“We saw the whole thing,” Ida Belle said. “It was rather surreal.”
“Well, the cops knocked on my door early this morning,” he said, “questioning me like I had something to do it. I was quick to tell them that I didn’t have anything to do with my father when he was alive, so it was rather a long shot that I’d want to hang out with him dead.”
He threw his hands in the air. “Then they show up here an hour ago, wanting to look around the place. I told them no way unless they came with a warrant. This isn’t my business and I’m not about to let them railroad me over something I had nothing to do with. They seem to think since I have some fancy knives that I run around cutting up people with them. What would be the point of that?”
“It really seems a completely senseless thing to do,” Gertie said. “And quite shocking. But then his death was as well.”
Liam shrugged. “That’s the luck of the draw in the city. I had an offer from a butcher shop there, you know? But all the noise and the crime turned me off. Then the owner of this shop offered me this gig. He’s setting himself up to retire and when that happens, the shop will be mine. I’ve been working for a down payment and will give him a cut of business until the rest is paid off.”
“That sounds like a good deal,” Gertie said.
“It is,” he said. “The shop does a good business. I have a lot of regulars and I supply for several restaurants in New Orleans. I’ve got access to some good ranchers. They produce excellent product. As long as I keep people happy, I’ll have a good living until I decide to retire.”
Gertie smiled. “I think that’s great.”
“Maybe your dad left you something and you can buy the owner out early,” I said.
“Ha!” Liam said. “That man never cared about anyone but himself. He probably didn’t even bother to leave a will. Why would he care what happened after his death? First off, he probably thought he’d never die, and if he did, then he figured it wouldn’t be his problem.”
Ida Belle frowned. “Well, that hardly seems fair given that I’m sure a lot of your father’s money came from your grandma. I wish she would have left a will and taken care of you in it.”
Liam sighed. “My grandma went to the grave pretending that my father was a good person. She couldn’t face the truth. I’m sure she thought her beloved son would take care of me. Well, he took care of me all right. She’s probably rolling in her grave.”
The phone rang and Liam excused himself to answer it.
“I’m sorry, ladies,” he said when he hung up, “but I have to go check on a couple invoices for a client.”
“Well, if you need anything from us, please don’t hesitate to call,” Gertie said. “My phone number is on the sticky.”
“I appreciate it,” he said. “And the casserole. I remember them from before and I’m in for some good eating. You ladies stay safe. I don’t know what’s going on in Sinful but it sounds like someone is completely off. You can’t be too careful.”
“We will be,” Gertie assured him and we made our way out.
“So what do you think?” I asked as we drove away.
“He’s definitely angry,” Gertie said, “but I can’t say that I blame him. His father treated him horribly and now he’s got the police bearing down on him.”
I nodded. “If I was in his position, and didn’t have anything to do with it, I’d be mad too.”
“It does seem like his father keeps stepping in to ruin his life, even in death,” Ida Belle said.
“He’ll be fine as long as he didn’t do it,” I said. “And honestly, what reason could he have?”
Ida Belle shook her head. “I don’t even have a guess as to why someone pulled the Headless Horseman prank, but if word gets out that the police are questioning Liam, and going over the butcher shop, the gossip alone could ruin him. Even if it’s not true.”
“That sucks,” I said.
“Which means we have to work harder than ever to figure out what happened,” Gertie said. “Or Liam is going to end up taking the fall for something that he probably didn’t do. He didn’t have a reason to do this.”
“What reason did anyone have?” I asked. “Since the motive on the Headless Horseman is altogether murky, we can’t really eliminate anyone. Not even Liam.”
“Maybe he was right,” Ida Belle said. “Maybe there is a crazy person among us.”
“Sinful is full of crazy,” I said. “But there’s crazy and then there’s this.”
“Well, that doesn’t let Tiffany off either,” Gertie said. “I know she couldn’t have done it alone, but she might have had help.”
“That’s a heck of an ask,” Ida Belle said. “And Tiffany doesn’t have any close friends that I’m aware of. You don’t just ask someone to tea, then pitch your idea of stealing a body and a horse, then cutting off a man’s head and strapping it all to the horse to send through the festival. I can’t imagine what kind of person would actually say ‘All right. Sounds like a good time.’”
Gertie frowned. “Someone helplessly in love might do it.”
“You think Liam is still in love with Tiffany?” I asked.
“I don’t know but it’s possible,” Gertie said.
“But again we come back to what was the point of sending Gil through the park?” Ida Belle asked.
“Maybe cutting off the head of the monster who ruined his life was cathartic,” I suggested. “And the ride was a mockery of Gil and his acting, which seemed to be the only thing he cared about.”
“That’s a lot of hate to be carrying around,” Gertie said.
“How badly do you think he hated his father?” I asked.
Gertie blew out a breath. “A lot. Gil was never a good father to begin with, but that thing with Tiffany left the boy devastated. He fled town for a couple months right after.”
“Really? Why?” I asked.
“The rumor mill said he went to stay with a cousin so there would be someone keeping a watch on him,” Ida Belle said.
“Were people afraid he was suicidal?” I asked.
“That’s the indication I got,” Ida Belle said.
I looked at Gertie. “You think Liam was capable of that?”
“I guess most anyone is, given the right circumstances,” Gertie said, “but Liam was an emotional boy. What others considered soft. He took a lot of grief in school because of it. Tiffany was the only person outside of his grandmother who played a prominent role in his life that I’m aware of.”
“And then his father stole Tiffany from him,” I said.
Gertie nodded. “A year after his grandma died. But why wait all this time to get revenge?”
“Because his father didn’t die until now?” I suggested. “If he’s not that emotionally strong then he might not have had the spine to do it when his father was alive.”
Ida Belle shook her head. “It’s crazy but not the strangest thing I’ve ever heard. Gil was very concerned about how people perceived him. Liam could have thought it was a way to make a stab at his father’s ego and hurt Tiffany at the same time.”