Chapter 11
"Adam is your ex-boyfriend, and you’re telling me he tends bar here at Shrimptastic with you?" I said.
Katie nodded.
"And that doesn't cause problems?”
"It was a little awkward at first, but he's totally over it.”
I looked at her with skeptical eyes. "Are you sure about that?”
She shrugged sheepishly. "I guess. I don't know.”
"Is he working today?”
"He's not in yet. He should be here pretty soon. He was supposed to be on shift half an hour ago.”
I shared a look with JD.
"Did he know Cody was working at the mall today?"
"I don't know. I don't think so. But I could have mentioned something. I'm not sure.”
"Do you have contact information for Adam?" I asked.
"Yeah, his number is still in my phone.”
She pulled out her device and tabbed through her contact list. I gave her my number to send the information to. Adam’s contact info buzzed my phone a moment later. I forwarded the information to Isabella and asked her to look into the phone’s location history.
We asked Katie a few more questions, then she begged her manager to take the rest of the day off. He didn’t look too happy about it, but he cut her loose.
JD and I hung out and waited for Adam to show up after Katie left.
"Think she's got something going on with her ex?" JD asked.
I shrugged.
Adam strolled through the front door a few moments later. The manager chastised him for being late. I climbed off the barstool and interrupted the two. I flashed my badge and made introductions.
Adam was a tall guy with a muscular physique and untamed brown hair that hung just past the top of his ears. He could have been the shooter. It was hard to say.
"I just need to ask you a few questions before you start your shift.”
He looked at me with a wrinkled brow. "What's going on?"
I ignored the question. "Can you tell me where you were this morning?”
"In my apartment. Why?”
"You didn't go to the mall earlier today?”
"No. Why?"
"What's the status of your relationship with Katie?" I asked.
His brow wrinkled with confusion. "What's that got to do with anything?”
I shrugged. "It's a simple question.”
"Maybe I don't feel like answering it." He shifted uncomfortably.
"Katie already admitted to it," I said, bluffing.
Anger tensed his jaw. "Then why did you ask?”
"I just wanted to get your side of things.”
"Is that a crime now?”
I shrugged again. "I don't know. Could be. How long have you been hooking up?"
Adam shifted again, then glanced around the restaurant to make sure no one was listening. Eyes of other staff members flicked to us from time to time, more than a little curious about our investigation.
"I don't know, maybe a month now.”
"Did you want to get back together with her?"
He sighed. "It's complicated." Then he admitted, "Yeah. I guess I did.”
"Cody was in the way.”
"Yeah, Cody's a little bit of a problem."
"Is or was?"
Confusion tensed his eyes again. "What do you mean?”
"Cody's dead.”
His eyes rounded with surprise. The reaction seemed genuine. "How did he die?"
I shared a look with JD.
"Do you own a gun?”
"Yeah. I got a shotgun and a couple of rifles."
"You own a pistol?"
"Yeah," he said, cautious, still wondering where we were going with this.
"A 9mm?"
"Yeah,” he replied, even more cautious.
"What do you use it for?”
"Home defense. What are you getting at?”
Isabella texted back. [Adam Boyd’s phone was off the grid this morning until a little after noon.]
"Why was your phone off the grid this morning?" I asked him.
He stammered. "I don't know. The battery died. What's the deal?”
"Where did you say you were this morning?"
"I told you. I was at my apartment, sleeping. I got pretty hammered last night. My alarm didn't go off, and I overslept.” Adam wasn’t the brightest bulb in the box. But he finally put it together. "You think I had something to do with Cody's death?”
"I need to see your pistol. Where is it?”
"It's at my apartment. And no, you don't need to see it.”
"Do you know a woman named Evelyn Ellington?"
Adam’s brow knitted with confusion again. "No.”
"Are you sure about that?”
"Yeah, I'm positive," he said with frustration. "Look, I'm done talking to you. If you need to ask more questions, talk to my lawyer.”
He marched toward the bar and slipped behind it, then had a brief chat with his manager.
We didn’t have probable cause to bring him in. I wasn't convinced he had any involvement, but he did have motive, means, and opportunity.
We left Shrimptastic and walked back to the Porsche. JD and I discussed our thoughts about Adam, then hopped into the car and headed to find Dustin. He was the more likely target, but I wasn't ruling anything out at this point.