The Perfect Accomplice

CHAPTER TWENTY

Jessie did her best to hide her surprise.

She had expected that they’d have to ease into the questions. But when he volunteered that detail, she decided to use it as an opportunity to just dive right in.

“How did Missy do that?” she wondered.

“She would have found her earlier if it wasn’t for me,” he explained, sounding disconnected. “When I got home, she was stuck in the kitchen, whining. I picked her up right away and put her outside to go to the bathroom. If I hadn’t done that, she probably would have led me straight to the closet.”

“So you weren’t aware that anything was wrong at first?” Jessie asked.

”Not right away,” he said. ”I got home super late last night. It was this morning, actually, around 4 a.m.”

“Why so late?” Ryan asked.

“We were working on a programming issue with a new product,” Henshall explained. “Sometimes I like to get into the nitty gritty with my designers. That’s what happened last night. By the time we called it quits, it was 3:30. I tend to lose track of time when I’m really focused on something.”

”So you got home at four,” Jessie reminded him, prodding him to continue.

“Right,” he said. “I was really tired, so I just didn’t notice anything right away. I didn’t want to wake Chloe while getting into bed and figured she’d be up in a couple of hours anyway, so I just made a bowl of popcorn, grabbed Missy—who was still whining—for company, went to my study, and tried to crash on the couch. But I was still so wired from work that I just dove back into it.”

“When did you realize something was off?” Ryan asked.

“When I finally got up to stretch, I realized it was almost six. That’s when Chloe usually gets up, so I went in to wake her. But the bed was empty and made. That was when I realized I hadn’t talked to her since yesterday afternoon. I checked all around the house, but she wasn’t in her normal areas, so I called her. The phone started ringing. I found it on the floor under a couch in the living room. That’s when I got truly worried.”

“What did you do?” Jessie asked.

“I took Missy out of my office and went into the bedroom, which was a mistake because she was stuck there and couldn’t—” he paused as his voice cracked briefly, “couldn’t show me where Chloe was. I started calling everyone I could think of. She had this scholarship foundation meeting yesterday, so I called the co-chair, Angela Bossom, who said she left the meeting without issue.”

“What time was that?” Ryan pressed as delicately as he could.

”I think she said it ended around four, but you should double-check with Angela.”

“We will,” Jessie told him. “What did you do next?”

”I called other friends of hers. Some didn”t answer because it was so early, but the ones I could reach didn”t know anything. That”s when I called the police to tell them that she was missing. They said they”d send someone over.”

“Then what?”

“Missy was whining again, and I thought she had to go to the bathroom, so I let her out of the bedroom, but instead of going to the door to get outside, she went to the closet and started scratching at that door. I opened it and then…you know the rest.”

He lowered his head, unable to go on. Cutter got Jessie and Ryan’s attention, and mouthed “May I ask a question?”

They both nodded.

“Mr. Henshall,” the sergeant said, “I know this is difficult but we’re trying to put the pieces together. Have you had any problems with people sneaking into your garage?”

“No. Why?”

“Well, there doesn’t seem to be any sign of forced entry and we understand that Mrs. Henshall’s car isn’t in the garage. We didn’t know if someone possibly snuck into the house that way and then stole the car after attacking her.”

Henshall shook his head absently.

“Her car is in the shop. I suggested she get a rental, but she said she was happy to use the car service for a few days.”

“She didn’t use rideshares?” Jessie confirmed.

“No,” Henshall answered. “She has a guy she likes. She would always request him for when we attended major events. His name is Albert something.”

Ryan had a question. “The front security camera appears to have been displaced so that it doesn’t show the front porch. Do you know why that is? Has it been worked on recently?”

“I don’t think so,” he said. “Why?”

Ryan answered that one.

“Because now we won’t have footage of anyone who might have approached the front of the house after she got home.”

Jessie saw the pained expression on Henshall’s face and wished Ryan hadn’t been so forthright.

“I don’t know,” he muttered. “Chloe handled all that stuff. I don’t know how long it was like that.”

“That’s all right, Mr. Henshall,” Jessie said, redirecting him. “Let’s not focus on that right now. There are a few basic logistical questions we have to ask, which we hope will help us get to the bottom of this.”

“Okay,” the man replied weakly.

“You said Chloe handled things like the security system. Did she have a list of all the different providers you guys use, with their contact information? I’m talking about everyone from your housekeeper, if you have one, to whoever cuts your lawn. Plus anyone who might come to the house regularly, whether it be a personal trainer, a masseuse, or a therapist. Friends too. Basically anyone who had access to your home, we want their details.”

Henshall nodded. ”Yeah, okay. She kept a list of the main ones on the corkboard in the kitchen. That”s what I usually used. It had folks like the gardener, the plumber, the handyman, the dog walker, and that driver, Albert. But I know she kept a more comprehensive list on her laptop for all the stuff she knew that I didn”t care about.”

“Like whom?” Jessie asked.

“She had a book club. I know all the members are on that list. She had a hypnotherapist who came regularly. And in addition to our regular dog walker, she had—this is a little embarrassing, but she got a pet therapist for Missy because she kept destroying all our shoes. So they would have sessions periodically. It’s all on her computer.”

“We’ll look into it,” Ryan told him. “Now I have to ask you an uncomfortable question, Mr. Henshall.”

The man looked up. His eyes were filled with apprehension.

“Please don’t ask me what I want to do with her body,” he pleaded. “I can’t think about any of that yet.”

“No,” Ryan said. “It’s not that. We’re going to need the names of everyone you were working with on that programming issue last night.”

“Oh,” Henshall said, the apprehension in his eyes replaced with understanding. “You need to prove I was at work and not here killing Chloe.”

Ryan didn’t answer that one, but he didn’t need to.

“I’ll have a complete list for you, along with contact info, in ten minutes,” Henshall continued. “Frankly, I’m happy to have the mental diversion, even if only briefly. May I go to my study?”

Ryan nodded, and Henshall left, followed by Officer Medina. When they were gone, he turned to Jessie and Cutter.

“We’ll need to verify his story, but I assume his people will confirm that he was there,” he said. “The main focus should be on getting the estimated time of death from the coroner. If it was yesterday afternoon or evening, he’s likely in the clear. If it was more recent, he may have some more explaining to do.”

“I’ll press Dr. Roone to get us something soon,” Cutter promised.

“Even though I don’t think it will show anything useful, we also need to review the security footage from the front door camera,” Jessie said.

“Maybe we’ll get lucky,” Cutter offered.

“Let’s hope so,’ Jessie replied, “because with as far apart as these giant homes are from each other, I doubt any neighbors’ cameras are going to help much. Still, you should canvass the area.”

“Will do,” Cutter said, pulling out a notebook and writing a note.

“In the meantime,” Ryan added, “let’s get copies of that contact list in the kitchen and the more comprehensive one from her laptop and send them to research. Maybe there’s an overlap in providers with the other victims. There’s one person in particular I’d be interested in talking to first.”

“Who?” Cutter asked, though Jessie didn’t need to. She knew exactly who her partner and husband was thinking of.

“Albert, the car service driver,” Ryan said.

“Why him first?” Cutter asked.

Jessie took that one.

“Because it’s possible he was the last person to see Chloe Henshall alive. He may our best witness.”

What she didn’t add was that the guy might be much more than just a witness.