A Dead Husband (Jessica Huntington Desert Cities Mystery)

by Anna Burke

  “It’s Sara, what do you think? Can I tell her the good news about finding the SD card?

  “I don’t see why not, if you think it will matter to her.”

  “She should know why Roger was killed. It helps makes a little sense of this senseless thing, you know?” Jessica nodded as Laura took the call.

  “Hi Sara, I’m glad you called. We have good news. We found what they were looking for when they killed Roger.” Laura stopped dead in her tracks and went silent. A look of bewilderment spread over Laura’s face.

  “You’re not Sara—who are you? What are you doing with Sara’s phone? I want to talk to Sara!” Her voice began to grow desperate. Jessica and Peter stopped where they were too.

  “Sara, oh thank God, it’s you. What’s going on? Are you okay?” Laura paused for a moment, listening to Sara then sucked in her breath.

  “Oh no, hang on.” Laura covered the phone for a second with her hand so she could not be heard on the other end.

  It’s Sara, Jessica, they’ve got Sara. Sara’s making no sense. They’ve done something to her.” Tears had formed in Laura’s eyes as she handed the phone to Jessica. “Sara says Margarit wants to talk to you.” Jessica took the phone from Laura.

  “Sara? This is Jessica. Where are you? What’s going on?”

  “Sara ees okay, for now. But not for too long, maybe.” The coldness in Margarit’s voice cut through Jessica like the jagged edge of a knife. Sara began to sob in the background, as Jessica’s heart throbbed in her ears. She struggled for control of the fear and rage she felt, willing her body not to shake and her voice not to waiver.

  “Jessica, it ees good news your friend tells her seester. I can’t say how glad I am that you found what we were looking for. Breeng it to me, now. I geeve you and your friends time for healthy lunch. See how thoughtful I can be?” The certainty of her assertion startled Jessica.

  “How do you know we’ve just had a healthy lunch Margarit?” Jessica looked around as she asked that question. Peter March did the same.

  “No more wasting my time. I want that card back today or your friend is going to lose another member of her family. Maybe we make it so her sister joins Roger, or we make her a widow, too. It’s easy to find her husband and make him dead, too. How would that be?” Jessica winced grateful Laura did not have to hear that part of the conversation, or the tinkle of ice that meant Margarit was drinking again.

  “Margarit, don’t do anything rash. Enough people have been hurt already. Tell me what you want me to do. I’ll do it. Please there’s no need for anyone else to get hurt.”

  “Thees ees really shimple Jessica. You meet me at the spa, by yourself. Don’t bring Peter the giant or the handsome PI or the police detective, nobody. Just you. If you breeng them, someone weel get hurt, I promish.” Margarit’s voice was beginning to reveal just how much she was drinking: The accent growing thicker and her speech slurring.

  “Sara and I weel already be there. She will be nice and comfy. I treat her to the spa like I do for you, okay? By the way she looks at me, I think she needs to relax, you know?” Margarit actually laughed. The twisted bitch! Jessica was raging. Her body taut with anger. Sara was sobbing. Laura was sobbing. Peter was scanning the area around them.

  “Okay, Margarit. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

  “No need to rush too much. Sara ees going to pull herself together first, right Sara? Then we will leave my bungalow and go ofer to the spa. Our appointment is not for almost one hour, yours too ees at 3:00. You have plenty of time to get there. You are becoming a regular, huh? A habit that’s eashy to start but not so eashy to break. I’ll miss the place, but where I’m going they will have a good thing like that too. No monkey beeziness, Jessica, okay?”

  Jessica resisted the urge to mock Margarit’s drunken demands by promising no monkey beeziness but instead continued to play it straight. “I promise, Margarit, no trouble. I’ll be at the spa at 3:00 and you can have the SD card. Tell me Sara and her family will be safe.”

  “I have no reason to hurt eeny of them if you do as I shay. I am not like Alan who hurts peeples for the fun of it.” The phone went dead. Jessica was not so sure about the last part. Margarit’s laugh had been so inappropriate. It sounded like she was enjoying what she was putting them all through, and unraveling at the seams.

  Jessica turned to Peter and opened her mouth to speak. But he put a finger to his lips and shook his head. He held out what looked like a business card. Jessica took it from him, Laura peering at it too. On the back of it he had written. “Bug. My car now.”

  Jessica grabbed Laura’s hand and pulled her along to Peter’s SUV. When they got to their cars he took Jessica’s purse off her shoulder and put her phone into it. He had Laura do the same, placing their belongings in the front seat of the Porsche. They both climbed into his SUV while he started the car. He then pushed a button on the console before speaking.

  “Jammer’s on. We can talk but it will have to be quick or your friend will get suspicious. She’s probably expecting to be able to continue to monitor you. I’m guessing there’s a bug somewhere. It could be in one of your purses, on the car, or one of your cell phones. Maybe in more than one place. I presumed she’s had you under close surveillance, listening and watching, easy enough to do from a short distance away. I can’t spot any surveillance at the moment but we don’t want to take a chance. This needs to be quick. ”

  “They’ve been a step ahead of us all week and they knew where I was when they wanted to find me. A bug, but how, when?” Jessica asked, floored by the very idea that Margarit, or someone, had been listening to her every word. How creepy was that?

  “I’ll do a sweep of the house later. It could be on the car. That could have been done anywhere you drove it in the last week. Or maybe it’s in your purse or wallet; a small device would fit almost anywhere. Someone could have bumped into you and dropped it in your bag while you were shopping, getting coffee, or picking up a drink at the bar. If you left your bag unattended at any point someone could have put something in your wallet, your key chain or cell phone without you noticing. That way, even if you switched purses it would move with you. Depending on how sophisticated they are, they don’t even need to have planted anything on you to hack your cell phone mic. We can figure that out later. Right now here’s what I want you to do.”

  CHAPTER 36

  In five minutes, Jessica and Laura were in the Porsche and on their way back to Mission Hills. They tried to sound as natural as they could while realizing that someone was eavesdropping on them. Jessica pretended to fill Laura in on the conversation with Margarit.

  “Like I told Peter, Sara’s okay. Margarit doesn’t want to hurt Sara or anybody else. She just wants what she wants! She’s desperate to get away from Alan Bedrossian. That SD card seems to be the key to her plan. I’m going to do as she asks and take it to her at the spa. Then maybe this nightmare will be over.”

  On cue, Laura pretended to object.

  “I’m going with you Jessica. She’s my sister.”

  “Laura, no, that won’t work. You’ve got to trust me. I’m going take you home, drop you off and then we’re both going to be patient. I’m going to do exactly as Margarit has asked. She wants me to meet her with the SD card at 3:00 at the spa and that’s what I’m going to do. That’s a public place. If she was planning to hurt me or Sara she wouldn’t have set up a meeting there. I want her and Bedrossian out of our lives. This is our best chance of doing just that. Once Margarit has that card back this whole thing is between them again. We’ll be out of the loop, thank God.”

  That last part was the most difficult line to speak with conviction. The entire scenario about to unfold was fraught with potentially unpleasant twists and turns. The most unpleasant possibility was that they would still be on Bedrossian’s hit list even after Margarit got that card back, or that Jessica and Sara might get caught in the crossfire between the two psychopaths vying to get their hands on that card. They had agreed t
o keep to a script that sounded naively optimistic, and completely compliant.

  “Margarit told me to come alone. You don’t want to do anything to make me break my promise and get Sara in more trouble than she’s already in, right?”

  “Right I don’t like it but I hear you. She’s got to be so scared. I am too.” Laura was sobbing. Unlike their conversation, the tears were real. Jessica felt like crying too. She had to hold it together and get through the next couple hours.

  When they arrived home, Jessica still had a half hour to kill. She searched for a less disturbing word—a half hour to fill—before driving to La Quinta for the rendezvous with Margarit. Peter’s relief guy, Gil something-or-other met them at the front door, said hello, and reported that all was quiet. Jessica and Laura mumbled their thanks and went on into the house. As Jessica shut the front door she waved to Peter, who had Gil follow him to his SUV for a private pow-wow. She was grateful they could speak without being overheard, since that option was denied to her for the time being. Fortunately, Bernadette was nowhere in sight, napping or praying the rosary as she often did in the afternoons.

  “Hope you’re including a few Hail Mary’s for me,” Jessica thought. At least she would not have to answer any questions or make small talk. She was not in the mood.

  “Jessica, I’m so nervous I could climb the walls. I think I’m going to go lie down. My head is splitting. Is there anything I can do? Do you want me to stay with you until you leave?”

  “No, I don’t think so. I’m going to make a skinny matè latte. You want one?”

  “No thanks, I’ll pass. Let me know when you leave though, okay? Please promise you’re going to call me as soon as you and Sara are safe?” The tears started to flow down Laura’s anguished face again. When this was all over she and Laura and Sara would all have to run away and get lost on a beach or at a resort somewhere, maybe Hawaii or somewhere in the Caribbean. Even a few days at Newport Beach or Monterey Bay sounded like a place to cool off and recoup from all they were going through. And for the first time in her life Jessica thought she might look for a place to escape without a spa. Depending on what “fresh hell” the afternoon held in store for her, she might avoid spas altogether for a while.

  Jessica rushed over to Laura and gave her a hug. “Of course I’ll call, as soon as I can. You have my word. Please don’t worry. I’m sure all Margarit wants to do is get that SD card back so she can run for it or come to some agreement with that charming betrothed of hers.”

  As Laura moved slowly down the hall toward her bedroom Jessica set about making her latte. Matè was a Latin American drink that Bernadette had introduced them to a couple weeks ago. It would give Jessica a little boost, more alert without getting antsy the way she would if she drank coffee or espresso. She moved methodically as she got a sleek white latte mug from the cupboard, heated water, and dropped a tea bag filled with matè into the water. When the matè had steeped, she poured milk into the mug and stirred it. Her hand was shaking.

  Jessica sat down in the morning room with her drink. Her life didn’t pass before her eyes but she couldn’t help taking inventory. Once again, she vowed to make some changes. First, stop whining about how bad she had it. Jim was a louse, the blond was a skank, but who ever said her life would be louse-free or skank-free? She was still young, rich, and well-educated and living in paradise. Maybe it wasn’t too late to go back to the law, with Paul Worthington’s firm or somewhere else. Maybe she’d even take Father Martin’s advice and do more to understand how things went so far off the track with her marriage. So many options ahead of her, if she could get through the afternoon.

  “To second chances,” Jessica whispered, finishing the matè. Jessica felt more focused and ready to prepare herself for the meeting with Margarit. She got up and tested her foot with the cut on it. She hopped around to find out how best to handle the impact of running if the need arose. Changing into her most comfortable pair of cross-trainers would give her even more support if she had to run for it.

  When she got to her room she did as Peter had suggested and looked around for anything she might take with her as a weapon. The thought of using a weapon of any kind was off-putting. When she had been confronted by assailants, though, she had used what she had at hand to protect herself without giving it a second thought. She had done pretty well with a cell phone and spiked heels. In her closet, she spotted a hat pin protruding from a hat she had bought but never worn. She couldn’t even remember now why she had bought the thing sitting on the top shelf. “Mental note, no more ridiculous shopping binges. You already have enough clothes to stock a thrift store single-handedly. If I get through this, I’m going to pay a visit to Angel View and make a donation, I swear!” Jessica made the sign of the cross, sealing the deal.

  Jessica found a way to hide the hat pin in the outer edge of a stretchy terrycloth headband that she would keep on even after she switched into the resort spa robe. She dug out a small can of hairspray that she tossed in her bag. Peter told her she could use it like mace. Just inhaling the stuff might stop an advancing asshole long enough to let her do some maneuvering. God help him—or her—if it actually got in their eyes. The hairspray would fit in a pocket of the spa robe. Of course, Peter had assured her that she wasn’t likely to have to rely on self-help, since Margarit wasn’t the only one who was eavesdropping on Jessica at this point. She would not be going on this mission without backup.

  Jessica made a last check to see that she had the SD card Margarit so desperately wanted. In her purse she also had a couple of the other items Peter had told her she could use to protect herself if need be. Ordinary things she always carried that wouldn’t arouse suspicion if her bag was searched. These included a ball point pens, a nail file and her keys. The thought of stabbing someone with a hat pin or nail file was gross, but she was not going to go down without a fight. Nor would she let Sara get hurt if she could help it. It was still a little early to make her way to the spa but she figured better to be early than late. Jessica stopped by Laura’s room and found her pacing the floor.

  “I’m going to go ahead and drive to the resort. You try to take it easy, Laura. I’ll be back soon with Sara.” Laura practically leaped over the bed to meet Jessica at the door of her room. She hugged Jessica so tightly she could hardly breathe. That was somehow reassuring, so Jessica did not try to loosen her grip.

  “I love you, Jessica,” Laura said almost in a whisper. “Thank you for doing this for me and for Sara.”

  “I love you too. Don’t worry, I’ll be back soon.” She spoke brightly and dashed out of the room before Laura could see her tears.

  Jessica drove, slowly and deliberately, using the time in the car to try to imagine how things might go at the spa. The simplest version had her meeting Margarit and Sara in the lobby or the women’s lounge in a bizarre mockery of the whole girlfriend spa day thing. She visualized the three of them sitting in the lounge in their spa robes waiting for their appointments making small talk, sipping water or hot tea. Jessica planned to fix the latter since hot tea could also prove helpful as an unwelcome distraction to Margarit if applied in the right way. Yet another suggestion from Peter, about how to use surprise to her advantage if things turned ugly.

  Other more gruesome possibilities intruded. She fought them off, clinging to the possibility that the whole thing would be over in a matter of minutes. A little faux chit-chat would end in the exchange of the SD card for Sara’s freedom, all done in that quasi-public setting without violence. None of them would keep their appointments, of course. She and Sara would get the hell out of there at the first opportunity. Out the front door or the back, it made no difference to Jessica. Help would be waiting. Jessica pulled up at the spa with a few minutes to spare, her heart pounding like a wild thing.

  CHAPTER 37

  Jessica stepped out of the silver Porsche she parked directly in front of the spa. She wanted to leave no doubt in Margarit’s mind that she was playing this thing out as she had been instruc
ted to do. No hide and seek with the car this time. If Margarit was already in the spa it would be easy to see Jessica was alone.

  The sun shone brightly off the gleaming white stucco of the building in which the spa was located. Jessica looked around and saw nothing obviously sinister, no lurking hulks in Armani suits and expensive shoes. Hers was the only car in the small lot. Either she had arrived before Margarit or Margarit was well-hidden somewhere out of sight. She also spotted no evidence that anyone was there to come to her aid, but that was a good thing. Grabbing her bag, she stepped out of the car, locking it with a couple beeps of the electronic key. She started toward the entrance of the spa but stopped abruptly.

  “Jessica, get een.”

  Margarit was sitting in the back seat of a Mercedes sedan that had pulled up behind the Porsche. Jessica couldn’t be sure if Sara was seated next to her or not. The window was only part way down and there was a dark tint on the glass.

  “Why should I get in? We can take care of business right here. You let Sara get out of the car and go on into the spa, then I hand you the SD card you want, and we’re done. You go your way. I go mine. Sara and I will even keep the appointments you were so nice to set up for us.”

  “Slight change of plans. Sara wasn’t so good at pulling herself together for her spa day. She passed out and needed to rest. Come see for yourself, Jessica. She’s at my condo nearby. If you want to see Sara you come with me, now. No stalling to call nobody.”

  Jessica blanched, thinking she might be the next one to pass out. Did Margarit know something? Had Peter March’s team revealed themselves? How? Jessica’s brain had stopped working and she couldn’t think of anything else to do but get in that car with Margarit. Every fiber of her being told her not to do it. With a little shrug of acquiescence she took a step toward the Mercedes. Margarit opened the car door and scooted over, making room for Jessica to take her spot in the back seat. Once Jessica had slammed the door, Margarit said a few words to the driver in a language that Jessica did not recognize. The driver headed down the street leading away from the spa and to one of several exits from the resort.