THEN IT GOT PERSONAL

Chapter Six

Mez parked around the corner when they found the victim's address, they sped walk to the door and Bisi knocked hesitantly. Mrs Doyin welcomed them with sad eyes and Bisi mirrored the sadness in them as they were pointed to a seat.

"Can I get you a glass of water?" she asked like the perfect hostess.

Bisi nodded because the woman looked like she needed to do something with her hands. When she got a glass Mrs Doyin sat and looked at them awaiting their questioning.

"We're sorry for your loss," Mez started.

"Thank you. What can I help you with?"

"Is there anyone that wanted your husband dead?" Bisi asked.

"No, he is--was a great father and friend. He picked the kid from school and went out with his friends during the weekend. There was nothing to dislike about him, he was my rock." she broke down and Mez passed her the box of tissue on the table.

"Was he cheating?" Bisi asked bluntly.

The woman stared at her in complete disgust. "He would never!"

"We need to pursue all possibilities, Ma'am," Mez explained softly.

"I understand, Officer. It's just such a hard time for the family."

"Tell us about Sunday," he asked.

"He didn't go to church like the rest of the family so he was at home all morning. You see my husband was very unconventional, he believed in luck and chances and even though I used to pester him to find a religion that suited him, he always insisted that there was no point. By evening, he was out with his friends and they grilled and did all the stuff men did together."

"We'll need the names and phone numbers of these friends," Mez said.

"I'll get you that. I wasn't worried because he slept over at their places sometimes so it wasn't unusual that he didn't come home last night. Sunday was like his day off from work and family responsibilities and I never resented him for seeking an escape."

"Did he call you anytime during the night?" Bisi asked.

"Once because he wanted to speak with our daughter, they are very close. He was fine and his friends were laughing in the background, what could have gone wrong?"

"That's what we're trying to find that out."

She nodded and Bisi asked her the tough question. "Where were you within 1 am to 5 am?"

"You think I had something to do with this?" She looked at Mez as if waiting for him to call her to caution.

"It's a standard question, Mrs Doyin," Bisi reassured her.

"I was at home...sleeping. Do I need an alibi?"

"No. At least, not yet. We'll take your words for it."

"We should get going," Mez stood and Bisi did the same.

"When will I get my husband's body? He needs to be laid to rest as soon as possible."

She was crying again and Bisi bounced on her feet while Mez answered her. When she calmed down, they got the friends numbers and also the company her husband worked for before taking their leave.

"Is it too early to rule her out of the suspect list?" she asked on their way to the station and Mez only grunted.

Jonah was waiting in their office with photos from the traffic cam when they returned. To her horror, he was chewing on a piece of candy that looked like a piece from her private stash. He had to have gotten it from the vending machine, no way in hell he found her stash. Bisi shrugged it off and concentrated on the report, there were no plates on the mini bus that conveyed the body and it was too common a model to track, first dead end. Luckily, they got the plates from the other bus with Jonah handing her a copy of the driver's details and she couldn't wait to light up his ass for tampering.

Bisi promised him breakfast and when he smiled at her in appreciation, she blushed. He was too fine for his own good and the funny thing is that he seemed to be unaware of his effect on women. He had dreads so long they reached his waist and he was the only male she knew that took his skincare routine seriously. When he left, she spread the photos on her table.

"Thought you were going to jump his bones for a moment there." Mez had his arms folded with legs widely apart.

"Easy there," she said like she was speaking to one of the K-9 dogs. "Mez, can you tell if the person is male or female?" She pointed to the photo of the mini bus driver.

"With all that bags of clothes? No, it's a disguise anyway, a costume sort of. From Jonah's report, height is estimated to be around 5"5 to 5"9."

"So woman? What about the walk? Let's look at the video again." Bisi watched the tape and still couldn't tell the difference. She had missed lunch and it was getting late pretty fast. She looked over at Mez and asked, "Aren't you going home?" She had heard his phone ring several times and knew it was his wife.

"Soon."

Mez left after getting her dinner and she stared at her notepad. Nothing was adding up yet and she went home when it was nearly mid night.