Person of Interest (A Celeste Eagan Mystery) (15 page)

“Why? Because he’s a reporter? Babe, I hate to tell you that any and every profession has its share of bad guys.”

I didn’t comment on him calling me
babe
. He’d done it once before—when my car went kablooey. That whole under-duress bit worked both ways, I guess. “Do you know Kellen?”

“The entire police department knows him.” Muldoon tipped his head to the side slightly. “His dad is the chief.”

Kellen was the son of the chief. That explained some of his sources. “I didn’t know that.”

Muldoon’s eyebrow rose.

“Please. That gives him even less reason to shoot at me. Right?”

He shrugged. “I’m just saying, don’t assume someone is or isn’t guilty of something just because they have a particular job. People are people. They all have eccentricities.”

Was he kidding me with the “eccentricities”? “I’ll keep that in mind.”

“Why were you meeting with Kellen?”

I frowned. “Does it matter?”

“You tell me. You were meeting with a reporter. You were followed home, if he can be believed. And you were shot at.”

“Why do you
assume
—” I threw the word at him “—that I was meeting with the reporter Kellen and not the man Kellen?”

Muldoon’s cheeks reddened. “I guess I don’t know for sure.”

“Damn straight you don’t.” I huffed. Then it was my turn for red cheeks. “Sorry. I’m a little edgy, I guess.”

He snorted. “Only a little?” He sat back in his seat. “You don’t have to tell me why you were meeting with him.” He said the words, yet poised his hand over his notepad.

“I gave Kellen the, uh...” I mumbled, “The same info as you.”

“Come again.”

“I gave him the same info as you. The printouts.”

Muldoon didn’t say a word. The muscle in his jaw twitched, matching the tic in his eye. He thrummed the fingers of his left hand on his knee. The right hand clenched the pen.

“Are you going to say anything?”

He shook his head.

I laced my fingers in my lap. “You never said that that was confidential information. I gave it to you. I had every right to share that with whomever I wanted. I could post the damn thing on the internet. Oh wait.” I snapped my fingers. “It
is
posted on the internet. That’s how
I
found it. You don’t get it, if I want to look into it all by myself, I can. You can’t tell me what to do.”

Okay so I’d gone over the edge there. He hadn’t said a single word and I’d worked myself up a full head of steam. So what if I sounded like a recalcitrant child rather than a grown-ass woman.

“Are you done?”

“For now.” I pursed my lips and sniffed.

He stood, tucked the notebook in his breast pocket. “Please come to the station sometime tomorrow to sign an official statement. ‘Night.” He turned and headed to the door.

“Hey.” I jumped up from the sofa. “Wait. That’s it? You’re just going to leave?”

He took a deep breath. “There’s a reason why it’s against department policy for us to get involved with people we deal with on a case.”

“What the hell is that supposed to mean? You came to me, Shaw. You came here.”

“I did. Now I’m going back to work.” Muldoon shut the door behind him.

A few minutes later the street cleared of all Peytonville police. I sank down on the club chair, then immediately got up and moved to the sofa—I could smell Muldoon on the chair. I’d just closed my eyes when a knock came at the door.

Maybe Muldoon had come back to say he was sorry for being such a typical male, all closed off and grumbly.

Nope. It was Kellen. “What brings you by?”

He clucked his tongue at me. “You’re kidding me. You get shot at not five minutes after I leave, and you ask what brings me by?”

“You mean that doesn’t happen to
you
every day?” I waved my hand at him like he was some kind of slacker. “Look, Kellen, it’s been a long day. Off the record, I’m fine. I appreciate you stopping by, checking on me. On the record, no comment. I hope you don’t take this the wrong way, but I hope I don’t see you again for a while. Good night.”

For a moment, he stood with his hand on the door so I couldn’t shut it. The harsh frown pulling down his eyebrows and mouth softened. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

A shuddered breath escaped before I could control it. “Yeah.” I gave him a crooked smile, about all I could muster after the evening I’d had.

“Call me if you need anything. On or off the record.” He winked, then turned and left.

I shut the door and slunk to my bedroom. Still wearing my jeans and sweater, even my sneakers, I climbed into bed. The second night in a row I’d gone to bed fully clothed. Tired did not begin to describe the weariness that seeped into my bones. This day would go down as one of the worst days in a long string of worst days. At least with school resuming, I had something to look forward to.

Chapter Fourteen

The next morning came screaming in with a headache-vengeance. No amount of coffee improved my mood. I was angry and frustrated with the situation, scared I would make a wrong decision, and just plain exhausted. Despite all but falling into bed, I’d lain awake for hours. When midnight rolled through, my brain was still running over and over every scenario to make sense of what had happened so far. And nothing jibed. Then I tried to figure out what the hell was going on between me and Muldoon. That was an enigma that couldn’t be solved. I was weighing the pros and cons of turning up the flirt with the man when sleep finally came crashing in. I didn’t dream, which was unusual for me. Judging by the crick in my shoulder and neck, I’d barely moved once I slept. Then overslept by almost forty-five minutes.

The only good thing I could say about Tuesday morning was I’d get to see Paige. That was one of the best perks of teaching at Peytonville Prep—the one I’d miss the most when I started full-time at the playhouse. In light of the past few days, seeing my precious daughter was well worth starting the day.

Levi dropped me off at the edge of the school parking lot. I had no car for the foreseeable future if the insurance company had any say. They were being relentless about not issuing me a replacement, saying they weren’t sure of all the facts. Meaning they were waiting to see if I was going to be charged with blowing up my own car. Apparently they hadn’t gotten the notice that someone else was being questioned in the incident.

My car notwithstanding, I was surprised to see how empty the lot was, especially with me running a little late.

Rachel was at her desk frantically typing away when I walked in.

“Morning.” I dropped my briefcase on top of the desk.

She jumped up and hugged me. “Oh my gosh. How are you? I heard about your car. You could have been killed. Was it as terrifying as it sounded? What do the police think?”

Before I could answer any one of her questions, there was a knock on the door. It flew open and Paige ran in. “Mom.”

I smiled so hard my cheeks hurt. “Sweet pea. Oh, I’ve missed you so much.” I hugged her so tight she squirmed and moaned.

“I’ve missed you too. Naomi is insufferable.
Me, me, me
. It’s all about her. She is so self-absorbed it’s nauseating.”

“Well, be patient and you’ll be home in no time.” Over Paige’s shoulder I saw Rachel’s perfectly sculpted eyebrow float up into her bangs. I rolled my eyes in a “it’s a long story” motion. She nodded and went back to her typing.

Paige held onto me, but leaned back and asked, “How many more times did that detective come over?”

Chills ran down my spine. “Wh-what?”

“Colin said the detective was clearly sniffing around you.” She frowned. “He said the man was probably making excuses to come and see you.”

“Your dad is quite chatty with you.”

“No.” Paige gave me one more, quick squeeze then let go. “I was hiding under the dining room table when he and Naomi were talking after the funeral.” She balled her little fists and shoved them on her hips. “Do you know that woman had the nerve to call you a drama queen? As if you asked for your car to be blown up. Doesn’t she know that your insurance rates will skyrocket?”

I laughed. “I doubt she does. You’d better get going. You don’t want to be late for Mr. Colgate’s class.”

“I love you.” She grabbed me around the waist and hugged me once more, then rushed out as fast as she’d come barreling in.

“I love you, too,” I called after her. I plopped down onto my chair.

Rachel rounded her desk. “Why exactly is Paige staying with your ex?”

“Too many policemen to contend with.” I dropped my chin to my chest and rubbed the back of my neck. “We want to keep her safe.”

“So it’s true?” Rachel leaned a hip against the desk.

My gaze darted up.

“It’s all over the school. That you’ve been questioned in Chad’s death. Some say you might be involved in Kelsey’s death, too.”

“I had nothing to do with either death. I don’t even know what’s going on with Kelsey.” For the most part, that was true. “What else are they saying?”

Rachel shook her head. “All sorts of things. But you’re just part of it. About a quarter of the staff have made noises about tendering their resignations.” She shrugged a shoulder at the empty desk. “Holly came in this morning, packed up her things and left. The gardener quit and two of the lunch staff. There’s a half-dozen kids already pulled from the class lists and another ten or so whose parents threatened to pull them. It’s crazy.”

Man oh man. The twinge in my neck tightened.

“Has that detective really been sniffing around?” She fanned herself. “I flirted with that man and he acted all oblivious. He had his eye on you, though.”

I shook my head in a slow sweeping motion at first and picked up enough speed the ends of my hair slapped my chin. “Nope. The man has a strict policy never to get involved with women on cases he’s working.”

“Ho, ho. You sound a little disgruntled.”

“Not disgruntled. I am perfectly fine with the fact that he can be so dedicated to his job. Yep, I sure am.” My headshaking morphed to nodding.

“You’ve got it bad.” She giggled and went back to her desk.

“I’ve got nothing.” The first bell rang. “Nothing but class. I’ll talk to you later.” I shoved myself up from the chair.

Rachel snagged her grade book and tucked it under her arm. “See ya.”

I dug through my briefcase and pulled out my own grade book and the kids’ projects. When I got to the classroom I couldn’t believe how many empty seats there were. Vice Principal—
acting Principal
, I had to get used to that—Hardin was waiting at the desk. “Oh, good. You’re here.”

“Mark?” I frowned. “Did you need something? Actually, there’s something I’d like to talk to you about.” I needed to tell him about the playhouse. Annabelle was generous enough to let me work out the remainder of the school year—between weekends and holidays, I’d still be able to put in many hours at the playhouse before school got out.

He swallowed heavily. “Let’s take this in the hall.”

I followed him to a set of lockers. He was treating me like a kid caught cheating in class.

“I’d meant to catch you at home, but people were calling all morning.” He ran his hands through his graying hair. He took a few steps away then came back. “I—we—I need you to take a few days off.”

“What? Why? For how long?”

“Let’s not worry about that right now.” He let out a long breath. “We’ve had several parents concerned. In light of all the news...”

“The news hasn’t said a thing that could give them reason to be afraid of me.”

“I don’t think it’s so much them afraid of you, they’re afraid of what might happen to their kids with you around.”

“But—”

“To be fair, Celeste, your own daughter has been removed from your home for her protection.”

“She was not
removed
. She’s staying with her dad.” For the very reasons Mark stated. “Are you firing me?”

“No. You have a strict contract.” His cheeks pinkened.

That sure didn’t sound like, “We love you and can’t afford to lose you as a teacher.” I bit my lip to keep from saying something that might go on my permanent record, like
bite me
or
suck it
.

“I know this is not your fault. But the school has a board we have to report to. And benefactors who have been all up in arms since Chad died. Think of it as a sabbatical. While everything gets put to rights again.” He shrugged. “I’m sure it will be fine. Things will get sorted out.” He patted me on the arm, then set his hand on the doorknob. “Take what you need from your office and consider this a long overdue vacation.”

I didn’t want to know the answer, but had to ask, “Am I getting paid on this unexpected vacation?”

The red in his cheeks darkened. “I’m afraid that a leave like this isn’t covered under the protected pay.”

“I see.”

“Thanks for understanding, Celeste.”

I understood nothing. I was fuming too much to have a coherent verbalization of the nasty words rolling around in my head. One thing for sure, the school would be hearing from my lawyer. As soon as I could get to a phone. “Mark,” I said as he turned.

He paused.

“Here.” I handed him my grade book and the thick file folder for the class. I hated to acknowledge it, but the man flinched slightly as if he thought I’d hit him or something. Had shock not already burrowed its way into me I might have been offended. Instead, I simply said, “The kids’ projects. They’re all graded and ready to be handed back. They’re all doing superb work so you shouldn’t have any problems.” My throat constricted.

He nodded and headed into
my
classroom. To teach
my
kids. While, yes, I was taking another job at the end of the year, that was supposed to be after the classes were done, and on my own terms.

Thankfully Rachel was off in her class and I had the small office to myself to pack up my belongings. If Mark was to be believed, I’d be back. But who knew when Chad’s case would be solved? I personally doubted I’d ever be back in the office again. I jotted a note to Rachel so she wasn’t left wondering if I’d bolted of my own accord. I set it on her desk with the jar of candy she was always snatching from—she didn’t realize it, but I stocked it for her. She was the only person I knew who liked the little licorice chunks.

I gathered up my things. It was sad, really, that I fit most of my meager trappings into my school bag. The two sweaters from the back of my chair I tossed over my arm. I locked the door and started to slide my school card key, as well as the office key, under the door, but I had just a wee bit of optimism that it would work out and I’d be able to finish out the year. Or at the very least, it was a bargaining chip for Coz—the school almost never changed locks when someone left. They’d deactivate the card key, but the inside door keys had been around for years. The board was too cheap to replace them.

Numb legs carried me across the school grounds. I wasn’t sure if I’d be bodily escorted off if the campus security found me, so I hurried to my destination. At the boys’ locker room, I knocked and yelled, “Female coming through.” I counted to ten and heard a flurry of movement. Then I entered the locker room and went straight to Colin’s office.

He was sitting behind his desk looking through game photos. His head snapped up when I knocked. “Celeste? Shouldn’t you be in class?”

“I was asked to leave.” I shifted the heavy bag on my shoulder. “By Mark.”

“What?” He stood so fast his chair shot back into the wall. “He can’t do that.”

“Yes, he can. It’s what the board wants. It’s not permanent. Supposedly.” I kept my hands fisted at my side. “I just wanted to come in and tell you before I left. You have stuff to do.” I motioned to the boys suited up for practice, who weren’t even trying to hide the fact that they were listening in. “I’ll call you later.”

I squared my shoulders—okay, so I hunched over and covered my eyes just in case any of the boys were still in varied states of dress, but when I escaped the locker room, they squared—and I walked solemnly to the parking lot. It was only then that I realized I had no car.

How had I gone from everything was fine—if a little dull—to being put on an indefinite, unpaid “vacation” and murder suspect with no car or phone. Had I woken up in an alternate reality? Had someone put a curse on me? On the upside, I could tell Annabelle I was free to start sooner.

I half sobbed and half laughed as I started out on the trek toward my house even though the subdivision was clear across town. Peytonville was just small enough there was no form of public transportation—lucky me, I got to walk again. The good thing about walking, I got to work off the anger and fear at losing my job. The bad thing, it gave my mind much more time to wander. And wander it did. I thought over all my well-constructed plans and how one death at school sent them tail-spinning. It seemed like all I did lately was think and I was damn tired of it.

Worse, and most telling, I knew I was in a bad way when calling my mother niggled the back of my head as a possibility. Asking her for help was as close to the bottom of my to-do list in life as I’d ever come. I must have skipped anxious altogether, screamed past fearful and was pulling up on desperate fast with next to no brakes. All of this was with the school still in sight if I looked back over my shoulder.

At the strip mall halfway home, I got a small coffee and a very large brownie—I deserved a treat. I stopped at the cell phone store and splurged on a new smartphone. A little therapeutic shopping never hurt. I called Levi—it was the only phone number I had memorized besides my mom’s, and I wasn’t ready to give in to that niggle just yet. He agreed to meet me for lunch and I formulated a plan of attack on getting my life back—a new plan as my other one had been shot to hell.

* * *

“Just like that he asked you to leave?” Levi forked a huge bite of his Caesar salad and shoved it in his mouth. “That’s just wrong.”

“So is talking with your mouth full.” I moved the lettuce around on my plate. My appetite for good and healthy had flown out the window when I’d eaten a triple scoop of mint chocolate chip ice cream—after the brownie—while waiting for Levi to join me for lunch. I totally blame him for being late.

Thick, heavy clouds rolled eastward as the morning turned to afternoon. The humidity was almost oppressive even for an eighty-five-degree November day. My hair stuck out every which way with the frizzies. If I could have blamed that on Levi, too, I would have. Actually, I could. We’d had to take a table on the patio since the inside had already filled with the regular lunch crowd.

I dropped my fork to the plate and pushed the untouched salad away. “Where are you at work-wise? Do you have any more time to do some more snooping?”

His eyes lit up as he picked up his club soda. “Oh, absolutely. What do you have in mind?”

“I need to delve a little more into Chad’s college days.” I’d told Levi about the death of Professor Patts and the scandal that had surrounded everything. “I wonder if Kellen found anything.”