“The dirt was carefully tamped down.Not just tossed over the body.I gotta say, for a murderer, this guy seemed to care a lot about Paul Martinez.”
Faith and Michael shared a grim look.It looked like Michael might have been right about the urgency of speaking to Paul’s buddy Stan.“Thank you for your time, Dr.Ratner.This has been very helpful.If you think of anything else, please give us a call.”
“Will do.Good luck, agents.This guy might be nice as far as killers go, but it’s not really my kind of friendliness if you know what I mean.”
“Definitely not the kind of friend I’d like to have,” Michael agreed.“Have a good day, Doc.”
The agents hurried back to their car and hurried just as quickly onto the road back to Hancock Village.They had gained a lot of valuable information from this visit.Faith just hoped they hadn’t also given their killer a chance to escape.
CHAPTER SEVEN
They pulled up to the small ranch house in Hancock Village just as an old but very clean Chevy K1500 pickup pulled into the driveway.A man in his mid-fifties stepped out of the cab.He had a long gray beard and a build that wasn’t quite thin enough to be wiry.He wore a burgundy button-down shirt tucked into faded denim work jeans—themselves tucked into scuffed work boots that were probably as old as Faith was.He glanced over at the SUV and nodded, seemingly unsurprised at its presence.Maybe Penny had called and warned him they were coming.
That sparked a touch of suspicion in Faith’s mind.She didn’t get the impression that Penny would have murdered her husband, but killers cried over their victims all the time, and just like friends and family were more likely to kill you than anyone else, wives were more likely to cheat with friends and family than anyone else.Husbands too, but this husband had his brainstem severed two days ago, Faith’s concern lay more with the wife and friend.They had an alibi for Penny, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t have called Stan to have him handle their “situation.”
The bearded man waited for the agents to leave the SUV and approach him before confirming that he was who they thought he was.He nodded again and stuck out a rough-skinned hand that looked four sizes too big for the body to which it was attached.“Name’s Stan Merchant.Figured you’d be coming to talk to me at some point.Not sure why it took you so long to be honest.”
“You in a hurry to talk to us?”Michael asked.
Stan shrugged.“No, I guess not.I don’t know who the hell could’ve done something like this, so I guess I can’t do much to help you.”
He wore a gruff scowl, and his tone was just as gruff, but Faith could hear the grief in his voice.That wasn’t an indication of innocence, but there was no doubt he missed his friend.“I’m Special Agent Faith Bold.This is my partner, Special Agent Michael Prince, and my K9 unit, Turk.”
Stan looked appreciatively at Turk.“Good dog.Old but strong.Like me.”
Faith thanked him and smiled down at Turk, but Stan’s observation alarmed her.She didn’t think Turk looked old at all.
Except now that he mentioned it, she could see the hints of white at his muzzle and scattered among the dark brown of his back.Had they been there before the attack, or had the stress of his poisoning finally broken through the wall of good health that seemed to keep him perpetually in the prime of life?
“Well,” Stan said.“You might as well come inside.If you don’t mind, I usually have a beer when I get home from work.You two are welcome to some yourself if you’d like.”
“We’re fine, thank you,” Faith replied.“But go ahead and have one yourself if you’d like.”
He nodded and started up the porch steps.“If you don’t mind leaving your shoes outside too.Hetta doesn’t like dirt tracking through the house.”
Faith wasn’t keen on walking around a person of interest’s house in her socks, but Turk was wagging his tail and showing no sign of concern around Stan.He was still a suspect until they could talk to him, but he wasn’t a danger at the moment.
Once shoeless and inside the house, Faith observed the interaction between Stan and his wife, Hetta.Hetta, like Stan, was not quite thin enough to be wiry.She was tall with blonde hair—dyed at the roots to maintain its natural hue—blue eyes and full lips.She didn’t appear much younger than her age, but she wore her years well.
More importantly, both of them showed genuine affection to each other, and neither showed any sign of guilt.If Stan was involved in an affair with Penny Martinez, or if either he or Hetta was involved in Paul’s murder, it would be nearly impossible for them to hide that when interacting with each other.
Hetta greeted the agents and told them she’d bring tea to the living room in a few minutes.She hesitated when she saw Turk but didn’t object when he followed them into the living room.
This house was a little more spartan than the Martinez home, but at the gain of a more open and spacious feel.Stan sighed with relief as he settled into a recliner.Faith and Michael took the sofa, a gray vinyl number that was slightly tacky but comfortable enough.
“You’ll want my alibi,” Stan said.“You talked to Penny yet?”
Faith blinked.People didn’t usually start conversations with the two of them like this.“Why don’t you start with the alibi, and we’ll worry about Penny later if we need to?”
He nodded again.It seemed to be a bit of a nervous tic for him."Paul and I spent a lot of time together after work.He'd come here on account of Penny didn't like to see him drink.She didn't mind that he did, she just didn't like to see it.Hetta doesn't mind so much.She was a quartermaster for the Seventeenth Infantry during Iraq, so she knows a bit about what we went through."
Faith’s brow furrowed.That wasn’t exactly what Penny had said.She didn’t like him drinking and driving, but she didn’t mention a problem with drinking in general.“How do you know Penny didn’t like to see him drink?”
“He told me.That’s why he always came here.”
“You mentioned an alibi,” Michael reminded him.
“That’s what I’m talking about.He was here with me until around nine-thirty.Got sentimental and wanted to walk home.Said that he missed Penny.That happened sometimes when he got drunk.He always felt like he wasn’t good enough for her.”
