Gin Mill Grill

by Marja McGraw

  “Did you come to ask more questions?” He moved a bit and groaned.

  I couldn’t help but feel a bit sorry for him. He was used to being in control, even if it was from his spot in the wheelchair.

  “I did. Do you feel up to talking?”

  “I ain’t got nothin’ else to do, but I’d rather talk to your cutie pie friend.”

  “I’m afraid you’ll have to put up with me,” I said.

  “Wellll, you’re not so bad. In the old days I coulda put one of you on each knee.”

  The old man had a one-track mind. I hope the drugs hadn’t made him too loopy.

  “Rusty, do you remember a guy they called Water Boy?” I crossed my fingers.

  “Water Boy. Water Boy.” He looked thoughtful. “Oh, yeah, I remember him. He did jobs for me once in a while. He was a scary guy, and I liked that.”

  “Can you tell me anything about him?”

  Felicity stepped closer to the old man so he could see her better, and she gave him her biggest smile. “We really need to know about him.”

  “I’ll tell you whatever you want to know, as soon as you get rid of that joker standing in the doorway again.”

  I turned, and once again, there was no one there. He was definitely hallucinating. I hoped we could count on his information to be correct.

  I turned to the doorway and said, “Get outta here, you skunk.”

  “Thanks,” Rusty said. “He’ll be back though.”

  “So what can you tell me about Water Boy?”

  “I remember him. He was sneaky and had a bad temper. That’s why I hired him for a few jobs. Did I tell you he worked for me a coupla times?”

  “You did. Do you remember Archie Glosser?”

  “Of course. Good ol’ Archie. He was related to the Glosser brothers. A cousin, or something.”

  “Would you like to meet his daughter?”

  He pointed at Felicity. “If she’s anything like this one, bring her on.”

  I knew he couldn’t see well, so I rolled my eyes.

  “Felicity, would you send Eloise in?” My friend had done her job and softened the old many up.

  She walked toward the door.

  “And take that ratty lookin’ fellow with ya,” Rusty said. “I’m tired of lookin’ at his ugly puss.”

  He moved and groaned again.

  I had a feeling I’d better get to the point fast because I had a feeling I was wearing the old man out.

  A nurse came in and cajoled him into taking two pills.

  Eloise joined me.

  “Rusty, this is Eloise, Archie’s daughter.”

  “She ain’t no spring chicken, is she.” It was a statement, not a question.

  “You’re no prize, either,” she said. “I’ve seen rotten potatoes that weren’t as wrinkled as you.”

  My eyes widened. This wasn’t the way to get on Rusty’s good side.

  He tried to laugh, but it turned into a cough and a groan. “You’re okay, sweetheart. A woman after my own heart.”

  Apparently Eloise had his number as soon as he spoke.

  “What’s your next question, girlie?”

  “Remember Loretta Simms?” I knew I’d better get my question out in a hurry.

  He was fading fast.

  “Someone was hitting her. Do you know who it was?”

  “Yeah, but I ain’t tellin’ you.”

  “Was it Water Boy?” Eloise asked.

  “Nah. He liked her, just like everybody else.”

  “Then who…” I didn’t finish my question.

  It struck me like a bolt of lightning. Rusty had hit her. But why?

  The nurse came in. “I’m afraid you’ll have to leave now. He’s getting too excited.”

  “And take that buzzard breath with you,” Rusty said, pointing toward the doorway. “I don’t like the way he keeps lookin’ at me.”

  Chapter Thirty-one

  “Well, that was interesting,” Eloise said. “Buzzard breath? What in the heck was that about?”

  “I think he’s hallucinating from his meds. He thinks someone is watching him. Maybe it’s his guilty conscience standing in the doorway. And I think I’ve figured out who was hitting Loretta.”

  Felicity had joined us. “I’ll assume you’re thinking Rusty was the abuser since you’re talking about his guilty conscience.”

  Eloise nodded. “We asked him who’d been hitting her.”

  “He refused to answer,” I said. “My question is why would he hit her? Was he that mean or was it something else? He had to know she was Horace’s girlfriend. Talk about tangled webs.”

  “Water Boy was a bad boy from what we’ve learned, and yet Rusty said he wasn’t the one who was getting rough with Loretta.” Eloise seemed to be mulling things over in her mind.

  I was doing the same thing. I stopped walking and turned to the other two women. “I wonder if Marcus knows more than he’s letting on. It doesn’t seem like Rusty cared who knew about his past. In fact, my impression is that he bragged about the old days.”

  “There’s only one way to find out and that’s to ask him outright,” Felicity said.

  I’d think about it. I didn’t want to stir the family pot after meeting his mother. I had a feeling she could be formidable.

  We left the hospital and headed for Eloise’s house. I hoped Butch had behaved while we’d been gone.

  Eloise invited us in for a few minutes.

  “I think we’d better get back to the office,” Felicity said. “I’m not feeling too good.”

  “I hope you’re not coming down with whatever Pete has,” I said.

  She turned a little pale and gripped her stomach. “Maybe we’d better go inside for a minute. I need to use the bathroom.”

  The flu it was.

  Felicity literally ran to the bathroom while Eloise and I surveyed what Butch had done.

  It could have been worse. She’d left a box of tissues on the end table and Butch had systematically pulled out every tissue and dropped them around the couch.

  “Butch! What did you do?” Eloise wasn’t angry. In fact, she started to laugh at the dog.

  His face was a picture of guilt, but what really made it funny was the tissue sticking out of the side of his mouth.

  We cleaned up the mess while I waited for Felicity. Butch watched us work. Every once in a while his tail would twitch.

  When she finally walked into the living room, she still looked pale. It was time to return to the office and let Stanley take her home.

  “Would you rather I take you straight home and he can meet you there?” I asked.

  “No, he can take care of me.”

  We walked out to the car and I suggested she lie down in the back seat.

  “No, riding in the back sometimes makes me car sick. That’s the last thing I want right now.”

  “Okay. Whatever works for you.” I pulled a tissue out of my purse and held it near my face. I still didn’t want to catch whatever was going around.

  We drove straight to the office and I helped her inside.

  Stanley took one look at his wife and said, “Oh, dear. What’s wrong?”

  “I think Felicity has the flu,” I said. “You’d better take her home.”

  He took her purse from her and placed his hand on her elbow. “Come, my little princess. Papa Bear will take you home.”

  What was the old saying? Gag me with a spoon? Papa Bear? Oh, good grief.

  They left, with me saying I hoped she’d feel better soon, and I settled in to do a little paperwork before going home.

  I said a silent prayer that Rusty wouldn’t catch anything since we’d just been at the hospital.

  I’d only been sitting there for about five minutes when the door opened and a seedy looking old man walked in, trailed by an even seedier looking younger man.

  As soon as I looked into his eyes, I knew exactly who’d come calling. His gaze looked right through me. Even for an old man, he was scary. His eyes were a very lig
ht blue, looking almost transparent. His hair wasn’t thin and wispy as one might expect. He had a head of thick grey hair, and it was longish, not to mention greasy looking. His back didn’t show much age-slumping. It was almost straight. And he was still a big man.

  “Don’t tell me,” I said, standing up. “You’re the infamous Water Boy.”

  He grinned one of the most evil grins I’d ever seen. I felt like I was face to face with… I didn’t want to think about it. All he needed was horns coming out of his head to complete the picture.

  “You’ve been warned,” he said in a deep but shaky baritone.

  “Yeah,” the younger guy said.

  Bruce Brown, or Water Boy, turned a look on the other man that was chilling.

  “Shut up, Charlie.”

  The younger man took a step back and lowered his head.

  “Yes, I’ve been warned, but life goes on and so do I.” I sounded a lot braver than I felt. “Would you mind answering some questions?”

  “I would. Mind your own business or you might end up like Loretta. Is that enough warning for you?”

  “Are you saying that you murdered her?”

  “I did not,” he replied, “but I know who did and I know why. Let it go, lady, or you could become a statistic just like her. Charlie, here, will see to it.”

  I don’t know why, but I glanced at Water Boy’s hands. They were deformed from what I thought might be arthritis.

  I verbally pushed him. “Did the same person murder all three victims?”

  “I told you to mind your own business,” his voice boomed.

  I took a step back. I’d been under the impression that Water Boy wasn’t all that bright, but this man seemed smart. Everyone had said he was quiet and sneaky, and I guessed I was seeing a different side of him.

  The front door opened and Rick Mason walked in. He glanced at each of us.

  “Sandi, what’s up?”

  “Detective Mason, I’m just having a friendly little chat with a local hoodlum,” I said.

  Water Boy gave me a look that would pin a mere mortal to the wall before he turned and left with Charlie following.

  “Am I ever glad to see you, Rick!” My voice held plenty of enthusiasm, not to mention relief, and I felt like I might hyperventilate.

  “So I gathered. Who was that guy?”

  “His name is Bruce Brown, but they used to call him Water Boy. Pete probably told you about him.”

  Without a word, he walked out the front door and looked up and down the street.

  “They’re already gone,” he said, returning. “That was one scary looking guy, and I’ve seen some of the scariest.”

  “Uh huh.” I sat down feeling weak in the knees. “He said he knew who the murderer was back in the thirties, but he wouldn’t tell me who it was. He denied that it was him. He said he knew why they’d all been killed, too.”

  “Crap! If I’d known that, I would have taken him in. What else did he have to say?” Good ol’ Rick.

  “He said if I didn’t let it go he’d see to it that I ended up like Loretta.”

  “If he didn’t kill her, then why make that kind of a threat?”

  “Good question,” I said. “I’m not sure I want to know.”

  “Where’s Pete?” He glanced around the office. “He should be here to watch out for you.”

  “He’s home with a virus. I usually argue that I can take care of myself, but this is one time I wish he’d been here. Water Boy might be as old as the hills, but he hasn’t lost any of his scare factor.”

  Rick pulled his cell phone out of his pocket.

  “Back in a minute.”

  He walked outside and called someone, hopefully to put them on alert about Bruce Brown and his sidekick.

  He returned and sat down at my desk. “You sure get yourself into some pickles.”

  “I do, don’t I? But this case goes back to the thirties. Who could imagine there’d be threats and break-ins? I don’t get what’s going on, Rick. This is just nuts.”

  “It is. Under the circumstances, I’m taking this off the back burner and I’ll be working on it. I think you should back off. Let me take care of it.”

  “I don’t think I can. I think this is one of those times when I’m in the thick of things whether I want to be or not. Oh, and did Pete tell you about Loretta being knocked around?”

  “He did.”

  “I think I know who roughed her up. I just don’t know why.” I closed my eyes for a moment. “One way or the other, I’m getting to the bottom of this.”

  “Who do you have in mind?”

  “Jeffrey Windsor.”

  “The wine guy? What makes you suspect him?”

  “He wasn’t always old, but he’s always been mean.”

  “You talked to him again? I knew you went out to his house, but…”

  “He’s in the hospital with a broken hip. We visited him today. He said he knows who killed Loretta and why, but we couldn’t get any more out of him.”

  “It seems like everyone knows who did the dirty deed except us.”

  “Yeah, it sure seems that way. Rusty is a talker, though. I – ”

  “Who’s Rusty?”

  “That’s Jeffrey’s nickname. Anyway, he brags about the old days. I want to talk to his grandson one more time. He may know more than he’s letting on.”

  Chapter Thirty-two

  Rick left after walking me to my car, and I drove home to see how Pete was doing. Sick or not, I had a feeling he was bored. He was a man who was used to doing what he wanted, when he wanted.

  Wrong. He was in his chair sleeping again, and the dogs were at his feet. They barely looked up when I entered the house.

  “Some watchdogs you are,” I said, quietly.

  Bubba stood and stared at me with Clem doing the same.

  “Ah. Dinnertime. You were just waiting for Pete to wake up and feed you.”

  They followed me out to the kitchen where I filled their bowls with food and set them on the floor.

  The doorbell rang and I rushed out to answer it before the sound could repeat and wake Pete.

  Dolly stood on the porch with a covered bowl. She glanced past me and saw Pete in his chair.

  “I know Pete’s been sick so I made some homemade chicken noodle soup. There’s just something about it that makes people feel better.” She reached into a pocket on her apron. “Oh, and I brought a little extra chicken for my two favorite dogs.”

  “I’ve heard that about chicken soup,” I said. “Thank you, Dolly. Now I won’t have to cook. And the dogs will think of you with love.”

  “You might want to make biscuits or something to go with it. Maybe a salad?”

  “Good idea. Would you like to come in?”

  “No. I don’t want to catch whatever he has. I’m guessing it’s a cold.”

  “Wait here for a minute while I get Tammi’s birthday present. I won’t see her, so you can give it to her for me. She’s such a little sweetie.”

  I set the bowl of soup on the coffee table and brought her the gift and handed it out the door.

  “Wish her a happy birthday for me,” I said.

  She nodded and turned to leave.

  “Give Pete a hug for me,” she said.

  “I will.”

  I closed the door and carried the bowl out to the kitchen. After I let the dogs outside, I heated the oven and made some simple drop biscuits.

  While they baked, I checked on Pete.

  “Dolly brought soup?” he asked.

  “We thought you were sleeping.”

  “I was, until you came home.”

  He followed me out to the kitchen and sat at the table until the biscuits were done. In the meantime, I followed Dolly’s suggestion and put together a salad.

  While we ate, I told him what had been happening. Rick said if I didn’t tell Pete about my visitors, he would. Snitch.

  “You met Water Boy? I wish I’d been there. I’d have put him and his partner in their p
lace.”

  “I’m sure you would have, sweetie. Oh, and Felicity went home sick, too. I guess she caught the flu from you. It seems to be bothering her in different ways though. She has a pretty upset stomach.”

  “I felt nauseous the first day, but it went away. She’ll be fine.”

  I smiled. “Stanley said he’d take care of her. He called himself Pookie Bear or Papa Bear or something like that.”

  Pete laughed. “Are you trying to make me sick to my stomach again?”

  The phone rang and I left the table to answer it.

  “Sandi, this is Rick. We’ve got a line on Bruce Brown and – “

  “You found him?” I asked, feeling relieved.

  “No, not yet, but we have an idea about where to find him.”

  My moment of relief was short-lived.

  “May I speak to Pete?”

  “Sure. Hold on.”

  Returning to the table, I handed my cell phone to Pete.

  “It’s Rick.”

  While they talked, I let the dogs in. They immediately took up their standard semi-begging positions by our chairs. Clem had learned from Bubba that they can sit and look pathetic, but they’re not allowed to actually beg.

  Pete hung up and handed me my phone. “Rick says he’s putting an extra patrol on our house tonight. Was Water Boy really that threatening?”

  “It’s his demeanor,” I replied. “Honestly, Pete, he’s one of the scariest men I’ve ever seen in my life. I wouldn’t want to meet him in a dark alley, no matter how old he is.”

  “And yet he said he didn’t commit the murders. Do you believe him?”

  “I kinda do. His presence was so overpowering that I don’t think it would have bothered him to admit his guilt. But he did say he knew who the killer was and that he knew why they were murdered.”

  “He wouldn’t tell you who it was?”

  “No. He threatened me and left, more or less.”

  “I’m feeling good enough to come back to work,” Pete said.

  I cleaned my cell phone with disinfectant. I really didn’t want the flu or a virus.

  “Honey, you need at least another day of rest.”