The Temporary Detective

Chapter Seven

"James, I'd like you to meet Mike Hardy from Dove & Flight Public Relations."

Ginger propelled forward a short, stocky man who looked like a rook on a chessboard. "Mike and I are going to have a bite of lunch and discuss how Temp Zone can support his needs," she continued, smoothing the rounded neckline of her clingy cashmere sweater.

"All right, then," James said, unsure how he was supposed to respond. Ginger slid her arm under Mike's elbow and steered him out to the elevator bank. Obviously, the man was a potential new client, but "support his needs"? He sometimes wondered just how Ginger made her business deals.

He always relaxed when Ginger was out of the office, which, he had learned, she rarely was. Anna took the opportunity to sneak out for lunch, and the other recruiters all withdrew into their offices to do whatever it was they didn't dare attempt with Ginger underfoot. James left his office door open to enjoy the cross breeze from his small window. He was just deciding how best to waste his time when the main office buzzer sounded.

His immediate, ingrained reaction when the two detectives flashed their badges was to hold his hands high above his head, but a secondary instinct thwarted his first, and he thrust them into his pockets instead.

"Can I help you?" he asked.

"Detective Harvey and Detective Kozinski. We'd like to speak to James Cooke."

"That's me," James said, careful to keep his voice as free from the twang of the 'hood as possible. "May I ask what this is regarding?"

"We've got a few questions about Isobel Spice."

Sending up an ardent prayer thanking God for supporting his needs by removing Ginger from the premises, James led the two detectives to his office, where he gladly sacrificed the cross breeze and shut the door.

"Please," he said, gesturing for them to sit down. They didn't. James hovered uncertainly before deciding that he would feel more powerful behind his desk.

"You sent her to a job at InterBank Switzerland on Wednesday?" Detective Harvey asked.

"Yes."

"She said it was last minute."

"It was. I was registering her as a new employee when the call came in. It seemed like a good way to try her out. It was only supposed to be a half-day, phones and light typing."

"Have you worked with InterBank Switzerland a long time?" Detective Kozinski asked.

"I've only been at Temp Zone a week, but I believe they've been a client for a number of years."

"Who's in charge here?" Detective Harvey asked.

"Ginger Wainwright. She owns the company. But she's not here right now," James added quickly.

"Ms. Spice said you took a chance on her, that she had no office experience. Is that true?"

James cleared his throat. "Yes." He had learned long ago that lying to cops was never a good idea, even though in this case, telling the truth would mean having to explain to Ginger if she got wind of it.

"Why?"

"Ginger likes our temps to have plenty of office experience before we send them out. But Isobel seemed very bright, with a lot on the ball, and..." he paused. May as well continue with the truth. "If I'd turned her away, that would have meant not being able to fill the position. Last-minute placements always make you look good, like you've got a ready stable of skilled and available talent. Since Ginger would have been disappointed either way, I decided to give Isobel a chance."

"So you broke the rules. Do you often break the rules?" Detective Harvey asked, an unpleasant edge to his voice.

James felt the anger rise out of nowhere. He swallowed hard and counted to five before he answered. "No, I don't. But there are times when I feel it's appropriate to consider extenuating circumstances."

Detective Harvey leaned toward James, his palms on the desk. "Isobel Spice found the dead woman's body. Not only that, her fingerprints were on the murder weapon."

James's breath caught. "She didn't—um—I didn't know that."

"Do you think it was a coincidence that a last-minute call came in from the bank, just as Ms. Spice was sitting in your office ready to take the job?"

James returned Detective Harvey's gaze with a steadiness he didn't feel. "Yes, I do. How could anybody have known I would decide to take a risk and send her out? I almost didn't."

And boy, do I wish I hadn't, he thought.

He continued, "So if you're suggesting that Isobel came to me as a way to get to that bank so she could kill that woman, I think you're barking up the wrong tree."

"Did you know Doreen Fink, Mr. Cooke?" Detective Kozinski asked.

"Is that the secretary?"

"Good guess."

"You used the past tense," James said, mentally ticking off a mark in his column. "The only person I know at InterBank Switzerland is Felice Edwards, the human resources director. And I've only ever spoken to her on the phone. We've never met in person."

Detective Harvey gave a sharp nod, and Detective Kozinski followed him to the door.

"Thank you for your time, Mr. Cooke. We'll let you know if we have any further questions."

He followed them out, willing them to complete their disappearing act before Ginger returned.

"One more thing," Detective Harvey said, holding the door open. "Do you think Isobel Spice is capable of murder?"

James shook his head vigorously. "Absolutely not. She's one of those people who is honest to a fault. A wide-open, 'what you see is what you get' kind of person. Sometimes you get more than you want, but she's real."

"Unless she's just a very good actress," Detective Harvey said, letting the door slam in James's face.