by Wendy Byrne
"I guess he could have been a lawyer. He didn't say either way."
I was so engrossed in our conversation, I didn't notice that Bee, the informant for the Qs, had returned from lunch. Before I knew it, the sound of motorcycles filtered through the air. Just when I thought we'd been invaded by Hells Angels, the Qs burst through the door.
"We heard you were here." Alice scolded me with her gaze. The woman knew how to do a guilt trip like no other person I knew.
"You fill Nate in on what the weirdo Drew had to say?" Ramona tugged on my arm. "We brought our wheels."
"So I heard."
"Yeah, that's kind of the problem. It's kind of hard to keep on the down low when they make so much noise," Dolly said.
If that were the only problem we had, that would be a blessing. But as it was, I was knee-deep in trouble along with Nate.
CHAPTER FIVE
When the doorbell rang the following morning, I figured it was Gabe. Truth was, I needed some diversion from all the nonsense going on in my life. I relished the thought of him making an impromptu visit, especially after the awkward scene with his ex-wife the other day.
"Coming," I called as I skipped toward the front door. I'd been ready to go for a run and looked cute so was more than ready to see Gabe.
When I opened the front door, my smile slipped. "Tony?" Yes, I was still calling my dad by his first name. It seemed awkward to call him Dad after not knowing him my whole life and still having so many gaps to fill about his past as well as his present.
Less than a year ago we'd met under less than ideal circumstances when a killer tried to bump us both off. After the dust had settled, Tony had gone off on some kind of adventure of unknown origin. I tried not to think that he was back to scamming people as in the past but couldn't help pondering the possibility. Tony had remained elusive, not divulging much about his current circumstances. Then again, it felt awkward asking or, worse yet, keeping tabs on him.
Tony gave me an uneasy hug—like he was worried I might be angry—before he broke away and smiled. That charming smile was probably how Tony managed to talk all those people into investing into his scams. Dang, I shouldn't think like that. In the end, my father had done right by me. And I thought he was a good guy—at least most of the time.
"You look like you were expecting Gabe," he said.
"Not really." A little white lie never hurt anybody. "I didn't realize you were in town."
"I got in late last night from a show in Omaha but heard about Nate's ex's disappearance. You know Nate and I aren't good buddies or anything, but his ex-wife is a stinker if I ever met one."
"When you say stinker, what does that mean?" It seemed like an odd choice of words. Then again, that was my dad, so it was to be expected. I'd learned early on he wasn't the best at articulating his thoughts.
Probably where I got the same trait.
"I've heard rumors that she always wanted the quick buck."
The same could have been said about him, but I refrained from voicing my opinion. We'd been tiptoeing around each other of late, and I couldn't quite figure out why. At some point we'd need to have a real heart-to-heart and put all our collective cards on the table.
"I'm confused. Nate was in the FBI, and while they're well paid, it's not like he's a millionaire."
He smiled and shook his head. "That's the thing. He is a millionaire. Has been since he turned twenty-one."
What? I must have missed something. "I've never heard that. Gabe would have said something to me. Are you sure?" Did his wealth somehow play into this? That would add another wrinkle to the equation. And definitely something we'd have to look into.
"He's kept it on the down low. His mom died when he was about fifteen, but she left him some money in stocks that was held in trust until he was twenty-one. That's when it kicked in and he became a millionaire. I don't blame him for keeping that kind of thing quiet. Doesn't want to drag along bottom-feeders, even though he managed to snag one who was a little more clever than the others."
"How do you know all this and the people in town don't have a clue?"
He gave me a smile that no doubt intrigued all his girlfriends. I wasn't quite so easily fooled by his charms. "I keep my ears open, and I know a lot of people from around the area. His mom's family was wealthy, and she put something away for him as soon as he was born. His dad wasn't the greatest guy, and she wanted to protect him so had it all done through a lawyer in Winterset."
Maybe this sleuthing was genetic, since he seemed to be the only one who knew this about Nate. "Or maybe you're wrong."
"That's possible, although unlikely. I have better sources than the CIA." He smiled.
I tugged my ponytail, more due to nervous energy than anything else. This semi-bonding with my dad felt strange. "What does this have to do with anything? Is Nate's dad still alive? And if he is, what do you think that will mean for this whole mess? I don't get that part."
"I haven't heard about Nate's dad Al in a long time. He was working on an oil rig about ten years ago and then disappeared. I heard he headed to South America, but I also heard he was in federal prison. I guess either one of those could be true."
This whole suspect list was growing by leaps and bounds. "I wonder who would get Nate's millions if something were to happen to him."
"I imagine his daughter Emily, not Jen and not his father."
The wheels inside my brain started to turn. What if this so-called brother-in-law Drew got himself appointed as guardian? Would he then be in charge of Emily's inheritance if something happened to Nate? This whole thing had taken a different spin within a few moment's time. I needed to know more as well as verify the accuracy of my dad's information.
"What do you know about Jen? I know she's had a shady past, but it seems like she somehow slips through the cracks of the law." I was kind of embellishing the last part of my question, but it seemed like the right trajectory for this conversation. My father did know how to circumvent the law after all. Not throwing shade at the man. Only stating the facts.
"In the past she was involved with some bad dudes. I have a feeling if something happened to her, it's more likely because of them rather than anything Nate might have done."
"Who are they?" My investigative instincts clicked into gear. At this point, any lead was a good lead for the Qs and me.
"They're nobody to mess with, but I have some ideas on how to get around that."
Yes, he'd piqued my interest. And we were having an amazing daddy-daughter visit for once. Granted, my father wasn't the most reliable person on the planet, but a potential clue was a potential clue. "Like?"
"I have a friend of a friend I can get you in touch with. I've never met the guy personally, but my friend talks about Titus like he knows the ins and outs of what's going on in Iowa City. He should be able to help you figure out who's involved in whatever happened to Jen."
To me this whole thing sounded shady, but I was willing to let go of my misgivings and give it the old college try. At least until something better came along. I owed it to Nate and especially to Emily.
"Where can I meet up with this friend of a friend, Titus?"
"From what I understand, he usually hangs around Iowa City at the Long Road Inn. He might be able to tell you who Jen is connected to around here. Tell him you're my daughter, and don't mention anything about it involving a sheriff or he won't cooperate. I'd come with you, but I've got this thing."
I shook my head and brushed him off. Yep, one step forward and two steps back in this father-daughter thing yet again. But we were both trying at least. Well…kind of…sort of…when it fit in with our agendas.
"No worries. I've got this." As I kissed him on the cheek when he left, I couldn't help but wonder what other secrets he was hiding from me besides the obvious ones. I could only hope it wasn't something that would land him in jail.
* * *
Because I had a feeling the clock was ticking for Nate, I picked up the Qs and headed toward Iowa Cit
y later that afternoon. No sense spending time thinking about it.
"How do you think Nate's going to manage financially if he gets put on administrative leave?" I probed to see if anyone knew what my father had revealed.
"No doubt about it, the whole town will rally around him. I don't expect there'll be any hesitating in where everyone's loyalty is," Dolly said.
"But how will he pay for legal representation if it comes to that?" Maybe I needed to go a little deeper. Straight up asking if he was a millionaire wasn't a good idea if I wanted that to remain a secret.
"Gabe probably knows somebody who can handle the case. I'm sure he'd cover the costs if need be. They've been best friends for as long as I can remember," Viola said.
That seemed to confirm that nobody knew Nate had money. It was dubious logic to think my father knew anything about that, but he seemed to have an underground network that out-Qed the Qs.
"Titus is kind of an odd name, don't you think?" Alice asked from the back seat. "Did your dad say what he looked like?"
"My dad never met him directly. Just had heard about him through a friend." I guessed I wasn't quite as far along in my sleuthing career as I'd hoped if I'd forgotten to ask for a description. "Maybe I should call him."
"I wouldn't worry about it. There can't be many guys named Titus hanging around the Long Road Inn," Ramona offered.
"With all our expertise, I'm sure we'll have him eating out of our hands in no time." Alice's confidence was both a blessing and a curse.
Her bravado was legendary—execution, not so much. At less than five feet tall, her bark was a whole lot bigger than her bite, as they say. But I still knew she'd have my back if we came across trouble, and I had no doubt we would at some point.
We piled out of the car and stood transfixed as we looked at the crooked sign outside the Long Road Inn. Finally, Ramona had the wherewithal to speak. "To say this place is a dump is an insult to real dumps."
"If Titus is a drug dealer, which I assume he is, we shouldn't be surprised now, should we?" Dolly asked, with a response that varied from silence to high fives. Speaking for myself, I didn't think those who remained silent disagreed. They were just in shock.
"Maybe it's better on the inside," Viola offered, even though her tone signaled she wasn't all that confident.
Undeterred, I opened the door as the others followed behind me. While I'd never seen the interior of Hell's Tavern and could only imagine the interior of the nefarious biker bar, that place had to be positively palatial in comparison to what appeared before me—although it was hard to make out the exact dimensions since my eyes were still adjusting to the dimly lit interior.
Instinctively I curled my toes within my flip-flops, fearful that the perpetrators of those scurrying sounds I heard all around us would decide to climb up my legs. If I were alone, I would have high-tailed it out of there faster than you could imagine, but I wasn't. Besides, the Qs wouldn't stand by that kind of chicken behavior. And, frankly, all I had to think about was Nate's potential imprisonment to keep me moving.
"Where is everybody?" Viola whispered.
"Probably far away from here if they know what's good for them," Dolly said.
"That's why we get the job done. We're not sissies. We don't let this kind of thing scare us," Alice blustered.
I wanted to contradict her. Some things were better left unsaid. "You would think if a person is involved in drugs, they'd be more out in the—"
"Can I help you?" Maybe I'd watched too many scary movies in my day, but his voice sounded like what nightmares are made of.
I must have jumped ten feet into the air and let out a scream—or maybe it was one of the Qs. I couldn't tell. My heart beat so fast and my hands shook so that I didn't have a great reading on anything. Just when my pulse had started to settle, the guy blinded us all by flipping on the light switch, throwing out what had to be a 500-watt light bulb our way.
I blinked to give my pupils a chance to contract. It was taking a while, but I had to admit I heard much less scurrying, so there was comfort in that.
Once the scene had cleared and I could see again, I saw this tiny man with little round spectacles and a skittish demeanor. I couldn't imagine that the Qs and I would intimidate anyone, so it had to be something else making him so anxious.
I cleared my throat. "We're looking for Titus. You don't happen to know where he is, do you?"
Despite his appearance, when he bellowed out a laugh, it seemed to emanate from a person the size of a giant. When he finally spoke after numerous false starts, his voice sounded squeaky rather than thundering.
"First off, Titus is a she, and I never know when she'll show up. She keeps her own hours."
"A she?" Alice piped up, voicing the question we all wanted to ask.
Titus was a bad enough name for a man, but for a woman? That was just plain mean. No wonder the woman sold drugs for a living—allegedly.
"Any ideas? I mean, does she show up mostly at night or in the morning or randomly?" Now that I had a bit of a string to work with, I wanted to follow it through to the unraveling part.
The man rubbed his stubbled jaw. "I guess she's more likely to show right before dinner."
"Does she sell drugs?" Ramona blurted.
The man stepped back like he'd been hit or was about to be hit. "Of course not. She's a doctor…of sorts." Even he was having trouble swallowing that lie.
Alice snorted. "Of sorts. That's a good one."
"What do you mean by 'of sorts?'" Dolly asked.
"She helps people who need some medicinal assistance." His back went straight as he snarled the words.
"Is there a way to contact her?" I asked, figuring it was time to cut to the chase. Otherwise we could stand around all day and play semantics.
"Nope. Now, if you want a room, fine. Otherwise, please leave my establishment."
While the idea of waiting outside for her arrival didn't sound very pleasant, renting a room so we could hang out in the so-called lobby didn't seem appealing either. Besides, I was pretty sure sitting on the rickety furniture would either make it collapse or get us flea bitten. My legs started to itch thinking about it.
"Could you at least describe her for us?"
The man laughed once again, sending the hairs on my neck to stand at attention. "Believe me, you'll know her when you see her. She has orange hair and is six foot six. You can't miss her."
We piled back in the car and proceeded to wait.
"Maybe we should call up Jefferson and Mason?" Dolly asked.
As a fellow artist, I'd met Jefferson when we both had paintings in an art fair. His husband Mason was there as well, and the three of us instantly formed a bond. I couldn't say the same about their psychic friend Cleo. She wasn't a bad person, just a little on the creepy side.
"I left him a message earlier. Let me try again." I hit the speed dial on my phone and put on it on speaker. If I didn't, they'd surely ask me to anyway, so might as well save myself the trouble.
"Darling, I was about to call you. Mason and I just got home from our anniversary trip to Bali. We're dragging after the long flight but are always glad to hear from you. What are you up to?"
I couldn't really explain why, but I was glad the two of them were around. "The Qs and I are in Iowa City trying to track down somebody named Titus. Do you happen to know her?"
They both started squealing. Right now, it was impossible to tell if it was of the scary variety or the funny type. Somehow, I thought it might be the former.
Finally, Mason responded. "Where are you?"
"A place called the Long Road Inn. Do you know where it is?"
"Ah, honey, that place is a dump."
"No kidding," Alice grumbled.
"What do you know about Titus?"
"Get in your car. Lock the doors of your car and meet us at our place. You ladies should not be there alone. We'll fill you in," Jefferson added before hanging up.
With that ominous thought, I started the car a
nd headed toward their place. While I hated to leave our stakeout point, I had a feeling it was the wisest thing to do right now.
CHAPTER SIX
I rushed inside Jefferson and Mason's beautiful loft home with the Qs on my heels. Both men were both clutching a cup of coffee like it was their lifeline and looked, from their unusually rumpled appearances, like they'd been flying for twenty plus hours.
"We're trying to get our bodies back on Iowa time," Mason said. "But it's a struggle."
"Hopefully we'll make it to eight before we collapse, but I'm not counting on it," Jefferson added. "Let's give you ladies the rundown on what we know about Titus." He plopped onto the large white sectional couch and gestured for us to do the same.
After we settled in, he drew in a deep breath like he was trying to force some energy back into his lungs so he could give us his cautionary tale. "She's…well…let's just say unusual. She hangs around with this guy named Rocky—I know, so tacky—but he's about two feet shorter than she, and she calls him her bodyguard."
"Rumor is they cook up their own special blend to cure what ails you and have quite a following." Mason shook his head. "They're like drug dealers lite."
"You mean like that guy on Breaking Bad?" Ramona asked with way too much enthusiasm.
"I don't think they're legitimate chemists, but yes, the same kind of concept," Jefferson added before trying to stifle a yawn. "You need to fill us in on what this is about."
"You two are exhausted. Let's cut to the down and dirty so you guys can get some rest."
They were amazing for entertaining us in their home when they wanted nothing but to fall into bed.
"Are they going to try to deep-six us?" Alice asked.
Mason chuckled. "I don't think so. But they know what's going on around town."
"Now that you mention it, somebody said that what they sell isn't really drugs as much as a bunch of vitamins and supplements they grind up, put in capsules, and pass off as drugs. But the problem is they've started to attract people you don't want to attract," Jefferson added.
