Murder in the Air (14 page)

Scamps! When was the last time Lydia had heard that word? “Did Kyle use the nickname Ringo?” she asked.

Evelyn thought a moment. “Ringo? Isn’t that the boy Nicole brought to Daniel’s party?”

“Yes. And I saw her talking to him outside when I paid a shiva call.”

“That’s because Polly won’t let him in the house. Gillian tells me he’s really bad news. He takes drugs.”

Lydia was about to ask another question, but Evelyn was having trouble holding back tears.

“Have you any idea who broke in and struck me while I slept?” she asked.

“Not yet,” Sol said. “We found your jewelry box open and items scattered over the bureau. We’ve no idea what he took, if anything. Lydia’s arrival must have caught him in the act.”

Evelyn gave a feeble wave. “The only thing I value is my engagement ring, and I was wearing that, thank God.”

“Do you have any enemies, anyone who might want to hurt you, Mrs. Hammond?”

“Of course not.” Evelyn blinked, puzzled by the direction the detective’s questions were taking. “But there’s the matter of the will.”

“Your will?” Sol said.

“No, Daniel’s. His two older children get the bulk of their inheritance after I’m gone.”

“Meaning they stand to gain if something were to happen to you.”

“Exactly, and they’re both desperate for the money.” Evelyn’s grimace turned fearful. “Dear God, I hope they don’t come after me here!”

Sol patted her shoulder. “Don’t worry, Mrs. Hammond. There may be no connection between your assault and Mr. Korman’s demise, but I’m posting an officer outside your room for the length of your stay.”

“And then I’m going to Atlanta to be with my daughter.” Evelyn yawned. The last of her energy seemed to give out and she closed her eyes. A moment later she was gently snoring.

Lydia and Sol left the cubicle. Evelyn’s doctor approached to say a room had just become available and Evelyn would be moved there within the half hour. Lydia said she’d call the hospital in the morning to find out when she could drive Evelyn home, while Sol arranged for Evelyn’s guard. Minutes later they were back in Sol’s car.

“Care for a bite of dinner?” he asked.

She laughed. “I’ve dinner for two waiting at home. Want to try my latest chicken dish?”

“Wouldn’t mind if I did.”

Lydia never could decide if it was the wine, the time spent with Evelyn in the ER, or her decision to put a lid on her old CEO persona, but suddenly she and Sol were in sync. After agreeing to put a moratorium on all discussion of deaths and attacks, both deliberate and accidental, their conversation lost any semblance of rhyme or reason. At home, she warmed up the chicken dish and rice pilaf in the microwave. Fifteen minutes later they were eating and imbibing their way through dinner and dessert.

One kiss led to another and, without much ado, Lydia took Sol by the hand and made straight for her bed. Their lovemaking started out slowly, then turned fast and urgent. When it was over, Sol stroked her face, a lazy smile lighting up his face.

“I’ve been wanting to do that from the first day we met.”

“Me, too,” Lydia said, grinning.

He kissed her fingers. “I’ve been lusting after you, not to mention the pining part. But you see how my days play out. They often run into night. You might get sick and tired of broken appointments.”

“I’ll take that chance,” she answered lightly.

“Well, that’s good, because I was thinking—”

As though to prove his point, Sol’s cell phone rang. “Molina,” he answered crisply, then turned away to carry on a short conversation. “I’ll be down at the station and question him myself.” He glanced at his watch still on his bare arm. “I’ll be there in twenty minutes. Keep his lawyer there, whatever he says.” He was about to click off, when he growled, “I’ll tell her.”

But when he turned back to her, he was grinning. “Your old friend, Officer McKlusky, sends his regards.” He gathered up his clothes and made a beeline for the bathroom.

Lydia giggled. “It’s a good thing cell phones don’t have video capability yet.”

“You could say that again,” came through the closed door over running water. Lydia stretched her arms overhead, knowing the smile on her face was gelling into a permanent feature. It had been so long since she’d been joyous with a man. The last year of Izzy’s life had been given over to his care and comfort.

Sol emerged from the bathroom, dressed and looking gorgeous. Lydia stretched out her arms and he kissed her. He ran his hands down her breasts, and she wanted him all over again. “I hate to make love and run, but two of my men brought in a possible suspect in a case we’ve been working for months, and I can’t give up the chance to talk to this guy.”

He kissed her nose. “Thanks for dinner and for everything else. Are you free Friday night? Or is your other admirer taking you out then, too?”

Lydia burst out laughing. “Friday’s fine. As for my admirer, I believe I’m Andrew Varig’s excuse to have a night out on the town. My plan is to shift his attention to Barbara. She wouldn’t mind giving him a try.”

Sol shook his head in mock dismay. “And we guys think we make the moves. Talk to you later.”

*

Lydia was too exhilarated to sleep much that night. She kept reliving the evening again and again in her mind, each time telling herself not to get carried away. She and Sol lived such different lives. His work consumed him day and night. What’s more, he bristled whenever she crossed the line to enter what he considered his domain. Still, she was happy, happier than she’d been in months, and she had no intention of squelching her high spirits.

She managed to fall into a deep sleep around four, and slept until a quarter to nine, when Reggie awoke her by licking her face as he meowed his complaint that she was late with his breakfast. She felt a moment of panic, then sighed with relief. Today was Thursday. She didn’t work today.

She slipped into her robe and padded down to the kitchen to feed her hungry cat. She called the hospital to check on Evelyn’s condition. She was put through to Evelyn’s section and told to wait for Evelyn’s nurse, who finally came to the phone to say the doctor had just examined Evelyn and declared her well enough to be taken home. Lydia said she would come for her within the hour.

Next, she called Carrington House and punched in Len’s exchange. She waited through his message, knowing he never answered his phone, then said, “Len, it’s Lydia. Please pick up if you’re there.”

He did. “Hi, Lyddie. What’s up?”

Lydia cringed at the old nickname she’d told him several times she despised, and plodded ahead with her news.

“Len, a neighbor’s had a bad accident and I have to take care of her. I won’t be coming in tomorrow.”

There was a stunned silence, and then Len exploded. “You gotta be kidding! We’re up to our ears in affairs, and days behind on the paperwork. Jessica can’t possibly manage the front desk and send out contracts by herself.”

“Then hire more help,” Lydia said calmly. “I’m sorry I won’t be able to come in—really, I am—but that has no bearing on the fact that you never replaced the women who left months ago. Jessica’s doing the job of three.”

An expert at changing tacks, Len asked, “Have you come to a decision regarding the position you’ve been offered? Tom called this morning, asking if you have.”

Sure he did. “I’ll call him as soon as I’ve decided.”

“Gotta go,” Len barked, a sure sign he’d ceded the battle. “See you on Monday?”

“I hope so,” Lydia answered, and hung up before he could squawk about that.

She showered and dressed quickly, her happy mood dampened by the realization that someone had tried to kill Evelyn. Her attacker was patently evil and without a conscience, for who else would strike a sleeping woman and leave her for dead? Could it have been a robbery? Somehow she doubted it. Instead, she wondered if Arnold or Denise were capable of attacking Evelyn and if either of them had murdered Daniel.

Lydia set aside her speculations and called Evelyn’s daughter to give her an update on her mother’s condition. Gayle had returned her call her late the night before, the moment she and Roger arrived home from the airport. The news had thoroughly upset her, and both Lydia and Roger had to work hard to convince her not to return to Long Island on the next plane out of Atlanta.

Gayle was relieved to hear Evelyn was well enough to leave the hospital.

“I don’t like the idea of your mother staying in the house by herself,” Lydia said. “I’m going to invite her to be my houseguest until she leaves for Atlanta.”

“Lydia, you’re an angel! Thanks so much for looking after Mom. Daniel’s death was a terrible blow, and now this. Do the police have any leads?”

“None that I know of,” Lydia said.

“And you’ll be the first to hear. Thanks again, Lydia. I’m so glad Mom has you as her friend.”

Did everyone know she and Sol were seeing each other? Lydia wondered as she put down the phone. Her cheeks grew warm as she wondered further if everyone assumed they were sleeping together. She shrugged. She couldn’t monitor people’s imaginations.

At the hospital, Lydia was appalled at how pale and diminutive Evelyn appeared, her lovely hair hidden by the white dressing wrapped around her head. A nurse reviewed the printed instructions for Evelyn’s care and said someone would be calling that evening to check on her condition. Finally, the nurse instructed Lydia to drive her car up to the hospital entrance and wait for the patient, who would be escorted outside in a wheelchair.

Lydia and a volunteer not much younger than Evelyn settled her in the passenger seat. Lydia, mindful of her fragile passenger, started slowly for home.

“How are you feeling?” she asked.

Evelyn, who hadn’t spoken two words since Lydia had arrived, said, “My head hurts.”

Lydia forced herself to sound cheerful. “That’s to be expected. You’re doing fine. The doctor found you well enough to come home.”

Tears welled up in Evelyn’s eyes. “I won’t go back to that place! It’s not my home, not without Daniel.”

Lydia reached over to pat her shoulder. “You’ll stay with me until you feel better. Then you can visit Gayle in Atlanta.”

Evelyn gripped Lydia’s hand hard, nearly causing her to swerve into the right-hand lane. “They killed Daniel and now they’re trying to kill me!”

“We don’t know that,” Lydia said with more enthusiasm than she felt. “Whoever broke in helped himself to some of your jewelry. It could have been a random robbery.”

“Robbery, my eye!” Evelyn said bitterly. “It was Arnold or Denise—or the two of them together. They’d do anything for money they think belongs to them.”

Eager to redirect the conversation to a less volatile subject, Lydia said, “We need to stop to fill your prescription. Which pharmacy do you use?”

“The Drug Market in town. No, don’t go there! Bennett works there and I don’t want to see any of Daniel’s miserable relatives. Take me to the other drug store on Main Street, please.”

“Of course.” It suddenly dawned on Lydia that the reason Bennett had looked familiar was because she must have seen him in the large drug supermarket in town.

“Is Bennett a pharmacist?” she asked.

“Are you kidding? He’s a manager or holds some such cockamamie title, though Denise acts like he’s president of the company.”

“She dotes on him.”

“And spoiled him rotten in the process. But at least he’s now gainfully employed instead of—”

Lydia never was to hear the rest of the sentence because Evelyn had fallen asleep.

She stirred awake as Lydia drove up to the pharmacist’s window. Embarrassed, Evelyn said, “Sorry, I must have dozed off.”

“Who wouldn’t, after all you’ve been through?” Lydia handed Evelyn’s prescription to the woman and was told it would be ready in an hour.

“That’s taken care of.” Lydia put the car into gear and headed for Twin Lakes. “Why don’t we stop by your house and pack some clothes and things you’d like to have while you visit?”

Evelyn’s eyes filled with anxiety. “Only if you come inside with me.”

“Of course I will. Afterward, I’ll make you a cup of soup for lunch, then you can take a nice nap in my guest room.”

“Sounds good to me.” Evelyn yawned.

Lydia approached Evelyn’s house, her heart thumping at the sight of an oversized SUV smack in the middle of the two-car driveway. Her fear turned to annoyance when she realized she couldn’t let Evelyn out close to the front door as she’d planned. Instead, she pulled in behind the mammoth vehicle and killed the motor.

“That’s Arnold’s SUV,” Evelyn croaked. “Why is he here?”

“I’ll go inside and find out. Evelyn, dear, hand me your door key. It’s in your pocketbook.”

Lydia unlocked the front door and followed the trail of lights, through the living room and dining room to the den. Arnold had his back to her as he tried his best to yank open a jammed desk drawer.

“And what do you think you’re doing?”

Arnold spun around, his hand over his heart. “My God, Lydia! You nearly scared me to death.”

“I repeat, what do you think you’re doing?”

“Looking for some papers.” He pointed to the desk drawer. “I know Dad kept them there, but the drawer seems to be stuck.”

“Or locked. You’re trespassing, Arnold. You’d better leave.”

Arnold’s face turned red. “Now see here, this is my father’s home. I have a key. How do you think I got in? I knocked and knocked, and when I realized Evelyn wasn’t home, I unlocked the door. Nothing sneaky about that.”

“It’s Evelyn’s home now. She’s in my car and was very distressed to find you here.”

“Then ask her for the key to the desk so I can get what’s mine. I’m talking about stocks my father bought and put in both our names. Regardless of anything, that money comes to me.”

“If I find anything that’s yours, I’ll put it in the mail. Now get out of my house!”

Lydia and Arnold turned to Evelyn, leaning against the wall for support. Lydia gasped and ran to her.

“Evelyn, you should have waited for me! You might have fallen.”

“I want him to leave.”

Arnold’s mouth fell open as he took in Evelyn’s bandaged head. “My God, what happened to you?”