Page 125 of Cowboy's Last Stand
“Both,” Wade claimed.
“That’s impossible.”
“A male figure about your size entered the garage two hours after the shooting.Weather conditions were misty, which affects the quality of the footage.”
“It’s not me.”
“Can anyone corroborate your whereabouts?”
Jason refused to answer any more questions without a lawyer present, so Wade and his cohort left the room.Jason wasn’t sure if justice would be served, no matter what the evidence showed.He had serious doubts about the fairness of a small-town police department run by a man like Sheriff Hendricks.Wade, who was one of the good guys, according to Natalie, hated Jason’s guts.He had no allies here except Natalie.And why would she believe him after he’d deceived her?
Jason buried his head in his hands.He was doomed.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Deputy Santos instructedNatalie to drive to the sheriff’s station for a formal interview.
At the station, she was escorted to a quiet room and told to sit tight.There were four desks in the same area, all messy but unoccupied.The nearest desk belonged to Wade, judging by the nameplate on its surface.
Natalie tried to think of a reasonable explanation for the gun in the truck.She couldn’t come up with anything.Her thoughts were scrambled into puzzle pieces that didn’t fit.Dark moments from the past mixed with recent memories.She remembered the day she’d been informed about Mike’s death, also in person, also by men in uniform.It had been the worst day of her life.This was a close second.
Last night, Jason had revealed that he wasn’t the person she thought he was.He’d become involved with her under false pretenses.That act of deception didn’t implicate him in this crime, but it didn’t absolve him, either.She needed to see the footage from the security cameras.Without definitive proof, she couldn’t believe Jason was guilty of murder.
Wade returned with a cup of coffee.His eyes were bloodshot, and lines of fatigue bracketed his mouth.“Want some?”
“No.”
He sat down at this desk and leveled with her.“I have to ask you some uncomfortable questions.”
“I want to see the footage.”
“A deputy is going through it right now.”
“I want my phone back before it gets tampered with.”
His gaze became shuttered.“No one’s going to do that, Natalie.Even if they did, you sent a copy to me.”
Natalie didn’t trust anyone in the department except Wade.He might not like Jason, but he wouldn’t frame an innocent man.She took a deep breath and tried to stay calm as he picked through the bones of their affair.Wade wanted to know about the threats Jason had made toward Billy.He asked for every detail of the previous evening.When Natalie told him about their argument and the reason behind it, Wade didn’t seem surprised.
“You knew about his connection to Mike?”she asked.
Wade just stared back at her, saying nothing.
“Did you question him already?”
“I can’t discuss that.”
“Maybe you’re jumping to the wrong conclusions.”
Wade took a sip of coffee.“Has someone else been inside that vehicle recently?Or threatened to harm Billy?”
“He left on foot, Wade.I watched him go.”
“Here’s what I know about Jason Reed,” Wade said, leaning forward.“He’s got a traumatic brain injury.That kind of thing makes people behave erratically.”
“He doesn’t behave erratically.”
“He’s a liar, he’s a loner, and he’s prone to violence.”
