High Jinx

by Shannon Esposito

  I quietly slipped back to the front of the room to wait for everyone to get settled.

  By the time class was over, I was starving but I still had some spa duties to take care of, not to mention Buddha to walk and feed. I grabbed a protein bar from my emergency stash and took Buddha out to the ‘garden’ for his bathroom break. Heading back through the main lobby to get to the elevator up to the suites, I almost walked right under a ladder. Stopping myself dead, I went around it – not that I was superstitious but there was no use in tempting fate. I smiled up at the worker wrapping a string of black-lit skulls around the chandelier as I passed by. Decorations were being hung for the big Halloween bash this Saturday night and who didn’t love a party? Everyone was buzzing about it. Luckily, the costumed ones at this party would be the dogs. It wasn’t required for people to dress up in costume but it was black tie, so I needed to go raid Hope’s closet this week.

  A costume for Buddha was on my mind as I came around the corner to find Novia, one of the maids and a friend of mine, crumpled and crying in the hallway. I raced up to her, thinking maybe she’d run into a spider. She was deathly afraid of the creatures. I soon realized by the devastated look on her face that this was way more serious.

  ‘Novia, what’s going on? What happened?’

  She was clutching a cell phone in one hand and grabbed my hand with the other. It was shaking. ‘Oh, Elle.’ A string of Spanish erupted from her before I could stop her.

  ‘English, Novia,’ I gently reminded her.

  ‘Si, sorry. It’s my sister, Breezy. She has been arrested … for murder!’

  I stared at Novia, blinking and trying to process. ‘I don’t understand.’

  ‘Asesinato! Murder! You have to help us.’ Her red-rimmed eyes widened as she squeezed my hand harder. ‘Si, your boyfriend, he is detective, no?’

  ‘Yes,’ I said cautiously. Murder was serious. I wasn’t sure I wanted Devon getting involved in another murder case. The last one I involved him in got him shot. Besides, things were really heating up with his parents’ investigation right now, so I knew he didn’t have time to take on another case.

  ‘Si, si, he can help prove she’s innocent. Like he did Dr Ira! Oh, Elle, she did not do this, what they say. She would never hurt Michael. She loved him.’

  My heartbeat stuttered when I finally understood the connection. ‘Michael? Oh, God, Michael Beckley.’ Of course. The photo of Novia with the Beckley maid on her dresser. That was her sister, the maid I’d met. But why on earth … Then I remembered the photo of Breezy and Michael. And the voodoo dolls tied together. She loved him? That was not good.

  Novia had started to sob hard again. I was probably going to regret this, but how could I refuse to at least have Devon talk to her? Maybe he could recommend someone to help them. I pulled her in for a hug and then made her look at me.

  ‘OK, here’s what we’re going to do. I’m going to call Devon, we’re going to sit down with him and you’re going to tell him everything you know. And I mean everything, Novia.’ Were Breezy and Michael having an affair? If so, she needed to be upfront about it. ‘I can’t promise you anything because he’s very busy right now on another case, but he definitely can’t help Breezy if you lie to him.’

  She was nodding furiously, her eyes filling with hope. ‘Si. I understand. Everything.’ She clutched me again. ‘Oh, gracias, Elle.’

  ‘’Ello, love.’ Devon’s sexy voice picked up after the second ring.

  Closing my eyes, I couldn’t help but smile. ‘Hey yourself.’ I was stretched out on one of the suite beds, my head resting on a three-hundred-dollar, fire-hydrant-shaped pillow. Buddha was rubbing his face with glee on the even more ridiculously expensive comforter. ‘Got a sec?’

  ‘For you? Eternity.’

  Promises, promises. As much as I hated doing this, I had no choice. ‘Are you with Detective Vargas by any chance?’

  ‘No, just Quinn.’ Quinn was his friend from Ireland who’d come to Florida in August with some information about Devon’s parents he thought might help. He apparently could only stay for ninety days without applying for a visa, so they were spending every spare minute working to try to solve his parents’ murder. Luckily for Devon, his parents had retained dual citizenship when they were alive, so he was automatically considered a US citizen and didn’t have to worry about how long he was in the US. Lucky for me, too. ‘I’ll be chattin’ with her later though. Did you need something?’

  ‘Yes, actually. I know your priority right now is your parents’ case but my friend, Novia, is really upset and asked for your help. Her sister, Breezy, is one of the Beckleys’ maids and she’s just been arrested for Michael Beckley’s murder.’

  There was a beat of silence, and then, ‘Really? The maid?’

  ‘Yeah, so I was wondering if you could find out from Detective Vargas what evidence they have against her and maybe later come talk to Novia?’ He hesitated and I knew it was going to be hard for him to commit to any other cases right now. ‘Just one conversation to see what you think. And then you can maybe recommend someone to help them.’

  ‘All right. We’ll have a chat when I pick you up then.’

  I smiled, knowing he was doing this for me. It meant a lot. ‘Thank you.’ I rolled my head toward Buddha when we disconnected and sighed. ‘Why do I have a feeling I’m going to regret this?’

  SIX

  The three of us sat on a bench out the back of the Pampered Pup in the gardens. It was enclosed so well-behaved dogs could roam, though Buddha was stretched out in the grass at my feet as usual. Devon had offered to buy dinner at Café Belle, but Novia said she was too upset to eat. She sat on the edge of the bench, twisting a Kleenex. Frizzy hair framed her round face, and her eyes were fixed hopefully on Devon.

  ‘I’m afraid I don’t have good news,’ Devon said quietly. ‘I talked to Detective Farnsworth, the lead detective on the case. They brought Breezy in for questioning because witnesses spotted her runnin’ from the kitchen just ten minutes before Elle found Michael. Her fingerprints were also the only ones, along with Michael’s, pulled from the waist belt of the climbing harness, which was supposed to hold Michael up but was severed. And though the knife they believe was used to cut the cord was clean, a drop of Breezy’s blood was found on the floor beneath Michael. They arrested her on suspicion of murder after she admitted to being with him during the twenty-minute window in which he was killed. Though she explained the drop of blood – she said she was helping him set up the prank and poked her finger on a broken sequin while she was helping him zip up – they believe she was the last one in the kitchen with him.’

  ‘Well, except for the real killer,’ I offered. I thought about Breezy running past me in a hurry and how the lady in the kitchen was upset with her for not being where she was supposed to be. Was that just because she was helping Michael with his prank? Twenty minutes? That’s a pretty wide window when it probably only took the killer thirty seconds to cut the rope and skedaddle. ‘How did they come up with the time of death?’

  ‘Besides body temp, it’s the time frame between the time two servers saw him entering the kitchen alive and the time you found him.’

  Can’t argue with that. I nodded for him to continue.

  ‘They also found the voodoo dolls in her bedroom, bound and leaning against the picture of her and Michael together. They’re working on the theory she killed him because of some kind of lovers’ quarrel.’

  ‘She did not do what they say! She could not!’ Novia’s tears burst from her eyes, streaking her face. Her hand made a sweeping motion. ‘Voodoo dolls? This is what they say? Yes, she loved him but she only wanted the best for Michael, for him to be happy. Everyone thinks voodoo is for bad intentions. Ridículo! She uses these dolls for Mr and Mrs Beckley to fix their marriage. She was concerned because she says Mr Beckley has a mistress. She saw him talking on the phone last week, whispering like to a lover, and he seemed very upset. He hung up quickly when Mrs Beckley came in the room.
Breezy, she just wanted to help. She have a soft heart. And Mrs Beckley, well … she has her own secrets, you know.’ She turned her face away.

  Devon nodded and then glanced at me. Worry darkened his eyes. ‘That’s definitely something your sister needs to tell the detectives if she hasn’t already. What else can you tell us about your sister’s relationship with Michael Beckley?’

  Novia shrugged and glanced up at the sky. ‘She’s been working for his family for seven years, since she was eighteen. Mr Beckley has always treated her like a daughter. He got her involved in running, took her to her first marathon, but my sister, we have no men in our life, you see? Just me and her and our madre. So, she does think she loves him, you know … romantically. But she would never hurt him. They need to understand that.’ She covered her mouth and closed her eyes. We gave her a moment. When she opened them, she clutched her heart. ‘She’s so … how you say? Sensitive? She cannot survive in a jail. Will you help her, Mr Burke? I cannot pay you much but I will give you all my savings. I beg you.’

  Devon stared at his black boots for a hard moment. Then, glancing at me, he said, ‘I’m not going to take your money, Novia, because I’m not sure there’s a whole lot I can do at this point. They’ve arrested her on suspicion of murder and they’ve got thirty days to file formal criminal charges. If for some reason the prosecutor doesn’t formally charge her by then, she’ll be released. As of now, they’ll set bail and she can be released to await formal charges … if she can make bail, which will probably be around two million.’

  ‘Two million dollars?’ We both watched Novia’s eyes widen in horror. My heart broke for the family. I knew they couldn’t come up with ten percent of that to get Breezy released through a bail bondsman. They would have no choice but to leave her in jail.

  Devon rubbed his jeans roughly with both hands and mumbled something under his breath. ‘Does she have an attorney?’

  Without looking up, Novia said, ‘Si. They’ve assigned her one.’ The tears came again on a little choke of despair.

  I understood her despair but I knew Devon was right. What could he do? His attention and resources were in another place. He reached over and squeezed my hand. ‘All right, then. If Elle is willing to poke around a bit and finds something she needs my help with, I’ll be glad to see what I can do.’

  Me? Poke around a bit? I immediately began to shake my head. Did he not remember what happened a few short weeks ago? He really wanted me involved in investigating another murder? I sat up straighter as they watched me because I suddenly couldn’t take a deep breath.

  I tugged at the yin-yang necklace beneath my shirt. It felt tight against my throat. ‘I’m sorry,’ I choked out, staring from Devon to a hopeful Novia. ‘I just don’t know how …’ Don’t know how I could put myself in danger again. Was that selfish? Or self-preservation? ‘How I could do anything that the police can’t.’ I gave Devon a pleading look. Please don’t put me in the middle of this. Saving her from spiders was one thing. But asking me to save her sister by poking around for a murderer quite another. I felt a touch of anger spark with anxiety as the fuel. ‘Devon, you’re the one who’s trained in investigating. I’d have no idea how to prove Breezy’s innocence.’

  Wait a minute … maybe this was just his way of being able to take the case without taking her money? Maybe he just needed Novia to believe it was me who was going to be doing the poking around so she didn’t feel bad about him doing it for free. That had to be it. Otherwise, why would he ask me to be in a potentially dangerous situation again? ‘OK.’ I glanced tentatively at Devon, looking for a sign from him that this was what he was thinking. His expression was unreadable. ‘I guess I can see what I can find out.’

  Novia stood up and wrapped me in a hug. ‘Oh, gracias, Elle.’ Swiping at her nose with the mangled Kleenex, she held her hand over her heart. ‘Whatever you can do, we will be grateful.’

  As she released me, I felt something fall in my hair. Reaching up without thinking, I grabbed the tiny object between my fingers and felt a sharp bite. ‘Ouch!’ I shook my hair like a mad woman and jammed my throbbing thumb into my mouth.

  Buddha jumped up and gave me an inquisitive gaze that then followed the wasp as it flew away.

  Devon glanced over his shoulder. ‘You all right?’

  I pulled my thumb out of my mouth and stared at the angry red mark and swelling. I mumbled, ‘No. Apparently I’m cursed.’

  ‘So, what are you thinking?’ I asked as we pulled away from the Pampered Pup in Devon’s Jeep. Buddha had his head shoved between the seats so I had to lean up to see Devon.

  ‘About you being cursed?’ His eyes shimmered with tired humor.

  ‘You heard that, huh?’ I examined my sore thumb. ‘Apparently Flavia is very superstitious and she informed me I’ve been cursed because Sven the giant admired me.’

  ‘Cursed because a man admired you? You should’ve been cursed all your life then,’ he smirked.

  ‘Funny. Seriously, though, what do you think? It sounds like they have some pretty damning evidence against her, but do you think Breezy actually killed Michael?’

  His thumbs thumped the steering wheel as he shook his head. ‘Well, it’s not good that witnesses put her running from the scene of the crime in the short time frame Michael’s safety harness was cut, with her fingerprints on the safety harness and her blood at the scene. That’s the biggest problem. Nor is it good that she admitted she was in love with him. Detective Farnsworth feels very strongly that with time and pressure she’ll crack and confess to the murder, too.’

  ‘But is she even strong enough to cut a rope? She’s so tiny.’

  ‘Michael was wearing a typical climbing harness. They’ve got nylon rope which isn’t too hard to cut through with a serrated kitchen knife. I’ve actually had to do it before. It’s why they make it from nylon and sell serrated knifes for climbing gear. Easy to cut if you get hung up, which is another fact not in her favor. Obviously this was a spur-of-the-moment crime, a crime of passion and opportunity, not a premeditated one. Otherwise, why would someone risk committing murder with so many potential witnesses around? You heard Novia say Breezy believed Michael had a mistress. If she was in love with him … well, rage and jealousy are powerful emotions that release all kinds of chemicals in the body that can give a person super-human strength and irrational behavior.’

  ‘Like the Hulk?’ I smirked, leaning my forehead against Buddha’s neck. His steady rhythmic panting was comforting.

  ‘Who?’

  I wanted to ask him if he was joking, but I was too tired. ‘Never mind.’

  He stopped at a light. I noted we were in a line of five cars which was odd for the small, private island. Or maybe not during snowbird season. I wouldn’t know. Last season I started working at the Pampered Pup but I still lived with Mom in the ghettos of Clearwater.

  A white poodle stuck its head out of the back seat of the black Benz in front of us. Its wet tongue and diamond collar shone in the moonlight. Buddha’s ears perked up as he watched it. The song ‘Gangsta’s Paradise’ popped into my head. Hope and I had cruised the beach for hours after she got her driver’s license, blasting that song and singing at the top of our lungs. We were probably the reason the city passed noise pollution laws. I smiled. Good times.

  ‘What’s goin’ on in that head of yours?’ Devon asked.

  My smile spread. ‘Believe me, you don’t want to know.’ The light turned green. My mind returned to Breezy. ‘OK, so the other problem is the creepy voodoo doll factor … two dolls tied together and leaning against the photo of Novia and Michael? That looks pretty bad. But Novia said it wasn’t used for ill intentions, that she was actually trying to help save Michael and Selene’s marriage. Hang on.’ I pulled out my cell phone and did a search for voodoo dolls. Scrolling through the first few search results, I said, ‘Seems she’s right. It says here that many cultures use voodoo dolls as a focal point to cast spells but more for blessings and positive intentions. The use
of dolls for revenge did not originate with voodoo magic.’

  ‘But she could use it for whatever she wished. Salma seems to think they have a strong case. And the cute young maid being a mistress is not a stretch. Happens all the time with the help.’

  ‘I just don’t see it. Michael really seemed like a good guy, not like those over-privileged, rich celebrities sneaking around with their maids and nannies. Besides, what about the daughter, Cali? They don’t suspect her at all? That was a terrible fight they had.’

  Devon rubbed the back of his neck. ‘Agreed. Apparently Michael had recently started the process to cut Cali off from the family fortune.’

  ‘Wow. And that’s not motive?’

  ‘Definitely. But Selene is vouching for her daughter’s whereabouts during that time frame. She said Cali came to her about the fight with her dad at around eight forty-five p.m. She was really upset so Selene took her up to her bedroom to talk and tried to get her to take her medication.’

  ‘Really? Did anyone else verify that? Cali’s girlfriend, maybe?’

  ‘I don’t know.’ Devon glanced at me. ‘Why?’

  ‘Well, it’s just the cat-costume lady mentioned something about Selene and Sven disappearing together. How do we know Selene’s not lying to give herself an alibi because she was actually having a very personal training session?’

  ‘Cali would’ve had to back up her story, but I guess people have lied for less. I’ll see if I can find out if they interviewed Sven. Find out his version of events.’

  I thought back to the Halloween party. Was Sven outside with the others? Surely he would have stood out. ‘You know, I don’t remember seeing him after the police got there.’

  Devon’s jaw tightened. ‘I don’t either.’

  We rode in silence for a few minutes. I bit the inside of my cheek as I thought about everything we knew so far, which wasn’t much. ‘Why was Michael cutting Cali off anyway?’