“He’s two-hundred fifty thousand dollars in debt. Gambling,” Tim said.
“What?” Denise and Bree exclaimed at the same time.
“He apparently likes to bet on the games he covers,” Tim explained.
“What a dumb ass,” Denise said.
“Did he ever have access to your money?” Jase asked.
“What money?” Tim asked.
“You told him?” Denise asked at the same time.
Bree answered Denise first. “Yes, I told him.” She looked at Tim. “I have a rather large inheritance.”
To Jase she said, “Chad has never had access to my money. Other than conveniently forgetting his wallet if we went out. Most of it’s tied up with the estate or the foundation, anyway.”
“Could all this be connected to his gambling debts?” Jase asked.
“It’s an angle we’re looking at,” Tim said.
“Is what connected to his gambling debt?” Denise asked.
Bree took a deep breath. “Jaelynn, Steven’s wife, was murdered. Somehow it’s connected to either me or Chad. Or both, they aren’t sure.”
Denise looked between Tim and Bree. “Say what?”
“I’ll explain while we’re cleaning.”
“I’m going to need to take a statement from you both about the attack. Give me a minute to call in to the station,” Tim told Jase and Bree. “I may have to come back after we take Steven in. We still need to question Chad about Jaelynn. How long are you guys going to be cleaning?”
“It shouldn’t take too long, but I need to go get a new mattress,” Bree said.
“Hey, Tim. This guy is refusing to go to the station,” Tim’s partner called out.
“Of course he is.” Tim left them to question Chad. Jase led Bree and Denise up the porch steps and unlocked the door before handing the new keys to Bree.
Denise took in the mess in the living room as they walked through to the kitchen. “They only broke the pictures of you and Chad?” she asked.
“Yup,” Bree said.
“That’s just weird.”
“Yup.”
“I’m going to go talk to Tim before he takes off,” Jase said. “If you can help me get your mattress into my truck, I’ll take it to the dump while you’re cleaning, then we can go to the mattress store.”
“Can you bring Charlie and Polly back in with you?” Bree asked.
“While you’re out there, can you let my dog out of my car and bring her in with you? She’ll follow Charlie and Polly in,” Denise requested.
“Sure.” Jase leaned down and gave Bree a quick kiss before heading back outside through the laundry room.
Denise watched Jase leave through the kitchen. “I like him,” she said.
“I hear a ‘but’,” Bree said.
Denise leaned against the counter. “It’s been a week.”
