Bake Me a Murder (8 page)

Eric spun on his stool and stiffened when he saw us.

“Relax. We want you to look at a photo. Tell us if you know this woman.” Corrigan held out the phone to Eric and I held my breath.

Eric glanced at the picture and shook his head. “Nope.”

“Look again, Eric.”

He gazed at the photo once more.

His voice almost gruff, he said, “Never seen her before. Sorry.”

I was just as sorry.

Corrigan and I walked in silence side-by-side. I didn’t know what he was thinking, but I was deciding whether to believe Eric or not. As far as I knew, he had no reason to lie.

We got to my car and I began fishing for my keys when Corrigan said, “Good work getting the phone.”

I waved that compliment away. “Have you found Rico yet? What if those pictures are why he’s looking for Coco?”

He joked, “You think he has a thing for dilapidated furniture?” When he realized I was serious, he stuck his hands in his pockets. “We’re still looking for him.”

When I opened my car door, Corrigan put his hand on my arm. “Want to follow me back to the station? Help find who the girl in that picture is. Maybe she knows Carreras’s whereabouts.”

It was like the devil himself tempting me, but would I regret it later? “You’re willing to let me in on the investigation?”

“Tit for tat, you know? We might not have gotten the phone without your help.”

I placed my hands on my hips. “So this is your way of thanking me?”

“Yeah, plus then, I can keep my eye on you.” He half-smiled and his dimples grabbed my attention. “Besides, I might as well admit you’re a lot better to look at than most sights at the station.”

My insides warmed, but the warning light went on in my head. There had to be more to it. “You want me to look through mug shots for this girl rather than you spending the time.”

He let out a brief laugh. “That never crossed my mind.” He emailed the photo of the unknown girl to me.

Thursday, 11:00 a.m.

To avoid distractions, Corrigan sat me in an interrogation room. I looked through picture after picture, but never found a match for the girl in Coco’s phone. I was about ready to call it quits, feeling like I’d wasted time I didn’t have, when Corrigan burst through the door. “You better come out here, now.”

My stomach dropped and I jumped from my chair. “What is it?”

Without answering he led the way out of the room and we came face to face with my aunt, holding a massive sheet cake adorned with chocolate and vanilla swirl frosting.

“Aunt Lena?” Was all I could manage.

My aunt’s body swayed a bit under the weight of that dessert. “I thought everyone was working so hard, I’d bring a little something down to the station. Is Ed here by any chance?”

Corrigan stepped toward my aunt. “Here, Lena, let me take that cake from you. It looks delicious, but it’s got to be heavy.”

Aunt Lena hoisted it into Corrigan’s arms. “Thanks, Brian. Or should I call you Detective Corrigan, since we’re in the police station?”

“You can call me Brian, anytime.”

I wanted to smack my forehead to wake me from this ridiculous dream.
My aunt bringing a cake to the police station so she could see Ed?
That bordered on desperate.

I had to rescue her dignity. “That was considerate of you, Aunt Lena. I don’t think Ed’s around but I’ll certainly make sure he gets a piece of cake.”

A voice behind me boomed. “Who says I’m not here?” It was Ed. “Lena, I swear you get prettier every day.”

My aunt giggled and tapped his arm. “You’re such a kidder.”

Corrigan smiled. “Lena was nice enough to bring us all this cake.”

Ed took Aunt Lena’s hand and kissed it. “You’re enough sweetness for me. But I will take a piece later. I’ve got to go see my aunt and uncle, Merle’s folks.”

Aunt Lena’s hand flew to her mouth. “Oh, Ed. Can I do anything?”

He placed his hands on my aunt’s shoulders. “Just keep good thoughts. Thanks for coming down, Lena. It means a lot.”

Nice to see not everyone had bad luck in relationships. I was happy for my aunt and admired Ed. As worried as he was about Merle, he was still more gracious with my aunt than I would have expected.

Corrigan was talking again, but in my reverie of what romance is for other people, I missed part of it. I did hear him ask if Aunt Lena would like to follow him into the break room to cut the cake.

“Love to, Brian, but I better get back to
Cannoli’s
. I left Angie there by herself and I’m sure you’re very busy.”

“Never too busy to show our appreciation to you, Lena. I’ll share this with the other officers.” He winked. “Maybe it’ll drum up even more customers for you.”

Good thing nobody was watching me because my eyes were rolling like I was possessed. How could Corrigan be so charming and sweet to my aunt and about as pleasant as a painful boil to me?

My aunt said her goodbyes and was headed toward the door when she turned and asked, “Claire, if it’s not too much trouble, could you work the counter at
Cannoli’s
next Wednesday? Angie will be off and we’re having ten women for a ‘Just Dessert’ party.”

I looked away, but not before catching Corrigan staring at the cake. No doubt he was hiding a smirk that a dedicated private investigator, in the middle of a case, also filled in at her aunt’s pastry café.

Aunt Lena was waiting for an answer. When I nodded, she addressed Corrigan. “Can you believe it? Not only does my niece have brains and, if she’d just dress nice, looks, but she helps her family. She’s loyal.”

I felt like a dog in a shelter and Aunt Lena was trying to get me adopted. What next? Would she encourage Corrigan to check my teeth? I needed to get her to leave.

“Come on, Aunt Lena. I’ll walk you to your car.”

Thursday, 3:00 p.m.

After my aunt left, I returned to the mug shots, but came up with a big zero. It was getting late and my belly let me know how displeased it was I hadn’t eaten a piece of Aunt Lena’s cake. Maybe if Corrigan heard the growls, he’d buy me a meal.

I was walking out the interrogation room door and almost bumped into Corrigan. He was holding two diet sodas and takeout Chinese. The smell of sesame oil and soy sauce wafted in the air when he set it in front of me. He handed me chopsticks. “I was hungry and thought you might be, too.”

“That’s sweet.” While my mouth watered, I wondered if he had an ulterior motive. Like a thousand more mug shots for me to view.

As if to allay my suspicions, he pulled out a chair and sat next to me and opened the containers. “Staring at mug shots is tough. After a while everyone looks alike. Have something to eat and then call it a day.”

“My eyes
were
starting to cross.” Although Corrigan was playing nice, I kept my guard up.

He stared into his carton like the answer was written in rice and as casual as could be, said, “So how long are you going to carry a chip on your shoulder? I mean about you and me.”

Like a wild animal finding themselves wrapped in a net, I growled. “Me? A chip? We’re sitting here, and up until now, having a pleasant meal. But you—”

A sharp rap on the door stopped me in the middle of my verbal clawing. An officer opened the door and motioned for Corrigan. The look on Corrigan’s face reminded me of a boxer who’s rescued by the bell. He and the officer huddled and exchanged words.

Their conversation finished, Corrigan turned to me. “That teenager you hired managed to pull strings. Pokov is being arraigned this afternoon.”

For a moment I sat there, stunned but realized quickly I needed to get downtown. After I’d dumped the leftovers out, I hustled to my car and made it to the twelfth floor of the Justice Center. I sat on the last bench in the back of the courtroom and looked around until I spotted Ed.

The judge announced a tattooed older woman’s bail and she was led away. Merle and his lawyer, Harold, were up next. My stomach crashed into my throat as I realized how young Harold looked. Worries about his ability to handle Merle’s case expanded like an overinflated tire. I pressed my knuckles against my mouth.

After the prosecuting attorney had his say, it was Harold’s turn. “Your Honor, my client is not a flight risk. He’s lived in the Cleveland area all his life. He’s held down a steady job but as an only child he’s taken on the entire task of caring for his aging parents.” By the time Harold finished, Merle could’ve been nominated for governor. I held my breath for the judge’s pronouncement.

The judge set Merle’s bail at $100,000. Not as bad as it could’ve been, and I hoped he’d be able to post that amount of money. The thought of Merle incarcerated for a murder he couldn’t have done gave me a headache.

Ed stood, shaking his head, and made his way to me. “Saw you come in, but I wanted to wait until Merle got finished.” He rubbed his chin. “I’m not sure he can make bail. He’s got a good job, but a lot of it goes to doctor bill for his folks.”

“So sorry, Ed. Really. I know Merle is innocent.” I pulled my car keys from my purse. “I’m going to find who really killed Coco.” My coward’s heart made me add, “Can you come with me?”

He blew out a deep breath. “Soon as I see if I can help Merle make bail. I’ll text you. Good enough?”

“It’s fine.” It wasn’t, but Merle had hired me to help him and I needed to get the job done, with or without Ed’s help.

Before setting out on my quest for Coco’s true killer, I wanted to make sure my gun was loaded. “Damn!” Only one bullet and I wasn’t a good enough shot to make that one count. A stop at my office would get me a full supply. After that, my plan was to contact Merle and see if he knew why Coco had taken the pictures in her phone. My gun went back inside my purse and I headed to the office.

I was unlocking my office door when a man’s hand clamped over my mouth. His other hand held a knife against my neck. “Hey,
chica
.” A familiar voice. I stiffened as Rico pushed up against me. His warm breath smelled of tobacco mixed with spearmint.

Chapter Eight

“I
nside.” He kicked the office door open and shoved me. My unsteady legs gave out and I went down on all fours. On instinct, I tried to crawl away, but he yanked me up so hard it felt like my arm would dislocate. I stepped on his foot and ground my heel in, but all that did was incense him more and he jerked me forward until I almost slammed into my desk.

The knife he brandished was thin, perfect for filleting. “Bitch, you don’t stop this, I’m gonna get nasty.
¿Comprende?”
The metal of his knife pressed against my neck once again.

I heard buzzing in my head and felt dizzy, but I managed to nod.

“Good. You tell me what I want to know and you can stay pretty. Okay?” His grip loosened a bit, but his knife against my neck stopped me from struggling. “Good. Now what pictures did Coco have in her phone?”

I sucked in air and froze.

“Talk.” The cold blade heated my brain. My voice was little more than a croak. “How did you know I saw anything?”

“Ain’t important how I know. What were they?”

My trembles were so bad his knife could slice through my skin any minute. “If I tell you will you let me go?”

He moved the knife and threw me into a chair so hard the chair rocked to one side then the other. “Now tell me or I swear when I finish with my knife, your own mother won’t recognize you.”

The Chinese food I’d just eaten threatened to come back up. I swallowed hard. “They were pictures of old furniture in some room.”

He nodded. “What else?”

“Nothing.” Instinct told me to keep him ignorant of the girl’s picture.

He grabbed a handful of my hair and tugged it so hard tears sprang to my eyes. “What else?”

“Nothing else. Really.”
Please don’t kill me.

He let go of my hair, leaned over and covered my mouth with his, forcing his tongue past my lips. I gagged and wanted to gargle with disinfectant, anything to rid me of his taste. I settled for pushing my hands against his chest.

He stepped back and laughed, but his laughter turned to rage. His face contorted. “Better not be lying or you’ll feel my knife on you instead of my lips.” With his eyes boring into me, he backed up and out of my office.

As soon as he left, I scrambled to the door and locked it, then went for my phone and called Corrigan. “Rico Carreras was here.” My voice shook but I had to hold it together until the call ended.

His words tumbled over each other. “Where are you? Are you hurt?”

“I’m okay. My office.”

“I’ll be there in ten minutes. It’ll be okay.”

No, it won’t.
I rocked in the chair, wrapped my arms around myself and cried. Over and over I wiped my lips until they hurt. I scrambled to my desk and yanked open drawer after drawer looking for toothpaste. A small bottle of mouthwash laid flat in the back of the fourth drawer. Better yet. I used the whole thing and still, it wasn’t enough. Standing in my tiny office kitchen, I tried to compose myself, but it wasn’t much use.

“Claire, it’s Brian. Unlock the door.”

To my mind, it was like the cavalry had trumpeted their battle song. Refusing to think it through, I opened the door and flung myself into his welcoming arms. My tears started again.

He smoothed my hair and whispered. “It’s okay now. You’re safe.” When my sobs let up and my body relaxed a bit, Corrigan walked me to the chair and squatted beside me. “We’re checking the area for Carreras and for anyone who may have seen him. We’ll catch him. You’ve got to tell me. What was he looking for?”

My voice trembling, I told him what Rico had wanted.

“How’d he know we had the camera? Did he mention Eric?”

“No, but how else would Rico have known?”

“It’s time to have a talk with Eric.” He stood.

“I’m going with you. Better than waiting here.” I got up, but stumbled right into his arms. It felt good. Who was I kidding? It felt great and when he lifted my chin and our eyes met…But I pulled away before my hormones could override my brain. Merle needed to be cleared of Coco’s murder before I could even consider becoming putty in Corrigan’s arms.