Chapter 16

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

S am stood by the K-cup coffee brewer, filling his navy-blue-and-white WRPD mug. Major, perched atop the filing cabinet, swiped his paw down every few seconds as if trying to catch the steam rising from the mug.

Lucy snoozed peacefully next to Jo’s desk, her tail twitching occasionally. The office hummed with the usual morning bustle.

Kevin strode in, a triumphant grin on his face. “Guess what I’ve got.” He held up a fruitcake double wrapped in plastic wrap.

A collective groan rose from the team. Sam raised an eyebrow. “Rita’s fruitcake? Again?”

Kevin chuckled. “Yeah, but that’s not all.” He produced a white box and placed it on the desk. “I also got some corn muffins.”

Jo leaned forward, intrigued. “Corn muffins? Where’d you get those?”

“The Roadside Diner,” Kevin replied, opening the box to reveal a dozen golden muffins.

Jo wrinkled her nose. “I didn’t know that sleazy diner had anything edible. You actually go there?”

Kevin shrugged, a smile tugging at his lips. “Sometimes. The muffins are pretty good.”

The team gathered around, each grabbing a muffin and a plate. The sweet, buttery scent mingled with the coffee aroma, creating a cozy atmosphere.

Sam took a bite of his muffin, savoring the gritty texture. He swallowed and cleared his throat. “All right, let’s go over things. Did anyone learn anything new about the case?”

Wyatt sat back behind his desk. “I’ve got a couple of things.” He paused, ensuring he had everyone’s attention. “First, the phone system at Marnie’s headquarters has been switched to go through one number. I can’t tell who made what calls. It looks like Alex used that number along with everyone else.”

Sam furrowed his brow. “Is that normal? Routing all calls through one number?”

Wyatt shook his head. “It seems suspicious, given the circumstances. With Alex’s computer skills from gaming, he could’ve done it easily without anyone knowing. But why would he?”

Reese walked in and grabbed a corn muffin. She leaned against the desk, taking a bite and dropping crumbs, which Lucy promptly hoovered up.

Sam rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Maybe if he didn’t want anyone to know who he was calling?”

Wyatt nodded. “Yeah. The other strange thing is that the phone system change happened just over a week ago.”

Jo’s eyes widened. “That certainly is odd timing.”

Kevin, who had been quietly listening, spoke up. “A week ago? That’s around the time Alex’s grandfather passed away, right?”

Sam nodded. “And just before Alex was found dead.”

The room fell silent, the weight of the new information settling over them. The pieces were starting to come together, but the picture remained unclear.

“I’ll ask Marnie if she had the phones switched for some reason.” Sam took a sip of coffee. “What else?”

Wyatt pinched off a piece of the corn muffin top. “I also looked into the Feldman case. It seems there was some question about whether it was really a suicide.”

Jo leaned forward, her green eyes narrowed. “Why is that?”

Wyatt scrolled through the file on his screen. “It’s just a note in the case. The coroner had some doubts, but it was ultimately ruled a suicide.”

Kevin, who had been quietly mulling over the information, spoke up. “Feldman worked at the bank, right? What if he knew something about the robbery, and someone didn’t want him to tell?”

The room fell quiet as the implications of Kevin’s words sank in.

Jo broke the silence. “So someone murdered him and staged it to look like a suicide, and no one found out?”

Kevin shrugged. “It was a long time ago, and they didn’t have the forensics and modern tools that we have now. Easier to get away with stuff like that back then.”

Sam held up his hand, his expression serious. “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. We’ll look into Feldman’s case further, but we can’t jump to conclusions.”

Wyatt nodded, his eyes still glued to the screen. “There is something else interesting about the Feldman case.”

The team looked at him expectantly, bracing themselves for another bombshell.

“The investigating detective for that case was Hartman,” Wyatt revealed, his voice heavy with significance.

“Interesting, but again, I don’t think they had a lot of people to investigate back then, so maybe it’s not as coincidental as it seems.” Sam turned to Reese. “Did you get the warrant for the tapes from the Drunken Moose? Jamison said he’d try to rush it to us.”

Reese shook her head. Her phone beeped in her back pocket. She pulled it out, her eyes scanning the text message. “I didn’t get the warrant yet, but I just got a message from Susan, my hydrologist friend.”

As everyone turned to Reese, eager to hear what she had to say.

“Susan said the currents and where the body ended up point toward it going in somewhere near Fish Cove,” Reese explained, her voice tinged with excitement.

Sam’s eyes widened, and he turned to Jo. “Isn’t that where Lucy made a ruckus when we were in the car?”

Jo nodded, her expression serious. “Yeah, she was really agitated when we passed by that dirt road near Thorne Industries’ new storage facility.”

Sam stood up, grabbing his coat from the back of his chair. “All right, let’s go check it out. Jo, you’re with me. You too, Lucy.”