“Poured, or spilled?”
I hesitated. Not deliberate, I reminded myself. I didn’t want to sound paranoid, but the time I’d spent with Jade left me leery. “I don’t know, but it hurts like hell. Why did you let her leave the parlor?”
“What?”
“Before she scarred me in the kitchen, Jade was smoking a cigarette up in her room.”
Tim’s eyebrows tilted. “No,” he said. “She was in the bathroom.”
I chuckled. “Thought as much. Watch out for her, that one’s smarter than your average bear—and she has a thing for our leading man.”
“Jade and Jasper? Come on. Christ, she’s a kid.”
“Age is just a number, Tim. Obviously Jade didn’t schlep Jasper’s body out of the house by herself, but I feel like she’s involved somehow. She’s been reading up on us online.”
“What? When?” Tim’s face was getting red.
“No doubt she’s had plenty of practice surreptitiously texting in the classroom. Don’t worry about it. I checked her social feeds and texts and she hasn’t shared how she’s spending her Saturday at the river.”
“You confiscated her phone?”
“She said something that bothered me.” I relayed the words she’d spoken in the kitchen as my eyes traveled to the parlor, where Jade now lay curled up on the sofa with her head in her dad’s lap.
“I know what she did,” Tim repeated. “Does she mean Bebe, or Abella?”
“Didn’t get that far. But she’s got a good view of the shed from her bedroom window.”
Tim rubbed his chin. What I needed from him was encouragement. I wanted to hear him agree this was all extremely fishy and warranted caution—to admit at least one of the people on the island was likely a dangerous criminal. What Tim said was, “That might be relevant, if Jasper’s actually hurt.”
“If?”
“We still don’t have proof the blood’s even his.”
“We’ve been over this,” I said, louder than I intended. “The blood is in his bed. The man is missing. The storm—”
“Okay.” Tim showed me his hands. “Just playing devil’s advocate. I’ve gotta do it, you know?”
“No, I don’t.”
“Knock knock.”
Miles, who seconds earlier was in the parlor, now loitered in the hall. “Sorry to interrupt,” he said, “but can I have a minute of your time?”
After my altercation with Bebe, I fully expected Miles to give me hell. Hours earlier he made sure to let me know he was a practicing lawyer. I had no doubt that after Bebe barged into the kitchen, she went straight to Miles to recount all the injustices Jade endured by my hand. I should have gone after Abella, but my desire to know more about the inner workings of this couple’s relationship kept me rooted in place.
Miles said, “I hear you had a talk with my wife and daughter.”
“If you can call it that.”
“They weren’t cooperative?”
“Not in the least,” I said. “Your daughter was surreptitiously using her phone, despite the fact that you were all instructed not to.”
Miles nodded. This news didn’t surprise him. “Did it interfere with your investigation?”
I wasn’t sure what to say. Jade hadn’t told anyone about Jasper going missing. So far her worst offense was inflicting my burn. “That’s not the point, Mr. Byrd.”
“No, of course not.” Miles sighed. “Teenage girls.”
“Bet she’s a handful. Where’s her mother?” said Tim.
“We divorced when Jade was five.”
“And you got custody?”
Miles gave Tim a sharp look. “Full. I was raised by a single parent, and I turned out just fine. My ex-wife, on the other hand, left us for a prick with a production company in L.A. She was a terrible influence on Jade, obsessed with money and status.”
“No offense,” I said, glancing back at the parlor, “but I’m not sure you traded up.”
My intention was to hack away at his relationship with his cheating wife and wild daughter, a task that shouldn’t have been easy. To my surprise, Miles laughed. “You’re telling me. If Camilla hadn’t insisted, we wouldn’t be here this weekend.”
“Camilla, or Jade?” I said. “I get the impression Jade and Jasper are pretty close.”
Miles blinked at me. “She’s a child. He’s a twenty-six-year-old man, not to mention her uncle. If Jade told you they’re close, I assure you that’s wishful thinking. He humors her because he’s a nice guy. Maybe she likes the attention—I won’t pretend to understand girls this age—but that’s all there is to it. Believe me, Jade has plenty of boys her own age chasing her back home.”
“Got it,” I said. There was no way I couldn’t. In a single breath Miles had used three different arguments to make his point. There was absolutely, positively nothing weird going on between Jade and Jasper. Talk about wishful thinking.
“You have to remember she’s upset,” Miles went on. “Something like this can do a real number on a kid—especially with everything else going on. We’re moving next week.”
“Oh?” Tim said.
“Bebe and I are separating.”
All of the emotions I’d expect from the delivery of a statement like that were present and accounted for. Miles looked equal parts confused and pissed off. I kept my eyes off Tim, didn’t want Miles knowing this was news we could use. “Sorry to hear that,” I said. “Can I ask why?”
“Sure thing. My wife is cheating on me with Ned Yeboah.”
I couldn’t help it—my eyes went wide. Miles adjusted his glasses, and despite his matter-of-fact delivery I noticed the bridge of his nose was shiny with oil. “That’s why I came in here,” he said. “I know Bebe doesn’t want to talk to you, but frankly, I don’t give a shit. I think you should interview her. I’d like to be there when you do.”
It was all I could do not to poke Tim in the ribs and hiss, Are you hearing this? in his ear. “Mr. Byrd, do you think Bebe knows something about Jasper’s disappearance she isn’t telling us?”
“I know she does. And for the sake of Jasper, my daughter, and everyone else on this island, it’s time she came clean.”
If Bebe was concealing information, I didn’t see why she’d open up to us with Miles in the room, especially given they were breaking up, but I was happy to oblige this man if it meant we might finally get somewhere with finding Jasper. “That works for me,” I said. “Why don’t you bring her in?”