All About the Money (A Jesse Watson Mystery Series Book 7) (9 page)

“Hello,” I said, almost whispering the word.

“Jesse? This is Mick Garner. I have a problem and I need your
help. Is Billy there with you?”

“Yes. He’s in the car. We’re getting ready to go over to
Donald Rhodes’ house. What’s the matter?”

Mick sounded as if he was in a panic as he continued. “That’s
what I’m calling about. That crazy wife of mine is going to get herself killed.
I don’t know what to do.”

“What did she do, Mick?”

“She snuck out of the house. She’s gone, and I’m afraid she’s
headed to Donald’s. Earlier, she was having one of her tirades. I tried to calm
her down, but she said she was tired of waiting on other people to do what she
should be doing. She’s so mad. All she can talk about is punishing that man.
I’m afraid of what she might do. I’m worried that if I go over there and she’s
not there, it’ll make things worse.”

“Let me call you from my cell phone, Mick. Billy’s waiting
for me in the car. I’ll tell him what you said about Flo.”

“You will call me right back, won’t you? My nerves are
frayed.”

“Yes, of course, I’ll call you right back. I just need to
talk with Billy.”

I hung up the receiver, looked around to see if I’d forgotten
anything, and then made sure the door was locked when I walked out. I ran down
the porch steps to the car, and when I jumped inside, I told Billy about Mick’s
call. “He’s really upset. He’s worried to death about Flo.”

“Say it isn’t so,” Billy replied. “That woman’s asking for
trouble. Mick’s right. She’s going to get herself killed.”

“That’s exactly what Mick said.”

“What happened to her bodyguard?”

“I didn’t ask. Flo’s smart. She probably gave her the slip.”

“Call Mick back and tell him we’re on our way over to
Rhodes
’ house. Tell him we’ll call him as soon as we find
Flo… if she’s there. Ask him if he has a gun missing.”

I made the call, but got no response. “He’s not answering.”

“Keep trying. Maybe he went to the bathroom or something. I
doubt if he left the house.”

Billy sped down the driveway barely stopping at the end of it
before making the turn onto
Bear
Mountain Road
. When we
reached the stop sign, he quickly scanned for traffic before pulling out onto
the main road. After that, he didn’t slow down until we came to the driveway of
Donald Rhodes’ house.

The horrible storm that had lingered on and pestered me so
had come to an abrupt halt the minute Billy pulled into Donald Rhodes’
driveway. By the time we got up close to the house, all that was left behind
was a light drizzle.

“Can you believe it?” I asked, looking at Billy. “The storm
stopped just as quickly as it started. It’s not out to get me after all.”

“That’s what it’s like in the mountains,” Billy replied.
“Storms are unpredictable here.”

“You can say that again.” I looked around and sized up my
surroundings just like Billy was doing. “Wow!” I said after getting a good
look. “And I thought Flo’s house was a bit much. What is it with these people
and their big houses? Don’t they have anything else to spend their money on?”

The two story brick house reminded me of a massive funeral
home. It was huge, boxy, and basically non-descript. Other than a perfectly
manicured lawn, the only outside decorations were large potted ferns sitting
between the columns on the porch. All the lights in the house were on.

Billy didn’t respond, instead he pointed to a car parked out
in front of the house and said, “There’s Flo’s car. Mick was right to be
worried about her.”

Flo drove a green SUV Tahoe with her business logo painted on
the back hatch—not an automobile that could be easily hidden.

“Try calling Mick again. We need to know if she’s armed.”

I punched in the number for Mick. This time he answered on
the second ring. “Where have you been? I’ve been trying to reach you.” I didn’t
wait for him to answer. “Don’t panic, Mick, but Flo is here at Donald’s. So
far, we don’t see any signs of a struggle or foul play, so she must be inside.
Billy wants to know if she took a gun with her.”

“Oh, no. I didn’t think about that. Let me go check the gun
cabinet.”

Mick must’ve been using a portable phone, because I could
hear noises in the background even though he wasn’t talking. He finally came
back and said, “I think she took the .38. It’s missing, and I don’t have it.
I’m scared, Jesse. Flo is terrified of Donald Rhodes. She seriously thinks he’s
out to do away with her. I tried to tell her it would be all right, but she
just won’t listen. I called her cell, but it went straight to voice mail.”

I looked over at Billy and said, “Mick thinks Flo took the
.38 with her. He says it’s missing from the gun cabinet.”

Billy motioned for me to hand him the cell phone. “Listen,
Mick,” he said in a calm manner. “I want you to sit tight and don’t go anywhere
just yet. Wait for my call. Right now, there’s nothing you can do to help Flo.”
Billy ended the call and then handed my cell phone back. “Try Flo’s cell
phone.”

“Mick said he tried to call her, but it kept going to voice
mail.”

“Try anyway. You never know. She might’ve turned it back on
again.”

“Yeah, and maybe Donald locked her up in a closet, then she
realized her phone was off, so she miraculously turned it back on just in time
to call for help. Anything’s possible.”

“If Flo’s on the edge like Mick says she is, she might’ve
pulled a gun on Donald, and now he’s the one who’s locked in the closet.”

I punched in Flo’s number and the call went through this
time. When I heard the first ring, I looked over at Billy and gave him the
thumbs up sign. Before the phone had a chance to ring a second time, a gunshot
rang out from within the
Rhodes
’ house. A second gunshot followed.

Something bad had just happened. Was Flo lying in a pool of
her own blood on the
Rhodes
’ floor? At this point, anything was
truly possible.

Billy and I went into auto-mode
.
Within seconds of the second gunshot, we jumped out of the
4Runner and ran up to the house, guns drawn. We were like members of a SWAT
team—minus backup. With our backs to each side of the door, Billy reached over
and turned the doorknob. The door eased open without a squeak, but was
instantly followed by a chime.

The voices off to the right ceased. It was too late to be
quiet. We took off with our guns pointed straight out. When we burst into the
room, the element of shock gave us the advantage of the situation. There was no
surprise factor because of the door chime, but we achieved our objective.
Nobody moved.

Even though Donald was holding a gun and it was pointed
toward the floor, Billy didn’t stop until he had his gun jammed into Donald’s
face, pressed into his cheek.

I stood taut, my gun raised defiantly, backing up my partner.
I looked over at Wynona, Donald’s wife, who looked as if she’d had a few too
many drinks, and said, “Don’t move a muscle, or I’ll shoot you in the leg, and
you’ll never walk right again.”

Wynona didn’t budge, but she did wobble somewhat. Yes, she
had definitely consumed a fair amount of alcohol. She could barely stand up.
She had her hand placed on the fireplace mantle using it to support her
well-dressed, petite body. When she could manage, occasionally she would brush
an uncontrollable wisp of hair out of her eyes.

Dressed in a white, button down shirt with his tie loosened
and pulled down as if he had intended to remove it, Donald was tall and very
handsome—more so than I had expected. His shoes looked as if they were Italian
made.

I gave the room a quick once over and realized that if I fell
and broke anything I’d probably be paying for it the rest of my life. The
furnishings in this room alone most likely cost more than I could make in a
lifetime.

Two bullet holes marred the hardwood floor, leaving behind
jagged, splintered remnants… remnants that could easily wreak havoc on a bare
foot. At least the bullets didn’t find a home in someone’s body.

Flo was slumped down in an overstuffed chair, her ashen face
staring back up at me. At first, I thought she was dead, until I saw her tears.
Dead people don’t cry.

“It’s not what it looks like,” Donald blurted out in a hurry.
“This isn’t even my gun. It’s hers.” He looked down in Flo’s direction. “She
came to my house and accused me of all sorts of bad things. She swears I’m
trying to kill her.”

Donald did not resist when Billy slowly reached down and
relieved him of the gun. Donald’s hands went up as if to surrender. Once Billy
had possession of the gun, I went to Flo’s side.

“Are you all right, Flo?” I asked, my gun still aimed at
Donald. “You look a little flushed.”

“I’m a bad person,” she cried, her voice but a whisper. Her
tears flowed. “The gun just… went off. My cell phone rang… and it startled me.
I squeezed the trigger… two times before I could stop.” She looked up at
Donald. “I could’ve… killed you. I didn’t mean to. I didn’t come here to… harm
you. All I wanted… was to scare you… to make you leave me alone.”

“You scared me all right,” Donald snapped at her. “I don’t
know why you think I’m after you. I told you it wasn’t me. I didn’t burn down
your shop, and I’m not trying to kill you. I just want you to go away and leave
me alone.”

“Like you want us to go away?” Billy snapped back at him in
the same tone of voice. “Where’s your Dodge Charger?”

“In the garage, I suppose,” Donald replied. “At least it was
the last time I saw it. Why?”

“Because someone driving a red Dodge Charger ran us off the
road a couple of hours ago. Several of the numbers on the license plate matched
the ones on your car. What do you make of that?”

Donald shot a surprised look at his wife, and then hurriedly
looked back at Billy—but he wasn’t fast enough for us to miss seeing that look.
It was a dead giveaway. He might not have been the driver, but I had my
suspicions of who was the guilty party.

“Call the police, Jesse,” Billy commanded.

“No!” Donald shouted. “Don’t call the cops. I don’t want my
picture in the paper again. This was just a misunderstanding.” He seemed to
relax some, but he was still a little nervous. He lowered his hands. “I’ve had
my fair share of the press and the cops. They’re out to burn me anyway they
can.” He looked from Billy to me, and then back. “I didn’t run you off the
road, and I’m not out to kill Flo. Remember, you’re the ones who broke into my
house. I’m willing to let it all go if we can just drop it right here.”

Billy lowered his gun and said, “We can’t really prove
anything. The fact that you own the same kind of car is circumstantial evidence
at best. We did come here uninvited, but with good reason. We came here to
protect Flo.”

“Excuse me, but she’s the one who brought a gun.” He pointed
to Flo. “That makes me think she was out to kill me.”

“That’s not true,” Flo said, jumping up out of the chair. “I
never meant to harm anyone when …”

Before Flo could finish her sentence, a loud groan came from
Wynona’s direction. A second later, she was passed out on the hardwood floor. I
guess she’d stood as long as she could. She was now a goner, dropped like a
scarf tossed up in the wind and then allowed to casually fall to the ground.
Even passed-out drunk, she had some grace. If that had been me, I would’ve hit
the floor in the most violent way, cracked my skull, and watched in a drunken
stupor while everyone laughed at me. For some reason, the thought of the whole
scenario made me chuckle a little… and then… I burst out laughing at the woman
sprawled out, drunk on the floor—until Billy gave me one of his looks. I
stopped laughing, looked over at Donald and said, “I guess it’s not funny when
your wife gets so drunk she passes out in a room full of people.”

Donald walked over to his wife and bent down.

“Maybe we should help her up,” Flo calmly suggested.

“I’ll do it,” Donald said. “If you’ll go, I’ll take care of
my wife.”

“I will help you,” Billy offered in a demanding way. He
walked over to Wynona. “Where should we put her?”

“On the sofa,” Donald replied as the two of them picked her
up. “It’s safer for her down here. If I put her to bed, she might get up in the
middle of the night—still drunk of course—and fall down the stairs.”

“Does she get drunk a lot?” I asked, prying as much as I
could and taking advantage of a weak moment without drawing too much suspicion
on myself.

“I’m afraid so,” Donald answered. “The last few years have
been hard on her. Drinking is her escape.”

“From what?” I asked, looking around. “It doesn’t seem to me
like she wants for anything.”

“Material possessions can only satisfy a person for so long,”
Donald replied. “I give her everything, but it’s never enough.”

“Maybe she’s clinically depressed,” I suggested in earnest.
“People with wealth can fall into depression, too. Maybe she needs to see a
professional. There are doctors who can help her.”

“She’s seen her share.”

“What do they say?”

I guess I had pushed it too far. Donald straightened up and
said, “I’m tired. I’d like to lock up my house and go to bed. Do you mind?”

Billy looked at me, I looked at Flo, and then Flo turned to
Donald and said, “You will have no further problems with me. I’ll be leaving
now. Goodnight.” She showed no emotion when she exited the room.

Billy and I followed without saying a word. It was over for
now. I knew there was more to come, because Billy walked away too easily. As
soon as the three of us were outside, Mick pulled into the driveway.

The look on Billy’s face was worth a thousand words, but only
one stood out: furious. He walked over to the 4Runner and motioned for everyone
to follow. He huddled us together like a football team discussing plays, but
that wasn’t what he had in mind. He looked at Flo and Mick, and then said,
“I’ll let Flo explain what happened in there, but as of now, we’re finished.
It’s over. I’ll send you a final bill in the mail.” He reached into the
waistband of his pants, pulled out the gun, and handed it to Mick. “You might
want to consider safety locks for all your guns. You’re lucky she didn’t kill
someone… or get killed herself. We’re done here.” Billy gave me a nod.

“I’m so sorry I butted in,” Flo offered. “I was wrong. I
should’ve stayed at home and let you do your job. I realize that now.”

“Next time you want to hire us, you’re going to have to sign
a waiver,” Billy said, light-heartedly. “You will have to obey me.”

“Next time,” Mick agreed.

Billy and I climbed into the 4Runner and headed out. Once we
pulled out on the main road, Flo and Mick were no longer in sight. Barely a few
hundred feet past the
Rhodes
’ residence, Billy made a quick left
turn onto a dirt road, pulled up under a pine tree, and then switched off the
headlights and engine.

We sat in silence. We’d been in this kind of a situation
before. Words weren’t necessary. We always played by Billy’s one minute
rule—stop, look, and listen for one minute before taking action.

A minute later, I spoke. “I have my own opinion, if you want
to hear it. That is, if you’re interested.”

“Tell me about it on the way,” Billy said, getting out of the
4Runner. “Come on, we’re going to do your favorite thing—we’re going to go
snooping.”

“I like it when you talk like that,” I said, getting out of
the car. “Keep it up and you will always be my man. Hey, did you forget your
dish?”

“I have something new I want to try out.”

Trying to stealthily navigate the woods in the dark can be
mighty tricky, especially after a ground soaking summer storm. If the mud
doesn’t get you, those pesky hidden vines will.

“What’s your plan?” I whispered as we got closer to the side
of Donald’s house. The edge of the tree line was less than a hundred feet from
our target. “Did you bring a glass to press against the window? How else are we
going to hear what’s going on?”

Billy pulled out his new cell phone and started pecking on
it. “This isn’t an ordinary phone, `ge ya. It has all kinds of apps. Let’s just
see if the satellite can do what it’s supposed to do.”

“What are you talking about? Don’t tell me it’s got a
listening device built it. That’s about as cool as can be.”

“Sort of. Let’s see how well it can pick up their…”

The cell phone wasn’t much bigger than a thin notepad. I
might not be technologically savvy, but I had my doubts about something so
small being able to accomplish what Billy claimed it would… until I heard the
voices.

“Are you kidding me? It’s working!”

“Not only will it pick up sound, but it also has a built in
recorder.”

“Amazing! That’s pretty smart!”

“That’s where they get their name. Of course, our two are
much smarter than the rest. Jonathan worked his magic and it has an extra app
no one else has. Such innovations!”

We crouched down and tried to make ourselves as comfortable
as possible as we listened to what was going on in the
Rhodes
’ household. My butt was wet from the damp ground, but
I was too impressed with our new toy for it to matter.

Donald and Wynona’s voices came through quite clearly. It
soon became evident that Wynona had faked her drunken fall. She hadn’t passed
out at all, but instead, used her acting ability to fool us all.

“She should win an Emmy for that performance,” I whispered.
“I can’t believe we fell for it.”

“I knew she was faking. When drunks pass out their breathing
is heavy. Her breathing wasn’t. I knew it was a ruse, but it gave me the
opportunity to plant one of those new bugs I bought. In case this phone doesn’t
do its job, we will already have a bug in place.”

“You’re a genius!” I kissed his cheek. “P.S. I never even saw
you plant the bug!”

“Let’s see what the
Rhodes
have to hide.”

We listened to what turned out to be an argument between
Donald and Wynona. The sound of glass shattering was followed by Wynona’s
accusation. Neither Billy nor I expected to hear the truth that was about to
unfold. The conversation between Donald and Wynona was heated.

“You’re such a wimp, Donald!”

“I told you I’d take care of everything, Nona. Why did you
have to go and do something so stupid? What would you have done if your little
escapade had killed them?”

“They’d be off our backs for good.” She laughed.

“All you managed to accomplish was to throw guilt our way.
Did you see the look in Billy Blackhawk’s eyes? He’ll never let up now.”

“All I saw was you looking at me the minute he asked about
the car. Now he knows we’re guilty.”

“We? You’re the one who…”

“Ah, shut up, Donald! You’re such a loser. I should’ve left
you a long time ago.”

“Maybe if you had, Hank would still be alive. He didn’t want
you, did he? When you confronted him that night at the inn, he told you it was
over. You just couldn’t accept that. Then you had to go and kill my partner… my
best friend. What kind of woman does something like that just because her lover
dumped her? Too bad he didn’t love you like you thought. Too bad he didn’t want
you. He used you, Nona. He would’ve never left his wife for you. Didn’t you
know that?”