can I help you with, Mr. Wilson?”
Cassie picked that moment to stand next to him. She wasn’t quiet about it, either. She came over and grabbed the car keys, jingling them and banging them against the counter.
Cal closed his hand over hers and talked to the officer. “I wondered if I could have a moment of your time.”
Cassie snorted. “He means ‘we.’”
A wary look washed over the officer’s face. “Ms. Montgomery. I thought you had headed back to Oahu.”
“That’s a popular sentiment around here.” The way Cal figured it, the officer would have paid for Cassie’s plane ticket if that got her out of his way.
“Yeah, well, he’s not that lucky.”
Cal raised an eyebrow at Cassie’s curt response. “Maybe I should do the talking.”
The officer held out his hand. “Ted Greene, the deputy chief.”
“Deputy?” Cal asked.
“The chief’s away on a family matter,” Ted said.
“Yeah, about that.” Cal slipped his keys into his pocket before Cassie could grab them again. “Where does a guy go for his honeymoon when he already lives in a place like Hawaii?”
“Seattle.”
Cal decided to try to get on the investigator’s good side since Cassie seemed to be spending most of her time on the opposite. “Really? I would have bet on something like Tahiti.”
Ted shrugged. “Go figure.”
Cassie knocked on the counter until both men stared at her. “Uh, hello?”
Cal fought the urge to shake her. If she noticed Ted taking in and analyzing every word and action, she sure hid it well. The woman was determined to be as difficult as possible and make sure no one on the island wanted to help them.
“What’s up with you?” Cal asked in a low voice he hoped would have some impact on Cassie.
“You’re wasting time,” Cassie shot back.
Not one ounce of impact. Cal decided right then that tact was not one of Cassie’s strong points.
Ted smiled. “If it helps, I don’t have anywhere else to be.”
Cal ignored Ted’s amusement and concentrated on telegraphing a silent message to Cassie. “Deputy Greene and I are talking.”
“We’re here for a reason. You guys can bond over football another time.”
“Did someone mention football?” Ted asked in a voice that suggested he was not taking the conversation very seriously.
“Let me cut through all of this.” Cassie exhaled loud enough to wake most of the neighborhood and then pointed at Ted. “He’s the one who decided Dan caused the crash.”
With a scowl plastered on her face, she looked more un-approachable now than when she was holding the gun. Cal knew from the flat line of her lips she wanted to unload on Ted. A whole lot of cursing and shouting was trapped in there.
And that was just about the last thing he wanted to hear at the moment. “Cassie—”
“Actually, Ms. Montgomery, the coroner’s report and the evidence pointed to an accident,” Ted said right over Cal.
“But it was your call.”
“It’s the NTSB’s call. They’ll do the formal crash investigation and let us know.” Ted glanced in Cal’s direction. “Are you here about the accident?”
“It wasn’t an accident,” Cassie mumbled.
Cal talked right over her. “I’m an old friend.”
“You’re not from here.” It was a statement, not a question.
Cal wondered if all of the locals could spot a non-local. Certainly seemed that way. “I came to see Dan and found out about the crash when I got here.”
Sympathy flashed across Ted’s face. “Sorry for your loss.”
“He’s good at saying that,” Cassie said.
“The accident took all of us by surprise.” Ted balanced his hands against the counter. “Despite what Ms. Montgomery thinks, I liked Dan. He was a good man who cared about Kauai and was invested in its future. His death was a tragedy.”
Cal nodded. “Agreed.”
Cassie’s eyes closed for a second, but when they opened again that painful look was gone. “But it wasn’t an accident.”
“Cassie, we’re just here to ask some questions and tell the deputy chief about what just happened.”
“What are you talking about?” Ted asked.
Cassie rolled her eyes. “Here we go.”
“Give the man a second.” Cal clenched his teeth hard enough to make the blood in his temples pound.
“I’m not the enemy, Ms. Montgomery.”
Cassie ignored Ted and spoke only to Cal. “He’s not going to care about this.”
Ted shifted his weight to get into her line of sight. “Why don’t you let me decide that?”
“Someone shot at us in Dan’s house last night,” Cal said, and then waited for a reaction.
“A real gunshot?” Ted asked after an extra second of silence.
Cassie threw her hands up. “Told you. This is where he starts telling you how crazy I am.”
Cal felt his control slipping. Next time, he’d leave her in the car. “Yeah, I wonder why the good officer would jump to that conclusion.”
“He doesn’t care if I get shot at, or stabbed, or anything else so long as I leave him alone.”
Ted rubbed his forehead. “Wait a minute. Someone actually shot at you this time?”
“Someone shot at me last time, too.” Cassie glared at the officer. “It was not a car backfire, or whatever other ridiculous excuse you gave.”
Cal decided it was time to jump in and steer the conversation back on track. “I can’t comment on whatever previous incident you’re talking about, but I’ve been shot at before so I recognized the experience. Someone definitely took a crack at us.”
Ted nodded in Cal’s direction. “You police?”
“Retired Air Force.”
“Figured it was something like that. Retired Navy.”
“For
