Parker & Knight Read online

  Kent’s wife, Mandy, was also in her late-thirties. She was wearing a dark green pantsuit, business attire, along with a touch of make-up and shoes with two-inch heels. Mandy Kent was a good-looking woman, short, with dark hair and green eyes, although she seemed to be slightly overweight.

  “Mr. and Mrs. Kent, I’m Detective Parker.”

  After introducing himself, Parker grew quiet to see if either of them would speak, but they just stared at him.

  He once introduced himself to a so-called “innocent bystander” and the man babbled at him non-stop for ten minutes, ten minutes in which he described how he had killed the victim and why.

  Ever since that day, Parker paused for a moment after introducing himself. You never knew when lightning would strike again.

  He took out his notebook and sat down, but as he went to open his mouth, his phone rang. When he looked at the caller ID, he saw that it was his boss, the chief of police calling.

  “Excuse me,” Parker said, then he stepped back out of the room and into a short hallway. “What’s up, Gabe?”

  The voice on the other end of the line sounded more like a college professor than a cop and belonged to Chief of Police Gabe Howard.

  “Rick, I’m sorry to interrupt you, but I wanted to let you know that you’ll be joined there soon by Detective Knight.”

  “Joanna Knight? But I thought she didn’t start until Monday?”

  “That was the plan, but she heard about the murder and volunteered to start early.”

  “She sounds eager.”

  “That’s good, right?”

  “It can be, and given her reputation I’d say that it was. How soon can I expect her?”

  “I would guess she’d be there at any minute.”

  “Fine.”

  “Treat her well, and, let me know how she does.”

  “I’ll do both, Gabe.”

  “Right, talk to you later.”

  Parker put his phone away and walked back out toward the body. When he got there, he saw that Joanna Knight had already arrived and was crouched down and studying Tiffany Grace’s body.

  Parker watched her for a moment, taking her in. He had met her briefly on the day she was first interviewed and liked what he saw. Knight’s reputation was as good as his own and, like himself, she had worked homicide before.

  Knight had been a cop in Trenton for twelve years and a homicide detective for five of those. Joanna Knight was a light-skinned Black woman, tall, with dark-brown hair that framed a beautiful face. She looked her age, thirty-six, and her brown eyes held flecks of green and gold in them that only added to her good looks.

  Parker smiled. There was worse duty than being partnered with a beautiful woman, and his last partner had been a washed-up male cop who smoked and smelled of garlic.

  Knight stood, and as she did so, she spotted Parker and nodded.

  Parker called to her.

  “How’s it going, partner?”

  Knight grinned.

  “I’m good, Detective, how about you?”

  Parker walked up to her and offered his hand.

  “It’s Rick, and I hope I can call you Joanna?”

  “Actually, my friends call me Jo, Rick.”

  “Then Jo it is, so, what’s your take so far?”

  Knight sighed.

  “My first thought is that this child was too young to die, but my second thought is that it was obviously a murder, although there’s no murder weapon present.”

  “Oh, we have the murder weapon. It was found lying in the kitchen sink.”

  “You’re kidding, what is it?”

  “A letter opener, long, thin, and sharp, with a wooden handle,”

  Knight nodded.

  “The length would explain the punctured heart, but make my day and tell me there were prints found on it.”

  “Sorry Partner, no prints, it looks like someone ran hot water over it after they tossed it in the sink, but the coroner is certain it’s what killed her.”

  “Have you done any interviews yet?”

  “Once I heard you were coming I decided to wait.”

  Knight smiled.

  “Excellent, I love doing interviews, as long as they’re not bereaved relatives.”

  “Then let’s get started.”

  Chapter 3

  When Parker returned to the dining room with Knight, the Kents were in the midst of an argument, but stopped talking the moment the two detectives walked into the room.

  Parker repeated his name and introduced Knight, before opening his notebook and looking toward Alex Kent.

  “What was your relationship with the deceased, Mr. Kent?”

  Kent looked taken aback by the simple question.

  “Relationship? There was no relationship, she just babysat our daughter sometimes.”

  Parker heard an evasive tone behind the words, he also heard Mandy Kent make a derisive sound under her breath.

  “Mrs. Kent, do you disagree with what your husband just said?”

  Mandy Kent smirked.

  “Oh, no, Tiffany used to babysit for us, that is, when she wasn’t busy sleeping with Alex.”

  Alex Kent slammed a fist on the tabletop.

  “I never slept with that girl! How many times do I have to say it?”

  His wife waved a hand at him and crossed her arms over her chest. The movement stirred the air around her and Parker caught a faint scent of liquor.

  Parker looked over at Knight and saw an impassive face. He liked that, it meant that she was taking it all in without letting her opinion show. He then spoke to Mandy Kent.

  “What was your relationship with Tiffany Grace?”

  “There was no relationship. She babysat for a while, but when I found out about her and Alex I fired her.”

  Kent opened his mouth to deny the affair and Parker pointed at him.

  “Please be quiet, sir, you’ll get your chance to talk after I’m done with your wife, okay?”

  Kent nodded, but appeared sulky. Parker went back to questioning Mandy Kent.

  “I assume that you confronted Miss Grace when you suspected that she was involved with your husband, yes?”

  Mandy Kent unfolded her arms and sat up straight.

  “I didn’t kill that girl, Inspector. I called her a few choice names when I found out about her and Alex, but I wouldn’t kill her.”

  “It’s detective, ma’am, not inspector, and no one is accusing you at the moment. Right now, Detective Knight and I are just out to gather facts. Now, this alleged affair, when did it take place?”

  “Alleged? Are you on his side?”

  “I’m on Tiffany Grace’s side and Detective Knight and I will figure out who killed her and bring that person or persons to justice. Now please, answer my question.”

  The anger left Mandy Kent’s face and she spoke quietly.

  “Last week, I found out last week that she was after my husband.”

  “How did you find out?”

  “From her brother, Steve Grace, he told me what was going on and then I saw proof of it with my own eyes.”

  Alex Kent pointed at his wife.

  “There’s your affair, Detective, my wife and this kid, Steve. In fact, she slept with him just last night.”

  Mandy Kent leapt to her feet.

  “What?”

  Her husband made a face of disgust as he shook his head at her.

  “Don’t even try to deny it. I came by last night and saw him squeeze through the hedges and head for the back door.”

  “You’re crazy. Steve wasn’t here last night.”

  “I saw it with my own eyes, Mandy.”

  Mandy Kent retook her seat and did the hand wave at her husband again, and again Parker caught the scent of liquor.

  “Steve Grace,” Parker said. “I take it he lives next door also, as his sister did?”

  “Yeah,” Kent said. “The Grace’s moved here a few months ago and only a short time later the parents were killed in a car accident while
driving to New York City. That left Tiffany and Steve with the house.”

  Parker looked back and forth at the couple.

  “We’ll need to speak with your daughter; please bring her to us.”

  “I want to be present when you speak to her,” Mandy said.

  “Not a problem, and I also understand that she and her friend discovered the body?”

  “Yes, and she’s very upset. Allie liked Tiffany, and finding her like that was devastating. She’s upstairs getting ready to leave. There’s no way we could sleep in this house tonight and… I’ll go get her.”

  Kent stood after his wife left the room.

  “Is it all right if I go get something to drink?”

  “Absolutely, but I will want to talk to you again.”

  “Right,” Kent said, then he walked out a door at the rear of the room and entered the kitchen.

  Parker looked over at Knight.

  “What do you think?”

  “I think we’ve got a mess here. One or both could have been fooling around and jealousy is a powerful motive for murder.”

  “I want to talk to this Steve Grace, but he hasn’t been tracked down yet.”

  “Mrs. Kent says that the brother told her his sister was sleeping with her husband, doesn’t that seem odd to you? I mean, why would he involve himself?”

  “He must have disapproved of the affair, if there was one,” Parker said.

  “She was found in this house, maybe Kent was meeting her here, maybe he did meet her here and she enraged him somehow.”

  “Possibly, but listen, after we talk to the daughter, why don’t we split them up? You stay here and interview the missus while I talk to the mister outside.”

  Knight grinned.

  “I was going to suggest that myself.”

  Mandy Kent returned with her daughter, Allie Kent. The girl was twelve but looked even younger because she was so small; however, she had inherited her mother’s good looks and was a cutie.

  When Parker introduced himself, Allie Kent looked up at him with a pair of red eyes.

  “I’m sorry you had to find your friend that way, Allie, I’m sure it was tough.”

  “Yes.”

  “Did you see anyone else near the house as you arrived?”

  “No. it was just me and my friend Becca. We were gonna play Nintendo and then Skype a friend of ours that moved away to Connecticut.”

  “Did you touch anything when you came in?”

  “No. When we saw Tiffany I hollered at her to wake up, but then Becca saw the blood on her side and screamed, after that… we ran over to Mrs. Jennings across the street and she called the cops, called you.”

  “And where did you and Becca come from?”

  “Her house, she lives around the block on Truant Street.”

  “Were you there all day?”

  Allie shook her head.

  “Becca’s mom took us out to lunch, but then we went back to her house.”

  “All right, honey, thanks for talking to me, and I’m sorry about your friend.”

  Allie Kent sent Parker half a smile, a nod, and then drifted out of the room.

  Parker left Knight in the house with Mandy Kent as he and Alex Kent stepped outside and walked around to the garden in the back.

  The garden was impressive. It covered a good chunk of the large yard with rows of tomatoes, cucumbers, string beans, and there was even a section that sported corn stalks, although they were few in number. The yard had no fence but was separated from its neighbors by rows of tall hedges that sat buried in fragrant pine wood chips. To Parker, the plants looked like green sentries on guard duty.

  Kent leaned down and began weeding the garden with his bare hands.

  “I’ve been neglecting things for a few days and already the weeds are trying to take over.”

  Parker tapped him on the shoulder.

  “Tend to your garden some other time; I’ve more questions for you.”

  “Oh, right, I’m sorry, it’s just that this garden is like my baby, you know? But listen, why don’t we go inside the shed and I’ll turn the air-conditioner on.”

  The shed was even more impressive than the garden. The right side of the shed was just that, a place to store tools and supplies for the garden, but the left side took up the bulk of the small building. It was a man-cave, complete with TV, sofa bed, fridge, and as promised, air-conditioning.

  Parker followed Kent inside.

  “Do you spend much time out here Mr. Kent?”

  “Yeah, I guess, gardening is my hobby, helps me relax.”

  “You mentioned that you were watching the house last night, I take it that you no longer live here?”

  Kent hung his head.

  “My wife kicked me out the other day. I’m staying at the Washington Inn.”

  “You also mentioned that you thought she was having an affair with Steve Grace, why do you believe that?”

  “The kid is always sniffing around her, and that crap he told her about Tiffany and me having an affair, that was bullshit.”

  “You also mentioned that you saw him last night, when was that?”

  “About midnight, I came by to check on things, you know, to see if Mandy was seeing anyone. When I saw that there were no strange cars around I felt relieved, but then I saw Steve come through the hedges back here and walk across the driveway. Mandy must have let him in by the back door, probably ashamed of dating a kid that young.”

  “How old is he?”

  “Twenty-one, and a male version of his sister.”

  “Did you stay long enough to see him leave?”

  A smirk came across Kent’s face.

  “The kid was in and out in less than fifteen minutes, must have been a quickie.”

  Parker wondered if Kent was telling the truth. The part about the back door seemed strange. He made a few notations in his notebook and moved on.

  “What sort of work do you do Mr. Kent?”

  “Right now, I’m in the furniture business. I’m a part owner of Regal Furniture.”

  “Business must be good; you own a lot of nice things.”

  Kent laughed.

  “I’m lucky is what it is. I had begun dabbling at currency trades when my company downsized me three years ago. The unemployment insurance kept us afloat for a while there, and when I couldn’t find anything that paid a decent salary, I began doing more trading. Well, I made a little, then a little more, and when the unemployment ended I figured what the heck, I’d give it a go. To make a long story short, I was able to tread water for a few months, but even with Mandy’s salary we were still nibbling away at our savings.”

  “But then things turned around I take it?” Parker said.

  “Oh yeah, I got on a streak like you wouldn’t believe. I made over four million dollars in a few months’ time, and as much as I’d like to attribute it to smarts I know it was just dumb luck. So, I put half of it aside for taxes, used most of it to help a friend expand his business, and now I’m part owner of a chain of furniture stores and making five times what I did before I got laid off.”

  “You are a lucky man, are you as lucky with women, women such as Tiffany Grace?”

  Anger flashed in Kent’s eyes, but after taking a deep breath, he spoke.

  “As God is my witness, Detective, I was not having an affair with that girl.”

  “You’re telling me that there was no sexual contact of any kind?”

  “That’s right,” Kent said, but less convincingly.

  “Were you ever alone with her?”

  Kent nodded.

  “It happened right here. I was in here watching a ball game one day when I hear a knock on the door. When I opened it, she walked right in.”

  “Why did she come to see you?”

  “She wanted a job babysitting Allie. There’s a three hour gap during weekdays when Allie’s home by herself after summer day camp. Well, twelve is an odd age, you know? The kids aren’t grown, but they’re not babies anymore eit
her. My wife trusted Allie to look out for herself, but I always worried and began coming home as early as I could, but Allie was still here alone for a period of time. So, I hired Tiffany to look after Allie, and that way I wouldn’t have to rush home. When I mentioned it at dinner that night, Allie was all smiles. She liked Tiffany as if she were a big sister.”

  “I take it your wife wasn’t as pleased?”

  “You got that right. She didn’t say a word until Allie went up to her room, but then I got both barrels. She was pissed because I hadn’t consulted her, and she asked me why I really hired her.”

  “She suspected you were interested in her; does she have reason to be?”

  Kent scratched at the back of his neck.

  “You’ve only seen her… deceased, but believe me, Tiffany was one very good looking girl, and vivacious. I think every woman on the block is jealous of her… was jealous of her. And yes, I was attracted to her; I mean I’m not made of stone.”

  Parker stepped closer to Kent.

  “You’re leaving something out. Your wife is convinced that you were sleeping with that girl. She must have a reason to believe it. What’s the reason?”

  Kent broke eye contact and Parker saw his shoulders slump.

  “Allie had a school thing the other day, some kind of orientation for the new school year. She forgot to mention it and so Tiffany came over to babysit. I had been out to lunch with the salesmen that day and had a bit to drink. I came home early and found Tiffany at the door. I let her in, I knew Allie wouldn’t be home, but I said nothing and let her in to wait.”

  “And?”

  “And we sat on the sofa… and I kissed her. She pulled back and put her hands on my chest, I guess to push me away, and that’s when Mandy came home. She accused us of having an affair and fired Tiffany, but I swear, it was just me acting stupid when I had a buzz on. Tiffany wasn’t interested.”

  Parker stared at Kent and tried to keep the disgust he felt for the man from showing on his face. Not only was he willing to break his marriage vows at the first opportunity, but he was also not above trying to seduce a teenager.