Page 58 of The Last Grift
“Excuse me,” Gabe said with a half-laugh, “what’s that about?”
Casey looked over at Gabriel, whose eyes glittered with amusement. He was a dangerous Charming Fucker.
“Never mind. That was John Stevens. He used to be the DA around these parts. We have a history.”
“Ah, your brother?”
Casey nodded, not wanting to think about Mickie right now. “Anyway,ifStevens is telling the truth, Elton asked him about property lawyers, but Stevens didn’t have anything to tell him. Or so he claims. Why was Elton asking about property law?”
Gabriel moved to sit down on the couch, his hands clasped behind his head. “We were hypothesizing this morning about things, and Elton wondered if there was something about Gordon’s property behind his disappearance and Dwayne’s murder.”
“Huh. He could be onto something, but I’m not sure why a property lawyer would be helpful.” Casey perched his butt on the edge of the small table. “The land around Gordon’s and farther up the road is a mix of public land, state and federal, as well as a few private parcels like Gordon’s. We—my coworker Greta and I—are tasked with the impossible job of keeping it safe. I was just up there. Tuesday morning, in fact, and I had an unpleasant run-in with Calvin and Dwayne. Had to confiscate most of their mushroom harvest.”
“We know they both survived the incident because I had the displeasure of meeting them at the gas station where Gordon works.”
“Hm.” Casey bit the inside of his lip. “You found Dwayne yesterday.”
“Even with the weather, he was starting to stink, so I’m guessing he was probably killed sometime Tuesday.”
“A forensic expert, are you?”
Gabriel grinned. “Can’t beat bingeing NCIS.”
Suppressing an answering smile, Casey moved to one of the chairs, sitting forward so he could rest his forearms on his thighs. “What else do you remember?”
Gabriel looked up at the popcorn ceiling and blew out a big breath.
“I didn’t stay long once I realized what I was looking at.”
“Go through your movements. From the time you arrived until you got back in the truck.”
“Okay… I parked and got out, avoided several mud puddles. The rain had let up a bit. I called out for Gordon and got no answer. But I didn’t expect one.” He met Casey’s gaze. “You know how you just can tell when no one is there? When a place is empty? It felt like that. But I’d promised Elton I’d check, so I walked over to the nailed-together sticks Elton called a shed. After a moment of absolutely not wanting to open that door, I did it anyway. And there Perkins was, on his back at the other end of the structure, his arms flung out. I didn’t see a gun.”
Casey nodded. “So, do you think he was killed there or could it have been staged?”
“My level of crime-show bingeing has not blessed me with that level of expertise. But with the splatter, I’d guess so?”
“Nothing else?”
“There wasn’t a note from the killer pinned to his jacket confessing to the crime, if that’s what you’re asking.”
Casey ignored that comment. “Nothing that seemed obviously out of place or weird to you?”
“How would I know what is out of place if I’d never been there before?”
“You’d be surprised what the subconscious mind notices. Shut your eyes, walk yourself through what you saw, heard, maybe even smelled.”
To Casey complete non-astonishment, Gabriel did not immediately close his eyes.
“Oh, for fuck’s sake, my subconscious has been stored in the back of a closet most of my life. It’s dusty and out of practice. This had better help us find Elton because a waltz down memory road is not the thrill you think it is.” Placing his hands on his thighs, Gabriel inhaled a deep breath and scooted down on the couch to rest his head on the back cushion. “I think we’d get better results if I was laying back on a nice soft velvet couch and you were a sexy hypnotist, but,” he sighed, “this will have to do.”
“Just go with it, for Elton.”
“For the record, I’m not doing this for you.”
“Yes, understood. Do your best Sarah Bernhardt, I know you can.”
“I know who that is, and I don’t think I appreciate yourhumor. But on the other hand, you finally appear to have one—a sense of humor, I mean—which is a bit of a shock.”
