Rock Around the Corpse

by Lizbeth Lipperman

  “Here’s what I can do, Sheriff,” Wilkerson said. “I’m an early riser…usually get up around five thirty every day. I can make that ninety-minute ride up and back bright and early tomorrow morning and be home in time for services. Give me the details, and I’ll see what I can do.”

  If the man had been close enough, Colt would’ve kissed him. “I’d appreciate that, Sheriff, and I’ll owe you one if you ever need something from me.” He spent the next fifteen minutes relating the information before hanging up.

  Feeling like he’d done all he could, he walked to the couch and turned on the TV planning on watching some late night movie and hopefully falling asleep. But all he could think about were the four sisters—and probably Tessa’s ghost—coming face-to-face with a huge black bear.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Deena rolled over and glanced at the clock on the nightstand for the umpteenth time since she and Maddy had gone to bed an hour ago. Two a.m. She was so jealous that her older sister had been able to fall asleep within minutes after her head hit the pillow despite the full can of Coke she’d consumed only a few hours before. Probably the trek into the woods and all that clean air had counteracted the caffeine.

  Finally, Deena gave into her insomnia and sat up in the bed. She figured she could try to be quiet and sit there all night, or she could go down to the dining room and make some hot chocolate to help her fall asleep. She decided on the latter and slid out of bed. After changing into a pair of jeans and a T-shirt, she grabbed the pad with Lainey’s notes from the dresser and tore off the last blank page. Quickly, she scribbled a message to Maddy just in case she woke up and panicked when she realized Deena wasn’t there. Then she picked up the notebook that Maddy and Vince had found under Naomi Patterson’s body and Lainey’s notes and stepped outside her room, gently closing the door behind her before heading to the dining room.

  The path from their room to the main building included walking outside for a short distance, and she wasn’t prepared for the chill that took her breath away, making her wish she’d thrown on a sweater. Afraid she might wake Maddy up if she went back for it, she sprinted the rest of the way and made it to the main entrance of the spa in record time. Using her master key, she opened the door and walked directly into the lobby, then shivered as a rush of anxiety slid up her spine.

  She’d never been alone in this room so late at night even before the killing. Looking around now, with only the small wall lamp lighting up the dark room, she imagined someone jumping out in front of her with a pair of scissors or a carving knife. Even the huge black bear mounted above the fireplace seemed to be glaring at her with menace, and as she made her way across the room, her eyes never left the stuffed animal.

  Using her key again, she opened the door and walked into the dining room, immediately turning on the lights before she made her way to the kitchen. She was already beginning to regret coming here the minute she saw shadows dancing on the wall, even though she knew it was only the curtains moving when the fans turned on with the lights.

  As soon as she found a saucepan, she concentrated on making the hot chocolate. Fortunately, she was familiar with the kitchen since she’d designed it herself, and she had no problems finding everything she needed.

  “Guess you couldn’t sleep, either.”

  She jumped, dropping the spoon from her hand and was about to scream as loud as she could when she turned, fully expecting to see Gary Wharton standing in front of her ready to silence her for good. She squealed in relief as she came face-to-face with Vince Hogan instead.

  “Sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you. I was sitting outside my room trying to clear my head so that maybe I could get a few hours of shut-eye when I saw you walking to the lobby. I thought I’d made enough noise behind you that you wouldn’t jump like you did. Apparently, I was wrong.” He stepped closer, bent down to pick up the spoon, and then tossed it into the sink. “Are you okay?”

  She felt her heart rate decreasing as she nodded. “You probably did make a lot of noise, but my mind was on ten other things and I didn’t hear you. You gotta admit, with all that’s been going on around here, it’s no surprise that my nerves are on high alert.”

  “Again, I apologize for sneaking up on you.” He passed by her on his way to the stove. “Is there enough for me to have a cup?” When she nodded again, he picked up a coffee mug from the tray on the counter. “I haven’t had hot chocolate since Catherine….” He stopped, a horrified look crossing his face. “Since I left the Bureau.”

  She was dying to ask him who Catherine was, but her mother had raised her not to be rude. Although she knew it was none of her business, she couldn’t help wondering if this woman had been the reason for him leaving the FBI in the first place.

  “Here, let me,” he said, reaching for the saucepan. First he poured a cup for her, then filled his own.

  “I brought Lainey’s notes to see if something jumped out at me while I drank the hot chocolate. I figured if I had to be awake, I might as well do something useful.”

  “Great idea.” He reached for her cup. “I’ll carry this to a table so we can sit and pow wow. They say two heads are better than one.” He opened the door with his backside and waited for her to pass in front of him before he followed her to a table directly under an overhead light.

  When they were both seated, he set her cup in front of her and took a sip of his own hot drink. “Ever since I left your room earlier the thought that we’re missing something has been eating away at me. I can’t help but think the clues are right in front of my nose, yet I’m not seeing them.”

  Deena blew on the hot chocolate before she took her first sip. “I’m amazed at how many people here had a strong motive to want to see Brent dead. The man clearly was not well-liked.” As soon as the words left her mouth, she felt a rush of warmth skitter from her neck to her cheek. What did that say about her that she’d been ready to jump into bed with a man like that?

  He reached across the table and touched the top of her hand. “Quit beating yourself up. There was a lot of alcohol consumed Friday night, and he was on his best behavior with you.”

  She opened her eyes in surprise, wondering if he’d just read her mind. Then she shrugged. “In my defense, I’m terrified of rejoining the dating game at my age. I figured if I could get drunk enough, maybe getting naked with another man might not be so…difficult.” She slapped her hand to her mouth. “Oh Lord, did I really just say that out loud?”

  She watched his eyes crinkle with amusement, but to his credit, he didn’t laugh at her. “I get it,” he said with a nod. “You probably won’t believe this, but men have as much anxiety about that kind of stuff as women do.” This time he did crack a smile. “Although, it pains me to say that unlike our female counterparts, we’re not as concerned about the way we look as we are about how we’ll perform.”

  She grinned. “Sheesh! If men only knew that a woman’s thoughts during sex are all about her own body and what the man will think of it and not about how experienced a man is, you all might not be so worried.” She shook her finger at him. “Nice try, but thanks for trying to make me feel less slutty.”

  “Slutty?” He tsked. “No way. If that was your true nature, you wouldn’t be regretting your decision to spend the night with him.”

  She met his eyes. “Is that your FBI experience talking right now, or are you still trying to make me feel better?”

  “Both. I’ve always been a pretty good judge of character. That’s probably what made me so effective at my job, and…” His voice trailed off, and he turned away.

  It was her turn to reach across the table and cover his hand with hers. “What is it, Vince? Something you can talk about?”

  He shook his head. “Maybe in time, but not now.” He took a deep breath and blew it out slowly. “Enough about me. Tell me something about you. What makes Deena Rodriguez tick?”

  She’d never really talked about her dead husband before, probably because she was so ashamed that she’
d missed seeing the signs that Mike was headed down the road to trouble. She completely took the blame for that. Maybe if she’d come out from behind her rose-colored glasses about what kind of person he’d been, she could have seen him for the lying, cheating, poor-excuse-of-a-man that he really was instead of the loving guy she’d thought she married.

  But even now, she was still lying to herself and wishing she could have changed him. Yet, she knew in her heart that he’d never really been the man of her dreams, and worse, if he were still alive today, probably never would be. She remembered feeling only a huge sense of relief at his funeral even though she hadn’t been able to stop the tears.

  And that was another reason for her guilt.

  “Deena?”

  Quickly she pushed those thoughts out of her mind, intending to give Vince the generic rendition of who Deena Rodriguez really was—the second oldest of five Garcia sisters, the one who’d always played it safe and had never taken any risk. So she was as surprised as Vince apparently was when she opened her mouth and spoke.

  “I was married to Mike Rodriguez for over ten years—ten years of watching him cheat on me, mentally abuse me, and publicly humiliate me. When he got mixed up in a plot to frame Maddy for a murder—a plan that nearly got Maddy and me both killed—I still couldn’t bring myself to admit that the man was no good.” She felt a tear pooling in her eye and turned to stop it from making a trail down her cheek.

  She looked over at Vince, expecting to see him shaking his head in disgust, but all she saw was empathy in those his deep-set, brown eyes.

  “So you’ve been feeling guilty because you couldn’t change him and transform him back into the man you’d married?”

  She looked away from him and nodded.

  “Deena, if you walk away remembering anything from our conversation tonight, let it be this. Some men are just born evil. Don't take the blame for something you didn’t cause and couldn’t fix.”

  She didn’t know how to react to that. Her sisters had tried to pound that into her head since the day she’d married Mike, but she’d never really listened. Somehow, those same words coming from Vince tonight gave her hope that maybe she really wasn’t to blame for all Mike’s indiscretions. Maybe he didn’t seek out all those other women because she wasn’t pretty enough, sexy enough—and the list of her inadequacies could go on and on.

  She took a sip of her hot chocolate, which wasn’t so hot anymore. She’d already told Vince more than she’d ever shared with anyone other than her sisters. Why stop now?

  “After I met Brent at the registration desk on Friday afternoon, I decided it was time for me to quit acting like a baby. When he made sure he sat next to me at the dinner table and let it be known that he was interested, I came up with this bird-brain idea to seduce him, even though I’d totally forgotten how to do that. I was terrified of the naked thing and determined to get that out of the way before the night ended so I could move on. I never saw it as anything more than a one-night stand.” She chuckled. “So in a way, you could say I was using him.”

  “Your own personal boy toy?”

  “Something like that,” she responded, wondering how she could have been feeling so ashamed of her behavior with Brent only minutes before and was now finding it humorous.

  The grin on his face lit up his eyes. “I’m sure that would have crushed his big ego. From what I gathered about him, he thought he was God’s gift to the opposite sex.” He drained his hot chocolate and then leaned back in the chair with a mischievous grin in his eyes. “Next time you’re brave enough to try another attempt at conquering your fear, my room is right next to yours. And if I remember correctly, you still have a master key.”

  She knew he was kidding, but it felt nice to be flirted with. “I’ll keep that in mind,” she fired back. “And don’t worry about that performance hang-up you talked about earlier. I’ll be so terrified I won’t even notice.”

  This time, they both laughed before she decided it was time to find out a little more about him. Although he might not realize it, just talking to him about her marriage to Mike had helped release a lot of pent-up emotions she’d been carrying around. Oh, she was still angry about her ex being a jerk, but at least now, she was putting some of the blame back on him. If she could give Vince a little comfort in some small way by making him talk through the reason for the pain in his eyes when he’d mentioned the name Catherine, she had to give it a shot.

  She made sure he was looking at her when she asked, “Are you able to tell me about Catherine yet?”

  He looked surprised by the question, and for a minute, Deena thought he was about to tell her to mind her own business.

  “She was my wife,” he said softly. “She was killed two years ago by a madman named Charles Kowalski, who was hell bent on punishing me because of a profile I did on him that was mistakenly leaked to the press. I said he had an unusual fixation with older women that probably related back to an incestuous relationship with his own mother.” He lowered his head, and when he finally looked up at her, there were tears in his eyes.

  “I’m so sorry, Vince.” She stood and walked around the table and placed her hands on the back of his shoulders. “Is that why you left your job with the FBI?”

  “How could I stay, knowing I was responsible for Catherine’s death, and—”

  “You weren’t responsible,” Deena interrupted. “Like you said before, there are a lot of evil people running around in this world. You were only doing your job.”

  He scrubbed his hands down his face. “In my head I know that’s true, but in my heart, I still blame myself for not leaving the Bureau long before he ever…” He paused and shook his head. “I can’t tell you how many times she begged me to give up my job. She wanted me to go to work with her dad, who owns a large shipping company and was ready to make me a junior partner. I can still see the fear in her eyes every time I walked out of the house to go after a sick bastard like Kowalski.”

  She patted his shoulder one last time, then walked back to her side of the table and sat down. “We both have a lot of baggage we’ve been carrying around. We’ll just have to keep reminding each other that we’re good people and maybe even forgive ourselves in the process.”

  He tried to smile and almost made it before she extended her hand. “Deal?”

  He reached for it and shook it. “You’re the only person that I’ve ever talked to about Catherine,” he said sadly.

  “And other than my sisters, you’re the only one who knows about Mike. Maybe it was fate that we both drank the Diet Coke that kept us awake.” She met his gaze and held it until she felt a little uncomfortable. Vince was a good man, and if she wasn’t careful she might start to see him as more than just a friend sitting across from her late at night talking about feelings.

  She picked up Lainey’s notes. “We’d better get back to these before we both get sleepy.”

  The serious moment over, he wrinkled his brow. “Let’s talk about the two entries in the book we found under Naomi’s body. After we have a conversation with Theo Elliott tomorrow and find out exactly what the receipt was for, we might be able to connect a few dots.”

  Deena put down the notes and picked up the book. Then she turned to the last page. “I can’t help thinking this last entry is just too coincidental. Why would Haley’s sister have paid out twenty-five hundred dollars, an amount over eight times more than any of the other receipts in here? And what would she have gotten for her money?”

  “Both good questions that I’ll be sure to ask Haley in the morning after Theo tells us what the cabin owner did for a living.”

  “I’m not sure you’ll get many answers out of Haley. She’s already told me that she was estranged from her sister and had been so for some time. Said that Christina Rockford used people. Even admitted that she’d been one of Christina’s victims, which is probably why they hadn’t spoken in years. Haley was as surprised as anyone that Christina had left her this place in her will.”

 
; “There’s got to be a connection.” Vince yawned. “Sorry. I guess that milk is doing its job.”

  “I think I might be able to fall asleep now myself,” Deena said, standing. “There’s plenty of time to talk to Haley in the morning.” She picked up Lainey’s notes and the notebook. “This was nice, Vince. I’ll see you tomorrow.” She stopped midway to the door, and her hand shot up to her mouth. “Oh my God!”

  Vince was by her side in a flash. “What?”

  She grabbed his arm and led him back to a table and instructed him to sit down while she collected her thoughts. After a few moments, she began. “Do you remember when I told you about my husband—that he was in on a plan to frame Maddy for killing a man when she was a rookie cop?”

  “Yes, but you only said he’d been trying to frame her and nearly got both of you killed. Then—,”

  “I know.” She cut him off, anxious to tell him the rest. “The guy who was killed in his cell on Maddy’s watch was a man named Joey Agostinelli, a Mafia informant living in Vineyard in the witness protection program.”

  “Did the mob kill him to keep him from testifying?”

  She shook her head. “That’s what the people who killed him wanted everyone to believe. Actually, the killer was a drug dealer who was trying to get back a notebook that Agostinelli had gotten from the man’s brother. It was filled with names of important people in Dallas who were on the take or who were receiving illegal drugs from him. Needless to say, it was in his best interest to keep that notebook from the public eye.”

  “And I’m assuming that Maddy was eventually cleared of all charges, right?”

  “She was, but that’s not why I’m excited. I don’t know why the name Christina Rockford didn’t register with either Maddy or me earlier when we first heard it.”

  “And now you recognize it?”

  She swallowed the lump in her throat, knowing that what she was about to tell him might very well be that one thing they were missing in the investigation. “Yes. Christina Rockford, or Chrissy as we knew her, was killed by the drug dealer not long after Agostinelli was shot in his cell. It turned out that she was Agostinelli’s girlfriend and his accomplice in a blackmailing scheme.”