Scratchgravel Road (Josie Gray Mysteries #2)(95)

“What about the dead man’s wallet in Cassidy’s car?” she asked.

Leo tipped his head back and groaned as if the questions would never end. Josie wanted to reach over the table and grab him by the throat but she remained still.

“I ran errands in town before I left for the library. I had breakfast, got gas, that kind of stuff. As I was leaving town that afternoon I saw Cassidy’s car headed out of town on Scratchgravel. She wasn’t supposed to go anywhere that day, so I followed her. She parked on the side of the road where I had parked.” He put his hands in the air. “I have no idea how she knew the body was there. She never would tell me. She played dumb.”

“You haven’t answered my question.”

“I just wanted to scare her. Get her to keep her mouth shut. I had the guy’s wallet in my car, so I stopped, unlocked her car, threw the wallet in the backseat.”

“Where’s Santiago’s license?”

“I took the license out so she wouldn’t know who he was. I figured that would freak her out. Let her know that somebody saw her snooping around. Then she gets picked up by the police.” He shook his head like he couldn’t believe her stupidity.

“So, you left Cassidy to die in the desert too? Just like the body you dumped?”

“No! I had no idea Cassidy was sick. I couldn’t see her from the road. That’s why I left the body there. It looked like a place no one would ever find.”

*

Josie collected the rest of the details and left Leo. His information tied up the last major hurdle in the investigation. She thanked Marta for excellent work, and asked Maria to let her back into the interrogation room.

When she entered, Greene was turned in his seat, his forearms resting on his thighs, leaning toward Brent. Greene had the frustrated look of a father trying to talk sense to an obstinate teenager and having no luck.

Josie sat down at the table and said nothing for a moment, waiting to see if Brent wanted to talk.

Greene continued staring at Brent, his lips compressed into a thin line, obviously waiting on a response from his client. The defense attorney had been through enough interviews to know that his bad day was about to get worse.

“When I left the room, I had just explained that I’ve seen the tape that shows you slamming a stool into Juan Santiago’s head when he tried to leave the laboratory.”

Greene objected but Josie waved it off. “After knocking him unconscious, Brent found chemicals in the laboratory cabinet. He poured them down Santiago’s throat.” Josie watched him closely, but he refused to make eye contact. “The chemicals that disintegrated his friend’s insides.”

“Friend? He took advantage of me for three years! I drove him to work every day. Not once did he offer to pay me gas money. I offered to help when his car died. Then he never got another car. Never even said thanks.”

“I would encourage you to—”

Brent cut Greene off. “He was so damned self-righteous. He was doing something noble for his family, so it gave him the right to treat everyone else like dirt.”

“And then he spilled the chemicals that were going to get you fired.”

Brent stared at her with a burning hatred that surprised her. “He didn’t care! It was always about him.”

Josie realized he’d said nothing to implicate himself to this point. Greene was staring at him intently.

“But you did more than poison Santiago. You had his body dumped in the desert by your friend, Leo Monaco.”

He clenched his jaws, his face turning a deep red, and Josie wondered why this news would cause such an angry reaction. Maybe he thought Leo was a faithful friend.

Josie turned to Greene. “Brent called and told Leo he had a way he could make some extra money. Leo drove to meet him at the plant and discovered a dead body in the backseat of Brent’s car.”

She turned to face Brent. “A place where Juan Santiago’s DNA will show up like neon paint.”

He looked silently back at her, seeming to evaluate her words.

Facing Greene again she said, “When Leo arrived and found the body, he tried to back out, but was afraid Brent would kill him, as he had killed Juan Santiago.”

Brent made a face as if she’d told a ridiculous story. “He didn’t care what he was dumping! He found out there was a box of money in the apartment and he couldn’t have cared less what he moved.”

Josie felt the thrill of closing in. She lowered her voice and pulled a chair directly across from him, leaning toward him across the table. “Why, Brent? Was the job really worth his life?”

He looked across the table, his face feverish. “It was his fault we got splashed. He was trying to hurry the job and he didn’t take precautions. I followed the book. I was working toward a promotion. I was next in line.”

Brent stopped talking and Josie kept quiet, waiting for the admission.

After staring at the table for some time he seemed to resolve something internally. He leaned back in his chair, his face slack, his expression resigned.

“Juan and I were working on a project in the lab for a couple of days.”

“In the pilot unit?” she asked.

He nodded. “It’s company policy to wear the hazmat suits whenever we work with certain chemicals. Grounds for termination if you don’t. The day we were working it was hot. We were both sweating so we just pulled the top half down to get some air. We were the only ones scheduled in the lab so we figured a few minutes of fresh air wouldn’t hurt.” Brent finally glanced at his attorney. Greene scowled and motioned for him to continue.