Chapter 20 – Whitney
WHITNEY
The detective knocked on the front door at exactly four o’clock. I answered with Stone standing directly behind me. “Hello. You must be Detective Yates.”
“Yes, I am,” he said and looked at Stone. “And you are?”
He leaned around me to extend his hand. “Sawyer Hart.”
“He’s my boyfriend,” I added in a dreamy voice and nearly laughed at the look on Stone’s face when he whipped his head around.
“Please, come in,” I said. “We can talk in the living room.”
“What’s this about?” I asked once we were seated.
He opened a folder and handed me a picture. “Do you know this person?”
I wrinkled my nose as if the image smelled of his stench. “Yes. That’s Glenn Warner. Why?”
“How do you know Glenn Warner?”
“He’s an ex-boyfriend.”
“When did you break up?”
“Over a year ago.”
“How would you describe your current relationship with him?”
“I don’t know. How would you describe one’s relationship with a hemorrhoid or a cockroach? I have repeatedly tried to get rid of him, but he keeps coming back. Why? Has he done something?”
“He’s been reported missing.”
I grimaced. “That was an unfortunately timed analogy. Well, he should be easy to find. He drives a neon-green Porsche.”
“When was the last time you spoke to him?”
“Friday.”
“Do you stay in touch with all your ex-boyfriends?”
“Do you ask irrelevant and insulting questions during all your interviews?”
“Maybe we should bring you down to the station and finish this discussion.”
“Perfect! What time? I want to make sure my lawyer and your boss can make it. Or we can finish this now if you can ask your questions without being an asshole about it. I’m cool with either.”
The detective narrowed his eyes and stared at me for several moments before he opted to continue. “You last spoke to Glenn on Friday. What time and what did you talk about?”
“I met him for lunch at Barry’s Bistro on Spring Street around noon. He said he found some of my things when he was moving and wanted to give them back to me.”
“What were the items he returned?”
“I don’t know. There may not have been any. While we were eating, he asked to borrow money and left abruptly after he tried to steal my wallet.”
“Tried? So he didn’t steal it?”
“He stole it and had it in his possession for however long it took for me to catch up with him in the parking lot and get it back.”
“You said he left after you got it back?”
“Yes.”
“What time was that?”
“I don’t know. Twelve-thirty? Twelve-forty-five?”
“What did you do after he left?”
“I went to Inhalation Elevation.”
“How long were you there?”
“Not long. I ran into Johnny and he said he was headed to the crematory. I thought it would be fun to surprise Sawyer, so I hitched a ride with him.”
“The crematory?”
“Yes, Sawyer works at Grave Cremations.”
“And how long were you there?”
“Thirty minutes? I don’t know. I wasn’t keeping track of the time, but it wasn’t long. I didn’t feel well and wanted to go home.”
“So you left Grave Cremations and went home?”
“Yes. I ordered an INeedARide to pick me up because I didn’t feel like driving.”
“What did you do when you went home?”
“I got into bed and went to sleep.”
“Did you stay at home for the rest of the day?”
“No. My roommate and I had plans to spend the weekend at Lake Montgomery. We left when she got home from work.”
“You went out of town for the holiday weekend, came back, and were out of town again when I spoke to you on Wednesday?”
“No. When I spoke to you on Wednesday, I told you I wasn’t going to be home until Thursday. I was in Montgomery Ridge from Friday night through Sunday. I spent Monday at Jolly Beach, and I’ve been at Sawyer’s place since then.”
He closed his notepad and tapped his pen on it three times. “Well, Ms. Carlson, that’s all I have for now. Thank you for your time.”
“Glad to help,” I said tightly and walked him to the door.
He stepped onto the porch and turned back to face me. “Don’t leave town. As of now, you’re the last person who saw him or spoke to him before he disappeared, and you happen to be his disgruntled ex-girlfriend. That makes you the top suspect in my book.”
I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply, wondering if it would be worth seeing his reaction if I told him he needed a court order to tell me to stay in town. Instead, I robbed him of his intended outcome by giving him a traditional Southern reaction.
“I look forward to hearing from you, Detective Yates,” I said with a sweet smile. “Good luck with your case.”
I watched him until he got into his car and drove away before I closed the door. Turning around, I closed my eyes and sagged against it. “I’m so glad that’s over.”