Page 42 of Last Date

“Really? Maybe I forgot about him. Or maybe I didn’t think he was important.”

“That’s not for you to decide,” Merrick said.

I sighed. “It wasn’t intentional. I’m sure I just forgot about him. Anyway, I believe his name is Bob Tiergerman.”

Squinting, Detective Bergen muttered, “Bob Tiegerman. Bob Tiegerman. Why is that name so familiar?”

“He’s on the list of people who’ve had a run-in with Allister Green in the last few months.” Merrick’s gaze was sharp. “Seems odd you wouldn’t mention him, Mr. O’Connor.”

I frowned. “I just forgot about him. It was a traumatic night, and the only person who stuck out to me was the guy in the gray hoodie. I did tell you about him.”

“The guy on the pier?” Detective Bergen asked.

“Yeah.”

Merrick leaned forward. “Did you know Bob Tiegerman had been harassing Allister?”

“Allister mentioned it to me. I don’t know Bob though.”

“But you knew he’d been pestering Allister, yet you saw no need to mention his presence at the crime scene?” Merrick narrowed his eyes.

I thought you were just observing?

My pulse sped up as irritation nipped at me. “As I said, it was a very stressful night. I probably forgot to say a lot of things.”

Merrick turned to Detective Bergen. “Have you brought Mr. Tiegerman in for questioning yet?”

Detective Bergen bumped his fingertip on a sheet of paper in front of him. “According to the list, he’s coming in tomorrow.”

“Good.” Merrick clasped his hands over his stomach and returned his enigmatic gaze to me. “Go on with your story, Mr. O’Connor.”

“Okay, well, after I saw Bob Tiegerman rummaging for bottles, I headed toward the yacht.”

“How did you know which boat was Allister’s? Had you been on it before?” Merrick asked.

“His boat kind of stood out from the others in the marina, and no, I’d never been on the yacht before. I knew the name of the boat too, so I had no trouble finding it.”

“What happened next?” Detective Bergen asked.

“As I approached the yacht, a guy passed me. He had a hoodie on, and I got the feeling he was trying not to let me see his face.”

“How would you know that?” Detective Bergen asked.

“His body language was closed off. His head was down, and he seemed to be in a hurry.”

“Can you describe this guy?” Merrick asked.

I shook my head. “Not really. I couldn’t see hair color or his face. He had a slender build, and he was about my height, if that helps?”

“Everything helps,” grumbled Detective Bergen.

“You’ve mentioned the gray hoodie. What were his pants like? His shoes?” Merrick asked.

Frowning, I tried hard to recall the guy. “Ithinkhe wore jeans, and his shoes were a gray slip-on type? I believe they were Skechers, but I couldn’t tell you that for sure. They were that style though.”

Detective Bergen scowled. “Great, gray shoes. There’s only about five million pairs of those in the country.”

“Sorry, but I didn’t know anything was going to happen,” I said softly. “I wasn’t thinking like you might. Like a cop. I was thinking like a normal person going on a date.”