"Fine, and you? And it's quite alright Ms.Clayton." He used the most professional tone he could, heart racing as he looked her in the eyes. He was quite relieved when an official called his name and escorted the two to an interogation room
Anna broke their gaze to look over at the official directing them. She entered first and stopped short.
Sitting across the table was an Indian woman with wide brown eyes and Harry. Seeing Anna, he instantly stood up. Anna looked just as surprised and confused as Harry as he motioned for her to follow him out of the room.
"Go sit," she whispered to Cody, touching his arm to guide him by her. "I'll handle this."
"Okay." Cody growled slightly. After the first time, Cody didn't like Harry. He went and sat down, and watched as Anna left the room.
The woman across the table offered a small smile since Harry was gone. “I’m Suri Chohan.”
—
In the hall, Harry was waiting for Anna with an incredulous expression. “Who sent you?” he demanded.
“My firm,” Anna answered simply.
“What are you doing?”
“My job. Can we just be professional about this?” she asked, glancing back in the room to see if Cody was
watching or not.
“We’re still a married couple, remember?” Harry pointed out. “We both can’t work on this case.”
“Well, then why don’t you go home?” Anna asked, turning and heading back into the room. “I’m his solicitor,” she said, addressing the words to Suri while she sat easily in the chair beside Cody and opposite what would have been Harry’s.
DS Chohan cast a look at the door, trying to see if Harry would return or not.
"Hello Ms. Chohan." Cody said pleasantly. He was trying to feign innocence. He couldn't start by being abbrassive
After a moment, Harry returned and sat down. Anna arched her eyebrows at him, and he looked away, dismissing her look. Suri looked over at him questioningly, almost the same look Anna gave him.
“Winter will handle it,” was all he said before pressing down on a recording device and speaking to it. “1037 on April 9. Interviewing the suspect, Cody Barlow, are DI Clayton and DS Chohan with a note that solicitor Anna Clayton is present.” He gave Anna a brief look before setting the device down in the middle of the table.
“Mr. Barlow,” Chohan spoke up first since Harry was busy shooting subtle glances at Anna. “Can you begin by describing where you were on the night of April 6?”
"On april ninth I was in town, I was shopping to buy a bracelet for my sister at the mall. I went to the Claires to find something cheap, and when I couldn't find anything, I just walked around" He said, lying through his teeth hoping they couldn't tell
DS Chohan pursed her lips and slipped a sheet of paper out from a manilla file folder. “So, Mr. Barlow, this isn’t you?” She slid the paper across the table, and Anna lifted her chin slightly to look. The image was taken from a security camera, and there was Cody wearing a black hoodie with the hood up and black cargo pants. His back was to the camera as he walked by, and the picture was grainy.
“Are you joking?” Anna asked. “That could be anyone. It’s impossible to see—”
“Enough, solicitor,” Harry interrupted her. “Let Mr. Barlow answer the question.”
Anna’s features turned to stone, and she stiffened in her chair.
"No. That's not me." He said. Once again. Blatant lie. That really could be anyone
Chohan withdrew the picture, and Harry spoke to fill the silence. “And did you ever have any kind of acquaintance with the Mr. Peter Lockgate that was murdered in his home just minutes after that security photo was taken?”
"No I'm not" He said. This was actually the truth. He had no idea this man was murdered. And no idea who he was either.
The detectives exchanged a look. “Alright,” Harry said. “And have you ever seen this gun before?” He motioned to DS Chohan, who slid another picture out of the folder. It was the gun found in the house when police arrived to the scene.
"No." What were they trying to do? Convict him of murder? He didn't know but he didn't like it. He looked to Anna eyes pleading with her to ask them to stay on topic
Anna caught Cody’s gaze and inhaled slowly. “Are these questions relevant?” she asked shortly.
“Mr. Barlow was arrested for suspicion of murder and theft,” Harry replied easily. “It’s well within our right to ask him questions about either subject.”
It took every ounce of self-control Anna possessed to keep from exploding at him. How dare he try and make her look stupid? Underneath the table, her fingers curled into a fist.
“Your questions are leading,” she shot back firmly.
Harry leaned back in his chair, and Suri picked up on the cue to continue. “Are you aware of how much money was stolen from Mr. Lockgate before he was murdered?”
"No. I'm not" That was a half-lie. He knew how much money was stolen, but he had nothing to do with the murder. He knew he stole 10,000 dollars, but he was unaware the guy he stole it from was killed
Harry leaned forward again and folded his hands while leaning against the table. “Ten thousand dollars,” he said evenly, looking at Cody’s face to judge his reaction to the amount.
Cody feigned surprise. He was a good actor, as he had taken drama all his life, and had to fake it to make it quite a bit. "T-Ten thousand. That's so much!" he said. He really hoped they bought it. Especially Harry
“It is,” Harry said, continuing to study Cody’s expression. “Now tell me, Mr. Barlow. What exactly would you do if ten thousand dollars were suddenly to come into your possession?”
“That’s hypothetical,” Anna interjected, “and completely irrelevant to the charges placed on my client.”
Harry’s eyes narrowed slightly having been put into place again. “Suri?” he said shortly, and the other woman nodded.
“Mr. Barlow… around what time did you get to the Claire’s store?” she asked.
"I don't know, around nine thrity?" He said, as if he didn't know the exact time of the crime, which he did for one of them. 9:30
“How did you get there?” Suri asked easily. She was a much more casual questioner than Harry, who seemed to want to demand the answers outright.
"I walked. I don't own a car." he spoke the truth. He couldn't afford one, and him and Paige walked everywhere.
“And was there anyone with you who could testify that your story is truthful and accurate?” Suri asked. Harry leaned forward again.
"No. When I got to the store it was closed." Again, his story wasn't entirely false. He checked beforehand that the store was, infact closed.
“Where did you go after discovering the store was closed?” Suri asked, continuing to push this line of questioning.
"I walked around the mall for a few minutes before going home," he said, answering her question knowing no one would vouch for him because the mall barely had people in it
“What time did you arrive home?” Suri asked.
Anna remained silent through the questioning, and occasionally, Harry would glance over at her.
"10:15" He said. It took him a while to walk from place to place "I took the scenic route"
“And you arrived at what time?” Suri pressed.
Harry’s eyebrows lifted slightly, waiting to hear if there were any inconsistencies to Cody’s story.
"10:15" He said, guessing she was asking the same question twice.
Suri’s eyes narrowed slightly, but she didn’t ask anything else.
“And you have no witnesses who can testify to the accuracy of your story?” Harry asked.