by Dana Moss
“When was this?”
Lorne shook his head. “I don’t know. I’m not good with dates. Sometime in the spring, I guess.”
Taffy tapped her chin. “Yet he didn’t change his will right away. He only did that recently.”
Lorne nodded. “When he got serious about Macy. I think he wanted to make sure she would be taken care of if anything happened to him.”
Taffy nodded, thinking. She was missing something here… Until Blake’s divorce came through or the new will was validated, someone else would have been his beneficiary and stood to inherit everything.
“Lorne, what else can you tell me about Veronica?”
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Lorne wouldn’t tell her much. He kept saying Taffy was barking up the wrong tree, but she persisted. He finally blew her off and told her she had no right to keep badgering him. He was a free man, and he was here to enjoy a party. And if she didn’t leave him alone, he’d make sure Maria knew about it. That made Taffy back down. He wandered back into the house to join the games while Taffy stayed on the patio. She decided to call Maria herself.
When the line connected, Taffy said, “Lorne’s here, Maria. At Ethan’s, and he told me about the videos. They’re sex videos, and I don’t know if Macy knows about them or not, but I’ll find out.” There was silence. “Maria?”
A deep, male voice on the other end said, “Is this Taffy Belair?”
Uh-oh. Taffy gulped. “Chief Green? This isn’t what it—”
Then the call was cut off.
Taffy looked down at her phone.
She waited for Maria to call her back. No call came through. Uh-oh.
While she stood on the patio wondering what to do, Mitch stepped out.
“So this is where you’re hiding. I was wondering why the party girl wasn’t partying.”
She snapped, “I’m not hiding. I’ve just got other things on my—”
“Hey, hey. Chill.” Mitch was holding up his hands, a peaceful gesture.
Taffy took a deep breath and pinched the bridge of her nose.
He took a tentative step closer. “I just wanted to say sorry. I think we got off on the wrong foot. I’d like us to be friends.”
“Well, I don’t think—”
Just then Ethan walked out to the patio and put one arm around Mitch and one arm around Taffy. “How are two of my best friends in the whole world getting along?”
“Just getting to know each other,” Mitch said.
Taffy set pleading eyes on Ethan. “I think I may have just gotten Maria into trouble with the chief.”
Ethan sighed and shook his head. “What have I told you about getting involved in these cases?”
Taffy glared at him. “That’s not what I need to hear.”
“It’s the one thing you can’t seem to hear.”
Mitch interjected. “This is about Blake Stanton Reese?”
Taffy sighed. “Ethan hates it when I insinuate myself into these cases, but my friends are involved this time. I have to do what I can.”
Mitch nodded in what appeared to be agreement.
Taffy plopped down into one of the patio chairs. “I’m beginning to wonder if his wife had something to do with all this.”
“Veronica?” Mitch took a chair too.
Taffy stared at him. “How do you know her name?”
He shrugged and glanced at Ethan. “I know quite a bit about her actually. In fact, wasn’t she in Monterey last weekend?”
Taffy narrowed her gaze at him. “And how do you know that?”
Ethan sighed and took a chair himself. Taffy eyed him curiously and then refocused on Mitch.
“She’s been of particular interest to me lately,” Mitch said.
“Veronica Reese?” Taffy leaned forward. “Why would Ethan’s cousin from Michigan be interested in an LA millionaire’s ex-wife?”
Mitch glanced at Ethan. “Can I tell her now?’
Ethan crossed his arms and blew out through pursed lips. He looked down for a second. Mitch looked at him. “What? I told you I might need her help.”
“My help? With what?”
Mitch grinned. “Fancy a quick trip to New York?”
Taffy’s brow furrowed. “Which side of the family are you from again?”
Mitch looked at Ethan. “Mother’s?”
“I could have sworn Ethan told me it was father’s. But then again, he seemed a tad confused at the time.” She looked pointedly at Ethan. He let out a low defeated whistle.
Mitch said, “Yeah, well, it’s my fault. I was adopted, so I’m the one who gets the sides mixed up. Of course it was father’s side. Remember all those football games we went to, cuz?”
Taffy arched an eyebrow. She stared at Ethan. “Why bother lying about something like that? What’s the point?”
“It’s just a little white lie,” Ethan explained. “Mitch and I used to work together.”
Mitch said, “And we’re used to covering each other’s butts.”
“Protecting each other’s identities,” Ethan corrected.
Mitch grinned. “But I guess we’re a bit out of practice.”
Taffy stared at the both of them. “What the heck is going on?”
Again Mitch glanced at Ethan, who was slowly shaking his head.
Mitch hesitated before continuing. “I’ve been investigating Veronica Reese.”
“Investigating?”
“I’m a PI. She’s been involved in some shady business ventures. Art forgery. Money laundering. Questionable real estate investment.”
“And this has something to do with the murder?”
“Uh. No.” Mitch looked from Ethan to Taffy. “Nothing at all. I had no idea that was going down when I made my plans to come here. I’ve just been following her trail lately. Like I said, investigating. She’s been jetting between Santa Barbara, New York, Chicago, and Atlanta trying to get her wealthy friends to invest in a real estate scheme, but it’s a new deal to shore up a different scheme that fell apart.”
“Who hired you to look into all this?”
“One of her friendly investors who doesn’t trust what she’s up to. He wants me to shadow her at a gala event in New York where he’s sure her foreign business accomplices will be. He’s collecting evidence to set up a lawsuit.”
“What would you need me for?”
“You like galas, don’t you?” He looked her up and down. “You fit in at events like that.”
Taffy shot Ethan a glance. Was this some kind of trick?
He shrugged. “I told him you’ve worn a wire before. We both know you can navigate the upper echelons of New York society. When Mitch asked for my help, I thought you might enjoy another excuse to visit New York.”
“But there must be other—” She broke off that train of thought as another one pulled into her mind’s station. She narrowed her eyes at Ethan. “Are you just trying to get me out of town and away from the case?”
“Why would I do that?”
“Did Maria call you?”
Ethan shook his head. “I know you like the work, and Mitch does need the help.”
“Why don’t you help? Since you both seem to go waaaay back.”
Mitch said, “I want a woman’s help. You might need to follow her into the restroom or something like that.”
It dawned on her that Mitch wasn’t investigating a murder. This was fraud, and she was only being asked to go to a party and eavesdrop on some other socialite. In New York.
“What about Macy and Cher?”
“Oh, I don’t think they could handle the—”
“I mean what would I do with them, if I help you like this?”
She looked from Mitch to Ethan, who said, “Don’t look at me. What about Ellie? They’re all friends now, aren’t they?”
“When is this gala?”
“The day after tomorrow.”
“So soon?! I can’t just—”
The front doorbell rang again.
“I’ll get t
hat.” Ethan got up.
“Saved by the bell,” Mitch joked, waggling his eyebrows.
“You’re really a private investigator?”
He put his finger to his lips. “Shhhh. Please don’t break my cover.”
Taffy heard voices inside and was surprised to hear Maria’s rise above the others.
She jumped up and Mitch followed her.
Maria was standing near Lorne when her eyes locked on Taffy’s. There was a coldness to her look.
Taffy walked up to her. “I tried calling you.”
“Have you been talking to Lorne tonight?”
“She has,” Lorne said. “Asked me all kinds of insinuating questions.”
Maria rolled her eyes. “Thought so.”
“He just showed up here, Maria. I had no idea. I didn’t invite him.”
Lorne said, “I don’t see why I have to go with you, Detective Salinas. You can probably get all the information you need talking to Lassie here.”
Maria offered him a tight smile. “If you’d kindly indulge me, Mr. Shipley?” Without waiting for an answer, she turned to Officer Peck and asked him to take Lorne out to the car.
Before he was out the door, Taffy called after him, “Did you call the chief earlier, Lorne? Were you the one to get me into trouble?”
He turned back with a confused shrug. Maria stepped in front of Taffy.
“Chief Green is livid.”
“But I only—”
Maria held up a hand. “I understand you didn’t plan for this to happen, Taffy. I get that witnesses just keep finding their way to you, but you really have to make more of an effort to keep out of the investigation for now.”
“But he told me—”
She flexed her upright hand. “Please. For my sake. I can ask my own questions and get my own answers.”
By now Macy and Cher had flanked Taffy’s sides.
Macy said, “I’d count myself lucky to have such a devoted friend.”
“Yeah,” Cher said. “You wouldn’t be half as far with this case if Taffy hadn’t been helping you. At least now you’ve got the right suspect.”
Taffy wished they’d just be quiet. Then, innocently enough, Ellie piped up too. “Taffy’s always been a great help to Maria on cases.”
But Ellie had no idea of the real undercurrent. No one did. Except maybe Ethan, and he stood near Maria and said,
“Is there anything I can do to help?”
Maria still had a tight, fake smile plastered on her face. She turned to Ethan. “Just make sure no one here drinks and drives home.”
Ethan nodded.
Maria left.
Taffy exhaled and assessed the embarrassing situation: Well-meaning yet lacking-in-subtlety sleuth misunderstood and brushed off by disappointed detective friend.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
After Maria had left with Lorne, the party died down pretty quickly. Mitch played cards with Macy and Cher, while Ethan and Taffy cleaned up the cups and dishes on the patio.
“I didn’t do anything wrong,” Taffy said. “He just showed up here.”
“No one said you did. Maria just has a lot on her plate with this case.”
“And I try to help her with it, but she doesn’t seem to appreciate it anymore.”
“She needs you as a friend, Taffy. Not a colleague. You’re not qualified.”
Taffy pouted. “But I’m good at it.”
“Some of the time, yes. But you have to know when to back off.”
Taffy shot him a childish, pouting glare.
“I can’t believe you lied to me about Mitch,” she said, stacking the empty plastic cups with more force than was necessary. “I thought we were past that kind of thing.”
“It didn’t mean anything. It’s an old habit. He’s here for his work, and no one needed to know that.”
“You lied to me, Ethan. That means you don’t trust me.”
“It doesn’t mean that at all. It just means I still have loyalty to my friends, especially when it comes to old work-related issues.”
“Do old friends mean more to you than new ones?”
“I could ask you the same thing.”
Taffy frowned. “You didn’t have to lie and tell me he was your cousin.”
He closed his eyes and nodded. “You’re right.”
“Do you even have any cousins?”
He shook his head.
“You know, I’m not even sure I can believe you.”
“It’s a small issue, Taffy. Don’t try to turn it into a big one.”
“Because that’s what I do? Is that what you’re trying to say? Well, maybe it’s bigger than you think. You’re always pressuring me about staying here in Oregon, about committing to this being my home—”
“Pressuring?”
“Acting as if you’re so sure of everything yourself. But you can’t be sure if you’re lying to me about ‘small issues,’ as you call them. Maybe Mitch has put some doubt in your mind about me—”
“He hasn’t.”
“Because I know he doesn’t really like me—”
“That’s not true. He’s just asked you to work with him.”
“Well, he doesn’t think you and I are a good match and…”
Ethan shook his head and was about to say something when Taffy added, “And maybe he’s right.”
“You’re saying that because it’s your friends who don’t like me.”
“We come back to this all the time. Our differences. What if our friends are right?”
Ethan clenched his jaw but didn’t say anything.
Taffy continued. “What if we don’t have what it takes to make a go of it long-term? What if I always want to go to New York and you always want to stay in little old Abandon?”
“Is that what you really think, Taffy?”
She looked away for second, suddenly scared that what she’d said was closer to the truth than she wanted to admit. Quietly, she said, “I don’t know.”
“But it all still bothers you much more than you let on, so in a way you’ve been lying to me too. Or to yourself.”
She frowned. “That’s not what I said or meant.”
He paused, and then in a matter-of-fact tone he said, “Are you going to go to New York with Mitch?”
She thought about it. Maybe it would be good to step away from these situations for a few days. Leave Maria to do her detective work. Leave Macy and Cher to have some fun with Ellie. Leave Ethan to do… Whatever it was he needed to do.
“If Mitch needs my help, I don’t mind helping him. Because he’s your friend.”
Ethan smiled wryly. “Not because it’s a chance to get back to New York?”
She challenged him back. “Or a way to remove me from Maria’s investigation?”
Ethan tilted his head back, sighed heavily, and then looked into her eyes.
“If New York really feels like home, you should stay there, Taffy. Don’t stay in Abandon for my sake.”
Taffy’s heart clenched.
“Are you breaking up with me?”
He scratched at his scruffy chin. “Wow, the way you jump to conclusions…” He shook his head. “You know I love you and want to be with you, but if you don’t feel the same way, you have to do what you gotta do.” He turned with his armload of plates and cups.
“Ethan, I’d only be gone for a couple of days. As long as it takes to help Mitch with this thing.”
“I know, but in the big picture, you know, you’re free to do what you want.”
“Free?” Taffy felt her throat tighten. “This really is starting to sound like a breakup.”
Under his breath, Ethan said, “Only if you want it to be.”
* * *
Late that evening, Taffy left Ethan’s feeling confused and slightly irritated. And also a little bit scared. He’d said he loved her, but he hadn’t gotten down on one knee or anything. Not that she wanted him to. Not exactly. But rather than holding on tight to keep from losing her, he’d let her go,
told her she was “free,” and now she was in a bit of a free fall emotionally. Even if she wasn’t totally sure about Abandon, Ethan himself had started to feel like her home, and yet he’d so casually told her she could go back to New York if she wanted to, as if he were tired of always having to convince her to stay. He probably was. And maybe she was tired of needing to be convinced.
Mitch had said he’d arrange a red-eye flight for her the next evening. They’d meet in New York on the day of the gala. He’d take care of the tickets and the equipment they’d need. All Taffy had to do was dress up and look the part of a New York socialite out on the town.
Given the new tension with Ethan, and Maria, too, not to mention her ongoing frustration with Macy and Cher, the idea of getting away for a couple of days was appealing. But she’d have to come up with a reason for going back to New York so soon, because Mitch’s PI work needed to stay hush-hush for now.
* * *
Driving home from Ethan’s, Taffy informed Macy about the hypnosis appointment the next morning.
Cher snorted from the back seat. “What if they make her quack like a duck?”
“It’s not like that, Cher. I know the psychologist. Her name’s Tess Goodwill. A hypnotic trance is like a deep meditation, and sometimes in that state you can remember things that you’ve blocked out.”
“What if she doesn’t want to remember?” asked Cher. “Like, what if the memories are too traumatic?”
“In this instance, if the memory can help prove her innocence, I think it’s worth the risk, don’t you?”
“But don’t they think Lorne did it now? Why are they still after me?”
“Maria’s obviously suspicious of Lorne, but maybe she thinks you’ll remember something that will help solidify the case against him.”
“What if the hypnotist does something to my mind and I’m not the same after?”
Taffy wondered if that might not be a bad thing, but she refrained from saying anything. She tried to reassure Macy that it wouldn’t feel any more invasive than a conversation with a hairdresser combined with a relaxing little nap.
“But you think I might remember seeing a murder taking place or a murderer scurrying away? How would that be relaxing?”
“Good point. But it might help the case.”
