Death of the Family Recipe (A Scotti Fitzgerald Murder Mystery Book 3) (33 page)

Ted cupped my chin. "Poor baby, who’s mad at you?"

"Joe, my aunt, you." I shrugged. "Probably a hundred other people I don’t know."

He kissed me. "Okay, I won’t be mad. As long as it’s just computer work."

I raised my hand. "Scout’s honor, just computer work."

Ted pulled the covers up to my chin, then smoothed the hair back from my face. "You going to be okay by yourself today?"

I nodded. "Yeah, I’m beat. I’ll probably just sleep all day." I looked toward the door. "Have Matt and Zelda already left?"

He stroked my forehead. "Yup. They’ve got it covered. And they promised to be quiet when they restock." He kissed my cheek and stood. "You just rest, okay?"

I nodded and smiled at my sweet husband. He paused at the door and turned back. "I can come home for lunch? Bring you some soup?"

I shook my head. "We have plenty of soup here, and I’ll probably be asleep." I smiled weakly. "You don’t have to check up on me. I’ll be fine as long as I can get some uninterrupted sleep. Okay?"

He held up his hands. "Roger that, do not disturb, I get it." He blew me a kiss. "I’ll see you tonight — I’ll be home early."

I nodded. "Love you. Have a good day."

Ted walked out of the room, then I heard his footsteps on the stairs. A few seconds later I heard him instruct Boomer to look after me, then he set the alarm and left. I cocked an ear for the Escalade’s engine. Then waited until I heard the car pulling away from the house. I threw back the covers and quickly dressed. If I was going to see William Hyden and get back before Ted checked on me at lunch time, I had to hurry. As I was rushing down the stairs, my cell buzzed with a text from Zelda. I ignored it, grabbed my keys and went out the back door.

Despite his promises, Joe kept putting me off on Rose’s case and dived deeper into the murder trial. Meanwhile, we’d slogged through their bogus website day in and day out. And I was fucking tired of it and waiting. After my one little side trip to see William Hyden, it would be all Rose all the time.

Hyden’s playhouse was on Lankershim in North Hollywood, along with several other small theaters. I parked on a side street and waddled back to the old storefront that was now a venue for local entertainment. The glass doors gave me a view of a tiny lobby with a ticket booth and steps leading down to the theater. I held open the door for a moment, wondering if I was doing the right thing. But right or wrong, I believed a child’s life was at stake and that belief drove me inside.

When I walked into the theatre, the house lights were down, and low spots lighted the stage. A middle-aged man stood center stage, talking into his cell phone. As I walked up the aisle, I could see we were alone. He acknowledged my presence with a held up finger, talked for a few more moments then ended his call. His smile was warm and welcoming. "Hello."

I stopped at the foot of the stage. "Mr. Hyden?"

He stepped closer to me. "That’s me. How can I help you?"

His open, trusting face made me waver. I was flat out guessing who the man was, and I could be terribly wrong. I was there strictly on a gut feeling, and at that moment my guts were rumbling with doubt.

Hyden’s soft brown eyes filled with concern, and he came down the steps to me. "Are you all right, ma’am?" He offered me a hand. "Do you need help?"

I swallowed and said very quickly, "I shouldn’t be here." I looked over my shoulder to be sure we were still alone. "I know that. And I can’t tell you my name."

Hyden tilted his head and smirked. "Is this a joke or something."

I held up my hand and shook my head. "No, this is not a joke. I just came to say that if you know anything about Tina Devereaux or her murder, you need to go to the police."

Hyden’s face went from concerned to sad. "I knew Tina…"

I held up my hand. "No! Don’t tell me anything. Please. Tell the police." I looked into his concerned eyes and whispered, "I think your baby is still alive, and if you ever want to see her, you need to do something now."

Hyden gawked at me. "What?" Quickly, I turned and walked up the aisle toward the lobby. I cursed myself for sticking my nose where it didn't belong. Certain I'd made a mistake by going there, I prayed no one would ever know I spoke to him. Hyden called after me, "Hey, wait. What are you talking about?"

I moved chubby pregnant body as fast as I could and kept moving until I was back at my car, bent over and panting. I felt eyes on me, and I looked around, but Hyden hadn’t followed me. Trembling, I got in my car and switched on the engine — I had to get home before Ted came back to check on me.

<<>>

On the way home, I stopped and got a pint of ice cream — not because I wanted ice cream, but because if Ted caught me, I could claim I had a craving. But when I pulled into the drive, the Escalade wasn’t there. I ducked in through the back door, stuck the ice cream in the freezer, then ran upstairs to the bedroom. Quickly, I changed back into my pajamas and dived into bed. And just as I started to drift off, I heard Ted coming up the stairs.

He tiptoed into the room and stood at the foot of the bed watching me. I fluttered my eyes open and stretched out my arms. "Hi, is it lunch time already?"

Ted sat next to me on the bed. "How you feeling?"

I sat up. "Okay. Still tired."

I started to get out of bed, but Ted put his hand on my shoulder. "No, stay here and I’ll bring you lunch." He wiggled his eyebrows. "I stopped at Billy’s and got matzo ball soup."

A few minutes later, we were both in bed, eating soup while Boomer perched on the edge hoping for leftovers. I raised the bowl to my lips and drank the last drops of soup "That was good. Thanks, I needed that."

Ted moved the tray then sidled next to me, pulling me into a one-armed hug. "Anything for you, babe."

I lay my head on his chest and sighed. "When do you have to go back to work?"

He chuckled. "Trying to get rid of me already?"

I gave him the innocent eyes. "No, not at all." But I was lying because I was dying to start doing interviews on Rose’s case, and I couldn’t do it with Ted hanging around. "If I had my way, you’d never leave the house."

He chuckled and his eyes twinkled. "Well baby you get your wish because I’m home for the rest of the day." I raised my eyebrows. "Steve can handle things without me for an afternoon." He kissed my forehead. "Besides, I want to make sure you get your rest."

I smirked. "So you’re going to just watch me sleep for the rest of the day?"

"No, I have some calls to make and some paperwork. But I’ll be close by."

I had some calls to make too, but they’d have to wait. I smiled at him. "What’d I ever do to deserve such an attentive husband?"

He pulled me closer and rested his chin on my head. "I’ve been thinking. Maybe it’s time to have Matt take over for you on the truck."

I frowned. "What did you do?"

He gave me the innocent eyes. "Nothing."

I wriggled out of his arms and stared at him. "Come on, out with it."

His eyes evaded mine. "Matt’s rearranged his school schedule, and he can start Monday. And I don’t see any reason why he shouldn’t." He waved a hand at me. "You’re exhausted. You need a break." He patted my belly. "And they need you to get your rest."

I leaned against the headboard and sighed. "I’d like it if you ran things by me before rearranging my life." Ted laughed because that was usually his line. "Fine, Matt can start on the truck Monday." All the more time for me to work Rose’s case. "You happy now?"

Ted squinted at me. "You gave up awfully easy."

I threw up my hands. "Do you want me to stay home, or do you want me to put up a fight and then stay home?"

Ted climbed out of bed, then bent and kissed me. "You’re right, I shouldn’t push my luck."

I missed being out on the truck, but it gave me the time to follow the Atkinson trial. I watched in the morning until Ted came home for lunch and in the afternoon until Matt and Zelda came to stock the truck. I didn’t give a hang about the trial, although Dan was impressive to watch on cross, but I was hoping to see the prosecution call William Hyden.

I did a little work every day on the tipster site but not much. Joe and I were hardly speaking, so I did little more than skim through emails, delete them and log off.

The Friday before Valentine’s Day, the prosecution rested its case in the
People versus Spencer Atkinson
without ever calling William Hyden. I was disappointed, but I’d done what I could — and I shouldn’t have even done that. And I still wondered if I was wrong about Hyden. The defense was slated to present its case on the following Monday, and the tipster website went crazy with theories — crashing the site with the explosion of traffic. Worked for me, and I hoped it would stay crashed permanently.

Zelda and Eric went to San Francisco for the weekend to celebrate Valentine’s Day. While our plans were to stay home and watch my belly grow. For us, it wasn’t just Valentine’s Day — it was our anniversary. We’d met exactly one year ago to the day, due to rainy weather and Zelda’s lousy driving. But if you asked Ted, he’d say it was fate that brought us together. I suspected Ted had a surprise planned and I hoped it didn’t involve big, fat pregnant lady lingerie. Though my hormones still raged, they took the form of weird and sometimes scary mood swings. Not the kind of pillow talk that a husband looks forward to on the most romantic day of the year.

Ted was working late, and chances were good I wouldn’t see him until Valentine’s Day, since I couldn’t seem to stay awake past nine. Still, I ate dinner, took a shower and put on my cute maternity pajamas, then settled on the sofa. Determined to try to wait up for him. Boomer snuggled on the sofa with me to watch television, and I lay my head down on a pillow for a moment. Then the doorbell rang. My eyes popped open. I looked at the clock on the mantle — a little past ten. The doorbell rang again. I struggled to me feet. "Ted?"

Boomer yapped and wagged his stub. Again the doorbell rang. "Who’s ringing our bell at this hour?" I waddled to the door with Boomer on my heels. Peering through the side window I saw no one. "Who’s there?" I put my ear to the door but no one answered. "If this is a prank, it isn’t funny." I looked through the side window again — still no one. I got that creepy spider up my neck feeling and Boomer yapped, making me jump. "There’s no one there." I made a face at the door then turned back to the living room. The phone rang and I jumped again. "That better be you, Ted Jordan." I picked up the receiver. "Hello?" I could hear someone breathing, but they said nothing. "Is someone there?" I looked at the caller I.D. but the number was private. "Hello?"

I hung up and rushed to the kitchen to get my cell phone. As I speed-dialed Ted and the doorbell rang again. I screamed and dropped the phone. "Scotti?"

Scrambling to get the phone I got down on all fours fighting my pregnant belly all the way. Crying I raised the phone to my ear. "Come home, somebody’s at the door."

"I’m at the door," Ted said.

I struggled to stand, using a barstool for balance. "What? You’re here?" I pushed through the kitchen door. "Ringing the bell?" I walked through the dining room. "That’s you?"

"Yup."

I crossed through the living room. "Why don’t you use your keys?"

"I forgot them."

Still crying, I opened the door. "Damn it Ted, you scared me."

Ted locked the door, then put his arms around me. "Sorry honey I didn’t mean to scare you. Don’t cry, everything’s okay." He led me to the sofa. "I’m home, it’s okay now."

"Why didn’t you answer me?"

Ted brushed away my tears. "About what?"

"When you rang the bell, I went to the door and asked who was there. And you didn’t answer."

Ted furrowed his brow. "You already knew it was me. We were on the phone."

I pushed him back and scowled. "No, before that. When you rang the bell the first time."

Ted shook his head. "I only rang the bell once, honey. You must be confused."

I struggled to my feet and stared at the front door. "I’m not confused. I was asleep, the doorbell rang and woke me. And it rang twice more by the time I got to the door." I frowned at Ted. "That wasn’t you?" Ted jumped up and hurried to the front door. He checked the locks and turned on the alarm system. I watched him from the living room. "Ted?"

"Did you check the rest of the house?"

"For what?"

Ted walked past me and headed for the kitchen. "Are the doors and windows locked?" I followed him around the house, as he checked doors and windows, but the house was secure. He wouldn’t answer my questions and moved like he was still in Special Forces on a mission. Satisfied the house was secure, Ted went back to the entryway and flipped on the outside lights. He turned off the alarm and grabbed a flashlight from the front closet. "You stay inside." He opened the door. "And lock the door behind me."

I watched from the window as Ted ran the flashlight beam along the walkway, around the shrubbery, under the windows and around the sides of the house. He stood outside for a few minutes, looked and listened then came back up the porch steps. I opened the door to let him inside. "Ted?"