11. Jaxson
CHAPTER 11
Jaxson
M y phone buzzes again, so I glance down to see yet another text from Bradley Payne. The man just won’t quit. He’s desperate to meet up so we can talk, though he promises that he won’t show up again unannounced.
I’ve barely had time to process him given everything else going on, so I shove the phone back into my pocket and spare Michael a glance as he sits beside me. He looks almost giddy as we wait for Sheriff Vick to bring Chad into the conference room so we can talk to him.
While there’s nothing to hold him on, I explained my theory to Vick, and he was more than happy to bring Margot’s ex-husband in.
“Try not to look so excited,” I tell Michael.
He grins. “I can’t. I’ve been wanting to get this guy in an interview room for years now.”
The door opens, and Chad walks in alongside Sheriff Vick. The moment he sees us, his gaze narrows, expression turning furious. “What are they doing here?” he demands.
“They’re working alongside us to locate Lanetti Ester, and we have a few questions for you since you were one of the last people to see her.” The sheriff had asked to play this as though we were going to Chad for help rather than as a suspect.
I’d agreed. Sometimes it’s easier to get someone to give themselves up when they aren’t expecting it. “Mr. O’Connell,” I greet, trying to keep things smooth.
He doesn’t respond as he takes a seat beside the sheriff. As soon as I’d made the possible connection, I’d researched Chad O’Connell. The week before he showed up back in town, he’d booked a flight to Los Angeles, where he stayed for two days before returning to Boston. Which is apparently where he and his new girlfriend are living.
I’m waiting for Alaric to tie him to the visitor logs we were finally able to get a warrant for. But it’s starting to fit together so perfectly that I can hardly stand not coming at him with everything I’ve got.
“You saw Lanetti at the diner last week, right?” I ask.
“Yes. As I told Sheriff Vick, I was eating there, and she sat down to have dinner with me.”
Alex and Lilly had confirmed as much. “And the two of you left together?”
“I gave her a ride home.”
“She didn’t have her car?” Michael questions.
“No.” He glares at me. “She’d asked for a ride home, and I agreed. Where is this going?” he demands, looking from us to the sheriff.
Is he so volatile because he knows Margot’s lawyer is working to throw out the case he presented against her? Or because he senses we’re getting close?
“We’re just trying to piece it all together,” Michael replies, keeping his tone level. “So, can you tell us why you’re back in town, Chad? Backstory can sometimes help,” he adds with a dark smile.
“I’m assuming Margot told you why.”
“She did, but I sense there’s more to it,” he replies.
“I miss my family. Is that a crime?”
“No,” Michael replies. “But kidnapping is.”
“Kidnapping—” Chad whirls on the sheriff. “Kidnapping, Vick, really?”
“We just need some answers, Chad,” he replies.
“You’ve known me my entire life. Do you really think I would do anything like this?”
“No one thought you’d abandon your family either,” Michael snaps.
Chad shoots out of his chair and rushes for Michael, who’s already on his feet. I step between them, catching the right hook meant for my partner. Pain shoots up through my jaw, and I clench my hands into fists at my side.
“Knock it off!” Sheriff Vick yells.
I glare at Chad, knowing if he takes another swing, I’m not going to just take it this time. His glare shifts from me to Michael and he steps back .
“Coward,” Chad snarls. “Had to have your boyfriend here step in for you.”
Michael laughs because we both know the only reason I stepped in between them was to keep Michael from killing Chad right here in the station’s conference room. “Anytime you wanna step into the ring, I’m game, O’Connell.”
“I don’t have time for this,” he growls, backing further away.
“You good?” Sheriff Vick asks me.
“Barely felt it,” I reply. “You’re going to make time,” I tell Chad. “Now, where were we?”
“You were busy accusing me of something I didn’t do.”
I ignore him. “Where were you the night Lanetti went missing?”
“At my parent’s house,” he snaps. “You can check with them.”
“We will,” I reply.
“Good. Fine.” He stands.
“Why did you fly out to LA?”
“What?”
I cross my arms. “You flew to LA the week before you came here. Why?”
“I don’t see how that’s any of your business.”
“It has to do with this case, which makes it my business.”
He looks to the sheriff. “I want my lawyer,” he snaps.
“We’re not charging you with anything, Chad.”
“Certainly seems like you are. ”
“Look, if you want your lawyer, I’ll make the call. But it would really be easier if you’d just answer the question.”
Chad’s scowl deepens. “I was out there for a job interview.”
It was hardly what I expected him to say.
“Then why are you coming after Margot for partial custody?” Michael demands.
“He’s not.” A theory turns in my mind and with it, anger burns my veins. “You were going to change it to a fight for full custody of Matty, weren’t you? Why?”
“He’s my son.”
“You signed away your rights to him.”
“Because Margot—” He cuts his thought short. “I wanted to take my son with me. Out of this town where everyone has an opinion about his father.”
“Unbelievable.” Michael shakes his head and turns away. “You’re even bigger scum than I thought. How did you think that plan would work?”
I study Chad’s expression. The way his gaze darts toward the door, how he toys with his hands on top of the table, and suddenly, the case he filed against Margot makes sense. “You knew it wouldn’t work, didn’t you? You knew that no judge in their right mind would award you full custody of your son. You were only hoping to scare Margot into paying you to go away like she did when you left town the first time.”
“What?” Michael looks from me to Chad, then back to me. “What are saying? ”
“You have no idea what you’re talking about,” Chad snaps.
“You were seriously trying to get more money out of her?” I ask, doing everything I can to keep my temper at bay.
“Chelsea thought that if I asked for just the money, it would look bad. We need the money. Margot got everything.”
“So you had to put the custody fight on there, too. Because in comparison to losing her son or paying you off, you knew Margot would sell everything to protect Matty.”
“Margot will land on her feet. She always does. And besides, she has your parents she could have gone to,” he says to Michael, who looks about ready to shoot his sister’s ex.
Michael opens his mouth to respond, then turns and storms out of the room, slamming the door behind him.
Chad flinches.
The longer I’m around him, the more I’m starting to see Chad O’Connell for what he is. A coward. A terrible person. An alcoholic. But not a kidnapper.
My hope that Alaric would find the prison records fades.
Because even as kidnapping Lanetti and using the cards to frame Morah would be a way to distract me, there’s just no clear motive for it.
The case I’d built against him falls apart before my eyes, putting us right back to square one when it comes to Lanetti’s disappearance and the attempted break-in at Emigh’s house.
“Sheriff, can I have just a few minutes with Mr. O’Connell?” I ask, glancing up at Sheriff Vick. He knows my history as a detective, the impeccable record I brought with me, so I’m hoping it’s enough to buy me some alone time.
“Sure thing. I’ll go grab some coffee.” He stands.
“You’re leaving me alone with him?” Chad demands.
“Nothing says I can’t. Besides, as you well know, Jaxson was a detective with the LAPD. You’ll be perfectly fine.” He flashes a furious smile, then leaves, closing the door behind him.
Smiling, I lean forward. “The case against Margot isn’t going to go anywhere, and you know it. So here’s the deal. You’re going to leave town, drop the case, and move on with your life. If Matty wants a relationship with you, he’ll reach out.”
Chad’s cheeks turn crimson. “You don’t get to tell me what to do, Payne.”
“In this case, I do, because Margot and Matty are both far too good for you. And should you press forward, all that’s going to happen is the case will get dismissed anyway, and then you look like even more of a fool for not doing the right thing and dropping it.”
Chad doesn’t respond, but his jaw clenches. “It’s not right that she kept everything and I got nothing.”
“You destroyed your family,” I remind him. “That choice was on you and you alone.”
“I want a fresh start. ”
“Taking Margot for all she has is not a fresh start. You want to start a new life? Get right with God. Ask for forgiveness. Make changes to yourself. Then maybe you’ll realize just how much you messed up when you walked away from the best things that ever happened to you.” I start to leave, then pause and turn back toward him. “And for the record, if I find out you didn’t drop the case, or you come after Margot or Matty ever again, Michael will be the least of your problems.”