Stilettos & Scoundrels

by Laina Turner

  Chapter 21

  The next morning, Katy and I met at the knockoff Starbucks out at the strip mall. It wasn’t as sunny and bright as the day before. Looking like rain, the sky was that dull gray that made you want to curl up on the couch with a blanket and hot soup. Katy didn’t want to meet at Betty’s for some reason, and my thighs didn’t need to meet there either. I had to stop with the muffins, the cheesy fries, and my mother’s cooking. Katy had called last night and asked me to meet her for coffee so that she could explain the whole Chris situation. I was glad because I had questions to ask Katy, and it seemed like my friend was ready to open up about the situation. Suddenly a small yellow car flew into the lot, fishtailing to a stop six feet in front of us.

  “What the hell is wrong with that driver?” I asked Katy, trying to dodge flying gravel.

  “I don’t.... that’s Tobey’s car.”

  As she said this, Tobey stepped out of the car, disheveled and frantic. Something was wrong.

  “It’s about time I found you, Presley. I’ve been looking all over town for you. Where is Cooper?” Tobey asked breathlessly.

  “Why? What’s wrong?”

  “I think Chris is in danger. You and Cooper have to help him,” Tobey pleaded.

  “Tobey, calm down. Why is Chris in danger?”

  “Listen, we have to get Cooper. I don’t have time to tell this story twice.”

  I dialed my cell phone. The look on Tobey’s face left no room for doubt. Something was really, really wrong. Cooper had planned to meet me later after he and Dirt talked to the Feds about what they knew. Last I heard, they hadn’t been able to get a hold of Simon or Chris. They had decided that as much as they might not want FBI interference, it would be a good idea to share information, not wanting to wait any longer. After all, we all had the same goal—to catch a killer.

  “He’s probably still at the police station,” I said to Tobey while it rang.

  “Hello.”

  “Cooper, where are you?” I said urgently.

  “I’m pulling out of the police station parking lot right now. Are you okay?” he demanded, sensing my mood.

  “I’m fine,” I assured him. “But I think Chris might be in danger. Tobey is here and is having a full–blown meltdown. He says he has to talk to you. Meet us at Betty’s. We can be there in ten minutes.” The police station was on the other side of town, so if they met at Betty’s, it was in the middle and would be faster.

  “I’m on my way. What’s going on, Pres?”

  “Just meet us there.” I looked at Katy and Tobey. “Get in,” I said to both of them, jumping in my Kia and putting the key in the ignition. As I pulled out into traffic to head across town, I tried again to get Tobey to tell me what was going on. Chris had to be involved in this mess somehow. We had been right all along. But why was he in danger?

  “Tobey, you’ve got to tell me what’s going on,” I said, speeding the few miles to meet Cooper.

  “Just hurry up and get there, and I promise I will tell you everything,” Tobey yelled.

  “Calm down, Tobey,” Katy said, grabbing his hand and giving it a squeeze. “It can’t be that bad.”

  “Yes, it is. We are running out of time,” he said, glancing at his watch. “It may be too late already.”

  “We’ll be there in two seconds,” I said, turning the corner, which led right to the parking lot of Betty’s. As I turned in, I saw Cooper was already there. He must have been flying. As we pulled in, he was stepping out of his car. I came to a stop right next to him, and he reached for my door. Tobey and Katy jumped out as Cooper started to speak.

  “Can someone please tell me what’s going on?” he asked while looking intently at me. We all looked expectantly at Tobey.

  He looked back at us, obviously gathering his thoughts. Finally, after what seemed an eternity, he started speaking. “I’m afraid for Chris. I think he got himself in big trouble. He’s in way over his head, and I think his life may be in danger,” Tobey forced out in a rush of words.

  “Tobey, slow down. What is Chris mixed up with?” Cooper quickly changed from being concerned about me to focusing on what Tobey had to say. I admired how calm he was in a crisis. I guessed that was what made him good at his job.

  Tobey took a deep breath and started to speak again. “Chris is mixed up with some bad people, and it’s all my fault. You have to help him!”

  “How is it your fault?” I asked Tobey.

  “He was blackmailing the senator.”

  The three of us stared at Tobey in shocked silence. I’d thought Chris was involved somehow, but this wasn’t exactly what I expected.

  Cooper was the first to break the stunned silence. “Why, Tobey? What did he have to gain?”

  This was what we hadn’t been able to figure out when we’d discussed Chris as a likely suspect. What was in it for Chris? What was his motivation? It couldn’t just be because of Helen.

  “He didn’t have anything to gain.” Tobey’s voice caught in his throat. “He was doing it for me. When the senator found out I was gay, he was going to fire me. I had counted on this job getting me noticed and onto the next level. Being in politics is all I’ve ever wanted. I was angry that he’d fire me after all I had done for him, and I went to Chris. Chris knew about the senator’s gambling problem and threatened to expose him unless he kept me on the payroll and helped further my career.”

  I still wasn’t sure how this put Chris in danger. I started to ask Tobey about it, but out of the corner of my eye, I saw Cooper shake his head, motioning me to be quiet. We waited for Tobey to continue.

  “Bobby had witnessed Tom losing big in Vegas. Bobby mentioned it to me, and I told Chris, who thought it would be just the information we needed to shut Tom up,” Tobey said hoarsely. “But then Tom was murdered, and things have been spinning out of control. Chris called me about an hour ago to tell me that he and Helen were meeting someone out at the old warehouse and that this would be settled once and for all.”

  Cooper and I looked at each other. What in the world did Helen have to do with this and why was she with Chris, besides the obvious sex part? I could tell Cooper was thinking the same thing.

  “Tobey,” Cooper said gently. “Why would Chris be with Helen?”

  “She’s known about the blackmailing all along. She is the one who encouraged Chris to do it. She knew that Tom would cave. He didn’t want to blemish his career, and she thought she could use it as leverage,” Tobey said bitterly. “If it wasn’t for her, I don’t think Chris would have gotten this involved.”

  “Tobey, why would Helen care? What does she have to gain?” I asked.

  “She wanted to divorce Tom, but he wouldn’t hear of it. Said it would hurt his political career and she owed him. She convinced Chris that Tom would relent under the blackmail scheme, and she pushed him until he gave in.”

  “Why would that matter to Chris?”

  Tobey looked at me as if I were stupid. “Because he loves her, Presley. She said if he blackmailed Tom and she was able to get a divorce that she wanted to marry him. He’s doing it for her. In fact, I think Chris killed the senator for Helen.”

  “What!” Katy and I exclaimed.

  “I think Chris killed the senator for Helen,” Tobey repeated. He was beside himself with emotion.

  “Tobey, why would you think that? Blackmail is one thing, but murder? Chris isn’t that kind of guy.” However, I wondered. I hadn’t had much contact with him in years, so anything was possible. This all seemed so surreal.

  “I know he was at their house the night Tom was killed. I asked him if he had seen anyone else or had any ideas about what happened. He wouldn’t say anything. He just clammed up. I got the feeling he was trying to protect me.”

  “But to kill someone?”

  “You don’t understand, Presley. He’s head over heels for Helen. He would do anything for her. Sorry, Katy.” Tobey realized too late how all of this would affect Katy, but better she hear it now than to go on thinking
Chris was her knight in shining armor.

  Katy shook her head and grimaced. I just stood by feeling helpless. Hopefully, this would be the final straw for Katy and she’d finally stay away from Chris.

  Tobey shifted his weight impatiently. “We need to go to the warehouse. Every minute we waste talking about it could be fatal for Chris.”

  “We need to call Dirt,” I said to Cooper. His back was to me, and he stepped a few feet away. He already had his phone out and was dialing. Someone must have picked up because I could see him talking into the phone. He snapped it shut and turned back to me.

  “Wonder where he’s at? He never showed up to talk to the FBI, and I have left him several messages.”

  “Was that who you were just talking to? The FBI? Maybe something else happened and he’s tied up?”

  “Could be. Just funny that no one at the station knew where he was at.” Cooper shrugged. “Pres, you and Katy take Tobey back to your house and wait for us there.”

  I glared at him with what I hoped was my dirtiest look yet. Had he not learned anything about me? Did he think he would be able to get away with leaving me out? “Oh, no you don’t. I’m going with you,” I said.

  Cooper sighed. “It’s not safe, Pres. And I don’t have time to argue with you.”

  “Then don’t argue. Just face it, I’m going.”

  “Fine! Katy take Tobey’s car back to the Thurmans’ and stay there until you hear from us.”

  Katy nodded in agreement. She had no desire to be involved in this, especially where Chris was concerned. She took Tobey’s arm, but he snatched it away and looked at Cooper.

  “You can’t go without me either. I’m his brother.”

  “Don’t worry, Tobey. Let Katy take you back to the house. I’ll make sure nothing happens to Chris. Just trust me.”

  “No,” Tobey said firmly. “I would rather be in danger than to have to wait and wonder what was going on.”

  If the situation weren’t so dire, I would have to laugh at Cooper’s face. I could tell he would have been happy locking both me and Tobey up somewhere so he could leave us behind. The clenched jaw and throbbing temple gave me a clear picture of how much effort he was using to stay calm. Poor Cooper. He would have to get used to having sidekicks.

  The three of us sped down the road to the old warehouse, and I could tell there were a million things running through Cooper’s head. He stared stone–faced at the road.

  “What’s the plan?” I said, gripping the door handle. I peeked at the speedometer and saw that he was pushing ninety. This made me a little nervous—not that he was speeding—hell, I did that all the time and had the tickets to prove it, but rather that he felt such an urgency to speed. “Do we need to go this fast?” I asked, looking over at him. His side profile was nice, even with his jaw set and the cords in his neck taut. He was ready for something, but I wasn’t sure what yet.

  He glanced over at me. “I can only hope we don’t come across any cops. If Dirt doesn’t get my message...” he trailed off, looking at me again.

  “What if bringing in the police makes it worse?” asked Tobey.

  “It’ll be fine, Tobey. Cops are trained for this.”

  “But still...” Tobey started again.

  “Tobey,” I interrupted. “You can trust Cooper.”

  “I’m just so worried.”

  “It’ll be okay, Tobey.”

  “So, what’s our plan?” I asked Cooper again.

  Cooper just looked at me with a dirty expression of his own. I punched him in the arm.

  “What the hell did you do that for? You know it’s not smart to hit the driver when they’re trying to concentrate on the road.”

  “I have the utmost confidence in your driving ability,” I said hotly. “But if you don’t start including me, I’ll hit you again. Harder,” I threatened.

  He grimaced slightly. “I think that Chris and Helen are meeting Garrison at that warehouse. It’s the only thing that fits.”

  “Do you think that somehow Chris is a partner with Garrison in all of this?” I asked.

  “No,” he replied. “I think he has his own agenda. I’m just not sure what it is.”

  I started to follow his logic. “So you think Garrison is trying to get Helen to make good on the debt and Chris is stepping in to defend her?”

  “I’m not sure but it looks that way.”

  “That’s crazy,” I continued. “What the hell is Chris thinking?”

  “That’s what I’m afraid of, Presley. He’s not thinking. If he were, he wouldn’t think he could go up against a member of the Mob. He doesn’t need to worry so much about Simon, but the rest of them...” he trailed off.

  “Oh my God,” Tobey groaned from the back. “He is no match for any of those guys. Can you drive any faster?”

  “Surely Chris would know that he would lose going up against them,” I said, ignoring Tobey in the back.

  “I would think so, Pres.”

  “They say love is blind,” I said sarcastically, shrugging.

  “And stupid,” he muttered under his breath.