Page 50 of Zero Divergence
Recalling the way Kendall Blakemore had plastered himself against Sawyer did a great job of stirring his anger instead of lust, easing the ache in his groin.
“I honestly don’t know what to think about the kid,” Royce replied. “I don’t think he’s lied to us, but he’s stretched the facts to suit whatever narrative he’s pushing at the time. On the one hand, it’s hard not to view Vincenzo’s words as a threat in light of the situation, but had he been more specific this morning, I probably wouldn’t have leaned on the senator so hard during our first interview, which might’ve prevented us from making a second trip.”
“Doubtful,” Sawyer replied. “Other than Vincenzo, none of the people closest to Vivian seemed willing to speak freely to us. Getting information from Blakemore was like pulling teeth, and it only got worse with each person we interviewed. The higher up the food chain we climbed at the law firm, the quieter the person on the other side of the table from us became.”
“They view us as the enemy,” Royce said. “I don’t agree with them, but I get it.”
Vincenzo didn’t greet them on the porch on their second arrival. He wasn’t the one who answered the door either. A silver-haired butler in a crisp black suit showed them to Vincenzo’s study where the senator sat in the same place they’d left him hours earlier, only this time Vincenzo wore a navy blue suit, crisp white shirt, and striped tie instead of sleep pants and a faded Duke T-shirt. He also wasn’t alone. The man sitting beside him looked like a bulldog with sagging jowls, drooping eyes, and puffed-out chest. The blond buzz cut didn’t positively accentuate this man’s bone structure in the same way it did Sawyer’s. The bulldog wore a charcoal suit, pink shirt, and paisley tie that looked as expensive as the senator’s and the ones hanging in Sawyer’s closet. Must be a lawyer thing.
Vincenzo and Bulldog rose to their feet when Royce and Sawyer entered the study.
“Can I offer refreshments to anyone?” the butler asked the room at-large.
“No, thank you, Jervis,” Vincenzo replied.
Speak for yourself.Royce was willing to bet twenty bucks that Vincenzo always had pastries in the kitchen. Not as good as Sherry Rigby’s, but he’d offer himself up as a tribute to find out. He debated joking about it to ease the mounting tension but decided against it.
“Detective Key, Sergeant Locke, I’d like you to meet my attorney, Matt Schultz.”
“Your divorce attorney, right?” Sawyer asked, extending his hand to Schultz, who raked his dark gaze over Royce’s boyfriend.
“So, you’ve heard of me?” the man asked slyly, his wide grin parting the heavy cheeks to hang like saddlebags on both sides of his face. Vincenzo’s scowl matched the fire burning low in Royce’s gut.
“Just this morning when I discovered Senator Vincenzo is married to Vivian Gross,” Sawyer replied.Zing!“You’re the idiot who thought it was wise to send a process server to her home rather than offer an honest and open dialogue.”Ouch!Sawyer was going for the jugular.
The joy dimmed from Bulldog’s eyes, and the good-ole-boy smile slid from his face. “Was married,” the tactless man corrected. “Death is certainly cheaper and more expedient than a divorce.” Schultz started laughing like his comment was funny instead of crass.
Vincenzo wordlessly walked over to a coffee cart and poured himself a cup. Every line of his body was stiff and unyielding. Did he want to punch Schultz out as severely as Royce did?
Schultz sobered when he realized no one else in the room found his remark funny. He blew out a shaky breath. “Am I in the hot seat, fellas? I thought you were coming to put the screws to Jack.” More inappropriate guffaws followed.
Sawyer scowled at the attorney, and Royce expected steam to come out of his partner’s ears at any minute.
“No one is getting screwed,” Royce said tersely. “We only want information that will help us catch Ms. Gross’s killer. We learned about the senator’s marriage to Vivian Gross earlier this morning and notified him of her passing since he was her next of kin. We asked questions that made him uncomfortable, and he asked us to leave.” Royce shifted his gaze to the senator. “You stated we should contact Richard Eckstein if we wished to speak to you again, so we expected him to be present, not your divorce attorney.”
Vincenzo had turned to face him during Royce’s remark and now stood pinching the bridge of his nose. He lowered his hand and met Royce’s gaze head-on. “To be honest, I would prefer Richard was here with me today, but he had court commitments he couldn’t reschedule and wasn’t able to make the drive from Atlanta. I thought havinganattorney present was better than none.” Vincenzo looked at Schultz. “I thought wrong. Your presence is no longer required, Matt.”
“Wait a minute,” the attorney said, holding up his hands. “Let’s discuss this. You asked me here to make sure these guys didn’t exploit your situation with Ms. Gross to get you to talk. I might not be a big-shot defense attorney, but I am familiar enough with the law to keep you from incriminating yourself.”
Vincenzo crossed the room and set his coffee cup on the oval table between the four leather club chairs placed strategically around it. He held out his arms and looked at Royce and Sawyer. “I have nothing to hide from you. There’s nothing anyone can say about me or do to me that will hurt more than losing the love of my life.”Whoa.
“Where’s Ms. Fairchild?” Sawyer asked.
Vincenzo sighed heavily. “I told her everything after you left. We ended our engagement, she packed up some things, and has returned to Atlanta.” We, not she. Interesting.
“That wasn’t smart, Jack,” Schultz said. “She’s the kind of woman you want by your side on the campaign trail and residing with you in the governor’s mansion, or even the White House someday.”
“You’re getting way ahead of yourself,” Vincenzo replied, waving a hand to dismiss the idea. “Right now, those aspirations hardly seem important.”
“We might need to speak with Ms. Fairchild during this investigation. Will you provide us with a phone number to reach her?” Royce asked.
“Of course. I only ask that you give Lucinda a day or so to process what I’ve done.” It wasn’t a promise Royce could keep, so he chose not to react.
“Aren’t you worried she’ll reveal your story to the press out of spite?” Sawyer asked.
“She signed an NDA,” Schultz said.
Since when did an NDA stop anyone? An eager reporter would happily protect Ms. Fairchild’s identity, and besides, there was at least one other person besides their attorneys who knew the truth, giving Lucinda plausible deniability. She could simply say that whoever tipped off the police about Vincenzo and Gross’s marriage was the same person who leaked the story to the press. Royce would do everything in his power to protect Kendall’s identity, even if the man annoyed him.