Chapter Twenty-Five
Girlfriend numbers two’s life was in stark contrast to Brittany Smithers. Alexa Lansford was clearly living the high life if her home was any indication. The house could honestly be called a mansion and the cars parked in front of it were decidedly expensive and European. It looked like Danny had diverse tastes when it came to females.
“I’d say she might have the money but two hundred thousand would be a drop in the bucket here,” Presley said as they exited the truck. “That’s probably just what they pay the gardener.”
“This is big money,” Seth agreed, eyeing the impressive facade. “I doubt a hundred grand would be anything that would excite them but you never know. Maybe she wanted it for a shopping trip.”
Presley gave him a sour look. “Not all women like to shop. Stop stereotyping.”
“Fine, maybe she wanted to give it to widows and orphans. And puppies.”
Huffing, Presley led the way to the front door. “You’re so cynical sometimes.”
“That’s what you love about me. Now we’re just going to tell the truth, right? Just lay it all on the line?”
He and Presley had gone back and forth during the drive here but he didn’t like subterfuge if he could help it. Better to be up front and honest from the first moment. If Alexa Lansford didn’t want to talk to them that was certainly her right.
But he hoped that she would.
Presley rang the doorbell and waited, her more patiently than Seth. After talking to Brittany he was more anxious than ever to talk to Lansford. Perhaps she knew where the fishing cabin was located. It was a long shot. No, make that a long-long shot because Danny would have needed help to get the money to the cabin, but it was worth a look. It was their only lead in a vast sea of nothingness. If they could find it.
The door opened and a pretty woman in her mid-thirties stood there. Auburn hair, green eyes, nice figure. If this was Alexa, Danny had good taste and clearly over-achieved with women.
“Can I help you?”
She probably thought they were selling something or wanted to talk about politics or religion. He pulled his badge out of his pocket and held it up for her inspection. It tended to add credibility in situations like this.
“Hello, I’m Sheriff Seth Reilly from Harper and this is my wife Presley. Are you Alexa Lansford?”
She nodded, puzzlement in her eyes. “I am.”
“We were hoping you might have a moment to talk to us…about Danny Harbaugh.”
The woman glanced nervously over her shoulder.
“My husband is at work so I suppose it would be okay. Is Danny in trouble again?”
Seth didn’t answer and neither did Presley as they entered the palatial home, all dark oak and marble floors. Alexa led them to a sitting room off the foyer, waving toward a couch where they could sit down.
She remained standing, hovering uncertainly. “Can I get you anything…?”
Seth shook his head. “We’re fine. We’d just like to talk to you for a few minutes, if that’s okay.”
Alexa smiled and perched on the edge of a chair across from them, her hands folded neatly in her lap. “I haven’t heard Danny’s name in years. Was he arrested again?”
Seth and Presley exchanged a worried glance. Alexa seemed much more concerned about Danny’s well-being than Brittany had. But he’d decided to tell the truth.
“Actually, Danny is dead,” Seth replied gently. “Not long ago. About a week.”
Alexa’s eyes widened and her hand flew to her mouth in shock. “Oh my God. What happened?”
“An explosion,” Presley said. “It was an accident. When was the last time you saw or heard from Danny?”
Eyes bright with tears, Alexa took a moment before answering. “It’s been years. Even before he was arrested and sent to prison. We broke up…”
Alexa’s voice dropped and she seemed to have trouble finishing her thought.
“And?” Presley prompted. “You and Danny ended things?”
Exhaling slowly, Alexa nodded. “We had to. I had started seeing Danny when my husband and I were separated for awhile. I met him when my car had a flat tire and I was waiting for the auto club. Danny stopped and helped me and we just started talking, I guess. When Garth and I decided to give things one more try, well, of course I ended things with Danny immediately.”
Danny playing the good Samaritan? Interesting. Alexa was lucky she was pretty, because if she hadn’t been she might have found herself robbed instead of helped.
“How long were you seeing Danny?” Presley queried, her expression sympathetic. Seth was happy to leave this questioning to his wife.
“About three months.” Alexa leaned forward, her expression earnest. “Listen, I know that Danny wasn’t completely truthful with me all the time but he was fun and unpredictable. At that point in my life I needed someone who wanted to have a good time and didn’t want some sort of commitment. Danny fit the bill.” Alexa smiled at the memories. “He was pretty wild and he was just what I needed then. He was so full of life. We went dancing and drinking and listened to bands. It’s hard to believe that he’s gone.”
This Danny sure sounded different than the one Brittany described or the one that Seth had seen in the courtroom.
“And when you ended the relationship, you never talked or saw him again? Not even phone calls or maybe a text?”
“No, it was a clean break. We decided it would be better that way.”
Presley snuck a glance at Seth before continuing on. “When you and Danny were together, did he ever talk about a fishing cabin that he liked to visit? Perhaps you went there with him?”
Seth held his breath waiting for her reply. If she answered yes it would make his life so much easier.
“He did but I never went there. I’m not much into fishing but he went alone a few times. He loved that cabin.” Alexa frowned and fidgeted in her seat. “I’m not sure how all of this is helping you. What are you trying to find out exactly?”
Disappointment crashed through him but it was quickly followed by determination. He’d find another way.
Seth cleared his throat. “When Danny was apprehended the money from the bank heist was missing. We’re still looking for it and we thought you might know of somewhere he felt comfortable enough to have hid it. Or maybe someone he trusted enough to hold it for him?”
“He never mentioned anyone that he trusted. Not really, but I suppose he might have trusted Eric.”
Eric? Now this was interesting.
Rubbing his jaw, Seth tried to be as delicate as possible. “Just what did Danny tell you about himself, Mrs. Lansford?”
“He was divorced and in business with his brother. They were close as his parents had died in a tragic car accident when they were young. He liked sports and his dream was to see the Super Bowl in person. Of course I knew that half of it was probably a lie but it didn’t matter one way or the other. We had fun and that’s all I cared about. I wasn’t going to marry him or anything.”
“Divorced?” Presley choked out. “And in business with Eric? Did you ever meet Danny’s brother?”
“Once or twice. He seemed like a nice person.”
What a tangled web Danny had weaved. One woman who hated him and one who liked him but didn’t believe a word out of his mouth. Plus Eric might have been closer to his brother than they’d been led to believe.
Just what was the truth?
* * * *
Presley hummed as she cooked dinner, her spirits up despite their mixed bag of answers from Danny’s girlfriends today. They had even more unanswered questions now than they’d had this morning but they had learned a few new things, too.
That Danny was a little bit of a chameleon and Eric Harbaugh might have more going on than they’d thought, if anything Alexa had been told was real. Both Presley and Seth had assumed the private eye was telling the truth – and he may have been, as much as he was aware – but clearly there was another story if Alexa Lansford was correct in saying that Eric and Danny were close.
It was still strange though, that if that was the case why didn’t Eric know where the money was? Had Danny told him one location and then hid it somewhere else? His cellmate said that Danny didn’t trust anyone but Alexa had a different point of view. But then she thought that Danny was fun and harmless, so perhaps her perception of events couldn’t be relied on.
But all of that wasn’t the reason Presley was in a great mood. She was happy because for the first time in a long time she and Seth were really working as a team and spending time together. It felt like lately they had their own projects, their own priorities and they were off doing what needed to be done. Separately. Even the parenting chores were often divvied up between them but this case was a whole different animal. They were doing it together and it felt like the old days when they were on the run and had no one to depend on but each other. She shouldn’t romanticize those days but sometimes she couldn’t help it. When there’s only one human being in the world you can trust, you get pretty close to them.
Seth came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, kissing her temple. “Hey babe, Mom and Dad want to Skype about seven our time. Does that sound good? Then we can read Ben and Lulu their story and say goodnight before they go to bed.”
The kids were having a wonderful time and George and Marion were loving showing off their grandchildren to their friends. Presley missed them terribly but this little bit of independence was good for everyone.
At least that’s what she kept telling herself.
“Sounds fine. I made cheeseburgers for dinner. I hope that’s okay.”
Seth grinned and rubbed his stomach. “Did you put the Worcestershire sauce in the ground beef?”
He loved it when she did that. It was cute that it didn’t take much to make him happy.
She nodded. “And garlic, too.”
“Hot damn. Maybe I’ll have two tonight.”
She hoped so because she’d made three and a half burgers, and only one was for her. The half was for Fergus.
“Grab a plate and I’ll dish it up.”
Burgers and buns quickly rested on the plates, along with some frozen veggies she’d dug out of the freezer. There had to be at least one healthy food. They’d barely dug into their meal when Seth’s phone began to vibrate.
Presley wrinkled her nose and sighed. “I guess you better answer it. It’s probably Hank and he needs you to go into the office.”
Seth picked up the phone and shook his head. “It’s Tanner returning my call. I really do need to take this.”
“Put it on speaker then so you don’t have to repeat back the conversation later.”
Seth tapped on the screen and Tanner’s voice boomed through the kitchen. “I called because Dare has some good news.”
“We could use some,” Seth laughed. “Today was frustrating to say the least. Each of Danny’s girlfriends described him a little differently, and Alexa Lansford also told us that Eric and Danny were close, which is just the opposite of what we’d heard before. This whole case gets murkier with every passing day so I’m glad that you have some good news for us.”
“It sounds like Eric leads a far more interesting life for real than he does on paper,” Tanner observed. “I talked to Evan earlier today, by the way, and they haven’t found Eric yet. He was kind of getting the idea that they weren’t looking all that hard. His witness protection was voluntary and if he doesn’t want to be in it then they can’t force him. Evan did say that they checked Eric’s friends and neighbors and he hasn’t returned home. He could be anywhere and he’s not using his credit cards or they would know where he was located.”
Presley simply wasn’t sure what to believe anymore. Was Eric the innocent brother who had no idea what his brother was up to? Or had he known and maybe even been part of it? She felt pretty sure that he hadn’t known where the cash was hidden because he’d sent someone after her and Seth. When she thought about it too hard her head hurt. Nothing made sense.
“So what’s the good news?” Seth asked. “We could use some.”
Tanner chuckled at the sound of desperation in Seth’s voice. “Dare’s property searches turned up something kind of interesting. It might be nothing but it could be what you’ve been looking for. For about a year when they were first married, Danny and Lyndsey Harbaugh lived next door to Charlotte and Jim Styles. Now here’s the fun part… Charlotte and Jim Styles have a small piece of property near Glistening Lake. You know how we all feel about coincidences.”
Seth didn’t believe in them but he did believe in tedious police research and Dare had done an outstanding job.
“Were they friends with the Styles? Would the Styles have lent their fishing cabin to Danny?”
“Dare couldn’t find out any details with just a computer search. Hell, Danny may not have even met the Styles and there may not be a fishing shack on the property. Lots of neighbors never talk to each other but it sounds like something that needs to be checked out. I’ll send you the information.”
Finally, a lead they could actually follow. The day wasn’t a total loss after all.