“Yeah, I agree. Getting a suspect on side and making them believe you are of like mind lulls them into a false state of security. Get at it and say what you must to get the information we need.” Jenna reached the landing and thumped on the door. “Mr. Williams? Sheriff’s Department.”
The door opened and a handsome man wearing jeans and a sweatshirt peered at Jenna with a half-smile. His brown hair hung over one of his dark brown eyes and he gave her the once over before straightening at the sight of Kane. Jenna cleared her throat. “Mr. Williams?”
“Yeah that’s me, Stan Williams.” He frowned. “Is there a problem, Sheriff?”
“We’re investigating the murder of Laurie Turner.” Kane spoke over Jenna’s shoulder. “May we come inside?”
“Sure.” Williams stepped back allowing the aroma of freshly brewed coffee to flow outside. “The place is a mess. There’s not much room up here for me and my hobby.”
Jenna peered around the surprisingly light room. It was clean and tidy but one wall was crammed with photographs of cheerleaders. A bench held photography paraphernalia and a light screen was set up in one corner. “You have a photography studio up here?”
“It’s a passion.” Williams smiled. “I’d love to capture you. You have remarkable skin, the camera will love you.”
Noticing the hard line of Kane’s mouth as he examined the images of young women on the wall, she shook her head. “Ah, thanks but no thanks. I hate having my photograph taken. I don’t like looking back and realizing how old I look now. Photography isn’t my thing. You need to talk to Kane, he’s always taking shots.” She turned to stare out the window to give Kane the chance to take the lead. “What a great view of the mountains.”
“Do you invite the cheerleaders here to have their photographs taken?” Kane turned to look at him, with his back to the window.
“Yeah, sometimes.” Williams stared at the images as if entranced. “There’s so many memories here, I can’t take any of them down.”
“I bet.” Kane dropped his voice into a confidential tone and led Williams to the far corner. He pointed to an image. “She’s pretty. How did you get her up here alone?”
“They’re comfortable with me. I’m part of the furniture.” Williams leaned closer to Kane and chuckled. “You should see the ones without the uniform.”
“Interesting. Maybe you could show me sometime, when I’m not with the boss?” Kane moved along the wall staring at the images.
“Sure, I’m free after six most nights.” Williams smiled. “I never believed that people of like mind would be in law enforcement but I have friends from all walks of life, lawyers, judges, and doctors, would you believe?”
“Yeah, the job doesn’t reflect taste, does it?” Kane smiled. “Look at me, you’d figure me for a beer man and yet I prefer a glass of pinot noir.”
“I learned long ago not to judge a book by its cover.” Williams chuckled. “But we still have to watch our backs.”
“Yeah, we sure do.” Kane raised his eyebrows. “Did you photograph Laurie Turner?”
“Laurie?” Williams smiled. “Yeah but not here. I take photographs of the squad at the gym and at games but her father would cause trouble if I asked her to come here.” He winked at Kane. “He doesn’t understand.”
“So are the photos for your own pleasure or do you have a group of like-minded enthusiasts?” Kane moved slowly along the wall, leaning in to examine the images. “Great action shots. They’re very professional, no wonder the girls want you to take their photographs.”
“Oh, I supply images for the year book and local newspaper plus any promotions the school wants to do. I offer them free of charge of course.” Williams ran a finger over the face of one of the girls. “So many favorites. I could never choose just one, could you?”
“They do say variety is the spice of life.” Kane looked at him. “Tell me about Saturday night. You were at the gym taking pictures of the cheerleaders. Did you talk to anyone in particular?”
“I talk to everyone.” Williams went to his computer. “I got some great shots.”
“Do you capture everything? The spectators for instance?”
“I sure do.” Williams laughed. “Some of them are in my private collection.”
“As we’re of like mind, can I have a copy of the file?” Kane pulled a thumb drive from his pocket. “I’d like to see who was there.” He handed him the stick.
“I guess.” Williams looked taken aback. “I haven’t had time to edit the file. What about the sheriff? I don’t want this getting into the wrong hands.”
“That’s okay.” Kane smiled at him. “The sheriff is only looking for crowd shots, to verify who was watching the practice.” He leaned in close. “Unless you have anything else to share?”
Jenna stared in amazement as Williams obediently pushed the drive into his laptop and transferred the files. She moved away from the window and walked slowly toward them. “Where did you go after the practice?”
“I came home.” Williams indicated to his laptop. “I downloaded my files and send a few emails. Around ten I walked down to Aunt Betty’s for pie and coffee. It’s busy in town on Saturday night and I like to be with people.”
Jenna nodded. “Did you speak to anyone in particular?”