by Cindy Bell
“Nikki, are you okay?” Quinn traced his fingertips along the curve of her wrist, then looked up to meet her eyes.
“I’m fine.” Nikki looked towards Daniel’s body. “You have work to do, Quinn. Princess and I are fine.”
“Sonia’s okay as well?” Quinn frowned as he glanced over at the body.
“Yes, she is. She’s in the kitchen waiting for me to get Princess. Have you caught the murderer?” Nikki met his eyes as he turned back to her.
“No, not yet. It looks like a targeted attack.” Quinn tipped his head towards the door that led to the hallway. “Go back to Sonia, the lobby has been staged as a space for witnesses to wait.”
“Okay.” Nikki took a deep breath and turned towards the door.
“Nikki, I’ll catch up with you later.” Quinn called out to her just before she opened the door.
“Okay.” Nikki glanced back and met his eyes briefly, then continued into the hallway.
When Nikki reached the kitchen, Sonia met her at the door.
“Oh, my baby!” Sonia gasped and plucked Princess out of Nikki’s arms. “I’m so sorry?” She fluttered light kisses all over the dog’s small face. “Can you ever forgive me?”
“She seems to be just fine.” Nikki smiled as Princess returned the kisses all over Sonia’s face. “Quinn is here now. He said we should go to the lobby.”
“Did they catch the terrible person that did this?” Sonia kept Princess in her arms as she led the way through the kitchen.
“Unfortunately no, not yet. But I’m sure it’s just a matter of time.” Nikki followed her out into the lobby of the country club. It was packed both with the people from the fundraiser, as well as all of the staff of the country club, and several other people that may have been attending other events.
Nikki took a deep breath and did her best to remain calm. She knew that in times like this panic could spread through a crowd and cause a difficult situation to become worse in a split second. She planned to do her best to avoid that.
“Let’s keep to ourselves.” Nikki swept her gaze over the crowd. “I’m sure everyone is a little high strung right now.”
“A little high strung?” Sonia clutched the necklace that hung against the collar of her mustard yellow dress. “I can’t even think straight. I’m more than high strung.” She looked back towards the entrance of the lobby. “I keep thinking he might come walking out of there just fine. I keep doubting whether he’s really gone.”
“I’m sorry, Sonia.” Nikki hugged her. “I got so caught up in everything, I forgot, you’ve lost a friend.”
“Not a friend exactly.” Sonia met her eyes, and opened her mouth to say more, but she was interrupted by another voice.
“Nikki.” Quinn called out to her. “I need to speak to you.”
“Excuse me a minute, Sonia.” Nikki gave her shoulder a squeeze, then walked over to Quinn.
Nikki glanced back over her shoulder at Sonia, then met Quinn’s eyes.
“I don’t want to leave her for too long. This has been quite a shock for her.”
“I’m sure it has.” Quinn frowned as he looked over at Sonia. “A few people have mentioned that she was standing right beside the victim when he was shot. Did she tell you who pulled the trigger?”
“No. I mean, yes, she was standing right beside him, but she didn’t see anything. She didn’t see who shot Daniel.”
“Are you sure about that?” Quinn narrowed his eyes as he looked back at her. “She was right there.”
“I know she was. I wasn’t far away, either.” Nikki shook her head. “She didn’t see anything.”
“That banquet room was packed full of people, and everyone we have spoken to so far claims they didn’t see anything.” Quinn’s jaw rippled with tension as he lowered his voice. “How is that possible?”
“I was there.” Nikki crossed her arms as she leaned back against the wall. “I know how a room full of people didn’t witness anything, because I was one of them. None of us even knew what happened at first. The gavel struck the podium and muffled the sound of a gunshot. That’s the only thing I can think of that makes sense. That, or whoever pulled the trigger had a silencer on the gun. But either way, from what I’ve heard no one has any idea who did it. Do they?”
“No, but one person who was there, knows.” Quinn leaned closer to her and guided her closer to the wall of the lobby as his eyes locked to hers. “Nikki, someone in that room pointed a gun at Daniel and pulled the trigger. The killer did this with people all around. This was a targeted attack. You may not think that you saw anything, but you did.”
“Whether I did or not, what does it matter?” Nikki shifted away from him along the wall and closed her eyes. “I’m sorry. I don’t want to disappoint you, but I don’t remember anything out of the ordinary.”
“It’s okay.” Quinn placed his palms lightly on her shoulders. “Nikki, I’m not trying to pressure you. What happened in that banquet room, it was nothing that anyone expected. Something may come to you, and when it does, I hope that you will share it with me.”
“Of course, I will.” Nikki felt some comfort from the warmth of his touch, but her muscles still tensed. She was there, she should know exactly what happened, and yet the only thing that echoed through her mind was the sound of the gavel as it struck the podium. The same people that had milled around her in the banquet room, now surrounded her in the lobby. She only knew a few of the faces, she had no idea if there was a face missing from the crowd. As she walked back over to Sonia, she felt the pressure of many eyes looking in her direction.
“You okay, Sonia?” Nikki took her hand.
“I feel like everyone’s staring at me.” Sonia wiped at her eyes with a tissue clutched tightly in her slender fingers.
“I think they might be,” Nikki whispered as she stepped closer to Sonia. “You were right beside Daniel when he was killed. I think people might assume that you know who killed him.”
“But I don’t.” Sonia pursed her lips. “I didn’t see anything at all.”
“I know that.” Nikki sighed. “I didn’t see anything either. I keep asking myself, what did I miss? What did I see that I can’t recall?”
“Just take a breath, Nikki.” Sonia rubbed her palm along Nikki’s forearm. “Once the shock fades, we might remember a thing or two, but that certainly won’t happen while we’re stuck here.”
“I’m going to find an officer who is free. Maybe if we give our statements about what happened we can get out of here.” Nikki looked through the sea of officers that populated the lobby. Many of them were from Dahlia, but others were from cities outside of Dahlia. She guessed that Dahlia PD had called in assistance. When she spotted an officer walking away from one of the country club’s staff members, she took Sonia’s hand and pulled her over to him. “Sir, what will it take for us to be able to leave?” Nikki did her best to keep her voice calm and quiet.
“Can I please have your name, address and phone number? And see some identification?” After Nikki and Sonia gave their details, he looked up at them. “Come over here please.” He led them over to a table where a female officer stood, with gloves on. “Hold out your hands.” The officer tucked his clipboard under his arm. “We’re checking everyone for gunshot residue.”
“Oh, clever.” Sonia nodded as she held out one hand. She continued to hold onto Princess with the other arm.
“It’s part of the process.” The male officer nodded as the female officer began to swab her hand. “Can you give a description of the murderer?”
“No, sir. I’m sorry.” Sonia glanced at Nikki.
“Neither can I. Neither of us saw who pulled the trigger.” Nikki frowned as she took Princess from Sonia.
Sonia held out her other hand.
“Everything was normal, and then it wasn’t.”
“I understand.” The male officer glanced up at her. “Did you overhear anyone exchanging words? Maybe someone who wasn’t happy about the bidding?”
&nb
sp; “No, not at all.” Sonia sighed. “Everyone seemed to be having a great time. The fundraiser was quite a success.”
“And, the victim, Daniel Barclay, did you know him?” The male officer looked straight into her eyes.
“Sure, I knew him. We’d known each other for quite some time.” Sonia cleared her throat as the officer turned his attention to Nikki.
“How well?” The male officer asked.
The female officer waited while Nikki handed Princess to Sonia, then held out her hands to her.
“Oh, not too well. We ran in the same social circle. We had mutual friends.” Sonia shrugged. “I’m sorry I’m not much help.”
“You’d be surprised what can be helpful.” He took notes as the female officer swabbed Nikki’s hands. He turned to Nikki. “Any little thing that you can remember might make a difference. Did you know the victim?”
“Not at all. I’d just met him for the first time today.” Nikki watched as he made another note on his clipboard. “Are we free to go now?”
“Yes. Here’s my card.” He handed her a business card. “Please, if you think of anything, feel free to contact me, or Dahlia PD.” He paused as he looked at her again. “Oh wait. Nikki, you can always contact Quinn. He’s the detective in charge of the investigation.” The officer winked at her, then turned and walked away.
“Well, that was a little unprofessional.” Sonia pursed her lips.
“It was.” Nikki frowned, then couldn’t help but smile a little. “But it probably means that Quinn has been talking about me, doesn’t it?”
“It sure does.” Sonia looped her arm through Nikki’s. “Would you mind driving me and Princess home, Nikki? Gloria picked us up, so I don’t have my car here.”
“Of course, I’ll drive you home.” Nikki pushed thoughts of Quinn from her mind as she focused on her friend.
Chapter 4
In the parking lot of the country club where there were still many cars parked, Nikki looked for one in particular, a blue coupe. It was no longer parked in the middle of the parking lot. Did that mean the driver had moved it, or had he already left?
Nikki pulled open the passenger side door on her car, and once Sonia and Princess were settled, she walked around to the driver’s side. After a quick glance back at the country club, she climbed in and turned the key in the ignition. The car coughed but wouldn’t start. Nikki sighed as she turned the key again. It was getting more difficult to start and she had finally relented and booked it in with the mechanic the following day. She knew if she didn’t get it looked at, it was just a matter of time before it would get stuck. She couldn’t afford a new car. She just hoped that it lasted until tomorrow. On the fourth try the car sputtered to life and Nikki sighed with relief.
The drive to Sonia’s house was quick and quiet. Nikki searched her mind for the one right thing to say, but nothing felt appropriate. Sonia had lost a friend, more than that, he had been assassinated, as he stood right beside her. What could she say that would make that easier?
“Do you mind if I stay with you for a bit?” Nikki parked close to the front door of Sonia’s house.
“I’d love that, thank you.” Sonia and Princess headed for the door while Nikki took a moment to check her phone. Nothing from Quinn. Of course not, he was busy investigating the case. He wouldn’t have a moment to spare, and she understood that. But she kept hoping that he would send her a quick text to tell her that the killer had been captured. Would she find out from him, or the local news?
As Nikki stepped into Sonia’s house, she continued to search her memory for anything that might be important to the case.
“Nikki, are you okay?” Sonia set a plate of her favorite peanut butter cookies down on the dining room table in front of her, as Nikki sat down in a chair.
“Me?” Nikki blinked and focused on her friend, instead of the thoughts that had been running through her mind. “I’m the one that should be asking you that.”
“I’m fine.” Sonia plucked a cookie from the plate and sat down across from her. “Not fine, no.” She sighed, then nibbled at the edge of the cookie. “What happened was terrible, and I can’t get it out of my mind. I need to do something. I need to find out who killed Daniel. I can’t stop thinking about it.”
“Of course, you want to know what happened.” Nikki placed her hand over Sonia’s and met her eyes. “I know that you cared about him.”
“Sure, I cared about him. But we weren’t close. I wouldn’t really even consider us friends, more like acquaintances.”
“He seemed pretty friendly when he had his arm around you.” Nikki quirked a brow as she gazed at her friend. Sonia could be private about things, but as their friendship had progressed, she’d shared quite a bit with Nikki. At that moment though, she sensed some hesitation.
“He was always a flirt.” Sonia laughed and waved her hand. “He would put his arm around any woman that was nearby. It was nothing, trust me.” She sank down in her chair and closed her eyes. “The thing about Daniel is, he was always on the prowl. Not just with women either, but with business. He could suss out a good investment in the blink of an eye, and once he did, he would do everything in his power to make it his.”
“It sounds like he was a little ferocious.” Nikki broke off a small piece of her cookie and offered it to Princess, who happily ate it. Sonia kept Princess on a very strict diet but had recently started allowing her to have a treat at the table now and then. Nikki presumed it was because it made Princess so happy.
“He was. He could make you feel like the most unique and wonderful person on the planet one minute, and the next he would destroy you. I wouldn’t say he was normal in that way.” Sonia tipped her head to the side. “I always wondered if he might have a bit of a personality disorder.”
“He sounds like an interesting man, who may have had quite a few enemies.” Nikki took a bite of her cookie, then looked across the table at Sonia. “Do you know of any in particular?”
“We hadn’t been in touch recently. Not really, anyway. I’d heard a few things about him, but I never really paid attention to his business dealings. As far as enemies, I’m sure he had more than a few.” Sonia narrowed her eyes. “Like I said, once you became his target, he would stop at nothing to either get what he wanted or destroy you.”
“Sounds a little frightening.” Nikki set her cookie down and met Sonia’s eyes. “Did he do something like that to you?”
“Me?” Sonia laughed and clutched at the necklace that hung around her neck. “No, of course not.”
“It’s getting late. I really have to get the dogs out for their afternoon walk. Are you going to be okay here by yourself, Sonia?” Nikki stood up from the table.
“I won’t be by myself. Princess will be with me. I think she’s had enough excitement for today.” Sonia yawned, then shook her head. “I think we could both use a rest.”
“All right, but if you need anything, let me know.” Nikki walked around the table and put her arm around Sonia. “I’m sorry for your loss.”
“Thank you, Nikki.” Sonia patted her arm, then smiled up at her.
Nikki searched her eyes for a moment as she sensed that Sonia might want to say something more. Instead, Sonia turned her attention back to her cookie.
As Nikki walked out of the house, she fought the urge to go back, and try to get more information from Sonia. Why was she holding something back? It wasn’t like her. Nikki sighed as she started her car. Maybe she was just being paranoid. She wondered about Petra and the dogs. Had they made it back to the shelter okay? She decided she would check on them after she had taken the dogs out for their walk.
Nikki dropped her car off at her apartment, then started on her journey to collect the dogs. With each leash she clipped on, she felt some comfort. It wasn’t just the routine of completing her job that made her feel calmer, it was the eager licks, the happy barks, and the incessant tail wagging.
One thing Nikki had found over the years of running her dog-walking
business, it was nearly impossible not to smile when the dogs greeted her. No matter what mood she was in at the beginning of the walk, by the end, her spirits had been lifted, and her perspective had changed. She counted on that psychological boost today as she steered the dogs towards the park, that had been nicknamed Pooch Park by the locals because it was a favorite for them to take their dogs.
Nikki took deep breaths of the fragrant air as she bounded with them along the path that wound through the thick, green grass and towering trees that filled the park. It was a place of peace, and exactly what she needed. However, even as she laughed at the dogs’ joint attempts to terrorize a squirrel, her mind flashed back to those final moments at the country club. Quinn insisted that she, or someone in the banquet room must have seen the murderer. She realized that it was most likely her that would have seen the murderer. She had stepped in from the back of the room, she had walked forward through the crowd. She had likely laid her eyes on the murderer as he or she escaped or blended in with the group of people. Why couldn’t she remember seeing anything strange? Could someone really murder another person, and then seem perfectly normal?
As Nikki and the dogs rounded the bend towards the exit of the park, it was as if the dogs began to compete to see who could get their leash the most tangled up.
Nikki took a moment to straighten them out. As she sorted through the leashes, she recalled Spots’ nervous energy. He couldn’t settle down. Was that because he was a hyper dog, or had he already sensed that something was wrong? She knew that dogs were great readers of personalities, and intentions. Maybe Spots had been trying to tell her something. She recalled the man who walked past her, barking into his phone. Spots hadn’t liked him. But then again, she hadn’t liked him too much herself. She didn’t want to jump to any false conclusions.
As Nikki left the park behind and began dropping dogs off at their homes, she felt determination grow within her. She couldn’t just wait to see how things turned out. She needed to know the truth about what happened to Daniel, as much for herself, as for Sonia.
