CHAPTER 12

An hour after the meeting with Debra Fisher, Hennessy parked outside a Brazilian Jujitsu Club at the back of a Gold’s Gym in the same suburb of Mount Pleasant. Lockett had found that John Tilly was a regular at the martial arts club, earning himself a brown belt after several years of training.

Unlike Fisher, Tilly refused to answer any of Hennessy’s attempts at contact via calls or emails. Based on the details in the witness statement, Hennessy assumed he was Witness Three.

Hennessy waited in the parking lot, standing in front of his old pickup as several members of the martial arts class exited the building. They were jovial, happy, having exhausted themselves with hours of physical contact and training. The group leaving the building were of varying ages, sizes, and ethnic backgrounds. It was a club that welcomed one and all.

Ten minutes after most of the class had left, John Tilly walked out in his Gi with a sports bag slung over his shoulder.

“John Tilly,”

Hennessy stated as he approached.

Tilly stopped and looked at Hennessy. Tilly was a solid man—five-ten, with broad shoulders and big hands. In his fifties, he had retained his strength and power. His black hair was grayed at the sides, and his skin was healthy and tanned. A smell of Brut deodorant followed him.

“You’re the new lawyer for Palin.”

Tilly eyed Hennessy and then turned to his new black Mercedes sedan. He opened the back door, threw the bag inside, and shut the door. “You’re persistent, aren’t you?”

“I need to talk to you.”

Tilly pursed his lips, tucked his hands behind his lower back, and leaned against his car door. “Debra said that she spoke to you earlier today. She wasn’t very happy with what you suggested.”

“I didn’t suggest anything. All I did was discuss the impact of Mr. Palin’s upcoming trial on the people involved. I’d like to talk to you about the trial as well, but you haven’t returned my calls.”

“I didn’t return your calls because I didn’t want to talk to you.”

“You’re a part of this trial, whether you like it or not. You were employed as the senior accountant at Palin Accounting for five years, and that means you have inside knowledge of his processes and procedures. When this case goes to trial, you’ll be called as a witness, whether by me or the prosecution.”

“Stop beating around the bush.”

He scoffed. “I’m sure you’re smart enough to work out that I’m one of the redacted witnesses. It’s obvious from my statement. I didn’t even request to have my name redacted. The prosecution did that, but I didn’t complain. And I’ve spoken to a lawyer. Because my witness statement is redacted, it means I don’t have to talk to you. If you want to ask me questions about the case, you need to do it via email.”

Hennessy stepped closer. “When were you planning to run off with Mrs. Fisher?”

His mouth hung open for a long moment before he smiled and shook his head.

“You’ve had a five-year-long affair with Mrs. Fisher,”

Hennessy stated. “Now that all your children have gone to college, it’d be the perfect time to leave. And a million dollars would help you start a new life.”

“You’re wrong.”

Tilly shook his head several times. “That’s not what happened. We had nothing to do with it. It was all that stupid old prick. We saw him stealing from the Foundation, and we all wanted out. That’s why we arranged the walkout. And before you ask, we didn’t report it to the police because we were all scared of Palin. Nobody wanted to mess with him.”

“Before this case makes it to trial, I’m going to dig deep into the backgrounds of everyone involved. That includes your activities with Mrs. Fisher. And once this trial begins, all that knowledge will be put on the public record. We already have evidence of you sharing a room on a work trip to Florida. According to the work claims, you and Mrs. Fisher drove to Jacksonville for a conference, and while you claimed two hotel rooms, you only paid for one.”

“If you keep digging, you won’t like what you find,”

Tilly scoffed again and looked around the parking lot. “If you look too far into Palin’s business dealings, you’ll only find more evidence of Palin’s corruption. He’s a terrible man with no morals. And if you want to talk any more to me, you’ll have to do it through the proper channels.”

He turned toward his car and reached for the doorhandle. He paused before he opened the door, turning back to Hennessy. “I’m not sure you know what you’ve got yourself in for, so I’ll warn you—don’t dig too deep into the books at Palin Accounting.”

“What are you scared we’ll find out about you?”

“It’s not about me or Debra.”

Tilly looked around the parking lot before he continued. “Palin ran the books for some companies that appeared to be fronts for drug-running operations. If they’re exposed… well, I don’t want anything to do with it. I never did.”

“Stanwell Construction. What about them?”

Tilly looked around the parking lot and bit his lip. “I think they were in on it. There were links between Stanwell Construction and the Wolfgang Berger Foundation in the accounting. They knew about the money being embezzled. If you want more information, you need to talk to them.”