Chapter 7

CHAPTER 7

“What do you want to know about it?” Owen asked.

“For starters, was Claire aware you were sleeping with another woman?”

“I’m not sure. If she knew, she never said anything to me. I was careful not to communicate with Nadia when I was at home because Nadia’s also married. We did our best to keep things quiet.”

“The police found out, so you didn’t keep it that quiet.”

“They looked over my cell phone records. Figured they’d talk to Nadia, which they did, so I didn’t see any point in denying it.”

“You spoke to a divorce lawyer not too long ago,” I said. “Did Claire know?”

“I don’t think so, no.”

“When did you plan on telling her?”

“I had a second meeting scheduled with the lawyer, and he was going to help me plan everything out.”

“When you say plan , was it a plan to keep her from getting your money?”

He blinked at me, going quiet for a moment. “All right, yeah. She didn’t need any of it. When her mother died, Claire inherited a bunch of money.”

“Define a bunch.”

“I don’t know the exact amount. Had to be seven figures. Her mother was loaded.”

On one hand, it would have been foolish for him to murder Claire when her mother’s money could have been up for grabs as part of the divorce settlement. On the other, with Claire dead, he may have inherited the money himself.

I crossed one leg over the other, thinking about other questions I hadn’t asked yet. “What time did you leave work the night Claire was murdered?”

“Oh, I’d say it was about seven. I know because it takes eight minutes to get home if there isn’t any traffic, and there wasn’t any that night.”

“Did you drive straight home?”

“Straight home, no stops,” he confirmed.

“Did you speak with anyone between the time you left to go home and the time you discovered your wife’s body?”

“Nope, not a soul.”

“What happened when you got home?”

“I did the same thing I do every night. I parked in the garage out back—it’s detached from the house—then headed for our back porch, like always. That’s when I noticed one of the panels of glass on the back door was broken, and it was unlocked. It’s never unlocked. Claire was strict about making sure all the doors were locked. All the time. To the point of annoyance, if I’m being honest. So, yeah … this was odd.”

“Do you have security cameras?”

“Sorry to say I don’t. Never had a break-in anywhere I’ve ever lived. I thought we were safe, thought the neighborhood was safe. Guess I was wrong.”

“You noticed the shattered glass, then the unlocked door. What happened when you entered the house?”

“There was a knife on the kitchen counter. Had blood all over it. I picked it up, looked it over. I thought Claire had cut herself. Then I saw more blood, on the carpet, the wall. I panicked. I started running through the house, calling Claire’s name.”

“Then what happened?”

He looked away, his focus shifting to the floor. “I … I found her in the den. Blood all over her clothes. I bent down, grabbed her, started shaking her. She was like a ragdoll in my arms. So cold and quiet. It didn’t seem real. I held her in my arms for … awhile. I’m not sure how long. Time just kinda stopped. I was in shock. It didn’t seem real, but it was real. Once I came to terms with the fact she was dead, I called my mother. Then I called the police.”

“Why did you call your mother first?”

“I don’t know. Needed to hear a familiar voice, I guess. I was a mess.”

I checked my watch.

Visitors were given one hour to meet.

I was running out of time.

“One of your neighbors told the police she’d overheard an argument between you and Claire,” I said.

“Yeah, I’m guessing it was Marianne Bowman. Seemed like a nice lady until Claire’s mother died.”

“What changed?”

“For starters, she’s a single retiree without a thing to do. She started visiting Claire, offering her a shoulder to cry on. Ever since, the woman’s been awful to me. Dunno why. Claire wasn’t the type of person to say anything negative about anyone, much less her husband, so it didn’t make sense.”

“Did you ask Marianne about it?”

“A few weeks back, I was taking the trash to the curb. Marianne walked right up to me, pointed a finger in my face, and said Claire deserved a real man. She didn’t understand what Claire saw in me.”

“What was your response?”

“I’ll admit I had a few choice words for the old broad. I put her in her place. She hasn’t said a word to me since.”

Another glance at my watch.

Less than five minutes to go.

I shifted the direction of the conversation.

“Is there anyone you can think of who would have wanted to kill Claire?” I asked.

He gave the question some thought. “We may not have had the best relationship before she died, but she was the sweetest person. Even though we were headed for divorce, I would have never wanted any harm to come to her. Maybe though, just maybe, she’s happy now, in her spirit life or whatever there is after we die.”

It was an odd comment.

“Why would you say that?” I asked.

“Heaven knows I tried to get through to her this past year, after her mother passed. Nothing I tried worked. In the end, I was just … worn out, tired of trying. And hey, I know it wasn’t right. I gave up on her, and she didn’t deserve it. She deserved better. So much better.”

We’d come a long way since the start of our meeting.

Once he’d pushed his ego to the side, I saw a different side of him, one he’d do well to show off more.

“It sounds like you’re carrying some guilt,” I said.

He gave a small shrug. “I guess I am.”

“Is some of it because of your affair with Nadia?”

“I suppose. Nadia was a fling. I never expected it to last.”

“Why not?”

“Relationships are hard and complicated, no matter how easy they seem at the start. I’m a simple guy with simple needs. Doubt I’ll ever get married again.”

And with that, my time was up.

“I have to go,” I said. “The two of us … we had a rocky start. But we got there in the end.”

“We sure did. Thanks for giving me another chance. Hey … ahh, before you go. What I said before about Claire being a good person. She was and all …”

“I sense a but coming.”

“But there’s one thing you should know. I’m hoping it will help you find out what happened to her and why.”

“What’s that?”

He cleared his throat. “I wasn’t the only one cheating. I think she was too.”