by Vivien Chien
Helen’s face lit up as if she’d just been told she won the lottery. “The true question is, What can’t we tell you about her?”
“Brenda is a very interesting woman,” Opal added.
Wendy nodded in agreement. “Brenda thinks she is better than most people. She is always saying how she feels sorry for everyone else and that she wishes to help them.”
That seemed to track with what I’d overheard her saying at Donna’s party and also what she’d said to me while I was at her house.
Pearl continued for Wendy. “But … she is not so lucky herself.”
“Oh?” I was intrigued. “And why’s that?”
“Her life is very messy,” Helen replied. “Her husband is a cheater, and her children are thieves.”
“Really?” I looked among the four women, unable to hide my surprise.
“Yes, really,” Pearl confirmed. “She even hired someone to follow her husband so she could catch him cheating on her.”
“Hired someone?” I asked. “What do you mean? Like a private detective?”
Helen nodded. “Yes. And she hired people to cover her children’s bad deeds as well. Money can help you cover many things.”
I thought about the possibility of Brenda also using Price Investigations and what that connection could potentially mean. If the timing lined up, there was a slim possibility she’d run into Thomas at the detective agency; it could have even come as a recommendation. Still, would Thomas really tell her what he was up to? And how would she get a copy of the files from his investigation?
“How do you know all of this?” I asked.
“Lana, you know we hear many things. All one has to do is listen carefully and much will be revealed to you,” Opal said.
The bell in the kitchen sounded, signaling that their food was ready. I excused myself and retrieved their food from Peter.
When I returned to the dining area, I noticed that someone had come in and was waiting by the hostess station. Upon further inspection, I realized that it was Warren … again.
My stomach sank. I wasn’t in the mood to deal with him when I had so many other things on my mind. But isn’t that always the way?
I took my time placing each of the Matrons’ plates on the table before willing myself to greet my ex at the hostess station. He was dressed in a casual suit with no tie, was clean-shaven, and I could smell his cologne as I approached. It brought back memories of better days, and I winced at the images they created in my mind.
When we made eye contact, he smiled brightly and extended a paper to-go cup. “Hi, I was passing through on my way to meet a client and I thought I’d bring you some coffee. It’s just the way you like it, too. Two creams, three sugars.”
I hated that he remembered something so mundane as how I take my coffee. “Thanks,” I said, hesitating to accept the cup from him. “I don’t really drink coffee anymore…”
“Oh, come on,” he said with a look of disbelief. “You hate me that much you’re willing to sacrifice steaming-hot caffeine?”
I debated the answer to that. But before I could say anything else, he continued.
“While I’m here, I thought I’d see if you’ve made a decision on whether or not you’re willing to sit down and talk with me.”
I grabbed the cup from his outstretched hand, set it down on the counter, and folded my arms across my chest. “I still don’t know. And I don’t know why it matters to you all of a sudden how I feel. It’s been well over a year now.”
“Aw, come on. Don’t be like that. It’s always mattered to me how you feel. If you would just let me explain the whole story, then I think you would realize that.”
“Why can’t you just tell me right here and now? Is it really necessary to drag this out?”
“You’re cute when you’re stubborn, you know that?”
I gave him the best glare I could muster. “You’re not winning any points with your attempts at being charming.”
“Who said I’m attempting?”
“Ugh!” I was seconds away from stomping my foot like a toddler. “You’re absolutely infuriating, you know that?” Right before I was ready to launch into a tirade, I remembered that the Mahjong Matrons were still in the restaurant and that anything that happened here would easily become gossip fodder. No matter how loyal they were as customers, I was no exception to their gossip mill.
“Forget it,” I said in a quieter voice. “We’ll talk elsewhere, I suppose. But I don’t know when. I’ll figure it out and let you know.”
He held up his hands. “Okay, that’s fair. I’ll take what I can get.” He looked down at the coffee mug and back up at me, winked, and said, “Enjoy the coffee.”
As he was walking out the door, Adam came walking in. The two men looked at each other, some type of silent exchange took place, and then Adam was standing in front of me wondering if anyone was home.
He snapped his fingers to get my attention and I snapped out of my daze.
“Lana, who was that?” he asked, jerking a thumb over his shoulder.
“That was Warren.”
Adam turned back around to look through the door. “Oh, it was, was it?”
“Yeah. He stopped by to see if I’ve made a decision.”
“You want me to break his kneecaps? I told you that’s an option.”
“Maybe later,” I said. “What brings you by?”
“Do I need a reason? Maybe I just wanted to see your sweet face.” He smiled and kissed me on the forehead. “I actually have a meeting with the chief so I can’t stay. Want to have dinner tonight?”
“Sure. I might have a meeting later after work, but aside from that, I don’t have any plans.”
“What kind of meeting?” he asked.
“Oh no, not with him,” I said, meaning Warren. I didn’t want to tell Adam about meeting with Bryce Blackwell in case the Matrons should overhear, so I nodded my head toward them and told him I’d text him later.
He stole a kiss before leaving, and I took a deep breath of relief. I felt so much better after seeing Adam for just those few minutes. As I reflected on my life and everything that had been going on, I realized that I was grateful for the many changes that had taken place.
Now there were just these two issues of the past to contend with, and everything would be at peace again.
CHAPTER
16
Sometime after lunch in the early afternoon, Bryce emailed back and said he’d gladly meet me at six p.m.; I could pick the location. Perfect. I responded saying that we should meet at the Zodiac. That way I would be in an environment I was comfortable with and Megan would be in the vicinity. I ended the email by giving him my cell phone number in case he needed to reach me before we met up.
Of course, because I had a plan of action and needed to be somewhere, the rest of the day crawled by. I swear at one point in between three and four o’clock, the minute hand went backward.
Then, finally, it was time to leave, and I could tell by the bounce in my step that I was a little past the point of anxious. I swung by the bank on my way to the bar and dropped the cash bag into the overnight deposit slot. I made it half an hour before I was supposed to meet Bryce, which gave me the perfect opportunity to update Megan on my day.
“This guy is absolutely ridiculous. He will not give up.” Megan clenched her jaw. “He’s got some nerve showing up at your work twice now. He’s lucky I wasn’t there.”
After she’d brought me a drink, I’d filled her in on Warren’s visit and the odd timing of Adam coming in just then.
“If you ask me, Lana, I’d tell him you don’t need to hear anything he has to say, and he can go straight to hell.”
“I know, I think that’s what he ultimately deserves. At the same time, I feel like he has a right to speak his mind. I would want the same courtesy extended to me. Plus, I have a few things I wouldn’t mind getting off my chest.”
“Yeah, but you also wouldn’t treat someone the way he treated you.”
We easily chatted away the minutes before Bryce showed up. I will give him points for being punctual. He walked in the door at exactly six p.m. He was dressed in a short-sleeved, slate-gray, button-down shirt with black jeans and had a messenger bag slung across his shoulder.
He wasn’t too bad looking of a guy, and I tried to picture him and Alice as a couple. She was a little on the proper side and he was definitely more casual, with dark, shaggy hair that could use a trim and loose-fitting clothes.
I waved, and he paused as recognition set in.
He nodded and headed over. “Are you Lana?” he asked.
I extended a hand. “Yup, that’s me.”
He took my hand and gave it a weak shake. “Don’t I know you?”
I noted that he did have soft hazel eyes and full lips that would be appealing to any woman. His olive skin gave him a Mediterranean look, and I wondered to myself if he might have some Greek in him. “Yes, we met in passing at Donna Feng’s birthday party. I did the catering.”
“Oh, right on,” he said, nodding. He slid onto the stool next to me and removed the messenger bag from his shoulder, placing it on the counter in front of him. “I brought my book with recommended playlists. I’m not sure what you’re looking for, but I have a little bit of everything in here. You also have the option of creating your own, but I would need it at least two weeks before the actual event.” He passed the book over to me.
I took the book from him and flipped through the pages as if I were interested.
Megan came by to take his drink order. He chose a draft beer and then turned his attention back to me. “Or if you want, you could tell me what kind of vibe you’re looking for, and I can put something together. Depends on how in control of the music you want to be.”
“I see,” I said, pausing on a page to act as if I’d found something I liked. “What did you do for Donna’s party?”
Megan returned with the beer and zipped away without acknowledging me.
“Ummm, she wanted a bit of control on the music, so she picked a list. I can look through my records if you want to do something similar … I forget what she chose.”
“No, that’s okay,” I said, closing the book. “So Donna mentioned to me that you came recommended by Alice Kam.”
“Yeah…”
“That was nice of her,” I responded casually. “Did you know Alice well?”
He set his beer glass back down on the bar top. “Why do I have the sudden feeling that you didn’t ask me here to hire me for a party?”
I feigned surprise. “What would give you that idea?”
He smirked, picking his beer glass up and taking a long sip. After, he said with amusement, “For one, you don’t seem all that interested in anything I have to offer professionally. You flipped through that book faster than anyone else that’s ever asked to meet with me.”
“Maybe I’m a decisive person.”
“Also, you didn’t mention what your event was or bother with giving me any details … that’s usually what people lead with when they’re hiring a DJ.”
Damn, he had me there. I would have to remember to be more convincing with my backstory in the future. “Okay, fair enough. I’m sorry; you’re right, I don’t actually need to hire you for a party. I just didn’t know if you would talk to me otherwise.”
“It all depends on what you want to talk about…”
I could tell his guard was up in a way it hadn’t been before. I didn’t know if it was because I appeared untrustworthy or because he had something to hide. I decided to feel things out as I went along instead of making snap judgments about his character.
“Okay, here’s the deal.” I shifted in my seat so I could make better eye contact. “I’m sure you’ve heard about Donna Feng being a main suspect in Alice’s murder.”
“I have.”
“Well, she didn’t do it.”
“And you know this for a fact?” he asked.
“I know it in my gut.” Okay, I was sorta lying. There was a small part of me that still doubted, but I definitely wasn’t going to tell him that.
“So what exactly do you need from me?”
“Information.” I sighed. “The problem is that none of us really know much about Alice. And since she recommended you, we thought maybe you’d have some details about her and her life that might help us.”
“Why would you assume that I knew anything you didn’t?”
“You guys dated, right?”
He reached for his beer glass. “Kinda.”
From what Megan had told me about their social media posts, they’d been pretty hot and heavy in the beginning. Again, there were two obvious reasons he could be hiding things: because he was guilty, or because he was being prideful. It was very possible that she had been the one to end things and move on; perhaps she was the one with the ability to remain friendly. And maybe he couldn’t reciprocate. Of course, I was just speculating … as I often like to do.
“In that time, you must have learned some stuff about her. Who her close friends were, what kind of stuff she was into, if she had any enemies … you know, the usual stuff.”
He drained his beer glass and signaled Megan for a refill. “She didn’t have any enemies that I know of. She never complained about anything, either. She was pretty chill.”
Megan swung by with a fresh beer and a new cocktail for me.
Bryce noticed that Megan and I didn’t exchange words, and narrowed his eyes. “You come here often, I take it?”
At this point, I figured why lie. “Yeah, the bartender’s my best friend.”
“Ah,” he replied. He took a sip from his new beer glass. “So yeah, she was a cool chick.”
“What happened with the two of you?”
“What do you mean?”
“Obviously, the relationship didn’t continue … so how did it end?”
He shrugged. “She wanted to end things, so we did. We stayed friends. Not much of a story.”
Talking to him felt like pulling teeth. “So there was no bad blood between the two of you?”
“Nah, we were all good. Why else would she recommend me for the gig?”
“Did you know anything about her relationship with Brenda Choi?”
“That’s the rich lady with the bratty kids?” he asked.
“Yeah, her.”
“I think everything was cool with them. Like I said, Alice didn’t complain a lot. She said the kids could be a handful sometimes, but it wasn’t anything she couldn’t handle. I guess they liked to steal stuff and were always getting into trouble.”
“Did they ever steal from Alice?”
He shook his head. “Alice was sort of a minimalist and didn’t have much. She’s not from here. Matter of fact, I don’t know where she came from originally. She never really said.”
“How’s that?”
“Well, she just said she was from around. You know, like she moved a lot and stuff.”
“She never said where she lived prior to coming here?” I prodded, having a hard time wrapping my head around that concept.
“Nope. She said that the past didn’t matter and she wanted to leave it where it was. That people should try focusing more on the present instead.”
“Interesting,” I said, taking a sip from my drink.
“Why’s that interesting?”
I couldn’t tell him that Alice might have been blackmailing Donna with her past life, so I shrugged instead. “I don’t know. Just an interesting take on life, I suppose.”
He appeared uninterested in my response and continued. “She was always going on about living in the moment and she seemed to get pretty upset if I tried to ask her too many questions. After a
while I gave up trying. Why start fights when you don’t need to, right?”
“It didn’t bother you that the woman you were dating didn’t want to share her past?” It still wasn’t sitting well with me that anyone would be okay dating someone while knowing zero information about their past.
“Not really. I was just happy to be with her in general. Girls like her don’t really go for guys like me.” His eyes shifted away from mine, seemingly embarrassed.
“Why do you say that?”
“Well, she was a little on the clean-cut side for one. I felt like she should have been with someone who’s got a nine-to-five, wears suits, and drives a sensible sedan. On top of that, I work a lot of nights and weekends, so it’s not like we could hang out and go on dates like other couples do.”
“So you were in fact a couple then?” I’m not sure why it was important to me, but I wanted him to admit it.
“You know what I mean.”
“Not really.”
“Anyway…” he said, tapping his finger on the bar top. “We ended whatever we had on good terms. Is there anything else you need to know?”
“Did you have any major interactions with her on the night of the party?”
“You’re really like a junior detective or something, aren’t you?” He laughed to himself.
“As they say, this isn’t my first rodeo.”
“We made some small talk, but nothing special. It’s not like she was actually a guest at the party. I still can’t believe that Donna woman went off on her like that. I’d be so embarrassed if that were me.”
“Believe me, she’s paying for it now.”
“Ain’t that the truth.”
“What about close friends? Do you know if she had any?”
“Not really. Although she did hang out with some other nanny and her friend. I don’t remember the chick’s name, though. I guess they would have wine nights or whatever. But I don’t think that the friendship went beyond that.”
“Are you talking about someone named Evie?” I remembered writing the name down in my notebook. The Mahjong Matrons had mentioned her to me. “Does that sound familiar at all?”
