreement. "We ever find him we'll ask him."

Hardin's was busy. There was a line of people waiting impatiently for their turn. Instead of getting in line, Nicole and Galen walked to the counter. A few people started to complain and then quickly became silent when Nicole held up her badge and ID. She asked the woman behind the counter if they had a mechanic working there whose first name was Jeremy. The woman said they did. When Nicole asked to speak with him the woman informed her that he never showed up for work. Nicole requested to see the manager.

"He's running scared," Galen said near her ear.

His breath tickled her ear, causing her to shiver. When had her ears become sensitive? Swallowing hard, she said huskily, "Then we'll just have to chase him."

"May I help you?" the manager asked as he emerged from the back of the shop.

"I'm Detective Nicole Goodwin." She showed him her badge and ID. "This is my partner Galen Maxwell. We understand that you have a mechanic named Jeremy working for you."

"Jeremy Seaton," he said. "He never showed up for work this morning. Is he in some kind of trouble?"

"Is there somewhere we can talk in private?" Galen uttered in a low voice.

"My office."
He took them to a small cluttered room in the back. "Please forgive the mess. I haven't had time to tidy up. Have a seat."

Nicole moved a stack of magazines from a chair to the floor and sat down. She waited until Galen took the chair beside her before she spoke. "Last night Jeremy shot his pregnant ex-girlfriend. She died this morning. Any information you have on Mr. Seaton would be helpful."

The manager opened an old file cabinet next to the desk and rifled through it. He brought out a folder and flipped it open. Taking out a sheet of paper, he held it out to Nicole. "That's all I have on him."

She and Galen studied the paper and saw it had Jeremy's home address, phone number and social security number along with other personal information. "Would it be possible to get a copy of this?" she asked him.

"Sure." He took the paper back and got up from his desk. "Let me go find a copy machine."

She smiled up at him. "Thank you."

Galen retrieved his phone from his pocket. "I'm going to check in with Strauss and see if the rest of the team has found anything."

"Okay."

Chapter  7

Later that day, Parker entered the conference room, closed the door behind him, and moved toward the table. He pulled out a chair and sat down between Galen and Nicole. "All right," he said, glancing around at the team. "What have you got for me?" He nodded at the female detective, who was seated across from him. "Let's start with you, Renfro. Tell us what you and Marsh learned from talking to Marsha Proctor's family."

"We learned that the Proctor's didn't approve of Jeremy. From the moment they met him they had a bad feeling about him. They tried to convince Marsha to stop seeing him, but she refused. Mrs. Proctor told me she wasn't surprised when she got the call from the hospital telling her that Marsha had been shot." She shifted in her chair. "She told me that it was nothing new to see her daughter sporting a bruise. It was only a matter of time she felt before he snapped and went too far. All she was able to tell us about Jeremy is his last name. It's Seaton. She doesn't know where he lives or works."

"He works at Hardin's," Galen spoke up. "He's a mechanic. Goodwin and I went there to pick him up. He never showed up for work. With the information that the manager gave us we were able to find out where Jeremy lives. We went to his house only to find he wasn't there. We spoke with some of his neighbors. They said he never came home last night. Goodwin put out an APB on him."

"Does he have any family in the area?" Parker inquired.

"He has a mother," Nicole answered.

"Work on her," Parker told her. "More often
then
not the suspect will contact a family member and it's usually the mother. If she won't cooperate with you we'll tap her phone and put a round the clock surveillance on her. Lopez, what did you and Brown learn?"

"We got a copy of Ms. Proctor's phone records," he said. "Mr. Seaton called her five times last Friday and three times on Sunday."

"He was probably trying to talk her into an abortion," Nicole said coldly.

"That or he was threatening her," Galen muttered.

"What else, Lopez?" Parker asked.

"There were no text messages on her cell phone, boss," he said. "Brown took the laptop to the tech guys. They're going to see if they can recover any emails. As soon as they get back to us I'll let you know."

"Do that." Parker leaned forward, his chair squeaking in protest. "Maxwell, you and Goodwin get out of here. Go talk to Mrs. Seaton."

"Yes, sir."
Galen pushed back his chair and stood. "Come on, Goodwin."

"I'm coming." Nicole rose from her chair and followed him from the room. "Before we go I need to visit the restroom."

He sighed. "You have a small bladder, Goodwin. This is the fourth time today I've had to wait so you can-"

"I've drank a lot of coffee today," she explained, glaring at him. "You want me to hold it? Fine, but don't yell at me if you find the passenger seat wet."

"Go to the restroom," Galen ordered her. "I'll wait by your desk."

"I knew you would see it my way." Smirking, she pivoted on her heels and hurried toward the restroom.

"Mrs. Seaton, I'm Detective Galen Maxwell." He showed the woman his badge and ID. "This is Detective Nicole Goodwin. May we come in and speak with you?"

"What about?" she asked, wrapping a black lacy shawl around her
shoulders.