Deadly Row, A - By Casey Mayes Page 0,20
Charlotte for his alibi.
Grady sighed, and then said, “I was with Cindy, okay? My alibi was murdered the night after Hank was killed, before the police had a chance to interview her. I know they thought they were doing me a favor by going easy on me, but if they’d talked to Cindy before she died, I would have had an alibi for the murder.” He took a deep breath, and then added, “I’m not proud of having a one-night stand, but I was drunk, and one thing led to another. She was a sweet girl. Who knows? If we’d had more than one date, something special might have developed between us.”
“No one saw you then, besides her?”
“No one,” Grady said.
“Let’s move on,” Zach said. “Cindy Glass was stabbed in her apartment with the same type of knife someone used on Hank Tristan. Where were you the night she was killed?”
“You don’t think I killed her, do you? Zach, I liked her.”
“I’ve got to ask, and we both know it.”
Grady sighed, and then he said, “I was in Atlanta at a symposium for southern mayors. You can check with the Thorgood; that’s where we stayed.”
I knew my husband would verify the mayor’s alibi, but I wasn’t sure how good it was. After all, Charlotte was just four hours away from Atlanta, so it was possible he made the round-trip to kill Cindy while everyone else was sleeping. It wouldn’t leave him a lot of time to get back to his conference, but it still left a window of opportunity for him to be the murderer, and I knew my husband was as aware of that fact as I was.
“Any chance you took a city-owned car?”
“No, I like to hit the open highway in my truck when I get the chance. Why?”
“Grady, it’s my job to check everything.”
“Davis didn’t ask me any of these questions,” the mayor said a little petulantly.
“I’m not about to comment on someone else’s investigation techniques. This is just how I do it. Is there anything else you want to tell me? Anything that might help me solve this case?”
“If you’re hoping I’ll confess, I’m sorry to say that you’re going to be disappointed.”
“Then how do you explain two murders, both claimed by some nutcase, that touch your life?”
“Maybe it’s just a coincidence,” Grady said.
“Sorry, I don’t believe in them.”
“I don’t know. What can I tell you? The only other thing I can think of is that somebody’s out to get me.”
“Ordinarily I’d say you’re being a little paranoid,” Zach said.
“Hey, even the paranoid are right sometimes.” His voice softened as he added, “Zach, I know you’re just doing your job, but if anybody else finds out that I’m your main suspect, you’re going to destroy my political career.”
“That’s why you should be helping me instead of stonewalling.”
“I said I’d do anything I could. What else do you need?”
“A list of your enemies might help,” Zach said. “If you didn’t do it, I’m willing to guess that someone you know did.”
I heard him stand, and I knew I had to get out of there before they caught me listening in. I ducked down the hallway hoping to find an open door, but I made it all the way to the stairs, and every room was locked. I had no choice. I ran into the stairwell and climbed up to the next landing. I was going to wait five minutes, and then emerge to compare notes with my husband.
As I silently counted down the minutes in my mind, the stairwell door opened. I’d taken two steps down, so I hurried back to my landing.
Below me, I heard Grady say, “Call the second you have something.”
When there was no reply, the mayor added, “You’re not going to tell me anything, are you?”
“A lot of that depends on what I find out,” Zach said.
Grady turned his back without another word and hurried down the stairs. I waited until I heard the door below shut, and then I made my way to the door to our floor.
It was locked from the inside.
I pounded on it for a few minutes, but no one answered. I had no choice but to follow Grady downstairs and make my way back up the elevator.
The only problem was that the mayor was still near the stairwell door when I walked out, and I nearly ran him down.
Chapter 5
“SAVANNAH? WHAT WERE YOU DOING IN THE STAIRWELL? Were you eavesdropping?”
“I was up on the roof,” I said suddenly,