Page 30 of Zero Divergence
“When I asked for a list of names, I was referring to your coworkers and whoever can account for your time. I’m not judging you,” Sawyer told him.
“You guys actually thinkIkilled Vivian?” Blakemore asked, a hint of panic creeping into his voice.
“It’s standard procedure for us to ask these questions, Mr. Blakemore. No one is accusing you of any wrongdoing,” Sawyer replied evenly.
“Fine,” Blakemore said. Then he pivoted and walked over to the bed where he picked up a notebook and a pen. He opened the notebook, flipped to a blank page, and started writing. “I’ll list my hours and the bartenders working each night, which is a lot easier than remembering the wait staff. As for my hookup, it was the same guy each night. I stayed over at his place.”
“You didn’t come back here at any point to grab an overnight bag?” Royce asked.
Blakemore snorted but didn’t look up from his task. “I keep extra clothes and uniforms in my locker at TC. I didn’t need clothes for the rest of the weekend.” The blond man let out a sigh as if he were reliving happier moments. “I didn’t get his phone number, and I don’t know the guy’s last name since it’s not like we yell them out in bed, but I ordered Chinese food through my Door Dash app and had it delivered to his home.” The blond man pulled his phone out of his back pocket and began thumbing through his phone. After finding what he was looking for, Blakemore jotted the address down. “Here you go,” he said, crossing the room and handing the sheet of notebook paper to Sawyer who folded it and moved on with the interview.
“Did you notice anything out of place when you arrived this morning?” Sawyer asked. “Were any doors unlocked? Was anything missing?”
Blakemore shook his head emphatically. “Nothing felt off, and the front door was locked like usual. The responding officer told me the laundry room door was unlocked when he walked the property. I guess that’s how her killer got in. Vivian must’ve taken the trash out and forgot to lock the door.”
“Did she do that frequently?” Royce asked.
The blond man nodded. “I honestly didn’t pay enough attention to my surroundings to realize if anything is missing or disturbed. I knew something was wrong when I saw her bedroom light was on. Her door was closed, but I could see the light spilling onto the tile floor from beneath the door. While Vivian was an early riser, her being awake at four thirty was strange. I thought she was sick. I knocked on her door, but Vivian didn’t answer. Her Mercedes was in her parking slot, so I knew she was home. I knocked harder and shouted her name.” Blakemore’s voice got louder, and his cadence sped up as he relived the anxiety he’d experienced while standing outside her door. “I just fucking knew something was wrong, but—” His words choked off as another sob wracked his body. “I never would’ve guessed I’d find her dead.”
“Do you mind taking a look around with us now to see if anything is missing?” Sawyer asked.
“Sure,” he said, nodding. “I’ll do my best.”
The price tag on the luxury townhouse was probably steep, but it didn’t come with a lot of square footage. A living area, small dining room, generously sized kitchen, home office, and powder room made up the first floor, while the second story boasted two bedrooms and two full bathrooms. Like with their bedrooms, Blakemore’s bathroom was as cluttered as Gross’s was tidy.
The final stop on their tour was the home office located in the rear of the home, adjacent to the kitchen.
“I shouldn’t let you in here,” Blakemore said, turning and blocking the doorway. “She brings work home often, and attorney-client privilege is still in force.”
“Her files are protected, not her entire office,” Royce replied calmly, even though Sawyer could sense how much his partner disliked the younger man. “I need you to look around and let me know if you notice anything missing. We’ll get one of the partners from the law firm to supervise us collecting evidence from her home office.”
“Oh,” Blakemore said, sounding disappointed Royce wasn’t putting up a bigger fight.
“We need to notify her next of kin,” Sawyer said, changing the subject. “Can you tell me who that is?”
“Vivian was an only child. Her parents were in their mid-forties when she was born and are now both deceased. She might have living relatives, but she’s never mentioned anyone to me. I’m sure Vivian has her estate in order. Bill Elderwood is the senior partner, and he probably has copies of her paperwork on file at the office. I can call him if you like.”
“We’ll take care of that,” Sawyer replied. “I’ll take his phone number if you have it.”
“Uh, yeah,” Blakemore said, pulling his phone from his back pocket. He rattled off the number so fast Sawyer had to ask him to repeat it twice. “Oh, I just thought of something. Her husband would officially be her next of kin since their divorce wasn’t final, right?”
“Husband?” Sawyer had heard the woman’s name mentioned hundreds of times but never in conjunction with a husband. He’d seen her at dozens of events but never with a date. He always figured she was married to her career.
“Jack Vincenzo.”
“The state senator?” Sawyer asked, recalling the lanky blonde who appeared on the statesman’s arm at a fundraiser not long ago.
“The very same,” Blakemore said. “I know you’re wondering how you’ve never heard about it, but very few people know. They got married when they were kids; I’m talking barely out of high school. They got a dissolution sometime during college, but their lawyer never filed it with the courts. Jack found out when he applied for a marriage license to wed his latest arm candy. Vivian was stalling, and Jack had grown increasingly impatient.”
“Why do they need to sign new paperwork if it was only a matter of filing the documents?” Royce asked.
“The lawyer they’d hired lost the paperwork. He was disbarred a few years back and has disappeared off the face of the earth.” Blakemore lowered his voice. “Vivian said he’d crossed some dangerous people and probably had a lot of help disappearing. Anyway, there were no papers to file, so they had to start over from scratch. Handling a dissolution for broke-ass twenty-somethings is a no-brainer, but they’re no longer those kids. They both had a lot to lose if their divorce wasn’t handled properly.”
“Why wouldn’t Ms. Gross want to sign the divorce papers?” Royce asked.
Blakemore exhaled deeply and released a shaky breath. “Truthfully, I don’t think she ever got over him. I think Vivian saw this as fate intervening. Maybe she hoped he’d have a change of heart. Based on the huge fight I overheard last week when he called her, I would say it was hopeless.”
“How huge?” Royce asked.