A Deadly Row

by Casey Mayes

  He nodded. “To tell you the truth, I wouldn’t be able to get anything done here; I’d be worrying about you the entire time.” He turned to Davis. “Let’s see the rest of those photographs. Maybe something I see will make some sense of this mess.”

  “It’s all upstairs,” he said. “We were just getting ready to form a task force, so I had my men take everything up there.”

  “Who all is on this task force of yours?” Zach asked.

  Davis grinned slightly. “Well, so far, there’s you.”

  “Don’t forget my assistant,” he said.

  “I’m not sure I’m all that thrilled with that title,” I said.

  “But you’ll take it, right?”

  “You bet. I don’t care what you call me, as long as you let me in on what’s going on.”

  Davis led us upstairs, and we came to a large, empty conference room with five white boxes perched on a long, folding table. The walls were blank, and there wasn’t a window in the place. Against one wall were six folding chairs and a few more tables, but there wasn’t another thing in the room.

  “We can do better than this,” Davis said.

  “It’s fine,” Zach said. “I can use the wall space to pin everything up, or you can bring in some foil-backed foam insulation board if you don’t want to ruin your walls.” The construction foam board was a favorite of my husband’s. It came in four by eight foot sheets, and it took pushpins beautifully.

  “I’ll have them here within an hour, and I’ll also have a copier moved in,” Davis said. “Do you need anything else at the moment?”

  “No, we’re good,” Zach said, barely even acknowledging the man’s presence. I knew my husband too well. He was already deep in thought about how to catch this killer, and I was going to do everything in my power to help him.

  “It might help if you gave me a little information about what’s been happening,” I said.

  Zach looked at me, clearly distracted by my question, but if I was going to be of any assistance, I had to have some information.

  “So far, there have been two murders that are connected o the threat on Grady. A high-society businessman with a lot of different companies, Hank Tristan, was discovered in his bed stabbed in the heart after a charity ball. The second victim, Cindy Glass, was a little less prominent, a personal assistant to a very important man in Charlotte, but the notes sent afterward along with the souvenirs were from the same person, so we know they’re linked somehow.”

  I knew what the distraction was costing my husband, and though I wanted more details, I understood I had to be satisfied with the information I had. We set up the other tables and chairs, and Zach started digging through the boxes.

  “Is there anything in particular you’re looking for?” I asked. “Maybe I can help you.”

  “This looks like everything was just dumped into a box without any rhyme or reason. I need to make sense of it, but before I can do that, I have to get it organized.”

  “That’s something I can help with. My whole job as a puzzle maker is to find order in chaos.”

  He whistled under his breath, a sure sign that he wanted to say something to me that he didn’t think I was going to like.

  “Zach, don’t think of me as your wife right now. Treat me like an assistant and tell me what you’d like me to do.”

  “Some of these photos are kind of graphic,” he said. “I’m not crazy about having you look at them.”

  “I can handle it,” I said, though if I were being honest about it, the prospect of looking at dead bodies was pretty mortifying to me.

  “Tell you what. You handle the official police documents, and I’ll deal with the rest.”

  I started to protest when he added, “It’s the way I want it done, and I expect my assistant to do as she’s asked.”

  “Just as long as you don’t expect your wife to follow orders,” I said.

  “Do I look that crazy to you?”

  “Where do you want me to start?”

  “Find the case files for the two murders,” Zach said. “If you see any pictures or letters, anything that doesn’t look like an official police document, put it in a pile over by the door. Stack your files on the table. Let’s get started.”

  As I searched through the boxes, I did my best to ignore the content of the photographs I found and tried to focus on their shapes and sizes instead. Once I forced myself to look at them as geometric objects and not photographs that would give me nightmares, things started going much faster. Sorting things was like a puzzle, and that was one thing I loved, and happened to be very good at as well.

  We’d just finished doing a preliminary sort when the door opened and two police officers came in, each carrying a sheet of foam insulation board.

  “Hey, Chief,” one of the cops said.

  My husband brightened. “Sanders, how are you?”

  They shook hands, and Zach introduced us. “Savannah, you remember Steve Sanders. He was my number one go-to guy around here before I left.”

  “Deserted is more like it,” Sanders said with a grin. He was tall and lanky, with a shock of thick black hair and a clean-shaven face. I knew that he’d been in the running to take over for my husband as chief when he left, but if Steve minded them promoting Davis over him, he didn’t show it.

  Zach smiled gently. “Hey, they forced me out, remember?”

  “I know, I’m just kidding.” He looked around at the mess on the floor. “This place looks like a bomb just went off. Do you need a hand?”

  “Thanks, but I’ve already got an assistant,” he said, pointing at me.

  “Three could be better than two,” Steve said.

  “Let me sort this out, and then I’ll let you know.”

  “I’d do anything for you, Chief, and you know it.” He glanced at his watch. “I’m getting ready to get off, but I’d be happy to hang around.”

  “You could put in for overtime, if you don’t mind helping,” Zach said.

  “Excellent. It will be just like old times. What’s the first order of business?”

  “Find Davis and remind him that I need that copier as soon as possible. We’ve got some work to do.”

  After he was gone, I looked at Zach. “Does this mean I’m fired already? Wow, that’s quick.”

  “Of course not,” he said. “Steve can help me make copies and hang this stuff up, but then you’re back on the payroll. In the meantime, why don’t you get us checked in and settled at the hotel? You know how much I hate unpacking.”

  “Are you sure you’re not just trying to get rid of me?”

  He wrapped me up in his arms. “Savannah, I’d never do that, even if I could.”

  “Which you can’t,” I answered with a grin and a quick peck. “I know you’re just trying to protect me, and I appreciate it, but I’m tougher than you think.”

  “Trust me, I know how tough you are.”

  “Okay, as long as that’s settled, I’ll take off.” As I started for the door, I paused and said, “But don’t think you’re getting rid of me for good.”

  “Come back when you’re finished. You can help me lay things out. There are times when I can use that organizing point of view you’ve got.”

  “See you soon.”

  I bumped into Steve in the hallway, and found him deep in conversation with someone on his cell phone. It was pretty clear that he wasn’t happy with whoever was on the other end, but when he spotted me, the frown changed into a smile.

  “Hang on one second,” he said as he buried his phone into his chest. “My landlord’s trying to go up on my rent,” he explained to me, “and I’m trying to convince him how handy it is having a cop live there.”

  “Are you having any luck?”

  “Not yet, but I think I’m wearing him down. If you don’t mind my saying so, that husband of yours is the best cop I’ve ever seen.”

  “He used to be,” I said evenly.

  “I know he’s retired, but I can’t imagine it ever gets out
of your blood, you know?”

  “I’m doing my best, though, to help see that it does.”

  Steve grinned at me. “You keep fighting your battle, and maybe one of us will win.”

  “Good luck with yours,” I said.

  He smiled, and then returned to his phone call. “It’s not going to happen,” he said as he shot me with his finger.

  As I made my way out of the station to our car, I wondered if what he’d said was true. Was Zach always going to be a cop, until it ended up killing him? With his pension and my income from the puzzles, we were comfortable, but it was the excitement that Zach missed, and I knew it. The only problem was that the more he worked, the greater chance there was that he’d put himself in danger. I’d come close to losing him once, and that was something I never wanted to face again.

  THE BELMONT WAS EVEN NICER THAN I REMEMBERED, one of Charlotte’s finest hotels. A nicely dressed man in a suit was waiting at the front entrance with a mobile rack, and he unloaded my car snappily. As he wheeled it to the front desk, I started digging into my purse for a tip, but he held his palm up.

  “Everything is being covered,” he said.

  “Even tips?”

  “Absolutely, Mrs. Stone.”

  “How in the world did you know my name?” I’d heard of good service before, but this was a little over the top.

  “The hotel owner himself told our staff to be on the lookout for you, and we’ve been waiting for your arrival ever since.”

  I started for the front desk when he held out a paper sleeve containing room keys to me. “You’re already checked in, so we can go straight to your suite.”

  “Suite? A room would be fine.” The last time Zach and I had stayed in a suite had been our honeymoon.

  “I suppose I could move you, but it would cause us all a great deal of headaches, what with the paperwork and everything we’d have to change.” He smiled as he said it, so I decided to go with the flow. “Also, the owner would be unhappy with us if we allowed it, and none of us want to cause that. We would consider it a great favor if you’d accept this offer.”

  I laughed. “I’m too tired to fight you on it,” I said.

  He hit the top button on the elevator, and it was all I could do not to say anything. When the door opened, I stepped out and saw in the long hallway, there were only four rooms on the top level.

  As he started to open the door to Suite Three, I said, “You’re not really a bellman at all, are you?”

  “My name is Garrett, and it’s my pleasure to serve as the manager of the Belmont,” he said. “If you need anything, all you have to do is ask.”

  He started inside, but then he stopped when he realized that I wasn’t following him in.

  “Is there something wrong?” he asked me. “I thought we’d already settled your situation.”

  “This is more than we need, and I want an explanation before I move another step.”

  He looked distressed as I stood in the hallway, but I was firm in my insistence that I wasn’t moving. I knew that Charlotte couldn’t afford this kind of luxury, and I doubted that Grady could either, unless he was grand-standing. I had no problem with my husband getting paid handsomely for his work. He was good at it, and he deserved whatever the market would bear. But I didn’t want to take advantage of anyone in the process.

  “I’m waiting,” I said.

  The manager appeared to go through a handful of options when he finally shrugged and reached for his cell phone. After dialing, he surprised me by handing it to me.

  “Hello?” I said tentatively.

  “Is this Savannah Stone?”

  “It is,” I admitted.

  “I understand there’s a problem with your accommodations.”

  What on earth was going on here? “No, sir, no problem. It’s just nicer than my husband and I need. May I ask your name?”

  “Of course. Sorry about that. Garrett is literal when it comes to instructions, and I’ve trained him well not to reveal anything about me that he doesn’t have to. My name is Barton Lane, and I own the Belmont, among other things here and there around the world. I would appreciate it if you would be my guests while you’re here in Charlotte.”

  “Mr. Lane, it’s most generous of you, but it’s not necessary.”

  “Young lady,” he said, his voice booming so loudly over the phone that I could swear I saw Garrett flinch, “I’m unaccustomed to having my wishes ignored.”

  “Wow, it must be really nice living your life. It happens to me all of the time.”

  I wasn’t sure what reaction I expected, and from the look on the hotel manager’s face, I must have just committed an unforgivable act of treason. The thing was, I’d never sworn an oath to Barton Lane.

  What I got was laughter, a sound so foreign in the man’s voice that I was certain he rarely used it. “I like you, Savannah. May I call you Savannah?”

  “Absolutely, and I’ll call you Barton.”

  If I kept this up, Garrett was going to need a team of paramedics to revive him. As it was, he looked like his head was about to explode.

  “Savannah, it would please me for you to use this suite, and anything else my hotel has to offer.”

  “Is there any reason in particular you’re being so nice to me?”

  “The second victim, Cindy Glass, was my personal secretary,” he said plainly, all joy gone from his voice. “I want her death avenged, and from everything I’ve heard, your husband is the only man capable of catching the killer.”

  “Thank you,” I said. “He’ll do his best, and please know that we appreciate your generosity. It’s very sweet of you, Barton.”

  “Think nothing of it. If you need anything, or would like to get in contact with me, Garrett will take care of it. I hope someday we’ll have the pleasure of meeting face to face under better circumstances.”

  “That would be nice.”

  “Now, if you will, give me back to Garrett.”

  The hotel manager took the phone, and as he kept repeating, “Yes, sir. Of course. I understand,” I looked around the suite. My gaze was drawn outside before I even looked at the furnishings. The skyline of Charlotte, in all its glory, was laid out before me, and I couldn’t wait for Zach to see it. We loved the mountains, but Charlotte had a lure for us as well, and here in the clouds, we could see the Queen City’s beautiful architecture from a perspective few people had ever enjoyed.

  I was still standing there taking it all in when I realized that Garrett was off the phone.

  “Is there anything else I can get you?” he asked.

  “No thank you. I’ve got to get us settled in, and then I’m going to rejoin my husband at police headquarters.” I looked around the room and took in a sitting area with furniture nicer than anything I’d ever owned in my life. The style was Queen Anne throughout, with shades of burgundy and black everywhere.

  “I’ll take care of settling you in then, if you wouldn’t mind,” he said.

  “Who exactly is Barton Lane?” I asked. “Forgive me, but I’ve never heard of him before.”

  “He’d be delighted to hear that, since he prides himself on his privacy. I’ve spoken to him half a dozen times since I became manager, and that was fourteen years ago. Mr. Lane has a policy that as long as the job is being done efficiently, there’s no need for direct supervision, or even contact, for that matter.”

  “I’m sure you’re very good at what you do,” I said.

  I wondered what Zach and Steve were doing at that moment, and though I knew it was too soon for my husband to investigate anything outside the command center, I was still uneasy not knowing if he was safe. I was going to have to get over that impulse when Zach was working on a case, but I hadn’t managed to do it so far.

  Garrett handed me the keys, and as we left the suite, I took a second to gaze once again at that skyline view. My husband was going to be thrilled, if he wasn’t already in the muck and mire of a killer’s mind.

  Chapter 4

 
; “SAVANNAH? WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN TOWN? DID YOU and Zach move back to Charlotte?”

  I was in the lobby heading for my car when I turned to see who was talking to me. “Lorna, how are you?” I hugged my old friend, and then I explained, “We didn’t move back. Zach and I are just visiting.” I wasn’t about to tell her why we were really here.

  “How have you been? We really miss you around here.” Lorna Gaither had gone out with Grady for nearly a year before he’d broken the relationship off shortly before we left town.

  “Thanks for asking. I’m good. How are you?” Lorna and I had become friends when she and Grady had been dating, and after the breakup, we’d stayed in touch. Right after things had ended with Grady, I’d had the distinct impression that Lorna blamed me for her relationship woes, though I hadn’t had anything to do with it. If she still held it against me though, I couldn’t tell by her demeanor.

  “I’m doing fine,” she said, and I could see in her eyes that it was true. “I owe you more thanks than I can say. Breaking me up with Grady was the best thing that ever happened to me.”

  “I thought you knew that I didn’t have anything to do with it,” I said. “I was as surprised as you were when he broke it off with you.”

  “Then I take my thanks back,” she said with a hint of laughter in her voice. “However it happened, it worked out for the best. After Grady dumped me, I took a long, hard look at myself, and I didn’t like what I saw. I started going to the gym, working with a shrink, and I finally realized that I’d been sabotaging things all along.”

  “Good for you,” I said, not really knowing what else I could say. I glanced at my watch, and then I added, “I’m truly sorry, but I’ve got to meet up with Zach, and I’m late as it is.”

  “I have a wonderful idea. Let’s have dinner tonight, just the two of us.”

  “I wish I could, Lorna, but I can’t.”

  “Lunch tomorrow, then. Come on, it will be fun.”

  “I’m honestly not sure what our schedule will be like while we’re here,” I said.

  “Then we can make it breakfast. You have to eat sometime, don’t you?”