Chapter 17

"Thanks a lot, on behalf of my buddy and his wife," I said, genuinely. Even though I was keeping my identity under wraps, what I said was true. In a way, if Alan's death stayed a mystery, the current Tammy might very well be a reflection of myself twenty years from now.

In court, I always felt like Tammy's testimony had some holes, but that didn't mean what she was saying now was the gospel truth. I still needed to dig for clues in her story.

"Can you walk me through what happened the night of the incident?" I asked, pulling out a pen and notebook, turning on the recorder, and getting ready to jot down notes, pretending I hadn't been at the trial. Meanwhile, I kept an eye on Anna, who was fiddling with her phone. If Tammy slipped up, Anna would definitely react.

After grilling her with a bunch of questions, her answers matched what she said in court, down to the timeline, where she was, and what she was doing.

I paid close attention to Anna's reaction, which didn't change. She put down her phone and listened intently, occasionally throwing in a question or two. She seemed super interested in anything about Laura, probably because Laura was a celeb, and gossip was gold for someone who spent all day on live streams.

But as Tammy recounted the events, I had a hunch and asked, "Ma'am, you mentioned earlier that you saw Laura meeting the first guy before the incident. What were you doing at that time? I didn't catch it earlier. Could you repeat it?"

Tammy thought for a moment and said, "I was cleaning the private rooms, picking up trash. I saw them when I stepped out to mop the hallway."

That was the problem!

I nodded and, using the excuse of a faulty recorder, I put on my headphones and quickly rewound to that part.

The two statements were identical, word for word. It hit me why something felt off when I first asked Tammy. Her testimony was too perfect, no slip-ups.

Now I got it. Her statements in court, during the interview, and just now were exactly the same, not a single word different!

There was only one explanation: she memorized her testimony.

I thought, 'Who made her memorize it? Tom, Lally, or someone else? In criminal law, collusion and tampering with evidence are serious crimes. Why take such a huge risk to frame Laura? Could it be because of the Sand Village demolition case from a few years back? That doesn't add up either. Laura's in the arts, not real estate. Even if that reason holds, what about Lally and Tom? Did they live in Sand Village or have ties there? Probably not. Such coincidences don't happen. But one thing's for sure: she knows the truth, at least part of it, and she's hiding it.'

All my previous questions were about the witnesses and the case itself. I decided to switch it up and ask something less related to the case to catch her off guard. "I heard the Entertainment Club got shut down. Did you go to work today?"

"Officially, it's shut down, but it's still running on the down-low. Otherwise, how would the boss make money? How would I get paid?" Tammy said casually.

I asked with a grin, "Do you know who the big boss is? Maybe I can write a column about it."

Tammy shrugged, "How would I know? That's not something regular folks like us would be privy to."

I nodded and threw another question her way about the Entertainment Club, "How long have you been working there?"

"About two years, I think," Tammy replied after a moment.

I glanced at Anna, who was rolling her eyes, and realized Tammy was right. Anna had always been unhappy with Tammy working at the club.

"Finding a job is tough these days, especially for someone your age. Kids should be more understanding," I smiled at Anna as I spoke, trying to smooth things over. I closed my notebook and turned off the recorder, signaling the end of the interview to help her relax.

"I'm just worried about Mom. You know that place, right? There are all kinds of people, and they start shouting after a few drinks. I'm just worried she can't handle it," Anna said, showing she was smart enough to keep the peace in front of an outsider.

"Alright then, thanks for your cooperation. Today's interview was really helpful!" I stood up, ready to leave, and handed my business card to Tammy. "I'll keep my word. I'll look into the Sand Village demolition case and your son's situation, then write a special report to try and get the compensation your son deserves."

Tammy and Anna thanked me repeatedly.

"Oh, I almost forgot to give you a card too. You know your husband's case well," I said, handing a card to Anna.

As I was about to leave, I turned back and asked with a smile, "By the way, do you always work the night shift?"

Tammy looked surprised and said, "Yes, why?"

I replied, "Nothing. It's just that the immune system of older folks isn't great. This kind of lifestyle can be really tough on your health. Take care of yourself."

"Thank you," Tammy said.

"Alright, I'll be going now. Sorry for the long disturbance. No need to see me out. We'll be in touch," I said, looking at Anna. When I asked Tammy about working the night shift, I saw a flash of panic in Anna's eyes, which told me Tammy was lying.

After leaving, I called my apprentice Zoey. She picked up right away.

Zoey sounded excited, "Mrs. Smith, you finally called me. Where are you? I'll come over right away!"

She probably didn't dare call me and had been waiting for my call.

I felt a warm glow inside and said gently, "It's okay. No need to come. I just want to ask, where do young people in their twenties usually like to hang out? Somewhere relaxing, upscale, preferably a trendy restaurant. I don't go to these places much, so I'm not familiar."

Zoey replied, "There's a restaurant not far from Brookside Road. The food there is pretty good for the price."

"Okay," I said.

In late autumn, it got dark early. Around six in the evening, the sun was almost setting. I walked out of Sand Village slowly, holding my phone, waiting for a call.

Soon, I got a text from an unknown number: [Ms. Johnson, hello, this is Anna. Can we meet?]