by Lynn Cahoon
“Filed wrong?” I unfolded the paper and read the details of Uncle Ted’s death. All of the facts, but none of the feelings. Like how he used to buy me books on his business trips and bring them back to me when they visited. He was probably the reason I read so widely. He was always finding weird stuff he thought I might like.
“Well, classified wrong. I guess it was more of a computer issue than an actual filing error. The weird thing is, the change happened earlier this summer. The guy has been dead for years and just a few months ago, someone changed the spelling on his last name so it didn’t come up when you search.”
I stared at my newest barista. “You’re kidding, right?”
“I swear on my well-loved copy of Eats, Shoots and Leaves.” He grinned. “Speaking of writing, I wanted to see if I could pull together a writers’ group to meet here one weeknight evening. They wouldn’t be a bother and they’d definitely buy coffee and food. And probably some books.”
“Sounds like a good idea, but you need to bring it up to Jackie. She handles the late shift.”
He sighed and leaned back in his chair so his hair fell over his eyes. “I was afraid you’d say that.”
“Why? Because you’re afraid of Jackie?”
Now he flipped back his head and met my gaze. “You’re exactly right. I am afraid. Maybe you could…”
Instead of answering, I picked up my book and stuffed the paper with Uncle Ted’s death certificate inside. “See you tomorrow.”
“You’re a tough one,” he called after me.
Smiling, I left the shop. Maybe I was just like my aunt after all. I looked toward the police station. I hadn’t heard from Greg for days. I knew he’d been home sometime during the night because I’d felt his presence in our bedroom. Or I’d dreamed it, because he hadn’t been there when I’d gone to bed, and when I’d awoken, the other side of the bed was cool to the touch. When Greg worked a case, he rarely slept. Too much on his mind.
I needed to talk to him about Aunt Jackie and her stalker. At least that’s what I’d come to call the guy. And let him know about the death certificate. And maybe talk him in to having lunch with me. A girl could hope.
Esmeralda was on a call when I walked in, but she pointed to Greg’s office. Apparently, the path was clear for me to talk to him. When I walked in the room, he had his head back in his chair with his eyes closed. Files were spread out on his desk. I walked over and picked one up. Ben Penn’s face looked up at me. It had to be a driver’s license shot. I don’t believe I’d heard his last name before. Penn. Maybe he’d shortened it?
“You need to stay out of this one.” Greg’s muffled voice shocked me and I almost dropped the file.
“Why are driver’s license photos so bad? I mean, can you really tell who it is when you pull them over?” I set down the file and pointed to Ben’s picture. “I met the guy this week and he didn’t look a bit like this.”
“You’re stressed when a cop pulls you over. It’s easier to match a solemn shot than one where you’re grinning into the camera. Unless, of course, you like interacting with the police, which no one does.” He walked around the desk and kissed me. “Sorry I missed you last night. I was working on a lead.”
“And this morning.” I ran my fingers down his cheek and could feel the stubble coming on from his beard. Either he’d forgotten to shave, which was unlikely, or he’d been up and out of the house really, really early.
“I’m talking to the girlfriend this afternoon. I needed to know as much as possible before I interviewed her.”
“She’s freaked out.” I hurried to add what I wanted to say before I got more of the lecture about staying out of the investigation. “She came into the shop this morning. I called Sadie to ask her to come talk to her. You know Sadie can calm down anyone.”
He nodded. “She’s got a knack for working with people.”
“Yeah, you’re right. So I called Sadie, because Paula was scaring me. And then she called Pastor Bill, and he came and they all talked. Then they went to the church, so if you’re looking for Paula, she’s probably there. Or Sadie knows where she is.” I watched as Greg left my side and went back to his desk.
He picked up the phone and told Esmeralda what I’d just said. “Would you set up a meeting with Paula at two? Jill and I are going to Diamond Lille’s for lunch. I’ll have my phone on if you need me.”
He stood and looked at me. “Are you ready?”
“I didn’t ask if you had time for lunch.” It was creepy, his ability to read my mind.
He pulled me out of my chair. “You’re kidding, right?”
“No. I mean, I was coming to ask you that, but how did you know?”
He pointed to the clock. “It’s noon. You were probably on your way to Lille’s and stopped to report on what you’d found out. You’re a creature of habit.”
“Oh, yeah.” I didn’t like being told I was so predictable, but because this was Friday and Lille’s would have clam chowder along with a fish and scallops lunch, I figured it couldn’t hurt—at least not this time. “I need to talk to you about Aunt Jackie. Someone’s been on her porch.”
As we walked, I told him everything I’d found out about her predicament. Including the fact that someone had been on the porch and it hadn’t been Harrold.
“Make sure she locks that door. And maybe you could put a chair or something against it. We could put a gate at the bottom of the stairwell too. But that’s more of a long-term solution. I really don’t like that the entrance goes right back to the alley way.” He held the diner door open and I went inside. “Just block it for now. I’ll spend some time on trying to figure out what’s going on with her this afternoon.”
As we settled into a booth, I watched him. “I didn’t think you’d have time to work on this until after the murder was solved.”
He broke eye contact and studied the menu. “The special looks good.”
“You have a suspect.” I pushed down the menu. “Don’t tell me you’re thinking about charging Paula?”
“Jill, it isn’t just based on a feeling. Someone had means, motive and opportunity. And all those things point to his girlfriend.” He leaned forward. “They were seen fighting the day the guy died. And I’ve already talked to the other woman in the relationship. She says Ben was planning on leaving Paula.”
“He was cheating? Wow, I didn’t see that coming. Paula was hooked on the guy.” I thought about watching him talk to someone at the diner that first and last day I’d seen him. “Are you sure the other woman didn’t kill him? She probably had all the same reasons Paula would.”
“I agree, but the woman has an ironclad alibi. She was at work at a residential care facility. She works the night shift as a nurse and has several people who can alibi her for the time of death.”
Carrie stopped by the table. “I’m always walking into the most interesting discussions with you two. What are you having, Detective? I’m pretty sure I can guess Jill’s order.”
Predictability. I really had to switch up my lifestyle and my choices. Except I liked my choices. I handed Carrie the menu. “Have at it.”
Greg laughed. “You are a trusting soul. What if she gets Tiny to cook you up liver and onions?”
“Then I’ll just have to send it back.” I smiled at Carrie. “Besides, she likes me. Lille, on the other hand…”
“She’d make you do your own ordering.” Greg handed Carrie his menu. “I’m having the pork chop plate. And bring me some apple pie. I may not get dinner.”
“Do you want a chocolate milkshake to go with Jill’s vanilla one?” Carrie took the menu and jotted down Greg’s order.
“Why not.” He waited for Carrie to leave. “So that’s my afternoon and evening. I’ll have to stay while the prosecutors decide on charges. But I should be able to work on your aunt’s case while I’m waiting.”
“I don
’t believe Paula did this. She’s too passive.”
Carrie dropped off the milkshakes and quickly left the table.
“What we think and what we know are two different things.” He took a sip of his shake. “There just aren’t a lot of other options in this case.”
“Greg, I’ve never told you that you’re wrong before, but you are looking at the case wrong.” I took a small sip of my shake. I didn’t really feel hungry now that Greg had spilled his news. I pushed away the shake.
“Look, I don’t want to argue about this. If there was any other possible suspect, you know I’d look into it.” He took my hand. “Jill, you know me. I promise.”
“I guess that will have to do.” I couldn’t point him in the direction of another option because I had no idea who or why someone would kill Ben. I just knew it wasn’t Paula. No way, no how. I thought about what she’d said about him spending time volunteering. “He spent a lot of time at the Senior Project. Maybe someone there didn’t like him.”
“I interviewed the staff this morning. They said he was the best. He worked on their computers and saved them a lot of money in tech fees. He built their website and set up a client intake form for recordkeeping.” He squeezed my hand. “I know you’re looking for unicorns, but this one is just a plain old horse.”
“I never understood that phrase.” I leaned back as Carrie delivered our meals. A fish-and-scallop basket for me and Greg’s pork chop plate. The smell of food made my stomach growl. So apparently, I was hungry again. I just felt sad for Paula.
Greg changed the subject, and for a while, we talked about bits and pieces of our lives. Because we were now living together, we had bills to talk about as well as vacation plans we needed to make. I kind of liked sharing my life with someone. It made the day-to-day decision-making less stressful because there was another viewpoint besides my own.
When his phone rang, he was just finishing up his meal. “Sorry,” he said to me as he picked up the call. “Greg King.”
I half-listened while I ate the last French fry and drank the rest of my shake. Comfort food was my go-to drug. And yet, my favorite meal hadn’t pulled me out of the slump I felt over Paula’s pending arrest.
Greg finished his call, then took out his wallet. “Look, I’ve got to go. Apparently, the Senior Project is getting some complaints about someone having their clients’ information. They think that maybe Paula leaked some confidential information.”
I shook my head. “I don’t think it was Paula. Who was the guy working on their computer programs? Who had access to their systems? And who’s dead right now?”
“I know, I thought of that too. Maybe your gut is spot-on with this one.” He threw some bills on the table and stood and kissed me on the head. “I’ll call if I can.”
I sat there and watched him leave. Then I grabbed his overflow container of shake and poured it into my glass. I might have to waddle home, but I was going to push away this bad mood before I left the table. And because the Senior Project staff had just given Greg another avenue to investigate, this last cup of chocolaty shake might just do the trick.
Of course, this break in the case made Jackie’s stalker go to the back of the list. I decided I’d try to do some Google investigating when I got home.
Chapter 8
After two hours of searching the internet, all I had to show for it were rumors and scam warnings. This scam was often played on elderly victims. They’d get a call from, usually, a living relative in trouble. And then they’d send out money. I think my aunt would have seen this version of the scam coming. She didn’t take to being asked for money from anyone. Especially someone who had been stupid or careless in their actions.
She’d told me several times when I was away at college that if I found myself in a police cell, I might as well use my one call for a bail bondsman because she wasn’t going to help me out of the situation. My aunt had invented the phrase tough love.
But having her deceased husband call with an explanation of his being in witness protection? She’d fallen for that scam in a heartbeat. Not because she didn’t love Harrold. She’d just loved Uncle Ted first.
I had proof that my uncle was dead. And I’d learned that someone had messed with the record just before this scam had started. Had they been trying to use the lack of official death confirmation as a way to convince Jackie it had been a hoax? I realized I’d forgotten to tell Greg that piece, so I shot him a quick email, not expecting to hear from him until tomorrow.
My phone rang just a few minutes after I hit Send. “Hey, I figured you were busy.”
“I am. But I was taking a break to clear out my email and make sure there wasn’t anything I had to handle. So I saw your message when it came in.”
“Lucky me. Was there anything important?” I snuggled back into the couch. Sometimes just hearing his voice was enough.
“Besides ten emails from the mayor about my responsibility to clean up the streets from these murders? Not much.” He sounded tired, but I had a feeling his fed-up meter wasn’t going off because of the current case. “I don’t have a lot of time, but I thought the fact you found out about the death certificate was interesting. I’m having Esmeralda call over to the records department to see if they were having computer problems around that time.”
“Seems like a lot of computer problems going around. Did you find out more about the Senior Project’s issues?” I doodled in my notebook, making a dotted line between the county records department and the Senior Project. Would there be any employees in common?
“Not yet, but I’m heading out now to go talk to some of the key people over at the project. Did your aunt ever go there for help?”
The question hadn’t occurred to me. But then again, I hadn’t known Aunt Jackie was taking yoga until her best friend ratted her out. She knew everything about my life, but my life was pretty vanilla. As long as I wasn’t tied up in one of Greg’s investigations and trying to hide my interest. “I don’t know. I’ll call her. She should be at the shop now.”
“Let me know. If the scammer’s information is coming from there, maybe we can get this problem solved while I’m figuring out who killed this guy.” He paused. “I’ll probably be late tonight.”
“I figured. Wake me up when you get in. I’d like to say I saw you twice today.” I smiled as Greg’s picture came up on my laptop. Yes, I was that goofy girl who had her boyfriend’s picture as her wallpaper. But sometimes he was so busy, that was the only way I got to see his face. Life with a law enforcement officer. Of course, he’d probably say the same thing about me, because I was always busy with something about the coffee shop. We were two of a kind, which was why our life together worked.
“Maybe we can get away for a week when I get this put to bed.” Greg chuckled. “I guess I’m always saying that, aren’t I?”
“The good thing is, I get a lot of guilt attention after you get your work done. It’s fine. If you want to plan something, I’m in. Toby’s trip to Yosemite has me craving some mountain cabin time.”
“I was thinking more backpacking and tents, but we can negotiate.” He mumbled something to someone else, and I realized he had covered the microphone on his phone.
“Sounds like you have to go,” I said, trying to break into his other conversation. I didn’t want to be the clingy girlfriend who kept him from his job.
“Yeah, Tim just got here. We’re heading out. Make sure you eat something for dinner besides that quart of vanilla bean in the freezer.”
He knew me too well. “You too.”
“When the city is picking up my meals, I make sure I eat.” His tone softened. “Talk soon, okay?”
“Later. Emma loves you.”
“Tell Emma I love her back.”
I set the phone on the table and scratched Emma behind the ears. We’d fallen into a code of telling each other the dog loved them. For me, it
was easier to say than “I love you.” Greg just thought it was funny. Besides, he knew how I felt. Even if the word was hard to get out sometimes. And I saw this as practice.
I glanced at the clock. Aunt Jackie should be at the shop by now. I dialed CBM’s number and was surprised to hear Deek’s voice.
“Hey, what are you doing there still? Did a tour bus stop in?” I opened my calendar but didn’t see any notice of scheduled arrivals, though that didn’t mean anything. Sometimes they just showed up.
“Actually, no. Your aunt told me she needed her shift covered. She said she was going out with some friend.” He paused. “Is she okay? I don’t think I’ve ever covered one of her shifts before, especially on such short notice.”
“I’m sure it’s nothing,” I lied easily, even though my heart was racing. Where was my aunt? “Call me if you have any problems.”
“Sure thing, Boss.”
Now my aunt was missing? Emma licked my arm and I looked down into her brown eyes, which showed concern. “Aunt Jackie didn’t go to work today. Let’s see if we can find her, okay, girl?”
Emma laid her head on my leg in comfort. That was one of the reasons I loved my dog. She seemed to sense when I was going off the rails. Which, today, was every five minutes. I punched in the numbers for South Cove Bed and Breakfast. When Bill answered, I let my shoulders droop. My aunt and Mary could have taken an unscheduled trip into the city.
“Hey, Bill. I guess Mary’s already left?” I went to the email program on my laptop to see if I’d gotten any new emails in the last ten minutes. Yes, I was an overchecker.
“No, she’s right here. Hold on, Jill.” He handed the phone over to Mary and asked her where she was going. I loved listening in on conversations, but when Mary just took the phone, I felt my gut tighten.
“Jill, is everything okay?” The concern in Mary’s voice told me that my aunt hadn’t made plans for a girls’ night out. “Is Jackie okay?”
