Page 44 of Feared

“Who called 911? Who found the body?”

“That I won’t divulge.”

“But at that hour of the night, it had to be a witness, sincehis landlord was away. Did somebody see something through a window? Or hear something?”

“Ms. Rosato, I don’t know how many ways I can say this. I’m not going to discuss details of the case with you.”

Mary interjected, “Detective Krakoff, what my partner is trying to say is that we loved John. He mattered to us, and we’re upset by this. We’re heartbroken. We just want to know what you know. We may not technically be family, but we think of ourselves as family.”

Detective Krakoff blinked, obviously unmoved. “I understand, and I will brief you as the investigation proceeds, to the extent that it’s consistent with police procedures.”

“But can’t you tell us anything more, just to give us some hope?” Mary kept talking, hoping to convince him. “We know that the uniformed officers were canvassing when we left, and there’s a lot of people in that neighborhood. Anybody could’ve seen or heard anybody going into John’s apartment, and if there were signs of a struggle, I would hope that the uniformed officers or you would have someone identify the witness—”

“Excuse me. As I said, we will divulge any such information as is appropriate.” Detective Krakoff slipped a pen and skinny notebook from inside his jacket. “Ms. Rosato, when we spoke earlier outside of the victim’s house, you had some information that may help us. If you do, we’d like to know that now, in the early stages.”

“Certainly. John Foxman was an associate at my office. He worked for us for about four years. His parents are dead, he’s unmarried and the guardian of a brother with cerebral palsy, William Foxman, who resides in a group home in the suburbs. I can get you the address if you wish.”

“I would appreciate that.” Detective Krakoff made a note. “Now, it’s my understanding that Foxman was referred to in a lawsuit that was recently filed against your law firm for reverse discrimination. Is that correct?”

“Yes,” Bennie answered lightly.

“We saw video footage of a press conference that took place yesterday, in that regard. He intended to leave the firm. Can you tell us about that?”

“It’s self-explanatory, isn’t it?” Bennie shrugged. “He was looking for another job and was going to leave the firm. That was fine with us, even though we were surprised to learn it at the press conference. We employ people, not imprison them.”

Detective Krakoff made another note, and Mary hid her nervousness. They weren’t going to get any more information and they were entering a danger zone.

“Did the victim have any enemies, that you know of?”

“Not that we know of.”

Mary knew this line of questioning could end up close to Judy. Bennie couldn’t reveal the fact that Judy was dating John, nor could she lie outright to the police.

Detective Krakoff made a note on his pad. “How about friends of his? Did he have a group of friends?”

“We assume so, but we don’t know.”

“How about a girlfriend?”

Suddenly Mary jolted in her chair, her hand flying to her belly. “Oh, yikes.Thatdoesn’t feel good.”

Detective Krakoff looked over. “Pardon me?”

“Ouch!” Mary grimaced. “That feltweird. It felt like a contraction, but it could have been a kick. Probably it’s just Braxton-Hicks, but you never know.”

Bennie’s eyes flared with credible concern. “DiNunzio, do you need to see a doctor? Do you want me to get an ambulance?”

“Oh no. You mean, the baby’s coming?” Detective Krakoff grimaced in alarm, and Mary nodded in bogus pain.

“I hope not, I doubt it, I’m only seven months, but you never know. I think I need to go home and lie down. Sorry, Bennie, I hope you don’t mind if we go.”

“Not at all.” Bennie rose, picking up their purses. “We can’t take any chances, especially after you were already rushed to the doctor today.”

“I agree, you’re reading my mind.” Mary rose, her hand on her belly, hamming it up. “Detectives, sorry, but I had a medical emergency earlier, well, you don’t need the details, but my doctor said I had to take it easy. And this feels like a contraction.”

Bennie took Mary’s arm. “Detectives, I’m taking Mary home. It’s been a long, hard day. She needs to rest.”

“Of course.” Detective Marks nodded, agitated. “Do you have a ride?”