Leaning further forward, May managed to grasp the mooring rope. Breathing hard, she scrambled back into her boat, holding it firmly.
They had him tethered to their own boat, and now he couldn’t get away.
Freddy looked up at Owen, his eyes wide and frightened. His face was covered in sweat, and he was breathing hard.
“I am not the guilty party here, Deputy Lovell!” he gasped. “You’ve got to let me go!”
Before May could stop him, Freddy jerked the oars, trying to free himself.
The speedboat rocked wildly, almost tipping over.
“Don’t,” May warned. “Or the boat might capsize.”
Freddy abandoned his struggles with an angry sigh.
“Are you also from the police?” he asked May. “What did I do?”
“I’m Deputy May Moore,” she said. “You need to come with us, because we have to question you regarding a serious crime.”
Freddy shook his head. His eyes were fearful.
“No. You can’t do this to me! You can’t!” He looked around wildly. “Please, I didn’t do anything! You can’t take me in! I’m innocent! I never meant to cause any trouble.”
From the way he’d reacted, May was far from convinced of that.
“We’ll decide that when we have had the chance to question you properly,” May told him sternly. “For now, you don’t have a choice. You attempted to flee the police, and if you don’t want to face criminal charges, then come with us quietly. No more trying to run!”
*
Thirty minutes later, Freddy was perched uneasily on a chair in the interrogation room of the Fairshore police precinct.
It was a small room, more of a spare office than an official interrogation room, but it had been fitted out with an observation window, and there was a tape recorder on the desk.
May walked in and stared hard at Freddy.
“Mr. Featherstone, you committed an act of arson in the campground. And then you fled from police,” she said. “I’m in possession of numerous complaints you have made, and which have been made against you, regarding the hotel. You have been calling, emailing, threatening. You named the architect in your threats.”
Freddy stared at her nervously.
“Did the hotel send you to me? I know they sent you! They want to arrest me.”
“This isn’t just about the hotel,” May said. “We are investigating a murder, and you are a potential suspect. If you are innocent, then there is nothing to worry about. But if you are guilty, then we need to know that as quickly as possible.”
“A murder? No way! What murder?” Freddy now sounded appalled.
“The murder of Danny Charter, the hotel’s architect,” May said firmly.
Danny’s mouth dropped open.
“Serious?” he said incredulously. “That man’s dead?”
“Yes. And from the messages you sent, you have a strong motive,” May said sternly. “Why did you run when we arrived at the campsite?”
“I—I thought the hotel was sending you to cause trouble! I don’t trust them. They want to destroy me because I’m standing up for the community.”
“You knew about the murder?”
“I had no idea! If I had known, I wouldn’t have run, because I would have known it would make me look guilty! I know there were issues between us. I could see that architect was breaking all the rules. I know he was cutting corners. I read up on the local by-laws when I was building our campsite amenities. So I had a personal problem with him, I admit. I felt like I was speaking out for everyone. But to do something like that? I wouldn’t!”
“Where were you last night?”
“I wasn’t even in town last night. I was at a fishing competition in Maine. I flew there yesterday morning, stayed overnight, and got back early this morning.”
May glanced at Owen.
“Do you have proof of that?” Owen asked.
“Sure, of course I do!”
“Can you show us?”
He lifted a finger. “Before I go any further, I want my lawyer. I still don’t trust this hotel. So I’ll show you the proof of flights, but if you have any other questions, I’d like my lawyer to be present.”
“Show me,” May said.
The man opened his phone. A moment later, May was looking at the confirmation of the competition entry, the flight booking, and even the online boarding pass.
Sure enough, he had definitely, and legitimately, been out of town yesterday.
“For now, that’s all we need from you. And you are free to go,” she said reluctantly.
He got up looking self-satisfied.
May felt deeply frustrated. This had been a waste of time. This man had by far the strongest motive. He’d made the most serious threats, had named the architect, and had harassed the hotel. There was clearly bad blood between them.
But he hadn’t been in town at the time of the murder.
However, as Freddy stalked out, he turned and said something else. Something that May hadn’t expected at all.
“If you look at my emails to that hotel, you’ll see that I stopped bothering them two or three weeks ago now. That’s when I read the article online saying that they will never be financially viable, and that they’re doomed to failure. That’s when I realized all I have to do is sit tight and wait for them to go under, and then my little campsite will be stronger than ever. I believe in karma. The big wheel turns,” he concluded dramatically.
He brushed past her and headed out the door.
May exchanged a curious glance with Owen.
Doomed to failure?
“Let’s find that article now and see what it says,” she decided.