Read Online Old Loves Die Hard (A Mac Faraday Mystery) by Lauren Carr - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Lauren Carr
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deserves it,” Mac said. “He’s a good guy.”
“Well, according to my sources,” Natasha said, “Hunter decided on Stephen Maguire. It wasn’t official and he hadn’t announced it yet. I guess now that Stephen is dead, he’ll be falling back to number two.”
“Christine’s sister, Roxanne,” Mac noted.
The judge jumped back into the conversation with the question, “If Boris Hunter gets appointed attorney general and Vance is judge of the criminal court, then who’ll take Hunter’s place?”
Mac’s and Archie’s faces were blank. Even Gnarly’s expression was questioning.
Natasha said, “Not Vance. He’s got what he’s always wanted. He’s not going to step down from judgeship to take Hunter’s old job.”
Archie looked over at Mac. “Stephen Maguire?”
Tapping his hand on imaginary steps on the coffee table, Garrison told them, “Stephen Maguire was looking to go from criminal prosecutor straight into the seat of U.S. Attorney.”
Mac pointed out, “That’s a really big jump for a prosecutor who didn’t have a very good conviction record.”
“But Stephen figured out a way to do it,” Natasha said. “He was investigating wrongdoing in the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Once he got his evidence, he was going to go public with it. He’d smuggled out some case files. Hunter sent Hamilton Sanders, Maguire’s assistant, here to get them back. He’s probably at the police station right now.”
“Evidence of what wrongdoing?” Mac wanted to know.
“That I don’t know,” she said, “I only know that he was planning to make a big media splash by exposing or insinuating unethical, or maybe downright illegal, dealings in the prosecutor’s office to get his name and face out there. Then he planned to ride that media wave to get appointed U.S. Attorney for D.C.”
“But if he found something dirty and went public with it, wouldn’t that ruin Hunter’s chances of getting appointed attorney general?” Archie asked.
“Yeah!” Natasha said. “But Stephen didn’t care about that.”
“The way Maguire saw it, he could win either way, whether Hunter got the appointment or not,” explained Garrison.
Mac said, “If Maguire was onto something and the man who had put him on the fast track got wind of it—”
“Which he did,” Natasha smirked.
“You sold him out and warned Hunter,” Mac said.
“Stephen did nothing to earn my loyalty.” She pointed out, “It wasn’t a week later that someone slipped arsenic into his champagne at a retirement party for Judge Anderson at the Chase Club.”
Archie wanted to know, “How do we know you weren’t the one who slipped it to him? Were you at that party?”
“Yes, I was there, but I had no reason to want him dead.” She glanced at Gnarly as if to tell him that she wanted him dead.
“What were you doing Saturday night?” Mac asked her. “Were you here at Deep Creek Lake?”
“I won’t dignify that question with an answer,” she replied forcefully. “For one thing, you’re not even a cop anymore. You have no right to treat me like a murder suspect.”
“You came to me,” Mac reminded her. “I doubt if you drove all the way out here from Washington only to give me your condolences.”
“Half of the attorney’s office was at that party,” she scoffed, “people who I just told you Maguire had been investigating.”
“Where were you while your husband was being killed?” Archie demanded to know.
“She was with me,” Garrison answered in a bored tone. He asked Natasha, “Why do you have to make everything so hard?” He went on to tell them, “Yes, we’ve been in the area since the Thursday before the murder. Purely coincidence. Natasha and I are staying at the Carmel Cove Inn, a favorite little bed and breakfast we like to visit in the autumn. We checked in Thursday afternoon. We were already here in Deep Creek Lake when we got the call from the police.” He responded to Natasha’s glare by telling her,
“Well, according to my sources,” Natasha said, “Hunter decided on Stephen Maguire. It wasn’t official and he hadn’t announced it yet. I guess now that Stephen is dead, he’ll be falling back to number two.”
“Christine’s sister, Roxanne,” Mac noted.
The judge jumped back into the conversation with the question, “If Boris Hunter gets appointed attorney general and Vance is judge of the criminal court, then who’ll take Hunter’s place?”
Mac’s and Archie’s faces were blank. Even Gnarly’s expression was questioning.
Natasha said, “Not Vance. He’s got what he’s always wanted. He’s not going to step down from judgeship to take Hunter’s old job.”
Archie looked over at Mac. “Stephen Maguire?”
Tapping his hand on imaginary steps on the coffee table, Garrison told them, “Stephen Maguire was looking to go from criminal prosecutor straight into the seat of U.S. Attorney.”
Mac pointed out, “That’s a really big jump for a prosecutor who didn’t have a very good conviction record.”
“But Stephen figured out a way to do it,” Natasha said. “He was investigating wrongdoing in the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Once he got his evidence, he was going to go public with it. He’d smuggled out some case files. Hunter sent Hamilton Sanders, Maguire’s assistant, here to get them back. He’s probably at the police station right now.”
“Evidence of what wrongdoing?” Mac wanted to know.
“That I don’t know,” she said, “I only know that he was planning to make a big media splash by exposing or insinuating unethical, or maybe downright illegal, dealings in the prosecutor’s office to get his name and face out there. Then he planned to ride that media wave to get appointed U.S. Attorney for D.C.”
“But if he found something dirty and went public with it, wouldn’t that ruin Hunter’s chances of getting appointed attorney general?” Archie asked.
“Yeah!” Natasha said. “But Stephen didn’t care about that.”
“The way Maguire saw it, he could win either way, whether Hunter got the appointment or not,” explained Garrison.
Mac said, “If Maguire was onto something and the man who had put him on the fast track got wind of it—”
“Which he did,” Natasha smirked.
“You sold him out and warned Hunter,” Mac said.
“Stephen did nothing to earn my loyalty.” She pointed out, “It wasn’t a week later that someone slipped arsenic into his champagne at a retirement party for Judge Anderson at the Chase Club.”
Archie wanted to know, “How do we know you weren’t the one who slipped it to him? Were you at that party?”
“Yes, I was there, but I had no reason to want him dead.” She glanced at Gnarly as if to tell him that she wanted him dead.
“What were you doing Saturday night?” Mac asked her. “Were you here at Deep Creek Lake?”
“I won’t dignify that question with an answer,” she replied forcefully. “For one thing, you’re not even a cop anymore. You have no right to treat me like a murder suspect.”
“You came to me,” Mac reminded her. “I doubt if you drove all the way out here from Washington only to give me your condolences.”
“Half of the attorney’s office was at that party,” she scoffed, “people who I just told you Maguire had been investigating.”
“Where were you while your husband was being killed?” Archie demanded to know.
“She was with me,” Garrison answered in a bored tone. He asked Natasha, “Why do you have to make everything so hard?” He went on to tell them, “Yes, we’ve been in the area since the Thursday before the murder. Purely coincidence. Natasha and I are staying at the Carmel Cove Inn, a favorite little bed and breakfast we like to visit in the autumn. We checked in Thursday afternoon. We were already here in Deep Creek Lake when we got the call from the police.” He responded to Natasha’s glare by telling her,
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