Promise Not To Tell(78)

Xavier frowned in confusion. “The case?”

“We’re working a murder and arson case,” Cabot said. “Remember?”

“Oh, yeah.” Xavier perked up again. He went so far as to straighten in his seat. “Right. The case.”

“I heard what you told the detective a while ago. Before this is over he’ll want both of us to go through it again in more detail. But right now I want you to tell me every single thing that happened from the time Fleming opened his door until you saw me arrive.”

“Okay,” Xavier said.

He started to talk.

Cabot listened. From time to time he asked questions but, for the most part, Xavier did a good job of recounting the ordeal. He had a keen eye for detail – much better than the vast majority of witnesses that Cabot had interviewed.

“What was your overall impression of Tucker Fleming?” he asked when Xavier reached the end of his tale.

Xavier thought for a moment. “Like I told the detective, he didn’t talk much, but when he did, he sounded scary-crazy most of the time. I figured he might be on drugs.”

“What, exactly, did Fleming say that made you believe he was on drugs?”

“It was like he heard voices or something.”

“Voices?”

“You know, like those crazy people on the street who talk to themselves.”

Cabot turned to meet Xavier’s eyes. “Fleming talked to someone only he could hear?”

“Not exactly. He said something about getting messages from his dad on his phone. But if we’re right, Fleming’s father is that old cult guy, right?”

“Quinton Zane.”

“Yeah. Him. But you told me that Zane is dead.”

“Welcome to the wonderland of conspiracy theories, kid.”

CHAPTER 57

Jessica was getting ready to close the gallery when Virginia and Cabot walked through the door.

“Welcome, strangers,” Jessica said. “How goes the big case?”

“Things got interesting today,” Virginia said. “You’ll be hearing all about it on the evening news.”

Jessica winced. “Bad?”

“Could have been worse,” Cabot said. “But it wasn’t, so I’m prepared to call it a good day. I’ve got a question for you.”

Jessica tipped her head to one side. “About art or your investigation?”

“It’s about the computer system you use here in the gallery.” Cabot nodded toward the equipment on the front counter. “Had any trouble with it lately?”

“No, it’s been working fine,” Jessica said. “Funny you should ask, though.”

Virginia got a cold feeling in the pit of her stomach. “Why?”

“Someone from the customer service department of the company that sold us the software package called the other day with a new update to fix a potential bug. He said they were calling all of their customers to patch the software. It only took a few minutes. You remember we got that great deal when we bought the complete system? Turns out we get great tech support, too.”

Cabot’s jaw tightened. “Did you answer all his questions? Give him the info he needed to log in from a remote location?”

“Sure. He walked me through the whole process. There weren’t any problems. We’re clean.”

Cabot looked at Virginia. “That answers that question.”

Jessica’s eyes widened. “What’s going on here? What are you talking about? Did I do something wrong?”

Cabot turned back to her. “Do me a favor. If you get any more calls from a helpful tech support guy who wants to walk you through another software update, tell him you’re busy and that you’ll call him back when you’re free. Then hang up and call me.”

Jessica’s eyes widened. “Oh, shit.”

CHAPTER 58

Virginia poured some whiskey into one glass and some wine into another. She set both glasses on the coffee table and sat down beside Cabot, tucked one leg under her thigh and rested her left arm along the back of the sofa cushions.

“How bad was the conversation with Xavier’s mother?” she asked.

“Bad.” Cabot picked up the whiskey, took a healthy swallow and set the glass down. “At first she didn’t believe me. She thought it was some sort of bizarre joke and that Xavier had put me up to it. When she realized I was telling her the truth – that Xavier had gotten tangled up in an ongoing investigation – she was shocked and then furious.”

“Predictable. She’s a mom, after all.”

“Xavier got on the phone. He tried to calm her down but that only made things worse. She got back on the phone with me and made me promise that I would put Xavier on the first available flight tomorrow morning. I explained that the police would want to interview Xavier again. She said she was going to fly to Seattle herself to deal with the cops. I said that was fine by me. Then Xavier’s father, Emerson Kennington, called.”

“Your uncle?”

“Biologically speaking, yes. He yelled at me for a while. Said something about having his lawyer deal with me. I told him his son had helped identify a man wanted on murder charges. That just made him even madder. Then he yelled at Xavier.”

“Is Emerson Kennington getting on the next flight to Seattle to see Xavier and make sure he’s okay?”