Alibis & Angels

by Olivia Matthews

  She shifted on her seat. “I’m not backing away. I’m looking for other opportunities.”

  “That sounds like a very creative way of saying that you’re quitting.”

  Shari flinched. She frowned at Sister Lou. “That’s harsh.”

  “Help me to understand what you’re afraid of.” Sister Lou searched Shari’s eyes. “I want to understand. You have a job that you enjoy, a new apartment that you’re happy with, and friends who love you like family. Yet you’re willing to give that up because someone else is interested in your beat?”

  “What is ‘home’? Tell me because I don’t know.” Shari’s frustration itched just beneath her skin, a burning irritant that she couldn’t scratch. It was driving her to distraction. “What makes a home?”

  “You do.”

  Shari was temporarily rendered speechless. It was a first. “How?”

  “Shari, you had a difficult childhood. I’m not trivializing that, but you’re not the only person who has moments of self-doubt. We all do. No one’s normal. Normalcy’s a myth.”

  “But how do I make a home?”

  “You make a home by fighting for what you want and where you want it. Don’t let anyone or anything stop you from going after what you want, not Harold, not doubts, not even yourself.”

  Shari took a long drink of her lemonade. The condensation around the hard plastic container was cold and slippery to her touch. “Sister Lou, that’s very encouraging and inspirational, but in my experience, the reality is different. There’s always someone or something hanging around, waiting to tear the rug out from under you.”

  Sister Lou shook her head. “Perhaps that’s been your experience because that’s what you’re expecting. You’ve allowed your expectations to dissuade you from going after what you want. You can change that, but first you have to believe in yourself and your ability to do so.”

  Shari considered Sister Lou’s theory. She drew her silver metal spoon through her lentil soup. The tantalizing scent of vegetables and spices wafted up to her. It didn’t reawaken her appetite, though. “You might have a point.”

  “I think that I do. Let’s try an experiment. Instead of waiting for someone to steal your rug, work on silencing your self-doubts and going after your goal.”

  This time, Shari took a little longer to consider Sister Lou’s proposal. “All right. Why not? What do I have to lose?”

  “Nothing.” Sister Lou shrugged. “In fact, you have everything to gain, including that home you’ve been looking for.”

  Shari ignored an uncharacteristic surge of optimism. There were no guarantees that she wouldn’t still trip over that rug.

  * * *

  Why do I feel as though I’m kicking a puppy?

  Sister Lou sat with Shari and Kerry late Monday morning. They were huddled in the executive kitchen-cum-breakroom of the mayor’s suite in the Briar Coast Town Hall. She tried to imagine Kerry as the villain behind the threats against the mayor.

  She failed horribly.

  With her vibrant, shoulder-length, curly strawberry blond hair framing her round, kewpie-like features; wide-and-ready smile; and big, powder blue, innocent eyes, the twenty-something-year-old woman looked more like a baby doll than a menacing stalker. However, one of the things Sister Lou had learned from her past investigations was that people aren’t always what they seemed.

  Sister Lou stiffened her resolve to get to the truth regardless of where the path might lead her. “Mayor Stanley’s executive team seems like a close-knit group.”

  Both Shari and Kerry were drinking coffee. The hot, dark roast aroma drifted across the small, rectangular faux wood table where Sister Lou sat facing the two young women. She glanced into her cardboard cup of tea. The container was warm within her palm, but the drink was tasteless.

  Kerry swallowed a mouthful of coffee. She nodded, causing her glossy curls to bounce against her round, pink cheeks. “They’ve all known each other for years, ever since the start of Mayor Stanley’s election campaign almost six years ago.”

  Sister Lou smiled at Kerry’s misunderstanding. She tried to clarify what she’d meant. “Mayor Stanley includes you as part of her executive team.”

  Kerry gaped at Sister Lou. Her bright red lips parted and formed a near perfect circle. Her baby blue sweater made her eyes appear even wider and bluer.

  “I’m a member of the exec team?” Kerry paused. Her eyes moved around the breakroom, seeming to take in the pale yellow walls, nearby matching chairs and tables, and the worn silver appliances. “I’ve never considered myself to be part of the exec team.”

  “You attend the meetings.” Shari lowered her disposable cup of coffee. She’d added her customary three packets of sweetener and a generous amount of cream to the drink. The reporter seemed content with her coffee, giving Sister Lou further reason to second-guess her choice of tea.

  Kerry giggled. “But I just take the notes.”

  “Don’t minimize your contributions, Kerry.” Shari leaned closer to the younger woman. “Heather said you’ve offered a lot of good ideas during those meetings.”

  Footsteps tapped against the tile behind Sister Lou as a member of the mayor’s staff entered the breakroom. Sister Lou caught Shari’s attention. Their silent exchange was an agreement to wait until they were alone with Kerry before continuing the conversation. Sister Lou sipped her tea as she watched the middle-aged man cross to the coffeepot, fill his mug, then turn to leave the room. She returned his nod of greeting with a smile.

  Switching her attention back to their table, Sister Lou contemplated Kerry’s guileless demeanor, casual tone, and innocent words. Those characteristics created a conflict with the image of Kerry as Heather’s harasser. Kerry had the means and opportunities with which to stalk Heather. The assistant had access to Heather’s calendar, mail, e-mail account, voice mail system, and file cabinets. She also had a spare key to Heather’s home.

  But did she have motive?

  Sister Lou set aside her half-full cup of tea. “Do you enjoy working for the mayor?”

  Kerry’s sigh was deep and weighty. “I love what I do, I just wish it wasn’t in politics.”

  Sister Lou glanced at Shari. The reporter looked just as confused as Sister Lou felt. She turned back to Kerry. “What do you mean?”

  “Some people treat politics like a game.” Kerry sounded disgusted. “People come to the mayor’s office because they’re in trouble. They’ve lost their job or they’re afraid they’re going to lose their health care. They’re having trouble caring for their elderly parents or they can’t afford their utility bills. Does that sound like fun and games?”

  “No, not at all.” Sister Lou could feel Kerry’s passion for helping people. She could use someone like Kerry on her outreach committee.

  “Exactly!” Kerry threw her arms up. “People’s lives are not games.”

  The tap of heels against the tile announced another staff member’s presence. Sister Lou paused their exchange until the trio was alone again. It only took a few moments for the older woman to get her coffee and leave.

  No one was getting tea.

  Sister Lou’s eyebrows knitted. “Isn’t Jefferson in politics?”

  “That’s his only drawback.” Kerry sighed. “He’s so smart and charming. And handsome. He’ll probably have a very successful career. I asked him once what his political goals were. He said he wanted to go as far as he could.”

  Kerry didn’t seem very enthusiastic about Jefferson’s ambitions.

  “What kind of boss is Heather?” Shari asked.

  Kerry appeared to collect her thoughts before answering. “She’s tough. She really likes having her own way.”

  Shari grunted. “Who doesn’t?”

  Kerry giggled again. “And she’s very opinionated.”

  “Do you know of anyone who has trouble with her, either someone on the staff or outside of it?” Shari asked.

  Kerry’s full lips curved into a reluctant smile. “Most people have troub
le with her. Like I said, Heather can be difficult.” She glanced at her watch as she stood. “I should get back to work. There are a few things I need to do before lunch.”

  “Of course.” Sister Lou remained seated as she watched Kerry leave. “Thank you for talking with us.”

  There had been affection in Kerry’s voice even as she admitted that Heather could be hard to deal with. It was clear that she cared about the difficult, opinionated, stubborn person she worked for. She couldn’t fake that emotion.

  The question was who could?

  Chapter 19

  “Remind me to recommend Heather stock a better brand of tea.” Sister Lou poured the bitter brew down the sink, then dropped the cardboard cup into the recycle bin.

  Shari gave her friend a smug smile. “It’s hard to ruin a cup of coffee.”

  “Is that what you call what you were drinking?” Sister Lou led the way from the breakroom. “I couldn’t tell with all that cream and sugar.”

  Shari grunted. “You wouldn’t be so grouchy if you’d had the coffee.”

  It wasn’t quite eleven thirty. In addition to Kerry, Shari and Sister Lou had hoped to speak with Arneeka Laguda, Heather’s chief of staff, before lunch. They followed the narrow gray-carpeted hallway from the kitchen-cum-breakroom to Arneeka’s office. Sister Lou knocked on the open door.

  Arneeka looked up from the binders and folders spread across her Maplewood desk. Her orange hijab lent a warm undertone to her olive skin and deepened her brown eyes.

  Despite her welcoming smile, the chief of staff appeared distracted. “Sister Lou. Shari. Please come in. Have a seat.”

  Sister Lou took one of the black cloth guest chairs in front of Arneeka’s desk. “Thank you, Arneeka. We appreciate your time.”

  “We wanted to ask you a few questions about working for Mayor Stanley.” Shari took the matching chair beside Sister Lou, hooking her emerald green wool coat over its back.

  Arneeka shifted her attention from Sister Lou to Shari. “Are you doing a story about the mayor? Does she know?”

  Shari crossed her left leg over her right. Her nose tickled from the faint scent of sage in the room. “If I didn’t know you better, Arneeka, I’d think you were stalling.”

  Arneeka sat back on her black executive seat and crossed her arms. That quickly, the quiet, studious public official became a tough-as-nails executive defender. “But since you do know me, Shari, you realize that I won’t allow my boss to be blindsided.”

  Shari raised her hands in a gesture of surrender. “Sister Lou and I told the mayor we were going to ask her team a couple of questions about working for her. She doesn’t mind. We just finished talking to Kerry. It was painless. Ask her.” She gestured toward Arneeka’s beige desk phone.

  Although she was a better liar than Sister Lou, Shari was relieved to be able to tell Heather’s staff the truth. She liked them.

  “That won’t be necessary.” Arneeka relaxed her arms. “How can I help you?”

  Seated beside her, Shari sensed Sister Lou’s intense scrutiny of their hostess. What were Sister Lou’s powers of observation telling her? Shari was impatient to find out.

  Just like Kerry, Heather’s chief of staff had access to Heather’s schedule, voice mail system, e-mail account, and files. She didn’t have a copy of Heather’s house key, though. But the theory was that the stalker had gained access to Heather’s home by using the spare key that the mayor had kept hidden under a flowerpot on her porch.

  Sister Lou smoothed her brown wool winter coat across her lap. “How would you describe working for Mayor Stanley?”

  Arneeka seemed to pull her gaze from one of the folders on her desk. She took another moment to answer the question. “The mayor is extremely smart and very empathetic. She’s also incredibly strong willed.”

  Shari had been in Arneeka’s office several times over the past two and a half months or so. Still today she tried looking at the other woman’s surroundings from Sister Lou’s perspective. Arneeka was almost obsessively well organized. She had two pen-and-pencil holders on her desk. One was for pens and the other for pencils. Her stapler, tape dispenser, and notepad were lined up beside the holders.

  On the walnut wood bookcase to the left of her desk, the books were arranged by category, with neatly printed labels designating each section. A candle-holder sat on top of the gray metal five-drawer file cabinet behind Arneeka’s desk. A still-smoking incense stick was propped inside of it. That was the source of the sage scent that circulated the room. The only disarray was Arneeka’s desk, and the books and folders spread across its surface. What would that tell Sister Lou?

  “Do you enjoy working for Mayor Stanley?” Sister Lou’s questioning continued.

  “Yes, of course.” Arneeka sounded preoccupied as though she was only giving the conversation half of her attention. “Why else would I work for her for more than six years?”

  “I don’t know.” Shari shrugged. “Maybe because you need the job.”

  Arneeka’s startled gaze flew to Shari. “I don’t need this job. I want this job. I enjoy working for Heath—for Mayor Stanley.”

  Shari wasn’t sure she believed the chief of staff, but Arneeka had always been difficult to read. “Rumor has it that she’s hard to work for.”

  “That’s not true.” Arneeka shook her head with a brief chuckle. “Mayor Stanley isn’t hard to work for. She’s impossible to work for.”

  Sister Lou blinked. “But . . . you just said you enjoy working for her.”

  “I do.” Arneeka held Sister Lou’s gaze. “Heath—Mayor Stanley is a great boss and she’s an even better mentor. She’s also a wonderful friend. I’ve learned so much from her. But she’s a machine and she assumes that everyone else is, too.”

  “Do you find Mayor Stanley’s demands unreasonable?” Sister Lou pinned Arneeka with a probing gaze.

  “Not at all.” Arneeka’s brown eyes sparkled. Her voice was gleeful. “It’s a challenge, and so far I’ve never lost. I don’t intend to, either. Several people, especially people outside of our office, have had problems meeting her expectations. But I never have—and I never will.”

  Sister Lou gave Shari an amused look before turning back to Arneeka. “How does the mayor react to missed deadlines?”

  “She’s disappointed, of course.” Arneeka spread her arms. Her tone sobered. “If the time frame is unreasonable, she expects to be told in advance. I think that’s perfectly fair.”

  “Yes, it is.” Sister Lou inclined her head toward the far corner of Arneeka’s desk. “Arneeka, please forgive me, but I couldn’t help but notice the résumé on your desk. Are you looking for another job?”

  Shari’s wide-eyed stare shot to the corner of the desk that Sister Lou had indicated. Sure enough, the top of a résumé peeked out from under one of the file folders. How had she missed that? She waited for Arneeka’s response to Sister Lou’s question.

  Arneeka tucked her résumé farther under the folder with quick, jerky motions. She looked at Sister Lou, then Shari, and back. “Yes, I am looking for another job.”

  Shari’s eyebrows jumped in dismay. “Does the mayor know?”

  “I haven’t told her yet.” Arneeka sighed. “I do enjoy my job here. And I enjoy working with Heather, but it’s time for me to move on.”

  “Move on to what?” Shari asked.

  “I want to focus more on education policy.” Excitement and enthusiasm had returned to Arneeka’s voice.

  Sister Lou smiled. “Then I wish you every happiness and success.”

  Shari nodded. “So do I, but the mayor’s office won’t be the same without you.”

  Arneeka flashed a grin. “Thank you.”

  Sister Lou glanced at her crimson Timex wristwatch as she stood. “We should let you go. Thank you again for your time.”

  Shari stood as well. “And don’t worry. We won’t say anything to the mayor.”

  Arneeka rose from behind her desk. “I’m going to tell Heather about my plans soon.
I’m just not ready yet.”

  Shari shrugged into her winter coat as she followed Sister Lou down the wide marbled staircase. She sensed that her friend was deep in thought. Shari crossed the bright white-and-silver-tiled lobby beside Sister Lou. She reached forward to push open the white wooden exit door and held it for her friend.

  “Do you think Arneeka’s involved?” Shari matched her steps to Sister Lou’s brisk pace as they walked toward the other woman’s bright orange, four-door Toyota Corolla.

  “No, and I don’t think Kerry’s involved, either.” Sister Lou tossed Shari a quick look. “What do you think?”

  “You’re right about Kerry.” Shari shrugged deeper into her coat. “She seems devoted to Heather, but with Arneeka looking for another job, maybe she’s the one who doesn’t want Heather to run for reelection.”

  Sister Lou stopped beside her driver’s side door. “Do you think sending threatening letters and committing murder seem a bit excessive just to quit a job?”

  “I do. It sounded like a stretch as soon as I said it.” Shari glanced over her shoulder. Her car was parked two spaces away. She turned back to Sister Lou. “Promise me that you’ll obey the rules of the road on your way back to the congregational office.”

  Sister Lou gave Shari a dry look. “I’ll be fine.” She pressed the button on her keyless entry remote to unlock her car. “Try not to dawdle. Chris said he’s meeting you for lunch. You don’t want it to become dinner.”

  Shari chuckled and turned away. She waved at Sister Lou over her shoulder as she walked to her own car. She lowered her arm, suddenly uneasy, and rubbed the back of her neck. She had the eerie feeling that she was being watched. Shari flexed her shoulder muscles as she cast a surreptitious look across the lot. Was all of this talk of stalkers and threats making her paranoid?

  * * *

  “What are you and the sister investigating at town hall?”

  Harold threw the belligerent question at Shari from the doorway of the Telegraph’s breakroom after lunch Monday afternoon. She turned to Hal with a scowl. The rookie slouched against the threshold. His arms were crossed over his chest. He wore a thick gold cashmere sweater, skinny black pants, and his usual arrogance.