“They killed him!” she screamed hysterically. “He’s dead!”
Jake held her close while he waited for Robert to fix the cushions on the couch. Then he sat with her on his lap and held her tight.
Robert sat in a nearby armchair, nodding pointedly at the detective, who sat at the opposite end of the couch from Emily and Jake. He got the hint and started the recording device.
Emily said nothing for quite some time. She simply sobbed uncontrollably in Jake’s arms.
His heart ached for her. He wished she could have recovered her memory without having to remember she’d witnessed her brother’s brutal murder in her own living room.
As Emily’s sobs subsided, Robert got her a glass of water from the kitchen. Emily thanked him and downed it, then handed the glass back to him. She leaned away from Jake’s chest and put her hand on the wet spot on his shoulder.
“Robert, my water bearer and Jake, my handkerchief.”
Her voice was so small and broken Jake’s throat constricted. “It’s fine.”
His arms tightened as she shifted to move off his lap. He wanted to insist she stay there, but just because he needed to comfort her didn’t mean she needed that kind of comfort from him. Relaxing his hold, he helped her shift to sit beside him, keeping an arm around her shoulders.
He pulled the handkerchief from his pocket and handed it to her.
She gave him a weak smile as she accepted it. Then she leaned into him, and something inside of him relaxed.
“Can you tell us what you remembered?” Jake asked.
“They shot him!” Her voice broke again, but no more tears came.
“Who?” Robert asked.
“Two men. One was tall, the other shorter. I didn’t see the short one’s face, but I think he was the driver of the car, whose picture you showed me, Robert.”
“Can you tell us why your brother was in your condo and why those men killed him?” Detective McIntyre asked.
Emily thought for a moment as though trying to put the pieces together in her mind. “Last Friday, Cameron called me at work and insisted I meet him here. He said it was an emergency. He sounded frantic, which concerned me because he was the most level-headed guy I know. I told the secretary to reschedule my afternoon appointments and hurried home.” She twisted Jake’s handkerchief around the fingers of her casted hand. “I thought I had beat him here because I didn’t see his car out front. But when I came into the house, he was already inside.”
Emily paused, her brow creasing. “When I asked him what was wrong, he talked really fast, saying he was in serious trouble, and he was afraid he’d brought the trouble to me. He kept pacing back and forth. The blinds were closed, but he kept peeking out the front window. When I asked what kind of trouble, he said the car accident that killed our dad was not an accident.” Her voice broke again, and Jake tightened his arm around her shoulders. “I asked him what he meant, and he told me he found a key among Dad’s personal belongings that the police gave him after the accident. We were both so distraught, neither of us could deal with any of that for a long time.”
“What did the key go to?” asked Detective McIntyre.
“To a safety deposit box where he found a thumb drive.”
Robert leaned forward. “Did he say what was on the thumb drive?”
“No, but he said he double-checked and confirmed the files on it. He told me Dad knew his life was in danger. Then he said, ‘But they know I know, and they’re after me.’ Then he apologized again for putting me in danger.”
She ran a shaky hand through her hair. “After one of his many times looking out the window, he said, ‘They found me.’ Then he pulled a key from his pocket and said he’d moved the evidence.”
“Did he say where he’d moved it?” Detective McIntyre asked.
“No. And he was so panicked he scared me. He shoved the key into my hand and told me to hide it where no one would find it. Then he pushed me into my bedroom and shoved the screen out of the window. He told me to run and call the police.” She paused, her voice growing quieter. “I didn’t want to leave him because he was so agitated. Before I made it out of my bedroom though, two men came through the front door. Cameron told them he didn’t have the information they wanted anymore.”
The tears came again as she continued. “They didn’t even give him a chance to explain. They just shot him. There were two loud pops, and then... he fell to the ground.”
“They must’ve had suppressors,” Robert said. “You said you heard two shots?”
“Yes,” Emily said without hesitation. “Two, close together.”
Detective McIntyre confirmed her words. “He was shot once each with a Colt .38 and a 9 mm. Glock.”
Judging by Robert’s clenched jaw, the information was news to him. Why had the police left that detail out? Was this the kind of miscommunication Robert meant?
