And Then She Was Gone(59)
“Do you remember what you talked about? Did she mention if she was going out after work?”
“No. I try not to be too chummy with people under me, but you have to be personable. It was more of a how’s-the-weather type of conversation. Then I left.”
“Did you see her in the park during your run?”
Leland looked Jack up and down. “No. The last time I saw her was before I went out jogging. You’re awfully young.”
Jack ignored the observation and kept going. “What route did you run in the park?”
“The outside loop. It was just a quick run to blow off steam.”
“And when you came back, was there anyone here?”
“No. The place was deserted.” Leland smiled smugly. “First to arrive, last to leave. But I make the sacrifice.”
Jack tapped his notebook. “There was no one else in the building? What about cleaning staff?”
“There could have been a janitor or two. I thought you meant real employees.” Leland looked down at his watch. “Look, I’m sorry, but I need to be at that meeting.”
“Certainly.” Jack saw his window of opportunity closing fast, so he went for it. “You said you went for a run to…” Jack scanned his notes. “Blow off steam. Why did you need to blow off steam? Was that because of the argument you and Stacy had?”
Leland’s expression didn’t change. “Not at all. Stacy and I didn’t argue.”
Jack glanced down at his notes. Jeremy had said that Leland and Stacy argued, and Stacy had hinted about it to Betty. But Jack had no idea what the argument was over. Just that Leland wanted something right away.
Leland tapped his watch with a long finger. “Time’s up. I’ve got a meeting to catch.”
The Right-A-Way Shipping meeting, Jack thought. And then it hit him: right away. Jeremy had heard them wrong. Leland didn’t need something right away; they had argued about Right-A-Way Shipping.
“Mr. Chambers.” Jack followed him to the door. “The night Stacy went missing, you two did have a disagreement. It was over Right-A-Way Shipping. What was that about?”
Leland’s mask cracked, and his upper lip twitched. “Oh, that. It was nothing. Stacy was working on the Right-A-Way Shipping report. It’s part of her job. She was… delayed.” As he spoke, he seemed to be selecting each word with careful effort. “Yes, that’s right—she was late in getting the report back to me. I have deadlines.” His face relaxed. “She was new to the job, and it was just a minor infraction. I let it go. Where did you hear—” Leland stopped himself and smiled coldly. “Well, if you would excuse me. Have a good day.”
Jack looked up from his notepad, prepared to press Leland on the issue, but he froze. Through the glass doors, he saw the elevator that led to the upper floors. And stepping off that elevator was Detective Lyle Vargas.
Jack spun on his heel and headed for the Impala.
Chandler was pacing back and forth beside the car.
“Get in, get in, get in.” Jack’s words snapped like a machine gun as he hurried to the driver’s side. “Vargas is right behind me.”
Chandler jumped into the passenger seat. “Oh, man.”
There was no time to pull away, so instead Jack just kept his head down, pretending to fiddle with the radio. Detective Vargas stepped out onto the sidewalk, marched over to his car—directly in front of the Impala—and stopped. If he turned to his right…
Jack held his breath.
Vargas just stood there by his car door, staring across the street.
“What’s he doing?” Chandler whispered.
“Shh…”
Vargas crossed the road and headed to the burrito stand.
Jack sat up, started the car, rolled back two feet, and then pulled out—all the while keeping his head turned away from Vargas.
Once they were clear, Chandler looked back and grinned. “You were awesome!” He held up a huge fist.
Jack knuckle-bumped his friend. “I don’t know if I asked the right questions.”
“What? You did great with Lori and Betty.” Chandler’s face fell. “Did you screw up with Leland?”
“No, but I could have done better. He worked late with Stacy that night. He also admitted he argued with her.”
“You got that out of him? How is that screwing up?”
“I should have researched H.T. Wells. Seen what they do. When Jeremy heard Leland arguing with Stacy, it wasn’t because he needed something right away. It was something about a company called Right-A-Way Shipping. They must be a client. We need to take a closer look at them. And at Leland.”
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