Lois Lavrisa - Chubby Chicks 02 - Murderous Muffins

by Lois Lavrisa

  “Yes, you’re welcome to call me Bezu. And you’re Jack?”

  He nodded. “I’ve been around a long time. And I have to say, I’ve never seen something like this before.”

  My eyebrows rose. Was that good or bad?

  “You’ve been wearing these?” Jack looked back into the telescope on the glass display case.

  Habitually, I touched my collarbone, my fingers searching for the familiar and comforting feel of the string of pearls. Nothing sat along my neck. “Yes. All the time.”

  He squinted. “You have any idea of its worth?”

  Uh oh. Maybe it was worthless. Now I was slightly embarrassed. Perhaps it was just a sentimental piece of inexpensive costume jewelry, and I was wasting his time. “No. Just that it’s very old.”

  He cradled the pearls in his hand as though they were breakable glass beads. “I think I know what these are. But, to make sure, let me do a little research. Do you have a few minutes?”

  I nodded.

  “May I take your pearls to the back room?” Jack asked.

  I shrugged my shoulders. “Yes.”

  He went behind a door.

  Cat looked into a glass display case. “Hey, come look here, Bezu.”

  I bent over the case.

  Cat pointed. “Does that look familiar?”

  As soon as I saw it, I sucked in a breath—a man’s gold ring set with a ruby and diamonds. “My gracious. That looks just like Mr. Phong’s ring.”

  “Yes. I thought so, too.”

  My thoughts spun. “What’s it doing here?”

  “I have no idea.” Cat twisted her mouth.

  “Cat, I see your wheels spinning. What are you thinking?” I asked.

  “Mr. Phong is dead. And his ring is here. And we know that Joseph was trying to get his money back from him and also to get something else back, too. This may be the something else. And we just saw Xavier outside of here.”

  “Are you saying that there’s a connection in all of that?”

  Cat narrowed her eyes. “I’m not sure. But there might be at least one.”

  “Fine. If that’s the case, then let’s let the police handle this.”

  Cat said, “If that’s what you really want to do, then you can tell them. And keep yourself on their radar.”

  I giggled. “On the other hand, I’d rather not talk to them if I don’t have to. Not until I get other things in order.”

  “I’d feel better if we did a little poking around ourselves.”

  “What do you have in mind?” I asked.

  “Maybe we find out if the ring has any tie-in to Mr. Phong’s death. Ask questions, follow leads, that kind of stuff.”

  I gulped. “You mean, investigate, like detectives?”

  “Sort of. Only unofficially, of course.”

  “Oh no. I cannot get involved in anything like that.” My heart sprinted. Why was my life getting so snarled up?

  “Umm. You forgot something.” Cat held up a hand. “You had a tenant die in your house.”

  “So?”

  “Whether you like it or not, you are involved. From what you told me, the police may still consider you as a person of interest. Yes, I know that you have a lot of things going on in your life. But first and foremost, you need to clear your name and find out who killed your tenant.”

  She did have a point. “But I don’t think we need to be the ones to do it. Surely there’s someone else who could solve this.”

  Cat folded her arms on her chest. “Like who?”

  “The police, of course.”

  “Let’s see what the police have to say.” Cat took out her phone and dialed a number and held up the phone. “I’m calling José; it’s on speaker.”

  “Hey, Cat. What do you need?” José asked.

  “You’re on speaker. I’m here with Bezu. Do you have a minute?” Cat said into the phone.

  “Hey, Bezu. How are you doing?” José asked me.

  “Right as rain, considering,” I said.

  José continued, “Listen, I’m talking to a friend in the zoning department trying to find out if there’s a loophole that we can work around to let you keep tenants in your house. At least temporarily. But no promises.”

  “I really appreciate it,” I said into the phone.

  “José, I have a question for you—if we find out something related to Mr. Phong’s death, should we just tell the police?” Cat asked.

  “Absolutely.” José cleared his throat and then paused. “Although we’re so overloaded here, no one may get to it for a while.”

  Cat gave me the eye, as if saying, “See, I told you.”

  “Yes, but I’m sure they’re making Mr. Phong’s case a priority?” I asked.

  “Bezu, we have a lot of open cases and not enough manpower to get to all of them, at least in any sort of timely matter. However, I do know that they’ve sent the muffin crumbs to forensics, and they are also doing an autopsy on Mr. Phong. Anything else, ladies?”

  “I’m good,” Cat said into the phone. “Thanks.”

  “Thank you. Take care,” I added.

  José said good-bye to us and clicked off.

  “See? He was practically telling us to investigate ourselves,” Cat said to me.

  “Did you listen to the same conversation I did? Because he clearly did not say that at all.”

  Cat smirked. “Oh no, he did. You had to listen between the lines.”

  Jack stepped back into the room. His forehead crinkled as he spoke, as if he was straining. “Miss Bezu. My hunch was supported. Do you want to know what you have here?”

  I said, “Sure.”

  “This here is not only valuable but almost irreplaceable. And you’re right. The strand is old, for sure, possibly from 1909, give or take. And in great condition, considering you wore it all the time. This is a rare find indeed.” Jack shook his head. “From prestigious Tiffany & Co., to boot.”

  Cat looked over at me as though urging me to say something.

  I was speechless. Tiffany & Co.? Wow.

  “So how does that translate into its monetary value?” Cat asked.

  I nudged her in the side. “I just hope that it’s enough to take care of a few pressing matters.”

  “My rough guess is around one hundred fifty to two hundred.” Jack gazed at the pearls in his hand.

  “Oh.” My heart sank into my stomach. “I guess I could pay the electric bill with that. It’s better than nothing.”

  “Miss Gordon, you do know that I meant one hundred fifty to two hundred thousand, right?” Jack looked at me.

  Cat jumped. “Holy smokes, Bezu, this is terrific!”

  “You do know, though, that I can only give you a portion of that for a loan, and if you don’t pay me back with interest in thirty days, then the necklace becomes mine. Are you sure you want to do that?” Jack carefully set the necklace on top of the black velvet square.

  I reached over and ran my fingers over the pearls. Closing my eyes for a moment, knowing that I would never see them again. I held back a tear. “Yes. I understand.”

  “Would you please excuse us for a second?” Cat pulled me away from Jack and the glass counter. “Do you realize what you’re doing? You’re throwing away a ton of money as well as a family heirloom. There has to be another way.”

  “I appreciate your concern. I really do. But I have to do this. You know that.”

  “What about selling it at an auction? Or on eBay? Or at a jeweler?”

  “All of those would take too much time and call attention to my financial dilemma. I cannot and will not shame my family’s name.” Tears welled in my eyes. “And this is real money and it’s right now. And it’s anonymous.”

  Cat threw her hands up. “Fine. Just know that I tried to prevent you from doing something you may regret later.”

  “What I lament is that I let myself get into such a mess. I have to get myself out, any way that I can.” I marched over to Jack, my heels thumping on the dark green carpet. After we ag
reed on a price, I said, “Let’s do this.”

  I signed several pages of forms, and Jack handed me a check. “If I were you, I’d go right to the bank with this.”

  I put the check in my purse. I should’ve been happy. I had money. Yet I felt like a traitor to my family. Guilt and remorse washed over me like rain.

  Cat said to Jack, “I was admiring a ring you have in the case over there. The men’s ruby-and-diamond ring.”

  “Do you want to look at it?” Jack moved to the display case, the sound of metal clanging as he took out keys.

  “Yes, we do.” Cat held my arm and guided me to where Jack stood.

  Jack unlocked the glass door and extracted the ring. “It’s a mighty fine piece. We just got it.”

  Cat squinted as she looked at me. “Lucky for us.”

  Jack slid the ring toward us. I picked it up and felt the weight of the ring.

  “Go ahead and look inside. It’s stamped fourteen-carat gold,” Jack added.

  I looked inside the band. Squinting to see, I made out the fourteen-carat stamped inside along with the letters H. A. P. I handed the ring to Cat. “Look inside.”

  Cat turned the ring over in her hand. “I see the initials inside. Do you know what those initials are for?”

  Jack said, “I’m guessing that they’re the owner’s.”

  Cat whispered to me, “Hu Phong. Maybe his middle name began with an A?”

  “You ladies interested in the ring? I think it’s going to go fast,” Jack said.

  “May I ask how much you’re selling it for?” I asked Jack.

  “Just under three thousand,” Jack answered. “You want it?”

  Cat placed the ring on her finger. “Actually we’re more interested in how you got the ring rather than in buying it.”

  Exhaling, Jack stuck out an open palm.

  Cat set the ring in Jack’s hand. “It’s a matter of life and death, really. We need to know who you got it from.”

  “As much as I would love to help you ladies, you have to understand. Just like with you, Miss Bezu, if someone came in looking at your necklace, I would not be at liberty to discuss anything at all about you. This business is run with utmost professionalism, and that means strict confidentiality and discretion to my clients—both those who leave merchandise and those who buy it.” Jack placed the ring back inside the display case and locked it up.

  “I do understand and certainly appreciate your discretion,” I said.

  “Let’s just say that you got a court order, and then you would have to disclose who gave you the ring, right?” Cat asked.

  Jack narrowed his eyes. “Are you ladies on the force?”

  “In a six-degrees-of-separation roundabout way, we sort of are,” Cat said.

  I bumped Cat in the side. “No, we’re not in law enforcement in any sense of the word. However, we’re doing an investigation into a death. And we’re pretty sure that that ring was owned by the person who died.”

  Jack adjusted a standing mirror on top of the glass display case. “I still cannot help you. Although, I’m very sorry about your loss.”

  “He was like a relative to her.” Cat winked at me.

  I rolled my eyes. “Not really. He was a tenant of mine, until he passed away last night.”

  “He choked on something, or it could’ve been an allergic reaction or something else. Just so you know, neither one of us had anything to do with his death,” Cat said.

  I shot Cat a look that Hattie used to give me when I went off track. It was a half smile and a raised eyebrow.

  “Never mind.” Cat waved her hand at Jack.

  I inhaled. “Jack, we’re attempting to figure out what happened to my tenant. There’s also suspicion that he may have been poisoned. So I’m trying to figure out who may have done that to him.”

  Jack squirted Windex on top of the glass display case. The smell of the ammonia wafted in the air. He swiped a paper towel over the blue liquid. “And you’re here at my pawnshop to get an answer?”

  “Not really. My original intent was just to sell my necklace. But then we saw the ring Mr. Phong owned, in your case.” I wrung my hands. “I remember seeing the ring on him, and now it’s here. And he’s departed. I have no idea if there’s a connection or not.”

  “But it sure sounds like there’s something going on here. Like maybe someone stole the ring from Mr. Phong, like his angry cousin Joseph? And then, let’s say, after Joseph stole the ring, he needed to get rid of it and also get some money quickly. So he brought it in here. Later on, he realized that he had to cover his tracks, and then he went back and killed Mr. Phong.” Cat paced back and forth. Then she stopped. “Now that I said that out loud, it doesn’t sound that plausible. Although there still may be something there.”

  Jack chuckled. “Well, it sounds like you have it all figured out. But I still can’t give out information.”

  “Yes. Of course. I understand,” I said.

  “Not even a little description of the person who brought it in? Even a tiny bit of information we can use? You really won’t have to say anything at all. That way you’re not violating your confidentially rules. If, for example, I said, ‘the person who brought the ring in was a male.’ And then you shake your head no or nod yes. Then I keep asking questions and you answer nonverbally,” Cat said to Jack. She whispered to me, “This worked on my last case.”

  “No can do. That would still be a breach,” Jack said. “And now, ladies, I need to get back to work. My suggestion, Miss Bezu, is that you go right to the bank with that check.”

  “Thank you again.” Cat and I exited the pawnshop.

  Cat said to me, “Here’s what I think. Whoever killed Mr. Phong took the ring. Our task is to figure out who that was.”

  Chapter Eight

  Depositing the check at the bank ripped my soul apart. The rest of my life, I’d have to live with the fact that I’d betrayed my family by selling the pearls. But I had to remind myself I did what I had to do. It seemed like the lesser of two evils: surrender the pearls or the house. I had to make a choice.

  After leaving the bank, Cat went to the Sunshine Market while I headed back to the house.

  Entering the kitchen, I noticed a syringe sitting on the counter next to the sink. I remembered earlier that Frank had mentioned he injected his medicine. Perhaps he’d left it behind. However, I didn’t want to touch it, for fear of getting pricked. Busying myself with a stack of bills in my kitchen drawer, I ordered them by their due date and priority.

  Moments later, Lily and Frank walked into the kitchen.

  We said our hellos.

  Lily scanned the room, then shouted, “Oh no, Frank, you left your things on the counter. I told you to be more careful.” Lily grabbed a paper towel and picked up the syringe.

  Frank’s eyes slit as he looked at me.

  “Here, put this with the rest in your duffel bag.” Lily handed the paper towel to Frank. Lily then said to me, “He keeps them until he gets a chance to dispose of them in one of those hazardous material containers they have at South University. Oh, and I will clean that up over there.” She pointed to the cutting board, which had some sliced lemons on top. Next to that was a protein powder drink. “I made some fresh coffee, too.”

  I wanted to ask more questions about the needle but thought I had better not. It would seem like prying into their personal lives. The coffeemaker gurgled, announcing that it finished brewing. “It’s so nice to see both of you. I am sorry about all that has taken place. Sweet Mr. Phong.”

  “I know. It’s just awful.” Lily hugged me tightly. “I’m so glad that you’re out of jail. Did you have to wear a horrid orange jumpsuit? It’s so not your color.”

  While in the embrace, I patted her back the same way Hattie used to comfort me. Lily was so sweet worrying about me. “Lily, I wasn’t arrested.”

  “But the policeman took you away in his squad car.” Lily pushed back from me.

  “I just had to answer some questions, that
’s all,” I reassured her.

  “So you’re okay then?” Lily asked.

  “Yes. You don’t have to fuss about me one more second.” I flicked my hand as if I were wiping away her worry about me.

  “Fine.” Lily scooped some powder mix into a cup, filled it with water, dropped a lemon slice in, and then screwed a top on. She shook it and then handed it to Frank.

  “Thanks, babe.” Frank kissed Lily. “We’ve got to get going. Have to move our things to my buddy’s house.”

  “I’m so sorry about all of this. You don’t need to move out.” I shut off the coffeemaker. “However, if you do, I will refund this month’s rent money.”

  Frank huffed. “Good. We’ll need it to find another place.”

  Lily said, “Oh no, Frank. I love it here. I want to stay as long as we can.”

  “It’s up to y’all. You’re welcome to stay.” I’d miss Lily but not Frank. “But if you leave, I’d understand as well.”

  “Miss Bezu, I couldn’t leave you. Not now.” Lily held my hand.

  Frank said, “Now is the perfect time to leave her. Remember, she may’ve killed a guy?”

  Lily let go of me and glared at Frank. “She did not. And she’s like our family. We need to stick together.”

  “I just need to stick with you, babe.” Frank chugged his drink.

  “Don’t you have any loyalty, Frank?” Lily asked.

  “To you.” Frank washed his cup.

  “I know.” Lily ran her hand on his back. “But we need to keep together— all of us here in this house.”

  “You’re so adorable how you take care of everyone.” Frank’s face filled with a big grin as he looked at Lily.

  “We need to protect Miss Bezu. Like you protect me,” Lily said to Frank. “I love you, so please do this for me. Be sweet, okay?”

  “Sorry. It’s been weird lately.” He took a finger and ran it along her cheek. “I haven’t been sleeping well, and all the stress of school and the contest, and, well, you know I get irritable.”

  “I know you do. Maybe you also need to cut back on your medication.” Lily glanced at me. “And regardless of what anyone may think, there’s no way that Miss Bezu could even harm a fly.”