All My Exes Live in Texas

by Aimee Gilchrist

  I poked Aodhagan in the arm and pointed across the street. It was Daisy. Alone and coming out of the Café. Daisy didn't stand to lose much in terms of money or property if Carl sold or died. If she had killed him, there was another reason. Maybe just because he was a massive ball of skeeze. There would be lots of reasons for rejecting Carl's advances, but it probably didn't help that Carl likely knew that Daisy was same-sex oriented, and instead of respecting that, he resorted to coercion. That was something I could see murdering over.

  We had twenty minutes to get back to Aodhagan's house, but I wanted to have a minute alone with Daisy. Without announcing my intention, I jumped off the curb and headed for Daisy. She was just standing there, and I had to take advantage of that. Aodhagan sighed and followed me. She seemed overly surprised to see us, which didn't make much sense. They were everywhere we went, so why wouldn't we be expected wherever they went?

  "Oh, hello."

  I nodded and returned her greeting, waiting for Aodhagan to catch up. When he reached us, I turned my eyes back her way. "Hey, so, uh, how are you guys holding up?" It seemed rude to just start the grilling immediately.

  She shrugged delicately. "Everyone is upset of course."

  I cocked my head. "Why?"

  Aodhagan, who never would have asked such a question, pressed two fingers to his forehead and lowered his head like he was praying. Maybe he was. For patience. Luckily, this was why we often worked well together. Aodhagan smoothed over all the waters I just went splashing into like an excited retriever.

  Daisy's eyebrows rose. "Excuse me?"

  "I said why. Why would a group of people who hated Carl Crowe be upset to see him gone?"

  Daisy blinked several times and then exhaled. "Look, Carl wasn't a very nice guy, but when a not very nice guy is part of your family, you're still sad to see them go."

  Nodding, I gave her a sympathetic look. Or at least I hoped it was. "So what about the others who aren't Crowes? How are you guys faring?"

  She sighed again. "Carl was a jerk. He was hard to work with. And we didn't love him simply because he was family. But he was still a part of our everyday lives. Even when you don't like someone, you don't feel joy when they die. Plus, I care about the Crowes. I'm sad when they're sad. And I suspect the others feel the same."

  It was such a nice answer. Exactly the kind of thing I would have expected from Daisy.

  Aodhagan surprised me by asking her a difficult question as well. "Someone at the Dallas offices told us the staff on the top floor were all sleeping with Carl. Was that true?"

  Daisy's head snapped up. But it wasn't the response I was expecting or for the reason I thought. She had no commentary on the concept of sleeping with Carl at all. "You were in Dallas? Why would you do that?"

  "Yes, we flew there this morning and had lots of interesting conversations. But what's your take on that concept? Do you think everyone outside the family upstairs was sleeping with Carl? What about you? Were you sleeping with Carl?"

  Her mouth pressed with disapproval for perhaps the first time I'd seen. She still reminded me of nothing more than an elementary school teacher. "If I was, it wouldn't be any of your business. But I wasn't. I had no interest in Carl, and he had very little in me."

  Aodhagan opened his jacket and pulled the badge from his inner pocket. "I guess you guys didn't realize that in addition to being the mayor, I'm also the sheriff. It is my business as long as Carl is still a man who died in my town."

  It did, however, explain her confusion and horror about our choice to fly up to Dallas and question people. If we were just two random people, which truthfully we kind of were, it did read as a little much, but she wasn't in Aodhagan's shoes or the shoes I'd already been in. She wasn't being basically accused of murder. I knew from personal experience that wasn't a nice place to be, and I would do anything to avoid it. Even overexaggerate Aodhagan's penal power in this particular case.

  "As I said, I was certainly not having sex with Carl. If any of the others were, aside from Vi of course, I have no information about it."

  "But Carl did have an interest in you," I pointed out.

  She turned to me. "I don't know what you're talking about."

  "You said you slapped him at the Spring Fest because he was sexually harassing you."

  For a second she seemed confused and alarmed. Then she waved a hand dismissively. "Oh, that. Carl would smack a hand on anything with a butt. It was as instinctual as breathing for him. Sometimes he just had to be reminded."

  Oddly, that made sense to me. I'd met older men, especially when I was nineteen or twenty, who ran with my parents' set and who'd tried to corner and grope me like it was their job. Sometimes they just needed a good slap to reset and find some other hapless lady to chase. It never changed them inherently, but it did keep them away for the next couple of parties.

  "Did you know that Carl's will leaves all his liquid assets to a cat sanctuary in Dallas?"

  Daisy visibly paled at that information, even though she had no skin in that game. "What? Why would he do that?"

  I shrugged. "He left the business to the family. I guess you weren't aware?"

  She shook her head. Her face cleared very slightly. "Of course not. I wasn't privy to anything inside the immediate family. Of course, none of it goes to me. But it's such a cruel thing to do to your family."

  "Maybe he figured they could earn all the money back. Or sell the company to recoup their losses," Aodhagan offered.

  She seemed startled. "Why would they sell?"

  Poor Daisy seemed generally unaware of anything, if she was telling the truth. "You didn't know about Hilton-Hill Holdings?" I watched her face carefully, and I could tell it was true. She hadn't known about the will or Hilton-Hill. If Carl was killed for either of those reasons, she wasn't the one responsible.

  "I…no. Hilton-Hill? But they're such sharks. Everyone who follows business news is aware of how predatory their policies are. Why would he do that?"

  "Well, no one said he was going to do it, just that he was considering it."

  She shook her head. "But the company is doing fine."

  I shrugged. "Who can guess what he was thinking. You do realize that whoever killed Carl is probably in Birdwell right now?" I watched her face drain of color and then her eyes move to Aodhagan. "In your group," I clarified, trying not to let my annoyance show.

  "I guess I never thought about it."

  Aodhagan moved a little closer to her, a tactic I had seen him use when he was trying to intimidate to a degree. "Well think about it now. Why would one of you guys kill Carl?"

  She bit her bottom lip. She didn't answer for a long time and then just gave a small shrug. "Carl wasn't a nice man, like I said. I know what he's done to some members of his family and crew but not everything. There could have been a million things that Carl did that I never even knew were happening. I couldn't begin to guess why someone killed him."

  I could tell we weren't going to get anything else out of her. Her expression and posture told me that she was shutting down at the stress of all the revelations we'd just given her. It was a lot to process. Daisy was gentle, but I had a feeling she had a spine of steel. She'd rally because her team needed her.

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  By the time we got back to Aodhagan's for the interview with Lynette at Little Beans, it looked like another storm was rolling in, and I could only hope that the power held up until our video call was finished. Lucky met us at the door and followed us to Aodhagan's office upstairs. I'd never been in that room and had only ever been mildly curious what he kept inside. Had I looked, I would have realized he was a doctor much sooner. It was clear in the office. I eyed his diplomas while he set up the laptop for the call. He had another Gaelic name for his middle name, and I didn't even try to guess how it was pronounced. He'd gone to Harvard and Johns Hopkins. It was like a primer on how to be impressive.

  Lucky jumped up onto the desk, knocking over a container of pens with a crash. What was it
about cats and desks? I didn't even know cats all that well, but I knew they couldn't keep their paws off paper, keyboards, and coffee mugs. Aodhagan simply scooped up the container, put the pens back, and replaced it on the desk. He didn't even try to get Lucky off the desk. Maybe he knew more than I did about getting animals to do things. Lucky wouldn't do anything I wanted him to, and he hated me. Maybe he would have followed directions for Aodhagan. Or maybe Aodhagan knew it wasn't even worth trying.

  Aodhagan gestured to the desk chair and sat down in the tiny rolling stool that all doctors had, even, apparently, when they were operating out of their home. We sat in front of the screen and waited for the moment when we could put the call through. Lynette's assistant was true to her word. We'd told her only that it was in regards to a large donation, and Lynette was right on time, smile on her face. She wore a denim button-up and red-framed glasses, and her blonde hair was pulled into a sloppy ponytail. I had the impression she'd come directly from working. I couldn't really evaluate the labor that went into taking care of hundreds of animals, but I could guess that it was probably a lot. A lot of money too, which was probably why she was there with bells on.

  "Hi, Lynette?"

  She nodded at Aodhagan.

  "Hi, I'm Aodhagan MacFarley, and this is Helen Harding. We were calling because it's come to our attention that a man who recently passed away in Birdwell, Texas has left your organization a very great deal of money in his will."

  Her head cocked. "A very great deal? Like, what does that mean exactly?" I could tell it was a cautious question. They probably needed money very badly. Their overhead must have been enormous. Her amped-up expression changed immediately as soon as Lucky walked in front of the screen. Her bright smile returned. "Kitty!"

  Because he was Lucky, Lucky turned and hissed at the screen. She just laughed. I pushed Lucky on the butt until he decided to jump off the desk and get out of the way.

  Aodhagan focused on Lynette again. "It means like in the millions."

  Her gasp was audible. "But…why?"

  "That's what we wanted to ask you," I offered.

  She shook her head. "I don't know why anyone would never contribute to us and then give us so much. I mean, I've never seen a donation from a town called Birdwell."

  Aodhagan leaned forward. "He's not from Birdwell. This is just where he died. He was from Dallas. Have you heard of someone named Carl Crowe?"

  "No." Her eyebrows pulled together. "I don't think so. He certainly has never donated."

  "Do you spend time in Dallas?" I asked.

  She shook her head again. "No. I mean, I've been before for short trips once or twice but never for long, and I don't recall ever having met someone named Carl Crowe there."

  "You should be aware that Carl has a large family who are likely to object to the will," Aodhagan told her. "We have it on pretty good authority this money is coming. Assuming you are the beneficiary, I would get yourself a lawyer if you ever want to see a dime of that money, because I have a feeling they're going to come at you hard once the will is officially read."

  She agreed that she would, appearing wholly dazed. She didn't even react when Lucky jumped back up right before we hung up. Maybe that was just the hissing, though. When she was gone, Aodhagan sat back in his chair. "Well, there was no way to push her harder about whether she knew Carl or not. We can't even see her body language. I didn't get anything from that. Did you?"

  I shrugged. "She looks familiar to me in some way that I'm not able to connect yet. I don't think I know her. I guess she just reminds me of someone else. I'm not sure who, though."

  The recognizable sound of rain began to pelt the roof, and I glanced up wryly. Hopefully we didn't lose all power again tonight.

  Aodhagan went to the window and glanced out as if he could read my mind. "The clouds aren't that heavy. Hopefully it will pass quickly."

  I stood up and stretched while Lucky attacked my foot. I shook him off and followed Aodhagan to the window, cursing under my breath. Lucky followed, continuing to try to chew my Achilles tendon as I walked.

  As soon as I reached the window, I immediately noticed someone walking. It took a long moment to recognize the form as one of the Crowe crew in the pale light of a mostly obscured moon. It was the unnaturally wide chest and tiny feet that finally made it sink in. "That's Glen Matson."

  Aodhagan cocked his head, watching him walk. "Why is he wandering around in the dark in this weather?"

  "Probably trying to escape the rest of the people at my house. That's what I would be doing if I were there."

  Aodhagan turned. "Come on, let's go talk to him."

  The last thing I wanted to do was go out and get wet to talk to yet another member of that group today. It had been a long day, it was dark and cold, and I was exhausted. But the chance to talk to one of them without an audience really was worth it. I followed him downstairs and watched him grab up an umbrella on his way out the door. I assumed it was for us, but it turned out it wasn't. We just stood there getting soaked while Aodhagan offered the umbrella to Glen, who took it gratefully but suspiciously.

  "I thought you might need this."

  He nodded. "Thanks. I didn't expect the rain when I left."

  "Is there a lot of tension over there, what with the murder and all?" I asked, hoping I sounded casual. Really, I was just super uncomfortable, getting progressively wetter.

  Glen nodded very slightly.

  "We were up in Dallas this morning. Someone mentioned you used to be a doctor. That's a big job change," Aodhagan offered sympathetically. "I also used to be a doctor. Sometimes I miss it now that I'm a nowhere sheriff and mayor. Are you happy with the change?"

  Glen seemed momentarily confused about something Aodhagan had said. It could be that we had gone to Dallas at all—it could have been the fact we knew he'd once been a doctor and in the perfect position to stab someone between the C3 and C4 vertebra. Finally, he shook his head.

  "Sometimes. Sometimes I miss it. I got burned out, though. I was making myself sick. You know how it is. That life eats at you."

  Aodhagan nodded conspiratorially, even though I knew that Aodhagan most certainly did miss being a doctor and felt like hanging around being and not being a doctor at the same time left him bored, restless, and feeling like he was offering nothing to the world at large.

  "Is it better working in accounting?" I asked.

  He shrugged. "It's okay. My father and all my uncles and brothers are accountants. It seemed like the most reasonable way to go when I couldn't deal with the hospital anymore. They have a big firm in Dallas. I could have worked there."

  I cocked my head. "Do you regret going to Crowe? I mean, from the interviews we did today, it sounds like a hot mess."

  He seemed to find that funny, his guffaw was louder than the rain in my ears and the echoes off the umbrella. "It's a horrible place to work, but compared to twelve hours of life and death a day, it's frankly a walk in the park. The Crowes are terrible people. Don't let anyone lie to you about them. Especially Carl. He was a real piece of work. And he was a pervert."

  "Yeah, we heard about some of his…" I searched for the right word. I decided to use Vi's. "Proclivities." I wanted to ask him about the creepy repeated name in his notebooks, but I couldn't think of a subtle way to bring up our snooping, so I just decided to go for stuff that didn't involve admitting going through his luggage.

  Glen's mouth pressed. "Not everyone was having sex with Carl, but he would have sex with anyone. And I do mean anyone. His family deserved better."

  "Were you?" Aodhagan asked.

  It took a moment for the question to sink into Glen's brain. "Lord, no. I couldn't even stand the sight of Carl. The way he treated his family, he should have been shot." He paled. "I mean, figuratively. Look, Carl wasn't a man I liked. I never would have been intimate with him either physically or emotionally, but I think most everyone else not related to him was fair game."

  I assumed Glen meant that no one who was young
enough was immune to Carl's advances. Others had told us where Carl's real interests lay.

  "Why didn't you like Carl?" I asked, seeing my chance to sort of hone in on why he'd written Carl's name a million stalkerish times and then crossed them out with excessive violence.

  Glen shook his head, glancing off into the distance. "Carl lied, stole, abused people. He didn't care about anyone or anything. He wasn't a hard man to hate."

  "Did you kill him?" Aodhagan asked.

  To my surprise, Glen laughed heartily. "No, of course not. Not that, I suppose, I would tell you if I did. But I didn't. I'm not surprised someone did, though."

  "Who do you think killed him?"

  Glen licked his lips and hesitated, and I could tell he was struggling with his answer. My guess was he didn't want to give it. "I think it was Faith. The way he treated her was unacceptable. He acted like she was a second-class citizen. If I were her, I would have had some festering hatred in my heart after a lifetime of that."

  "Do you think she was strong enough?" I asked. That was the real question.

  "Maybe. Probably not. But she had the most motive in my opinion. Jackson stood to lose if the sale goes through or if Carl stopped him from marrying Faith. I think all his future plans are wrapped up in having controlling shares if he and Faith combine their shares. If Carl sold Faith's shares, which she would have let him do because she'd let him do anything, Jackson would lose his chance. Maybe he did it."

  "So you knew about the sale?" I jumped on the suggestion.