Page 58 of In the Bones
“I’m afraid so,” said Tim.
“Poor Blair and Alana. Did you forget to ask me something? When we talked yesterday?”
“I just spoke with Woody. He mentioned something we hadn’t heard before,” Tim told her. “Mikko Helle had a big party the Saturday of Labor Day weekend.”
“That’s right.” Stacy’s eyebrows were slightly raised. “Oh shit. Is that when you think she died?”
“We’re still investigating, so I can’t comment on that. You were at the party?”
“Yes,” she said slowly. “Mikko invited me. It was to celebrate closing on the house.”
Tim had spoken with Stacy several times now, and neveronce had she brought up the party. He’d seen Nicole and Stacy mere hours after the remains were found, their foreheads pressed together at the bar. Surely Nicole had told Stacy what she knew about the crime, and that the victim’s remains were skeletonized. Why hadn’t Stacy deemed it necessary to mention that Mikko had hosted a large gathering in the house? Tim had questioned her about her time there, expressly asking how long Stacy had spent on site.A few hours in all, had been her reply. It was a lie.
“Do a lot of clients invite you to their closing parties?”
“Honestly?” said Stacy. “I think this was the first time, and it’ll probably be the last. But Mikko didn’t know a lot of people here then.”
“Woody said the party was packed.”
“It was, but I think most of the guests were strangers. People he met at the hotel, or the bars around town. He’s that type,” she said. “The more the merrier. What’s yours is mine.”
“That’s very generous of him,” Tim said drily, though Stacy didn’t seem to pick up on the shift in his tone. “Is that the night you caught Woody with Angelica?”
Stacy lowered her eyes. “Believe me, I wish I hadn’t. But yeah. He was in bed with her.”
“When you say in bed, what exactly do you mean?”
Stacy blinked at him, and two dark pink coins surfaced on her cheeks.
“What were they doing, exactly?” Tim pressed. “When you saw them?”
“Detective.” Stacy pretended to look scandalized, a manicured hand pressed to her lips. “They were in bed. What more do you need to know? I saw them. I saw everything.”
“Did you have any interactions with Angelica that night?”
“No. I never even talked to her. I don’t know that woman,” said Stacy. “I didn’t even know her name until Woody confessed to Nicole.”
“Were you drinking at the party?”
Stacy paused. “Well, yeah. We all were. But I know what I saw, and I know what I didn’t.”
A house full of partiers, and Woody, Angelica, and Stacyhad all found themselves on the second floor. If Woody had been honest during his interview, Tim could understand why he and Angelica had sought out a quiet corner. But why had Stacy been wandering through Mikko’s house, peeking behind bedroom doors?
“Excuse me a minute,” Tim said when his phone buzzed against his thigh. “You have my card. While I take this, could you email me a list of everyone you knew at the party?”
“Like I said, most of the guests were strangers. But yeah. I guess I can do that.”
Tim thanked her, and stepped outside to answer the call.
“What’s up?” he asked. Half a block up the street, he could see Blair walking back to the office in her work attire, two takeout coffees in her hands.
With zero preamble, Valerie Ott said, “It’s about Nicole Durham.”
FIFTY
Mac
When Tim phoned to tell Mac about her sister, only a few words reached her consciousness.Injury. Hospital. Aggravated assault. Mac had been back in Watertown when the call came in, doing damage control post-debate. She’d already arranged a visit to the Chamber of Commerce in Alexandria Bay, knowing Bruce Milton’s ties to the area gave her a handicap. Her afternoon was packed with work, but her departure had been so swift that she left her desk chair wobbling in her wake. Best as she could figure, she’d made it to Alexandria Bay in twenty minutes, nearly half the time it normally took. She had no memory of it at all, her emotions crowding out focus and reason.
