Leann Sweeney - The Cat, the Wife and the Weapon

Merlot sat in the middle of the living room, a silent observer of this tense human interaction. Syrah went to his scratching post near the entertainment center to sharpen his nails and, I decided, to convey his lack of interest in this gathering. That didn’t mean he was disinterested, just that he wanted us—or should I say Yoshi—to think so.

The little dog was trembling. Too many strangers for him, it would seem.

“How’s the head?” Tom brushed aside a lock of Finn’s sandy hair to examine the cut and bruise on his forehead.

“Ouch,” Candace said. “How did that happen?”

“I told you last night—or was it this morning?—he doesn’t remember,” Tom said through gritted teeth.

Uh-oh, I thought. The last thing we needed was for Tom to get tense and overprotective right now. I looked at Candace when I said, “Finn’s probably hungry, and though I know you have lots of questions, maybe we can get some food in this guy first?”

“Sorry,” Candace said. “You’re right. Guess I was hoping Finn recalled more details now that he’s had some rest.”

“I don’t get it. Details about me coming here?” Finn looked at Tom. “Tell me what’s going on. I left home, sure. And I didn’t tell my mother. It’s not a crime.”

He thought this was about him leaving home. I wanted the poor kid sitting down when he heard the news this wasn’t about running away. I said, “You’re right, Finn. It’s not a crime. Before we talk about why these people are here, you need to sit down, maybe eat something.” I glanced around the room. “Is that okay with the rest of you?”

Liam nodded and Candace said, “Sure.”

Tom led Finn, who still clutched his dog tightly, to the sofa.

“Tom makes some mean peanut butter toast,” I said. “What about something to drink? There’s fresh coffee, but—”

“No Dr Pepper, I guess?” Finn said as he and the dog settled back on the couch.

“Sorry,” I said, watching from the corner of my eye as Liam and Candace took the chairs opposite the sofa. “After we’re done talking, I intend to fix that problem.”

Finn gave a small smile. “Milk is cool.”

Liam said, “Your dog’s name is unusual, but it sounds familiar.”

Finn told him about the little dragon in the Mario Brothers game and Liam smiled.

“I used to love playing Mario Brothers,” Liam said.

While they talked about video games, I could tell by Candace’s tapping foot and her grip on the chair’s arms that she was getting impatient. But to her credit, she allowed the guys to bond a little.

After Finn had his toast and milk and we were all on our third round of coffee, Tom took a deep breath and said, “These folks coming here? It’s about Nolan, not about you leaving home.”

“Oh, yeah? What’s with him?” He bit into the toast.

“He died yesterday,” Tom said quietly.

Finn’s eyes widened in surprise and he quickly swallowed his food. “But he’s, like, younger than you, Tom. Did he get sick or something?”

“Someone killed him,” Tom said.

“Wow.” Finn blinked several times and repeated, “Wow.”

Yoshi, who’d been curled up next to Finn, sat up and nuzzled Finn’s neck and began licking his face again. This was certainly a perceptive dog. Almost as perceptive as a cat.

“We know you were injured yesterday,” Candace said. “We understand you can’t remember part of the day. Do you recollect seeing Nolan at all?”

“Easy question. Since Nolan’s in North Carolina and—”

“He came here ,” Tom said. “Probably looking for you.”

“Nolan died in this town?” If Finn had been surprised before, he now seemed stunned.

Candace leaned toward Finn, her hands between her knees. She spoke reassuringly when she said, “Finn, do you remember being in Tom’s car yesterday?”

Finn looked up at me. “Tom’s car? No way. I was in Mrs. Hart’s van. She can tell you. She and Tom picked me up. I saw a white car in Tom’s driveway when we got to his house. Is that the car you’re talking about?”

Tom went into protective mode again, saying, “Like I tried to tell you back at the station, he’s never even seen my car before.”

Candace ignored Tom, her focus remaining on Finn. “Sounds like you remember part of yesterday, which is good. But there’s a big problem and it’s bothering me. I was told there was a gun in your backpack.”

“Oh yeah. That was, like, so weird. I have no clue where the gun came from.” Finn went silent then, his expression changing. A realization was taking hold. He slowly put his unfinished toast on the coffee table, wrapped his arms around Yoshi and drew him close. “Nolan was shot, wasn’t he? And you think I did it.”

Candace said, “We aren’t sure what happened. We’re just gathering information.”

Liam added, “The police have a job to do, Finn. They need to find out what happened to Nolan. Anything you can remember might just help us straighten out this mess.”

“I didn’t see Nolan. At least I don’t think I did.” He stopped and I saw uncertainty on his face. He couldn’t remember.

Finn went on, saying, “I came to this place to be with someone who gives a rat’s ass about me. Tom said I could come anytime I wanted.” Finn stared straight at Liam. “You want to know what I remember? I remember how Nolan treated me. And I’m not sorry he’s dead.”

Oh boy. Not the best choice of words when the police had reason to suspect him of a crime. I was sitting on the floor with Merlot, whose keen interest in Yoshi had not waned, and my body tensed after Finn said this. My cat’s claws dug into my knees and then retracted in response to my body language. Merlot looked up at me with concern.

Tom’s uneasiness was evident, as well, and he said, “You didn’t kill him, though. No matter what you can or cannot remember, I know you didn’t.”

Candace said, “Maybe we should let Finn talk.”

Finn raised his chin. “Tom’s right. I may have hated Nolan, but I wouldn’t kill him. I wouldn’t kill anyone.”

I believed him and I hoped Candace felt the sincerity that seemed so evident to me. I said, “The doctor said you will never remember parts of yesterday.” I glanced around at the people in the room. “You can check with the doctor if you want, but those were his words. It doesn’t mean Finn hurt anyone during that period of time. Concussions don’t change who he is.”

“You can take that to the bank, Candace,” Tom said. “This is a good kid who had the courage to leave a bad situation.”

Candace said, “I understand. Doesn’t change the fact we need answers. A man has still been murdered, and I need to find his killer. If Finn can’t remember anything, I need to do more investigating, find out if anyone saw Finn during the hours he seems to have lost. I sure as heck want to find out how he got the head injury.”

Liam stood, and Candace followed his lead. He said, “I think we’re done here. You’ve had a long trip, Finn. So far, we don’t have any evidence indicating you harmed your stepfather, so don’t—”

“ Stepfather ? I never called him anything that included the word father . He was just Nolan.” Finn paused before saying, “Does my mother know what happened to him?”

Candace nodded. “She’s on her way from North Carolina.”

Finn hung his head. “Great. Just great.”

“It’s okay,” I said. “Maybe you won’t have to see her.”

Liam said, “Tom, we need the gun. Should Candace get a warrant, or will you hand it over?”

Tom’s jaw tightened. “I said I’d cooperate as long as you give this kid a chance. He’s not your bad guy.” Tom’s gaze hadn’t wavered from Finn. He sounded more than a little testy, and I noted that his eyes were still bloodshot. He hadn’t gotten any rest last night aside from the nap he mentioned—or in the nights before when he was trapped in North Carolina, for that matter.