Diamonds & Disguises

by Laina Turner

  The other women trailed after her, leaving me standing there with my mouth open. What the hell was Bess thinking? Her approach wasn’t very subtle or likely to encourage the women to open up.

  I walked out to my car to leave, giving up trying to get any more information out of these women. They’d be on edge after Bess’s outburst. I spotted Theresa as I was walking.

  She opened the door to a white Lincoln Navigator and, even though it was pretty obvious from her actions earlier she didn’t want to talk to me I figured it couldn’t make things any worse. I had a feeling she knew more than she was letting on and the only way to find out more about Susan was to ask.

  “Theresa? Theresa!” I called out and she turned around. She saw it was me and turned back to get in her SUV. I walked in her direction quickly ,which wasn’t an easy feat on gravel in heels. I reached her just as she was shutting the door and I decided to be obnoxious and knock on her window. She looked at me and I could see she was torn. Did she ignore me and drive off or did she give in and see what I had to say? Her curiosity must have won out because she started her car and rolled down the window.

  “What do you want? Why are you bothering me?” she snapped.

  I’d expected her to sound mad, but she sounded more upset and scared. Why would she be scared unless she had something to hide?

  “I just want to ask you a few questions about Susan Milford.”

  “What? Do you think I killed her?” she spat out as if she was challenging me to accuse her. Her angry demeanor a flip from a few seconds ago. Was this a case of defense being the best offense or whatever that saying was?

  “No. I didn’t say that and it’s not at all what I think. But I did hear that you had reason to not like Susan.”

  “Who told you that? Leigh?”

  That’s not the name I expected. I thought she’d say Bess after what happened. It seemed the more obvious choice.

  “Why would you say Leigh?”

  “She’s not the one that told you?”

  “Do you have a reason you think that Leigh would think you might have killed Susan?”

  “Leigh has a big mouth. Just like Bess.”

  “Susan wasn’t sleeping with your husband?”

  “Bess has a big mouth and should have never said those things about Kevin! Kevin loves me,” she said with a sob.

  “I’m sure he does, Theresa. I’m not trying to say he doesn’t. I just want to find out who might have killed Susan. From what I hear, you’re not the only one whose husband may have had wandering eyes. I’m trying to find out who killed Susan. Even if she wasn’t the nicest person in the world she didn’t deserve to die.”

  “What my husband may or may not be doing is no one’s business. Not yours and not those awful women. I didn’t kill Susan,” she insisted, but not really defensively so I kind of believed her. She didn’t try to defend Kevin again. “What will it take for you to leave me alone?”

  “Where were you that day?”

  “When was that? Sunday?”

  I shook my head. “No. Monday.”

  “Let me see.” Theresa pulled up her calendar in her phone. “I was home all day waiting for the pool guy.” It was all I could do not to chuckle. It sounded so cliché. She looked at me and gave a half smile. I’m sure my face belied what I was thinking about that comment. “I know how that sounds. But our filter went out over the weekend and we called to have it fixed. They gave a window of time and ended up being two hours past that window. I was stuck at home waiting all day.”

  “Do you have anyone who can verify that?”

  The smile left her face and her eyes narrowed. “Why should I tell you? Are you a cop when you’re not a shop owner? You asked me where I was, and I answered you.”

  She was all over the board with her emotions, which made me think there was something going on with her husband and Susan. She was hurting, that much was clear. But whatever it was, was it enough to commit murder?

  “I’m just trying to get this cleared up. It’s bad for business.”

  “No. There’s no one to verify I was home alone all day. Now if you’ll excuse me,. I have somewhere to be.” She rolled up her window and started backing out, almost running over my toes. Not that I think she cared.

  “Well, did she admit to killing Susan?” I whirled around to find Bess standing behind me. I hadn’t heard her walk up and she startled me.

  “No. Did you expect her to?”

  “I doubt she has it in her to do anything so aggressive as murder. A church mouse that one. Kevin will never stop cheating if she doesn’t put her foot down at some point.”

  “Then why did you tell me she might have a beef with Susan? She doesn’t seem to like you ladies all that well,” I said and shared Theresa’s comment.

  “You never know. Sometimes the quiet ones can surprise you.”

  “Do you know if she had an issue with Leigh?”

  Bess shook her head. “Leigh is a bit bossy, but I’ve never seen them argue. At least the ladies seemed to love the mask idea.” Bess shrugged. “They like any occasion where they can spend money on a fancy dress and give away money under the guise of charity.”

  Funny coming from her. Wasn’t she one of those people?

  “Want to come to a party with me this weekend where all the ladies will be and try again?”

  I found it a little odd that Bess was so willing to help me. I mean, what was in it for her?

  As if she could read my mind she said, “I’m bored. I have a husband who prefers other women over me, and my kids are grown. I have nothing else to do so why not help you? Unless of course you still think I might have killed Susan?”

  “Maybe. But I’ll still take you up on your invite.”

  Bess laughed at that. “I’ll text you the details.”

  Chapter 18

  It had been an uneventful day. A typical day at work with no new news on the murder front. I’d texted Willie to see if there was an update and hadn’t heard back.

  I expected Cooper home any minute, though I was surprised he was making it home at all, much less at a decent hour. The last couple of nights since the break-in he’d been working non-stop. He’d called me about an hour ago to tell me he’d be home by eight. I’m sure he’d had another horrible day at work sifting through all the employees trying to find out who might be trying to sabotage Sands Security. He’d personally hired those people and they were a close-knit bunch, which had to make it all the more difficult.

  I’d poured us some wine and set out some cheese and crackers. He had said he wasn’t hungry for dinner and I wasn’t either, I’d had a late lunch, but felt we needed some sustenance.

  I took everything into the living room where we could be comfortable and scrolled through the email on my phone while waiting. It reminded me I should check Find My Phone, maybe I’d get lucky. I grabbed my iPad and tapped on the app. Only expecting to find two devices, since Silk was closed, I was shocked to see three. My laptop. It was online. I gave a squeal of excitement. I took a screenshot and started to call the police department to tell them when the door opened. Cooper was home. He still didn’t know about the mugging and I still wasn’t ready to tell him. If I called the cops now, then I’d have to come clean. I had to make a quick decision. I put my phone down. He didn’t need me adding any more bad news to his plate right now. I would just hope when I did get a chance to call the police it would still be at this location. Or maybe I could find it online again later.

  Cooper looked tired and my heart went out to him. His problems were much bigger than my stolen laptop. “Come sit by me,” I said and patted the space next to me.

  He set his stuff down by the door, came over and plopped down. He leaned over, gave me a kiss and picked up his wine glass. “Too much of this and I’ll probably be asleep in no time.”

  “That’s fine.”

  “No.” He shook his head. “I need to go back to the office. Bill is holding down the fort for me while I come over here, but we sti
ll need to talk to a few of the night staff.”

  “So, Bill’s really stepping up?”

  “Yeah. I know I’ve said it before but I’m lucky to have him.”

  “Did you check out his references?” I leaned forward to grab a piece of Sartori Cheese off the plate on the table.

  He drew in his eyebrows in a questioning look. “Why would you ask that?”

  “Just with all the issues you’ve had, I’m just concerned. These problems started about the same time he did.”

  “You think I’d hire someone without vetting him first?” He sounded a little angry. I didn’t want him to think I was second-guessing him.

  I put my hand on his leg. “No. Of course not. Forget I said anything. I didn’t mean to upset you.”

  “No, I’m sorry. I’m a little testy. It’s been a long week. His references were great, and I’ve talked to other people in the industry who know him. All signs pointed to him being a good employee and knowledgeable in the industry.”

  “Then I’m happy for you that you’re not going this alone. I just wish I could help you more,” I said. “Why did you come here then if you have to go back to the office? Not that I mind, but that’s a lot of back and forth.

  “Well, I wanted to see you, but I also have a meeting across town in an hour, so this was on my way.”

  “Who are you meeting?”

  “Just work stuff. Someone from the outside who may be able to help with this mess.”

  Chapter 19

  I stepped out of the Uber I’d taken to the event venue where I was meeting Bess and as I saw some of the people walking in, I was grateful I’d went with the gown choice I had. Bess told me this was black-tie and thank goodness I owned a store with many black tie dress options without having to actually buy one myself or I’d never be able to afford it. And I was a little old to do the wear and return thing. I wore an off the shoulder black satin fitted floor length dress. It wasn’t easy to walk in, but who cared about minor details like that when you looked hot, which is exactly what Cooper told me when I’d sent him a picture after I’d gotten ready. While I felt I looked nice, his reaction gave me a huge boost in confidence. I paired the dress with silver shoes and silver dangling earrings as my only accessory. The dress spoke for itself.

  I’d even splurged and left work early to go to the salon and have my hair put in an elaborate updo. It wasn’t every day I got invited to a black-tie event like this. I wanted to make the most of it. I felt like I was going to prom.

  This event was a fundraiser for someone running for city council. I’d never heard of him before, which showed how little I paid attention to local politics. It was another case of people spending a lot of money in order to raise money.

  I saw Bess with who I assumed was her husband, standing with a group of people so I walked over. Bess noticed me and motioned for me to come into the circle of people. The group moved enough to let me in. I felt nervous. Like they’d all scream, “what are you doing here?” I felt a little out of place even though I didn’t look it.

  Bess leaned over and whispered in my ear, “Dirt on Susan Milford aside, there are a lot of business connections you can make here.” Then she turned to the group. “Everyone, I’d like to introduce my friend, Presley Thurman. She is an entrepreneur and operates an upscale boutique called Silk. If you haven’t been there you should make a point of it next week.” She winked at me.

  I didn’t expect that endorsement, but it was definitely appreciated. I’d have to remember to thank her later. All the ladies asked me questions about Silk that I was more than happy to answer, but while I normally loved to talk about it I was preoccupied with the real reason I was here.

  A few minutes later Bess pulled me aside, away from the crowd. “Kitty just got here. You should catch her before she drinks too much. She’s a bit of a sloppy drunk and you never know at these events how long it will take for her to get sloshed and for her husband to send her home in a cab.”

  “She didn’t want to talk to me last time. What makes you think she will now?”

  “I don’t but you’re not giving up, are you?”

  While I didn’t plan on giving up trying to find out who killed Susan, I couldn’t help but wonder why Bess was so adamant about me questioning her friends. I headed over to Kitty, hoping when she saw me she didn’t run the opposite direction like she had at the gala meeting.

  “You look lovely.” I approached her, hoping flattery would get me somewhere as it had helped when I talked to her at the meeting. And I was being honest. She did look good in a midnight blue sequined sheath dress. She had silver Louboutin’s, which I would kill for. Seriously, I meant it. I would do anything for those shoes.

  She looked at me apprehensively, which wasn’t surprising given our last encounter. “You again. What are you doing here?”

  OK, fair question albeit not very nice.

  “Bess invited me.”

  At that comment, she curled up her lip like she’d bitten into a lemon. “Why am I not surprised. That woman loves to start up trouble.” She sighed. “So, what is it you want?”

  “How well did you know Susan Milford? Were you friends with her?” I decided to go with the direct approach at this point.

  “Ha! Not in the slightest. She was a nasty woman. Is that what you want! To grill me about my relationship with Susan? Please. You’re wasting your time. I was never friends with her, nor would I be.”

  “Why?” I hoped I’d get lucky and she’d come out and say her husband had cheated. A long-shot but who knew.

  “She was an evil, conniving women and I’m not sorry she’s dead.”

  Conniving and evil because she was an adulterer or was there another reason? How could I ask that in a tactful way? But Kitty started talking again before I could say anything.

  “Any number of people could have killed her. I sure wasn’t the only person who found her conniving and evil. Didn’t your new best friend Bess tell you that already? That Susan had a lot of enemies? I don’t know if anyone liked her. Except maybe Leigh.”

  “Bess told me about her husband too.” Maybe I was being naïve, but my gut told me Bess wasn’t the one who killed Susan. Though maybe her being so interested in helping me and telling me these things were to cast suspicion on others besides herself. I couldn’t dismiss that thought.

  “Then you know she had the same motive as me and many other people.” That seemed to verify her husband had cheated.

  “If you didn’t kill Susan, who do you think did?”

  “It could be any number of people, but unlike Bess, I’m not going to gossip out of turn.”

  That didn’t stop me. As long as she was standing here, I was going to ask questions. “What else did she do besides sleep with people’s husbands? Why did you think she was so evil?” Even as the words came out of my mouth, I realized how ridiculous it sounded. Adultery would be enough to drive some people to murder without any other transgressions.

  Kitty hesitated before speaking. “Susan wasn’t content to just sleep with people’s husbands, but she also tried blackmailing a few to keep quiet about it.”

  Well, that would add insult to injury. The people she’d done that to would have double the reason to hate her. No wonder Kitty thought she was evil. I wonder why Bess hadn’t mentioned it.

  “Bess didn’t tell you that part, did she?” Kitty must have sensed by the look on my face at that information that Bess hadn’t told me.

  I shook my head and Kitty smirked a little. “Of course not. Bess was more mad Susan tried to get money from them to keep the affair quiet than the cheating. She’d do anything to keep her reputation pristine. Why else do you think she’s throwing everyone else under the bus?” she said. That did give Bess more motive, but I still didn’t see her as a murderer. “Listen. I didn’t kill Susan. Believe me or don’t believe me, but I’ve talked about that dreadful woman long enough. It’s giving me a headache. Please excuse me.”

  As Kitty walked away I couldn’t
help but wonder why if Bess wanted to be helpful, as she’d portrayed, she had kept this information from me. Didn’t she want me to know she had other motives which would throw more suspicion on her?

  “Did you find anything out?” Bess snuck up behind me.

  “I did. Why didn’t you tell me Susan was also a blackmailer? And that she was blackmailing you?” I hissed. I was annoyed more at myself for taking what Bess had been telling me at face value.

  Bess didn’t even flinch. What did that mean? Was she expecting me to find out at some point? So, the fact Kitty had obviously filled me in was no shock. Or was she that good at hiding her feelings?

  “Darling, blackmail isn’t nearly the motive to murder that affairs are. I didn’t see it as important.”

  I didn’t agree with her logic, but I also knew arguing wouldn’t change anything. To know she purposely hid it from me did change a little about how I felt about her. I needed to be a little more cautious about why she was being so helpful.

  Before I could ask any more questions, Bess spotted someone she wanted to talk to and left me. I grabbed another champagne from a waiter circulating with a tray of them, something I’d only see before in the movies, and looked around. I didn’t have anyone else specifically to talk to and now, after what Kitty said, the fact that anyone could have killed Susan sunk in. Maybe I should just leave it up to Willie. The murder wasn’t affecting Silk, which was my initial motivation for investigating. Now I was simply curious, but was it worth spending my time on something I had no business sticking my nose into? I spotted Leigh across the room talking to our host for the evening. I hadn’t met him yet, I just recognized him from the posters around the room and I felt I should. I walked over to where they were talking but as I got close, I realized they weren’t having a normal conversation. Rather they seemed to be angry at each other. At least that’s what it looked like by the expressions on their faces. Just as I got in earshot, Leigh noticed me, and she plastered a smile on her face. It was clear whatever it was they were arguing about they hadn’t resolved it, nor did she want me to know.