Death By Sunken Treasure (A Hayden Kent Mystery Book 2) by Kait Carson Page B

hadn’t known yet. He said he expected the report, not that he had it. The fault was mine for not asking for a preliminary report. I stifled my questions, knowing I needed more knowledge to find the answers. “Dana,” I whispered in her ear. “He was suffering.” That was a stretch. I didn’t know if he suffered or not, but why else would he kill himself? “Isn’t it better to know?”
    “Damn him,” she bellowed. “Damn him. I gave him everything. How could he do this to me?” She plucked at my sleeve. “That sounded awful. I didn’t mean it the way it sounded.” Her face grew redder. “Tell them. Mike never should have kept after the treasure. I told him that. He didn’t want to die. He was my son. He would never, ever kill himself. Why couldn’t I get him to listen to me?” She drew in a gurgled breath. “He would never kill himself. Make them see that. It’s impossible.” She covered her face with her hands. “It’s my fault. This is all my fault.”

Eleven

      
    The two cops’ faces spoke volumes. The female deputy’s fists clenched and unclenched spasmodically. Her expression screamed discomfort. The male cop, obviously the more experienced of the two, seemed more relaxed. He watched Dana intently. When his eyes met mine, he gave a slight shake of his head and whispered the words, “She’ll be all right. She’s had a rough shock.”
    I wanted to slap him. Dana was raving hysterically. And I didn’t know how to comfort her. I needed a guidebook, someone to tell me how to make this right. She was shouting things that made no sense. Not to me. Angry one second, devastated the next. Where was Deputy Diego? Why wasn’t he here too?
    Dana took a few gulping breaths. Her head lifted from my shoulder. She ran her hand over my damp blouse and straightened my collar. The female cop picked up a box of tissues from the coffee table and handed them to her. Dana blew her nose and daubed at her eyes. “I’m sorry,” she murmured.
    Sorry for what? Losing her son, crying, the outburst? Dana’s face looked like a war zone as she struggled to regain her composure. To have something to do and to give Dana a few moments, I stood, thanked the deputies, and led them to the door. The man paused on the deck and leaned in toward me.
    “The death is still under investigation. There’s a lot—”
    “I’ll say. Suicide by drowning.” The words flowed from me. “No way. No diver opts for drowning. Not with an air supply on his back.” My hand chopped the air as I spoke.
    He caught my hand in mid-stroke. “What I’m telling you is the case is still open. The officer in charge is working with the detectives. This is about the death certificate and how he died. Now the body can be released.” He jerked his chin in the direction of Dana’s house. “She won’t get any closure without that. Let her bury her dead son. Let the police do their job.”
    A thousand thoughts crashed in my brain at once. This didn’t make sense. Why issue a death certificate if there was an ongoing investigation? The determination of the cause of death should close, not open, the case. “So, you’re saying what? That the death certificate is a convenience? Can that even happen?”
    “Yeah. The ME is satisfied the death was suicide by drowning.”
    The words made me wince.
    “That part of the investigation is closed.”
    The uncertain look on his face made me wonder if he would continue. “But, is there something else?” I studied the cop closely. He was about Mike’s age. “Did you know Mike?”
    He ducked his head and avoided looking at me. “Yeah. We weren’t friends or anything. We went to school together.” A faint blush touched his cheeks. “There were other things happening. Things Mike was involved in. That’s what’s under investigation.” He turned and started for the stairs.
    “Wait,” I yelled after him. He paused, hand on the railing, and looked over his shoulder. A car door slammed below us.