Chapter 31
Hailey gasped. Another coworker dead? “Who? What happened?”
“Stefania Novak. She was murdered.”
She clapped her hand over her mouth. Despite how Stefania treated her, she still felt bad for the woman. Frank’s death, though tragic, had been due to a heart attack. That was bad enough. Murder was so much worse, no matter who the victim was.
Peter put an arm around her shoulders. “Do you think this is connected with the attempts on Hailey’s life? A coworker’s death doesn’t usually warrant an in-person notification.”
Hailey had been too stunned by the news to wonder at Eric’s presence, but Peter was right.
Even if she and Stefania had been good friends—which they weren’t—she wouldn’t have received an official notification.
Nor would a detective have been tasked with making that visit.
But how could this be connected with her?
Stefania had nothing to do with Eukaria’s accounts, though she’d certainly wanted to.
Was it possible there was some other reason they’d both been targeted?
Eric ran a hand through his short, dark hair.
“There isn’t a good way to say this, so I’m just going to be blunt.
Word is that you two didn’t get along—that she’s been harassing you.
I have to ask if you know anything about her death.
” Despite his obvious discomfort, his tone was firm and his gaze steady.
Hailey’s eyes rounded. “Absolutely not. Yes, she’s been a pain in my side, but I’d never want her dead.”
He drew out a well-worn notebook. “Can you tell me where you were between two and four a.m.?”
“I was here all night.”
“And can your parents verify that?”
“Actually.” Peter cleared his throat. “I can.”
Eric turned his attention to him, a flicker of relief and curiosity in his eyes. “You can confirm her alibi?”
Peter nodded. “I got off work at one and came straight over here. We talked for a while, then watched TV for a few hours before dozing off on the couch. Neither of us moved until her parents got up around seven.”
Eric jotted the information in his notebook, then clicked his pen several times like he often did when considering the facts of a case. Hailey resisted the urge to snatch it out of his hand.
“You can’t seriously be considering me a suspect.” How could Eric even question her innocence? He was practically family—would be once he and her cousin Allye tied the knot next month.
Another click, then Eric sighed. “No. I really don’t think you had anything to do with this.
But I have to do my job. And so far, yours is the only name that has come up as someone she’s been on bad terms with.
I haven’t been able to get ahold of your boss, but I stopped by your office.
Your coworkers indicated that, to their knowledge, all her clients were satisfied. Would you say that’s true?”
She deliberated on that a moment, trying to remember if she’d heard anything to the contrary.
She came up empty. “I can’t really confirm or deny that.
I don’t—didn’t—hang out with her outside of work, and I do my best to avoid the office gossip.
” She preferred to keep her head down and focus on her own clients.
“And Mr. Gleason is on a cruise. He likes to totally disconnect when he’s on vacation, so I wouldn’t be surprised if he chose to avoid paying the Wi-Fi upcharge and has his phone off and shoved in a drawer. ”
“Seems odd for a man in his position to make himself completely unavailable.”
She lifted one shoulder. “I don’t disagree, but he insists we do the same when we’re on vacation.” Not that she’d had opportunity to take one herself since returning to full-time work.
Eric tapped his pen against the notepad. “Was Ms. Novak planning a trip in the near future?”
“Not that I’m aware of. Why?”
“She called out sick yesterday, according to your coworkers. But there was a packed suitcase near her front door. Had her passport in it, among other things.”
She shook her head slowly. “I really doubt it. She just got back from vacation a couple weeks ago. Maybe she just never unpacked?”
“Was she the kind of person to leave her suitcase sitting for two weeks? That’s not the impression I’ve gotten.”
“That would seem out of character for her,” she admitted. Stefania always seemed to have things in order. Her cubicle, her attire, her career. Well, until Hailey had gotten the client she wanted . . .
Peter interjected again. “May I ask, Detective, how Ms. Novak was killed?”
Eric’s features tightened. “Autopsy has yet to be done, but cause of death appears to be a gunshot wound to the forehead. Close range.”
Her stomach turned. She was no investigator, but even she could draw the conclusion that it had likely been personal.
Had Stefania ticked off the wrong person in her private life?
Or was this related to Pendleton Accounting and the things Hailey had discovered regarding Eukaria?
It seemed too much of a coincidence for two of Pendleton Accounting’s CPAs to be targeted unless there was a connection, but that didn’t necessarily mean Eukaria was that connection.
Eric fixed her with a look she couldn’t quite decipher. “By the way, I paid Oscar Redmond a visit the other day.”
She wasn’t sure why that mattered right now, but she figured he had a reason for bringing it up. “Did he blow up on you?”
“No, but he was clearly holding on to his temper by a thread. He admitted to confronting you in the parking lot and to ‘accidentally’ cutting you off on the road, but he also tried to claim you exaggerated the incidents and reported him out of spite.”
“Great.” Making an enemy of Oscar Redmond was not something she wanted to do.
“I made it very clear to him that you were not the one who brought up his name. Not sure if that helped, but I did discover what set him off in the first place. Apparently, he’d been counting on acquiring the big remodel job that city hall was advertising.
Another company won the contract, and he was livid. ”
“Okay . . . and that has to do with me how?” She hadn’t so much as set foot in city hall or attended a council meeting since Wesley’s death. Despite knowing she’d done nothing wrong, it was still too painful and embarrassing.
“That was last Friday—the day before he confronted you. He said after he got the news, he went to the bar to blow off steam over a couple of drinks. A woman sidled up to him and suggested the real reason he lost out was because the city couldn’t afford him due to the money Wesley stole from the city funds.
The woman he described fits Ms. Novak to a T. ”
“Why would she do that? I paid back every cent of that money,” she hissed through clenched teeth.
Eric gave her a sympathetic look. “I know. Still, I followed up with the council. The other company had slightly underbid Oscar’s price, but it was only by a couple hundred dollars or so.
The bigger selling point was that their crew had more experience and was likely to get the job done more quickly.
It had nothing to do with you or Wesley. ”
His reassurance didn’t provide much comfort. Oscar’s reputation as a hothead was well-known. He’d been involved in more than a few altercations, some of which had come to blows. And yet her coworker had deliberately misled him in an attempt to . . . what? Ignite his anger against Hailey?
“Why would Stefania do that?” she asked again.
The men were quiet for a minute, but finally Peter said, “Someone’s been trying to get rid of you. If she was involved in that somehow, it would have been an extra pressure point to exploit.”
Meaning, Stefania might have something to do with the Eukaria situation? Details started trying to connect, but Hailey was so shaken by the news that she was having trouble seeing the full picture.
She appreciated that Peter hadn’t mentioned her client outright.
She still hadn’t figured out whether she should bring Eric in on that situation.
This would probably be her best opportunity though.
Before she had a chance to decide, she heard a thump and a wail from the back of the house.
Nap time was apparently over. “Excuse me. I’ll be right back. ”
FROM DETECTIVE THORNTON’S DEMEANOR, there was more to the crime scene than he was letting on. Peter waited until Hailey was out of earshot before asking, “What aren’t you telling us?”
The detective’s frown deepened. “I’m not at liberty to share the details at this time.”
Peter studied him. “But it was bad.”
A muscle twitched in the other man’s cheek. “Gruesome is a better word for it.”
Hailey returned, Jenna on her hip, and Peter decided to let the matter drop. For now.
“So you have no idea who did this or why?” Hailey asked.
“We’re still working on that. Peter brought up a good point. Considering the attempts made on your life and Ms. Novak’s interest in turning people against you, I have to wonder if there’s some connection.”
“I’m wondering the same thing. Could she have been killed by the same people who are after me?”
“It’s a possibility.”
Peter frowned as he thought through that scenario.
His best guess up until last night had been that the threats against Hailey were in relation to the money laundering scheme she’d discovered.
But Alessandro Luque had indicated that wasn’t the case.
If he was telling the truth, what did it mean that another CPA had been targeted?
Was something more going on at Pendleton Accounting?
He refocused on the detective. “Had Ms. Novak received any threats or warnings recently?”
“No. None that she reported, anyway. She does have a longtime fiancé that we’ve been unable to reach. Perhaps he’ll be able to confirm that.”
This situation was bizarre. Peter locked gazes with Hailey, silently inquiring if she was going to tell Eric about yesterday’s developments.
He could see her indecision, and he understood it.
But this might be her best chance to discreetly get law enforcement involved.
She wouldn’t have to risk a phone call or a visit to the police station.
And though he didn’t know Detective Thornton well, he was fairly certain they could trust him.
Hailey seemed to come to the same conclusion.
She heaved a deep sigh and untangled Jenna’s fingers from her hair before setting her daughter on the floor to play.
“I don’t know anything about Stefania’s death, Eric.
And I don’t want to distract from that investigation, but there’s something I need to tell you.
There’s a possibility it might be connected. ”
By the time she finished, Eric’s pen was clicking in a fast-paced rhythm. “And you didn’t think I might need to know all this sooner?”
“Of course I did. But I didn’t know what to do. He said he’d know if I tried to report him. It almost sounded like he’d bugged my phone or had someone following me.”
“He could have been bluffing.”
“He could have,” she agreed. “But you weren’t there. His voice was so cold, almost detached.” She shivered. “He sounded like the kind of guy who could order a hit on a day care, then treat himself to a crème br?lée. I was afraid not to take him seriously.”
“But you’re telling me now.”
“You’re here about something else. He has no way of knowing what we’re talking about.”
Peter hoped that was the case. At his suggestion, she’d left her phone under a pile of laundry in her bedroom. It might be overkill, but if someone was listening in via the device, that would limit what it could pick up.
Eric pinched the bridge of his nose. “Okay, here’s what I’m going to do.”
Twenty minutes later, the detective departed with a promise to leave the money laundering situation alone for this afternoon.
The Kincaid police force was small, and anyone watching would expect all resources to be thrown behind cracking the murder case before the killer’s trail went cold.
There was just too high a risk of tipping off Eukaria’s CFO if Eric started poking around in the wrong place.
But he’d be working on a plan. Ignoring the situation with Eukaria was a temporary solution at best. They couldn’t afford to delay acting on Hailey’s situation for long. Her deadline was ticking nearer with every second.
After locking up behind the detective, Peter returned to the living room and sank onto the couch next to Hailey. “How are you doing?”
“I’m not sure. My relationship with Stefania wasn’t great, but I wasn’t at all prepared for her death.”
“The detective said she’d been harassing you?”
She shrugged one shoulder. “I’ve only been back to working full-time at Pendleton Accounting for about nine months.
For most of that time, Stefania largely ignored me other than to make a snide comment every now and then.
She wasn’t a particularly happy person, and she took that out on others.
But when I inherited Eukaria’s accounts after Frank died, she went ballistic.
Ever since then, she’s gone out of her way to make my life miserable.
I have to wonder now if she knew something and that’s why she wanted them so badly. ”
“She wanted Eukaria specifically?”
“Yes. I didn’t think much of it until now.
Eukaria is the biggest firm that uses our services.
There’s a certain amount of prestige that comes with having them as a client, as well as an increase in pay.
And she’s got seniority at Pendleton Accounting now that Frank’s gone.
It made sense that she felt slighted when I got their accounts instead, but I guess it could have been more than that.
Is it terrible that I almost wish I’d let her have it?
Maybe she’d still be alive and I wouldn’t be in this mess. ” She buried her face in her hands.
Peter put an arm around her shoulders. He didn’t try to say anything. He couldn’t blame her for wishing this problem away, especially now that she was facing threats that involved her whole family.
But he was also curious about why Stefania Novak had wanted that particular client so badly. Had she just been overly ambitious, or had she known about the goings-on at Eukaria Investments? More than that, had she been involved somehow?