Murder at the Gallery: A Northwest Cozy Mystery (Northwest Cozy Mystery Series Book 6)

by Dianne Harman

  “Do you ever think about opening a little place like this?” Jake asked, waving his hand across DeeDee’s line of vision to get her attention.

  “Sometimes,” she admitted. “And then I think I’d be chained to it all the time, not to mention the employee dramas to deal with if someone didn’t show up for their shift. And the overhead to run a place like this is much higher. I don’t think I’ll be opening a chain of Deelish cafe’s any time soon. This place is nice, though. I like the quirky touches like the different blooms on every table and the bunched-up milk bottle hanging lights.”

  The waitress brought their order. “Thanks,” Jake said. He casually added, “I thought Colin might be here. He’s a friend of mine. Has he been in the last couple of days?”

  “Sure has. You’ve just missed him. Every day you could set your clock by that guy. Comes in precisely at 11:00 in the morning and stays until 2:00 in the afternoon. He told me once he works out in the morning.”

  “Yeah, that’s right,” Jake said. “I should follow his example and visit the gym more often myself.”

  The waitress eyed Jake up and down. “You look all right to me. Anyway, I’ve been on the day shift the last three days, so I can guarantee you he was here every one of them. Come back tomorrow morning around 11:00. I’m sure he’ll be here then, too. He loves to talk to people and read the newspapers and magazines about the stock market. In fact, he’s such a good customer we get his order ready just before he comes in. To my knowledge, he hasn’t missed a day in, oh, I don’t know how long.”

  “Thanks for the information,” Jake said. “Guess I’ll just have to get here earlier next time.”

  The waitress walked away, leaving DeeDee to tease Jake about his hot gym body.

  “Finished?” he asked DeeDee, after wolfing down his panini.

  “Yep. I think I’ll save the pain au chocolat for when I’m in France, all the same. Henri’s Boulangerie has spoiled me for life.”

  As they were walking away, DeeDee voiced what they both had been thinking. “It sounds like Colin’s in the clear. When the coroner was examining Philippe’s body, I overheard him tell the chief that Philippe had been dead no longer than an hour. I discovered his body about 1:30 p.m., so there’s no way Colin could have done it. He was at The Daily Grind when Philippe was murdered.”

  “I agree,” Jake said. “I think we need to go see Brady Saunders. You up for that?”

  “Yes. I’m beginning to think it was Marc or him. Simone may not have been in love with her husband, but she didn’t strike me as a ruthless killer. Plus, neither Renee or Simone look strong enough to have dragged Philippe’s body into the storeroom where he was found. Unless there’s a lot we don’t know, we’ve pretty much run through the known characters or should I say suspects.”

  CHAPTER 17

  As Jake was parking down the street from the apartment where Brady and Renee lived, DeeDee saw Renee hurrying up the sidewalk.

  “Oh my goodness, look the other way,” she said to Jake sharply. “Renee is walking right towards us.” DeeDee pretended to look for something on the floor of the jeep, while Jake turned his face to the street, so Renee wouldn’t recognize them.

  “She’s gone, so you can stop eating the carpet,” Jake said with a laugh a few seconds later.

  DeeDee half-laughed, half-groaned. “Do you think she saw us?”

  “No,” Jake said, “she looked like she had a lot on her mind. Let’s wait a few more minutes to make sure the coast is clear.”

  DeeDee scrolled through her phone while Jake checked Renee’s progress in the rear-view mirror.

  “I’m meeting Tink and Mitch for lunch tomorrow,” DeeDee said, glancing over at Jake. “To tell them about our news.”

  “Oh yes, I’d forgotten about that,” Jake joked. “Our wedding. Let me know the date, and I’ll make sure I’m free.”

  DeeDee lightly tapped him on the arm with her phone. “Very funny. When are you going to speak to Kimberly about it?”

  “As you know, my eighteen-year-old daughter can be quite elusive. Seeing her old man isn’t high on her priority list, particularly now that she has a boyfriend and can drive. However, I have a plan.”

  “What’s that?” DeeDee asked with a frown.

  “I said I’d pay for her prom dress and other expenses. That way, she needs to meet me in person, so I can hand over the money.”

  “Good thinking,” DeeDee said, her face relaxing. “Although I’m sure that’s going to cost you a lot. You’re such a big softie that if it came to a thousand dollars, you’d pay it.”

  It was Jake’s turn to frown. “Really? You think it could be that much?”

  DeeDee raised an eyebrow. “Oh, Jake. You really have no idea. If you get away with half of that amount, you’ll be lucky. Girls these days go all out on the prom. Designer dress, hair, makeup, spray tan, limousine, the full works.”

  “She can forget the limo, I’ll offer to give her a ride myself,” Jake said, open-mouthed. “Just kidding. I have a feeling that idea would fall flat.”

  “At least you have something right,” DeeDee said.

  He checked his mirror again. “Renee just went into the apartment building,” he announced. “It should be safe to follow her now. Are you ready?”

  They got out of the car and headed in the same direction as Renee, entering the apartment building and taking the stairs to the second floor. When they got there, DeeDee cautiously opened the door from the stairwell to make sure Renee wasn’t in the hallway.

  “It’s clear,” she whispered. She clutched Jake’s hand and they walked the rest of the way down the corridor without speaking, stopping in front of the apartment number Rob had given to Jake.

  They could hear Renee’s voice coming from inside the apartment. “Brady, what is this and why is it still here?” she yelled.

  DeeDee noticed that Jake had taken what looked like a small tape recorder from his pocket and pressed a button on it. Her attention was drawn back to Renee’s voice.

  “I thought you took that painting back to the gallery yesterday. You said you’d finished restoring it and wanted to leave it at the gallery, even though it was still yellow-taped, to make sure the customer would get it on time, and it would be there when the gallery re-opened. Did you keep it because you haven’t been paid yet? There’s no need to worry about that. I’m sure Simone will honor the payroll.”

  “I can explain.” A man, who DeeDee assumed was Brady Saunders, was speaking. “It’s not what you think. And I told you before about coming into my studio. It’s an invasion of privacy.”

  “It’s not an invasion of privacy when I pay half the rent,” Renee pointed out sharply. “I came back because I was worried about you. I had a conversation with a couple of people today who were asking me about your work. I thought if I could encourage you to take up your own work again, it would make you happier. You seem so angry lately.”

  “What people? Why were they asking about me?”

  “People investigating Philippe’s death, that’s who. What’s gotten into you these days? You know how excited Mrs. Jennings was when her husband bought this painting as a gift for their anniversary, and you said you didn’t want her to be disappointed. I saw you walk out the door with it yesterday, wrapped in bubble wrap under your arm, to take it back to the gallery. Did you wait until I was gone, and come back with it because you couldn’t even be bothered to make the trip? Or did the yellow tape stop you?”

  “No!” Brady was shouting now. “I did bring it back. Please, let me explain.”

  “It better be good,” Renee said. “Because unless I’m seeing things, the exact same painting is still sitting on the table in front of me, half-wrapped in bubble wrap with a shipping label beside it. Tell me I’m mistaken, and you haven’t stolen the painting and are not about to send it off somewhere to be sold. If I hadn’t come back when I did, maybe I never would have known.”

  “I’ve been wanting to show you what I’ve been doing for a long t
ime, but I was afraid you might let Philippe know that I’d told you, and he’d sworn me to secrecy.” Brady sounded triumphant. “Now it doesn’t matter. Don’t you see what I’ve done, Renee? I’m truly an artist. Philippe has been giving me paintings once they’ve sold at the gallery, and I’ve been copying them. Then Philippe would give my painting to the customer and send the original paintings to his nephew’s gallery in France to be sold again. Do you know how talented someone has to be to do something like that? To have fooled so many people, for so long?”

  It was quiet for a moment until Renee spoke up again. “You’re insane, Brady. You and Philippe knowingly cheated customers who trusted him. They believed they were getting authentic paintings and instead, Philippe was passing off your fakes as originals. I’m disgusted with both of you. Brady, selling something as an original when it’s not is against the law. I’m no lawyer, but even I know that. What were you thinking of?”

  “You’re right,” Brady said, “and that’s why we’re going to France. I don’t want anyone to find out what I’ve been doing, but I know it will be easy for me to get work over there. I’ve made our plane reservations, and we’re going to leave tonight. I knew how important those exams were to you, so I waited until you’d finished. I’ve even bought new clothes for you, so you’ll have everything you’ll need. I wanted to surprise you, Renee.”

  “You’ve surprised me all right, Brady,” Renee said, her voice choking up. “I said I’d consider moving away from Seattle, but not like this. I won’t be going to France with you, or anywhere else for that matter. I could never be with someone who defrauds people. I could never trust you again.”

  Brady laughed, a hollow menacing sound that sent a shiver down DeeDee’s spine. “Well, what about someone who committed the perfect crime? You think anyone will ever figure out that I’m the one who killed Philippe? I mean, where’s the motive? No one knows that he was going to cut my share to peanuts. No, I’m just someone who did restorations for his gallery from time to time. He always paid me in cash for them, so there’s no trail. Now come on, we need to get going. Traffic can be tricky this time of day, and SeaTac is always busy. I’ll get our suitcases. They’re in the bedroom.”

  “You really are crazy. I’m not going anywhere with you. I thought I loved you, but the person I loved was the man I thought you were, not the real you. You’re a fake, Brady, just like your crummy paintings. Do what you like, but I’m leaving. Alone.”

  DeeDee heard footsteps walking across the floor, then a scream. “Get off me,” Renee called out.

  When Brady spoke again his tone was threatening. “I’m sorry, Renee, no dice. You’ve given me no choice. We’re going to take a little walk into the bathroom. If you scream again when I put the knife in you, no one will hear it when the toilet’s flushing and the water’s running.”

  DeeDee’s heart was pounding as Jake let go of her hand and pulled out his gun. He kicked the door until it burst open on the fourth kick and yelled, “Drop the knife, Brady, or I’ll shoot.”

  DeeDee gasped from her vantage point in the doorway. Brady, yielding a large kitchen carving knife, was pushing Renee into a room at the end of the dimly lit hallway. When Jake entered, Brady whirled around and lunged toward Jake, murder in his eyes. Renee turned and stood frozen in horror while Jake took aim and fired his gun. When Brady crumpled to the floor, DeeDee heard the click of the lock on the bathroom door, behind which Renee had suddenly disappeared. Brady was screaming in pain, Jake’s bullet having hit him in the shoulder.

  “DeeDee, call 911,” Jake instructed her. “I don’t want to turn away from him.”

  Her hands trembling, DeeDee made the call. When she’d finished giving the details to the police dispatcher, Jake called out in a loud voice. “Renee, it’s all right. You can come out of the bathroom now. Unlock the door. Everything’s okay. I have Brady covered, and the police are on their way. I can hear the sirens.”

  A cowering Renee walked out of the bathroom and into DeeDee’s comforting arms. The two women waited in the living room for the police while Jake held his gun on Brady who was laying on the floor of the hallway.

  “Please, don’t make me look at him,” Renee said, shivering on the sofa. “I never want to see Brady again.” DeeDee found a blanket in the bedroom and tucked it around her, while silent tears trickled down Renee’s cheeks.

  “Ssh,” DeeDee said, stroking her hair. “The police will take him away. You won’t have to see him again.” Except at his trial, she thought.

  It was hours later and after dark when they arrived back at DeeDee’s home where an ecstatic Balto greeted them by launching himself like a furry missile at the wire fence.

  “I know Balto, we missed you too,” DeeDee laughed, when she let him out of the fenced area of the yard. “There was quite a lot of drama today. I’m glad you were safe here at home and away from the action.”

  After dinner, she and Jake joined Balto on the front porch, where he played with his toy rabbit while they had a glass of wine.

  “What’s wrong?” Jake gave her a concerned look.

  DeeDee sighed. “I guess I need to call Cassie tomorrow and tell her what’s happened. I’m dreading it, because Al’s certain to go ballistic. I also have a question for you. How did you just happen to have a tape recorder in your pocket?”

  Jake laughed, throwing a stick across the grass for Balto to fetch. “It’s lucky for Philippe he’s already dead, so Al won’t have to go and murder him all over again. As to your question. Every morning when I leave the house, I make sure I have my keys, my wallet, my gun, and my tape recorder. And I’d bet every other private investigator does the same. You just never know what the day’s going to bring.”

  CHAPTER 18

  “Close your eyes,” Jake said, leading DeeDee by the hand into his house. “You have to promise not to peek, okay?”

  “Um, sure,” DeeDee said, feeling Balto’s fur brush her legs as the dog went racing past. She reached out with her free arm, and from the feel of the furniture, knew they were in Jake’s living room. The sound of the sliding doors being pulled open was a definite clue that they were about to go outside onto the patio.

  “There’s a step, so be careful,” Jake said, confirming her suspicions. “You can sit down now,” he said, pulling out a chair, and helping her into it. “Don’t move, I’ll be back in a minute.”

  DeeDee tried to open one of her eyes a tiny slit so she could find out what was going on, but Jake’s voice calling from inside made her clamp it shut again. “DeeDee, I can see your eyes twitching. Don’t even think about it.”

  “Sorry,” she replied. “I forgot you have security cameras everywhere.” She relaxed in the chair, and could hear Jake turn on some romantic music. Something else was odd. She sniffed. The smell of cooking reached her nostrils. It was a divine smell, not Jake’s usual entree of steak or ribs, although she liked those too.

  “I must be dreaming,” she called out. “Is that coq au vin I smell?”

  The sound of Jake’s footsteps on the patio indicated he’d returned. She could also hear Balto panting. “What are you two up to? I’m dying to find out,” DeeDee squealed.

  There was a pop, and the hiss of something fizzy being poured, then Jake gave her permission to open her eyes.

  DeeDee gasped in amazement. Jake’s patio was decorated with hanging glass lanterns with tea lights flickering inside, the table laid like they were in a French bistro, and a silver ice bucket containing a bottle of champagne was in a stand next to the table. Balto, wearing a black bow tie for a collar, sat proudly at attention, watching the scene unfold.

  Jake handed her a champagne flute from across the table, and she accepted the glass, taking a sip.

  “What’s going on?” she asked in bewilderment. “Are we celebrating something?”

  Jake raised his glass and clinked it against hers. “Let’s see,” he said, raising an eyebrow. “Don’t you think the fact that a whole week has passed without anyone getting murde
red is celebration enough?”

  “Maybe,” DeeDee smiled, “but I don’t think that’s it.”

  “You’d be right,” Jake said, patting his leg for Balto to come over to him. He bent down and whispered something in Balto’s ear, and Balto solemnly walked over to DeeDee.

  “What the…” DeeDee looked down at where Balto had dropped a small Tiffany box tied in a bow at her feet. She picked it up, and thought she might cry. “Is this…?”

  Jake nodded. “Open it,” he whispered.

  DeeDee pulled the ribbon and opened the ring box. Twinkling back at her was a platinum two-carat emerald-cut diamond ring with trapezoid-shaped side stones in smaller diamonds.

  “Do you like it?” Jake asked.

  DeeDee nodded, her eyes brimming with tears.

  “This might be the first time I’ve ever seen you speechless,” Jake said, coming around to DeeDee’s side of the table. He got down on one knee, and reached for DeeDee’s hand. “I know my first proposal wasn’t the most romantic, but it came from the heart. Now that we have our children’s blessings, I thought it might be nice to do it properly. DeeDee, will you marry me?”

  DeeDee nodded, and whispered “Yes,” while Jake slipped the ring onto her finger. She held out her hand, admiring how the diamonds sparkled in the moonlight, and leaned over to kiss Jake softly on the lips.

  A familiar face poked her head out from behind the sliding doors. “I’m glad that went well. Are you two lovebirds ready to eat?”

  DeeDee burst out laughing. “Susie! No wonder I couldn’t get ahold of you today. I was wondering where you’d disappeared to.”

  Jake stood up and went back to his seat. “You don’t think I did this all by myself, do you? I know I can do a decent barbecue, but coq au vin’s completely out of my league. I thought I’d better call in an expert to make sure nothing went wrong.”

  “That was a good idea.” DeeDee took another sip of her champagne. “I’ll send you the bill tomorrow.”