Poe's First Law: A Murder on Maui Mystery

by Robert W. Stephens

  “People keep asking me if I’m nervous. Should I be?” Yuto asked.

  “I think it’s normal to be nervous, but I also don’t think it’s strange not to be,” I said.

  “Do you drink bourbon, Yuto?” Foxx asked, and I almost fainted when I heard Foxx use Yuto’s real name.

  Yuto said he did, and Foxx got him a drink from the bar. I’ll say this about my best friend. He was really trying to keep the peace treaty going.

  “So, what’s the big surprise you have planned for Hani?” Foxx asked.

  “All will be revealed in due time,” Yuto said, and he looked at his watch. “I’ll need to leave in a little while to pick it up. Will you both excuse me for a moment? I want to see if Hani’s inside.”

  Yuto walked away and Foxx turned back to me.

  “It’s a new car, definitely.”

  “I don’t know. Maybe.”

  Foxx and I spoke for a while about the Eric Ellis murder investigation. I don’t think we planned to do that, especially at the party. The next thing I knew, the backyard was filled with partygoers. I was about to go look for Alana when she exited the house. She’d changed into a tight floral print dress that made me want to suggest that we go to the master bedroom so I could get a better look at all of the curves it showcased.

  “How did that awkward guy I knew in high school end up with a chick like that?” Foxx asked.

  “I’m not going to take any offense at that question.”

  “That’s because you were asking it yourself.”

  “That’s exactly right.”

  I walked over to the bar and ordered Alana a white wine since I knew that’s what she’d want. I carried the wine to Alana, who’d just been joined by Hani. Hani was wearing a short white dress that was even tighter than her sister’s outfit. Were the two women competing for hottest lady at the party? Apparently.

  “Have you seen Yuto?” Hani asked me.

  “No, but he told me a little while ago that he needed to leave to pick up your surprise,” I said.

  “Really? Huh, I guess I was wrong. I was so sure it was a trip somewhere,” Hani said.

  “Me too,” Alana said.

  “He told you, didn’t he?” Hani asked me.

  “No, nothing.”

  “Come on, Poe. We know you guys talk to each other,” Hani said.

  “Nope. Foxx asked Yuto earlier tonight and he wouldn’t budge,” I said.

  “Foxx is here? I didn’t see him,” Hani said.

  “Your fiancé invited him. You remember, don’t you?” Alana asked.

  “Yes, I remember. But I don’t know how I missed the big oaf,” Hani said.

  “Hani, that’s rude,” Alana said.

  “It’s true,” Hani said.

  “That’s the last thing Foxx is,” Alana said.

  “If you say so,” Hani said, and she looked around the yard. “There’s Foxx and look who he’s with.”

  I turned and saw Foxx speaking with Ms. Hu by the bar.

  “Oh Lord, I better go save him,” I said.

  “You? Save him from my mother? I’d love to see that,” Hani said.

  I walked over to the bar and saw a full glass of bourbon in Ms. Hu’s hand. Was that her second, third, or fourth? I wondered.

  “So, Mr. Foxx, how long do you intend to stay?” Ms. Hu asked, and there was a definite slur to her voice.

  I didn’t think she was going to stumble and fall into the pool, but she was on her way.

  “At the party?” Foxx asked.

  “What else would I be talking about?”

  “Long enough to see what this surprise is,” Foxx said.

  “Well, here’s what’s not a surprise. You blew it,” Ms. Hu said.

  “I’m sure I’m going to regret asking this, but how did I blow it?” Foxx asked.

  “Hani, of course. That could have been you marrying her next week, but thank God for small miracles,” Ms. Hu said.

  “You can say that again,” Foxx said.

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” Ms. Hu asked.

  “It means exactly what you think it means. I dodged a major bullet when I ended things with your daughter,” Foxx said.

  “How dare you,” Ms. Hu said.

  “Let’s take it down a few notches, both of you. This is supposed to be a celebration,” I said.

  “Poe’s exactly right. It’s a celebration that I won’t have you as a mother-in-law,” Foxx said.

  Ms. Hu was about to reply when Yuto suddenly appeared at the back gate.

  “Attention everyone. Can I have everyone’s attention?” Yuto asked.

  The crowd grew silent. Yuto stayed by the gate instead of walking closer to the partygoers, which I found a bit odd.

  “First, I’d like to thank everyone for coming. Your presence means a lot to us and we can’t wait to see you a week from today when Hani and I officially tie the knot,” Yuto said.

  The crowd broke out into applause. I looked to Hani. She was still standing beside Alana.

  “Hani, you’ve made me the happiest man in the world, and I wanted to return the favor. I’ve brought someone here and I know you’ll be thrilled to see him again after all of this time,” Yuto continued.

  He turned from the crowd and signaled the mystery person to appear. Yuto stepped away from the gate and a Japanese man around sixty-five years old walked into the backyard.

  “Oh my God,” Ms. Hu said.

  I turned to her and saw her eyes roll up into her head. She fainted and I managed to catch her right before her head struck the concrete patio.

  “Why did you have to be so fast in catching her?” Foxx whispered to me.

  “I couldn’t let her hit the ground.”

  “Who do you think that is?”

  “I have no idea,” I said.

  I picked up the unconscious Ms. Hu and carried her into the house past a confused Hani and curious partygoers who watched and murmured to each other. Alana hurried up to me as I placed her mother on the sofa in our living room.

  “What happened?” Alana asked.

  “A combination of too much bourbon and the shock of seeing whoever that was,” I said.

  “Is Mom all right?” Hani asked from the open sliding glass door.

  “She’ll be fine,” I said.

  Hani stepped into the house and walked over to Alana.

  Yuto followed Hani inside and rushed over to Ms. Hu to check on her.

  “Do you know who that man is?” Hani asked.

  Alana didn’t answer her. Instead, she looked past Hani to the older, Japanese man who was standing where Hani had been a second before.

  “Is your mother okay?” the man asked Alana.

  “She’ll be fine,” I said a second time.

  “Who are you?” Hani asked.

  “He’s our father,” Alana said.

  “What the BLANK!” Hani yelled.

  Mr. Hu stepped inside the living room.

  “What are you doing here?” Alana asked.

  “Yuto found me. He wanted to surprise Hani,” Alana’s father said.

  Hani started to sway as well, and she steadied herself by grabbing the back of a chair. Yuto came to her aid.

  “Are you all right?” he asked.

  He put his arm on her shoulder, but Hani shoved it away.

  “Don’t touch me,” she said.

  Alana scowled at her father.

  “You’re just going to pop back into our lives and do it at a party? Why not jump out of a damn cake?” Alana asked.

  “You’re right. I should have done it another way, but this is how Yuto wanted it,” he said.

  “Now you’re going to blame Yuto for your bad judgment?” Alana asked.

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt anyone,” Yuto said.

  “Shut up, Yuto. No one asked for you to talk,” Hani said.

  “I understand how mad you are, Alana,” her father said.

  “No, I don’t think you do,” Alana said.

  “Pe
rhaps you should leave, Mr. Hu,” I said.

  “Yes, I think you’re right,” he said, but he didn’t immediately leave. Instead, he looked at both Alana and Hani for a few more moments. “Yuto has told me so much about you both. You don’t know how happy I am that you’ve grown into such amazing women.”

  “Does my husband need to show you the door or can you find it on your own?” Alana asked.

  “Come on, Mr. Hu. Let me walk you out,” I said.

  “As you wish.”

  I led Mr. Hu through the kitchen and out through the door that led to the open garage.

  “Did Yuto drive you here?” I asked.

  “Yes, but I can call a taxi to get back to the hotel.” He paused a moment. Then he asked, “You’re Edgar Rutherford, is that right?”

  “Yes, I’m married to Alana.”

  “Yuto told me a lot about you too. Thank you for loving my daughter and taking such good care of her.”

  “We take care of each other,” I said.

  Mr. Hu nodded.

  “I’m here on Maui for another two weeks. Please let Alana and Hani know that I’d love to talk to them if they change their mind.”

  “I will.”

  Yuto’s surprise had been a train wreck of biblical proportions and I feared this might be the end of his relationship with Hani.

  By the time I walked back into the house, Ms. Hu was coming around, or at least pretending to come around. You may have found her fainting spell a bit of an exaggeration on my part. It wasn’t. I told you the truth about what happened.

  That said, I wasn’t entirely sure she’d really fainted. Her body hadn’t been as limp as I’d expected it to be. Did that mean she’d faked it as a way of not dealing with the reappearance of her ex-husband? It was a possibility.

  You may also be wondering why Alana recognized her father and Hani didn’t. Hani was quite young when her father abandoned his family and went back to Japan. Alana is a few years older than Hani, old enough to have remembered what their father looked like.

  “Are you all right, Mom?” Alana asked.

  “What happened?” Ms. Hu asked.

  “You fainted. Poe caught you,” Alana said.

  “Why did I faint?” Ms. Hu asked.

  Her ridiculous question convinced me that she’d faked it. I sensed she was now in full-on drama mode, and she was going to attempt to make the evening all about her.

  “Dad came back,” Hani said.

  “Oh my God, I wasn’t just dreaming it,” Ms. Hu said, and I was surprised she didn’t bring the back of her hand up to her forehead and pass out again.

  “Are you all right, Hani?” Yuto asked.

  I turned and saw him standing several feet from Hani. I didn’t blame him for keeping his distance.

  Foxx had come into the house by this point and was behind Yuto and off to the side.

  “How the hell could you do this?” Hani asked.

  “It was supposed to be a surprise,” Yuto said, which wasn’t the smartest reply for him to have made.

  “Do you have any idea what you’ve done?” Hani asked.

  Before Yuto could answer, she picked up an empty highball glass from the table in front of the sofa and hurled it at Yuto. He ducked, which didn’t make a difference since her aim was off. Instead, the glass smashed into the floor-to-ceiling window. The highball glass shattered. Fortunately, the thick windowpane did not.

  “Stop it, Hani. You could have hurt him,” Alana said.

  “Good. He deserves to be hurt,” Hani said.

  “I know you don’t mean that,” Yuto said.

  “Don’t be so sure. I’m going home. I suggest you don’t follow me,” Hani said.

  Hani left the house without saying another word, not even to Alana and her mother.

  “What do I do?” Yuto asked, but I couldn’t tell who he was talking to.

  “I suggest you go home too. I wouldn’t try calling her for at least twenty-four hours,” Foxx said.

  Yuto nodded. Then he turned and walked away.

  I looked out the window to the backyard. The guests were slowly dispersing. Apparently, a good way to break up a party is to throw a glass against the window. The ironic thing, which was actually quite funny in hindsight, was that the jazz trio was still playing. Our family drama had a soundtrack, so to speak.

  Alana turned back to her mother.

  “Are you sure you’re feeling okay?”

  “I think I need to go home,” Ms. Hu said.

  “Then let us drive you back or else spend the night here. You’re in no condition to drive on your own,” Alana said.

  Ms. Hu looked at me.

  “You knew, didn’t you?”

  “Knew what?” I asked.

  “That Yuto had found Sora and was bringing him here.”

  “How would Poe have known that?” Alana asked.

  “Because this is the type of stunt he’d pull,” Ms. Hu said.

  “How many bourbons did you have?” I asked.

  Yes, it was a hurtful thing to say, but it sneaked out of my mouth anyway. I’d also like to point out that there was no way in hell she really thought I’d orchestrated the return of her ex-husband. Ms. Hu may not like me, but she knows I’m not that dumb.

  “Don’t talk to me like that,” Ms. Hu said.

  “And don’t blame me for something you know I had nothing to do with. We’re on the same team. Yuto clearly made a mistake, but no one was killed. You’re a strong woman. You’ll get over this,” I said.

  “You have no idea what that man did to me,” Ms. Hu said.

  “I do. He left you with two small children, but you survived. You did a hell of a job of raising them by yourself. Don’t let this man take your power,” I said, suddenly feeling like a motivational speaker.

  “Poe’s right. He took us by surprise. That’s all. We don’t have to see or talk to him again,” Alana said.

  “I want to go home. Will you drive me?” Ms. Hu asked Alana.

  “Yes. Let me get my car keys. We can go now,” Alana said.

  “Do you need me to go with you?” I asked.

  “No, we’ll be fine,” Alana said.

  She was anything but fine, I thought. But I wasn’t going to argue the point.

  After Alana and Ms. Hu left, I walked outside and thanked the bartenders and jazz musicians for their work. They’d already been paid in advance, so they made a good deal of money for what amounted to one whole hour of labor. Nevertheless, I still tipped them.

  Hawaii is an expensive place to live and work. These gigs are hard to come by and it wasn’t their fault the party had ended so quickly. I didn’t bother to ask them not to speak about what they’d seen since I knew it wouldn’t do any good. There was also the fifty or so guests who were probably already on their phones calling everyone they knew.

  I could imagine their comments.

  This mystery man showed up. Then an old lady fainted. Then the guest of honor hurled a glass at her fiancé. Do you think the wedding will still happen? I’m sure I don’t know.

  The good news, if there was any good news, was that I had plenty of that 1792 bourbon left. I grabbed a full bottle and carried it into the house. I poured myself a generous amount and gulped it down. No, I don’t normally drink like that, but this party definitely earned me a pass. I was tempted to pour another glass but decided against it.

  Instead, I walked down to Foxx’s house and retrieved my dog. Foxx and I spoke for about an hour. He was convinced the wedding was off. I didn’t agree. I thought Hani would forgive Yuto. Yes, he’d made a stupid decision to bring Sora Hu back to Maui, but I knew Yuto. He was a nice guy to the core. I was sure that his intentions were pure. On the other hand, that might not have meant anything to Hani. She’s often not the forgiving type.

  After Maui and I got back to the house, I spent another hour cleaning up. Guests had left empty glasses and mini plates all through the house. I even found a half-eaten cracker on the hallway bathroom sink. I made a men
tal note not to have any more parties for a long time. Did Maui help me clean? Of course not. Instead, he spent that time sniffing every inch of the first floor. He could tell people had invaded his territory and he seemed determined to figure out who they were.

  I’d just plopped down on the sofa and turned on the television when Alana walked into the house. She looked around the living room and kitchen.

  “You already cleaned everything?”

  “It seemed a good way to keep my mind preoccupied,” I said.

  She walked over to the sofa and sat beside me.

  “My mother broke down after we left the neighborhood. She cried all the way to her house. She didn’t stop until I got her inside.”

  “Maybe we should have insisted that she stay with us tonight.”

  “Sometimes you want to be in your own home,” Alana said.

  “I understand.”

  “Thanks for getting him out of the house.”

  “I didn’t really do anything. I just followed him outside.”

  “Still, you were here. I don’t know what I would have done if you weren’t.”

  “I thought you handled yourself well.”

  “It was so out of the blue. I never imagined it would have gone down like that.”

  I didn’t reply.

  “I used to dream about seeing my father again. I don’t remember exactly how old I was, maybe thirteen or fourteen, when I finally realized he wasn’t ever coming back. I hated him for the longest time, but I think that was a way of getting over him. Then I started feeling sorry for him. What kind of man leaves his own family? Then I just stopped thinking about him all together.”

  Alana turned to me.

  “Did he say anything to you when you were outside?” she asked.

  It was a telling question. If she truly had gotten over him, I mean completely over him, she wouldn’t have cared if Sora Hu had said anything to me or not. I was reminded of that saying, there’s a thin line between love and hate.

  “He said he’ll be on Maui for two weeks. He asked me to let you and Hani know that. He said he’s available to talk should you change your mind.”

  “I won’t.”

  “Did Hani call you guys after she left?” I asked.

  “No, I haven’t heard anything from her.”

  “I spoke to Foxx for a while when I went to pick up Maui. He said he’s going to call Yuto tonight.”