She squared her shoulders as she drove onto Gideon’s property. This time she was determined to get through to the man, to make him see that his lie was only slowing down the investigation and hindering them from finding the real killer.
Shutting off the engine, Jamie got out of the car and headed toward the disheveled porch. She knocked, waited and when Gideon opened the door with a suspicious look, Jamie flashed him a big smile. Refusing to be deterred, even when he greeted her with “You again?”
“Me again,” she said in a pleasant voice. “Do you mind if I come in?”
Gideon frowned. “Is the bastard in jail yet?”
“No, but to make that happen, I need to go over your statement again.”
Fiddling with the hem of his red-and-black flannel shirt, Gideon studied her for a long moment before inviting her in. “I already told you everything,” he said as they headed once again into his drab, musty living room.
“I know, but I’m just here to dot some i’s and cross some t’s.”
“Okay,” he said warily.
They sat down on the tattered couch, and Jamie pulled the tape recorder from her purse. “This really won’t take long,” she assured him. “Just tell me your version of events again.” She paused to offer another smile. “Every detail has to be documented for when you testify.”
Gideon had been in the process of running his hand through his thick beard. Now that hand froze. “Testify?” he echoed.
Gotcha.
“Well, of course. The district attorney will subpoena you as a witness for the state. You’ll be required to testify in a courtroom.”
Uneasiness flickered across his face. “Court?”
Jamie tried not to roll her eyes. “If Mr. Donovan is arrested and indicted by a grand jury, he’s entitled to a trial. Seeing as the alibi he provided depends on you, you will most likely be one of the state’s star witnesses.”
Gideon visibly gulped.
“So, let’s just go over your story and—”
“What would I have to say?” he interrupted.
She smothered an incredulous laugh. “The truth, of course.”
After a moment of reluctance, his bearded chin jutted out. “Fine, I’ll do that.”
“Okay, then let me tell you what you can expect in court, Mr. Gideon.” She clasped her hands together. “You’ll have to take the stand and swear on a Bible to tell the truth. Then you’ll tell the judge and jury what you just told me, that you never saw Mr. Donovan the night his ex-wife died. And then Mr. Donovan’s defense attorney will cross-examine you. Now I should warn you…” She let her voice drift off ominously.
“Warn me about what?” Gideon mumbled.
“Those defense lawyers…they can get pretty nasty. They’ll want to discredit you, and they’ll use every trick in the book to do that. They’ll dig into your personal life, bring up any distasteful, well, vices you might have. Your entire life, your past mistakes, bad choices, all that will be brought to light.”
“You don’t say,” he said in chagrin.
“The sheriff told me you’re currently unemployed and recently divorced.” She offered a sympathetic smile. “That might come up in the trial too.”
Gideon went utterly silent. Jamie could see his brain working over the details she’d given it, as he weighed the pros and cons of his predicament. As angry and pathetic as this man might be, he was also proud. She could see it in the way he held his shoulders, from the tight set of his massive jaw. He didn’t want his dirty laundry aired out in a courtroom. Nobody did.
“Do you understand everything I’m saying to you?” she asked in a quiet voice.
His thick throat bobbed as he swallowed again. “I think I do, ma’am.”
“Good.” She unclasped her hands and placed them on her thighs, lifting her head in resolve. “So why don’t we go over your story again, shall we? Tell me, what happened on July 15?”
Finn’s head jerked up as Jamie strode into his office thirty minutes later. She’d caught him on his lunch break, judging from the enormous Reuben sandwich sitting on the desktop and the tall foam coffee cup. He offered a tentative smile when he saw her, but before he could speak—or perhaps apologize for the way he’d shut her out earlier—she marched up to the desk and dropped a piece of paper in front of him.
“Here you go,” she said cheerfully.
Finn furrowed his brows. “What’s this?”
“A signed statement from Joe Gideon, admitting that he saw Cole in the woods at 2:00 a.m. which, if I recall correctly, is when the medical examiner says Teresa died.”
There was a shocked silence.
“He admitted to it?” Finn finally said, his voice laced with disbelief.
“Yep.”