Cold & Deadly (Cold Justice: Crossfire #1)(17)

It appealed to him.

The lock turned, and the door cracked open an inch. After a moment of cautious assessment, the man’s eyes grew large, and he opened the door wide. A poodle Dominic had met on several occasions scrambled out to inspect them.

“Sorry, Dominic, I didn’t recognize the name. After the shooting yesterday, the wife and I are both a bit jumpy. Did you catch the shooter?”

Dominic reached down to pet the soft curls on the dog’s head. “We’re still working on it. How’s your wife holding up?”

“She’s still pretty shaken.”

“We have some questions.” Kanas flashed Dominic a look and got straight to the point. Patience was another thing she needed to learn. “We believe you found the body?”

The man paled, flesh going dull gray. “Yes. Yes, I did. Worst thing I’ve ever seen in my entire life.”

“Would you mind if we came inside?” Dominic asked quietly. The last thing he wanted was to further traumatize one of Van’s friends.

Gabany checked his shoulder and shook his head, instead motioned them out onto the back porch. “Reza is asleep. I don’t think she’ll ever leave the house again after what happened.”

“I know how she feels.” Kanas took a step back and waited for Sam Gabany to be seated.

Dominic couldn’t imagine Kanas running from anything. More like standing on a hilltop, shaking her fist at the world. But everyone dealt with grief differently. He buried his under a stoic front. That was how he’d learned to survive. He saw no reason to change now.

“Can you tell us if there was anything unusual about the night Van died, or any of the nights leading up to it?” Dominic asked.

Sam Gabany shook his head, clasping his hands between his knees. His dog took turns sniffing first Dominic and then Agent Kanas.

“I spoke to Van on the Sunday when we were both doing yard work. I borrowed his lawnmower because mine wouldn’t start.” Gabany’s watery eyes glimmered with fresh tears. “I thought I heard what sounded like a gunshot around 10 PM on the Tuesday night. The TV was on, and I didn’t get up immediately as I thought it was part of the show I was watching. Reza was in the tub and called through to me. Said she thought she’d heard something too.” He scratched his nearly bald head. “I checked the window, but it was dark outside, and I didn’t see anyone in the street. I called Van’s cell.” He cupped his face with his hand over his mouth. “I liked to get his advice on security issues.” His indrawn breath sounded like a sob.

“Go on,” Dominic said softly after a few moments of pained silence.

“I checked the back yard and saw Van’s car in the driveway—he didn’t generally put it in the garage except in the winter.”

A kid on a bike rode along a footpath that ran along the back of the property. They all watched him turn the corner out of sight.

“I figured if he was home and there had been a gunshot, he’d have been outside, investigating, you know? I forgot about it. Convinced myself it must have been on the TV and went to bed. I never imagined…” He sniffed. “Next morning, I noticed the newspaper on Van’s lawn so I picked it up and let myself in—I still keep a spare key on my fob. Reza and I used to spend a lot of time over there when Jessica was ill and Van was working.” The man closed his eyes as grief washed over him. “I should have spent more time with him when he retired—”

“We all should have,” Dominic told the man, razors carving out his heart.

“I thought he was doing okay. I never thought…” Gabany gulped loudly.

Dominic let the silence linger. Silence was a much-underutilized tool for getting answers. Kanas watched him, clearly trying to gauge where they were going in the interview.

“He was sad about Jessica, but she’d been so sick there that at the end I think he was secretly relieved her suffering was over.”

“Cancer sucks,” Agent Kanas said, her jaw working.

Dominic wondered if she’d lost someone close. He knew nothing about her family or her background. The poodle headed into the yard. For a moment it felt as if they were all waiting for Van to appear on his back porch and wave before joining them.

“No one should ever have to doubt how much they meant to one another,” Gabany said cryptically.

Dominic glanced sharply at Gabany. “Do you know if Van had started seeing anyone since Jessica died?”

Gabany turned his head away and stared at the big maple that dissected his and Van’s yard. “No.”

Kanas caught Dominic’s eye. They’d both noticed the defensiveness. The clipped response compared to his previous answers.

“No, you don’t know or no, he didn’t start seeing anyone?” Dominic probed. There was something here worth digging at. Something meaty and meaningful.

Gabany shrugged but wouldn’t meet his gaze. The man had put his shields up. The question was why?

“Aside from Sarah and Amy, she’s the only woman I saw visiting.” Gabany nodded toward Kanas, resentment gleaming in his eyes. Sarah and Amy were Van’s daughters.

“We were colleagues and friends,” Kanas reassured the man, which seemed to make Gabany relax a fraction. “Van was like a father to me.”

“It sounds as if you’re upset by the idea of Van being involved with someone new,” Dominic said carefully.