Long Shadows

Chapter 53

“Hey, Tyler, is your dad home?” asked Decker.

Tyler had just answered his knock on the condo door. He had on khaki shorts and an untucked short-sleeved shirt.

“He’s getting ready. We’re going out to dinner.”

“Mind if I come in and wait?”

“I guess not.”

He led Decker into an adjoining room and they sat down. A storm was forming out over the Gulf. Its framing in the broad windows served as a capable analogy to what was going on in Decker’s head.

“How’s the investigation going?” mumbled Tyler. “Have you found out stuff?”

“We’re getting there. Do you remember a guy and a woman coming up to you at a restaurant in Naples called Café Midi?” When Tyler looked uncertain, he added, “I think Doris Kline was with you, and the woman was tall, blond, and beautiful. You sort of ran your gaze over her.” He kept his tone diplomatic.

Tyler grinned. “Oh, yeah. Her. Damn, I mean, wow. She was, like, wow. And she was falling out of that dress. I wish I’d gotten a picture of her.”

“Yeah. Did you know the guy?”

“No. But from how he and my mom were talking, I supposed he was a lawyer. They were talking like that anyway.”

“Actually, he and your mom had dated.”

Tyler looked surprised. “Really? Then it was a good thing Dad hadn’t joined us yet.”

“Wait a minute, your father was there?”

“He was just coming in, I think, when the guy and the lady were getting ready to leave.”

“Why was your father having dinner with you and your mother?”

“It was my birthday.”

“Did your father overhear anything from the man?”

“I don’t know. Hell, all my attention was on the woman, if you want to know the truth. But he came up to the table right after they walked off. So Dad had to be close by. Why? What does that matter?”

“It might not.”

“Tyler?” a voice called out.

“In here, Dad.”

A few moments later Barry Davidson walked into the room, adjusting the cuffs of his white dress shirt. He had on dark gray slacks and brown tasseled loafers.

“What are you doing here?” he asked when he spied Decker.

“Just a few more questions, Mr. Davidson.”

“Tyler and I are going out to dinner. And when the hell are you going to release Julia’s remains? We have to... we have to do the service.” He glanced anxiously at his son. “She... she wanted to be cremated.”

“It won’t be long,” replied Decker.

Davidson slumped down in a chair after mixing himself a drink from the bar against the wall. Tyler silently watched him do this, his features full of disgust.

“What questions?” asked Davidson.

“I’m going to tell you some things in return for information.”

“What things?”

“The man who was killed at your ex-wife’s home was not protecting her. He was sleeping with her.”

Tyler blurted out, “What? Sleeping with Mom?”

Decker kept his gaze on Davidson. “You don’t look surprised, Mr. Davidson.”

“Julia could do what she wanted. It’s none of my business.”

“Did you know about their... relationship?”

“No, but like I said, she could do what she wanted.”

“But she obviously wanted to keep it on the Q.T.”

“What do you mean, specifically?”

“She used this subterfuge that she had been receiving threats to explain his being there.”

“But she had been getting threats,” interjected Tyler. “She told me so. Right, Dad?”

“Is that what she told you, Mr. Davidson?”

“I already answered that question. She never got back to me when I texted her about it.”

“I just wanted to give you the opportunity to amend your answer, if need be.”

“I have no reason to change what I already told you,” he said icily. “Check my phone records. I sent the one text. I haven’t called her in weeks.”

“I also have heard that you still loved your ex. And you told me that you hoped to reconcile with her.”

“Dad?” said Tyler. “Is that true?”

Davidson wouldn’t look at his son. “Okay, I told you that, but in my heart of hearts I knew it was over. I’ve moved on with my life. The divorce was years ago.” He rose. “Now, if there’s nothing else, Tyler and I need to head out or we’ll be late for our reservation.”

“You drive a Mercedes S600?”

“Yes.”

“There are cameras in the garage here?”

“Yes, and if you check the film you’ll see that my Mercedes never left the garage. And I didn’t take Tyler’s car, either. And there is no record of me going through Julia’s gate.”

Decker gave him a piercing look. “You checked?”

“I should have said I know there is no record of me going through the gate, since I never left the condo, as I told you before.”

“I told you all that, Agent Decker,” chimed in Tyler. “My dad was here. I heard him. I would’ve known if he had left.”

Davidson said heatedly, “And do you really think I could have butchered my wife and then gotten back here and then calmly held a meeting? You could check with my business clients. I wasn’t covered in fucking blood when I did the Zoom call!”

“Dad!” exclaimed Tyler. “Calm down. You didn’t kill her, okay?”

Decker took all this in and then said, “Who said she was butchered?”

Davidson glanced anxiously at his son. “You... you said she’d been stabbed. You told me that,” he added.

“Oh, I remember exactly what I said. But I didn’t say ‘butchered.’ In fact, I didn’t say how many times she had been stabbed. It could have been only once.”

Davidson nervously licked his lips. “And what about the man? Was he stabbed, too?”

Decker rose. “I guess you two had better get on to your dinner.”