Chapter Six
Spending two hours in that meeting with all of Park’s campaign people was a pretty solid reminder that Jackson wanted no part of Park’s life.
When Jackson came back to the office, he found Penny at her desk pretending not to be playing solitaire on her computer. He handed her a latte he’d picked up on the way in.
“God bless you and keep you, Jackson,” she said.
“Uh-huh. Reed in?”
“Court appearance. He said he’d be out for a few hours.”
“Okay. Did you finish the work on the Epstein case?”
“Yes, I put the file on your desk.”
“Thanks. Well, that’s where I’ll be until the end of time.”
Jackson hadn’t done more than open the file when Penny buzzed him. “Gavin Shaw is here.”
“Send him in.”
Gavin strolled in wearing a very tight shirtand jeans. His muscles stood out in sharp relief against the thin green cotton of the henley he wore. Things between Gavin and Jackson hadn’t really worked out romantically, but Jackson still had a pulse. “That’s a different look for you. Been a while since I’ve seen you without a tie.”
“I helped out with a sting today. Got to pretend to read theTimeswhile sitting near Bethesda Fountain,just like in an episode ofLaw & Order.”
“Aren’t you always railing against how unrealistic that show is?”
Gavin grinned and sat in Jackson’s spare chair. “A busted clock is right twice a day.”
“To what do I owe this pleasure?”
“I’ve got some more stuff on the Livingston matter. Which you’ve taken, haven’t you?”
“Yes. Filed the paperwork on the way back to the office just now.”
“I think it’s a mistake, but it’s your funeral.”
Jackson rolled his eyes. “Can we just cut to the chase? I’ve told myself this is a bad decision about a thousand times today and still haven’t managed to talk myself out of it, so let’s just accept fate and move on.”
“Fine. Then in my capacity as the lead detective, I have a few pieces of information to share with you. As a professionalcourtesy.”
“Okay.” Jackson steeled himself, sensing the news was not good. “Shoot.”
Gavin pulled out his phone and glanced at it. Then he looked at Jackson and said, “Zoe Haufman did not attend the fund-raiser that Livingston presided over Sunday night, but she has attended a number of Republican Party events. Her father works for Goldman Sachs and is a big donor.”
“Okay.”
Gavinpulled a pad of paper from his pocket and glanced at it. “Time of death was roughly between eight and ten Sunday night.”
“When there are about three hundred witnesses who can verify that Park was at the fund-raiser.”
“Indeed. But time of death is rarely conclusive. And I still think he’s involved.”
Jackson wanted to protest, but he opted to play his role as the defense attorney andkeep things close to the vest. “All right. I’ll bite. What makes you think so?”
“Because he’s a liar.”
Jackson’s pulse picked up a notch. “Why do you say that?”
