Chapter 9

9

Benjamin Branson entered Foley's office, offered him a quick hello, and the two of them shook hands. Foley sat at his desk and offered a chair to Branson, but the man remained standing.

"I won't be long," Benjamin said. "Thank you for taking the time to meet with me, Chief Foley. I know how busy you must be right now. It's much appreciated."

"What can I do for you?"

Benjamin turned toward me like he wondered who I was and why I was in Foley's office. But since Foley hadn't said anything about giving the two men their privacy, I decided to stay. If it turned out he was there because of Cordelia Bennett's case, I wanted in on the conversation.

Benjamin acknowledged me with a nod. "Hello, I don't believe we've met."

"We haven't. I'm Georgiana Germaine. I run Case Closed Detective Agency."

"Ah, yes. I've heard great things about it, and about you."

"And I hear you're running for mayor."

He crossed his arms, beaming with pride. "I sure am."

Benjamin's physique suggested he made the most of his gym membership, if he had one. He looked to be in his mid-fifties and had a thick head of salt-and-pepper hair. He was dressed a bit more laidback for someone running for mayor, in a short-sleeve Polo shirt and black jeans, but perhaps his visit was a casual one.

"I've been impressed with what Octavia Bloom has done for the county in her time as mayor," I said. "Do you think you can beat her?"

He raised a brow. "I appreciate your honesty, and I agree. Octavia has done a remarkable job. I'd say we both have our strong suits. She brings a certain skillset to the table, and so do I. Different strengths, so to speak."

Spoken like a true politician.

"Octavia went to high school with my mother," I said. "They're good friends."

"Ah, makes sense."

"I'm guessing you're here to talk to me about the Bennett murder," Foley said.

"Correct. It's been a couple of weeks, and I was wondering where you're at in your investigation."

Foley had been right.

Benjamin did appear to be here to further his own agenda.

"Bloom wants the same thing," Foley said. "Now let me tell you what I want and what I don't. I don't want this case to take center stage in either one of your elections. It isn't right, and it doesn't sit well with me."

"I understand."

"Do you? A woman is dead. We have a lot of eyes on us right now. People are concerned, afraid it might happen again if we aren't quick to catch this guy. I'm sure a lot of people who live in the area are thinking if a woman was murdered at the local library, a woman could be murdered anywhere around here. I won't allow Cordelia's death to be turned into a political media circus."

"I agree. All I want is for the murderer to be found and brought to justice so everyone can breathe again, go back to their normal lives where they're not afraid to leave their houses."

"You say all you want is for the killer to be brought to justice, but when all is said and done, I'm guessing you'll want to take some credit, say you had a hand in it somehow, right?"

Benjamin sighed. "I believe you have me all wrong."

"Oh, yeah? How so?"

"How much do you know about my background?"

"Not much."

Foley may not have, but I'd been following Branson's candidacy ever since he announced he was running.

"Your priorities if elected are to make housing more affordable and reduce carbon emissions, and the crime rate in the county," I said.

"Well said," Benjamin said. "Someone's been doing their homework."

"I like what you've had to say about crime in particular. The county has one of the highest crime rates in America. Residents here have a one in twenty-one chance of being targeted for violence or property crime. It needs to change."

"I agree." He shot me a wink. "Maybe I'll get the chance to win your vote after all."

"We'll see."

"I don't mean to interrupt your conversation, but I have other appointments I need to get to today," Foley said.

"Of course," Benjamin said. "Like I said before, I don't want to take up too much of your time. The reason I asked if you knew anything about my background is because I know what it's like to have a loved one murdered. My mother was killed when I was eleven. They never caught the guy who did it."

Foley leaned back, lacing his hands behind his head. "Oh, I didn't know."

I didn't either.

"Did you grow up around here?" I asked.

He shook his head. "I'm from New Orleans."

"What brought you to California?"

Foley shot me an irritated look like he wanted me to move things along. And while I wanted to respect his other appointments, I was enjoying the conversation with Benjamin a little more than I cared to admit.

"I went to college here, Stanford University. Guess I fell in love with the place. Been a resident of the state ever since."

Ever the skeptic, Foley said, "Why do you want to be updated on the investigation, anyway? What is this need for involvement?"

"Let me start off by saying I understand your concern. It would be easy for you to assume I have an agenda to bolster my campaign if my name is associated with it."

"Makes sense, doesn't it? It sure seems to be Octavia's agenda. Because she's a woman and the victim is also a woman, I assume she thinks her involvement would be appealing to female voters."

"Did she say as much when she came to see you?" I asked.

"Not in so many words."

"So, she didn't say it. You assumed it."

Foley huffed an irritated, "My assumptions tend to be right."

Not always, though I wasn't about to mention it, not after hearing about what he and my sister were going through.

"I'm not here for political reasons," Benjamin said. "When it comes to murders like this one, I suppose I have some unresolved issues. And the fact this latest murder has taken place in my own backyard, I'm hoping it won't be too long before its solved."

"We're doing everything we can to make sure we find the person responsible," Foley said. "And we'll be doing it with Georgiana's help."

"Oh?"

"Cordelia Bennett's sister came to see me this morning," I said. "She's hired my agency to conduct our own investigation."

Benjamin clapped his hands together. "This is fantastic news. The two of you working together should speed things up, and then we can all move on."

And there it was—his secondary motive—if it was, in fact, secondary.

With the murder being the talk of the town, it overshadowed the election, putting the late Cordelia Bennett in the spotlight, a place I was sure Benjamin and Octavia had expected they'd be right about now.

Benjamin turned toward Foley. "If you have a few more minutes to spare, would you fill me in on what you know about the case so far?"

Foley and I exchanged glances, and I hesitated, waiting to hear how much he was willing to divulge.

"We're following up on a couple of leads, talking to the neighbors of the deceased, and those who knew her," Foley said.

It was an answer that wasn't an answer, which told me he wanted to exercise caution, keeping the more intimate details close to the vest for now.

The plan suited me just fine.

Foley seemed to have no desire to mention the note we'd found at the library or what was said at the end of one of the letters Cordelia sent her sister. He was offering Benjamin breadcrumbs, and Benjamin struck me as an intelligent man, someone who would pick up on it.

"Any theories yet? Suspects?" Benjamin asked.

"No suspects. As far as we're aware, no one saw the murder take place. If they have, they haven't come forward. We've taken several items into evidence. Once everything is examined, we hope it will produce new leads. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a full day of work ahead of me."

Benjamin appeared dismayed with Foley's response, but he was quick to say, "Of course. I won't take up any more of your time."

"I appreciate it."

Benjamin left Foley's office, and I followed suit. Once we reached the hallway, he turned back, looking me in the eye as he said, "I'm thrilled to hear of your involvement with this case. Let's talk again soon."

I nodded, certain we would talk again, sooner rather than later.