Chapter 26

Nettie could have no idea that the murderer, hadn't been on sight when the deed was done, that it had been a setup, a trap laid for the unsuspecting Mrs. Davis. So when the cops showed up not long after she made up her mind to do what she must.

No one had to know that she'd been the one to do it; she'd get their word that they'll keep her name out of it, or else she wouldn't tell them what she knew. But she for one was hoping to get the whole ordeal over and done with, put it behind them.

Niall had awakened feeling a bit under the weather so the last thing he wanted to see before he even said hello to his kids was the cops at his door. "Look officers, I've had a rough night, and I'd like to spend some time with my children. If you want to see me again contact my attorney."

Detective Sparks knew those words meant she had no recourse but to turn around and go back the way she came. It didn't matter what she'd come here to say, once the person invoked their rights, whether they'd been placed under arrest or she just had a few questions, everything had to stop as soon as those words were put into play.

She was surprised though when Ms. Nettie the housekeeper caught up with her at the car door. "Pssst!" The way the older woman kept looking back over her shoulder it was obvious she didn't want to be seen talking to them, so Detective Sparks didn't waste any time getting her to a blind spot beside the house and out of the line of prying eyes.

"Here, I found this when I took some of her things to the cleaners last week. I knew what it was when I saw it because my daddy used to have one just like it when I was a little girl."

"What is it?" Detective Sparks turned the key over in her hand."

"It's a key to a safety deposit box. They haven't changed those things in over fifty years see. If you look real close you'll see the number written on top." Detective Sparks squinted and sure enough there were three numbers etched into the old key that felt like it weighed a ton.

"Thank you very much for this MS. Nettie."

"It's not for you it's for him. I figure the sooner you get to the bottom of this, the better, then he and those kids can go on with their lives." She huffed and looked around as if expecting to see someone.

"We live in a small town; I know I don't have to tell you how much damage gossip can do to a body. Whatever she's done she's gone now, but Mr. Niall and those babies still have to live here. It's best we get this thing behind us before any more tongues get to wagging." And with that Ms. Nettie turned and walked back inside.

***

"Well that was a complete waste of time." Officer Bailey grumbled when they got back into the car.

"Not necessarily Pete." Detective Sparks put the car in gear and headed back to town.

The bank was only open half a day today and Monday was a holiday. She wasn't taking any chances that something would stand in the way of her getting into that safety deposit box today.

"Well, it's like this; I've already started putting the pieces together in my head and the key Ms. Nettie just gave me just might be the one thing I need to gain access to the answers."

"Are you going to tell me about the DNA?"

"Oh that, I almost forgot. It's hers and his."

"What, but that doesn't make any sense." She nodded her head. "On the cigarette butts and the blanket. Mr. and Mrs. Davis' DNA is the only thing that we found."

"I don't understand!"

"I do, I'll explain it to you later." She called Andy who'd come in today only because he too was now more determined than ever to crack the passcode on Sonya Davis' phone.

"I haven't got it yet but I'm hopeful. I got my hands on a new piece of equipment that's supposed to crack encryptions. I only have it until Tuesday so I'm going to be working on this baby all day. Can't talk now detective." She looked at the dead phone in her hand and shook her head.

"He didn't let me get a word in edgewise." She couldn't be mad at him since she liked what he had to say. As she pulled up to the bank she thought of the legalities of what she was about to do. She was playing it a bit close since she was sure Ms. Nettie wasn't the cosigner of the box, but on the other hand she wasn't breaking in so didn't need a warrant.

The key had been given to her without her even asking so there was no reason why she shouldn't use it. Plus she had the sneaky suspicion that Niall Davis wouldn't mind once she found what she was hoping to.

She walked into the bank and headed to the front desk. "Good morning, I need to get into safety deposit box number nine twenty-three." She showed the woman the key but didn't identify herself as a cop just in case there was an issue.

She'd left officer Bailey in the car for just this reason as well. Since the key had been given to her she saw no reason why she shouldn't use it, and because she was sure her reasoning would hold up in a court of law since she hadn't pressured the housekeeper to give her the key, and didn't even know the woman had one.

The lady behind the desk didn't ask her any questions which is exactly what she wanted as she lead her to the back and into the vault where the boxes were kept. "I'll leave you to it then, once you're done please make sure you lock it."

She turned and left, leaving Detective Sparks to open the box herself with the key she'd been given. Her hand shook with excitement as she put the key in the hole and it turned. Her heart raced when she saw the thin leather volume that she was sure before she held it in her gloved hand was a journal. "Yes!"

She closed up the safety deposit box and put the journal in an evidence bag before removing the gloves she'd put on after the other lady had left. She walked out of the bank and into the car with no real expression on her face.

"Find anything?"

"Yes, I think this case is about to take a turn for the better." She lifted the journal in its protective bag from beneath her jacket and put the key in the ignition. She was almost tempted to let him drive them back to the station so she could dive right in, but there was no point in cracking the case if she were dead; the boy can't drive.

***

Niall didn't see his housekeeper go outside after the cops and he wasn't interested. Last night he'd had an epiphany and this morning had awakened with a new outlook on life. He was more inclined now than he had been two days ago to believe that his wife had indeed been having an affair.

Though he hadn't been back to town since leaving the bank on Thursday, he was well aware of what the whole town was saying. He'd seen it in the mailman's eyes yesterday morning, had sensed something when Riley came over to see him.

He was still struggling with the idea that it was his friend, the man who'd lent him a shoulder to lean on that she'd been having the affair with, but stranger things have happened. He was now imagining that the other man had used his weaknesses, everything that he'd shared with him, to get his wife into his bed.

He sat at his kitchen table across from his children, mad at the world and wanting his pound of flesh. To be betrayed by one of them was bad enough, but a betrayal by two people he'd trusted was more than he could bear. Had they been laughing at him?

His mind went to the last dinner they'd shared together as couples and as he thought of that night something tickled the edges of his mind. Something that was as elusive as a lot of things has been lately; something that no matter how hard he tried he couldn't bring into focus.

The nanny smiled at him; what was her name again? Bridgette! Yes, not a bad looking girl. He found it odd that he'd never really noticed her before. But then again, with Sonya around, he'd never noticed anyone else.

She'd been his world his everything and he'd always thought that he and the children were hers. Now he smiled back at the nanny. Why not? If Sonya had been out there fucking around what's to stop him doing it now that she was gone?

Bridgette wondered if he'd woken up this morning and realized that last night hadn't been a dream after all and that's why he was smiling at her now. She felt herself relax at the thought. When she woke up this morning she'd been afraid that she'd gone too far and was worried about the consequences if he did come to his senses and realized that it was she who'd been in his bed the night before.