“I don’t know, Amelia. What do you think I would suspect you of doing? Here I am, waking up to an empty bed and you’re playing sleepovers at that guy’s house. You couldn’t have called?”
“I forgot, I was tired. I’m sorry,” she replied, wishing she had remembered to call him. He still might not believe they were actually working into the early hours of the morning, but at least she could have avoided this particular phone call.
“I can’t deal with this,” Lane yelled before hanging up. The sound of the beeps echoed in Amelia’s ear. She closed the line and returned the phone to her bag, knowing she would have to deal with the Lane situation later. He needed some time to calm down and she needed some time to formulate a good story. A better one than just falling asleep anyway.
Leo brought her a coffee, the steam escaping from the top like a chimney stack. “Trouble on the frontline?”
Amelia let a laugh escape her lips. “You could say that. It seems I’m always either disappointing or angering him. I’m a very difficult person, apparently.”
“I wouldn’t say that.” He took the seat beside her, taking in the murder board with fresh eyes. “Perhaps he just doesn’t understand you.”
“There’s not much to understand.”
“I wouldn’t say that either.”
Amelia took a sip of her coffee, it was exactly what she needed to get her blood flowing again. “I don’t know whether to take that as a compliment or an insult.”
Leo’s eyebrow arched in reply cryptically. “Tell me to mind my own business if you want to, but you and Lane don’t seem to do much but argue. Why are you with him?”
“Why are you single?”
“Who said I was?”
Now it was Amelia’s turn to raise her eyebrow curiously. “This girlfriend of yours, is she invisible?” She pretended to look around the room for her, lowering her voice to a whisper. “Is she here with us right now?”
Leo laughed at the show. “No, I’m single. What gave it away?”
“Psychic, remember?”
“I should have known. But you didn’t answer my question.”
“Neither did you,” she pointed out. “You first.”
He hesitated, wondering whether she would indeed answer his question even if he did the courtesy first. He doubted it but proceeded anyway. “I’m single because my last girlfriend left me. I haven’t found a replacement yet and I’m not sure if I’m in a hurry.”
“Do you still love her?” Amelia asked, not really expecting an honest answer but testing the boundary anyway.
“No, I don’t love her but I do miss her sometimes.”
No matter how long she waited, there was no lie being spoken. She suddenly felt guilty for asking such a personal question. Normally people lied to her, no matter what she asked. Hearing the truth about something so close to home just made her feel bad. “I’m sorry. If you miss her you probably don’t want to be reminded of her.”
“It’s okay, it will be worth it when you answer your question. Why are you with Lane?”
She couldn’t use distraction to get out of answering this time. Not when she felt so guilty. “To be honest, I’m beginning to wonder that myself. I thought I loved him and I do care for him. But it’s getting more and more difficult to be with him.”
“How long have you been together?”
“Three years. We’ve lived together for half of that. It used to be better but he gets suspicious. He tells me I have a wall around me that I use to shut him out,” she shook her head as if to shake away the memories of the all the arguments they had on the topic. “I know I do it but I don’t know how to act any differently. Do I sound completely crazy?”
“Only a little,” Leo teased. “You’re obviously a private person, it’s okay not to give everything to someone.”
“But he’s my boyfriend, I should want to, right?”
He shrugged. “Maybe you’re the smart one. I gave everything to my ex-girlfriend and she cheated on me. I was so hung up on her and it just made the pain even worse.”
They sat in silence for a few moments, the only sound being the coffee as it was sipped from the mugs.
Amelia took a deep breath. “So, murder, huh? Considering today is your last day, perhaps we should solve it already? What do you think?”
“I think today is a great day for solving two murders,” Leo replied, happy for the change of topics. He hadn’t expected the conversation to get so deep so early in the morning. “Did you have any revelations overnight?”
“I was dead to the world, sorry. I didn’t even hear my cell phone ringing a thousand times.”
“Do you ever have prophetic dreams? My mother used to get them occasionally.”
“No, never. I just sleep.”
“Well, failing that, I think we need to spend some time with our friend Master Lou and see if we can work out the connection between him and Renee.”
Amelia groaned. “Does that mean staking out his home again?” She remembered how boring it had been the first time. Combined with her sleep deprivation, it was going to be torturous trying to stay awake in the vehicle.
“We’ll get some more coffee.” Leo smiled.
* * *
Amelia may not have really been psychic, but her prediction for the stake out had been spot on. She slumped against the side of the car, her head cradled by the seatbelt. They had been watching Lou Delaney’s house for close to three hours and nothing had happened. If it wasn’t for his car parked in the driveway, they would have assumed he was out.
Leo wouldn’t admit it but he was just as bored and sleepy. Even with the windows open, it was still warm in the vehicle, and as the day progressed, it was only getting hotter. As soon as lunchtime came, it was going to start getting unbearable.
Thankfully, they didn’t have to wait that long. At a few minutes past eleven, Lou emerged from his house and climbed into his car. As he started the engine, Leo did the same. He wasn’t going to be rifling through his house today, he wanted to find out where Lou went and what he got up to. The only way to do that was to follow him.
Trailing a distance behind, Leo shadowed the blue Honda onto the highway. He weaved in and out of the Sunday morning traffic, keeping his keen eyes on the car. He couldn’t lose him, it would mean the trail going completely cold and his day’s work would be out the door. He focused like his life depended on it.
At exit forty-nine, Lou took the off ramp and entered the suburb. The area they found themselves in was a commercial district, shops and offices dotted along the streets. Being the weekend, there was little actually open.
“Where’s he going?” Amelia asked, wishing she really was psychic for a few moments.
“We’re about to find out,” he answered as Lou pulled into a parking lot. Leo parked on the curb at the end of the block. They could just make out the man as he climbed from his vehicle and entered a set of glass double doors.
Amelia squinted to read the sign above the door, wishing she had listened to Lane when he said she should get her eyes checked. It was an act of defiance to ignore his suggestion but now it was backfiring on her. “What does the sign say?”
“It’s a gentleman’s club.”
“Like a nudie bar?”
“Like a highly expensive and exclusive club for men who can afford to smoke cigars and drink vintage brandy in seclusion,” Leo replied, trying to keep the bitterness out of his voice. He had dealt with that particular gentleman’s club before and knew it was run by a group of difficult snobs. Warrant was their favorite word as they hid behind the law.
“Why would Master Lou be allowed in then?”
“I guess he paid the membership fee.”
“Are you going to go in there?” Amelia grew anxious, fearing they were going to lose Lou if they didn’t get moving.
“I can’t, they know me. I raided the place a few times. I can’t go in without a warrant, I wouldn’t even get through the front door.”
“Well, I can’t
go in. I’m not a gentleman.”
Leo grinned. “You may not be a gent but you’ve got to go in.”
Amelia groaned, fearing he might say that. She listened to the plan as she felt the dread knot in her stomach. She wasn’t made for police work, the covert actions were not her cup of tea. You needed moxie to pull off undercover missions and she didn’t even have an ounce of the stuff.
Yet no more than five minutes later, she was walking into the backdoor of the club and trying desperately not to be seen. Leo knew of all the doors that led into the place and he knew the backdoor was the one most likely to be unguarded. It led to the administration office, unlikely to be manned on a Sunday. Bookwork and paperwork had to wait for a weekday.
She looked around quickly, waiting for someone to catch her and demand to know what she was doing there. But the room was empty, just as Leo predicted. She crept through, finding the door that was supposed to lead to a small corridor. The hallway would lead directly into the club past the doors to the bathroom.
The plan was largely for Amelia to feel her way around and see if she could find Lou. Once found, she was to try and determine what he was doing there. It sounded simple enough but every second in the building freaked her out. She expected to be found with each beat of her heart.
The hallway was clear, it gave her a small amount of confidence to keep going. At the end, she could see the corridor opening up into a much larger room. It had to be the main club area that Leo told her about. It was filled with armchairs and coffee tables, the place littered with newspapers, ashtrays, and glasses of expensive alcohol. It would also be the busiest room of the entire building.
Taking a cautious peek around the corner, Amelia saw it was just as Leo had explained. She guessed there were about a half dozen men seated around the place. Enough to keep the staff busy but not enough to get lost in the crowd.
She spotted Lou, seated by the fireplace that was dormant. He was facing her way, speaking with someone facing the other way. All she could determine was their hair was dark colored and he was probably about Lou’s height when he stood up.
They were engaged in a conversation that looked neither comfortable nor happy. Clearly they weren’t just gossiping about the weather. Lou was leaning forward, lessening the chance of being overheard by those around him. He didn’t need to be so careful, the closest man was at least a dozen feet away.
With hands gesturing wildly as he spoke, Lou was obviously trying to convey something to his companion. Amelia wished she was closer, she bet she would be able to hear some great truths to his words. Whatever he was talking about.
“Uh, Miss?” The male voice came from behind, making Amelia jump. She hadn’t heard anyone approach, lest she would have at least tried to hide. “You can’t be in here. What are you doing?”
She stammered for words, trying to formulate an answer that wouldn’t get her arrested. She couldn’t have Leo bail her out of the station. “I was wondering if I could use your bathroom? Nobody else is open in this entire street.”
The man was unsympathetic. “Try the gas station down the road. These rooms are reserved for our guests only.”
Amelia nodded, not wanting to cause a scene. Having Lou see her might be disastrous, even if he didn’t know who she was. She let the man escort her out without argument.
She had to squint when she was thrust out into the street again. The dim mood lighting from inside was enough to make her eyes sensitive to the sunshine.
She returned to the car, falling into the seat with a thud. She didn’t want to admit she had failed in her mission.
“Well? What happened?” Leo asked impatiently. Judging by the amount of time she was away, he figured she couldn’t have got too far.
“I got caught and escorted out. I’ve never been escorted out of anywhere before.”
“You’ll get used to it. Did you see Lou?”
Finally, she could give him some good news. “I did. He was talking to another man but I couldn’t see his face.”
Leo took out his notepad, more from habit than expecting anything really useful. “Tell me everything you saw.”
Amelia described the club room and everything she witnessed – which wasn’t very much. “Everything looked so expensive inside. How much would it cost to be a member there?” She finished.
“About ten thousand a year at last count,” Leo replied, putting away his notebook again.
“How could Lou afford that? I’m sure construction workers don’t make that kind of money.”
Leo shrugged. “I’ve been wondering the same thing while I was sitting here waiting for you. Remember his old boss said Lou quit his job a few weeks ago? I keep wondering what Lou is doing to pay his bills now.”
“Maybe he is selling drugs too? That could be the connection between him and Renee we’ve been looking for? I know you ruled it out before, but maybe we shouldn’t?” Amelia asked hopefully. She wasn’t sure how much someone could earn by selling drugs, but it was probably more than hauling bricks at the construction yard. Otherwise the risk of being caught wouldn’t be worth it.
“If he was selling drugs, then it wouldn’t have been in cahoots with Renee. She was caught, her supply dried up when her boss discovered her crime. If anything, Lou would be in competition with her.”
“With Renee out of the picture, he could have gained a market share. All her addicted customers would need another dealer. Maybe Lou is that dealer?” It made sense to her, the drug addicts wouldn’t give up their vices just because their dealer was dead. They would search the streets in a panic until they could rest assured their supply would still be available. If there was anyone to benefit from Renee’s death it would be the other dealers.
“I think it’s a theory and I probably shouldn’t have discounted it,” Leo agreed. “But we don’t have any evidence linking Lou to prescription drugs so we can’t be certain either. Like everything else, all we’ve got is conjecture.”
“If it isn’t drugs, how else could he be earning his money?”
“He could be doing many things. For all we know, he could have been paid to run surveillance on Renee. It would be another explanation for the photos.”
Amelia was surprised by the theory. “People actually pay others to stalk people?”
“If they don’t want to get their hands dirty and have enough money, then yeah. But if that’s the case, we’ve got little chance of finding the person paying him. Luck is going to have to be on our side.”
“Is every case like this? Do you seriously have this much trouble finding evidence and clues and stuff?” She watched as Leo nodded. “I don’t envy you. I think I’ll keep my archiving job any day.”
Leo laughed as he started the car to get the air conditioning going. “It’s not always this difficult. For some reason this case has presented a lot of problems. But evidence is always tricky, it doesn’t fall into your lap. You have to go out and hunt it down.”
“I don’t think I’ve ever had enough respect for police officers before. You’ve got a hard job.”
“Thank you for saying that.”
“I’m not just saying it, I mean it.” She smiled, trying to convey the sincerity in her words. She never realized how difficult it was serving the community and she wouldn’t be forgetting it anytime soon.
They spent the rest of the afternoon following Master Lou around town as he ran his errands. He emerged from the club alone after only half an hour and drove to a chemist downtime. From there, it was the grocery store, the dry cleaners, and then home again.
By dusk, it appeared Lou was firmly home for the evening. He had closed his blinds and parked his car in the garage. For all intents and purposes, he had shut up shop for the day.
Leo dropped Amelia home, both exhausted and frustrated with the unproductive day. They were no closer to solving the murders and Leo had run out of time. He was to report to the station the next day, nine a.m.
Amelia watched as Leo left, dreading walking through the
front door of her house. Lane’s car was parked in the driveway, he would be home to argue with… again.
With trepidation, she opened the door. Lane’s shoes were by the entrance, there was no doubt he was home. She could hear the television blaring from the living room.
“Lane, you here?” She called out, already knowing the answer. “I’m home.”
Silence hit her. She could feel the knot in her stomach growing tighter. She just wanted some peace, quiet, and an early night. She couldn’t deal with another argument.
Sure enough, she found him sitting on the couch in the living room. His eyes were fixed on the television, even though he knew she was standing there watching him. The cold shoulder treatment was obvious.
She tried to keep her voice pleasant. “What did you get up to today?”
Nothing. She hesitated, wondering what she was supposed to do. Was he expecting her to beg for forgiveness? Throw herself at his mercy and promise him the world? Or should she just ignore him too, show him that he couldn’t control her like a puppy? She was torn between her pride and trying to repair the damage in her relationship.
Thoughts swirled through her mind as she stood there, dithering. She tried to remember why she was there in the first place. Was it really love? Or was it just habit? Leo’s question echoed in her mind: Why are you with him? She didn’t have an answer then and she still didn’t now. It wasn’t a good sign.
“Are you going to talk to me, or just ignore me forever?” She asked, not so pleasantly this time.
He gave a shrug of just one shoulder, not even deeming her worthy of a two-shouldered one. It didn’t pass by unnoticed.
Amelia stomped over to the lounge and perched on the arm, watching him and waiting for some acknowledgement. Being angry with her was one thing, but ignoring her was ridiculous. In her opinion, he was acting like a child and nothing more. That wasn’t how adults were supposed to behave.
“Look, Lane, I’m really tired so if you want to act like I don’t exist, then I’m going to go to bed. I said I was sorry and I explained what happened. I don’t know what more I can do.”
Liar Page 23
