“We’ve started an investigation into her death.” Jake picked up her purse and led her to his car. She jumped in the back seat and grabbed her brother, hugging him to her body.
* * * *
The four of them walked up a sidewalk lined with colorful tulips to the front door of the Adamses’ house. The riot of color seemed a bit too cheerful for the occasion. Louie unlocked the front door with the keys Cara had supplied on the ride over. Cara led them into the modest, one-story house. The living room to the right of the foyer seemed like a good place to do the interview. Jake scanned the rooms as did Louie. Traditional furniture in bold navy with red accents, and an old solid wood table sat beside the sofa. Chairs were scattered around the room and doilies covered every tabletop. The hardwood floors visible under the oriental area rugs were polished to a glassy sheen. The living room connected with the dining area. He assumed the kitchen would be off the dining room. The dining area, decorated in peach and green fabrics, showcased a dark ornate table with matching hutch and buffet cabinet. The centerpiece of lilies surrounded by green leafy stems complemented the living room. A house well decorated. A home, Jake corrected as he waited for them to settle in.
He stood, as did Louie. The Adams kids sat on the sofa, their arms around each other, Seth’s head on Cara’s shoulder. He and Louie sat in the chairs facing them. Louie started the questioning.
“Can we call someone to come over?” Louie asked again.
“No, right now I don’t want to talk to anyone,” Cara said.
A loud musical chime filled the room. Jake got up, answered it and motioned Ronald Jacobson in and pointed out the living room. Once the lawyer sat down, the questions started on both sides.
“What happened to my mother? Did she suffer?” Cara asked.
“We don’t have a lot of information yet. She was discovered this morning. Once the M.E. supplies the information we’ll have more. Right now, I have to ask some difficult questions,” Louie said.
“She wasn’t raped, wasn’t she?” Cara asked with apprehension.
They always ask, Jake thought, as if death isn’t enough of an insult on its own. He fielded the question. “Cara, we don’t have that information yet. The M.E. will determine her wounds during the autopsy.” Knowing won’t help you to deal with it, believe me.
“Okay,” Cara answered for the both of them. She seemed the stronger of the two.
“Cara, where were you Friday night, between the hours of eleven PM and three AM?” Louie took over the questioning.
“Here, all night. I didn’t go out. My boyfriend was working. I stayed home and watched television. I called the police at eleven PM because Mom didn’t come home,” Cara said. She ran her finger gently over the picture of her mother she picked up off the end table.
“Did you call from your cell phone or the house phone?” Louie asked.
“I called on the house phone. I’d never hurt my own mother.”
“I understand, Cara, but this is standard procedure. Before we can move forward, we have to eliminate the both of you. We’re also going to ask your father the same questions,” Jake explained.
“The bastard’s in Florida with a girl my brother’s age. He left my mother last year around this time,” Cara spat.
Such venom. Now if Jake had her father on the slab in the morgue, she might be his number one suspect. “Cara, who did she go out with on Friday night?” Jake asked. “I’ll need her friends’ names, addresses, and phone numbers, if you have them.”
“She went out with her friend, Julie Cahns, and with Sara Hurdle from work. This week Mom said another girl from work was joining them. You’ll have to ask her friends who that was. I’m not sure. I’ll go get her address book.” Cara stood to leave the room.
“Where did they go?” Louie asked. Years ago, Jake had found if he and Louie bounced the questions back and forth between them it kept suspects and witnesses off balance.
“They usually go to the golf course for dinner. If they’re in the mood, they go into the lounge for drinks after.”
“Which course?”
“Sorry…I can’t remember. It’s the one on the west side of town, the public one.”
“Blakely Hills?” Jake questioned.
Cara left the room. Jake looked over at Seth. The kid looked devastated but managed to pull himself together, but he hadn’t interrupted as they questioned his sister. “Seth, are you up to a few questions?” Louie asked.
“Yes, if it will help catch the person who did this to our mother.” The kid’s skin had gone transparent as happens with grief or shock. Black pouches had formed under his eyes. Despair aged the kid before his eyes.
“Where were you Friday night?” Louie asked.
“I went to dinner with my girlfriend, Olga. We ate at Cava’s, in Southington. After dinner, we went back to her house. I spent the night, her parents weren’t home…” Seth blushed.
“I’ll need Olga’s information,” Louie said, as Cara returned to the room. She handed Jake her mother’s address book.
Seth supplied the information for Olga. “Can I ask her to come over later?”
“Yes, but not right now. We need to speak with her before you do,” Louie said.
“Is there anyone else who might’ve given your mother any trouble at work or in her personal life?” Jake asked.
“No, everyone liked her. She never harmed anyone or got into fights or arguments. She didn’t date,” Seth said, showing anger for the first time.
Jake preferred Seth’s anger to the crying. The anger would help him deal with it.
“She hasn’t dated since she divorced your father?” Louie clarified.
“She didn’t divorce him, he divorced her. No, she didn’t date. It shattered her when he came home and announced he was leaving her. It came right out of the blue.”
“Do you keep in touch with him, Seth?” Louie asked.
“Yes, more than my sister does. She’s angry. I mean full-blast angry with him. She won’t even acknowledge his new wife. I dated the woman in high school.”
It takes all kinds. Jake looked around at the lovely home, wondering why someone would decide to leave his family. He wrote in his notebook. Trouble? Look into Chelsea’s marriage.
Seth continued, “Well, she thought she’d hit pay dirt with him. I fixed her. I got my mother the best divorce lawyer around. He stripped Dad with the alimony, including half his pensions and 401k’s. If Lola wants any money, she’ll have to work for it.”
Jake saw it hit Seth again. His mother was gone. He wrapped his arms around his waist and rocked as he’d done back at his office.
All this time, Jacobson hadn’t said anything. Jake turned to him. “Do you have any questions, counselor?”
“No, you’ve covered everything. When will you get the cause of death?”
“Not until the autopsy’s finished,” Louie answered.
“If you need to speak with them again, please give me a call.”
“Will do. Cara, Seth, we’d like to have a look at your mother’s room,” Jake said.
“I don’t want anyone pawing through her things. It’s bad enough someone murdered her, now this?” Cara spewed.
Chapter 3
It killed Jake to watched Cara fight through his