Chapter 15
Under Suspicion
At nine thirty p.m. Rich got a high-priority text message on his cell phone from Shelly. This surprised him as he couldn’t imagine what could be so urgent at that time of night. He apologized to Erica and left. When he got to Starbucks about thirty minutes later, Shelly was seated with her back to the front window in their usual spot. He rushed over and sat down next to her.
“Shelly. What’s wrong?”
“Lucius is dead. I just found him with a letter opener stuck in his neck.”
“What? Are you serious?”
“Yes. I’ve been at the Dallas police station up until a few minutes ago giving them my statement.”
“Do they know who did it?”
“They asked me that same question. I told them I only knew of two people who hated him enough to kill him—his wife and his ex-partner.”
“I know about his ex-partner, Walter Savage, but I didn’t know he had marital problems.”
“Yes, his wife hates his guts. She caught him cheating on her about six months ago. The only reason she hasn’t divorced him is RMS isn’t worth much right now. She’s hoping he’ll turn it around and it will become more valuable. Then she’ll file for divorce.”
“It doesn’t sound like she did it, then,” Rich said.
“Unless she’s given up and decided to go for the insurance money,” Shelly said thoughtfully.
“How much insurance does he have?”
“A quarter million group insurance and I’m sure he had some personal policies as well.”
“That could be the motive, but killing your husband and getting away with it is no simple proposition. She’ll be the number-one suspect unless she has an airtight alibi. If she doesn’t, the insurance money will be tied up until her name is cleared and that could take months if not years.”
“I could see Savage doing it,” Shelly said. “Lucius screwed him when they split up the business and he didn’t even realize it until it was too late.”
“I wonder who’s going to run the company now that Lucius is dead?”
Shelly sighed. “I have no idea. I hope it’s not his wife, Samantha. I’d hate to have her as a boss.”
“Could she run it? Does she know anything about it?”
“Yes. She ran the insurance department at North American Servicing before they split up. I don’t know why she didn’t come to work for RMS. I guess it was about the time she discovered the affair so she decided to find a new job.”
“Does she know about the forgery department?” Rich asked.
“Probably. Before she caught him with his pants down, they worked together pretty closely. When it happened he begged her to forgive him, but she wasn’t interested. I don’t think she was all that upset, but saw it more as an opportunity to extricate herself from a bad relationship and end up with some serious cash in the bank.”
“What makes you think that? Did she say something to give you that impression?”
“No. It’s just office gossip, but I’m pretty sure it’s true.”
“Well, I don’t know that there’s much we can do about the situation now. Why don’t you go home and get some rest. I’m sure tomorrow will be an interesting day for you. Let’s meet tomorrow night about this same time and you can fill me in on what’s going on.”
Shelly agreed to the meeting and then left. Rich finished his coffee and then called Matt on his cell phone. He filled him in on the murder and Shelly’s situation.
“I hope this doesn’t screw up my case. What if RMS falls apart with Lucius gone and ends up in bankruptcy? Our claim would be wiped out if that happened.”
“Shelly thinks Samantha Jones is capable of stepping in and running the business.”
“If she’s not in jail,” Matt noted.
“Maybe she’ll have an alibi and be able to step in and take over.”
“Even so, it’s not likely she’ll be able to run it as well as Lucius did.”
“Well, you never know. She might be a better manager than Lucius or she might realize her shortcomings and hire someone to run it for her. There’s no reason to worry about it now. We just have to assume the company will continue in business and our lawsuit is still viable.”
There was a beep on Matt’s phone. “Hang on. Someone is trying to get through to me.”
The phone went temporarily dead and Rich took a deep breath. He wondered how Lucius’s murder would affect their lawsuit. Was it the beginning of the end for RMS? If Samantha Jones didn’t want to run the business she’d likely put it up for sale and the assets might disappear before they could get their case to trial. As much as he had disliked Lucius Jones he wished he were still alive. His death had made things much more complicated.
Matt came back on the line. “Dad. That was Cindy Sharp. The police are looking for her. They came by her house but she wasn’t home. Her babysitter was there and told them she was out. She wants to know what to do. Should she and the kids get a motel so the police can’t find them?”
“Jesus. Why are they after her?”
“The police said they just wanted to talk to her.”
“About what?” Rich asked.
“They didn’t say. Do you think it could be about Lucius Jones’s murder?”
“Possibly, if they came across the lawsuit and read the petition. They would have seen that Cindy blamed Lucius for her husband’s suicide. Does Cindy even know Lucius is dead?”
“Yes. It’s made the TV news, but she claims to know nothing about it.”
“Where was she tonight? Why did she need a babysitter?”
“She said she had a shopping date with a girlfriend but she didn’t show up.”
“So, she has no alibi?”
“No,” Matt said. “Apparently not.”
“We’d better call Ryan and tell him he’s got a new client.”
“Do you think he can handle it? He’s just barely out of law school.”
“We’ll give him any help he needs. I’m sure he’ll be fine.”
Matt sighed. “I don’t know.”
“He’ll be fine,” Rich repeated. “I’d rather not farm Cindy’s case to another law firm. It’s going to be complicated enough as it is.”
“All right. I’ll call him and give him the good news.”
“And tell Cindy to meet us at our office. I’m going there right now. We’ll all meet with her tonight and then one of us will call the detective handling the case tomorrow and arrange a meeting.”
“Okay.”
Rich hung up the phone, walked out to his car, and took off for his office. He was worried about Cindy’s civil case if she were a person of interest in Jones’s death. If the jury thought she had anything to do with his murder they would figure she’d gotten her revenge and not award her a dime. Ryan would have to prove her innocent of Jones’s murder before the civil case went to trial, otherwise they’d be screwed. Luckily criminal cases were put on the fast track so it was likely it would be over long before the civil case came to trial. That was assuming, of course, that they charged someone right away.
Rich unlocked the office, went inside, and turned on the lights. He figured it would be a long night, so he made a pot of coffee. Ryan showed up about ten minutes later and they went into the conference room. Matt and Cindy came in a few minutes later.
“Okay,” Ryan said to Cindy. “I hear you had detectives looking for you?”
“Yes, Detectives Jill Finch and Tom Morin. They left their cards.”
So, where were you tonight?” Ryan asked.
“I was supposed to meet a girlfriend from work at Stonebrier Mall. We were going to do some shopping and then get dessert at the Cheesecake Factory, but she didn’t show up,” Cindy replied.
“Do you know what happened?”
“Yes. I got a text from her about ten minutes after we were supposed to hook up that her son was throwing up, so she had to cancel.”
“So, what did you do?”
??
?I went shopping alone. I’d already spent money on a babysitter, so I figured I might as well take advantage of it.”
“Did you buy anything?”
“No. I was in a bad mood and didn’t see anything I liked that much.”
“Did you go to the Cheesecake Factory?” Ryan asked.
“I thought about it, but it’s embarrassing to go in there alone and eat a big piece of cheesecake by yourself. People would think I was a real loser.”
Matt laughed. “Oh, I doubt that, but I understand what you’re saying. I hate to eat alone myself.”
“The problem is you left no paper trail. We can’t prove you were even at the mall,” Rich said.
Cindy shrugged. “Sorry.”
“Did you see anybody you knew or talk to anybody at all?” Ryan asked.
Cindy shook her head. “No. I’m afraid not.”
“Did you get gas that night?”
“No.”
“Do you know where Reliable Mortgage Servicing’s offices are located?”
Cindy looked away and closed her eyes. Then she took a deep breath and looked at Ryan. “Yes, I’m afraid I do.”
“How?” Rich asked. “The modification was all handled by mail, wasn’t it?”
“Yes, it was, but I looked them up online and got their address. Then I paid them a visit to give them a piece of my mind.”
“When was this?”
“Months ago. When they were threatening to foreclose.”
“So, were you able to talk to Jones at that time?”
“No. He was out but I did leave a message with his secretary.”
“Really? What was in the message?”
“I told him that he wasn’t going to get away with taking our house and that he would pay one day for the way he treated people.”
“So, did you ever make good on your threats?” Rich asked.
“No. What could I do? File a complaint with somebody? I just figured eventually we’d win our lawsuit and I’d get my revenge that way.”
“So, you didn’t go over to his office today?” Ryan asked.
“No. Like I said. I was at the mall. I never got close to downtown Dallas.”
“Good,” Ryan said. “At least there won’t be anybody who saw you down there.”
“So, do they really think I had something to do with Lucius Jones’s death?” Cindy asked.
“Well, they probably have no idea at this stage, but they have to check out anybody with a motive. When they talk to you and you don’t have an alibi, that’s going to put you high up on their person-of-interest list.”
Cindy groaned. “Shit! That’s all I need.”
“What I’m more worried about,” Rich said, “is the impact Lucius’s death will have on your lawsuit. The fact that the owner of RMS is dead takes some of the wind out of our sails as to punitive damages. The jury isn’t going to be anxious to hurt a grieving widow—Mrs. Jones—and her children. Not to mention that RMS may not be viable if new management doesn’t step in quickly and take charge.”
“So, what are we going to do?” Cindy asked.
“Well, it depends if you want us to represent you in this matter. It’s not part of your lawsuit, so we’d have to charge you by the hour.”
Cindy rolled her eyes. “You know I don’t have any money.”
“I know and normally we wouldn’t touch a murder case with less than a $50,000 retainer, but we might be willing to take your case due to the special circumstances that exist right now.”
“What special circumstances?” Cindy asked.
“Well, we feel pretty good about your civil case so we might agree to let you pay us from your share of the proceeds of the recovery. The problem with that is if you lose, then we’d get nothing.”
“But you said you felt good about the case?”
“We do, but that’s a hell of a gamble, which we wouldn’t usually take, except for one thing.”
“What’s that?” Cindy asked warily.
“We have in our firm a brand-new attorney who has his mind set on practicing criminal law.”
Cindy looked at Ryan. “So, you want me to let Ryan represent me. So, I’m like a guinea pig?”
Rich laughed. “Well, it won’t be that bad. Matt and I will keep a close eye on your case and make sure he’s doing a good job. We’re not criminal attorneys, but we know plenty of good criminal attorneys who we can call on for help if need be.”
“Well, that’s probably better than a court-appointed attorney,” Cindy reasoned.
“If I were in trouble, I’d trust my little brother,” Matt said sincerely.
She sighed. “Okay. I can live with that, I suppose.”
“Good. Ryan will fix up a contract and have you sign it before you leave so we can represent to the detectives assigned to the murder investigation that we indeed represent you. Tomorrow, Ryan and I will arrange for them to come here and ask you their questions. Hopefully, from their interview we’ll learn a little more about the murder. We have someone at RMS, too, who will keep us apprised of what’s going on there, so hopefully we’ll be able to stay out in front of the situation.”
Cindy nodded. “Okay. When should I be here?”
“Just keep your cell phone on and we’ll call you the moment we have a firm time.”
“Okay,” Cindy said and got up to leave.
Ryan escorted her into his office where he had her sign a contract for the criminal defense in the event she were charged. Ryan was excited to think he might have a murder case, but deep down hoped it wouldn’t come to pass. He was smart enough to know it would be better to start off slow and work his way up to the big leagues, but he also knew it wasn’t wise to pass up a golden opportunity. He’d just have to work doubly hard to make sure Cindy had the best defense possible.
The next day Rich called Detective Jill Finch at the number printed on the card that he had been left at Cindy’s place.
“Finch here,” she said.
“Detective. This is Rich Coleman. I’m an attorney representing Cindy Sharp. She says you left your card at her place last night.”
“Oh, okay. Yeah. We need to talk to her in regard to a homicide last night.”
“Who was killed?” Rich asked.
“Lucius Jones. CEO of Reliable Mortgage Servicing.”
“Right. I saw something about that on the news.”
“Yes, and we did a search of the county records and found out your client has a lawsuit going against RMS.”
“Yes, she does.”
“So, we need to talk to her.”
“How about this afternoon, say, two o’clock p.m. at my office?”
“Sure, where are your offices?”
Rich gave her directions and then hung up. He called Ryan and told him to contact Cindy and have her in their offices at one thirty. It was always good to prep a client before they were interrogated. Detectives could be extremely intimidating, and she needed to know how to respond to them. When she arrived they took her into the conference room.
“Okay, Cindy. Don’t let these guys scare you. They are just here for information. You didn’t have anything to do with Jones’s murder and they don’t have any evidence against you, so this should just be routine.”
Cindy nodded. “Right.”
“Now, a couple of rules you need to follow. One, listen carefully to each question. If you don’t understand it don’t try to answer it. Just ask them to restate it. Okay?”
“Okay.”
“Two. Just answer the question they ask you. Don’t volunteer information. In other words, if they ask you what time you had lunch yesterday don’t tell them you went to Wendy’s and got a hamburger about two p.m. Just say two p.m.”
“Right.”
“Three. If you don’t know the answer to a question just say so. Don’t speculate or tell them what you heard. If you don’t know the answer to the questions just say, ‘I don’t know.’ ”
“Uh-huh.”
“Four. If they keep asking
you the same question, over and over again, just keep giving them the same answer. Don’t feel like you have to change your answer just because they don’t like it. Stick to your guns. Remember they are here to get evidence against you. They are not your friend no matter how polite and amiable they may seem.”
Cindy nodded.
“Five. If you get flustered, scared, or just want to confer with me a minute before you answer a question just say, ‘I need a minute with my attorney.’ Then we’ll step outside and you can ask me whatever question you have. It’s better to confer with me privately than answer a question you’re not sure about.”
“All right.”
“So, have you thought of anything since last night that we need to know?” Ryan asked.
“Like what?” Cindy asked.
“Have you thought of any other contact you may have had with Jones—other letters, emails, telephone calls, or face-to-face encounters?”
“No. Not that I can remember.”
“All right, then,” Rich said. “Just sit tight until the detectives get here and we’ll get started.”
Cindy relaxed in her chair as Rich and Ryan left her alone. When Rich got back to his office he saw there was a message from Richmond. He wondered what he wanted so he called him back.
“This is Marvin Richmond,” Richmond said.
“Marvin. Rich Coleman returning your call.”
“Oh. Yes. I guess you heard about Lucius Jones’s murder.”
“I did. I was sorry to hear it. Do the police have any leads yet?”
“No. Nothing solid yet.”
“So, who’s going to run RMS now?”
“That remains to be seen. Ron Seward is the VP. He’s taken over the day-to-day management until there is a board meeting.”
“Right. Well, what can I do for you?”
“I’d like to move all our deadlines back by ninety days due to Mr. Jones’s death. It’s going to take a while for his replacement to be selected and get up to speed on the case.”
“Sure,” Rich replied. “That shouldn’t be a problem as long as you don’t set your summary judgment for hearing in the next ninety days.”
“No. I’ll wait.”
“Okay. I’ll have to confirm it with my client but it shouldn’t be a problem.”
“Good. I’ll send you an order.”
Rich hung up. He couldn’t remember Marvin Richmond ever being so amiable before. He wondered what was up with him. Did he have a trick up his sleeve? As he was thinking about this Suzie came on the intercom.
“Detectives Finch and Morin are here.”
“Okay. I’ll be right with them.”
Rich got up and stepped into the reception area. They all shook hands. They engaged in a little small talk, and then Rich led them into the conference room. Ryan stood up but Cindy didn’t move.
“This is Cindy Sharp,” Rich said. “Cindy, these are Detectives Tom Morin and Jill Finch.”
Detective Morin was about six feet tall, heavyset, with dark hair, and had a scowl on his face. Detective Finch was much shorter, blond, and robust and seemed amiable.
“Pleased to meet you,” Cindy said.
“So, how can we help you, Detectives?” Ryan asked.
Morin looked at Ryan. “Well, like I said on the phone, we searched the records at the courthouse and discovered this lawsuit your client has going against Mr. Jones.”
“Well, it’s against his company RMS,” Ryan said.
“I know but in your complaint you allege that RMS was responsible for Tony Sharp’s suicide. Is that what you think, Ms. Sharp?”
Cindy nodded. “There is no doubt in my mind about it. RMS is responsible.”
“Did you know the decedent, Lucius Jones?”
“No. I’ve never met him,” Cindy replied evenly.
“Did you know he was the CEO of Reliable Mortgage Servicing Inc.?”
“Sure, I read about him in the newspapers.”
“Didn’t you also write him a letter complaining about how his company was treating you and your husband?”
“Yes, when I couldn’t get the customer service department to respond to me.”
“In fact, you hand delivered the letter, didn’t you?”
“Yes. I wanted to be sure he read it. I figured if it came in the mail someone would just file it without him seeing it.”
“Did you read the article in Forbes last week about RMS’s policy of dual tracking?”
Cindy looked at Ryan.
Ryan frowned. “What does that have to do with your investigation?” Ryan asked.
“It’s a simple question,” Detective Morin said. “Yes or no?”
“I may have skimmed it,” Cindy admitted.
“So, you knew that Lucius Jones had implemented a policy of dual tracking at RMS.”
“You mean screwing with people?” Cindy replied.
“Well, that’s the net effect. I think that policy is the gist of your complaint—the government mandated that RMS consider modifying your loan rather than foreclose, but what they did was process your modification at the same time they were processing your foreclosure. The problem was they weren’t really interested in modifying your loan and were only going through the motions to satisfy the government. So, all they had to do to get what they wanted was lose your paperwork and delay the modification process to give them time to foreclose.”
“Okay, so you can read,” Ryan said. “What’s that got to do with anything?”
“It’s called motive. Your client knew Lucius Jones had just started RMS and was responsible for adopting the policy of dual processing, which ultimately ended up costing your client her home and her husband. Isn’t that right, Ms. Sharp?”
“Don’t answer that,” Ryan said. “Do you have any other questions?”
“Yes. Where were you last night between six and eight o’clock p.m.?”
Cindy sighed. “At Stonebrier Mall.”
“Were you with someone?”
“No. I was alone. I was supposed to meet a friend but her kid got sick and she canceled.”
“So, how long were you at the mall?”
“From about six to seven thirty.”
“Did anybody see you?”
“I wouldn’t know, but I didn’t see anybody I knew.”
“Did you buy anything or use your credit card?”
Cindy shook her head. “No.”
“So you don’t have a confirmable alibi?”
Cindy shrugged. “I guess not.”
“Did you see Lucius Jones last night?”
“No.”
“You didn’t go over to his office for any reason?”
“No. My attorney gave me strict instructions not to contact RMS or any of its employees while the lawsuit was pending.”
“All right,” Detective Morin said. “That’s all I have for now. If you’re telling the truth, then you’ll probably not be hearing from us again, but if we find out you’ve lied to us we’ll definitely be paying you another visit, and it won’t be as pleasant as this one has been.”
“Okay. There’s no need to threaten her,” Ryan said. “She’s telling you the truth.”
“I hope you’re right, counselor. For her sake I hope you’re right.”
Detective Morin and his partner left, and Cindy let out a sigh of relief. “What an asshole.”
“Yeah. Don’t let it get to you. He was just trying to intimidate you so you’d be too scared to lie. You did fine.”
“What if I didn’t lie but I left something out?”
Rich and Ryan looked at each other. “Left something out?” Ryan repeated.
“Well, he didn’t ask where I was before I went to the mall.”
“Where were you?”
“I was over at the Bureau of Vital Statistics near Parkland Hospital getting copies of Tony’s death certificate.”
“So, you weren’t too far from Jones’s office at RMS?”
“Right. In fact, I may have driven right past
it about the time of the murder. Should I have told Detective Morin that? I wasn’t sure.”
Ryan shook his head. “No. With a little luck he’ll never know.”
But Rich knew better. In this day and age with surveillance cameras everywhere one of them would have surely caught Cindy’s car in the vicinity of RMS’s offices and eventually Detective Morin would find that tape and be back to confront them with it. Rich’s stomach began to twist, and Ryan shifted nervously in his chair.