Arresting Developments

“WELL, THIS SEEMS FAMILIAR.” Deputy Holder leaned back in his desk chair in the squad room beside Dex as another officer escorted Amber into an interview room.

“Because of Faye Star?” Dex asked, noting that Amber made a point of not looking at him even though she passed less than a yard away from him.

He nodded. “Your PI partner, Jake Young, had Faye in here accused of murder just a couple of months ago. Déjà vu.” He cast him a sideways glance. “Let me guess. You think Miss Callahan is innocent?”

“Honestly, I have no idea. But I certainly wasn’t going to harbor a fugitive once I found out there was an outstanding warrant for her arrest. That’s why I had Freddie call you to come over, so I could tell you what I knew. It was only dumb luck that she was there when you arrived.”

“You’re supposedly worried about making sure she doesn’t run from the law. And yet you’re offering your own lawyer to defend her.” He nodded at Garreth Jackson as he passed them and went into the interview room.

“She saved my life. I figure the least I can do is make sure she gets a good attorney. Garreth was a criminal defense lawyer before he turned to business law. He can at least advise her until I can bring in someone else.”

Holder snorted. “Sounds to me like you’re going to a lot of trouble—and expense—for someone you aren’t sure is innocent.”

“Like I said. She saved my life. I can’t put a price on that. Whatever she needs, I intend to provide it. What about you? Do you think she’s guilty?”

The interview room door closed and Holder flipped the file open on top of his desk. “Seems pretty cut-and-dried. Her grandfather was the founder of Mystic Glades. He lived in a mansion, of sorts, several miles outside the town proper, with only one other person—Amber Callahan. She was known more or less as the town healer, for lack of a better term. If someone was sick or broke a bone, they went to Amber instead of taking the long drive to Naples. She was the only one with her grandfather the night he died, admitted as much the next morning when she called the police to report his death.”

“Her aunt said the old man had been poisoned?”

“Poisoned? Not exactly, but close. He was sick with the flu or something similar and she gave him one of her potions to supposedly help him sleep better. But the potion was laced with peanut oil, something he was highly allergic to. Coroner said his throat closed up and he died of anaphylactic shock. Amber knew about his allergies. Everyone did. And since she was the one who brought groceries and did all the cooking, it’s kind of hard to say anyone else brought the peanut oil into the house.”

“Did you actually find a bottle of peanut oil?”

He flipped the few pages in the folder and shook his head. “Nope. She must have disposed of it. But the CSU team tested the glass beside his bedside table and found peanut oil residue.”

“What did she have to gain by killing him?”

“Plenty. Since he founded Mystic Glades, he pretty much owned the town and leased most of the property to others. Very few of the residents actually own the land or the buildings on them. He was quite wealthy in his own right—old money that’s been in his family for generations.”

“And Amber is the only heir?”

“Her and her aunt Fredericka. But Amber got the lion’s share.”

“Is the estate still in escrow?”

He tapped one of the pages. “No, but it might as well be. As soon as Miss Callahan was charged, the courts put holds on both her accounts and her grandfather’s accounts. She can’t touch a penny without going to court to release the funds.”

“Which of course she wouldn’t do if she’s worried about being arrested for murder.”

“Exactly.”

Dex blew out a long breath. “I just can’t picture her purposely killing her grandfather even if she did want his money. She seems so—”

“Sweet? Nice?”

“I was thinking intelligent, actually. How old was her grandfather?”

“I see where you’re going.” He thumbed through the report, then flipped to the beginning and ran his finger down a paragraph. “Let’s see. Amber was twenty-two, her grandfather was just shy of eighty at the time. He wasn’t in the best of health, either, even without having the flu at the time he died. You’re thinking she could have just waited and inherited.”

“Seems like the logical thing to do. Does that report say why she might have needed the money? Had she planned on leaving Mystic Glades?”

He closed the file. “The report doesn’t really say much more than what I told you. Everything I’ve said was available through old media reports or word of mouth in Mystic, so I haven’t given away any secrets. But the rest of the file is confidential and I can only release it to her attorney.”

“Fair enough. I’m curious about one thing, as long as it’s not one of those secrets you mentioned.”

“Doesn’t hurt to ask.”

“You said the grandfather lived in a mansion. What happened to it?”

“The court apportioned some of the estate for the house’s upkeep and appointed a trustee to look after the house. And before you ask, no, I can’t share the trustee’s name because I don’t know if that’s common knowledge.”

Dex raised a brow. “I imagine it takes a lot of money to maintain a large house, especially in an environment like the Everglades. That trustee probably has access to a very generous bank account.”

Holder shrugged. “Your words. Not mine.”

“I know what it costs to maintain a large estate. I don’t guess I really need your answer to that question. It does, however, make me wonder if the trustee could be culpable in the murder.”

“In a normal murder case, I might agree with you. But in this one, there’s one fact you can’t explain away.”

“Which is?”

“Amber herself, in the interview the morning her grandfather was found dead, admitted she was the only other person in the house. She said no one else had been there for weeks. Kind of hard to argue that someone else might have killed the old man when she swore no one else had been there.”

Dex was inclined to agree with him, but somehow saying that out loud would have made him feel like a traitor to the woman who had worked so hard to save him. He owed her the benefit of the doubt and was determined to keep an open mind.

The door to the interview room popped open and Garreth stepped outside, closing the door behind him. He stopped in front of the desk. “Miss Callahan has decided to retain my services until I can help her interview and hire a criminal case attorney. I’ll need a copy of the original police report.”

Holder held the folder up. “I figured you might. Keep it. I’ll print myself a new copy.”

“Thank you.” He turned to Dex. “Assuming you still plan to foot the bill—”

“I do.”

“Excellent. Then the calls I made in the interview room weren’t a complete waste of time. I started the ball rolling to arrange bail. Now we just have to wait for a judge to call us back.”

Holder shook his head. “Not going to happen on a Saturday. Miss Callahan will have to cool her heels in jail until Monday, and even then, I highly doubt a judge will grant her bail. She’s a proven flight risk.”

Dex exchanged an amused look with his lawyer. “I think you underestimate Garreth’s abilities, Detective.”

Holder shrugged. “Maybe. I doubt it. I guess we’ll see. But I—” The phone on his desk rang. When he saw the number on the display, he shot Garreth a frown and took the call.

Garreth gave him a smug look and turned to Dex again. “When you’re done here, Miss Callahan has requested to speak with you.”

Dex immediately stood but Holder signaled him to wait.

When he hung up the phone, he shook his head. “I can’t believe what I just heard.” He filled them in on the details.

Dex laughed and clapped Garreth on the shoulder. “You’ve still got it, my friend.”