Hannah looked back over her shoulder and stopped when she heard her named mentioned. Cate assumed a knowing face and encouraged her friend on. “Uh, sure.” She walked back to Hym, who shifted his stance.
“I, uh … I was going to see if you had time later to have dinner with me. I understand if this is--”
“Oh. No. No. It’s fine,” Hannah interrupted.
Hannah and Hym stood, unsure of what to say or do. “So. Is that a … yes?” asked Hym.
“Yes. Uh. That … Dinner. Yes.” Hannah surprised herself answering.
“So. What kind of food do you like?”
“Well, let’s see. I’m a chef. So...” Hannah threw her hands up. “Pretty much anything. But can we just not go to Julia’s restaurant again? I’m pretty sure there are other places.”
“Of course, let’s just keep it casual. Is that good with you?”
“Sure. Where and when?”
“Well, let me see…”
As he considered his schedule, Hannah looked him over. Under general circumstances, she would be making her mental notes by now. Studying his behavior. Watching him. Assessing. But something about this man dulled her senses. All she could think about was what she wanted from him, not about him. And it unsettled her. Not in a bad way, but unsettling all the same.
“…so I guess, 6:30. Is that good for you?”
The question brought Hannah back around yet again. “Great. Perfect. 6:30. I’ll be ready … with bells and whistles.”
Hym smiled. “Those won’t be necessary,” he jibbed.
Hannah tried to say something but no words came forth. Smiling, he confirmed, “I’ll pick you up then.” With that he waved down the hall to Cate, who returned the same. He then headed in the direction away from Hannah, who just stood staring until Cate tapped her on the arm. “Come on, girl. We need to get you all gussied up.”
Chapter 21
As Cate and Hannah drove back to Louie’s, Hannah was thinking about meeting Hym. It was unusual for her to take time for personal outings during a working case. So the excuse she made for herself was that she could pick his brain about the case. The reality was she wanted to meet him outside working conditions. There was something about the man that drew her to him, and she needed to know why before she could begin to put it behind her.
Thinking back over their encounter, Hannah grinned. Hym was trying to be a combination of masculine and gentleman while flirting. The awkwardness revealed a man way out of touch with the latter. The image almost made her laugh, but she suppressed it. “It’s been a while since that man has been opposite a woman,” she chortled to herself. Her thoughts were interrupted by Cate.
“Hey. Do you know what? We need to go to the event tonight and leave the case behind us. I want to rest my brain and see how this production of a TV show rolls out.” Cate grinned as she goaded her friend into admitting what she already knew.
“I can’t,” Hannah said with reservation as she turned the car into Louie’s driveway and shut off the engine.
“What? You got something better to do?”
Hannah looked over at Cate, who was grinning ear to ear. “Ha. Ha. You’re so funny.”
“Come on, now. Couldn’t resist. When was the last time you had a date? Let’s see now, the dinosaurs were still roaming the earth and…”
Hannah interrupted by pushing her friend before exiting the vehicle. “It’s not been that long. It was…” She thought for a moment, and her eyes widened.
“Uh huh,” Cate said.
Just then, Louie appeared at the door wearing his workout sweats and a huge smile. Critic stood beside him, awaiting pets. “Are you two hungry?” Louie called out. “We’ve been waiting. We’re ordering in.”
“I am,” Cate answered, “But little Ms. Hottie here has a date.”
Hannah stopped in her tracks and produced an displeased look. Then she waited for the jibes. Buster appeared from the door holding a huge, half-eaten sandwich. “A date?” The genuine shock on his face made Cate and Louie laugh. Both laughed harder when he dropped his hand long enough for Critic to have a go at his sandwich. The ensuing food battle even amused Hannah, though, at the moment, she was not owning up to it.
When the struggle was over, Hannah tried to clarify. “It’s not a date. Officer Miles and I are just getting together to discuss the case and…”
“Don’t you mean ‘Hym’,” Cate pointed out, smiling.
Cate, Louie, and Buster all waited for her explanation with skepticism ready. It was not forthcoming. Throwing her hands in the air in frustration, Hannah conceded. “Fine. It’s a date.” Her admittance brought on a round of applause, which caused her to roll her eyes in embarrassment.
As she walked past everyone to enter the house, they congratulated her as though she had achieved the impossible. Once inside, she turned to her friends. “Cate can catch you up. I’ve got to…” She pointed up the stairs.
“Please. Go. Get ready. We’ll be fine without you,” Cate assured.
Buster nodded, then teased, “You think he’ll bring a corsage? Louie, can I borrow your camera? We need proof of this historic occasion.”
Louie stepped in. “Okay, guys. Let’s leave the lady alone. I hope you have a wonderful time, Hannah.” He put his hands on the back of Cate and Buster’s necks. “Come on, you two. I say pizza, deep dish.” As they left the room, Hannah heard Cate say, “No anchovies,” to which Buster whined in disappointment. “Aw, man!” Hannah then made her way upstairs to ready herself.
About forty-five minutes later, Hannah emerged from upstairs. She wore a black cavalier shirt and jeans, with black leather mid-calf boots. She pulled her hair back into a ponytail and, though she wore makeup, it was light. Upon entering the dining room where everyone ate pizza, they agreed with her clothing choices. “Girl,” Cate said, “You are fine even in casual steam.”
Between bites, Louie informed Hannah that Cate had caught them up to speed.
“Where does Xabiere fit in?” he asked.
“Not sure. He might not fit in at all. He has an alibi that appears solid. But he is not off my list as a possible accomplice.” Hannah considered grabbing a slice but thought better of it.
Louie frowned before tossing Critic the crust from the slice he had just consumed. “You two have done a remarkable job, but how is it the police never caught onto this?”
“Well, they had nothing to look for. The ME said it was accidental. No one would dare think otherwise. And Julia’s will was unknown. So you’re the reason this is going down right now. If you hadn’t questioned the findings, Julia’s death would remain an accident. Vera wouldn’t be your daughter. And none would be the wiser.”
Everyone paused to consider the implications of Hannah’s words. Louie was silent for a while before speaking.
“I almost regret knowing what I know,” he said as he scratched Critic’s chin. “I don’t know why Julia kept Vera from me. But at least this has all brought me her. But now, I can’t help wondering, is she safer for the knowing? Whoever is behind this could come after her if they learn who and what she is.”
Running his hand through his hair, he sighed. “I want her to stay here, of course, until this is all resolved. But it’s too soon. I just worry about her now, you know?”
Cate leaned over and hugged him. “Look at you. Pulling off the whole worried papa thing. How’s that feel? “
Louie smiled. “Good,” he answered. “Real, real good.”
Hannah smiled, but then turned serious. “As long as we keep her true identity a secret, I think she’ll be fine. But we need to keep this all centered on this house and not act like her best friends…” She then looked at Louie, adding, “or her father. If we keep that going then there is no reason for anyone to suspect anything.”
Louie gave a weak smile, but agreed. He then pointed at the Kit-Kat clock on the wall. “We have to get a move-on or we will be late.”
It was at that moment that Hannah’s cell buzzed. Checking it, s
he found a text from Hym saying he was on his way. In part, it read, “Tell your posse that I want to talk to you about official business.” It made her smile. A little late, she thought to herself. This man has no sense of timing.
“Is that Prince Handsome?” Cate inquired.
“He’s just up the street.” Holding the phone up to everyone, she said, “Let me know if you find out something.” All agreed as she picked up her small purse, put on her hat, and headed out the door.
“What?” Cate threw out. “He’s not coming to the door? Oh, come on. Louie needs the practice. He’s a dad now, you know.” Louie bumped Cate with his shoulder before waving goodbye and shutting the door behind Hannah.
Moments later Hym pulled into the driveway. Hannah removed her hat and got inside. She waved, as did Cate, Louie, and Buster, all who peeked from the front window. “Even the dog,” Hannah mumbled to herself as she saw Critic, tongue wagging, peering out the window.
“Next time, I get to meet mom and dad, right?” Hym said in a dead serious tone, but giving a ‘you’ve got to be kidding me’ look that made Hannah laugh.
After a few minutes of aimless chit chat, the conversation turned toward the one thing they had in common at the moment - the case. As they rode along, Hym handed her a file. “Part of my dinner invitation was to let you in on the findings after the deposition of Niu. According to her, Asa stated that Julia started taking sleeping pills in the last months of her life.”
Hannah flipped through the report, scanning the pages in the dim light. “So he knew she would have drugs in her system.”
“Yeah. And to get her to alter and hide her report, he put up the money for Miller to make the arrangements.”
“That kept him out of the direct line of sight. If anything happened, Miller would fall and fall hard. Clever.”
“Indeed it is. Now check out the next report.”
Hannah flipped to the next page. She squinted before opening her eyes wide. “Is this…” she questioned with excitement in her voice.
“It is. The original toxicology report.” Glancing over to Hannah, Hym said, “See, turns out I’m also an investigator, as well as Boonyville law enforcement.”
For a moment, Hannah wondered how he knew she had called Zebulon Boonyville. Then it hit her, and she vowed to ‘kill’ her best friend. Cate was in the thick of her ‘date’ and she would pay. But Hannah put that aside in favor of the task at hand. She ran her finger down the sheet, reading aloud.
“Sample shows high levels of the following in victim’s blood. Nembutal. Approximately 38–66 capsules. Chloral hydrate. Approximately 14–23 tablets.” Hannah frowned hard. Thinking back to her time as a FBI agent, she recalled, “That’s enough to kill more than 10 people.
Hym reached over and tapped the report. “Keep reading. It gets better.”
There is no trace of capsules, powder or the typical discoloration in victim’s stomach or intestines. Suggests that the drugs that killed her were not swallowed. If taken over a period of time, accounting for the lack of residues, victim would have died before ingesting recorded amounts. Further examination of the blood, liver, kidneys, stomach, urine and intestines, deemed unnecessary.
Hannah frowned. “Why didn’t they examine the other organs? It could have revealed how the drugs got into her system.”
“Check out the addendum.”
Hannah read the words twice to herself.
“At present, all examination samples, photographs, and recordings are missing. An investigation into the incident suggests cause as a clerical error. A review of filing procedures to follow.”
Hannah closed the report and set it aside. “This screams of cover up. Asa had to enlist Miller to pay off anyone who came in contact with either the body or one of the reports.”
“He does have deep pockets. I’m working off the theory that when he discovered the results of the report, he had Miller approach Dr. Niu. He got Miller to go along since it would be in both their interest to get rid of the findings and keep her image pure. An accidental death is a tragedy. But suicide, that’s questionable and troublesome, and not just for the victim. In assuming it was suicide, both men helped cover up a murder.”
“This solves one part of the case. We know someone killed her. But it just begs more questions. Did she die of accidental blunt force trauma brought on by long term barbiturate exposure? This would suggest that someone was attempting to kill her in the long term sense? Or was she killed outright by someone who caused the trauma?”
“Either way, someone wanted her dead.”
“Or maybe just out of the way.” In frustration, Hannah slammed her hand open palm against the dash of the car. “This eliminates no one. Not Asa. Not Miller. Not Jazlyn.”
“You’re forgetting about Xabiere.” Realizing Hym was right, Hannah started thinking about the man. She then went on to describe his bizarre behavior toward Jazlyn.
“Wasn’t he the one in the hospital at the time?”
“He was. Fell down the steps where he lives. Banged his head. Bad enough for the hospital to keep him overnight for observation. Still, I’ve always thought that he was in the thick of it somehow. At least paid off by someone. I don’t know. I just don’t have a good feeling about him.”
“Well, regardless of that, if someone fed her barbiturates, then it comes down to access, doesn’t it?”
Hannah considered the question and found Hym to be onto something. “I guess it does. Jack, Asa, Jazlyn and Vera all had access to Julia the day she died. I can rule out Vera and Jazlyn. Unless I’m mistaken, Vera had the access but not the knowledge. Jazlyn has witnesses to her whereabouts. Besides, it would take someone much larger than either of them to slam Julia against the post. But the men … any of the three was capable of getting rid of her for their own reasons.”
Hym turned his car into a small diner on the outskirts of Zebulon. Hannah smiled as it reminded her of The Starvling Diner. The sign read Hoolie’s Burgers, Fries and All That.
“Did Cate put you up to this?”
Hym threw his hands up as if under arrest. “I plead the fifth,” he said, smiling. “Hoolie was a friend. His son still is. We played college ball together back in the day. He took over when his father passed. The burgers are ah-may-ZING!”
Hym’s enthusiasm was charming and Hannah found herself staring at the man. Her thoughts drifted into the future. Reality called when both their phones rang, almost in unison. Answering, both listened for a moment and said, “I’ll be right there.” Hanging up, they looked at each other. Hym asked, “Hospital or studio?”
Chapter 22
Cate, Buster, Louie, and Vera were in the front lobby when Hannah arrived. Shaken, Vera, clung tightly to her father. Hannah noticed the smell of smoke on all. Scorch marks ran along the sleeves of both Louie and Buster’s suits. “Are you two okay?”
Noticing Hannah’s observation, Buster ran his arm along his sleeve. “I’m fine. But poor Jazlyn…” He trailed off.
Louie drew Vera close. “They haven’t said anything yet.” He looked around. Anticipating her question, Hannah said, “He dropped me off. He’s headed to the studio.”
Cate held out her tablet for Hannah to see. “Get this. It’s already on the net. Check it out. It’s all cued up.”
Hannah took the device, hit play and watched as the events unfolded. As usual, she clicked off notes to herself. She could tell from the vantage point of the recording device that it was a cell. The recording took place without permission. From the conversations surrounding the recordist, he was young, male, and bored. An adult told him to put it away at one point, but the recordist shifted it to the other hand and out of the way of said adult. He was sitting center audience. She noted this information in particular, just in case she needed to find the young man at some point in the future.
The movement of the camera/cell made it difficult to stay focused. But in persisting, Hannah hoped that the recording would reveal something. Soon, Jazlyn Karas stepped center s
tage and showed a natural talent and beauty for her work. And it was clear that the audience was enjoying her presentation. She’s a natural, Hannah thought.
There was a larger burst of light as a huge fireball erupted from the oven when Jazlyn opened it. She gave an agonized, guttural cry that made Hannah flinch. In an instant, smoke and fire flew around the young chef as she writhed in agony, trying to remove the apron that was on fire. She then dropped to the floor. The ensuing screams and sudden shaking of the camera made it hard to hear or see anything. Still, Hannah watched the unfolding horror, trying to catch any detail that might be relevant. She heard Buster’s distinct voice cry out, “Call 911!” And she could see Louie and him running toward where Jazlyn struggled to put herself out. Two stagehands with fire extinguishers appeared. They smothered the flames as both Buster and Louie patted at Jazlyn in attempt to douse the blaze. Hannah also thought she saw Xabiere, Vera and Asa amongst the confusion at various points during the ensuing chaos.
Whoever had uploaded the video had managed to make their way to the back of the seating area to get a better view from the upper seats. Many audience members had or were in the process of fleeing the scene. From that point on, the video became steadier and clearer.
Hannah broke contact with the video when she saw Asa appear at the edge of the room and call Vera over. Reaching him, Vera and he hugged. He then talked with her. His body language suggested to Hannah that he was informing her about Jazlyn. She watched the exchange for just a few seconds. Then she returned to that which she found more interesting - the event.
Turning once more to the tablet with Cate, they saw a group form a circle around Jazlyn. It was an attempt to keep those who had not fled the building and were now gawking, at bay. One individual appeared to be examining her and giving orders. Hannah heard the recordist talking and made out “I think he’s a doctor. They have those on cooking sets, don’t they?” More mumbles of confusion followed. A voice echoed through the hall, calling for calm and the audience to return to their seats or exit.
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