Free Hushed by Kelley York Page B

though Patterson might spot his guilt if he let it creep to the forefront of his brain. He met the man’s eyes easily. Patterson better not expect some big display of grief. “Sorry to hear that. We didn’t know each other that well, so I’m not really sure what to say.”
    He scratched at his bristly jaw, rocking a little. “When was the last time you saw him?”
    “Not long ago, actually. Ran into him at the mall a few days ago. Before that, though, it’d been a few years.” The way Patterson nodded suggested he already knew that. Archer wasn’t sure what to think. The guy was being pretty casual; was he a suspect or not?
    “Yeah, he told his mom that. She was the one who found him.” He pulled a notepad out of his pocket, along with a pen. “Do you know if Richter had any enemies? Anyone he might’ve mentioned? You were one of the last people to see him alive.”
    That was a hard question to answer. Everyone hated Richter. “I couldn’t give you names. He was alone when I saw him and we only spoke for a few minutes. Long enough for him to tell me he hadn’t been on speaking terms with one of his best friends.” Patterson raised a brow, so Archer continued. “Uh, Brody Hilton. That’s how I know him. He mentioned he and Brody hadn’t spoken in about a year due to someone owing someone money or something.”
    Patterson wrote in his notebook, pen moving at the speed of light. “Uh huh… Can you tell me where you were when Richter was killed?”
    An alibi was in order. He didn’t have one. No sooner had he opened his mouth than he realized—”I don’t know. When was that?”
    A smile crossed the detective’s face, something like relief. Maybe he didn’t want Archer to be a potential suspect. And maybe this guy was a little smarter than Archer gave him credit for. “Last Wednesday.”
    “Last Wednesday… Oh. With my friend, Evan, at the mall. He was in this video game tournament at Fly’s—if you know what that is.” He feigned thoughtfulness. “In fact… Yeah, that’s where we saw Richter.”
    “What’d you do after that?”
    “Went back to Evan’s place.” The words came without him having to think twice. “He lives in this complex, so we played some games and watched a few movies before I walked home in the morning.”
    It seemed good enough for Patterson. Typical college kid behavior, right? He tapped his notebook. “One last question… Are you in contact with Brody’s sister at all?”
    There it went—his heart, like a rock, spilling into his stomach. The guy could’ve said I know you did it and it wouldn’t have sent his mind reeling the way that did. He managed coherent words, though, his voice steady. “Vivian?”
    “That’s her.”
    He averted his gaze. “Yes. Well, not lately. We had a falling out.” And now she wants me out of her life.
    Patterson gave him a knowing smile, nodding solemnly. “Yeah…women, huh? I know how that goes.”
    No, you don’t. Archer smiled thinly. “I wish I had more information to give you, but like I said… Wasn’t exactly close with the guy. Too into drugs, owed a lot of people money. I try to keep my distance.” But now Patterson could chew on that information. Connecting Richter’s death to something money- and drug-related wasn’t hard. If I hadn’t killed him, it was a matter of time before someone else did.
    The notebook and pen looked so small in Patterson’s oafish hands. He tucked them back into his pocket and offered a card to Archer. “Great. Thanks for taking the time to talk to me, Archer. Feel free to call if you think of anything else.”
    Archer stared at the card like it might bite but reluctantly took it. “I’ll do that. Are you going to be talking to Vivian?”
    It was Patterson’s turn to give him a thin smile that said clearly, none of your business, kid. That was answer enough. Archer showed him to the door, standing out on the landing while the detective scaled the steps and got into his car. Archer