The Territory (Josie Gray Mysteries #1)(85)

Givens sat his briefcase on the pavement and shook Josie’s hand in both of his.

“Good to see you, Chief Gray.”

“How’s your wife doing, Charlie?”

He nodded slowly. “She’s back home again. Next treatment in three weeks. So far, so good.”

“I’ll be thinking about you both.”

Charlie picked his briefcase up again and they walked toward the entrance of the jail. “I’m here to see your boy, Kenny Winning.”

Kenny didn’t know it, but he had just caught his first break.

*

Josie found Otto in the central hub talking with Sheriff Martínez. Otto gave Josie the results from ballistics and said Kenny was meeting with Givens for the first time. Josie shared the notes and questions she had prepared to use during the interrogation with Otto and Martínez. They agreed that Martínez need not be present, but that Otto would stand in the back of the room and enter the conversation only if he felt Josie needed support.

*

Josie noticed the smell in the interrogation room as soon as the jailer unlocked the door. Sweat and fear, the unmistakable odor of a man realizing his life had been forever altered in a horrible and permanent way. A week ago, Kenny Winning had been convinced he had scammed the winning ticket and would cash in. Now the look on his face, not desperation yet, the look of someone trying to fake innocence, made her heart ache. She knew before he spoke his first word that he had done far more than he let on. He couldn’t fake innocent any more than she could fake a laugh.

Charlie was sitting at the table on the same side as Kenny with a yellow legal pad and a pen sitting in front of him. A half page of notes were jotted down on the pad.

Josie mirandized Kenny again and set up a tape recorder in the middle of the table. He had not been handcuffed, and he had a pack of cigarettes, a lighter, ashtray, and Styrofoam cup of coffee in front of him. Josie opened her steno pad to the page of questions, though she had committed them to memory.

Givens said Kenny was ready to offer a statement. Josie handed him paper in triplicate and asked him to describe what happened to Red’s guns in as much detail as he could remember. The written version was not much different from the abbreviated version he had shared with Josie the day prior. He had found the body and seized the moment. He had seen stealing the guns as a way out. Once Josie moved the questioning back to Red’s murder, Kenny’s tone of voice altered, moving from weary to cocky and strident, a sure sign Josie was on the right path.

“Let’s make sure this is clear. I’m sure Mr. Givens will agree with me. If you cooperate now and tell the truth without days of wasted investigation, your sentencing will reflect your cooperation.”

Kenny glanced at Givens, who nodded once gravely. “That is a fact. The truth will often reduce time served if you make it to penalty phase. However, if you have any question about what information to share, I counsel you to confer with me in private. Off the record.” Givens looked over his reading glasses at Kenny. “Understood?”

Josie had planned a half dozen approaches for the interview. She followed a hunch and opted for a quick start. “Here’s information that may help you decide how we proceed. All of the guns that were confiscated from the rental trailer you rented, and your camper? They’ve all been sent to ballistics. We’ve got the gun that shot Red Goff.”

Kenny’s stare had grown intense and the muscles along his jawline rigid. His thought process was either operating at warp speed or had slowed to a standstill. He stared at Josie as if trying to process the information while his attorney stared at Kenny, trying to process his response. Josie loved this part of an investigation: the end of the chess game, where the opponents locked down for the final move.

Kenny’s gaze was unflinching.

Josie went on. “I’ll share something with you that we haven’t made public yet. We found the bullet. Lodged into the pine tree outside your trailer. Near the picnic table.” She paused for a moment, sipped her cold coffee, and maintained her gaze. “You’ve surely watched enough TV to realize we can match that bullet to the gun. Just like a fingerprint.”

No response.

“Or maybe that bullet will match the gun you gave Pegasus. Maybe her fingerprints are all over the gun that killed Red Goff.”

Anger flashed on his face.

“Did I mention we found the guns in your sister’s trailer? They’ve been checked. One of those guns matches the bullet that killed Red Goff.”

Sweat dripped down the side of his temples as he leaned into the table. “She has nothing to do with this.”

“Careful now,” Givens said.

“Come on, Kenny. If the bullet comes from a gun in her trailer with her fingerprints all over the gun? Even if it’s registered to you, the jury wants a connection between the shooter and the weapon.”

“It’s my gun!” His hands gripped the handles, and Josie thought he might come up out of the chair. His eyes were wide and unfocused. “I shot the son of a bitch!”

“To get at his guns?”

Givens interrupted, “Mr. Winning, I would recommend you stop right now. We need to talk before you proceed.”

Kenny ignored the attorney. Josie had seen it happen before, as if the tension of maintaining a lie had been broken and the truth came rushing out like water.

“The son of a bitch was looking at her! I caught him looking at her through the window. She was walking around clueless, completely naked.” Kenny shut his eyes and slammed his back against his seat. “I walked up to him and put a gun to his forehead. He didn’t even flinch.”