Page 67 of Tangled Memories
“You mean there might be a conspiracy between Hadley and Foley?”
“That would surprise me. What I think is that our Mr. Foley waits patiently until a robbery occurs and somehow manages to profit by it.”
Stormy frowned. “I’d like to believe that, but it seems farfetched.”
“On the off chance I’ll start a war of the worlds between us—that’s what everybody has said about your side of the story.”
Stormy closed her eyes. “Touché.”
Tyler smirked. “I like a woman who can eat crow.”
Her eyes settled on him. “Don’t press your luck.” Then, elbows on the table, she rested her chin in her hands and sighed in resignation. So far, all Tyler had was speculation, nothing she could take to her attorney that might get her conviction overturned. “I just don’t see how Foley could work it. And I was charged as an accessory to stealing a hundred and two thousand dollars. I couldn’t protest the amount because I had no idea what Hadley was doing. But why didn’t Hadley protest?”
“I just found out he did—but only in a deposition to his attorney that basically said,Sure, I robbed the bank but not for that much money. Who believes an admitted thief? The bank examiners said how much was missing. That’s what the police went with. In your trial, the amount of money stolen wasn’t even an issue. And when you testified in court against Wilson, his attorney didn’t raise the issue. Though convicted, you were still protesting your innocence. Once Wilson was convicted, Foley was home free.”
“But I sat there and listened to Foley’s testimony. He followed bank policy in reporting the robbery, calling in the examiners—”
“Well, yes and no. When he rushed to lock the door after Wilson made his exit, he saw you.”
“I was sitting in the parking lot with the motor running to keep the air-conditioner on because it was hot, and Liane was sleeping in the back seat.” Stormy shook her head in disgust for her own gullibility.
“A fact you failed to mention at your trial.”
“I was scared for Liane. I didn’t want to subject her to interrogation.” Stormy shuddered.
“Spilled milk now,” Tyler said gently. “But, had you, your attorney might have been able to convince the jury that your love and concern for Liane precluded your intentionally putting her in any kind of reckless situation. Many bank robberies, after all, do hold an element of violence.”
“I couldn’t take the chance.” Her eyes appealed to him to understand. “Had I been found guilty anyway, Liane might have become a ward of the state. I could request that Nina and Tully take care of her, but then they, too, would’ve been subject to an investigation. Nina wouldn’t stand still for that.”
The ice in her soft drink had melted. She replenished it, offered Tyler another beer. He declined.
“Foley has gotten off scot-free,” she mused angrily. “How did he do it?”
Tyler cautioned her. “Don’t jump to conclusions. We only have suppositions.”
“But you found something that incriminates him. I know you did.”
“It’s not much. When he called the police, he failed to give them your license number. Had he done so, you and Wilson would’ve been apprehended within a few blocks of the bank. He delayed giving them that information, using a perfectly respectable excuse. He asked that the police interview him last, as he had to secure the bank, alert the auditors, and make a list of customers on the premises at the time of the robbery. He told police that he clearly saw your license plate, but in the confusion, it just wouldn’t come to him. However, a few hours later, he recalled it precisely.”
“Which gave him time to do what?”
“Well, it was his job to secure the teller stations, which meant removing the tellers at once. Wilson had each teller pass his pack on to the next to fill, so Foley had three teller drawers to play with.”
“You mean he just scooped up the money? Where could he hide it? You proved how much space that much money requires. And what about security cameras? They ran the tapes at Hadley’s trial—”
“As soon as Foley removed the tellers from their stations, he had the cameras turned off and called for the tapes to be removed for the police. He kept the drive-in windows open and had a bank employee stand outside and refer all arriving customers there. So now we have the customers inside the bank isolated in the reception area, the tellers involved with the robbery off in a tiny room they used for a cafeteria, and the drive-in tellers busy and out of view of the inside teller stations. One of the tellers commented that Foley was very solicitous of them, checking to make certain they were unharmed and so forth. That little lunchroom is situated right next to the night depository chute, and Foley had the only key. And, of course, he stayed at the bank long after closing hours to lock up after the auditors had finished.”
“And the audit reflected a loss of over a hundred thousand dollars. Isn’t that a lot of money for tellers to have in their stations at a small bank?”
“Not on a Friday. People came in to cash their paychecks.”
Stormy smoothed out Foley’s testimony. “So by the time the police ran my license number, Hadley, Liane, and I were at Walt Disney World. And by the time we were arrested three days later, everyone thought that we had hidden the money.”
“That’s exactly what my clients thought.”
“Thought? They don’t think that now?” Her soul filled with hope.
“Let’s just say they’re mulling over some things I told them.”