Mocha, Macaroons and Death (A Knick-Knack Boutique Mystery Book 4) by Constance Barker

Author:Constance Barker [Barker, Constance]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Constance Barker
Published: 2024-10-30T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 10

Cody and I stood side by side in the small, dimly lit room behind the observation window. The coolness of the glass against my fingers did little to calm the tension winding through my chest. Watching Lorne Parker sitting at the interrogation table, his posture stiff, arms crossed defensively, I knew this wasn’t going to be an easy conversation. The truth rarely was.

Cody shot me a sideways glance, one eyebrow arched as if to remind me to stay put, though I could tell he wasn’t serious about it anymore. He’d given up trying to keep me out of these things a while ago.

Inside the interrogation room, Cody entered and took the seat opposite Lorne. The fluorescent lights cast sharp shadows across Lorne’s face, making the lines of worry etched around his eyes more pronounced.

“We’ve got the ledger, Lorne,” Cody started, his tone calm but firm. “Two different hand writings. Yours and Simon Keller’s. We know you’ve been working with him. You’ve been in on the gambling, the laundering. You don’t need to lie about that anymore.”

Lorne’s lips twitched slightly, his eyes flicking up to meet Cody’s before darting away. He stayed silent, his fingers drumming against the edge of the table.

Cody leaned forward. “This is your chance to explain your side of things. Tell us how you got involved with Simon. What was your role?”

A heavy pause followed, the tension in the air thick enough to choke on. Finally, Lorne exhaled sharply, his shoulders sagging as though the weight of his secrets had finally become too much.

“Yeah, I worked with Simon,” he muttered, his voice rough around the edges. “But I wasn’t the one running things. He was. Simon handled most of it—the bets, the collections. I just kept track of what I needed to. For my own investments. The real estate deals, the money flow.”

“So, the ledger—Simon was the other writer?” Cody pressed, keeping his gaze locked on Lorne.

Lorne nodded, his mouth tightening into a thin line. “Yeah, Simon tracked some of the bets too. We both did. It was easier that way. Keep things straight, you know? But that’s all it was, business. I didn’t kill anyone.”

Cody’s eyes narrowed slightly. “And Ethan? You argued with him about Jenna’s shop, about your development project. You knew about the basement operation, didn’t you? Did he find out and try to blackmail you? Is that why Simon or you had him killed?”

Lorne shifted uncomfortably in his seat, his fingers gripping the armrests a little tighter. “I didn’t kill Ethan,” he insisted, a little more forcefully this time. “Yeah, we argued. He was slowing things down, and I had a lot riding on this. But I swear, I had nothing to do with his death.”

I watched Cody’s face carefully, knowing he was weighing Lorne’s words, searching for any hint of deception. From where I stood, Lorne’s story had more holes than Swiss cheese, but the pressure Cody applied wasn’t enough to crack him—yet.

“You say you weren’t involved in Ethan’s murder,” Cody continued, his tone more measured now, “but your name keeps coming up.

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