“If that fucking Detective Carter hadn’t been working First Aid, we’d have Toni here right now,” she said for the fourth time. She rattled the ice cubes in her empty glass.
Jan refilled the drink and made another for herself. She noticed her boss doing that hair thing again and again. If she didn’t get over this Toni obsession, Jan thought, the entire organization was going to fall apart. She had to do something, although she didn’t yet know what. The woman kept checking her laptop screen and there was a black square window in the corner. “What’s that?”
The boss finished her routine of stirring her drink and waited until she’d taken her first sip to respond. “It’s a webcam that Davey set up for me. Whenever Toni’s laptop is open and turned on, I can see her.”
Jan was intrigued. “Can she see you?”
“No. I can hear and see from the camera in her computer, but she has no idea. That’s how I knew that girl was cheating on her and that they were going to move in together. And how I knew she’d be at Pridefest alone this afternoon.” She smiled.
“This could be the way for me to find a time to grab her,” Jan said. “And the next time there will be no mistakes. Let me know if she says anything about where she’s going.”
The boss smiled, but Jan wasn’t doing it for her anymore. She was doing it for herself. Twice something had interfered with her plan and it wasn’t going to happen again. She prided herself on doing good work, and this crap with Toni had been sloppy. Next time there would be no complications and she’d deliver.
Chapter 24
Toni woke up in Boggs’s bed Sunday morning and it took her a minute to get her bearings. Mr. Rupert was snoring next to her, but Boggs was nowhere to be seen. She rubbed Mr. Rupert’s tummy and he opened his eyes and meowed. “Good morning, buddy. Where’s Boggs?”
“I’m here, babe,” she called from the bathroom. She appeared a moment later wearing only a towel. “How are you feeling?”
“Good now. The only thing better than seeing you in just a towel in the morning would be if you dropped the damned thing and got in bed with me. As long as you give me ten minutes in the bathroom first.”
Boggs grinned. “That’s a deal. While you’re in the shower, I’ll make us some coffee. It’ll be waiting for you as soon as you’re done, okay?”
Toni didn’t even respond. She got out of bed, winked at Boggs and headed to the shower. She was careful with her bandage but still needed to put a fresh one on. The puffiness was gone but the bruising was worse. Wearing only a towel, she returned to the bedroom to find Boggs sitting on the bed dressed in a T-shirt. There were two mugs of steaming coffee on the night-stand. Toni took a sip and grinned. “God, this hits the spot. There’s nothing like starting a morning off with Kahlua and cream in your coffee. What’s the special occasion?”
“Well,” Boggs said, sipping her own coffee, “it’s the last Sunday in an apartment.”
“Works for me. I’m so excited about moving into the loft,” Toni said. “For a number of reasons.” She drank a third of her coffee and sighed. “You know, honey, aside from the fact that someone is trying to hurt me, I feel like I’m the luckiest person in the world.” She kissed Boggs on the cheek. “I’ve got you, Mr. Rupert, our new little boy, and we’re about to move into our own home. I don’t think I’ve ever been happier.”
Boggs set her mug on the nightstand and wrapped her arms around Toni. “I feel the same way, babe. I’ve been lucky enough to have a few bucks stashed away, but I was never really happy or content until I met you. Thank you.”
This time when they tumbled back into the bed, they took their time and enjoyed every touch and every caress. It was, Toni thought, more about expressing their love and gratitude for each other than a physical release. That came as a bonus.
After Boggs’s softball game, which they won, they spent the rest of the afternoon transferring music from the reel-to-reel player to CDs and packing. Toni made burgers on the tiny Smokey Joe grill on the patio and they ate their dinner amongst the many boxes. Afterward, Boggs began packing up her elaborate computer system and Toni sat on the couch with her laptop. She checked her e-mail and was pleasantly surprised when she heard the familiar ding of her webcam.
“It’s Aunt Doozie,” she said to Boggs, then turned to the screen. “Hiya, Aunt Doozie. What’s up?”
“Oh, I was just checking in to see how the packing is going. You’ve got less than two weeks, you know.”
“Less than that. In fact, we’re actually moving tomorrow. A little change in plans.” Toni was grinning.
“Oh, my gosh, honey. Are you ready?”
“We’ve just about finished all the packing, and the movers will do all the heavy work. We just have to point.”
“Are you taking that ancient waterbed with you?” Aunt Doozie was laughing.
“No.” Toni smiled. “I’m donating it to a shop that sells stuff from the Sixties and Seventies. They were thrilled.”
“So you’re getting a new bedroom set?”
“Yes and I’m so excited. They’re delivering it on Tuesday. We got it from Bedrooms Galore, and it was quite a deal. I’m off work until Wednesday, so I can have everything ready in the new place.” Toni spent ten minutes describing all the new furniture they purchased.
“Oh, I can’t wait to see everything,” Aunt Doozie said. “Give me your new address again so I can send a card, okay?”
Toni rattled off the new address. They spoke for a few more minutes before disconnecting.
“She sounds really wonderful,” Boggs said. “Will she be here for our party?”
“Yes. They’re arriving the Saturday before. I can’t wait for you to meet her.”
It was almost seven o’clock when the gang showed up.
“The place looks great,” Vicky quipped. “Who’s your decorator?”
“Very funny, Vic,” Boggs said. “Help me move some of these boxes against the wall so we have room.”
Patty was looking at the huge cat condo. “Wow, Mr. Rupert. This is really nice.” She had to reach up to pet him on his perch.
“Boggs got that for him and his new brother,” Toni said. “Here, let me show our new little boy.” She opened her laptop and pulled up the page from Stray Rescue. “Here he is.” She turned the computer so Patty could see.
“Oh, my God. He’s adorable. Have you picked out a name for him yet?”
Boggs piped up. “Not yet. We’ll wait until he’s with us for a bit. See what name fits him. I’m leaning toward Dexter, though.”
“Let me see,” Vicky said.
Toni turned the computer again and Vicky nodded her approval. Even Johnnie took a quick look. Jessie agreed that he was the cutest cat she’d ever seen, with the exception of Mr. Rupert.
“I’m really looking forward to having him home,” Toni said as she closed out the screen and shut the lid of her laptop.
The woman frowned when her screen went black. But at least she’d gotten to see Toni up close for a few minutes. She made herself a drink and sat back down at her desk. Carefully she stirred the Scotch three times with her left finger, tapped it twice on the rim and licked off the drops. She took her first sip of the fourth drink and sighed at the familiar burn of the alcohol down her throat. This was going to be perfect. She knew once she had Toni in her bed, life would never be the same. She wasn’t sure how Jan was going to accomplish the task, but she was positive it would happen. She’d called her immediately after she heard that Toni was going to be off work until Wednesday. She also gave Jan the address of the new place and the name of the company delivering the furniture. Jan had seemed excited about the information and told her to be ready on Tuesday afternoon for her date.
She just knew that Toni was the source of everything that had gone wrong in her life over the last few months. And since everything began with Toni, everything would have to end with Toni. Once she’d had her way with her, her entire life would change. Everything would turn around and there would be no more mist
akes. She ran her fingers through the right side of her hair five times, paused and did it three more times. That sealed the deal. As of Tuesday, her life would be perfect. She took another sip of her Famous Grouse and checked her stocks and bank balance.
Jan was on her second rum and Coke and watching Cops on television. She’d already contacted Mike Johnson and he was going to verify the names of the delivery guys for Bedrooms Galore. Once she had the names of these guys, she’d put her plan in action. It was pretty simple actually. She’d intercept the delivery truck with Billy Hagers. He was a guy from Little Rock who was driving up to Fairfield tonight. He’d also worked with her cousin and could be trusted. He was staying at the local no-tell motel, a place that never asked for identification. She would pick him up on Tuesday and together they would stop the delivery truck. She’d use her police badge, compliments of Detective Johnson, and inform the drivers that they were to stay at the motel until they picked them up again. She’d take their cell phones as a precaution. Each would be given a hundred dollars while the police made the delivery. At least that’s what she would tell them. The plan was for Billy to kill the real drivers when they were finished and leave them in the back of the delivery truck. Billy would then drive back to Little Rock. It was perfect.
Sometime tomorrow, Jan would leave her throwaway car a block from Toni’s new loft. Once they had everything under control on Tuesday, Billy would get the car so Jan could take Toni to her boss. Then Billy would drive the delivery truck to the motel.
The only thing left to do was to have Davey make a small batch of chloroform for her. She’d looked it up online and found that it was relatively easy to make. He’d said he’d be happy to do it for her, so she would pick it up tomorrow night. By Tuesday night, this would all be over. Her boss would have had her fun and Toni would be out of the picture forever. Then things could finally get back to normal, and Jan was really looking forward to that.
Toni had passed out fresh beers for everyone as they gathered in the living room. It was a pretty small room to begin with, but with all the boxes stacked around, there was barely enough space. Toni, Boggs and Vicky were sitting on the couch. Johnnie was sitting on the desk chair that she’d pulled over and Jessie and Patty were sitting on the floor.
“Still no luck with Dead Granny’s missing grandkid,” Johnnie said. “The only information we have is that her name is Jan. They all claimed they didn’t have a phone number for her and we pushed pretty hard. Either they’re telling the truth or they’re protecting her.”
Vicky had her notebook in her lap. “Dead Granny’s phone calls are still coming from Fairfield. A few to Little Rock and a couple to the boy who is probably selling drugs. There have also been quite a few to Mike Johnson. But that’s all I’ve got on that.” She flipped a few pages in her book. “What did you get on surveillance?” she asked Johnnie.
“First is Judge Crayton,” Johnnie said. “She went home after Pridefest and stayed there. A woman came over a little while later and remained there for about an hour. The tags came back to Janelle Conway. She’s forty-two years old. Her occupation is listed as writer, but for no particular company or anything. Maybe freelance. Her IRS records show she makes about sixteen thousand a year.”
“Jan could be short for Janelle,” Toni said. “Maybe that’s it. And Judge Crayton did have really dry and chapped hands.”
“Oh, but there’s more,” Johnnie said. “Nothing is ever as easy as we’d like. Doris Jackson is next. She stopped at Gertrude’s Garage on her way home from Pridefest. About an hour later her assistant manager came over and, get this, her name is Janet Folger. According to the agents watching the residence, this woman is a rough-looking character.”
“Great,” Toni said. “Another possible Jan. And Doris was the one who made the lemonade.”
“True,” Johnnie said, “but it gets better. Karen Young stopped at a liquor store on her way home. About two hours later, a woman came over and stayed for less than an hour. The car she was driving was registered to George Franklin. He’s eighty-two years old. The agents called me immediately and I called Captain Billings. He arranged to have the car stopped when she left. He had some officer he really trusted stop her and give her a warning about her brake lights. Her identification came back as Janice West, age forty-five. Her occupation is handywoman. She works for herself and, according to her IRS records, she makes about twenty thousand a year. She lives a few houses down from old Mr. Franklin. So that leaves us with three suspects who all have contact with a woman who could be referred to as Jan.”
“So now what do we do?” Toni asked.
“We keep watching,” Vicky said. “And Jessie is going back to the bars tonight. Maybe we’ll get lucky and catch the dealer.”
“Tomorrow we close on the house at nine thirty,” Boggs said. “And the movers are supposed to be at each of our places at ten thirty and the furniture delivered between noon and five. Let’s figure out who will be where.”
“I’m going to take Mr. Rupert over to my parents’ house before we close, so he’ll be okay during the move. I’ll pick him up after the deliveries are done,” Toni said.
“I’ll stay with you at your place,” Vicky said, “then go over to the new place with you. I’ve got my phone in case something comes up at work. I already checked with Captain Billings.”
“Patty and I can go to the new place first,” Johnnie said. She looked at Patty, who nodded in agreement. “We’ll do a sweep to check for bugs, then wait for the furniture in case it comes before you guys get there. You just need to tell us where to have the movers put stuff.”
“That sounds good,” Boggs said. “Why don’t you come with us to the closing so we can give you the keys, okay?”
“Perfect.” Johnnie was stuffing her things in her messenger bag.
“Don’t you have to be at work, Patty?” Toni didn’t want her to get in trouble.
“I fixed that for her,” Vicky replied. “Captain Billings has her marked out for court all day.”
With all the details in place, they all chatted for a while, debating who could be behind all this. Each suspect had possibilities, but by the time they left, Judge Crayton was number one on their list.
Chapter 25
By the time Toni pulled in the parking lot at the title company, Boggs was already there, waiting for her with a check from her bank. Toni had taken Mr. Rupert to her parents’ house, telling him she’d be back in time for dinner.
“Did you get Mr. Rupert settled in?”
“Oh, yeah. I showed him where his litter box and food were, and he was off exploring. With all the stuff in their house, he’ll be busy all day. He’s going to be pooped by the time we bring him to his new place.”
“Are you ready to buy our new place?” Boggs asked.
“Absolutely.” She kissed Boggs on the cheek and they went inside.
It only took about thirty minutes to complete the deal. Boggs gave them a cashier’s check for the total amount and they both signed several documents. Aunt Francie hugged them and handed them two sets of keys.
“I’ll be over later this afternoon with your housewarming gift,” she said.
“Oh, you don’t have to do that Aunt Francie,” Boggs said. “Please come over, but don’t bring us anything, okay?”
Aunt Francie just grinned and hugged them both again. “See you later.”
When they went out to the parking lot, Johnnie and Patty were standing beside Johnnie’s car. Boggs tossed a set of keys to Johnnie.
“The alarm is set,” Boggs said as she dug through the paperwork, looking for the security code information. She found it and showed it to Johnnie.
“Nice system,” Johnnie said. She repeated the code out loud once, then handed the paperwork back to Boggs. “Got it. We’ll see you in a little while.” She put out her cigarette and they got into Johnnie’s car and left.
“I can’t believe it’s ours,” Toni said, hugging Boggs. “This is a dream come true.” She glanced
at her watch. “I guess we better get going. I’ll see you soon.”
When Toni arrived at her townhouse, she was relieved to see Vicky’s car already in the parking lot. Vicky was sitting at her front door with two lattés. She handed one to Toni. “Happy moving day!”
“You’re a gift,” Toni said, taking a sip. “Thank you.”
Once inside, Toni punched in the code. Even though this had been her home for a couple years, everything seemed foreign to her. Just the thought that someone had been listening to her in her own home gave her the creeps and she shuddered.
“Don’t worry, sweetie,” Vicky said. “Everything is about done. We just have to watch the movers haul stuff.” She picked up an empty box. “Let’s finish packing up your bathroom stuff and clothes. We’ve got about forty-five minutes before they get here.”
Toni hesitated. She didn’t want to go upstairs.
“We’ll just work quickly and we won’t talk, okay?” Vicky put her arm around her. “It’ll be fine. I’m with you. We should be able to knock this out in twenty minutes.”
Toni took a deep breath and nodded. They went upstairs and didn’t say a word until the last item was safely in a box. Vicky smiled and motioned for Toni to follow her back downstairs.
“Done. That wasn’t too bad,” Vicky said. “I’ve got a huge cooler on wheels in my car. I’ll go get it and we’ll pack the stuff in the fridge, okay?”
Toni touched her gun that was hidden under her T-shirt. “Sure. I’ll start on the food from the cabinets while you’re getting the cooler.” She watched Vicky close the door and Toni quickly reset the alarm. Even though she was armed and Vicky would return in a couple minutes, she was still a little nervous. Don’t be ridiculous. She’ll be back in a minute and you’ve got a gun. Still, she stood by the door and continued to look out the peephole until she saw her returning. She opened the door and let her in. As if sensing her fear Vicky hugged her quickly before wheeling the large cooler into the kitchen.
Compulsion Page 19
