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Authors: J. A. Jance
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involved in what happened.”
Parental denial is pretty much standard the world over. “Whatever it was, my kid (or grandkid) didn’t do it. Couldn’t possibly have done it!”
Next Mel retrieved the bag containing the scarf and handed it over.
“We found the scarf in his bedroom,” Mel said quietly. “It was concealed between Josh’s mattress and the box spring. Josh claims it was placed inside his locker at school without his knowledge.”
“That isn’t necessarily the same scarf,” Gerry argued, handing it back.
Mel smiled at him before returning the scarf to the box. “Believe me, Mr. Willis,” she said. “We’re going to make every effort to determine if this is the same scarf.”
“Where’s Josh now?” Gerry asked.
“He’s upstairs with his attorney, Mr. McCarthy,” Mel said. “Your wife saw fit to—”
Gerry turned a disbelieving eye on Marsha. “Does that mean you’ve hired Garvin to be Josh’s defense attorney?”
“He’s good,” Marsha said quickly. “He’s very good.”
“He’s also very expensive.”
Marsha nodded. “He is that, but you need to go back to bed now, Gerry. It’s four o’clock. It’s time for your medication—the one you’re supposed to take with food.”
“I’m not going back to bed,” Gerry said determinedly. “I need to think. If you’ll bring the meds, I’ll take them here.”
Looking depleted, Marsha Longmire stood up. Right that minute she was a long way from being Governor Longmire.
“I’ll go make some sandwiches for everyone, then,” she said. She turned to Mel and me. “Is tuna on whole wheat okay?”
I remembered then that we hadn’t had lunch.
“Sure,” I said. “Tuna would be great.”
I should have thought that the governor would have a cook at her beck and call. There’s a good reason I don’t play poker. Most of the time the expressions on my face are a dead giveaway. That’s what happened this time, too.
“Today is the chef’s day off, and we’ve had to cut back on her helper’s hours. So on Mondays Gerry usually cooks. Not at the moment, however, so you’ll have to settle for what he likes to call my burnt offerings.”
For the first time I saw a look of genuine affection pass between the governor and the First Husband.
“You’re not such a terrible cook,” Gerry said. “I don’t think anyone is going to starve.”
Marsha smiled gamely. Since we had been turned into inadvertent guests who were evidently going to be there for a while, she must have decided that a bit of hospitality was in order.
“What would you like to drink?”
“It’s summer,” I said. “Iced tea if you’ve got it.”
Marsha turned to Mel. “And for you?”
“Iced tea would be great.”
As Marsha walked past her husband’s wheelchair, she gave Gerry a breezy buss on the top of his balding head. Once she disappeared through an open doorway that led into an immense dining room, Gerry Willis immediately turned to us.
“How much do you know about my grandson?” he asked.
Whenever possible, it’s always a good idea to let the subjects of interviews ask and answer their own questions. A lot of times they’ll blurt out exactly what you need to know. Or, by carefully avoiding a topic, they’ll still give themselves away.
“Not much,” I admitted with a shrug.
“This is a second marriage for Marsha and me,” Gerry explained. “We met at a party for lobbyists while Marsha was still in the state legislature. My wife died years ago in a car accident in eastern Washington. Marsha was divorced, amicably so. Sid, her ex, works as a lobbyist for the Master Builders Association. He and Marsha have a joint custody agreement that has gone surprisingly smoothly. It turns out their relationship was a lot better after they were divorced than while they were married.
“Marsha and I got married within a matter of months before she started campaigning for governor the first time. Lucy, my first wife, and I married young.
Parental denial is pretty much standard the world over. “Whatever it was, my kid (or grandkid) didn’t do it. Couldn’t possibly have done it!”
Next Mel retrieved the bag containing the scarf and handed it over.
“We found the scarf in his bedroom,” Mel said quietly. “It was concealed between Josh’s mattress and the box spring. Josh claims it was placed inside his locker at school without his knowledge.”
“That isn’t necessarily the same scarf,” Gerry argued, handing it back.
Mel smiled at him before returning the scarf to the box. “Believe me, Mr. Willis,” she said. “We’re going to make every effort to determine if this is the same scarf.”
“Where’s Josh now?” Gerry asked.
“He’s upstairs with his attorney, Mr. McCarthy,” Mel said. “Your wife saw fit to—”
Gerry turned a disbelieving eye on Marsha. “Does that mean you’ve hired Garvin to be Josh’s defense attorney?”
“He’s good,” Marsha said quickly. “He’s very good.”
“He’s also very expensive.”
Marsha nodded. “He is that, but you need to go back to bed now, Gerry. It’s four o’clock. It’s time for your medication—the one you’re supposed to take with food.”
“I’m not going back to bed,” Gerry said determinedly. “I need to think. If you’ll bring the meds, I’ll take them here.”
Looking depleted, Marsha Longmire stood up. Right that minute she was a long way from being Governor Longmire.
“I’ll go make some sandwiches for everyone, then,” she said. She turned to Mel and me. “Is tuna on whole wheat okay?”
I remembered then that we hadn’t had lunch.
“Sure,” I said. “Tuna would be great.”
I should have thought that the governor would have a cook at her beck and call. There’s a good reason I don’t play poker. Most of the time the expressions on my face are a dead giveaway. That’s what happened this time, too.
“Today is the chef’s day off, and we’ve had to cut back on her helper’s hours. So on Mondays Gerry usually cooks. Not at the moment, however, so you’ll have to settle for what he likes to call my burnt offerings.”
For the first time I saw a look of genuine affection pass between the governor and the First Husband.
“You’re not such a terrible cook,” Gerry said. “I don’t think anyone is going to starve.”
Marsha smiled gamely. Since we had been turned into inadvertent guests who were evidently going to be there for a while, she must have decided that a bit of hospitality was in order.
“What would you like to drink?”
“It’s summer,” I said. “Iced tea if you’ve got it.”
Marsha turned to Mel. “And for you?”
“Iced tea would be great.”
As Marsha walked past her husband’s wheelchair, she gave Gerry a breezy buss on the top of his balding head. Once she disappeared through an open doorway that led into an immense dining room, Gerry Willis immediately turned to us.
“How much do you know about my grandson?” he asked.
Whenever possible, it’s always a good idea to let the subjects of interviews ask and answer their own questions. A lot of times they’ll blurt out exactly what you need to know. Or, by carefully avoiding a topic, they’ll still give themselves away.
“Not much,” I admitted with a shrug.
“This is a second marriage for Marsha and me,” Gerry explained. “We met at a party for lobbyists while Marsha was still in the state legislature. My wife died years ago in a car accident in eastern Washington. Marsha was divorced, amicably so. Sid, her ex, works as a lobbyist for the Master Builders Association. He and Marsha have a joint custody agreement that has gone surprisingly smoothly. It turns out their relationship was a lot better after they were divorced than while they were married.
“Marsha and I got married within a matter of months before she started campaigning for governor the first time. Lucy, my first wife, and I married young.
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