Page 74 of Killer Honeymoon
“In the not-too-distant future, you’ll have human siblings too,” Royce said. He smiled at Sawyer. “The adventures of asshole and dickhead continue.”
Sawyer kissed his lips. “Hell yeah.”
One month later…
Sawyer used his office mirror to adjust the lucky tie he’d stolen back from Royce. It was open house night for the Explorer program, and he wanted to look his best. Sawyer’s gaze dropped to the purple-and-gray corset vest he’d commissioned along with his wedding wear. It was a big night for Royce, and Sawyer knew he’d be nervous about addressing the cadets and their families for the first time. Sawyer hoped seeing a hint of the vest under his suit jacket would settle Royce’s nerves or at least distract him. He’d just reached for his gray suit jacket when his cell phone vibrated in his pocket. Sawyer’s initial reaction was to ignore it because being late for the opening speeches wasn’t possible. Then again, it could be his mother looking to meet up with him beforehand, so he pulled the phone out to check the caller ID.
His breath caught in his throat when he saw Rio Santiago’s name on the screen. Had there been a break in Jessie Walters’s case? Sawyer checked the time, saw he had a few minutes to spare, and answered the phone. “Rio,” Sawyer said. “It’s good to hear from you.”
“Says no one ever,” the Chicago detective teased. Sawyer hadn’t known him for long, but Rio had always seemed like a glass-half-full kind of guy. There was something extra in his voice that expanded the hope Sawyer had felt just seeing his name.
Sawyer chuckled, which was hard to do when his chest suddenly felt like a balloon. “I don’t believe you. What’s up?”
“I arrested Jessie’s killer today,” Santiago said.
Sawyer’s breath caught in his throat, then he exhaled it all in a dizzying rush, leaving him breathless and a little dazed. “I feel like that poor spider I caught my cat toying with this morning.”
Santiago chuckled. “I’m not playing with you, man. I just finished processing him.”
“Who? How?” Sawyer forced himself to take some calming breaths. “I mean, that’s amazing, and congratulations.”
“But who was it, and how the hell did I solve the case, right?” Santiago asked.
Sawyer rechecked his watch. He needed to get going soon, but there was no way he could wait a few hours to get an update on Jessie’s case. “Can you give me the highlights now? My husband has an open house for his first Explorer class tonight.”
“Oh, man. Sure thing,” Santiago said, then launched right into the events that led to the arrest. “I owe it all to you and theSinister in Savannahpodcast team. Someone who knew Jessie back in the day is a fan of the podcast. Jessie’s name and story sounded familiar, so he went to the website to look at the photos Jessie’s family provided. He recognized his old friend right away and called the police department. This guy, Ritchie Farrens, had a steel-trap memory. He told us a lot about the scene back in the day and who was in Jessie’s inner circle. Ritchie was still friends with several of the guys on social media, so he set up a Zoom conference with all of us. The interviews provided some names, which led to more interviews. It didn’t take long for a suspect to emerge. A bouncer at one of the clubs made Jessie uncomfortable. The guy had always hit on Jessie, even though he didn’t reciprocate the attention. They’d even had a confrontation a time or two when the bouncer caused trouble with other guys who hit on Jessie. I checked the guy out and discovered he’d only worked at the club part-time. Guess what his day job was?”
Sawyer had a sinking feeling in his gut. “Uh-oh.”
“Yep. A cop. His name is Mark Hanson, and he retired from CPD about five years ago.” Santiago blew out a frustrated breath. “He lived in an apartment building near the dumpster where Jessie was found.”
“Holy shit.”
“Yep,” Santiago agreed. “I honestly expected him to give me a bullshit excuse for the circumstantial evidence against him.”
“And instead?” Sawyer prodded.
“He confessed. The asshole seemed relieved to unburden himself.”
Sawyer felt his eyebrows arch toward his hair. “Whoa.”
“Exactly. Hanson admitted he was a closeted cop with a bad temper and the hots for a guy who didn’t see him. Jessie stayed at the club later than his friends the night he died. Hanson slipped something into Jessie’s drink and took him to his apartment a few blocks away from the club. You know what happened from there.” Santiago made a sound of distress. “This case would have been solvable back in the day if Jessie’s homicide had been reported properly. His friends hadn’t realized he was missing. If they’d been made aware, maybe Hanson would’ve been interviewed, and Jessie’s parents wouldn’t have wondered what happened to him all these years.”
“That’s a lot of maybes,” Sawyer said. “Why didn’t his friends know he was missing?”
“Because Jessie had been planning to return home to Savannah and his parents,” Santiago said. His words were a sucker punch, knocking the air out from Sawyer’s lungs. “He’d already purchased a Greyhound ticket. That last night in the club was their goodbye. Sure, they’d expected to hear from Jessie once he returned to Savannah, but they figured he went back into the closet and closed the door on his chapter in Chicago.” Santiago sighed. “The guys were gutted by the truth.”
“Do you think Hanson will recant?”
“His attorney will probably advise him to, but it won’t help him. He knew Jessie had a bus ticket in his wallet, and he handed me the watch he’d removed from Jessie before putting him in the dumpster. It’s the engraved one his parents had given him for his high school graduation.”
Jack and Alice had asked if the watch had been recovered during their follow-up interview once Jessie’s remains had been identified. Santiago had told them a watch hadn’t been included with the evidence collected.
“They’re going to be happy to have it back,” Sawyer said. “Have you talked to Jack and Alice yet?”
“They’re my next phone call. I wanted to touch base with you first and thank you. I’ll also reach out to Felix, Rocky, and Jonah after speaking with Jack and Alice. None of this would’ve happened if not for the podcast featuring the Savannah missing persons cases.”
“Lord,” Sawyer said. “Felix will be strutting around like a peacock.”