Murderous Matrimony(4)

“Probably around midnight.” Detective Almond watched the curious visitors go by on the cobblestones for a moment. “Looks like it was an inside job then.”

“Inside?” I questioned.

“A resident,” he translated. “Not a visitor.”

It seemed odd to me that Dave was lying under that sheet, and there was very little blood on the landing around him. There wasn’t much blood on the stairs coming up there either. “Where do you think he was shot?”

His eyebrows arched. “Why not right here?”

“Not enough blood.” I shrugged. “Someone must have killed him elsewhere and then brought him here.

“That’s good, Jessie.” He scratched his chin. “Better watch it, Chase. She may be after your job.”

“She’s good, Don.” Chase grinned and put his arm around me.

“To put your mind at ease, we found the spot right down there by the walkway. There’s plenty of blood. The bolt didn’t kill the man right away, and he probably crawled up here looking for help.”

It was sad to think that Dave had laid out here and died with no one to help him. “So that’s what happened?”

“We don’t know for sure yet.” Detective Almond looked at his notes. “What about your assistant, Jessie? Manny, right? Have him come up here a minute.”

I motioned to Manny to have him join us.

He knew about what had been happening with Manny and Dave. We couldn’t get around it. I should have known better. Detective Almond might seem inept sometimes, but he always seemed to know what was going on.

Manny stepped up and introduced himself. “A pleasure to meet you, Detective.”

“I heard you’ve had a problem with Mr. Olson regarding his . . . occupation.”

“The matter was resolved to our mutual satisfaction.”

Detective Almond shifted his stance. “A few people overheard you threaten Mr. Olson. Is that true?”

Manny shot me a quick glance. ‘I’m afraid that is true. I only meant it as incentive to get the brute moving.”

“But as he said, everything turned out okay.” I tried to get past this awkward moment. Manny was dense sometimes, but he wasn’t a killer. “Dave was healthy, and walking around the last time I saw him.”

“Which was?” Detective Almond’s pencil poised above his notebook.

“About five p.m. when I left for the night.”

“And you, Manny? When was the last time you saw Mr. Olson alive?”

“About the same time.”

It took a few more minutes of Detective Almond’s pencil scratching on the paper to write down what he wanted. “You know how to shoot a crossbow, Manny? Because I have no idea.”

“Of course! Where I come from, we learn early how to hunt with a bow. I was very good at it!”

How exactly was that keeping his mouth shut?

“Detective Almond, Manny knows how to use a crossbow. So do I. So does Chase, and a hundred other men and women who live in the Village. That doesn’t mean he killed him.”

“Don’t get so worked up, Jessie.” Detective Almond glanced at Manny. “If he’s willing to come to the station and give us a statement—with some DNA and prints for comparison—that will go a long way toward making me believe he wasn’t involved.”

Manny looked at me for guidance.

“Of course,” I answered for him with my hand on his arm. “He has nothing to hide.”

“Good deal. We’ll be glad to give him a ride there and back. It shouldn’t take too long.” Detective Almond nodded at Chase. “If you think of anything else, give me a call.”

Manny accompanied a police officer down the stairs and to a waiting squad car.

“I hope you know what you’re doing, Jessie.” Chase watched Manny slide into the backseat. “He should’ve had a lawyer.”

“He didn’t do this. You know Manny. He wouldn’t risk getting blood all over himself. Besides, it was just a few arguments. Whoever did this had a bigger beef with Dave, don’t you think?”

“Maybe.” Chase was still troubled. “But Manny has no idea what’s going on with our legal system. You can tell that he doesn’t know when to shut up. That could be a bad mixture.”

I had confidence in Manny. He might say too much, but he had nothing to hide. It was better to get this over with so the police weren’t coming back to talk to him every day until they found another suspect.

“You wouldn’t have done it,” Chase murmured.

He was right, of course. But that was different.

Detective Almond approached us again. “I’m gonna have to close off the museum until the crime scene people are done here. Sorry, Jessie. I’m sure you have plenty to do with your wedding coming up and all. I think my wife sent you our RSVP. I’m not dressing up, but we’ll be here.”