Dead in the Water_A fun and fast-paced private investigator cozy mystery/beach read

by Rose Pressey

  “I guess you know what this means,” I said, taking the car out of park.

  “Oh no. Don’t say we have to do that,” Dorothy said.

  “Yes, it must be done.”

  Dorothy sighed. “Do we have to follow someone again?”

  “It’s the only way,” I said. “She was looking in that window for a reason. What if she was the receptionist who worked there?”

  “She would have a key, right?”

  “The tape is still on the front of the door. She probably doesn’t know if she’s supposed to enter.”

  “I’m pretty sure she would know her boss is dead and that she doesn’t have to report to work today.”

  “Does she?” I asked with a quirked eyebrow.

  “I guess we’re about to find out since you’re hot on the trail right now.”

  The car wasn’t far ahead of us. I knew it would be awkward to confront the woman once she stopped, but it was part of the job. We followed the car around every turn and stopped at every light behind her. At least she was just driving normally and not trying to speed to lose us, which made me think she had no idea we were following her.

  Soon we pulled up to a small white house. The woman pulled into her garage, the door closing behind her. I hung back on the street by the curb.

  “Should we go up to the door right away or give her a second to unwind?” I asked.

  “I think we should go right away,” Dorothy said.

  “Good answer. I agree.” I shoved the car into park.

  “Well, that’s why I said it because I knew that was what you were thinking,” she said.

  Dorothy and I got out of the car. Once in front of the door, I pushed the doorbell.

  Dorothy leaned over and knocked. “I don’t think the bell is working.”

  Within seconds, the dark-haired petite woman swung the door open as if she was either expecting someone else or she was angry that we had dared to knock. I stepped back a bit and brought Dorothy with me.

  The woman looked us up and down. “What’s this about?”

  “Do you know Mr. Bowles?” I asked, trying to sound confident.

  She grimaced. “Yes, I know him. Or rather I knew him. You already knew that though or you wouldn’t be standing here.”

  “So you also know that he’s no longer with us,” I said.

  “Who are you?” she asked. “Are you with the police? I’ve already talked to you all and I don’t have anything else to add. I wasn’t there when it happened and I had nothing to do with the murder.”

  Well, she just answered all my questions. I guess I should turn around and leave now. No, I wasn’t done quite yet.

  “You were off that day?” I asked.

  I’d continue with the questioning. I figured there was no need to tell her that I wasn’t with the police department. She had just assumed and that was fine with me.

  The deep line formed between her eyes as she frowned. She turned her attention toward Dorothy.

  “I had taken off early. He gave me the day off. I didn’t know anything was going to happen. This is not my fault.”

  “No, no, calm down.” I waved my hand. “We’re not blaming you. We’re just trying to find out who did this.”

  “Yes, no need to get all worked up,” Dorothy added.

  “This has all been overwhelming.” The woman rubbed her head. “I’m sure you can understand. Having the police question thinking that I’m guilty of something.”

  She didn’t have to tell me. I’d been in that exact position. At least Jake hadn’t handcuffed her.

  “Do you have any other questions because I need to go,” she said.

  “Did you notice anything strange around the office?” I asked.

  “I only work there part-time, so I’m in and out. I didn’t notice anything. I mind my own business,” she said. “So, no, I noticed nothing unusual.”

  I saw that this conversation was going nowhere. Plus, she was now closing the door in my face. This conversation was officially finished.

  Chapter 20

  We pulled up in front of the office building and I shoved the car into park. I turned off the ignition.

  “Well, here we are,” I said.

  “Yes, here we are,” Dorothy said. “Now let’s make this visit count this time.”

  “What do you mean, this time?” I asked. “Don’t I always make it count?”

  “No, not so much,” she said.

  “Oh, never mind that.” I pulled the key from the ignition. “Let’s go visit this supposed ladies’ man.”

  “Yeah, I bet he’s a real looker,” Dorothy said with sarcasm dripping from her words.

  “Yeah, I bet he has two heads.” I giggled.

  Dorothy and I headed up the path to the office entrance.

  “I suppose we’ll just go in and ask for him,” I said.

  “Sure, if he’s open for business,” Dorothy said.

  I wrapped my hand around the door knob, twisted, and then pushed the door open. Air-conditioning blasted us in the face. It also smelled like cologne… too much cologne.

  “Oh, no, I can see where this is going.” Dorothy waved her hand in front of her face.

  No one was in the lobby area, so I called out. “Hello? Is anyone here?”

  “I’ll be right with you,” the male voice said.

  “Well, he sounds normal enough.”

  “What was he supposed to sound like? An ogre?” Dorothy said.

  I giggled again. “Perhaps.”

  We already had our opinion of the man and we hadn’t even seen him yet. Maybe he was a nice guy. I had to give him a chance before just assuming that he was a scumbag.

  “That cologne is making me dizzy. Someone really needs to tell him a little goes a long way.” Dorothy waved her hand in front of her nose.

  “Well, if the subject comes up I’ll try to work that in,” I said.

  I checked the time on my phone. What was taking them so long? I had to stick to my schedule.

  When he stepped out of the office and came down the hallway toward us I almost fell over.

  “Well, come to Mama,” Dorothy said.

  Now I know why Mr. Vandiver said he was a ladies’ man. The guy was gorgeous. There was no way around it. He had a gorgeous smile and dimples on each side of his mouth. His short dark hair was perfectly styled. He was fit and healthy. I bet he had a six-pack under that white dress shirt. I couldn’t see one flaw, not one. And I was looking for something, trust me. I couldn’t take my eyes off this guy. His smile went from ear to ear. His blue eyes sparkled and danced in the light.

  What was the matter with me? I had to get a hold of myself. I was acting like I’d never seen a gorgeous guy before. I mean, after all, I was dating Jake. He was gorgeous. Dorothy and I both had our mouths dropped open.

  The guy stopped in front of us. We continued to stare at him without saying a word. He frowned just a bit, which was equally as gorgeous.

  “May I help you?” he asked.

  Finally, I was able to say, “My name is Thomas Maggie, I mean Maggie Thomas, and I’m a private investigator. This is my assistant…”

  “Dorothy Raye,” she said with a frown.

  “Right, Dorothy Raye.”

  I was stumbling over my words. He was making me nervous by smiling at me like that. Why was he smiling? He was friendly, but still.

  “It’s nice to meet you, Maggie. My name is Reynold Mitchell.”

  “Yes, I already know that,” I said with a giggle.

  When I glanced over at Dorothy she rolled her eyes. I couldn’t help it. It was as if the giggle just slipped out.

  “A private investigator? Wow. What do I owe for this visit?” he asked with a flash of that gorgeous smile again. “I hope it’s nothing serious.”

  “Actually, I suppose it is serious, but nothing to do with you exactly,” I said.

  “That’s a relief,” he said with a smile.

  “I’m investigating a couple recent murders and I believe
you knew the lawyer who was killed.”

  “Oh, right. It’s terrible what happened,” he said.

  “I’m wondering if you could tell me more about the woman who was harassing him. Do you happen to know her name?”

  “No, actually, I don’t, but I’ll help you any way I can,” he said.

  “Maybe you could explain what happened.”

  “He said that it started about a month ago when the woman first followed him. He had made her lose money in a case and I guess that made her really upset with him. She even broke the window in his office.”

  “That sounds serious. Did he tell the police about that?” I asked.

  “I’m not sure,” Reynold said. “I hope that I can be of some help with this case. I mean, investigating a murder is dangerous.”

  “Well, yes, I’m used to that. It just comes with the job, I guess.”

  “Maybe we can get together and work on this case some time. I can give you any other inside information.”

  Was he asking me on a date? No wonder the guy said he was a ladies’ man. He’d barely met me a few minutes earlier and now he was asking to see me again. It could be an innocent invitation, but with all the smiling, I thought he was flirting with me.

  “Well, I can let you know if I have any other questions or if I need information,” I said.

  He reached over to the table and grabbed one of his business cards. “Here’s my phone number. If you need anything call me anytime.”

  I took the card from his outstretched hand. His fingers lingered as he touched my hand.

  I had to admit it made my hand tingle just a bit. My cheeks were probably blushing.

  “Thank you again,” I said. “We should be going now.”

  “You’re more than welcome. I hope to hear from you soon,” he said. “Nice meeting you, Dorothy Raye.”

  Dorothy giggled. “Charmed, I’m sure.”

  After grabbing Dorothy by the arm I hurried out of the office.

  “Wow, he really was flirting with you. I guess he is a ladies’ man. He must flirt with everyone.”

  “Thanks a lot, Dorothy. Maybe he just found me irresistible.”

  Dorothy snorted. “Yeah, that’s probably it.”

  “Never mind that. But maybe he could help with something.”

  “You’re not actually going to meet him again, are you?” she asked.

  “No, of course not, but if I have other questions at least I know he’s willing to answer them.”

  “He’s willing to do a lot more than that,” Dorothy said, wiggling her eyebrows.

  “Oh, Dorothy, stop,” I said.

  Chapter 21

  I parked in front of my client’s house. This would be an unexpected visit for him. I would have called first, but I didn’t want to give him time to prepare for anything. I would question him and get right to the point. I hoped I got straight answers. It sent a shiver down my spine to think that he could actually be the killer. What would we do then? What if he turned on us right there on the spot? I had to take the chance in this line of business though. There was always the risk.

  “Dorothy, maybe you should wait here,” I said before getting out of the car. “This could get dangerous. And I don’t want you to get hurt.”

  “As if I haven’t been in many dangerous situations thanks to you,” she said.

  “Why do you continue to do what to you?” I asked. “You shouldn’t even still work with me. You should tell me to take my job and shove it.”

  “Because it’s part of my job description,” she said. “There’s no way I’m staying out here in the car. I can’t let you confront him alone.”

  I sighed. “All right, you can come with me. But if anything dangerous happens I want you to run, okay? Don’t try to help me or anything.”

  She scoffed. “As if that’s really going to happen.”

  This was probably a bad idea. Nevertheless, I opened the car door and we got out.

  “Won’t he be surprised when you ask questions,” Dorothy said.

  “Maybe not,” I said. “He probably wonders why I haven’t questioned him earlier. What if he has a good alibi or explanation. Besides, I just don’t think he’s the killer. He seems too nice.”

  “But you kind of like everyone,” Dorothy said.

  “Are you saying I’m not a good judge of character?”

  “Probably not,” she said.

  I rang the doorbell and we waited.

  “I hope he’s here,” I whispered.

  After a few seconds, he answered the door. “Oh, good, just the person I wanted to see.”

  He was so nice that I didn’t want to ask him questions now. But I knew I had to.

  “Did you want to see me? Is something wrong?” I asked.

  “Nothing’s wrong. I just wondered if you had an update yet?”

  “I haven’t specifically found anything yet, but I have some leads,” I said.

  He frowned. “What do I owe this visit?”

  “There’s just one little matter that I need to clear up before I can move on with this case.”

  He shook his head. “You want to know if I killed the men?”

  He was a smart man. He knew why I was here.

  “Do you have an alibi?” I stared him right in the eyes.

  He watched me back, not blinking for several seconds. “I anticipated giving my alibi to the police, but I didn’t think I’d have to answer to the private detective I hired. I’m paying you.”

  “That’s why I have to ask. You want me to do my job, right?” I asked, trying not to let his obvious anger get to me.

  “I was eating at The Rusty Pelican,” he said.

  “Do you have a copy of the receipt?” I pressed.

  “The police are looking into that, I suppose. Look, I didn’t murder them,” he said, looking me right in the eyes.

  It was my experience that anyone who looked you straight in the eyes while answering was telling the truth. Plus, surely Jake would be able to get a copy of the receipt from the restaurant.

  “Sorry, but you understand why I asked?”

  “I understand,” he said. “Would you like to come in?” He gestured.

  I hesitated for a moment to make him more comfortable with answering questions. If he thought I was afraid to go into his house, then maybe he would drop me for this case. Dorothy and I stepped into the house.

  He gestured toward the sofa. “Would you like to have a seat?”

  Dorothy and I perched on the edge of the sofa. He sat across from us. No sooner had we sat down than his phone rang.

  “I’ll be right back. I left my phone in the kitchen.”

  We watched as he walked away. I stared at the portrait of people on the wall across from us. I felt eyes on me and I knew Dorothy was staring.

  Finally, I acknowledged her. “What do you want to say?”

  “You know you want to snoop around,” she said.

  I peeked into the other room to see if he was still on the phone. When I realized he was in the kitchen on the phone I jumped up from the chair. Yes, I wanted to snoop so I wouldn’t even pretend like it wasn’t true. Dorothy jumped up with me and started going through the desk drawer. I was a little less brave and went for the photos in frames that sat on the table across the room. I liked to look at photos because sometimes they gave a much broader picture of the clients’ life.

  “Just be careful with what you’re doing over there, Dorothy. Don’t mess anything up by sneaking around,” I said.

  “Well, honestly, he should expect us to do this. He knows you’re a private investigator. He shouldn’t really be surprised by this,” Dorothy said.

  “Nevertheless, I would still feel awkward. We have to be subtle about these things.”

  “Oh, subtle smubtle,” she said.

  At least I still heard him on the phone in the other room. I leaned down to get a closer look at the framed photos.

  “Dorothy, come here,” I whispered.

  She stuffed papers
back into the desk drawer and closed it before joining me at the end table with the photos on top.

  “What is it?” she asked.

  “A military photo of my client,” I said. “He’s wearing a military jacket just like the one I found.”

  “But you said yourself that the name on the jacket was Smith.”

  “That’s true, but perhaps there’s a connection. There has to be, right? I think we should get out of here,” I said. “I know all I need to know for the moment.”

  “Are you going to say anything to him first before we leave?”

  Just then I realized the talking had stopped.

  “Come on, Dorothy. We’ll sit back down and pretend like everything is fine.”

  It would be difficult since everything wasn’t fine right now. When he came around the corner, Dorothy and I were sitting on the sofa. She had her hands on her lap looking as innocent as could be. Oh, who was I kidding? We looked completely guilty. He had to know we’d been up to something.

  “Sorry about that,” he said.

  “It’s all right. Anyway, I guess we’re going now,” I said as I pushed to my feet. Dorothy followed me as we headed toward the door. He was right behind us now, following us toward the door.

  I wasn’t going to ask more questions about whether or not he was the murderer.

  “See you later. I’ll call you.”

  “What’s the rush?” he asked.

  Dorothy and I rushed out the door. At least we got out before I turned to face him.

  “I’m sorry about that and I hope you won’t be angry about it. I just had to make sure.” I forced a smile, trying to be as sweet as possible.

  He seemed a bit less tense now. “Sure, I understand. You’ll call me if you find out anything new?”

  “Absolutely, I plan on it,” I said.

  I was just surprised that I still had him as a client.

  “Oh, by the way. I looked at your photos in there while we were waiting. We had to have something to do, right?”

  “Yes, I guess you did. Again, sorry about the call.”

  “Were you in the military?” I asked.

  “Yes, I retired a few years back.”

  “And then you came to Miami? Why did you come here?”