Chapter 22 #2
“I was thinking we might want to talk to Tyler’s friend Greg from Seattle.
He might be able to give us some insight into what Tyler was doing.
I know we have our theory, but I want to make sure that we’ve done our due diligence before we walk into Finn’s office and tell him he’s going the wrong way in his investigation. ”
“I can’t argue that. Do you even know where the friend is?”
“His parents mentioned that Greg was staying at the Winslow Inn,” Tate replied. “They also said that he’s planning to fly out on the red eye. He may already have checked out, but I thought we could give it a try.”
One glance at her watch told her it was past checkout time.
The Winslow Inn, located a few miles off a highway exit, sounded stately and historic, but in reality, it had been built only about ten years ago.
Cat had clear memories of her mother discussing the construction and how incredibly ugly the building turned out to be.
All modern and sterile, it was exactly as the developer had dreamed of, and a nightmare for the citizens of the town.
But the council had approved the project, mostly due to the need for jobs.
“I know the manager,” Tate said as they walked into the three-story lobby, glass and metal gleaming. “He used to be a regular before he got married. I’ll ask him.”
“I think you know everyone in town.”
“Not everyone, but a lot. That’s what happens when the bar has all the college and pro football games in the autumn.”
“It’s not your sparkling personality?”
“Perish the thought.”
Tate waved at a man behind the counter who immediately grinned at the greeting, beckoning them forward.
“Damn, what are you doing here? I’m not sure I’ve ever seen you outside of the tavern.”
“Sometimes, I slip out and they don’t notice,” Tate joked. “Ben, this is Cat, a good friend of mine. Cat, this is Ben. He drinks craft beers and likes the Bears. He also likes mustard on his brats.”
“A wise man,” Cat said, her expression solemn. “Especially the mustard part. Nice to meet you, Ben.”
“Nice to meet you,” Ben replied. “How can I help you? Wait, are you two here to look at wedding venues? We’d be honored to host a Winslow wedding.”
Whoa, Nellie. Cat was in love, but marriage? They needed to pace themselves.
But…Tate would make an excellent husband.
“That’s not it,” Tate said. “We’re looking for Greg Holden. He’s a guest here, but he may have already checked out. He has a flight out tonight, but we were hoping to catch him before he left.”
“Holden? Right, he has checked out, but he hasn’t left for the airport yet.
He asked if he could set up his laptop in a corner of the bar and work from there until his ride showed up.
I told him it was no problem. We could have even done a late checkout, but he said he didn’t want to be any trouble.
He’s in there now, so you’re in luck. I take it he’s not expecting you? ”
“He’s not, but we only need a few minutes of his time. Thanks, Ben. I appreciate the help. Next beer is on me.”
“Don’t think I won’t take you up on that.”
Greg Holden was easily spotted. He’d set up camp at a table in a quiet corner of the bar, tapping away at his laptop. A half-eaten order of fries was on the table along with a bottle of beer, and his briefcase was tucked next to the chair.
“Greg?” Tate asked as they approached. “Do you have a minute or two? We hate to bother you, but we really need to talk to you before you leave town.”
The man’s brows rose in question, but he nodded at the chairs across from him.
“Sure, although I’m not sure how I can help you.”
Cat and Tate hadn’t discussed how they were going to bring up the touchy subject. They weren’t asking about the weather. This was far more tricky and sensitive.
Hey, was your work buddy a pussy-hound?
Cat and Tate glanced at one another, not sure how to proceed. It was a delicate subject.
“Tyler’s parents asked me to get some photos off of his phone for Alexa,” Tate explained. “It turns out he has two phones, and one of them?—”
“I think I know where you’re going here,” Greg said, interrupting Tate’s explanation. “What is it exactly that you want to know?”
Tate opened his mouth, but he didn’t seem to know what to say.
“Tyler was seeing several women, correct?” Cat said, jumping in. “He had girlfriends all over where he traveled.”
Greg cleared his throat and grabbed the napkin from the table, wiping his mouth before replying.
“Listen, Tyler was a good friend of mine.”
“And mine,” Tate said. “But no one is perfect. Was he seeing multiple women? It doesn’t make him a bad person.”
Unless he was lying to them, and it looks like he was.
Greg shook his head and sighed.
“Tyler was a good friend,” he said again. “He was the kind of guy who would be there for you, no matter the time of day or night. No questions asked. He was loyal to a fault.”
“To his friends,” Cat said, completing the sentence that Greg hadn’t. “But not necessarily to Alexa.”
“Alexa is a sweet woman,” Greg said. “And she sure as hell deserved a better boyfriend than Tyler, although he treated her great…for the most part.”
Sure, Tyler only lied to her behind her back. That’s no big deal.
“He traveled a lot, and he met a lot of women,” Tate said. “That seems to be what we’re seeing on his second phone.”
“That goddamn phone,” Greg muttered. “I told him that he was going to get caught, so he decided to get a second phone. Then, I told him that he could still get caught, but he said he had a foolproof system. The women would never know.”
Eww. Now I want a shower.
“A foolproof system?” Tate questioned. “What was it?”
“I dunno,” Greg replied with a shrug. “I never asked, because I wasn’t looking to cheat on my wife.
But it seemed to work for him. We traveled for work all the time, and Tyler had girlfriends in those cities.
I made a point of not getting involved. I told him it was risky, but damn, he was like a danger junkie.
He got off on the thrill of juggling as many girls as he could.
Hell, he may have had more than I knew about. But he loved the challenge.”
Tyler hadn’t cared for those women. He had been all about the conquest. Cat had met men like that during her career. She’d even dated a few.
Assholes.
“He was open about this?” Tate asked.
“Not really. I only knew because I traveled with him, and it was kind of difficult to hide when he would be picking up women in the hotel bar right after talking to Alexa in the cab from the airport.”
“Did he have a girlfriend here in Winslow Heights?” Cat queried. “There were some rather threatening messages from her to him.”
“He started coming here quite a bit about six months ago, but it sort of slowed down. I didn’t come with him. I only heard about it later. He did mention a woman, saying she was hot but crazy. He never liked it when they demanded more of his time and attention. That’s when he would break it off.”
Had WinHeights wanted more than Tyler was willing to give? She’d threatened him and said he’d be sorry.
“Did he say anything else about her?” Tate pressed. “Did he say that she threatened him?”
“No, but like I said, he didn’t talk about them much unless he was complaining and about to end things. I know that makes him sound terrible, but he was basically a good guy who liked women.”
Actually, it sounded to Cat like Tyler hadn’t liked or respected women at all. He’d used and discarded them like tissues during a head cold.
Tyler Eckerd wasn’t a good guy. He was a creep.
But that didn’t mean he deserved to be gunned down. No one deserved that.