D.D.’s turn to blink. She turned this around in her head, still couldn’t sort it out. “What kind of marriage is it?”

“Respectful. Sandra was very young when we married. If she needed to work some things out, I could give her space for that.”

“Mighty understanding of you.”

He didn’t say anything.

Then D.D. got it: “Did you make her sign a prenup? Some kind of clause, if she cheated on you, then you wouldn’t owe her anything in the divorce?”

“There’s no prenup.”

“Really? No prenup? With all that money sitting in the bank?”

“The money came from an inheritance. I never expected to have it, ergo I can’t mind too much if I lose it.”

“Oh please, two million dollars—”

“Four. You need to run better reports.”

“Four million dollars—”

“Yet we live on twenty-five hundred a month. Sergeant, you’re not asking the right question yet.”

“And what would that be?”

“Even if I had motive to harm my wife, why would I harm Mr. Smith?”

“Excuse me?”

“Did you ever read about Ted Bundy? He murdered and mutilated over thirty women, yet he wouldn’t steal an uninsured car because he thought it was cruel. Now, a husband who murders his wife rather than settle for a divorce is clearly psychopathic. His needs come first. His wife is little more than an animated object. She interferes with his needs. He feels justified in disposing of her.”

D.D. didn’t say anything. She was still trying to figure out if she’d just heard a confession.

“But the cat, Sergeant. Mr. Smith. Even if I had objectified my wife to a point where I decided I would be better off without her, what had the cat ever done to me? Maybe I could justify taking my daughter’s mother from her. But harming my daughter’s pet, that would be just plain cruel.”

“Then what happened to your wife, Mr. Jones?”

“I have no idea.”

“Has she ever disappeared before?”

“Never.”

“Has she ever not shown up for something, without bothering to call?”

“Sandra is very conscientious. Ask the middle school where she works. She says what she’s going to do, she does what she says.”

“Does she have a history of going to bars, drinking heavily, doing drugs? By your own admission, she’s still very young.”

“No. We don’t drink. We don’t do drugs.”

“She sleepwalk, use any prescription medication?”

“No.”

“Hang out socially?”

“We lead a very quiet life, Sergeant. Our first priority is our daughter.”

“In other words, you’re just regular, everyday folks.”

“Regular as clockwork.”

“Who happen to live in a house with reinforced windows and steel doors?”

“We live in an urban environment. Home security is nothing to be taken lightly.”

“Didn’t realize Southie was that rough.”

“Didn’t realize the police had issues with citizens who favor locks.”