Marvin looked at her as if he could rip off her head and spit down her throat. “A couple of times. She just used me, but then you were her best friend, so you knew that. Probably laughed about it.” He folded his arms over his belly in a show of defiance.
“She did, but that didn’t mean she didn’t like you, Marv. Heather was young. We all were. We did stupid stuff.” Talking about those days made Emily’s stomach even queasier. She wished there were another way. “But nothing she did should have cost her life.”
Emily’s last words seemed to take the wind out of Marvin’s sails. “What do you want? Last time we talked you were accusing Keith of killing her.”
“Keith is dead,” she reminded Marvin.
The regret in Marvin’s eyes told her she hadn’t needed to remind him. “And so’s Ray,” he muttered before turning up his beer can oncemore. “Makes you wonder who the hell’s next.” He didn’t look at either of them as he said this.
Clint ignored his comment and took the lead again. “Was Turner cheating on Heather at the time of her murder? And why didn’t the police bother to question either of you?”
Emily frowned. “The police didn’t question Keith?” But that was absurd. Even though she couldn’t believe he was involved in Heather’s murder, logic dictated that the boyfriend would be questioned.
Clint’s attention shifted briefly to Emily. “They had me. Why question anybody else?”
“Wait a minute,” Marvin piped up. “You’re wrong; they did question us. Anybody who knew Heather got questioned.”
“And what was your alibi?” Clint pressed.
Marvin shrugged. “I was home all night.”
“Who vouched for you?”
Worry etched across his face. “Nobody. I told Chief Ledbetter where I was and that was the end of it.”
“Then you weren’t really questioned,” Clint argued. “They took your word and left it at that. The parading of Heather’s classmates through City Hall was for show.”
Jesus. Maybe he was right. Emily vaguely recalled some of the other students saying that all they’d had to do was say what they were doing that night. No pressure. No discomfort. A mock investigation. The police hadn’t been looking for a killer; they already had Clint pegged. Just like he said.
“So where were you that night?” Clint asked, pursuing the more sensitive issue.
Marvin’s guard went up. “I told you, I was home.”
Clint eased closer to him. “Maybe you and Turner had it out, then decided to make her pay for using the both of you, or maybe you didn’t want anyone else to have her if you couldn’t.”
Marvin’s jowls quivered with the force of his head moving from side to side in denial. “I wasn’t that hung up on her. I swear. I was pissed, yeah, but I got over it. I wouldn’t have hurt Heather. No way.”
“What about Violet? How did she feel about Turner sticking with Heather through thick and thin? Is that who Turner was cheating with?” Clint asked next.
Emily wanted to deny that assertion, but she had to keep an open mind.
“Violet?” Marvin’s expression went from worried to confused. “She had a thing for Keith, but he never gave her the time of day. Too damn bossy.”
“Did that make her angry?” Emily was taken aback that the question had come from her. But there it was out in the open.
Marvin’s gaze narrowed again. “Hell, she was your friend. You tell me.”
“Watch your mouth,” Clint warned.
Marvin was right. How could she do this? Emily backed off, wrapped her arms around her waist. “I can’t take any more of this. Let’s just go to Caruthers. Let him talk to Justine about our theory and what I discovered at her house,” she said to Clint, suddenly realizing that she’d forgotten to tell him about her visit to Justine’s. He was going to be annoyed. His gaze collided with hers and that prophecy was fulfilled.
“Wait a minute.” Marvin’s expression turned nervous. “Keith was my friend. Why would I hurt him? Why would I have hurt Heather? Or Ray? The very idea is crazy! But those photos of Justine’s ... those are something else altogether. They have nothing to do with any of this.”
Shock quaked through Emily. How could Marvin know about the photos? She’d meant that they should tell Mike about Justine’s missing necklace and the fact that Ray Hale had “lost” the necklace found in Heather’s hand. Surely Marvin wasn’t talking about the same photos Emily had discovered.
“They might matter,” she challenged, taking a shot in the dark. And hoping like hell she’d find out what pictureshewas talking about.Did Justine have pictures of him experimenting with his sexuality? Or just having fun?
“I think Emily’s right,” Clint said quietly, playing along. “We should all three go see Acting Chief Caruthers and see what he thinks.”
