by Curry, Edna
She didn’t quite know what to make of this new, virile Ken, but she was beginning to like him better this way, and almost wished their wedding wasn’t off. Almost. She felt sure that any minute, he’d return to his old ways, and get all fussy and picky about things again.
They walked back to their offices. As they started up the stairs Lola, one of the cashiers, was coming down, evidently having needed more change, because she carried a cloth bag of coin rolls in her arms. She said hello, then gave Ken a super special, “Helllloooo.”
Rosie frowned in frustration and glanced at Ken to see his reaction to the obvious come-on. Had Lola and Ken been seeing each other while Ken was engaged? Or was Lola’s interest one-sided?
Ken nodded to Lola, but barely looked at her. Either he wasn’t interested or he was a very good actor.
With an angry pout at his lack of interest, Lola strode on down to the check-outs.
Karen was on the phone as they walked into the reception area.
She covered the mouthpiece. “It’s headquarters,” she said nervously. “Lester wants to talk to Ken.”
Rosie glanced at him. “Do you want me to take it?”
He shrugged and gave her a wry grin. “There’s no use putting it off, is there? I’ll take it in my office, Karen.”
He strode in and closed the door, then picked up the phone. “Hello?”
“Ken?”
“Yeah.”
“Lester here. Rosie told me you had a little problem.”
“You could call it that.”
“You okay, now?”
“Physically, I’m fine. Just have a headache, a black eye and I’ve still got a good-sized lump on the back of my head. But I don’t have my memory back, yet, if that’s what you’re asking.”
“What do you mean, you don’t have your memory back yet? You know who I am, don’t you?”
He sighed. “Rosie says you’re my uncle and the boss. And there’s a picture of you here in the office. But I can’t say I remember ever seeing you or even talking to you before.”
“Do you remember how to do your job?”
“To some extent, yes. That is, I remember what I learned in business college. I can still understand a balance sheet and know how to run a computer, so I think I’ll do all right with Rosie and Harry’s help.”
“That’s weird, isn’t it?” Lester’s voice was disbelieving. “How can you remember business stuff like that when you don’t remember your name or family?”
So his uncle thought he was faking, too. This was getting more than a little scary. “I don’t know. But the doctor said that’s how it works. You usually don’t forget your learned skills, just recent personal memories.”
“Oh, really. “ Lester snorted a laugh.
“Yeah. It feels strange to me, too. I can remember some things from my childhood, but the pictures of my parents in my apartment look strange.”
“Huh. Well, what I called about is your financial report for last quarter. I still haven’t seen it.”
“Rosie told me I was late with it. I’m afraid it’s going to take a bit more time.”
“Oh? Still having computer problems?”
“Computer problems?”
“That’s what you said the last time we talked.”
“Did I? That’s odd. I’ve been using my computer today and it seems to be working fine.”
“No kidding,” Lester said dryly.
There it was again. The definite note of disbelief in his voice. What the heck was going on? What could he say? He had no idea what the problem was, so he said nothing.
Lester asked, “Did K -- ah, the computer guy I sent show up yet?”
“No, not that I know of.”
“Well, let me know when he does. Tell him to call me right away.”
“Unless he was the guy that mugged me.” He didn’t realize he’d said that out loud until he heard Lester’s gasp. “Of course he wasn’t the guy who mugged you,” Lester exclaimed. “We’re businessmen, not crooks!”
He tried a conciliatory tone. “Okay, I’ll take your word for that. Just what is this guy supposed to do when he gets here?”
Lester hesitated. “He knows what to do. You said you couldn’t get your quarterly P & L statement to me because you were having computer problems. He’ll see if he can solve those and help you do the reports and get back on schedule.”
“Huh.” Lester’s reasoning sounded pretty fishy to him. Was this computer guy really supposed to be investigating him? Or doing an audit? Probably. He’d better get to the bottom of whatever was going on here, fast.
“I hope you get feeling better soon, Ken. Let me talk to Rosie, please.”
“Okay, I’ll transfer you to her office.”
~ * ~
Lester puffed on his cigar as he waited for Rosie to come on line. Was Ken faking this amnesia in order to stall turning in a financial report? It seemed like a very good possibility. And where the heck was Kirk? Why didn’t he answer his cell phone? Why hadn’t he shown up in Minneapolis?
“Rosamunde Kapp, here.”
“Hi, Rosie, it’s Lester Latham. What’s going on there?”
“What do you mean, Sir?”
“With Ken, I mean? Has he really lost his memory?”
“Yes, Sir, I’m quite sure he has. I told you that the night he was mugged, didn’t I?”
“Mmm. You’re sure he’s not just pretending?”
“No, he’s not. I know him pretty well, you know, and I’m sure I’d be able to tell if he was faking it. I haven’t caught him in any slip ups yet.”
“So he doesn’t remember his past, eh? Does he remember anything else about that night or the man who attacked him?”
“No, Sir.”
“Well, did the police find out who did it? Or do they have any suspects?”
“No. The employee who was gathering carts in the parking lot saw a cab drop someone off, but didn’t pay much attention. Then he heard a yell and turned around in time to see a dark van racing out of the parking lot. He didn’t get a license plate or anything.”
“Why was Ken using a taxi? I thought he bought a new Cadillac a couple of years ago.” Lester frowned. He could see Kirk using a taxi in a strange town, but Ken lived there and had his own car.
“Yes, he did. Maybe he had car trouble or something. We don’t know why he wasn’t driving it. We don’t even know where it is, yet. The police are looking for it.”
“Ken’s car is missing?”
Rosie nodded, then realized he couldn’t see her. “Yes.”
“That’s odd, isn’t it?”
“I know. This whole situation is odd. I hope he gets his memory back soon so we’ll have an explanation for all of it.”
“Right. But Ken says he can still read a balance sheet and remembers how to run the computer? That doesn’t make much sense to me.”
“I know. The doctor says it’s quite possible to remember all your skills, like math and English, but not remember your personal past.”
“Sounds fishy to me.”
“I know, but I’m sure it isn’t. And the doctor thinks he’ll get his memory back soon.”
“I hope so. You don’t want me to send you more help?”
“No, Lester, we’re okay for now. Actually, I think he’s doing quite well, considering how bad he looked in the hospital.”
“But he’s feeling better now?”
“Yes. He’s still pretty pale and his eye is all swollen and black. Apparently the guy hit him from behind and then Ken fell forward, landing on the blacktop face first. I’m sure he should be resting, but he won’t listen to me about that.”
“Oh? Ken’s not willing to take time off work?” Lester chewed his cigar. Something was strange here. Ken liked to goof off whenever he could; Kirk was the workaholic.
What if it wasn’t Ken at all? What if Ken took off and Kirk was the one mugged? “That doesn’t sound like him at all.”
“I know. You heard his apartment was ransac
ked, too, didn’t you?”
“Yes, Karen told me that.”
“We got most of it cleaned up again, but they pretty well ruined a lot of his furniture. Slashed the sofa and stuffed chairs with a knife. And they broke dishes and even tore up books.”
Lester frowned and puffed on his cigar. “Why would anyone do that? Sounds more like vandalism than a burglary. Did they take anything?”
“The police think the burglar was looking for something he thought was hidden in the apartment. But since Ken doesn’t remember what he had, we don’t know what he or they took, if anything. Breaking dishes and knickknacks seemed like pure meanness to me. It was quite a mess. We spent hours cleaning it up, and he still needs to replace most of his furniture.”
“He’s lucky to have you helping him with all that.”
“Thanks.”
Her voice sounded strange, almost embarrassed. Hadn’t she wanted to help her fiancé? “Well, can you help him get the information together for that late financial report?”
“I’ll try. But you know Ken always insisted on handling all the bills and payments himself. The only checks he lets me write are the payroll.”
“Yeah, I know. “ Lester chewed his cigar and thought a moment. If Kirk showed up there, would Rosie know the difference between the two? “Listen, Rosie, have you met Ken’s twin brother, Kirk?”
“No, I haven’t. “ She paused. “Wasn’t Kirk the name of the man you said was supposed to be arriving from headquarters?”
“Yes. Kirk… that is, the computer consultant I sent you is Ken’s identical twin. I wanted to warn you that he looks just like Ken. In case you mix them up. A lot of people do that.”
She laughed. “Oh, I see. Well, since Ken has a very obvious shiner now, I’ll be able to tell them apart, won’t I?”
Lester laughed, too. “Yeah, even I could tell them apart with something like that to help me.”
Yikes, what would it have been like to have had Kirk for a brother-in-law? Imagine talking to one and thinking you’re talking to the other? Or even kissing the wrong one? “Do they really look that much alike?”
“Yes, they do. Their mother is usually the only one who can tell them apart. They used to play games pretending to be each other all the time when they were kids. They thought it was hilarious, but it drove us all nuts. Thank goodness they outgrew that.”
“That must have been weird.”
“Tell me about it. I’ll check back tomorrow. Maybe Kirk will show up yet. Don’t work too hard on those wedding plans, now, Rosie.”
“Oh,” she gasped. “I… I guess no one told you,” Rosie said, her voice suddenly hesitant.
“Told me what?” Lester sat up straighter in his chair. Ye gods, what else was happening in Minneapolis that he didn’t know about? He definitely didn’t like feeling out of the loop.
“The wedding’s off.”
Lester choked on his cigar smoke. He pulled the cigar out of his mouth and coughed, then reached for a drink of his coffee. After he got his breath again, he said, “I see. Was that your idea or his?”
“Ken’s,” she admitted in a strained voice. “He says he doesn’t even remember me, let alone love me.”
Damn it. Getting engaged to Rosie was the most sensible thing Ken had done in years. He suspected she really ran the place except for signing the checks. He wanted to shake Ken. “I’m sorry to hear that, Rosie. Well, maybe it’ll all work out later, when he gets his memory back.”
“Maybe,” she agreed.
But Lester noted that her voice didn’t hold a hopeful note. “Take care and keep me informed of what’s happening there.”
“Thanks. I will,” Rosie promised.
Chapter 6
Lester hung up and sighed. He’d like to go there and see for himself. But the trouble was, he couldn’t tell the twins apart either, except in the way they talked to him. And if Ken -- or Kirk -- had lost his memory, he probably wouldn’t be acting in his usual way anyway.
Even their mother used their actions and the way they answered her to tell them apart. And he couldn’t ask his sister to identify her twins anyway. She was on some damned cruise. What she liked about floating around on an ever-moving ocean was beyond him. He’d gone on a cruise once and ended up seasick the whole time. His stomach had rolled more than the damn waves. Never again for him, thank you.
He’d give Kirk one more day to show up in Minneapolis, and then he was sending in Melvin to investigate that office.
He’d have to swear Melvin to secrecy, hold the threat of losing his job over his head, maybe. He wished he didn’t have to tell Melvin he suspected Ken. But if Kirk wasn’t there to do the job, he had no choice. He’d have to level with Melvin.
He’d no more than hung up when his secretary buzzed him. “Donald Umber is on the other line, Sir.”
Ah, finally the PI was calling in. “Thanks.” He punched the button to switch lines. “Yes, Donald. Any news on Kirk?”
“Some, Mr. Latham, but I didn’t find him yet.”
“Damn it, he has to be somewhere.”
“He did take that flight to Minneapolis and pick up his luggage. I couldn’t find any record of a rented car, so I assume he took a cab to a hotel or the cabin.”
“Did you check the cabin?”
“Yep. No one there. Ken’s Cadillac was there, though. I called in a tip to the police, since you’d said it was missing.”
“Were the keys there?”
“In the vehicle. I started it up. Seemed to run okay.”
“Huh. Then why the hell was it out there?”
“I have no idea. But Ken was the one who drove it there. He picked up groceries around two Saturday afternoon and also charged fishing tackle and gas on his credit cards a little later. The clerks verified it was him with picture ID.”
“That only says he went out there, not where he went after that. Did you talk to the neighbors?”
“You said to be discreet. I didn’t want anyone to get too curious.”
Lester snorted. “That never stopped you from finding out stuff, Donald. And?”
Donald laughed. “And one of the neighbors says he found Ken’s boat capsized in the lake.”
Lester swallowed hard and closed his eyes. God, if Ken’s drowned, how will I tell Carol? She’ll go to pieces if one of her twins has died. “Had the guy reported it?”
“Yeah, but apparently the police said everything was okay, ’cause Ken was fine, just doesn’t remember why he left the car there.”
“So, if the guy at Ken’s apartment really is Ken, then where the hell is Kirk?”
“I don’t know yet. But I’ll keep on it. Do you know how many hotels and motels there are in this Metro area? I’m still working my way down the list, calling to see if he’s registered anywhere.”
“Okay, Donald. Keep on it.” Lester hung up and buzzed his secretary to send in Melvin. This had gone far enough.
Whatever was going on, he had to know what it was. And the best way to start was to check out the finances at their Minneapolis store.
~ * ~
Later that afternoon, Lee called Rosie.
“Hi, Sis,” he said. “Anything new? Has Ken remembered stuff yet?”
“No. Could you learn anything from that note I gave you?”
“Nothing much. The letters were cut from the Minneapolis Tribune, which half the town gets every day. Paper was a notebook sold in every store that sells school supplies.”
“Oh,” she said, feeling disappointed. “Did your officers find any other leads on who attacked him or ransacked his apartment?”
“No. But we got a strange call from a guy out on Long Lake, you know, where Ken has his cabin? This guy saw Ken’s boat floating upside down out on the lake and thought he’d had a boating accident. He wanted to know if we could do a search for Ken’s body in the lake.”
“That’s odd. Did you tell him Ken was okay?”
“Yeah, I did.”
“You don’t suppose someone
else borrowed Ken’s boat and had an accident? I mean, why else would it be out on the lake?”
“Could be. But until we know someone is missing, there’s not much point in hunting for a body. A search costs a lot, you know. And if anyone did drown, the body will show up sooner or later.”
“I suppose.”
“Or maybe it was vandalism.”
“Vandalism?”
“Yeah. Maybe someone just cut the boat loose and capsized it on purpose, for plain meanness, like they smashed stuff in his apartment for no apparent reason.”
Rosie sighed. “I suppose that’s possible. But who would do that? And why?”
“Who knows? But when we were checking it out, we found Ken’s Caddy at the cabin.”
“Really, Lee? That’s great. Was it damaged or anything?”
“Nope. Just parked there with the keys in it.”
“Ken will be so happy to get it back.”
“Funny thing about it. When I got back to the office, I had a message that some man had called in a tip about it being out there, too.”
“Maybe the same neighbor who saw the overturned boat? I still don’t understand. Why would Ken leave it parked out there?”
“Who knows? He could have had car trouble and got a ride back to town with someone else. Guess we’ll have to wait until he remembers and can tell us what happened.”
“Yeah. Well, thanks for letting me know, Lee. We’ll go pick up his car after work tonight.”
“Rosie?” Lee’s voice sounded strange.
“What?” Her heart speeded up at his tone.
“Be careful, okay? I don’t like this. Something smells fishy about the whole thing.”
Her stomach turned over. Lee’s cop instincts were well honed and she knew they were usually right. He and his friends had told her many stories of how his gut feelings had been proven correct and helped them solve a case.
“I’ll be careful, Lee. You too.”
~ * ~
After their lunch, Kirk spent hours on the computer in his office, trying to make sense of the company finances. Why was more money going out than was coming in? Latham had a healthy price markup over wholesale. Yet they were dangerously low on cash. He’d written checks for the overdue bills Rosie had given him, leaving barely enough to cover the week’s payroll.
