Chapter 35
Red and blue lights danced across the parking lot behind Forbidden Fruit. It was the premier strip club on the island. Deputies kept the crowd of onlookers at bay. Paris Delaney and her news crew were on the scene, soaking up the gory footage.
A man lay face down in a pool of blood in the parking lot, not far from a pearl SUV.
Dietrich snapped photos, and forensic investigators chronicled the evidence. Brenda pulled on a pair of nitrile gloves and approached the remains. She knelt down and started her evaluation. Sheriff Daniels looked on with a grim face.
By the tan line on the victim's wrist, his watch was conspicuously absent. Probably stolen.
I asked the sheriff, "What happened?"
"It's pretty obvious, don't you think?" he said in a dry tone.
He pointed to a rather well-endowed blonde standing nearby with long, straight hair, wearing pink sweatpants.
Traumatized, she hugged her boyfriend. He was a good-looking guy in his late 20s with shaggy brown hair.
He wore sunglasses, which at this hour was a little odd. I'm sure he was stoned out of his mind.
I approached the blonde and flashed my badge. "I'm Deputy Wild, this is Deputy Donovan. Special Crimes. Your name is?”
"Alexis," the blonde said, still frazzled by the whole thing. "This is Ryan.”
"Tell me everything you saw."
"I had just gotten off work. Ryan was waiting for me in the parking lot. I stepped out the back door just as this guy shot him."
"What did the assailant look like?”
Alexis shrugged. "I'm not really sure. It was so dark. He wore a dark hoodie, sunglasses, and a surgical mask over his face.”
I shared a look with Jack. He matched the description of Miriam Renick's shooter.
"How tall was he?”
Alexis shrugged again. "Maybe 6-feet tall.”
"Describe his body type.”
"Athletic. He wasn’t a bodybuilder or anything, but he was in good shape.”
I asked Ryan, "What about you?”
"I was just waiting for her to get off. To tell you the truth, I fell asleep in the car. I heard gunshots. When I peeled open my eyes, that guy was on the ground," he said, pointing to the victim. "The guy in the hoodie took off that way.”
"I suppose you didn't get a look at his face either.”
Ryan shook his head.
I asked Alexis, "Do you know the victim?”
"No. Not really. I think he was in the club earlier.”
I gave her a card and told her to hang around for a moment.
Jack and I stepped close to the body, trying to get a look at the victim.
"No wallet or identification," Brenda said.
"No need," I said. "I know this guy.”
Brenda lifted a surprised brow.
"His name is Cameron. He's a friend of Wesley Oliver’s.”
That hung there for a minute.
Jack muttered, "I'm beginning to think this definitely isn't a coincidence.”
Cameron was kind of a nerdy guy with medium-length curly brown hair that hung mid-ear. He had a narrow face and sad blue eyes. They were blank and staring at the asphalt now.
I stepped back to the sheriff and updated him.
He stifled a groan. "What do you think the connection is?"
"So far, we have Wesley, his shrink, and his friend from college.”
"Maybe all three of them knew something that somebody didn't want getting out," Jack said.
The sheriff sighed. "Notify his wife. Put the pieces together. I'm tired of people dying." The sheriff paused. "How much have you two had to drink tonight?"
JD and I exchanged a sheepish shrug.
"On second thought, I'll send another deputy. Talk to the wife in the morning when you don't smell like a distillery.”
I wouldn’t say we had overindulged or anything, but we certainly had a few adult beverages while chatting up lovely ladies on the strip. I didn't feel like doing a death notification at this time of night, anyway.
We walked back to Oyster Avenue and caught a cab to the marina. We’d pick up the Porsche in the morning. No sense in risking it.
It was around 10:00 AM the next morning when we caught up with Cameron’s wife, Lily. She lived in Whispering Heights on Rum Hollow Drive.
She greeted us at the door, looking like a zombie.
I don't think she had gotten much sleep, not after being awoken by deputies at close to 3:00 AM.
Lily was a gorgeous woman with wavy red hair that hung past her shoulders, elegant bone structure, fair skin, and a light dusting of freckles.
Her hypnotizing emerald eyes were red and puffy.
"Please come in," she said, holding the door open for us.
We stepped into the foyer, and she led us into the living room.
The house was quaint and cozy. A French colonial with teal paint, white trim, bleached hardwoods, and a light, airy feel. French doors opened to the patio and a small pool.
We took a seat on the couch, and she sat catty-corner. She blotted her teary eyes with a tissue and sniffled. “It doesn’t seem real, you know.”
We offered condolences.
“I had no idea he was visiting such establishments.”
“Where did you think he was last night?” I asked.
It was a double whammy. Not only had Lily lost her husband, but she had also lost trust in him. "He told me he was going out with Landon for a few drinks to watch the game," she said in utter dismay.
"We believe this may be connected to the deaths of Wesley Oliver and Dr. Miriam Renick," I said.
She looked at me with astonished eyes. "How so?"
"There are some pieces we haven't quite put together. Did your husband have any enemies that you were aware of?”
She exhaled a frustrated breath. "No. But apparently, there were quite a few things about his life that I was unaware of." Her eyes welled, and the tears spilled over. She blotted them away again. "I don't know how I'm going to break this to the kids. I still haven't told them."
"Are they here?"
Lily shook her head. "I called my sister to take them this morning. I needed some time to collect myself.”
"Was your husband ever a patient of Dr. Renick's?"
"No. Not that I'm aware of.”
"It's my understanding Cameron was a pediatrician?”
Lily nodded.
"You were home all night last night?"
She nodded again.
"Do you recall what you were doing around 2:00 AM?"
She gave me a quizzical look. "I was asleep. Why?"
"Just standard questions. I have to ask."
She gave an understanding nod.
I said her husband's assailant and Dr. Renick’s had the same appearance. "Can you think of anything that might connect the two?”
Her mouth tightened as she thought about it for a moment. "No. I don't think they knew each other.”
"When did you meet your husband?”
"We've been married for seven years now.
We dated for less than a year. We knew right away.
" A fond smile tugged her lips as she recalled happier times.
"Actually, a friend set us up on a blind date.
It was kind of crazy. I wasn't expecting much.
When I first met him, I wasn't all that impressed.
But as the night wore on, we just seemed to have this connection.
You meet people, and they just get you. He got me. "
Her eyes filled again.
I offered my condolences once again and set my card on the glass coffee table. I told her to get in touch if she could think of anything helpful or if she needed anything.
She escorted us to the door, and we walked back to the Porsche. Brenda buzzed my phone as I climbed into the passenger seat.
"What have you got for me?"
"These murders are definitely related. Ballistics match. The same gun that was used to kill Dr. Renick was used in last night’s shooting.”
I thanked her for the info and updated Jack.
With a wrinkled face, JD asked, "What the hell do the three of them have in common?"