Marja McGraw - Bogey Man 02 - Bogey's Ace in the Hole (20 page)

Chapter Thirty-four

“We think Mikey’s right,” Jasmine said.  “We learned a lot about Florence last night.  For instance, Florence has money, but she says no one knows that, except maybe her nephew.  On top of the life insurance and retirement funds from her husband, her aunt left her a very large sum of money many years ago.”

“She and her husband started buying rental properties when they were still relatively young,” May added, “and Florence started selling them off not long after her husband died, God rest his soul.  She didn’t want the responsibility anymore.  Florence is a lot more savvy than anyone gives her credit for.”

Lila held her hand in the air like a school child.  “She and her husband bought
her house when they were newly married.  When they moved into a newer and bigger house, they rented out the one she’s living in now.  That’s what made them start thinking about buying up rental properties.  After her husband died, she moved back into the old house because it held so many good memories.”

“You ladies are pretty savvy yourselves,” Chris said.  “How did you get her to spill the beans?”

“It was just girl talk, plus she wasn’t very happy with Victor for being rude to us,” Jasmine said.  “And there’s more.”

“What else did you find out?” I asked.

“We mentioned Victor’s retired policeman friend,” Lila said.

May had one eye half closed, looking very suspicious. 
“Florence said she hasn’t seen anyone visit Victor except us.  What does this policeman do?  Sneak in the back window?” 

“So now we have even more possibilities
,” I said.  “Florence’s nephew obviously knows she has money, and he probably figures Victor is after it.  He wants to get rid of his competition.  That money should rightfully be his in his opinion.”

“What about the retired copper, Mom?” Mike asked.  “How come Victor made him up?”

I turned to my son.  “I have a feeling Victor knows something about the money, and when there’s money involved, people do all kinds of stupid things.  He probably figured he could handle it on his own, and maybe he hoped we’d butt out.”

“I get that,” Mikey said.

“Chris, what do you think?” I asked.

“I think I’m going to talk to Smiley.  I still don’t believe it’s him, but he’s the only suspect we’ve got.”

“No, Chris, that could be dangerous.  After all, he’s already killed once.”  What was my husband thinking?  “I’m going to call and talk to Janet.  She’s working on Jackson’s murder.  I’ll ask if there’s any indication that the killer could have been Wade Smiley.”

“You do that,
sweetie, but in the meantime I’m going to call Smiley and set up a meeting with him.”

Jasm
ine turned to her friends.  “Oh, my, I think we’ve caused more trouble instead of helping.”

“No, you did the right thing,” Chris said.  “We needed this information.  It explains why this whole thing might be about Florence.”

Sherlock and Watson began nudging Lila’s hand.  She’d been listening to us instead of scratching the dogs.

“Mikey, why don’t you take the dogs outside now?  Get
them a couple of cookies and they’ll follow you anywhere.”

He smiled and did as I asked.  The dogs gave Lila one last look and followed the food.

“They do like their treats,” she said.

“That they do,” I
replied.

“Why don’t you ladies come to the restaurant for dinner tonight, and Lila, you don’t even have to sing.
  We’ll plan on a late dinner, if you don’t mind, and that way Chris and Mikey and I can join you.”

Lila
grinned at me.

“We should know more by then, and at this point I’ll feel better having everyone where I can see them.
  We’ll talk after the restaurant closes.”

“
You mean I get to come, too?” Mikey asked.

“You
bet, Ace,” Chris replied.  “We can set you up in the office if you get sleepy.  That couch is pretty comfortable.  I’ve used it a few times myself when we were working late.  And we’ll bring the dogs along to keep you company.  I know how bored you are sometimes at the restaurant.”

Jasmine held her hand out toward Lila.  “What about your date with Nate?”

Lila looked dismayed and thoughtful at the same time, and I wondered if she’d forgotten about her date with Nate.  Inside, my heart did a little tap dance to know that these two people were going to continue seeing each other.  I waited, wondering what kind of a decision she’d make.

“Nate can join us,” she said.  “I’d like my friends to meet him, and this is social so it will be comfortable for all of us.”

Jasmine and May turned to their friend with expressions I couldn’t read.  I found myself holding my breath.  Would these women be accepting, or would they feel that Nate was an interloper, ruining their Church Lady group?  The two women smiled at the same time, almost as though they’d planned it.

“We can’t wait to meet the man who it appears has stolen our Lila’s heart,” Jasmine said.

“Ditto,” May added.  “He must be a good man, knowing how picky you would be when it comes to men.”

I released my breath and contemplated what good and loving women these ladies were.

Chris and Mikey had silently crept out of the kitchen, not wanting to be a part of this budding romance.  My mind’s eye could see Chris shaking his head and rolling his eyes at our son.  I chuckled.

“What’s funny?” Jasmine asked.

“Nothing.  I’m just happy,” I said.

“Oh, that’s so very Christian,” May said.  “Feeling joy on someone else’s behalf is such a good feeling.”

“Well, bless your heart,” Jasmine added.

Lila simply sat and grinned at all of us.

The ladies left, saying they wanted to go shopping for some vintage dresses.  They wanted Addie to go with them and asked if it would be safe.

I assured them that going to the vintage dress shop would likely be about as safe of a trip as they could take.

I tried to call Janet, but she was out of the office.  I left her a message, including Wade’s relationship to Victor’s neighbor, and asked her to call me back.

Chris’s headache had disappeared so he and Mikey did a little cleanup in the backyard.  I putzed around the house until it was time to change clothes. 
Remembering that I wanted to keep some casual clothes at the restaurant, I pulled a t-shirt and an extra pair of jeans out of the drawer, and then I added a pair of socks and tennis shoes to the pile.

Chris came upstairs and changed into his suit before
going to Mikey’s room to help him pick something out.  I waited until he was out of the room to change clothes.

There was only one other dress I liked as much as the lacey one, and I decided I’d wear it because this felt like
a special occasion with everyone coming to the restaurant.

I’d found an old pattern and paid Susan to make it for me.  It was rem
iniscent of the thirties styles.  In a midnight blue satin, it fell gently to the floor while hugging my figure in all the right places, and it had puffed lace and satin sleeves.  The back was extremely low, and it fit perfectly since it had been custom-made.

I wore my hair down, letting it fall in soft waves, with a right-hand part and the front brushed to the side.

Chris and Mikey hadn’t seen the dress yet and I wondered what their reaction would be.  I felt like an auburn-haired bombshell in it.

Coming down the stairs, I could hear Chris and Mikey talking in the kitchen.  I tried to make a dramatic entrance into the room, coming around the corner with a flair, but the dogs had other ideas and ran to meet me, which caused me to trip over my own feet.  I caught myself by grabbing the door jam.

“No,” I said, sternly.  “Don’t come near me.  I don’t want any dog hair or slobber on this number.  Keep away!”  I held my hands up in the
stop
command.  My dopey dogs stopped short and sat and grinned at me.  Of course, I grabbed two cookies and bent over to hand them out, telling the dogs what good babies they were.

I stood up and finally paid attention to Chris and Mikey.

“You’re a vision, angel,” Chris said.  “That number could have been made for you.”

“It was,” I replied, smiling.  “Susan made it for me.”

“Remind me to thank her.”  Chris walked toward me and gave me the once over, very clearly telling me how much he appreciated what he was seeing.

“Don’t forget
, Mikey’s in the room,” I whispered.

“Oh.  Yeah.”  Chris stepped back.

“You look great, Mom!  I didn’t know you had it in you.”

I raised my eyebrows.  Mikey didn’t always understand the things he said, he just knew that what he was saying
might
fit the occasion.

“Okay, let’s get going.  We’ve got plenty of people to feed tonight.”  I picked up a silver satin clutch bag I’d bought to go with the dress and headed for the door.  “You boys get the dogs settled in the car before I come out.  I really don’t want them to ruin this dress.”

I’d hoped that Janet would call me back before we left, but I didn’t hear from her.

We
took the green Chevy to the restaurant.  Chris thought it was appropriate for the way we looked.  I really did get a kick out of him and his vintage car, suit, fedora and everything else he could work into the scheme of vintage things.

~*~

It turned out to be a perfect evening.  Chef Luis and Phillip outdid themselves and everyone raved about the food.  For some unknown reason the music sounded even sweeter than usual.  People danced and enjoyed themselves.

Jasmine, May and Addie arrived at about eight-thirty, and Lila walked in with Nate shortly after I’d seated the ladies.  Chris walked them back to the table, returning with the comment that poor Nate looked like he was headed to a hanging.

I checked on everyone after about fifteen minutes, and it appeared that he’d made quite an impression on the Church Ladies already.  They were chatting and smiling, and he seemed to be enjoying himself.  Apparently the hanging had been cancelled.

Mikey helped out wherever he could, and finally went outside to see the dogs.  I had to call him in for dinner when Chris and I took a break to sit with our friends.
  Luis had given him a snack earlier to hold him over.

I was so pleased with
Chef Luis and Phillip that after dinner I made a point of sticking my head in the kitchen to tell them how wonderful I thought they were.  Everyone had ordered a different dish, and each had been cooked to perfection.

Mikey retired to my office with the dogs, ready to lie down on the couch.  They were good company for him.

The restaurant finally closed and the staff went home.  I looked around at my friends knowing that it was time to get down to business.  I’d never heard back from Janet, and I didn’t know if Chris had heard from Wade Smiley.  I hadn’t had a chance to ask him about it.

“Why don’t we go talk in the kitchen,” I suggested.  “Luis said he left some dessert for us.”
  I felt like our group was close enough and casual enough that we didn’t have to keep things on a formal level.

We were headed for the kitchen when a loud knock came from the front door of the restaurant.

“I’ll get rid of whoever it is and catch up in a minute,” Chris said.

I nodded and we continued on our way to the kitchen.

Chapter Thirty-five

Luis had left us a Chocolate Ganache cake.  The ganache is basically chocolate mixed with heavy cream which cushions the texture and flavor of the chocolate.  It’s one of my favorite chocolates.

Before I could start cutting pieces for everyone I heard Chris coming toward the kitchen, and he was talking to someone.  I hoped it might be Janet getting back to us, but when I turned around I found Chris and Wade Smiley standing in the doorway – Smiley appeared to be quite angry.  My stomach lurched.  Had I been right about him?

He looked at each of us in turn.  “I am
not
trying to murder Victor Rogers,” he said, adamantly.  “That guy may be scum, and he might even deserve to die, but I’m not a killer!”

He stepped into the kitchen and I noticed that everyone took a step backward
.  I was standing behind the counter and didn’t move.  His anger was almost palpable.

“Chris told you what’s going on?” I asked.

“He did, and I’m here to tell you that I’ve seen a lawyer to try to keep Victor from stealing Aunt Flo’s money, and that’s about as vicious as I get.  And, no, I didn’t know John Jackson.  Whether you believe me or not, I didn’t know him.  It was a coincidence that he was murdered in the mall parking lot.”

He stopped talking and watched each of us in turn, apparently trying to decide if we believed him or not.  I thought about it and realized that I did believe he was telling the truth.

“So, then, who’s trying to kill Victor?” I asked of no one in particular.

“That’s the million dollar question,” Wade said.  “I’d like to know the answer to that one myself.”

“Want some cake?” I asked, sounding as lame as I felt.

“No.  I just wanted to clear the air.  Now I’m heading home.  I got off work and drove straight over here, hoping you’d still be open.  I saw the lights on and knew someone was here.”

“I’m sorry, man,” Chris said.  “We had to know.  It’s was too much when we found out you were related to Florence.”

“I guess I understand,” he replied.  “At least I know someone is keeping an eye on her.  When Victor started kissing up to her she sent me packing.  No matter what I said, she took it wrong.  That guy has some guts to try to move in on my aunt.  Everyone in the family is upset.  My sisters are the ones who talked me into going to see an attorney.  Aunt Flo won’t even talk to them because they tried to tell her things
about Victor didn’t seem to add up.”

“I’m sorry, too,” I said.  “I had no idea how bad things are.  But it still doesn’t answer our burning question.  Who wants to kill Victor?”

I felt something touch my leg and I looked down.  Mikey had crept out of the office to see what was going on.  He was crouched behind the counter.

“Where are the dogs?” I asked.

Standing up, he turned and looked back toward the office.  The dogs were sitting in the doorway.  They appeared to be on the alert, as though they sensed the tension, but they didn’t seem intent on protecting us.  It was a small thing, but I decided to trust their judgment.  I decided they could just stay where they were for the moment.

“Okay,” Wade said, “I’m outta here.  I need some sleep before tomorrow’s shift.”

The Church Ladies never said a word while we talked, and as Wade left the room I heard Jasmine say, “Ladies, it’s time to pray.  That young man needs some help.  I could hear the tension in his voice, and he’s got his hands full with Florence’s attitude toward him.”

While the ladies prayed I served up the cake.  I needed to think.  Maybe
I
needed some divine guidance.

Chris walked out with Wade
while I put the cake in the refrigerator.  It wouldn’t be served again at the restaurant, but I didn’t want it sitting out.  One of our employees could take it home the next day.

“Oh, for crying out loud,” I said, turning to Addie
and wondering just when I’d become so clueless.  “I should have just asked you.  Was that the man you saw with Jackson?”

“No, that wasn’t him.”

“Uh, Pamela?”  Chris stood in the doorway to the kitchen with Wade.

“Yes?”

Someone walked up behind the two men and pushed them into the room.  When they moved out of the way I saw Victor standing in the doorway with a gun in his hand.  He moved forward and stood next to a cart that held containers of silverware and napkins.

“Victor?”  I was incredulous
, staring at the gun.  “What’s going on?”

The ladies began chattering and believe me, they sounded
nervous.

“Shut up,” Victor ordered.  “I don’t want to hear a word out of anyone.”

My first thought after seeing Victor was of my son.  I had to protect him.  Frantically, I started looking around for him.  He’d ducked back down behind the counter.  I motioned for him to stay there.

Addie had moved
to my other side.  “That’s him,” she said.  “That’s the man.”

Chris looked at her.  “
The
man?” he asked.

She nodded.

“I don’t get it,” I said.  “How can you be the killer when you’re supposed to be the victim?”

“I
was never the victim.  Florence is the one who’s going to die.  Now shut up!”

How much money did Florence
have?
Was it worth all of this?  She must be loaded.

“There’s going to be a robbery here tonight.  When the robber breaks in, he’s going to find all of you here, and there’s going to be a blood bath.  He’ll be able to make eight notches in his gun handle tomorrow.”

I mentally counted.  There were eight of us.  Victor hadn’t seen Mikey, which would have made nine.  The dogs moved up and were sitting beside the counter.  I motioned for them to stay.

“Oh, yeah, and two dead dogs.”  Victor didn’t miss a thing, except my son.  He motioned for Chris and Wade to move over by the rest of us.

“Ladies,” Jasmine said, “it’s time to pray for this man’s soul.”

Addie moved away from me and stood by her friends.

They each lowered their head and began praying.

“Shut the hell up,” Victor said.

They ignored him and finished their prayer, ending with a request for forgiveness for Victor.

Victor scowled. 
“It’s time.  You’ve made this much harder for me than it had to be.  I think it’s going to be a pleasure to put a bullet in each one of you.”

“Who is this guy?” Nate asked.  He was standing at the other end of the counter with a piece of cake sitting in front of him, his fork
still held in the air.  Of course, he had no idea what was going on.  He was new to our little group.

“Your worst nightmare come true,” Victor said, turning to look at Nate.

I saw Mikey’s hand come up and over the counter.  He grabbed a handful of doggie cookies.  What was he doing?  What if Victor saw him?  He squatted down again.

Chris walked over and, taking hold of my shoulders, moved me behind him, trying to protect me.

I heard an odd noise and saw a cookie slide across the floor and land near Victor’s feet.  Chris reached back and squeezed my arm.  I knew he’d seen it, too.   I didn’t want to give Mikey away by glancing down at him.  What was he up to?  With my hand at my side, I motioned for him to stop it.

Trying to stall, I asked, “Why does Florence have to die?  She thinks of you like a son.”

“That she does.  In fact, I’m so much like a son to her that she wrote a new will.  She’s leaving her entire estate to me.”

He looked at Wade and sneered.
  “You’re out and I’m in,” he said.

“Sometimes you have to draw a line in the sand,” Wade said, taking a step forward.  “Killing a sweet little old lady who never did anyone any harm is where I draw the line.”

“Amen to that,” May said
, emphatically, grabbing Wade’s arm and pulling him back.

Lila stepped forward, fists clenched at her sides.  “Just try something, buddy, and see what a bunch of old ladies can do.  Well, four old ladies and an old man, and Chris.  And Pamela.  And Florence’s kin.  You’re outnumbered,
mister.”

Victor laughed.  “Yeah, I’m really scared.”

“What about Jackson?” Chris asked.  “Why’d you knock him off?”

“He got
greedy.  He wanted more than I offered him because he found out why I wanted ol’ Flo to die.”

I saw two more cookies slide across the floor while everyone was talking. 

“No more questions.  It’s time for the robbery to take place.  You old ladies want to pray again before you go meet your Maker?”

“You betcha,” May said.

“
Shut up!
  I didn’t mean it.”  Victor shook his gun at May.  He appeared angry, like he hadn’t thought the Church Ladies would take him up on his offer.

“Father, you see what’s going on here, and you know what’s in all of our hearts,” Jasmine said.  “If this is our time, then take us Home. 
But if our work here isn’t done, then my dear Lord, please do something.  Make Victor drop his gun or something, but don’t let him wave it at May.”

“We’re doing your work, Abba Father,” May said.  “Why just the other day, Lord, we talked to a prostitute and she’s coming to church this Sunday.  It’s a shame we might not be there to greet her, Father, but Your will be done.”

“But, Lord,” Nate said, joining in, “I just met Lila.  Are you sure it’s time?”  He took a step toward my end of the counter.

“
I said to shut it up!
” Victor yelled.  A hint of confusion was beginning to show on his face.  Were the ladies getting through to him?  I doubted it, but…

Joining in, I said, “Yes, Lord.  We’re ready when You are.”

Chris looked at us like we were
all
nuts.  He didn’t get it, but one day he would.

Mikey stood up,
reaching for the container of doggie cookies on the counter.  I tried to push him back down, but he stepped away from me.

“
Mikey!
” I cried, fear gripping me in bands of steel.

“Here,
mister, have a cookie.”  Mikey threw a doggie treat at Victor.  What the heck was he doing?

“Knock it off, kid? 
Stop that! 
Where’d you come from anyway?”

Mikey
shoved the container closer to Chris, who seemed to understand what was going on.

“Yeah,”
Chris said, tossing a cookie, “have a treat.”

I glanced at the dogs and they were practically vibrating. 
They seemed to sense that something was wrong, but they weren’t sure what it was because they kept seeing their doggie cookies flying across the room.  Their only contact with Victor had been as a friend. I realized people weren’t the only ones who had conflicted feelings.  And the light dawned on me, too. 
Thank you, Lord
, I thought. 
You do come through when I least expect it sometimes.

“Yes, Victor, have a snack,” I said, and threw another doggie cookie.

Jasmine, Lila, May and Florence stopped praying and just watched us.

“Oh, I understand,” Lila said, grabbing a treat and throwing it.
  She handed one to Nate, who threw it at Victor’s head.

“Stop throwing things at me or I’m shooting you all right now.”  Victor was not only confused, but
so angry that he was practically frothing at the mouth.  He aimed his gun at Chris, who never flinched.

I turned to the dogs.  “Want a cookie?  Go get it,” I said softly.

Victor stood in the middle of several doggie treats.  The dogs lunged, hitting him in the knees before he could react, and he hit the floor with a loud thud, cracking his head on the tile and knocking over the cart of silverware in the process.  Knives, forks and spoons landed all around and on top of him, with the ones landing on the floor creating a loud clatter.  Napkins fluttered through the air.  His gun went off, harmlessly shooting a hole in the ceiling.

Have I ever mentioned how fast Labrador retrievers can be?  Especially when food’s involved?  Trust me on this one.
  They only glanced at Victor while eating their treats as fast as they could – until the gun went off. Sherlock got right in Victor’s face and growled.

Watson ate another cookie, apparently figuring Sherlock had things under control.

The front door of the restaurant crashed open.  I looked up to see Janet and another detective standing in the doorway with their guns drawn.