The woman gave us all one more fleeting smile before turning and exiting the doorway.
The fact Eliza hadn’t asked how Mari died made me wonder if maybe we shouldn’t question her further. Even though the interaction between Eliza and Mari in the alleyway yesterdayseemedpositive, it was clear Rayna Halter hadn’t wanted Mari to befriend Eliza Nordic, and I got the feeling Hunter Quinn didn’t like her either. And I couldn’t help but wonder why that was.
“Hunter,” Zane said, bringing me out of my musing, “we’ll need to ask Jayla a couple questions as well.”
“I don’t know,” Hunter hedged.
“It’s important to the investigation, Hunter,” Zane said.
And just like that…I remembered where I’d heard the name Hunter. When I’d been walking down the alleyway earlier in the afternoon and overheard the intimate moment between the giggling woman and man inside, she had mentioned the man’s name was Hunter, and she was asking about his divorce.
8
“Actually,” I said to Zane, “I have a few more personal questions I’d like to ask Mr. Quinn. Maybe you can take Jayla to her room and have her pack some clothes?”
Jayla and Hunter both frowned.
“Why?” they asked simultaneously.
“This is a crime scene now,” Zane said softly to Jayla. “You can’t stay here.”
Tears filled Jayla’s eyes again. “So my mom is dead, and now Daddy and I have to move?”
Zane shook his head and laid a hand on Jayla’s shoulder. “No. You only need to stay away for a couple days. I promise.”
Jayla sniffed. “Oh, okay.” She bit her lip and brushed back the tears trailing down her cheeks. “I’ll go pack some clothes.”
Hunter nodded, but when Zane and Jayla left the room, he whirled on me. “What’s the meaning of this? Why are you pushing me about my relationship with my wife? I didn’t kill her!”
I stared him in the eye. “Maybe not. But I think you might be hiding a few things from us.”
Hunter’s mouth dropped open. “PADA or not, I’m calling your superiors! I refuse to be treated this way! And in my own home!”
“Is your office on Bay Boulevard?” I asked.
That got Hunter’s attention. He blinked in surprise and nodded. “Yes. Why?”
I thought back to what time it had been when I’d heard the female voice giggling. “Can you tell me where you were around two o’clock today?”
Hunter paused. “I had a meeting with a client. Getting ready for tax season.”
“What is that client’s name?” I asked.
Hunter again went to blustering. He puffed out his chest and stood up taller. “Now see here. I don’t see how—”
“You can tell me her name,” I said coldly, “or I can go about another way to find out.” I shook my head. “You won’t like that way. Lots of questions to people you probably don’t want me talking to.”
The color left Hunter’s face. “Sasha Carter. I had a business meeting with Sasha Carter.”
I gave him a tight smile. “Right. A business meeting. You see, I happened to have overheard that business meeting. I heard Sasha thank you for the bracelet, and then I heard her ask you about your divorce. Or maybe when you were going to tell your wife about the divorce.”
Hunter ran his hands down his face again. “It’s complicated.”
“How so? You were having an affair with this Sasha Carter and telling her you were divorcing Mari. How is that complicated?”
Anger flashed in his eyes. “I don’t need your judgment, and you wouldn’t understand, anyway.”
I let out a bark of laughter. “If you are trying to play the victim, I’m afraid—”
