No Good Deed: A Small-Town Romantic Suspense Novel

23. Good Question

After they dried off and dressed, Piper knew she was strong enough to see Marcus and deal with Ethan. She needed to make a statement about what had happened, and she wanted answers. The only person who could give them was Ethan.

She didn’t want to be in the same room with him—actually, she didn’t want to be in the same state with him—but she had to be an adult about this. He was locked up in Marcus’s jail cell, and he couldn’t hurt her anymore. So she’d focus on getting answers, and ending this entire nightmare.

They walked into Phail General, but Troy locked the door behind them and kept the sign showing Closed. Call if you need something.

After they hung up their coats, Troy took her hand. “Ready?”

She nodded, and they moved to the door separating Phail General from the deputy’s office. She’d noticed the cell in the corner before, so she knew she’d be facing Ethan as soon as she walked in. She straightened her shoulders and swallowed the lingering fear.

Troy lifted her hand to kiss it. “You’ve got this.”

He knocked on the door, and then opened it. Inside, Marcus stood from his desk with a smile. The deputy’s eyes looked tired and she realized that as the only law-enforcement person in town, he’d probably had to stay with his prisoner all night.

Piper looked over at the cell. Ethan lay on the cot on his back with his arm thrown over his eyes. She couldn’t tell if he was sleeping or ignoring them.

Marcus moved around the desk with his laptop and gestured to the seating area on the side of the room. “Thanks for coming in. I’ve got a lot of the work done, but I need a full statement from Piper stating exactly what happened.”

A roar came from the cell, and Piper flinched. She turned to see Ethan was now standing at the bars. “You bitch. This is your fault.”

She was sure her mouth dropped open. “You’re such an idiot, Ethan.”

She ignored his next roar, even though her body shuddered at it.

Marcus grinned at her. “Why don’t we let Troy sit with our prisoner while you and I move into Phail General to finish up?”

She nodded and moved quickly back through the door. Marcus followed. Troy grinned at her. “Way to put him in his place, Piper. See you in a few.” Then he closed the door behind them.

Marcus put his laptop on the counter, and they pulled up two stools. Her hands were shaking, and she twisted them together. “I want to get some answers about what happened, but I don’t think he’s going to give me any.”

Marcus shrugged. “We’ll see. It’s not been very long, and he’s muttered a few things. I’ll tell you more after I get your statement. Why don’t you start at the beginning?”

She nodded. It wasn’t like not talking would help her forget. Maybe going through it with Marcus would help purge it from her system.

A rap on the window brought their attention, with Joe holding up Oreo, who started yipping as soon as he spotted Piper. Laughing, she crossed to open the door and let them in. Oreo nearly bounded from Joe’s arms into hers. His butt wiggled, his legs scrabbled to get even closer, and he licked her face.

Joe laughed. “He’s had a lot of fun with Moose, but Troy thought it would be a good time to bring him to you.”

The man was incredibly thoughtful. No wonder she’d fallen in love. “This is perfect. Thanks for everything, Joe.”

He leaned in and kissed her cheek. “Any time. If you need anything at all, let us know. Lock up behind me.”

And then she was back at the stool with Marcus. Holding Oreo made it easier to tell the story.

After she’d told it through, Marcus asked questions to find more details, and she found herself remembering more without the fear. The deputy had a way of making it feel like she was watching it on a screen, not reliving it. “You’re good at this, Marcus. Thank you for making it easier.”

He grinned. “All part of the small town service aimed at making you want to stay.”

She smiled. “You’re all very persuasive.”

“Good. Now, let me catch you up on a few things. Last night, before Troy found you, a deputy a few towns south of here pulled over a silver Accord. The owner and driver was Chad Westerlake from Chicago.”

“That’s not a common name. He has to be connected to Ethan.”

He nodded. “Tessa and Tansy worked their magic and discovered the two men are cousins. Chad hasn’t admitted to the connection yet, and says he was simply on a road trip exploring New England. But Chad has a record for some break and enters along with a few assaults. His fingerprints match the one we found on Troy’s garage. Once the DNA results come back from the gum, I’m confident they’ll match him as well. My guess is that Chad is the one who attacked you, and broke into your car, with Ethan coordinating everything.”

That made sense. “Ethan isn’t the type to get dirty himself, but I can see him hiring someone else. What did Ethan say about his cousin?”

“I haven’t told him yet. I wanted to speak with you, first. Have you heard Ethan mention a cousin, or Chad in particular? Have you ever met any of Ethan’s family?”

Piper shook her head. “Never. We rarely spoke and always about work projects.”

“Did he ever bring family members or friends to the office?”

“Not that I remember, but I didn’t pay much attention to him.”

Marcus grinned. “The pompous ass would hate knowing that. How do you feel about leading the questioning when we go in?”

Her stomach tightened at the thought. “Why?” Oreo stirred from where he’d settled in her lap and she soothed him with pats.

“He’s been muttering a lot since he’s been here. He’s focused on you and keeps repeating that it’s your fault he’s behind bars.”

She rolled her eyes. “He’s an idiot.”

Marcus nodded. “Agreed. His arrogance and superiority complex might cause him to reveal more than he wants if you’re doing the questioning. He’s not impressed with my badge and expects that he can get me fired. He’s used to being the one running the show and doesn’t like being questioned. If you ask him anything, it might make him lose some control.”

As long as he remained behind those bars, out of control would be okay. “What would you like me to ask?”

“Whatever you want. I believe he’s likely a blackmailer, and that the data on the spreadsheet proves that. We haven’t unlocked the code yet, but we will. If people are paying blackmail to keep Westerlake quiet, they’re going to be pissed about their information being revealed to the police. I can use that to pressure him to talk later on.”

She thought about it for a moment. “If I could get him to admit to hiring Chad for the other attacks and break-ins, that would help, wouldn’t it?”

Marcus shrugged. “Probably, but I don’t think he’s the type to hold up well in an interrogation, either. Equal parts arrogant and scared. This is more about you, and what you need. If you don’t want to see him, you don’t need to.”

That was tempting, but Piper wanted answers. She also wanted to stop being afraid of this man. Confronting him with his own stupidity while he was behind bars should do that. “What do you think he’s afraid of?”

Another shrug. “Jail time, for sure. The man believes he’s too smart to get caught. He thinks he’ll figure a way to wriggle out of this. A man like him won’t do well in prison with the lack of privacy and amenities. He’s complained about those already. He might also be afraid of the people he’s blackmailing, but we don’t have those names yet.”

Piper mulled over her options for a moment. “Okay, I’ll speak with him and see if I can get some answers.”

Marcus studied her. “If he makes you uncomfortable or you change your mind, get up and walk out.”

“I will.”

Marcus stood and waited for her to settle Oreo in his bed behind the counter. She wasn’t exposing her dog to that man.

She held in a groan when she straightened. The pain was better today, but she still hurt. The aches reminded her of what Ethan had done to her, and reinforced her decision. She wanted to face him, show him he hadn’t won.

Her phone beeped with a text from Tessa Flores, the data analyst out at Midnight Lake who had been working on the USB.

She smiled as she showed it to Marcus.

Time to see how Ethan coped with fear.

* * *

Troy sat in Marcus’s desk chair, and swiveled to face the cell in the corner. He used his phone to record Westerlake in case he said anything incriminating while Marcus was gone.

The man didn’t look much like his profile picture from the Urban Planning office. That photo had shown a well-dressed man who stared at the camera with a lift to his chin and arrogance in his eye. The suit had likely cost as much as Troy’s house mortgage payment.

Now, Westerlake was disheveled and had bags beneath his eyes, although the arrogance remained. He crossed his arms over his chest and glared at Troy. “What do you think you’re looking at?”

Troy didn’t respond in any way, simply continued to watch.

“Answer me.”

Yeah, that wasn’t going to happen.

Westerlake’s eyes widened and he leaned forward. “Do you have any idea who you’re dealing with? Do you think anyone in this pathetic little town has the power to arrest someone like me? As soon as I speak to a real law enforcement official, I’m pressing assault charges against you. False arrest and confinement charges against that idiotic deputy.”

When Troy didn’t react, Westerlake gripped the bars and shook them. Like a caricature of a villain in a movie. “You’re going to be sorry you messed with me. And that bitch is going down with you.”

Troy almost responded to that, but forced himself to remain still.

Ethan rewarded his patience.

“All she had to do was give me my data. All of this is her fault. She’s going to answer for putting me through this idiocy.”

Troy wasn’t sure if the video would hold up in court as he hadn’t told Westerlake he was recording, but he figured Marcus could use it in an interview to get a proper confession.

When Troy heard the door handle turn, he zoomed the video in to record the man’s reaction to Piper. Like the caricature he’d imagined earlier, Westerlake’s eyes bulged and he shook the bars again with a growl.

Ignoring him, Troy rose and showed his phone to Arrow. His friend nodded, then used his chin to point at the table that sat in one corner of the room. Troy turned off the video and helped Marcus turn the table so it faced the cell, but remained across the room.

He held out a chair for Piper with a smile, but didn’t touch her in any way. She’d told him she didn’t want to show any weakness in front of Westerlake.

Marcus set up his phone pointing toward the cell. “I’m recording this interview. You’ve already been read your rights. Do you have any questions before we begin?”

“You have no right to hold me here. I demand that you release me immediately. I haven’t done anything wrong.”

Troy wondered if the asshole had somehow convinced himself to believe his own bullshit.

Piper sat straight and raised her head to look at Westerlake. “Why did you attack and kidnap me?”

“You can’t prove I did.”

Piper blinked twice and pointed at her cheek. “I most certainly can. I was there. This bruise is from you, as is the one on my ribs.”

Westerlake rolled his eyes. “No one is going to believe you over me. Who the hell do you think you are?”

“I’m the person who’s going to testify at your trial and ensure you’re locked up for a very long time.”

Westerlae growled. “You’re nothing.”

“I’m not the one behind bars.”

“Bitch.”

“I know you put some valuable information on a Cloud Goat USB and put it in my Cloud Gate tin. What I don’t understand is why you didn’t simply ask me if you could look through the tin because you’d returned the wrong one and needed to retrieve it. You could have had it back without a problem.”

Westerlake’s eyebrows shot up to his hairline. Had he never really thought of doing that? Because he was practicing subterfuge of his own, did that make him think everyone else did the same?

“You drugged me and attacked me. You broke into my car, apartment, and the office. You even caused a car crash when all you had to do was ask.”

“I didn’t do any of that. You’ve got proof of nothing.”

Piper smiled, causing Troy to beam with pride. She was going to kick this guy’s ass when it came to a trial.

“Actually, we do. We’ve got your USB?—”

“You won’t be able to get anything from that. You’re too stupid.”

“Wrong again, Ethan. Do the names Brandon Baker, Dean Hendrick, and Norm Pitt mean anything to you? Should I go on?”

Westerlake’s mouth dropped open and he gaped at Piper. Troy didn’t have a clue who the men were, but Ethan knew. Piper must have learned the names from Marcus or Tessa. Which meant they’d cracked the code on the USB.

Finally, Ethan found his words. “That’s private information on that USB. You have no right to read it. You have no right to access it. That’s mine.”

Marcus ducked his head and grinned. Troy didn’t bother hiding his. The man didn’t have eyes for anyone but Piper. He probably didn’t realize he’d just confessed to a lot.

Below the table, Piper squeezed her hands together. “I don’t think your blackmail victims are going to be happy with you, especially when you recorded their indiscretions and crimes right on the USB. You’re not the only one the police will be investigating, and that’s all your fault.”

“It’s my data. You have no right.”

“You’re the one who left it in my Cloud Gate tin.”

Westerlake roared and shook the bars again. “You’ve got nothing.”

Piper pushed to her feet and Troy did the same.

They headed for the door to Phail General. He opened it, but before Piper went through, she turned back to the cell.

“One more thing, Ethan. We also have Chad, and he’s talking.”

She walked through and Troy followed, closing the door on another roar from Ethan.

Piper blew out a shaky breath and covered her face with her hands. From his bed by the front counter, Oreo yipped, and trotted toward them.

Troy bent and scooped up the dog. He passed Oreo to Piper and then wrapped one arm around her shoulders, and steered her to his office where they weren’t standing in full view of anyone passing by.

He closed the door, then finally gave into the need to wrap her in his arms, careful not to squish the dog.

She shuddered and leaned into him. “Thank you. I wasn’t sure I could do that, but having you there with me was all I needed.”

“You were amazing. He all but confessed to everything.”

“Tessa texted right before Marcus and I came in, so we had far more data than he expected. Marcus also told me another officer pulled over Ethan’s cousin Chad. They’re holding him in custody. Marcus thinks it was Chad who attacked me back into Chicago and broke into my apartment and car.”

Troy leaned back, and cupped her face in his hands. “I can see Westerlake paying someone to do those things, but you didn’t even need that information to break him. You had him saying way more than he should before that. He’s going to fold and tell Marcus everything. You sucked all the arrogance out of him.”

She smiled, but winced. The bruise on her cheek had to hurt like hell. “I know it’s not possible, but I wish I never had to see him again.”

Troy hugged her gently again. “I know. I wish I could make that happen for you.”

“As long as you’re with me, I can handle it.”

His heart swelled with love. “I’ll always be with you, Piper. Always.”