"Did your son know a woman named Evelyn Ellington?”
She looked confused. "I don't think so, but I can't say for sure. Who is she?”
"I'm not sure. But she was also murdered today by the same assailant.”
Her brow wrinkled. "Do you have a motive?”
"Not at this time.” I told her about my theory of mistaken identity. "But just to be sure, did Cody mention anything to you about any trouble he was having? Problems with anybody?”
Mrs. Griggs shook her head.
"No enemies to speak of?”
"Not that I'm aware of.”
"No angry ex-girlfriends. No jealous boyfriends or husbands?”
She looked at me like the question was absurd. "No. He's been dating Katie for at least six months now. As far as I know, they’re doing great. Poor girl, I haven't had the heart to tell her yet. I need to call her.” Mrs. Griggs sighed. “I thought they were going to get serious. She would have made a fine daughter-in-law.”
I offered a sympathetic frown.
"Who else knew Cody was working today?”
Mrs. Griggs thought about it for a moment. "Just myself. I'm sure he told Katie.”
"I'll need contact information for her.”
"Certainly.” She thought about it for a moment. "I don't know if this is relevant, but when they first started dating, there was some bad blood between Cody and Katie’s ex-boyfriend.”
I shared a look with JD. "Do you happen to know his name?”
"Adam or Alex something. I can't be sure. That was six months ago. I think there were some words exchanged. A few threatening text messages. But that was months ago. I think Cody saw the guy out at a bar one night, and things got tense for a moment, but nothing came from it. At least, that's the story I got. There may have been more to it. I’m sorry, it had slipped my mind.”
“Do you know if Cody started seeing Katie while she was still with Adam or Alex or whatever his name is?”
Her mouth tightened. She didn't like the thought of it. "I can't be sure. I don't think Cody would have knowingly pursued someone else's girlfriend.”
"She might not have been totally upfront with him when they started," I said.
Mrs. Griggs frowned again.
I gave her a card, and she texted me Katie’s info.
“Do you know where we can find her?”
“I’m not sure where she lives, but I know she works at Shrimptastic.”
We offered our condolences once again before leaving.
JD and I hurried down the walkway back to the Porsche, climbed in, and set out to find Katie. I ran her through the online portal and pulled her address from the DMV. She lived in Mariner’s Pointe.
It was an upscale, six-story complex with gated under-building parking, a rooftop pool, and all the amenities. A nice place for a 19-year-old.
After stopping by the apartment, we caught up with her at Shrimptastic. It was an ice house that served all manner of shrimp, as the name implied, as well as crab, crawfish, and other seafood items. Life preservers and fishnets hung on the walls. There were wood-plank flooring and reclaimed wood tables and chairs. A steel trough housed cold brew, and a delightful beauty stood ready to hand them out. Tantalizing waitresses darted about in cheeky cut-off jean shorts and low-cut tops that exposed deep valleys of cleavage. Not a bad place to have a bucket of beer and fried shrimp.
The hostess pointed out Katie, and we sat at a high-top table in her section. The gorgeous blonde approached with a smile. Her mesmerizing assets bounced and jiggled. That was all by design, and I was sure it increased tips. Something had to pay for the apartment at Mariner’s Pointe.
I flashed my badge and made introductions. "I'm sorry, I've got bad news for you. You might want to have a seat.”
