Deadly Storm (16 page)

“Patience really isn’t one of your virtues.”

“I agree,” James said.

“So, if you had to choose one suspect, it would be this guy?” Jake asked. “Is that what you’re saying?”

“I guess so,” James said. “The problem is, I can’t comment on the professor because I didn’t see him, and Mandy says there were two other younger guys there. I don’t remember seeing them. I was soaking wet when I got there, and we went into the bathroom to dry my clothes. When we came back out, they were gone.”

“Just because they weren’t in the lobby, that doesn’t mean they left the building,” Jake said.

“We can’t rule them out,” James agreed. “So, basically, we need to find out who these two guys are – and I need to ask Mandy what that Steven guy’s last name is.”

“That’s where we’re at,” Grady said.

“Okay, everyone keep in touch,” James said. “Anything that comes up, I want us to share it as soon as possible. I promised Mandy we would solve this.”

“Because she feels guilty?” Sophie asked sagely.

“It’s not just for her,” James said. “I said horrible things to Ann right before she died. Mandy feels guilty, and I feel … .”

“Guilty?” Sophie lifted a quizzical eyebrow.

“That’s just the thing,” James said. “I’ve been trying to figure out how I feel about Ann’s death since it happened. At first I thought I felt guilty. Then I worried I was relieved because I honestly believe if I hadn’t gotten to Mandy, she might’ve been the one killed.”

“Holy crap,” Jake said. “I didn’t even think about that.”

“It would be just her luck to be targeted by another creep,” Grady said. “She has horrible luck when it comes to stuff like that.”

“She does,” James agreed.

“What are you feeling now?” Sophie asked, doing her best impersonation of a bad television psychiatrist.

“I feel bad,” James said. “The thing is, I feel bad because I’m pretty sure I don’t feel bad enough. I should feel guilty about what I said, but I don’t. I should feel remorseful because I didn’t save her, and I kind of do. If I had it to do over again, I would try to save her.

“When it comes down to it, though, I honestly think I’m more upset because I’m not upset enough,” he said. “I don’t know what it means, and I’m not sure how to handle it, but there it is.”

“I don’t think there’s one correct way to deal with something like this,” Grady said. “You’re doing the best you can.”

“I am,” James said. “For now, all I can do is keep my wife safe and keep my promise to solve Ann’s murder. In a few days maybe things will have settled enough for me to feel something other than I do. Right now, though, I’m just thankful my wife is safe. She’s not exactly happy right now, but she will be again. I have no doubt about that.”

“You really are a romantic,” Sophie said.

“I’m going to fit you with cement shoes if you don’t stop making fun of me,” James threatened.

“You don’t have the skill set. I could teach you.”

“You are truly terrifying, sugar,” Grady said. “Have I told you lately how much I love you?”

“Probably about half as much as I love you,” Sophie said, getting to her feet. “Let’s solve this. I want Mandy to be happy again. I don’t like it when she’s sad.”

“None of us do,” James said. “Let’s do this one for my wife, shall we?”

“How was your day today, baby?” James dropped a kiss on Mandy’s cheek as he moved through the kitchen.

“Pretty boring,” Mandy said, sipping from her glass of iced tea. “We had a full docket in the morning, but we’ve got a murder trial going in the afternoons for the rest of this week and probably all of next week.”

“You got out early, though.”

“It’s the first day,” Mandy said. “This is when the lawyer and the prosecutor spend hours in a little room hammering out details. The only thing missing is them whipping out their little friends and comparing them to see whose is bigger.”

James smiled, the weight on his shoulders lifting. She wasn’t back to her usual boisterous self, but she was markedly better than she’d been twenty-four hours before. “You look pretty, wife.”

Mandy lifted her head, her expression rueful. “Are you walking on eggshells because you’re afraid that I’m going to fall apart?”

“No.”

“Are you just saying that because you’re afraid I’m going to pick a fight?”

“No.”

“Do you love me?”

“No … hey, you tricked me.” James wrapped his arms around Mandy’s waist and kissed her lightly. “I love you more than anything in the world. If there was an Olympic gold medal given out for loving a woman, I would win it every second of every day.”

“Nice save, Gretzky.”

“I have my moments,” James said, giving her another kiss before releasing her. “I have a few things I want to discuss with you before we talk about anything else.”

Mandy stilled. “About Ann?”

“Yes. Sophie got the autopsy report a day early. Do you want to know?”

“Are you really going to volunteer information like that?” Mandy was surprised.

“We’re in this together, baby,” James said. “I promised I would solve this, and I don’t want you sitting around and making yourself sick because you’re wondering what we have.”

“Okay,” Mandy said, nodding. “I want to hear.”

“Ann was strangled,” James said.

“We pretty much figured that.”

“We did,” James said. “There were signs of sexual activity, but no fluids were present. The police gathered some hairs and other fibers, but that could take some time to make its way through the lab.”

“I’m not sure the sexual activity necessarily means anything,” Mandy said. “I saw Ann and Professor Barnes playing tongue hockey in the cafeteria. For all we know, they dropped their pants and had a quickie right there.”

“I know,” James said. “Julie Nichols showed signs of sexual activity before her death, too. We can’t rule anything out.”

“Do you think the same person killed both of them?”

“I think the odds of two women from the same cooking class dying in the same manner only a few days apart having two different assailants are pretty long,” James said.

Mandy rubbed her hand over her neck thoughtfully. “Tell me what you really think.”

“I think there’s a predator on that campus,” James said, not pulling any punches. “I don’t know if it’s Professor Barnes, but he is a suspect for now. I’m more interested in your little boyfriend.”

“What boyfriend?”

James made a face. “You know very well what boyfriend,” he said. “Your little friend who tried to interrupt us under the blanket.”

“Steven Balish?”

“Is that his last name? I couldn’t remember. I knew his first name was Steven.”

“Do you think it’s him?”

James studied Mandy’s face a moment, unsure how to answer. “What answer is going to freak you out less?”

“I want the truth, James.”

“I think he’s our best suspect,” James said. “I didn’t like his interest in you at all. I think, if I hadn’t been there, you would have been in some serious trouble.”

“Are you saying that Steven killed Ann because he couldn’t get to me that night?” Mandy was horrified.

“I’m not saying that for certain,” James said, extending a finger to ward off a meltdown. “It’s one theory. No matter what happens, I do not want you blaming yourself for this. If you do, I’m wrestling you down and tickling you in your special spot until you give up on the guilt.”

Mandy frowned. “James … .”

“We don’t know anything yet, baby,” he said. “Even if we did, though, I refuse to feel anything other than happy about you being alive. You’re safe. That’s the most important thing in the world.”

“It’s hard to argue when you have that look on your face,” Mandy grumbled.

“Good.” James pulled her in for a hug, dropping a kiss on the top of her head. “We also need to find out who those two guys are that you saw in the lobby before I showed up. I don’t remember what they looked like.”

“They were young,” Mandy said. “They looked like hipsters.”

“Meaning?”

“Their pants were too big, their cell phones were top of the line, and they smelled like they spent a lot of time in hookah bars.”

“Hookah bars?”

“That’s the new hip thing.”

“How do you know that?”

“There are college kids in my cooking class,” Mandy said. “I’ve heard all the trendy gossip. For example, did you know that One Direction is better than the Beatles?”

“Bite your blasphemous tongue,” James said, grinning. “What else?”

“I know that Chris Hemsworth is hot, but Chris Evans has dreamier eyes.”

“Those are the dudes from
The Avengers
, right?”

“Yes.”

“Which one is Thor?”

“Hemsworth.”

“That’s the one you like,” James said. “I see you perk up every time he takes his shirt off.”

“I’ll have you know that I don’t like blonds,” Mandy said.

James wrinkled his nose. “Me either.”

Mandy punched him playfully in the stomach. “You’re not my favorite husband right now.”

“I’m sure we can fix that,” James said, giving her another kiss before releasing her. “What do you want for dinner? I was thinking we could order Thai and then have some outrageous sex in the hot tub. It’s going to dip below sixty after midnight, but it still should be warm enough to have fun before then.”

“I can’t,” Mandy said.

“What do mean?”

“I just came home to change my clothes,” Mandy said. “My cooking class is tonight. We got an email. Professor Barnes wanted to add an extra class to this week because he has some function to go to next Wednesday.”

James gripped the edge of the counter, his knuckles turning white. “Are you kidding me?”

“No.”

“You’re going back to that class?”

“I told you I wanted to finish it,” Mandy said. “This can’t come as a surprise to you.”

“So, let me get this straight,” James seethed. “You’re staying in this class even though a killer might be teaching it … and, oh, you don’t even want to learn how to cook?” He was close to exploding.

“I don’t like to quit things,” Mandy said, her hands landing on her hips. “You know very well I like to finish what I start.”

“You’ve got ten paintings out in that guesthouse that say the exact opposite!”

“I’m not done with those paintings yet.” Mandy matched his tone, giving in to her anger.

“Oh, let’s be honest, you’re never going to finish those paintings,” James said. “We both know you can’t paint.”

James regretted the words the second they flew out of his mouth. It was too late to pull them back in, though, and the hurt look on Mandy’s face was something that was going to haunt him for a long time.

“I didn’t mean that,” James said, instantly contrite.

“Oh, you meant it,” Mandy said.

“No, I didn’t. I … I’m sure you can paint.”

“Just like you’re sure I can cook?” Mandy challenged.

Well, this conversation was going down the drain – and fast. “Baby, I love you,” James said. “I … if you want to paint, I want you to paint.”

“Even if I can’t paint and I’m horrible at it, right?”

“I love everything you do,” James said. “That includes the painting.”

“What about the cooking?”

“I’m sure you’re going to try really hard.”

Mandy made a face and moved away from him, her eyes dark and dangerous. “Don’t worry about it. It’s not your concern.”

“So you’re not going to the class?”

“Oh, I’m going to the class,” Mandy said. “I’m going because I started it and I’m going to finish it. I won’t make you touch one thing I make, though. Your stomach is safe.”

James pressed the heel of his hand against his forehead, frustrated. “Mandy … .”

“And don’t worry about the painting either,” she said. “I’ll clean all the canvases out this weekend. You can have the space for … whatever it is you want to do.”

“That is not what I want!”

“It obviously is,” Mandy said. “I won’t waste any of your money on supplies or canvases again. I promise. I’ll write you a check for the money you’ve already spent, too.”

Despite her anger, James saw the tears pooling in her eyes. He’d hurt her, and he he’d hurt her badly. “Baby, I am so sorry. I didn’t mean that. I swear.”

“You meant it,” Mandy said. “It’s fine. I’ve been thinking it myself for some time. I’ve been terrified to show you anything I’ve finished because I knew you’d be lying to me when you forced yourself to tell me it was good. It’s fine.

“It was a stupid dream that started with a stupid fourteen-year-old girl,” she continued. “She had a lot of stupid dreams then. One of them came true. It would be ridiculous to think the rest of them would.”

“Don’t say that,” James said. “I lashed out because I was scared you were going to that cooking class. I didn’t mean what I said.”

“Stop.” Mandy held up her hand. “Just stop. I have to get ready for class. I’m going to be late.”

“You’re not going to that class,” James said. He knew he was in dangerous territory, but he didn’t think things could get much worse.

“You’re not my boss,” Mandy said. “You’re my husband. We’re supposed to be equals. I know it doesn’t always seem like it because you’re a better husband than I am a wife, but you still can’t tell me what to do.”

“Mandy … .”

“I’m going to class,” Mandy said. “I’ll have the studio cleaned out for you in a couple of days. I’ll get you a check tomorrow.”

“You’re not doing any of that,” James howled. “You’re keeping that studio, and you’re going to keep painting. I am not taking that from you. I know you’re hurt right now, and I know I’m going to be begging for days, but I honestly didn’t mean what I said.”

“It’s okay.”

“It’s not okay,” James snapped. “I love you.”

“I know. It’s fine. You tell the people you love the truth. That’s the way it should be.”

“That is just … you’re killing me,” James said. “Please, just … let’s order dinner and talk about this.”

“I have class.”

James sucked in a deep breath as he tried to calm himself. “Fine. You can go to class.”

“Thanks for your permission.”

“I’ll go with you,” James said. “I’ll sit in the back of the class and no one will know that I’m there. You’ll be fine … I’ll be fine … we’ll both have time to calm down. Then I’ll take you to dinner wherever you want to go, and we’ll work this out.”

“You’re not coming with me.”

“You’re not going alone,” James countered.

“Try and stop me.”

James slammed his hands down on the counter as she stalked up the stairs, frustrated beyond belief that he’d let this situation get away from him. As he racked his brain for a solution to his problem, only one thing popped into his mind.

He pulled his cell phone out and pressed it to his ear, waiting for the person on the other end to pick up. “I need a favor,” he said. “It’s a big one, and I’m going to owe you forever.”

“FOR SOMEONE
who is supposed to be my best friend, you’ve got a funny way of showing it,” Ally said, breezing into the small kitchen area next to Mandy an hour later and dropping her purse on the ground. “What are you making?”

“What are you doing here?” Mandy asked, confused.

“James called.”

“Oh, well, great.”

“He told me you two had a huge fight and you walked out,” Ally said. “He’s terrified there’s a murderer here, and he’s also terrified that he’s done something so terrible to you that you’ll never forgive him.”

“I’m not mad,” Mandy said, measuring a teaspoon of salt and tossing it into the pot on the stove.

“Clearly,” Ally said, rolling her eyes. “Wait … what are you making?”

“Soup.”

Ally glanced into the pot. “What kind?”

“Duh. Vegetable.”

“That looks like inedible mush,” Ally said. “Where is the recipe you’re supposed to be working from?”

Mandy handed her the laminated card.

“I don’t see any of these ingredients in this pot.”