Page 41 of Tide and Seek
“Right.”Hartley made a note.“Any particular reason you moved away?”
I felt my shoulders tense slightly as I returned with three mugs of coffee.“I bought a medical clinic in Rainy Dale.”
“That’s right.”He pursed his lips, his expression difficult to read.“From what I’ve heard, you had a very successful career as a surgeon here in LA.”
I nodded, handing Royce and him each a mug of coffee.I took the seat across from Hartley, sipping my coffee.I didn’t really taste it, though.I was too conscious of Hartley’s intense gaze.He seemed to be the sort of man who noticed all the little things people tried so hard to hide.And even though I was hiding nothing, I felt conspicuous.
“It’s true that I was very successful here.I uh… I lost a patient on the operating table and I decided I needed a change.”
His gaze sharpened.“That must have been rough.”
“It was.”I met Royce’s gaze and he winked.It was a small gesture, but it was also strangely comforting.
Hartley picked up his coffee and took a long sip.Once he’d set it back down on the coffee table, he met my gaze.“Well, that brings us to why I’m here.We’ve identified the victim from yesterday.”
I lifted my brows.“Okay, that’s good.I guess.”
Royce nodded.“Yes.”
Hartley cleared his throat.“Her name was Dorothy Brownstone.Seventy-three years old, originally from Bakersfield but lived here at Ocean Whisper Estates for twenty years before selling her place about four years ago.”
I widened my eyes.“Mrs.Brownstone was the victim on the beach?”I was flabbergasted as I turned to Royce.
“She was the woman with all the cats?”he asked.
“Yes.”I nodded.
“You knew her, correct, Dr.Thornton?”Hartley’s pen was poised over his notebook.
“Of course.She lived next door, in the house C.J.lives in now.”I set my coffee down unsteadily, my hands shaking.“She wasn’t the most pleasant neighbor, but I can’t imagine why anyone would want to kill her.”Truthfully, there were probably plenty of people who’d have loved to hurt the old bat, James, for one.But I kept that to myself.
Hartley studied my reaction with the practiced eye of someone who’d conducted hundreds of interviews.“When was the last time either of you saw Mrs.Brownstone?”
“I never had the pleasure of meeting her,” Royce said politely.
Hartley turned his curious gaze on me.
I grimaced.“I hadn’t seen her since she sold her home to C.J.and moved.When I lived in LA before moving to Rainy Dale, I used to split my time between this beach house and a home I own in Brentwood.We weren’t… er… close.I don’t believe she was very close to anyone who lived here in the estates.”
I was being tactful.I wasn’t even sure C.J.had liked her, and C.J.seemed to like everyone.From what I’d heard, Mrs.Brownstone had made so many unreasonable demands during escrow that the sale had almost fallen through more than once.
Royce leaned forward slightly.“Detective, do you know the cause of death yet?”
Hartley hesitated, possibly weighing how much he wanted to share.“Blunt force trauma to the head.Preliminary examination suggests she was struck from behind with something heavy, possibly a rock.We’ve finished with the scene, but the evidence is still being processed and we’ve yet to determine the murder weapon.”
“Do you know when she died?”I asked.
Hartley grimaced.“Before I give you any more details, would you mind telling me what time you arrived in LA Tuesday night?”
I frowned.“We landed at LAX around 6:00 p.m.and got to the estates probably around 8:00 p.m.I’m sure you can check the time I punched in my code at the front gate, or the car company I hired could verify the time we arrived.”Something told me Hartley had probably already done that.
“And what did you do when you arrived at the beach house?”Hartley asked politely.
“Well.”I squinted, trying to recall the events of that evening.“We looked around a little bit inside the house to see if anything obvious was missing.Then we went upstairs, and not long after that my neighbor, James Harper, dropped by for a visit.”
“Mr.Harper came to visit?”Hartley wrinkled his brow.
“Yes.”I nodded.“He didn’t stay long, only about a half hour.We had a drink together and then he left.I’m not exactly sure of the time, but it wasn’t super late.”
