Page 79 of The Woman Left Behind

They decided not to let the Rainier situation slip, because Rus’s poking around might have been reported to Gerald and Michelle Dietrich, and they were already spooked enough, but they still had ties to MP. He didn’t need them to vanish.

So they decided on Ballard and to leave Dern guessing about the rest.

“You wanna tell me why you didn’t assign Muggsy Ballard’s case to me or Roy?”

“Who?” Dern demanded.

“Roy, your other detective. Remember him?”

“No, I remember Roy. Of course I remember Roy,” Dern spat. “What’s the case?”

“Muggsy Ballard. Given name Clifford,” Harry told him.

“No clue who that is,” Dern replied.

“Suicide,” Rus chimed in. “Who somehow got the shit kicked out of him before he allegedly blew his own brains out.”

“And no GSR test was ordered,” Harry added.

“And no friend or family member noted suicidal tendencies, ideations or depression,” Rus put in. “Though the case file says they did.”

“But the dead guy had a dream to get rich fast, and he dealt with some shady characters to do it,” Harry said. “In fact, at the time he died, he was waiting for a deal to make good that he was sure would get him a house on the lake.”

“Right, that loser,” Dern muttered.

Both men on his walk shifted with annoyed agitation.

“Roy had a full plate,” Dern stated. “He did the legwork, asked me to tie up loose ends and put it to bed. Only reason why I was the investigator on record.”

This was news, and not how Harry remembered it.

It was also suspicious, and bottom line suspect police work. You investigated a case, you signed your fucking name to it.

But like Polly said, all sorts of shit went down at the station that they hid from Harry. The two camps were staunchly divided by then. Half the deputies didn’t talk to the other half. Roy, for instance, on the regular avoided Harry like he was contagious.

“What loose ends did you tie up?” Rus asked.

“Fuck if I know,” Dern replied. “That was years ago.” His gaze narrowed on Harry. “But Roy was a good cop, one who didn’t deserve to lose his job. Probably just had to look it over before I signed off.”

Roy was a lazy ass who would never pass a physical, if Dern did what Harry did and made his deputies, even his investigators, pass one once a year.

This was eventually how Harry was able to get rid of him. The man refused to give up his daily burgers and malts from The Double D, and as such, couldn’t run around the high school track without doubling over halfway. Harry gave him an extra three months to get in some semblance of shape and try again, but he’d failed again.

Roy had gone so far as to take it to the union, arguing an investigator didn’t need to pass a fitness exam.

Since it was policy, and he was given three months before the first exam, and another three months to try to pass the second, he’d lost his appeal.

That said, Dern was also a lazy ass, so it wouldn’t surprise him at all if Dern didn’t even read the report before he signed off on it and filed it away, leaving a mother and a bunch of friends with no answers as to the death of someone they cared about.

“Ballard’s mother seemed to make herself pretty clear when she confronted you about the results of your investigation,” Rus pointed out.

“Doesn’t say a lot about her, she let her son get to that point,” Dern retorted. “They act out like that when they know they got some blame. And at least I”—he shot a shitty look at Harry—“went to bat for my boy and didn’t let some hysterical woman sway me into questioning his abilities.”

Harry didn’t rise to the bait.

“What else you got?” Dern sneered.

“We’re not at liberty to discuss an active murder investigation,” Harry told him, and Dern tried to hold the sneer, but the color was not returning to his face. “Though, I wouldn’t go anywhere.”

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