Sea to Sky (12 page)

Hunter caught the senior detective rolling his eyes. He wondered if they found it amusing, and whether he was some kind of fool for taking justice so seriously. He’d once been called a ‘goody two shoes’ for his refusal to break the rules, and as much as he hated to let the remark bother him, it did.

Pike continued. “Kowalski said you had assisted him in the past, and even helped an outside agency — L.A., wasn’t it? — solve a case. He recommended we let you in on the investigation on a limited basis, and to label you as an informant in the official reports. Does that work for you?”

Hunter said yes.

“Before we let you have any information,” said Blackwell, “we’d like you to share with us first.”

“He did give us the information on Meredith Travis,” said Pike.

“That’s a start. Go ahead, Rayne. Give us what you’ve got so far.”

Hunter rubbed his jaw, taking a moment to consider what to say. “Keep in mind, detectives, that I’m like a blind man who’s been asked to describe an elephant. I don’t have any facts surrounding the man’s death.”

“Understood.”

“Okay. I’ve seen the man in action myself, and so far I’ve spoken with four people who have a longer history with him than I do. From my own encounters with the man, I can confirm that he was a bully and a mean drunk. To say he had an abrasive manner would be an understatement. He was rude and antagonistic. I have no doubt that he rubbed a lot of people the wrong way.

“I first heard of him from his ex-wife, Alora Magee. I met Ms. Magee last summer in Los Angeles when we were involved in the case you mentioned earlier. She was the lawyer for one of the suspects arrested for murder. At one point, Ms. Magee stopped answering her home telephone and then had her number changed. Although she didn’t say anything about it at the time, it was because Mike Irwin had just managed to get her home number from the law firm she was working at, and began making harassing phone calls. I should say, resumed making harassing phone calls.

“I’m sure you’ve already received this information from Ms. Magee yourself, but she left him and filed for divorce after he became physically abusive. Prior to that he was controlling and emotionally abusive. He subsequently attacked her in front of a classroom of kids when she worked as a teacher, and she was forced to take out a restraining order against him. She took out another one this past summer.”

Hunter noticed that Pike had moved his chair closer to the desk and was furiously taking notes in a spiral-bound notebook.

“I also spoke to a man by the name of Todd Milton, who has known Mike Irwin both socially and professionally for a number of years.” Hunter outlined the information he’d received from Todd, including Mike’s employment history and his recent encounter with Brent Carruthers.

The senior detective nodded. “We spoke to Milton as well.”

“Mike’s father, John, didn’t have much to say that would be of use in the investigation. He and his wife live in Seattle, and they haven’t had much contact with their son in recent years.” Hunter remembered what John Irwin had said, that sometimes there’s no second chance to make it up to loved ones. If the police had now ruled Hunter out as a suspect, shouldn’t he leave Whistler and go look for young Adam Marsh in Vancouver before it was too late? He imagined Helen sitting at home in Calgary, waiting helplessly by the telephone for a call from Adam or himself, relying on Hunter to do the leg work, while he remained in Whistler trying to investigate the death of a stranger instead of doing something that could save the life of his best friend’s son.

“Go on,” prompted Blackwell.

“Brent Carruthers was not prepared to talk to me about it. Can I assume that you’ve spoken to him? Did he cooperate?”

“What else have you got to tell us?”

Hunter sighed. “Meredith Travis.” He paused, considering how much to share with the police. “You have more leverage than I do. She knows a lot about Mike Irwin because she’s been investigating him for the past month. Unfortunately, due to client confidentiality, she isn’t willing to share everything she’s learned about his business dealings. Obviously, there was something worth hiring a private investigator for, and I doubt that Meredith comes cheap.

“From my blind man’s perspective, I would say that this was a premeditated killing, precipitated by the arrival of a good opportunity. I am only guessing at the manner of death. I have had no opportunity to question witnesses at the crime scene or examine the location.” He gestured at each detective in turn. “You have. What can you tell me?” With that, he leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest.

The two detectives exchanged glances, then Blackwell said, “Can we get you a coffee? Colin and I are just going out to pick up some for ourselves.”

“Sure.” Hunter decided that if the RCMP detectives weren’t forthcoming, but agreed to officially rule him out as a suspect, he would leave for Vancouver as soon as he cleared his belongings out of Tom Halsey’s chalet. No. He owed it to Alora to tell her he was leaving. Meredith, too.  The question would be whether he should try to talk to Alora in person, or just call her on the phone.

Twilight seeped into the room as he waited for Pike and Blackwell to return. He looked at his watch. Sorry should be picking up the load in Port Kells within the next hour or so, and hitting the border with it by about six o’clock. A newspaper lay on the corner of the desk, so Hunter picked it up, then got up to switch on the ceiling lights. Just then the door opened, and the two detectives came in, Pike handing Hunter a mug of coffee. The navy blue mug had the RCMP crest on the side,
Maintiens Le Droit
wrapped around the head of a buffalo at its center. Maintain the law. Hunter had one just like it at home.

Blackwell closed the window blinds before sitting down. “You’re on. Given your background as a homicide detective, we’d be foolish not to take advantage of your help.”

The younger detective had opened a file folder on the desk in front of him, then started flipping through the pages of his notebook.

“Right now,” Blackwell continued, “Colin will go over what we’ve got so far, including the preliminary report from the medical examiner, and tomorrow morning at first light … ,” he took a sip of his coffee, then put down his mug and almost smiled, pointing first at Hunter and then at himself. “Tomorrow, we ski.”

Hunter thought about what he’d just learned about Mike Irwin’s death as he sat trying to keep from shivering on the cold vinyl seat of his old Pontiac. He had turned the heat on full blast to defrost the windshield, but would have to wait for the engine to warm up before there was any significant change in the temperature inside the car.

Based on initial examination of the body, Mike Irwin had been shot at close range with what appeared to have been a relatively small bore but lethal gun. The entrance wound was close to the base of the skull, and the bullet would have instantly destroyed the brain stem, shutting down heart beat, respiration and consciousness in the blink of an eye. It was quick and it was clean. Mike Irwin had been executed.

That raised the possibility that the murder was a professional hit, but how did the killer engineer boarding the chairlift alone with his victim? Or had Mike Irwin known the killer? Is it possible that there was more than one person on the quad chair with Mike that morning? One of the first things Hunter wanted to find out was if Mike Irwin had gone skiing by himself, or if he had made arrangements to meet someone that morning. According to the detectives, the victim’s wife didn’t know what his plans were, other than that he intended to spend the day skiing. She had assumed that he was skiing with someone from the conference, but had no idea who that would be.

Hunter had asked a lot of questions of Blackwell and Pike that they couldn’t, or wouldn’t, yet answer. Where was Irwin’s wife throughout the morning? What was the exact time that Mike left the hotel? Were there surveillance cameras at any of the locations Mike might have met up with his killer? Did the attendant at the bottom of the chairlift remember Mike getting on the lift, and who was on the chair with him? Did the attendant at the top of the chairlift see who else left the chair when it circled the top support without Mike getting off? Had anyone skied the possible routes the killer could have taken? Was it possible to locate and interview the skiers who were in the chair directly behind Mike and his killer?

Mike Irwin still had his cell phone and wallet inside his jacket when his body was searched. Hunter wondered why the killer hadn’t taken his victim’s ID to delay identification of the body. The probable answer was that the killer didn’t intend to run so didn’t need the extra time to get away, or else was confident that he or she wouldn’t be connected with the victim.

There was also a remote possibility that the killer had secured Mike Irwin to the chair and then jumped from the chairlift before it reached the top. It had been snowing fairly heavily at the time, and if the killer timed it right, he or she might have been able to drop from the chair into a snowdrift while it was difficult for the occupants of the following chair to see. It would have been riskier — more noticeable — to drop a lifeless body from the chair. If it hadn’t been snowing so hard, would the killer still have made his move that day? It confirmed to Hunter that even if the murder had been premeditated, the execution of the plan had still been dependent on the right set of circumstances.

Chair number seven had been dusted by the crime scene unit on the off chance that there would be some usable prints. There were none. Not surprising, given all of the gloved hands that had made contact with every available surface on the chair, and the fact that it was continually exposed to the elements. The only useful evidence bagged from the scene was the red scarf, which was a plain acrylic scarf five feet in length with no labels or identifying marks. It didn’t look new.

Motive. Who might have wanted Mike Irwin dead? Love and money. The man had been abusive to both his wife and his ex-wife. No doubt there was life insurance. Could there also have been another woman? Or was his wife having an affair? He was being investigated by Meredith Travis for something apparently related to his employment. Was he involved in something illegal or unethical related to huge defense contracts? Industrial espionage?  How about Brent Carruthers? Who was Brent’s girlfriend?  Was Brent just one of several enemies Mike had made?

The Pontiac had warmed up enough to defrost the windshield, so Hunter activated the wipers to clear the melted frost, turned on the car’s lights and backed out of the parking stall. Blackwell and Pike had separated to conduct a few more interviews before their day was done, and Hunter had told them he was going to look for Alora Magee. He didn’t feel comfortable with the way their last evening had ended, and wanted to find her to apologize. At least, that was one reason. He couldn’t help thinking about the private investigator’s suggestion that Alora had set him up.

He parked underground at the Coast Peaks Hotel and took the elevator to the lobby. It was almost seven o’clock and he decided to check the coffee shop, lounge and restaurant for Alora before he tried to call her. Judging by her parting words last night, there was a good chance she wouldn’t even pick up his calls, and he reasoned it would be harder for her to brush him off in person.

He saw a familiar figure sitting in the lounge, her back to the entrance. The leather jacket on the back of the chair confirmed that it was Alora, but she wasn’t alone. Hunter was momentarily stunned when he realized who her companion was. It was Kelly Irwin, Mike Irwin’s wife. There were no drinks on the table, so he assumed the two women had just arrived.

Before he could move, Kelly glanced toward the entrance and saw him standing there, and must have said something because Alora turned around and looked straight at him. Just as quickly, she turned away. Hunter sensed that she wasn’t happy to see him. This wasn’t going to be easy, and for a brief second he considered moving on. He took a deep breath and walked directly to their table.

“I’ve just come from a meeting with Staff Sergeant Blackwell,” he began, not giving Alora an opportunity to rebuff a casual greeting. “I’m afraid it’s not good news.”

Kelly wasn’t sure what to think about the arrival of the man she had previously assumed to be Alora’s boyfriend. She didn’t think he had any reason to recognize her, but he turned to her and said, “My condolences on the loss of your husband.”

She whispered a ‘thank you’ and averted her eyes. He must wonder what she was doing here in a bar the day after her husband’s death, but he didn’t ask. After she and Alora had met on the chairlift, they skied together for almost two hours. That, too, seemed wrong for a grieving widow, but she would have gone crazy sitting in the hotel. Mike’s mother, Beth, had urged her to go skiing, saying it would be good therapy for her and John to spend time with Mike’s two children, and good therapy for Kelly to be outdoors.

“There’s nothing like facing a mountain to make your troubles seem small,” John had said. “Go.”

When she got back to the Coast Peaks Hotel, feeling pleasantly tired from the cold air and exercise, the kids were napping and their grandparents were spending some quiet time in front of the fire. Kelly had showered and changed, then the five of them had gone downstairs for an early dinner. Kelly told John and Beth that she had met an old college girlfriend on the mountain, and that she’d been invited to join her for a drink later, but had declined. Beth would have been upset to know she was spending time with Alora. “You’ve probably had enough of the kids, Mom,” she said, giving them an easy out.