Catastrophe Cliff Read online

  “Not a whole lot,” Nell said. “Peter must have told you we went back to the cliff the other morning?”

  Dani nodded. “He said all of you think it was a targeted attack. You don’t think it was random.”

  “That’s right,” Violet said reaching down to pat the dogs. “It seems Oscar was able to track a scent from the cliff to the small gravel parking lot at the end of one of the west side trails. It could be anyone’s scent, but the dogs took off in that direction on the morning Jennifer fell so we’re hoping it belongs to the killer.”

  “And you’re pretty sure it wasn’t an accident?” Dani questioned.

  Nell explained, “The medical examiner reported that the injuries on Jennifer’s hands are not consistent with an accidental fall.”

  “So she was pushed.” Dani groaned and rested her elbows on the table. “I’m having a hard time wrapping my head around this. I ran with Jen in our running group about two weeks ago. It’s unimaginable that someone killed her. It seems impossible that she could be dead.”

  “Everyone we’ve talked with describes her as friendly, kind, fun, upbeat. Not one person has a bad word to say about her,” Nell said.

  “That’s what she was like when I would see her running,” Dani said. “She was such a nice person, so caring. She always asked about my business, how I was doing. We only saw each other once in a while, but she seemed genuinely interested in what was happening in my life.” Dani took a swallow of Nell’s coffee. “Does Peter have any suspects yet?”

  “I don’t think so,” Violet said. “It’s still early in the investigation.”

  Jennifer’s sister and boyfriend didn’t give us the impression they were that upset about losing her,” Nell pointed out. “But Peter reminded us that most people don’t reveal their emotions to strangers so maybe there isn’t anything sinister behind their lack of expression. They were probably holding it together while they talked with us.”

  “Probably.” Violet’s eyes narrowed. “But, I’m putting both of them on my personal preliminary suspect list.”

  “Some people mentioned that a friend of Jennifer’s boyfriend, Joel Bishop, had an interest in Jen,” Nell said. “Jen said the guy made her uncomfortable and she told Kyle about it, but he blew it off saying that was just how Joel was.”

  “Really?” Dani made a face of disgust. “I met Kyle McLeod a couple of times. I got the impression he was full of himself so I’m not surprised he didn’t take Jen’s concerns seriously. I don’t think that guy can see beyond the end of his nose.”

  As their conversation continued, Peter pulled to the curb in his police SUV and when he joined the young women at the table on the patio, he gave Dani a hug and a kiss before taking a seat and patting the dogs. “I found out some interesting information.”

  Three pairs of eyes were glued to Peter’s face as he leaned forward and kept his voice down. “It seems two people had life insurance policies on Jennifer Harding.”

  “Two people?” Nell asked in surprise. “Who are they?”

  “Jennifer’s sister, Mari, and her fiancé, Kyle McLeod,” Peter revealed.

  “People can take out life insurance policies on anyone they want to?” Dani asked.

  “You can take out life insurance on someone, but you have to have an insurable interest in that person,” Peter explained.

  “What does that mean?” Violet asked.

  “It means that a person would experience financial loss or hardship if the insured person died,” Peter said as he lifted the mug of coffee that one of Dani’s employees brought over to him.

  “Because Kyle and Jennifer were living together and engaged to be married, I can see how that would qualify him to take out a policy on Jen,” Nell said. “But what about Mari? What interest would she have on her sister’s life?”

  “Before getting divorced, it seems Mari and her husband separated for a time, and during that time, Mari and Jennifer bought a house together. They also own an interest in their parents’ company so there were financial interests in each other’s lives.”

  “Did Jennifer have life insurance policies on Kyle and Mari?” Dani questioned.

  “She did, yes.”

  “How much were the policies on Jennifer worth?” Violet asked.

  Peter said, “Kyle holds a policy on Jennifer worth a half million dollars. Mari Harding’s policy on her sister is worth four hundred thousand dollars.”

  “Sheesh. That’s a heck of a lot of money,” Dani shook her head. “That’s a lot of financial incentive to get rid of someone.”

  “Do policies cover accidental death?” Nell asked.

  “They do.”

  “What about homicides?” Violet asked.

  “In both policies, homicide is covered … unless the beneficiary is the one who committed the crime.” Peter took a bite of his bagel with cream cheese.

  “Does this make Kyle or Mari suspects?” Dani asked.

  “They were suspects before we found out about the life insurance policies,” Peter said. “But because they hold life insurance policies on Jennifer, we’ll take an even closer look at them.” The detective finished his food and then looked to Nell. “Ready to go?”

  With a nod, Nell stood, gathered her bag, and said to her sister, “I’ll see you at the shop in a couple of hours.”

  On the drive to Lindsey Horn’s house, Nell asked, “How long have Mari and Kyle held those life insurance policies on Jennifer?”

  “Mari took hers out about three years ago and Kyle took his out last year.” Peter pulled up in front of a neat brick townhouse and they got out and went to the front door to ring the bell.

  Lindsey Horn, the friend of Kyle McLeod who rode to the state park with Jennifer and Kyle on the morning of Jennifer’s death, opened the door. With long wavy black hair, big blue eyes, and a slim, but curvy physique, twenty-seven-year-old Lindsey wore tight jeans and a low-cut red shirt that emphasized her chest. She smiled brightly at the detective, but seemed disappointed to see Nell accompanying him.

  When they made introductions and took seats on the light blue and white sofas in the nicely-decorated living room, the three made small talk until Peter began the interview.

  Nell could see bright pink and yellow colors flowing off of Lindsey and she interpreted them as the woman’s flirtatious interest in Peter.

  “Kyle and Jennifer gave you a ride to the state park on the morning Jennifer fell?” Peter asked.

  “That’s right. I jogged over to Kyle’s house to meet them. It’s not far from where I live. Jen’s sister was coming out of the house when I got there. Mari was on her way to the park to do her training run.” When Lindsey lifted her heavy crystal glass full of water to her lips, Nell noticed the woman’s perfectly manicured long, dark red fingernails. “Joel Bishop was with us, too. He drove himself over to Kyle’s house. Joel teaches at the middle school with us. That’s how we all know each other. Except for Jen, she worked at the hospital. We met her through Kyle.”

  “What did you do once Kyle parked the car at the state park?”

  “Joel and I stretched for a while and Kyle and Jen went off for their hike. Joel and I like to run the park trails and then run back into town on the roads.”

  “How many miles do you usually do?” Nell asked.

  Lindsey reluctantly turned her attention to Nell. “It depends on the training plans. We average about fifteen miles on days like that. We ran fourteen that day. The air was kind of humid that morning. It made us a little sluggish.”

  “Did you see Jennifer or Kyle in the park after you went your separate ways?” Peter asked.

  “We didn’t.” When Lindsey shook her head, her black hair glistened as it moved over her shoulders. “I just can’t believe Jen fell from the cliff.”

  “Did you text with Kyle or Jen while you were running?” Peter asked.

  “No, we didn’t. We assumed that they were enjoying the hike. We didn’t know anything happened until several hours later.”

 
“Kyle didn’t text or call you to tell you that Jennifer had an accident?”

  “He didn’t. He must have been too distraught,” Lindsey offered.

  “You’ve known Kyle for a while?” Nell asked.

  “A few years. He’s a nice guy.”

  “You and Joel run together on a regular basis?” Peter questioned.

  “We do. We enjoy competing. We’ve done an Ironman and we’ve done a bunch of marathons.”

  “Are you and Joel a couple?” Nell asked the woman.

  Lindsey’s eyebrows rose up. “Gosh, no. Joel isn’t my type,” she said making eye contact with Peter. “We’re friends, training pals, work buddies. That’s all.”

  “Did you know Jennifer well?”

  Lindsey shook her head. “Not really. We’d get together in a group once in a while to socialize, but we weren’t friends or anything. Acquaintances would be how I’d describe it.”

  “Had Kyle mentioned anything about something being wrong? Maybe a run-in with someone? An argument or a problem with someone?” Peter asked.

  “No, nothing like that. Was he having a problem with someone?”

  “Not that we know of. We’re covering all the bases, that’s all.” Peter smiled.

  After another thirty minutes of discussion, the interview came to a close and when they stood up to leave, Nell said, “Your manicure is great. Where did you get it done?”

  Lindsey told her the name of the nail salon and she held out her left hand. “I have an appointment tomorrow. I should change the color to something lighter when I go back. I think this is too dark.”

  Nell observed the young woman’s right hand hanging by her side. “Oh, too bad, you broke a couple of nails.”

  “Yeah.” Lindsey looked down at her other hand. “They’ll fix it tomorrow.”

  On the way to the car, Peter said with a sly smile, “So you’re suddenly interested in getting a manicure?”

  “Yeah. I got interested right after I noticed Lindsey had two broken fingernails that she seemed like she wanted to hide.” Nell looked pointedly at Peter. “I wonder how she broke them.”

  9

  Peter and Nell met Joel Bishop in his classroom at the Hadwen Middle School. Thirty-year-old Joel was six feet tall with dark blond hair and brown eyes. He had strong-looking arms and shoulders, but a slim runner’s body. The young man had some cuts on his face and on his hands.

  He greeted the visitors with a warm smile and firm handshakes. “Come on in. I’m getting some work done before school starts up again in a few weeks. I don’t like to be rushed so I do a little each week. It gets me back in the swing of things.”

  “You teach chemistry?” Peter saw the chart of elements and the posters about changes in matter and the structure of matter.

  “For eight years. I love it. People told me I wouldn’t like teaching middle school, but I think it’s the best grades to teach. The kids change so much from sixth grade to eighth grade.” Joel gestured to the chairs near his desk and the three of them sat down. “I was horrified to hear about Jen.” The man’s eyes welled up. “How can I be of help?”

  Peter thanked Joel for speaking with them. “You and Lindsey Horn rode to the park with Kyle and Jennifer that morning?”

  “Yeah, we did. Lindsey and I like to run the state park trails. We usually do our trail run and then we run back to town on the roads.”

  “Is that what you did that day?” Nell asked.

  Joel nodded. “We ran the paths like we normally do.”

  “Did you go back to town by the roads?”

  “Yes.”

  “Were you together for the whole training run?” Peter asked.

  “Most of it,” Joel told them. “Lindsey and I decided to split up after we did the trails. She wanted to do another loop in the park, but I’d had enough so I headed back to town on my own.”

  “Had you both planned on doing the extra loop or was that a spur of the moment thing?”

  “No, we hadn’t planned the extra loop. While we were running, Lindsey decided she wanted to do more. She had lots of energy that morning. I don’t do well in humidity and as the morning went on, the humidity increased. I did what we planned to do, then I headed back to town.”

  “Is it unusual for you two to split up?” Nell asked.

  “Not really. We usually stay together, but on occasion, we change it up.”

  “Are you and Lindsey a couple?” Nell asked knowing full well that Joel and Lindsey were not romantically involved.

  Joel’s eyes widened. “Me and Lindsey? Certainly not. We’re friends and running partners, that’s all.” The man shook his head and smiled. “Lindsey and I are like oil and water. She’s a party girl, I’d rather get together with one or two friends. Lindsey loves to dress up and go out to a club or a nice restaurant, I’d rather pull on jeans and a button-down shirt and go out for pizza. She loves the flashy life. I like things more down to earth.”

  “Are you married?” Peter asked.

  “I’m single, never been married. Never found the right girl. Although, I haven’t given up hope yet.”

  “What about Lindsey?” Nell asked. “She’s not married either?”

  “She isn’t. Lindsey enjoys playing the field. She’s not ready to settle down with anyone yet.” Joel shrugged. “The guy she likes the most is taken.” He paused and blinked a couple of times. “Oh, he was taken.”

  Peter looked Joel in the eye. “You mean Kyle McLeod? Lindsey likes Kyle?”

  “She’d never admit it, but she’s always had a crush on Kyle. Actually, more than a crush. She fell hard for him a long time ago.”

  Peter changed the subject. “Did you know Jennifer well?”

  “I wouldn’t say well. We were friendly. Once in a while, we’d all go out somewhere together in a group. Jen was great. She had it all … beauty, brains, a terrific personality, always cheerful. She was great to be around.”

  “We heard Jen and Kyle were engaged,” Nell said. “They were planning their wedding.”

  “Yeah, they were. I think they’d decided on next August.”

  “We’ve also heard that Jennifer and Kyle might have been having a few relationship problems,” Nell noted.

  Joel’s face took on a serious expression. “I heard that, too.”

  “Did Kyle mention it to you?”

  Joel shifted in his seat looking uncomfortable. “He said a few things about Jen wanting too much from him. I didn’t want to hear about his relationship issues. I never asked anything about it. I didn’t encourage conversation about it.”

  “Was Kyle ever more explicit about what he meant?” Peter asked.

  “I didn’t want to talk to him about it.” Joel slowly shook his head. “I don’t know what Kyle had to complain about. Jen seemed as nice as could be. Sometimes I thought Kyle wasn’t so nice to Jen.”

  “Really?” Nell asked as she watched green and crimson-red colors float away from the man. Envy? Love? “Can you give us some examples?”

  Joel rubbed his chin. “It was little things. Kyle sometimes seemed impatient with Jen. He never seemed very affectionate with her. I saw her reach for his hand once and he batted it away. Kyle’s a nice guy, don’t get me wrong, but he’s very self-absorbed. I don’t think he takes any time to consider the other person. I think it’s all about what he needs and wants.” Joel leaned forward. “Don’t share what I just said with Kyle. I prefer to keep his friendship. It’s just his personality, he’s not mean or anything. Some people are like that … it’s all about them. We all know people like that.”

  Nell asked in a soft voice, “Did you like Jennifer?”

  Joel’s eyebrows went up. “Sure, I did. She was a nice person.”

  “I mean as more than a friend.”

  Joel’s cheeks flushed a little. “Like I said, I thought Jen was great. If she wasn’t with Kyle, I would have asked her out.”

  “Did you ever ask her out? Even though she was with Kyle?” Nell questioned.

  Jo
el straightened in his seat. “No, I wouldn’t do that. It would be disrespectful. If I was dating someone seriously, I wouldn’t appreciate it if someone asked my girlfriend out. That’s crossing a line.”

  “After you parted ways with Jennifer and Kyle on the morning of the accident, did you text with either Jennifer or Kyle while they were hiking?” Peter asked.

  “No. Lindsey and I were doing our run. We didn’t send any texts and we didn’t read any of our messages when we were running,” Joel said.

  “Did Kyle text to tell you about Jennifer’s fall?”

  Joel gave a nod. “In the late morning he did. Jen was still alive. He texted to tell me she’d had an accident in the park and he was hoping she’d be able to make a full recovery. I texted him and asked if there was anything I could do. In situations like that, there isn’t much you can do. I wished there was something I could have done to help.”

  “How long have you known Kyle?”

  “Oh, let’s see … about seven or eight years.”

  “Is Kyle happy with his job?”

  “I think so.”

  “Has he ever mentioned some feelings of discontent?”

  “Discontent? You mean with his work?”

  Peter nodded. “Yes, or anything else in his life?”

  Joel said, “We all complain at times.” Then the man let out a sigh. “I think Kyle is the kind of guy who would love to chuck his job and spend all his time hiking and traveling. He’s sort of a free spirit. I could never really see him as a husband, tied to a mortgage, tied to a routine. That’s not Kyle. It isn’t who he is. Maybe he thought he could play the part, but I don’t think he would have been successful at it.” Joel shrugged. “I think Jen would have gotten hurt if she married Kyle. I’m sorry to say it, but I’d bet money it wouldn’t have worked out.”

  Nell could see shimmery blue particles surrounding Joel. Blue? Truth? It seemed that Joel was being honest with them about his doubt that Kyle would be able to manage marriage. In the next instant, Nell recalled Jennifer’s friend, Fiona. “Do you know Fiona Locke?” Nell asked.