Poe's First Law: A Murder on Maui Mystery

time sniffing every inch of the first floor. He could tell people had invaded his territory and he seemed determined to figure out who they were.
I’d just plopped down on the sofa and turned on the television when Alana walked into the house. She looked around the living room and kitchen.
“You already cleaned everything?”
“It seemed a good way to keep my mind preoccupied,” I said.
She walked over to the sofa and sat beside me.
“My mother broke down after we left the neighborhood. She cried all the way to her house. She didn’t stop until I got her inside.”
“Maybe we should have insisted that she stay with us tonight.”
“Sometimes you want to be in your own home,” Alana said.
“I understand.”
“Thanks for getting him out of the house.”
“I didn’t really do anything. I just followed him outside.”
“Still, you were here. I don’t know what I would have done if you weren’t.”
“I thought you handled yourself well.”
“It was so out of the blue. I never imagined it would have gone down like that.”
I didn’t reply.
“I used to dream about seeing my father again. I don’t remember exactly how old I was, maybe thirteen or fourteen, when I finally realized he wasn’t ever coming back. I hated him for the longest time, but I think that was a way of getting over him. Then I started feeling sorry for him. What kind of man leaves his own family? Then I just stopped thinking about him all together.”
Alana turned to me.
“Did he say anything to you when you were outside?” she asked.
It was a telling question. If she truly had gotten over him, I mean completely over him, she wouldn’t have cared if Sora Hu had said anything to me or not. I was reminded of that saying, there’s a thin line between love and hate.
“He said he’ll be on Maui for two weeks. He asked me to let you and Hani know that. He said he’s available to talk should you change your mind.”
“I won’t.”
“Did Hani call you guys after she left?” I asked.
“No, I haven’t heard anything from her.”
“I spoke to Foxx for a while when I went to pick up Maui. He said he’s going to call Yuto tonight.”
“You’re kidding. Foxx can’t stand him.”
“That might have been true at one point, but I suspect Yuto gained a lot of respect from Foxx when he stood up to him. Plus, Yuto showed Foxx a lot of compassion after he got hurt. There’s one other thing.”
“What’s that?”
“Foxx knows what it’s like being on the receiving end of your sister’s wrath.”
“Yeah, but you can’t blame Hani for this one. Yuto really screwed up.”
“I’m not blaming Hani.”
“What do you think will happen? Will she call off the wedding?” Alana asked.
“I don’t know. If you’d asked me that question an hour ago, I would have said no.”
“What changed?”
“I thought back to some of the conversations we had in the last year about those two. We both felt that Hani didn’t really love Yuto, at least not at the level that someone should feel before entering into a marriage. Maybe this is an excuse to call things off.”
“Hani doesn’t need an excuse. She can just say no.”
“I understand that, but I’m talking about an excuse in her mind that she won’t feel guilty about.”
“I don’t think you’re being fair to her.”
“Sorry. Maybe I’m not.”
“Did you tell my father who you were?”
“No, he already guessed. He said Yuto told him about me,” I said.
“Do me a favor. If he comes to see you, tell him you’re not interested in talking. Hold on. First tell him that I have zero interest in a relationship with him. Then tell him to get lost.” Alana said, and she stood. “I’m going to bed.”
“I’ll be up shortly,” I said.
She left the living room and walked upstairs to the bedroom.
Let me ask you a question. Was I being unfair to Hani? Or was Alana ignoring the truth of the situation? I didn’t know. There was one thing for certain. The next week was going to be one for the history books.

9
Jailhouse Interviews
The next morning, I expected Alana to bring up the return of her father again and offer any new insights she might have had. She didn’t. Instead, she asked me about the Eric Ellis investigation, a sure sign that she didn’t want to talk about her father. I told her again about my mixed feelings on whether or not Mele Akamu was guilty. She didn’t offer an opinion on the matter. She just listened.
Then Alana informed me that she was going to see her mother and Hani at their mother’s house. It was pretty obvious what the topic of conversation would be. She didn’t tell me how long she’d be gone, and I didn’t press her for any details. This was a Hu family matter and I assumed they’d ask for my opinion or help if they wanted it.
I spent the morning tidying up the backyard since I’d focused all of my cleaning the previous night on the interior of the house. As before, I found bottles, cups, and plates in all sorts of strange places and I couldn’t believe such a mess was made in only one hour.
I’d just finished hauling the trash bags to the garbage can when my phone vibrated.
“Hello.”
“Mr. Rutherford, this is Henry Mitchell.”
“The same Henry Mitchell who called me a liar on the witness stand?”
“I disagree with your account.”
“Of course, you would,” I said.
“I didn’t call you a liar. I said you couldn’t accurately remember your conversation with my client.”
“Okay, so I’m a drunk with a faulty memory. What do you want?”
“Guy Livingston would like to meet with you. Are you available today?” Mitchell asked.
“Why does he want to meet? So he can tell me I’m an ass for testifying against him?”
“I assure you that’s not the reason for the meeting.”
“Sorry, but I’m unavailable.”
“You owe him, Mr. Rutherford.”
“How’s that?”
“Your testimony was quite damning. You need to find a way to make this up to him.”
“Mr. Mitchell, I