Open Season for Murder (A Mac Faraday Mystery Book 10) (16 page)

“Don’t designers sometimes lend their insanely expensive clothes to celebrities for public appearances?” David asked.

“According to information I uncovered last night, she went into the pharmaceutical business,” Mac said. “Van Dyke’s assistant director and writer told me that Lindsey was very tight with major drug dealers from South America. Why else would she have brought Raul Zernbog last night?”

Mac went back to the table to see where Archie had fast forwarded the recording. When he sat down, he inadvertently bumped his right wrist on the tabletop, jostling his dislocated shoulder, which caused him to yell out.

Startled, Gnarly yelped from where he had laid down under the table.

“You
should
yelp,” Mac grumbled.

“It’s not Gnarly’s fault.” She turned his attention back to the laptop. “You’re going to want to see this.”

According to the time stamp, the recording was captured at fourteen minutes after eight, fifty minutes after Raul had been shot in the kitchen.

Leaving the elevator in the lobby, Lindsey struggled to stay steady on her feet. Abruptly, she stopped. “You! What are you doing here?”

“Now what?” Mac peered at the screen.

“Something interesting.” Archie set the mugs on the table.

“I work here.”

“Here? What are you doing in Deep Creek? Son of a bitch!” Lindsey’s voice rose.

The picture blurred while the camera operator fought to turn and focus on who she had seen to upset her.

“I have every right to work wherever I can get a job.”

The picture focused to show Brian Gallagher, embarrassed to be captured on camera while Lindsey targeted him to star in a scandalous scene.

“And out of every place throughout this whole country you decided to come here to Deep Creek Lake, the Spencer Inn, to get a job.”

“In case you were unaware, which I’m sure you are, this country is in a recession right now. Jobs are hard to come by. I was very lucky to get offered this internship, so I grabbed it.”

“And you had no idea that I was going to be here?” Lindsey said, “Everyone knows that I spend every summer at our place on Deep Creek Lake.”

“You haven’t been here in years,” Brian shot back.

“You bastard!” Lindsey yelled. “Bastard! You’re fired! You just wait! When I’m done with you, no one is ever going to give you another job anywhere anyway anyhow!”

Turning away, Brian attempted to head to the corridor leading back to the offices.

“Don’t you turn your back on me, you bastard!” She lunged for him. “I’m talking to you!”

While Brian tried to grab her claws to fend off the attack, Lindsey continued to slap at him.

“What’s going on here?” They heard Jeff Ingles’ voice off camera. “Is there a problem?” The camera focused in on down the hallway where the hotel manager trotted into view. “This is not one of your party clubs, Ms. York.”

Pointing a finger at the object of her fury, Lindsey screamed. “I want him fired! He’s a stalker! He’s been following me for years! The only reason he came here is to follow me!”

“That’s not true!” Brian told Jeff who held out his arms to hold him back from Lindsey.

“Fire him!” Lindsey shouted hysterically. “I want him out of here! Now! Tonight!”

Jeff replied in a calm voice. “Brian, I suggest you go home.”

Brian objected, “But—”

“We will talk about this in the morning. Right now, I suggest you take the rest of the evening off and go home.”

While Lindsey laughed gleefully at her success, Brian glared, “You little bitch! One of these days you’re going to run into someone who’s going to give you everything that you have coming—in spades.”

“Bring it on!”

Turning on his heels, Brian stormed in the direction of the lobby.

Jeff glared at her. “Any more trouble from you, Ms. York, and I’ll have security remove you from the premises with orders to not allow you on our property again.”

Her reply was a curse that made Jeff’s pale face flush a deep red.

“Did you really fire him just because she was upset to see him?” Gopher the camera operator asked the hotel manager from off camera.

Jeff directed his attention to the camera operator. “Aren’t you supposed to be following Ms. York around?” The manager turned his back to the camera and hurried down the hallway.

A wicked grin crossed Lindsey’s lips. “My work here is done,” she told the camera. Grabbing the wall to steady herself, she made her way into the ladies room.

Pausing the recording, Mac sipped his coffee. “Very interesting. Contrary to what Brian told me last night, it looks like he and Lindsey York have a past of some sort.”

Giggling, Archie turned from David to Mac and then back again. “Have we ever investigated a murder where
someone
wasn’t lying about
something
?” Seeing the time on her laptop, she uttered a gasp and slammed down the lid. “I have to go. I’m going to be late.”

“For what?” Mac called after the woman running from the kitchen.

“Chelsea and I are going shopping for wedding gowns today.” They heard her running up the stairs and then the door to the master suite slam shut.

Shaking his head, David turned his attention to the coffee in his mug. As hard as he could, he tried to shake off the feeling of Mac’s attention focused on him—studying him in silence.

Finally, in a quiet tone, Mac asked, “Are you going to tell me about it?”

“About what?” His confusion was genuine.

“Why you freaked out when Chelsea became BFFs with Carlisle Green?”

David chuckled. “Be serious. One, Carlisle would not strike up a friendship with someone as tame as Chelsea. Two, even if they did become friends, I wouldn’t freak out about it. I’d have no reason to.”

Mac peered at him with one eyebrow arched. He took a long sip of his coffee. “Okay,” he said, “it was all my imagination.” Aware of David’s attention focused on him, he slid Archie’s laptop around and opened the lid.

David waited until Mac started the recording again before he dropped down into the chair that Archie had vacated. “They didn’t really talk to each other that much, did they? I mean, they were just being polite … mingling … right? Like, you don’t think they’re going to be seeing and
talking
to each other now that the ball is over, do you?”

Forcibly, Mac turned to look David in the face. “Did you sleep with Carlisle Green?”

“No!”

Mac sighed with relief.

“I
almost
slept with Carlisle Green.” When Mac turned back to him, David rushed on. “It was the summer before Ashton disa—“

“How old was Carlisle?” Mac’s voice went up a full octave.

“She was legal,” David said. “She was an emancipated minor—I swear.”

Unable to think of what he wanted to chastise David for first, Mac sputtered. Finally, he forced out, “David! What is wrong with you?” He pointed at him. “You have a very bad habit!”

“She was legal.”

“That’s rationalization and you know it,” Mac said. “You know damn well that you were in the wrong. If you weren’t, you wouldn’t be worried about Chelsea finding out about it. Innocent people don’t run around covering their butts.”

“She seduced me,” David said.

“You were the adult,” Mac said. “I don’t care how many judges emancipated her, she was still a minor—a teenager. You were the adult.”

In silence, David stared at Mac. Guilt washing over him, he turned away. “Do you want to hear what happened?”

“I might as well.”

David let out a deep breath. “One night, I got lonely—“

Mac sighed. “As long as I’ve known you, you have never been
lonely,
David.”

“Okay, I was bored,” David shot back. “Do you want to hear about it or not? Shut up and listen to me.”

Mac had to grit his teeth to refrain from chewing him out.

“I went to that dive bar out by the main road, where none of the tourists go,” David said. “Carlisle came in and they wouldn’t serve her, of course. I could see that she was on something. She wasn’t high out of her mind—she clearly had a buzz on. I knew that she would get pulled over or get into some trouble. So, I drove her home. She was chatty and managed to make me laugh. I wasn’t in my uniform and maybe that made a difference between us. I wasn’t a cop and …” He shrugged. “So, she invited me inside and offered me a beer. I accepted. She went into the kitchen. I was looking out the windows at the view of the lake. When I turned around, she was coming out of the kitchen with the beer and wearing nothing but a red thong. Next thing I knew, I had her pressed up against the wall. I tore off the thong, which went flying across the room.” He avoided Mac’s piercing glare. “We came this close.” He held up his thumb and forefinger to show him. “Then, she pushed me away and said, ‘Let’s go to bed.’ She went upstairs to the bedroom and I ran out of there like a scared rabbit.” He drained the coffee in his mug. “End of story.”

“You were a
police officer,”
Mac reminded him. “She was a teenaged
girl
. You were and are an authority figure. Even now, today, as chief of police, if your enemies on the town council got wind of what happened—with your reputation with the ladies—Even if nothing had happened that night, I’ll bet money the media would make it look like something did and the town council would fire you.” With a shake of his head, he sighed, “Thank, God, you came to your senses and got out of there.”

David nodded his head. “I’d actually forgotten all about it until I heard Chelsea’s voice over your com talking to Carlisle. The memory came back and I felt like someone had dumped cold water over my head.”

“The fact is, you didn’t do anything, David,” Mac said. “If you’re telling the truth, all you did was kiss her. Plus, if she was high, she probably doesn’t remember anything about it, either.” He patted him on the shoulder. “Consider yourself lucky and learn your lesson. Next time, call a female officer to drive the girl home.”

“What if Carlisle didn’t forget about it?”

“That day we ran into her at the Green place, she told us then, the old Carlisle died,” Mac said. “What happened is in the past. It’s done—gone. She’s forgotten about it.” He took his and David’s coffee mugs to the sink.

“What if she hasn’t?”

Mac turned around. Leaning against the counter, he folded his arms across his chest. “Then she’ll tell Chelsea who will kill you—after breaking off your engagement.”

“Do you really think she will … break off our engagement, I mean?”

“She’s your fiancée,” Mac reminded him. “I think you’re worried for a reason.”

David looked down into the coffee in his mug. “She was devastated when I cheated on her back in school,” he said. “I’ve worked so hard to get her to trust me again.”

“Chelsea wasn’t in the picture six years ago,” Mac said. “She knows you haven’t been celibate all this time.” Narrowing his eyes, he studied the concern etched on David’s face. “Trust is a huge thing in a marriage. If Chelsea doesn’t trust you, you two are going to have a lot of problems. If you don’t believe me, think about your parents’ marriage.”

“I did not have sex with Carlisle,” David said. “Things are so good with Chelsea right now. It’s best if she just doesn’t know.”

“Oh, yeah, that’s the way to go,” Mac laughed in a heavily sarcastic tone. “Keep it from her. First, it will be this secret, and then another, and then a bigger one. Then, you’ll have to start lying to cover up the first secret. Then, you’ll need to remember the lies you told to keep the other secrets. Next thing you know, you’ll be moving back into my guest house.” Still chuckling, he gave David a head slap on his way to the kitchen door. “I always love a good plan.”

Rubbing the well-deserved head slap, David sighed.
Mac’s right. Lack of trust ruined Mom and Dad’s marriage and contributed to Mom’s dementia.
For the first time, he admitted to himself that his past behavior was destined to ruin his life with the woman he loved if they both weren’t able to put it behind them before they got married.

Feeling like he was being watched, David looked up to see Gnarly staring at him from across the table. The German shepherd’s tall ears standing at attention. “What are you looking at?”

Gnarly cocked his head at him.

“I didn’t have sex with her,” David said in a firm tone. “Come hell or high water, I’m not going to break Chelsea’s heart again.”

He swore he saw Gnarly shake his head before standing up and pressing through the swinging kitchen door to go upstairs.

Chapter Fifteen

A cloud of shock at the events of the previous night hung over the Inn. Even with forensics officers searching every crevice, utensil, and instrument in the banquet room and kitchen for clues, guests and employees gazed at each other in disbelief that two people had died the night before, and in such dramatic ways.

Upon his arrival with Gnarly on a leash, Mac heard guests whispering to each other, “Can you believe it?”

Across the lobby, Mac’s attention was drawn to Corey Haim and Carlisle Green, who appeared to be in an animated conversation. Abruptly, Carlisle let out a squeal of delight and hugged Corey, who returned her embrace. After they parted, she whipped out her cell phone and hurried off in the direction of the outdoor cafe.

“Looks like you made someone’s day,” Mac said when Corey turned around to leave.

Corey opened his mouth to respond, but before the words could come out, the enthusiasm on his face clouded over when his eyes made contact with someone behind Mac.

Mac turned around to see Dr. Elizabeth Breckenridge sail through the front doors with her assistant by her side.

Dressed in crisp tennis whites, she carried an athletic bag and tennis racket. Seeing Mac, she paused. After ordering her assistant to check in with her tennis instructor, Elizabeth addressed Mac without wasting any time on a greeting. “Have you and your security staff located my daughter yet?”

“I was just on my way to the security office for a status report,” Mac replied.

Noting Gnarly glaring at her, she asked, “Is that a search and rescue canine?”

Mac glanced down at Gnarly. “More like a breaking and entering canine.”

Failing to see the humor, the doctor said, “I thought the security staff here at the Spencer Inn was supposed to be the best. If it turns out—”

“With all due respect, Dr. Breckenridge,” Mac interjected, “if you’re so worried about your daughter, why aren’t you waiting at home for her in case she returns. You must not be very concerned about her welfare if you’re traipsing out here for tennis lessons.”

Elizabeth dropped her athletic bag to the floor and stepped towards him. “Who are you to judge my relationship with my daughter?”

The menace in her gaze would have made any of her underlings back down. Not Mac. Instead, he stepped forward to hold her glare. “I’m trying to find her and in doing so, I need to examine
every
possibility and you’re not behaving like a distraught mother. You’re acting more like a suspect.” He narrowed his eyes into blue slits. “Are you aware that Lindsey York died here last night?”

“She fell over the railing in the ballroom and smashed the grand piano,” Corey told her.

Elizabeth scoffed. “While I’m always sorry for the loss of a life, I can’t help but think that it was bound to happen sooner or later.”

“She was only twenty-three years old,” Corey said. “She had her whole life in front of her. If she had put as much energy into helping others instead—”

“Your Good Samaritan crap is wearing thin on me, Haim,” she replied.

“I suppose you think this is wearing thin, too,” Mac said. “Homicide has not been ruled out in Lindsey York’s death.”

“Pul-eze,” she replied with a roll of her eyes. “She was a known drug addict. Ask her father how many times she went through rehab.” After picking up her bag, she tried to step around Mac, who stopped her with his hand on her arm.

“How well did Lindsey and Rachel know each other?” he asked.

Elizabeth shook off his arm. “They were acquaintances, nothing more. They were the same age and would see other on the lake during the season, but they weren’t friends by any means.” She sighed. “If you’re thinking that Lindsey’s drug overdose has anything to do with Rachel, you’re completely wrong.”

“You did point out that Lindsey was a drug addict,” Mac said, “and Rachel was a doctor, which means she could write prescriptions or supply—”

“Don’t even go there, Mr. Faraday.” Bringing her face to his, she lowered her voice to a hiss. “If you even so much as breath an insinuation like that to the media, then I’ll bring my lawyers down on you like a ton of bricks. Have I made myself clear, Mr. Faraday?”

“Crystal.”

Tucking her bag close to her, Dr. Elizabeth Breckenridge stalked across the lobby.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if Rachel faked her disappearance to get away from her mother,” Corey Haim said with a chuckle from behind Mac.

“Are you saying they weren’t that close?” Mac turned around to him.

“Let me put it this way,” Corey said with a cock of his head, “I heard Rachel say more than once that her mother was a psychopath, incapable of feeling love, regret, or remorse.” He jerked his chin in the direction of where Elizabeth Breckenridge had hurried toward the sports club. “This is par for the course with Breckenridge. You or any other parent would be pacing the floor waiting for a call. That would only be possible if she was able to think of anyone but herself and that’s an impossibility for a narcissist.” He added with a hint of amusement in his tone, “Do you always let your dog carry your cell phone?”

“What?”

Corey pointed to where Gnarly was lying down. Clutched between his front paws was a smart phone which he was gnawing on with a sense of accomplishment.

“Hey!” When Mac reached for the phone, Gnarly jumped to his feet to make a break for it. Luckily, Mac had a tight hold of his leash in his left hand, since his right arm was in a sling and his wrist in a brace. When Gnarly reached the end of his leash, he was jerked back. Still, Gnarly kept the cell phone clutched in his teeth.

“Who did you steal that from?” Mac reeled Gnarly in by wrapping the leash around his hand and wrist until he got him close enough to grab the dog by the collar. But the large German shepherd wasn’t giving up his prize without a fight. When Mac grabbed hold of him with his injured right hand, Gnarly turned his head and pulled away. Unable to keep a tight grip, Mac threw his leg over Gnarly’s back and pinned him between his knees while prying the phone out of the dog’s jaws. “Drop it. I said drop it.” He had just managed to extract the phone when he heard Jeff Ingles’ voice behind him.

“Mac, don’t you think it would be … more fitting for you to play with Gnarly outside instead of here in the lobby?”

Mac was too busy checking the phone to identify its owner to answer. The home screen had a picture of Dr. Elizabeth Breckenridge. “Great,” Mac murmured with sarcasm. “You must have taken it out of her bag.”

The phone vibrated with the arrival of a text. The message read:

Booked on U.S Airways Flight 5349 to George Town. Leaving @ 11:42 am. Will text when arrive.

“Now I wonder who that is. Considering how calm, cool, and collected Dr. Breckenridge is, I think it’s maybe her daughter.” Easing Jeff out of the way, Mac hurried across the lobby to the security offices.

“Mac,” Jeff yelled after him.

Mac whirled around. “What is it, Jeff?”

The manager pointed at Gnarly, who was sniffing Jeff’s pockets. “Can you take your klepto dog with you? Please?”