Page 16

15

Nolan had eaten at the Rusty Hull a few times, and he highly recommended the food. He also recommended the atmosphere. The laid-back, dimly lit, remodeled fishery had multiple rooms, all decorated with nautical items. Not in-your-face kinds of things, but rusty old items that looked like they’d been at the bottom of the ocean for years.

Nolan stopped to inhale the savory scent of fried seafood mixed with the pungent smell of today’s fresh catch lingering in the air. His queasiness had subsided on the drive over, and his stomach gave a loud growl of approval.

If Mina noticed, she didn’t let on, but went straight to the greeter. He hung back to observe.

The greeter stand was positioned near the door. Fresh fish and oysters on the half shell in refrigerated cases stood next to a tank with live lobsters. Diners could pick up their seafood of choice on the way in and have it cooked to their specifications, or as in the case of the oysters, served raw on the half shell.

“Afternoon, Amy,” Mina said.

“Hey, Sheriff.” The young blond woman in a white blouse and black pants fidgeted with her hands sitting on the wooden stand. “Take out as usual, or are you wanting a table today?”

“I’m here for information about Mayor Sutton,” Mina said, skipping any social niceties.

“Ernie?” A broad smile lifted Amy’s mouth. “He’s one of our regulars. The sweetest guy ever. What can I tell you?”

“Did he have lunch here yesterday?”

Amy put a finger on her chin. “You know, he comes in so often I’m not sure.”

“Is there anyone here who could confirm it for us?” Mina asked.

“Paisley.” She smiled again. “He has a regular table, and she’s always his server. She would know.”

“Then please take me to Paisley.”

“This way.” Amy traveled to the end of the small room and turned left.

Nolan let Mina go first, and they kept up with Amy until she stopped in the middle of the room beside a plush booth. “This is Ernie’s favorite spot. Go ahead and have a seat, and I’ll send Paisley out to you.”

She rushed off, and Mina and Nolan slid into the booth on opposite sides of the table.

Mina’s focus remained on Amy as she disappeared through swinging doors. “Obviously, they haven’t heard about the mayor’s death. I’m glad it hasn’t made the grapevine yet.”

“Surprising for this town.” His proximity to Mina in the small booth left him uncomfortable, and he clamped his hands on his knees to keep from fidgeting. “Which is one of the reasons I found it hard to believe that the hotel clerk couldn’t find you that summer.”

She whipped her head around to study him. “Abby told me you followed up with Tommy.”

He wasn’t sure if now was a good time to talk about it, but they didn’t have anything else to do. “I didn’t give up until I talked to your parents.”

She locked gazes with him. “They never told me.”

He worked hard to keep his mouth from falling open. “All this time, I thought you were blowing me off.”

Her eyes softened, and she rested her hands on the table. “Just the opposite. For a very long time, I hoped you would come back. But when you didn’t, I had to move on, and that meant leaving town. Too many memories with you here.”

He wanted to take her hands, but didn’t know how she would react, so he resisted the urge. “I thought coming back here would be easy. That the beauty of the area and the scenery would take over. Enjoy the friendliness of the residents.”

“But it hasn’t been that way?” She looked like she was holding her breath as she waited for his answer.

“No,” he all but whispered. “I see you at every turn and remember the amazing week we had together.” He gave in and placed his hand over hers, the touch going straight to his heart. “Since this was all a misunderstanding, maybe we should give things between us another chance.”

“I don’t know.” She closed her eyes for a long moment. When she opened them he could see the doubt lodged there.

He tightened his hand on hers. “You still don’t believe me. Don’t trust me.”

She didn’t answer right away but took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I’ve believed the worst of you for five years. It’s going to take me more than a day to change that.”

He studied her expression and found something else. Something he couldn’t decipher. But he would take a stab at it. “You need to talk to your parents, don’t you? You need to be sure that I did indeed go to their house back then.”

She jerked her hands free. “I’m sorry. I do.”

He wanted to keep pushing. To win her trust, but he could do no more for now. He had to give her time and space. Let her work things out for herself.

A short, dark-haired woman wearing a white blouse, black pants, and white apron approached the table. “Hi, Sheriff. Amy says you need to talk to me.”

Mina shifted to face the server. “Thank you for seeing us, Paisley. We have some questions about Mayor Sutton.”

Paisley’s eyes narrowed. “What do you need to know?”

“Did he have lunch here yesterday?”

“He did.”

“Was he alone?”

Paisley shook her head, and her ponytail swung in arcs behind her. “He was with a man I didn’t recognize. Usually Ernie introduces me to his guests, but this time he didn’t say a word.”

“Was it a business meal?” Nolan asked.

Paisley narrowed her gaze. “Didn’t seem like it.”

“Were they friendly?” Mina asked.

She swung that ponytail again. “Actually, they were arguing about something.”

Mina leaned closer to the server. “Did you hear what they were talking about?”

“No,” she said with certainty. “They clammed up every time I came close to the table. I did hear what sounded like the word ‘taxes’.”

Taxes. Unexpected. “And you’re sure you don’t know this man?”

“I don’t.” She pressed her hands down her apron as if wiping off a distasteful thought. “It wasn’t like Ernie to argue with people, so I asked the others if they knew him. No one did.”

Could they be on to something? Was this man blackmailing the mayor, and was he the recipient of the money Mayor Sutton had been withdrawing from his account?

Mina got out her phone and displayed the digital sketch of Smythe. “Was this the man?”

Paisley studied it, her forehead creasing. “No. Definitely not.”

“Have you ever seen the guy in here before?” Mina stowed her phone.

“No.”

The perfume smell at the mayor’s house came to Nolan’s mind. “Did the mayor ever have lunch with a woman he seemed romantically involved with?”

Paisley gnawed on her lower lip. “I don’t know about romantically involved, but he had lunch with the same woman a few times lately. They’ve huddled together, talking and whispering. It’s not normal for the mayor to try to keep his conversation so quiet, and it’s unusual for him to be meeting with a woman I’ve never seen before.”

“And he didn’t introduce you to this woman either?” Mina asked.

“No, and just like the guy yesterday, I asked the others and no one knew her. I hinted around a few times for an introduction, but Ernie just sidestepped it. I figured it was none of my business, so I left it alone.”

“Can you describe her for us?” Nolan asked.

“An older woman probably around Ernie’s age. She dressed expensively. Tailored suits. Pearls. She had gray hair with white streaks in a blunt cut and always wore large diamond stud earrings.” Paisley got a sour look on her face. “But she also had a big honking diamond ring on her finger, so she was likely married. I figured that’s why Ernie wasn’t introducing me.”

“You mean you thought he was having an affair with her?” Nolan clarified.

“Yeah.” Her gaze ping-ponged around the room as if unable to look at them. “I didn’t see Ernie as the kind of guy who would have an affair with a married woman, but then none of us are perfect.”

“Did she wear perfume?” Mina asked. “Specifically Chanel N°5?”

“Oh man, yeah. She laid her perfume on heavy, but I don’t know what brand it was.”

Mina slid closer to Paisley. “Has the mayor seemed off or worried lately?”

She frowned. “His appetite has been off, but he’s been his cheerful self all the time. I asked him about his appetite, but he said he had some bug that he couldn’t seem to shake. Still, at lunch yesterday, he was able to eat his salmon and hush puppies with no problem. Even asked for seconds on the hush puppies.”

“Did he always pay for the meals with this woman?” Nolan asked.

“I don’t ever remember a time he let anyone else pay. Even the guy he argued with.” Paisley’s eyes narrowed. “What’s this all about, anyway?”

Mina leaned close to Paisley. “I’m sorry to say that Mayor Sutton has been murdered.”

“Murdered!” Paisley grabbed hold of the table. “Who would want to kill Ernie?”

“That’s what I was hoping to ask you.” She kept her attention on Paisley. “Is there anyone you’ve seen the mayor dining with who you think might be out to get him? Other than the guy he argued with?”

“I mean, he’s had some good-natured political discussions with people, and he always argued with his brother-in-law before Wade stomped out. There didn’t seem to be any love loss there, but Ernie didn’t seem to give up on the deadbeat. Just kept giving the guy money and buying his lunch on top of it.”

“The mayor really was a top-notch guy,” Mina said, her tone ringing with sincerity. “Anyone else you can think of who he might’ve had a negative interaction with?”

“There was never anyone who seemed really angry with him until yesterday.” Her eyes flashed open. “Wait. Do you think that’s the man who killed him? A killer was in here yesterday? Oh my gosh!”

Mina took Paisley’s hand. “Now don’t jump to conclusions. We don’t know this man had anything to do with his death.”

Paisley stood staring at Mina. “But he could’ve, right?”

“Of course, he could’ve.” Mina released the server’s hand and glanced around. “I don’t suppose you have any security cameras on the property.”

Paisley shook her head. “Folks around here don’t much like them, and we respect their privacy.”

Mina let out a breath that sounded like it carried all of her frustration with it. “Would you be willing to come down to the office and describe him and the woman Mayor Sutton had lunches with so my artist can make sketches of them?”

“Of course. If you think that will help, I’m glad to do it for Ernie.” She rubbed her hands over her forearms. “I can’t believe he was murdered. Not only that it was Ernie, but that anyone was murdered in our small town. This world. What’s it coming to?”

Nolan couldn’t agree more, but didn’t go there to distract from the point of the interview.

“If you’d make your way to the office now,” Mina said. “I’ll have my deputy waiting.”

“I’m on my way.” Paisley started untying her apron.

“One more thing,” Mina said. “I need you to keep this information to yourself. No mentioning his murder to anyone. It’s important for our investigation.”

“It’ll be hard, but I can do it.” She rushed towards the swinging doors.

Nolan looked at Mina. “Do you think this man could be our killer?”

She slid out of the booth. “It never pays to jump to conclusions in this business.”

“Agreed,” he said, making strong eye contact. “But if I were a jump-to-conclusions kind of person, I sure think he’s the man we’re looking for.”

“But what about the woman?” Mina asked, taking off for the exit. “She sounds like she could be behind the Chanel N°5 we smelled at the mayor’s house.”

He hurried to keep up with her. “I suppose she could’ve killed him, but then using a gun to murder someone is not a woman’s typical way to commit murder.”

Mina looked over her shoulder at him. “You’re right. Women prefer less violent methods, and they tend to kill inside and men outside, so that fits.”

“That’s assuming the blood at Becca’s house belongs to the mayor.”

“Yes,” she said, holding the door open. “But this woman is high on my suspect list along with the man Ernie had lunch with.”

They stepped into the late afternoon, sunshine slowly fading but still adding warmth to the spring day.

“We need to check in with Abe and El,” she said. “See what progress they’ve made, and then the Veritas team too. Maybe they have something to report.”

Nolan nodded and followed her to her vehicle. He thought both teams would’ve shared any big leads they found as they located them, but he could be wrong, and it wouldn’t hurt to check in. After all, the sergeant or detective might have news. A good thing, as he and Mina would need a direction to head in after this interview with Paisley left them with more questions than answers.