Too Many Secrets

FIFTEEN

Brittany couldn't lie to him anymore. Deep in her heart she knew he hadn't murdered Hillary Banks. Just because he'd had dealings with her, didn't make him the criminal. In her mind, he was off her suspects' list. Kurt would hate her, but she had to go with her gut feeling, and right now, it was telling her to trust Austin.

She took his hand and led him to the park bench, sitting down first with him next to her.  As she leaned against him, his hand slipped around her shoulders. The unease in his gaze worried her. He'd be upset, but she hoped he would understand—and forgive her.

"Austin, I think we need to talk about something that's really important." She stroked her hand slowly across his chest, loving the way his muscles flexed. As she prepared her thoughts carefully, her cell buzzed.

Inwardly, she groaned. It was probably work. For once she'd like to have an evening all to herself—or to be on a date without having it ruined.

She pulled out her cell and read the text from Kurt. The autopsy report just came in. Meet me there in fifteen.

Frowning, she slid the phone back into the pocket of her jeans. Hillary Banks' autopsy report was important. This would show the detectives exactly what was used to kill the woman. Unfortunately, her talk with Austin must be postponed.

"Bad news?" he asked after a few moments of silence.

"Yes, and no." She released a heavy breath and managed a sympathetic smile. "It kills me that I need to end our date, but I do." She leaned in and kissed his cheek. She wanted to do more, but if their mouths met together in a passionate kiss now, she'd never meet Kurt on time. "Can I get a rain-check?"

Austin nodded. "Anytime you want." He stood and took her hand. "I'll walk you back to your car."

"Ah, my hero." She winked.

He laughed and wrapped one arm around her shoulders as they headed back to her car. "Tomorrow, I'm going to be at the Sheridan Hotel most of the day, but if you want to come by to see me and let me show you around, please drop by and surprise me."

She nodded. "I think I will."

"Do you know where it is?"

"If I remember correctly, isn't it downtown?"

"Yes, it is." He kissed her forehead.

She sighed and wrapped her arms around his waist as they walked. Being with him was so cozy like this. She never wanted it to end. But back in the dark recesses of her mind, she also knew this wasn't a fairy tale, even if she wanted Austin to be her Prince Charming.

When they stopped at her car, he cupped her face to give her another kiss, but she kept it short and sweet. Because of the way her whole body melted whenever they were together, she knew if she participated fully in the kiss, she would want to stay in his arms all night.

"I'll call you...or drop by the hotel tomorrow," she said as she climbed into her car.

He stood and watched her drive away. His energetic smile would be etched in her memory forever.

When she reached the crime lab, Kurt was just climbing out of his vehicle. He waited until she was parked before he opened the door for her.

"Hi," he said in a tight voice.

"Hi," she replied. "Thanks for texting me and letting me know. I'm anxious to hear what Conover has found."

Kurt nodded. "Conover has been very precise in a lot of his findings. He's turning out to be a great asset to the precinct. I thought I'd really miss Douglas, but Conover is proving to be just as good."

"I agree." She hurried up the stairs and into the building with Kurt following.

She hoped he wouldn't ask about her evening. She didn't want to lie to him. They still hadn't talked about their kiss or their confessions the other night. But more than that, she wanted to discuss the reasoning behind his thoughts to why Austin should still be considered a suspect, especially, when she thought completely opposite. Maybe she'd try to get him to talk to her tonight about everything. He didn't smell as if he'd consumed a whole barrel of beer this time.

They walked into the medical examiner's room, and Conover stood over the body. Captain Martinez was here, along with Tyrone, but the others were absent.

Conover moved to the body and withdrew the sheet. Brittany hated to see dead bodies that had been opened up to examine. Out of everything, this was the thing she hated most.

"The victim died by a fierce blow to the head." Conover pointed to the injury. "When I examined the skull, however, I found this, embedded inside." He held up a ziplock bag with a sharp object that was made of steel.

Martinez and Tyrone examined it and then handed it to her and Kurt. "Do you know where the piece could have come from?" the captain asked.

"I believe so. After running several tests, I think it's from a historic weapon."

Brittany shook her head, not believing what she heard. "A historic weapon?"

Nodding, Conover walked over to his desk and picked up a picture of a weapon that she figured was used in medieval times.

"You'd mentioned the victim had a list of names of powerful and wealthy men, correct?" Conover asked, and they all nodded. "If you find the man who has a collection of ancient weapons, you just might find your killer."

Brittany and Kurt exchanged glances. She scrambled to remember if Austin's place had such a collection, but she honestly couldn't remember. Besides...why was she even thinking about Austin that way? In her mind, she'd erased him from her suspects' list.

"There was another thing I discovered," Conover continued. "When I ran a toxicology screen, I found traces of poison in her bloodstream. I ran tests on the victim's clothes that were left in the bathroom when she had taken a bath, and they had stains from where she'd vomited. I checked her arms for traces of needles, but there weren't any. I believe the victim had consumed something which had poison in it." He shook his head. "If the blow to the head hadn't killed her, the poison would have."

Kurt cussed. "Apparently, the killer was serious about killing Hillary one way or another." The other men in the room didn't verbally answer, but nodded in agreement.

"Conover," Tyrone asked, "in your testing, could you tell what she had for breakfast that morning?"

Nodding, Conover lifted his notebook and scanned the contents. "Pancakes and bacon with coffee."

Brittany tapped her finger on her chin. Now the question was, had she stayed at home to eat or went out?

Martinez cleared his throat. "We need everyone to return to the suspects' homes and see if they have an ancient collection of weapons. Because this was the exact cause of the death, finding the weapon is crucial."

She walked with Kurt outside toward the parking lot in silence. She tried to piece in her mind what could have happened at the crime scene. Hillary must have been with the killer before she'd gone in to take a bath. But, she wouldn't have brought this person back to her parent's home. Instead, Hillary would have met this person somewhere else, had drinks with them—perhaps a late breakfast of pancakes and bacon—before returning to her parent's house. The poison would have made her ill, and after regurgitating what was in her stomach, she would have wanted to take a shower to wash it off in hopes of feeling better again.

"Kurt? Has Jasmine pulled the report to see which purchases Hillary used with her credit or debit card?"

He shrugged. "Good question. I'm not sure, but if she hasn't, we'll ask her to do that."

"I'm thinking," Brittany continued, "that Hillary probably met the killer for breakfast. Maybe it was there where the killer poisoned her."

"Good thinking." He walked to his car first and pointed at the driver's side. "Why don't we go together and check on some leads."

"Sure." She climbed in and closed the door.

Once Kurt was inside, he started the car and backed out. "Call Jasmine now, and ask her."

Brittany quickly got on her cell and called the other woman. Thankfully, Jasmine had pulled the report, and she read off the few places Hillary had gone that morning where she used her credit card. When Brittany ended the call, she grinned at Kurt. "Looks like we'll be going to The Original Pancake House."

His smile widened, showing his polished white teeth, which contrasted against his dark brown goatee. "Am I to understand Hillary had breakfast there that morning?"

Brittany nodded. "And I'm betting money that she met up with a man."

"Me, too." He winked. "Oh, and the next place I want to check out is Isabella's Escort Service."

Confusion filled her and she narrowed her gaze on him. "Isabella's Escort Service? I thought Austin had mentioned a Belle's Escort Service."

"Since there is no business by that name, I'm thinking Belle is a nickname for Isabella."

"Ah, good thinking, partner." She chuckled. "I never suspected Belle would be short for another name." She drummed her fingers on the armrest of the car. "Are there other escort services in Seattle?"

"A few, but not with a name that would fit with Belle."

It didn't take long before he pulled up in front of the pancake house. Thankfully, they were open for dinner as well as breakfast. Brittany and Kurt walked in together. Immediately, they were greeted by the hostess. They both flashed the woman their badges.

"I'm Detective Hamill, and this is my partner, Detective Russell with SPD. Can we speak with the manager?"

The girl—who looked like she was still in high school—with mostly brown hair, but a section was colored in blue, and a lip ring, widened her eyes. She swallowed hard. "Um, the manager doesn't work tonight. But my supervisor is here."

"Please get your supervisor," Brittany said.

The girl hurried off, and Brittany scoped out the seating area. Tonight, there were only five man/woman couples, one couple that were both female, and one family with four kids, partaking of the restaurant's fine dining. She raised her gaze to the ceiling, looking for any security cameras. "I don't see any more cameras," she whispered.

"Me, either." Kurt moved to the cash register, his attention went everywhere, even on the floor. Then he pointed to a spot on the wall behind the register. "I think that's the security camera."

She stood close to him until their elbows touched. "Yeah, I think it is."

"Can I help you?"

A man, who was in his late twenties, approached them with the blue-haired girl tagging behind. Kurt moved in front of Brittany to greet the man.

"We are SPD Detectives, and I need to ask you a few questions about Sunday morning between eight and ten. Were you, or any of your employees, working that morning?"

"I was." The blond man nodded.

Kurt reached into his vest pocket and pulled out a picture. "This woman was having breakfast that morning. Do you remember her?"

The overweight man's gaze narrowed as he studied the picture. Slowly, he nodded. "I think I do. If I remember right, she was waiting for her friend."

"Do you know if her friend ever showed up?" Brittany asked, coming closer.

The man scratched his double chin. "Yes."

"By chance," Brittany continued, "did you recognize him as someone of importance here in Seattle?"

The man frowned. "I don't remember thinking that at all."

"Do you think," Kurt added, "that you could describe him?"

The man breathed in slowly, and then exhaled. "All I can remember was that he was a good looking man. He and the woman looked good together because they were both very well-dressed people. I do remember that they argued about something, and then the man left before the woman."

"Thanks for your help." Kurt pointed to the wall behind the cash register. "One last thing. Is that a security camera?"

"Yes."

Kurt continued. "Are there others?"

"No."

"Could we get Sunday's recording?"

"I, um..." The man scratched his double chin again. "I'll have to get the manager's approval."

"Would you call him right now?" Brittany asked. "We could get a search warrant if the manager doesn't comply."

"Yes, Ma'am." The overweight man hurried back into the other room.

During the wait, she scanned the occupants, again. One man facing her, kept raising his gaze to her and Kurt. When he caught her looking his way, he quickly lowered his gaze and leaned across the table as if he was talking to the woman sitting across from him.

Brittany didn't recognize him, so why did she get the feeling he knew her?