Scottsdale Squeeze: a romantic light-hearted murder mystery (Laura Black Mysteries Book 2)

by B A Trimmer

  “Well, they won’t hear it from me,” Gina said.

  Lenny stuck his head out of his office. When he’s with a client, he becomes very formal and sometimes even polite.

  “Sophie,” he quietly said, “would you please bring in the paperwork on the Jacquelyn Wade case?”

  Sophie had the standard contracts and forms on her desk, already typed up and ready to sign. She grabbed the pile of papers and walked into Lenny’s office.

  I turned to Gina and felt a rising sense of desperation.

  “I really need your advice on this,” I said. “I know Jackie had nothing at all to do with this but all of the evidence is going to point her way. I don’t even know where to start. Reno says to go after whoever made the phone call and whoever trashed the house. Assuming I can find out either of those things.”

  “It’s a good plan,” Gina said. You’ll probably find the two are linked. I’m sure the homicide detectives will also try to make a connection. Now that Lenny has the case, it will give it visibility it didn’t have before. I imagine the DA will be directly involved. It’s not in his interest to prosecute someone who won’t be found guilty and he’s lost to Lenny too many times to go in with a hole in his story. The detectives will look in all of the places accessible to them. So, if you seriously want to bring something new to the investigation, you’ll need to go after this from a different angle. You’ll need to use sources they couldn’t possibly touch.”

  No, no,no, not a good idea.

  “What do you mean?” Although, as I asked, I got a twist in the pit of my stomach. I knew where she was going. I had already briefly considered it, and then rejected it. I wasn’t that desperate. At least not yet.

  “There are a lot of coincidences revolving around the resorts,” Gina said. “Scary people buying and selling them, people inheriting them, and people possibly dying over them. As I recall, you have a direct line to the one person in Scottsdale who knows more about resorts than anyone.”

  Shit, she’s right. But, damn.

  “I know,” I said. “Tough Tony DiCenzo. I’ve thought about talking to him, but I’m really not sure I can do that, at least not yet. The last time I worked with DiCenzo, I got away without being shot, slashed, or blown-up. I don’t know if I’ll be so lucky the next time.”

  “I know it won’t be easy,” Gina said, now with a motherly tone to her voice. “But, I wouldn’t put it off too long. Tough Tony may have some information you’ll need. Murder investigations have a bad way of gathering momentum around one suspect. I wouldn’t want to see Jackie get steamrollered.”

  The person who had me so terrified was Anthony DiCenzo, better known as Tough Tony, head of the largest crime family in Scottsdale. The DiCenzo’s have a controlling interest in about a quarter of the top Scottsdale resorts including the upscale Scottsdale Blue Palms and the Scottsdale Tropical Paradise. They control the private gambling and high-end prostitution in Scottsdale, plus a good portion of the illegal arms traffic flowing into Mexico from Arizona. They provide management and security for several of the local Indian casinos. There’s even been talk in the papers they were in the process of expanding their involvement in both narcotics and money laundering.

  It’s generally understood one of the main reasons the city of Scottsdale is doing so well financially is because there hasn’t been any trouble with organized crime in the last twenty years. Tony DiCenzo runs crime like a well-organized business. Everybody knows their place and everybody gets their share. Even the police seem to grasp the situation and don’t do a lot to interfere. They’ve apparently decided a stable organized crime situation staying hidden in the shadows is better than an endless violent struggle for control of the city by several smaller groups, especially some of the new groups that have been coming up from Mexico.

  I’d been with Tough Tony three times in my life and each time was its own kind of nightmare. He scares the hell out of me and I have no desire ever to see him again. Unfortunately, as fate would have it, Tough Tony owes me a favor. This is not unlike the Godfather or Tony Soprano owing me a favor. I have no intention of ever using the favor, since I know it would certainly cause more trouble than it could ever fix. Even more unfortunately, I knew Gina was right. If there were a resort connection to what was happening with Jackie, Tough Tony would probably know about it.

  Damn.

  ~~~~

  Jackie was going to be busy with the initial interview and paperwork for at least an hour and I didn’t want to sit around doing nothing. I called Terry Lennox to see if I could come over and talk. When he answered the phone, he sounded like he’d been asleep, but he said it was OK to come over. I guessed his band had played the night before and I briefly felt bad I had woke him up.

  The drive up to Terry’s house took about fifteen minutes. Pulling into the driveway, it was as trashed and nasty as the time before. Terry met me at the front door in grey gym shorts and a red t-shirt. They appeared to be the same ones he’d been sleeping in. His long hair was a tangled mess and his eyes had a slightly unfocused look. After he opened the door, he turned and walked into the kitchen. I took this as a sign to follow.

  He went to the fridge and pulled out a beer. He then popped the top and chugged half of it.

  “I already heard about Jackie,” he said, then let out a long belch. “Your office called yesterday and told me. Umm, thanks for finding her and everything. The news is saying she murdered her husband. Can you imagine that? Husband? Seriously? She told me she was divorced, but go figure with chicks, huh? Some of them will say anything to get laid.”

  I took the note from Jackie and handed it to him. He tore it open and read it, although it seemed to take him a long time to do so. He then tossed the note on the kitchen counter and drained the rest of his beer.

  “Well, so much for Jackie-D,” he said. “Sucks too, she was a tiger in the sack. I might need to look into older chicks more often. That woman had some serious bedroom skills.”

  He stopped to look me up and down, pausing to stare at my boobs.

  “But, you know,” he said. “This may turn out to be lucky for both of us. Seems like I don’t have a girlfriend now and I’ve been thinking a lot about you the past couple of days. I’m not scheduled to play again until tomorrow night. How’s about you and me diving over to Palm Springs for the night? I’ll get us a room overlooking the city. If you turn out to be half as hot as you look, I’ll take you shopping on the way back. There’s a sweet outlet mall in Cabazon. I have money, you know. I’ll buy you a couple of Versace dresses and maybe even some Farucci shoes. I’m sure you’ve always wanted to party with a rock star. Looks like now’s your chance.”

  Why me?

  I got a pleasant image of smashing his beer bottle against the side of his head and watching his eyes roll up into his skull as he slowly collapsed on the floor. But, since he was still a client, I restrained myself. Lenny tends to get fussy about me fighting with the paying customers.

  “Sorry,” I said, “I have a lot of work to do tonight. Maybe another time.”

  ~~~~

  I got back to the office as Jackie was finishing with Lenny and Sophie. She had the dazed and vacant look back on her face. I’d seen this several times before --when a client signs the paperwork and realizes their situation is real and not some bad dream.

  Gina was still there and Lenny called everyone into his office.

  “The detectives called and I’ve scheduled an interview on Monday morning at ten o’clock,” Lenny said. “By then, they will have completed their initial investigation and, if the DA agrees there’s enough evidence for a grand jury indictment, you will probably be arrested and charged. But even if that happens, we’ll be able to have you released from custody by the end of the day. Assuming no surprises come up.”

  I looked at Jackie and saw she was focused on what Lenny was saying but tears were silently sliding down her face. I looked at Sophie and saw she was crying too.

  “Between now and Monday,” Lenny said
to Jackie, “I want you to keep out of sight and stay out of trouble. If your friend Pam agrees, it would be good if you can continue to stay at her house. We can arrange with the police to gather some of your clothing and personal effects from your house. Let Sophie know what you need.”

  ~~~~

  I drove Jackie back up to Pam’s neighborhood. As we drove, I asked her what she remembered about the creepy guy who had threatened her.

  “I wish there was more to tell,” she said. “Physically he’s tall, maybe six feet or maybe six-two and he’s built very solidly, like a football player. He was clearly in command of his little group. I really didn’t notice a lot else about him except for his scar and his anger issues.”

  As we turned into Pam’s street, I saw Jackie’s car was now parked in front of Pam’s house. Pam must have gotten it from Jackie’s house sometime during the day. I pulled onto the driveway, then Jackie and I got out of my car.

  As we walked up the driveway, the garage door opened. I was expecting to see Pam, but instead three men rushed out, guns drawn.

  Shit!

  Jackie screamed and ran down the street, two of the men following closely behind.

  The guy holding a gun on me was a small and nasty looking hoodlum, about thirty years old, with dark hair, dark squinty eyes, and a thin black mustache. His lips were curled back in a sneer and he was twitching nervously. Apparently, his boss had run down the street and he didn’t know what to do with me.

  Both my purse and my gun were sitting in my car.

  Shit, shit, shit!

  I ran into the garage, looking for something to help defend myself. I found an old coffee can full of screws and bolts on a counter and I threw it at him. He tried to move out of the way but it hit his shoulder and bounced off.

  While he was dodging the coffee can, I found a can of wasp spray on the same counter. I turned and sprayed him full in the face with it. He screamed and fired off a shot that went wide. He was yelling in pain and waving his arms. I kicked at the hand holding the gun and it went flying. I went to grab the gun but it had slid underneath a tool cabinet and I didn’t have the time to go after it.

  I ran back towards my car. I needed to get Jackie and get us out of there. I had opened my car door when I felt something hard hit my back. I turned to see the guy getting ready to throw a yellow quart-bottle of motor oil at me, there was a hatchet in his other hand, also ready to throw.

  I ran around to the passenger side of my car, trying to evade the guy. His face was turning red from where the wasp spray had hit and his eyes were already red and tearing.

  As I dodged my assailant, a white van pulled up on the street next to where Jackie was running. I was amazed she could run so fast in heels. The door of the van opened and two men jumped out and grabbed her.

  I saw a movement in the corner of my eye and turned in time to see the hatchet flying directly at me. I swerved and heard the hatchet thump against my car. I then saw a yellow blur I took to be the quart of oil. I felt the rough thump as it hit me squarely against the side of my head.

  I saw lights dance in front of me and I went down. I tried to shake it off but I was fading fast. I tried one more time to stay awake and then the world went black.

  ~~~~

  I slowly came back to consciousness with the sun shining in my eyes. I couldn’t move my head, so I tried to put my hand up in front of my face. Unfortunately, my arm wasn’t working either.

  After a few seconds, a head appeared in front of the sun and I felt grateful for the shade. As my eyes adjusted, I saw a police officer looking down at me.

  I slowly rolled over on my side and saw I was still lying on the driveway. There was a lady in a yellow jogging suit sitting next to me. I assumed she was a neighbor of Pam’s. There was a group of about ten people at the end of the driveway, all looking up at me. As I took in this strange scene, another patrol car pulled up, lights flashing.

  The officer asked me how I was feeling. After doing a quick inventory of my aches and pains, I decided except for a bump on the side of my head, I was doing OK. He then helped me into a sitting position.

  I looked into the garage and saw another officer helping Pam out of her house. She looked like she had been in a fight. Her hair and clothes were a mess and her shirt was torn. She also had what looked like the start of a deep bruise on the side of her face. I guessed the men had forced their way into the house and subdued Pam while they waited for Jackie to come back. I had no idea how they knew Jackie was staying with Pam.

  An ambulance pulled in front of the house and a man and a woman hopped out. The man went to Pam and the woman came over to where I was sitting. She flashed lights in my eyes, took my pulse, and my blood pressure. She held up fingers for me to count and asked me if I knew what day of the week it was.

  After about ten minutes of this, she determined I would live and took off to consult with her partner, who was finishing up with Pam. I unsteadily got to my feet then walked over to Pam, who was sitting on a chair on her front porch.

  “Are you OK?” I asked. “What happened?”

  “It was horrible. I got back with Jackie’s car about an hour ago. Then somebody knocked at the front door. When I answered, three men barged in. I tried to get away, but they started hitting me, and then they tied me to a chair. When I heard your car pull up, I screamed as loud as I could. I was hoping you’d hear me and drive away. One of the men hit my face to shut me up then they all went into the garage.”

  The patrolman walked over to us, clipboards in hand. Since we’d been certified to have no pressing medical issues, he wanted our statements. We each took a clipboard and started writing.

  ~~~~

  About ten minutes later, an unmarked police car came screeching to a stop in front of the house. The only reason I know it was a police car was from the flashing red light on the dashboard. The car door opened and a livid homicide detective stepped out. He went straight to the senior officer on the scene and started asking a lot of angry questions.

  One of the other officers walked over to us to see how we were doing.

  “Do you know who called this in?” I asked him.

  “It was a neighbor. We got a call for shots fired and a fight. We were here right away, but by then the perps had already fled. I’m glad to see you weren’t seriously hurt. I’m afraid your car wasn’t so lucky.”

  What?

  My heart sank. “What happened to my car?”

  He pointed and I saw the hatchet the guy had thrown at me was stuck in the front passenger fender.

  Damn it!

  We walked over to my car and saw the hatchet was wedged three inches into the fender. The officer bent over to look at it.

  “He must have really thrown it hard. Good thing it didn’t hit you. You can pull it out after it’s dusted for prints.”

  It figures he threw the hatchet on the passenger side. All of the previous damage was on the driver’s side. My car was now going to look like crap from any angle.

  ~~~~

  I drove back to my apartment. I was a mess and I wanted to change my clothes before I went back to the office. On the way over, I called Sophie and told her what had happened. I should have called Lenny directly but my head was pounding with a bitch-kitty of a headache and I didn’t want to deal with his screaming.

  I walked up the two flights to my floor, looking around to make sure no one was waiting outside my apartment. After the three men had rushed out of Pam’s garage, I was feeling a bit spooked.

  I had opened the door to my apartment, and was about to go in, when I heard the elevator ding, signaling it had gotten to my floor. I heard the doors slide open and I tensed. I then heard the soft jingling of keys I recognized as belonging to Grandma Peckham.

  She came around the corner and said “hello Laura.” She had on a bright purple jogging suit, which went well with her curly purple tinted hair. She was carrying a bag of groceries, so I took the bag while she opened her door.

  We walked into her
apartment and I sat the groceries on her kitchen table. Marlowe was on his chair and he woke up long enough to yawn and stretch. He then closed his eyes and fell back asleep. Grandma went to the refrigerator, pulled out two Diet Pepsis, and handed one to me.

  “You look terrible,” she said. “What happened this time?”

  “It’s been a rough morning. Some men tried to kidnap me.”

  “This wasn’t like those brothers who kidnapped you and handcuffed you to the bed a few months back, was it?”

  “Sort of. But I don’t want to think about it right now. Tell me about your day instead. How is the search for the new man going?”

  “Well, I took the pictures like you suggested and put the ad on the internet.”

  I got another cold shiver at the thought of Grandma taking naked selfies but I shook it off.

  “Any luck yet?”

  “I’ve gotten about a hundred responses so far.”

  “Wow, that’s great.”

  “I guess I’ve still got what it takes to attract a man. Most of them are from out of state, but there are several local men too.”

  “Any of them spark an interest?”

  “There are a few. I’ve been writing to three of them and they all seem nice. Hopefully I’ll go out with one soon.”

  “You look good with the new hair-do, I like the purple.”

  “Thanks, I thought I’d go with a new look to go with having a new man.”

  “How do you feel about dating again?”

  “I can’t wait. It’s been a long time since I’ve been with a man. I hope I can find one who has a penis that still works.”

  “Maybe you should put that in as a requirement in your ad. It might cut down on the disappointments.”

  “That’s a good idea. I wouldn’t want to get all excited about having a new man then go through all that penis nonsense again. Last time, I thought he was going to cry.”

  “Well, good luck and let me know if I can help. If you get serious about anyone I’ll be glad to run a background check to make sure they aren’t a serial killer or anything.”