“No.”His voice was flat.“I didn’t see Eddie.I didn’t see his boat.But then again, I was busy.”
“What time did you get to the harbor?”
He exhaled tiredly.“I don’t know.9:30 p.m., maybe 10:00 p.m.”
“And you left when?”
“When I fixed the fucking boat,” he growled.
I held onto my temper.“And approximately what time might that have been?”
“11:30 p.m.,” he grumbled.“I think.I wasn’t keeping track.”
“Did anyone see you there?Another fisherman, someone on the docks?”
His jaw tightened.“I don’t know.I wasn’t thinking I’d be questioned about anything.I was just fixing my damn boat.”
I let the silence sit for a moment.Dale was angry, but he was also scared.Was that because he was hiding something or because he was worried he was about to be blamed for something he didn’t do?I didn’t officially have a homicide, so I needed to tread carefully.All I had so far was an autopsy report that said maybe it wasn’t an accident, I had the wiped GPS, and the victim’s hands with no marks on them.If I came at him too aggressively, Dale could lawyer up, stop talking, and I’d lose access to him.I couldn’t risk that this early on.
“Dale, help me understand something,” I said in the most non-threatening tone I could muster.“You told me you were home all night.Now I’m hearing you were at the harbor.I’m not accusing you of anything.But when a story changes, I need to understand why.”
“I didn’t kill him.”His voice broke on the word kill, and for the first time his tone was less angry and more conciliatory.“That’s what you’re hinting at, right?”
“I’m simply trying to figure out why you lied to me.”
“You know why,” he hissed.“I hated the guy, fine.I thought he screwed me over.But I didn’t kill him.I wouldn’t do that.I’ve got a wife who loves me even though I’m a colossal asshole most of the time, and I’ve got a pretty good life here in Coral Cove.I wouldn’t throw that away over a crabbing permit.”
I studied him.The desperation was real.Whether it was the desperation of an innocent man being squeezed or a guilty man watching the walls close in, I couldn’t tell yet.I needed the harbor camera footage that Bree was pulling.If Pruitt was on camera arriving at the harbor at the time he claimed, and he was seen leaving at the time he said, his story would check out.If he wasn’t, I’d be back in this room with him, and the conversation would be very different.
“Okay.”I stood, scraping back my chair.“I think that’s good enough for now, Dale.I appreciate you coming in and answering my questions.”
He stood, eyeing me warily.“I’m not lying to you about Eddie, Chief Hale, I swear.”
Every liar I’d ever known had said that.
I just smiled and opened the door for him.“You have a good day.”
* * *
The real surprise was when Gil Moran came in voluntarily to see me later that same day.I hadn’t called him.He just showed up at the station and asked to speak with me.That was either the behavior of a grieving partner who wanted to help or the behavior of a guilty man who wanted to know what I knew.In my experience, the two often looked identical from the outside.
He sat across from me in my office, not the interview room.I’d made that choice deliberately.The interview room had a table, hard chairs, a camera.My office had a couch, a window, and a photo of Scout on the desk.People talked more when they were comfortable.
I got him a cup of coffee and, once he was settled, asked, “I was going to ask you to come in so we could talk.I appreciate you beating me to it.”
“I want to help,” Gil said.He looked like he hadn’t slept in days.Red-rimmed eyes, blond stubble going gray at the jaw.“Whatever you need.I have to know what happened to Eddie.He was my business partner for eight years, but my friend most of my life.I don’t know what I’m going to do with him gone.”
“I’m sorry for your loss, Gil.”I grimaced.“I know it’s been an awful few days.”
“Probably the worst two days of my life.”His voice broke, and he stared down at his coffee.“I just want to understand why he’s gone.Why that had to happen to him.It doesn’t make any sense to me.”
“I don’t know if I can give you those kinds of answers, but I promise I’ll do my best to figure out how Eddie died.”
He nodded, letting out a shaky breath.“I just wish I could turn back time.If I could do it differently, I’d go out with him that night.I wouldn’t let him go alone.”
I frowned.“Can you tell me about the night he died?”I made sure my tone was in no way accusing.“You usually would have gone out together, right?”
“Yep.”He winced.“I planned on going with him that night.I’ll regret that I didn’t till the day I die.”
