Dying for Dinner

by Miranda Bliss

  A thought hit, and honest to goodness, I don’t know how long I sat there, my mouth agape and my mind racing. It was, apparently, long enough to worry Jim. He put a hand on my arm and leaned over so he could stare me in the face. “Annie? Are ye all right?”

  I rewound my thinking process and went over it in my head again before I dared to speak, and when I did, my voice was breathy. Then again, I had a good excuse: My heart was pounding like a jackhammer. “ Norman, you won three hundred thousand dollars in a card game with Victor Pasqual.”

  Norman nodded.

  “It cost us twenty-five thousand dollars to get in Pasqual’s game, and the biggest winner of the night came away with…” I looked at Eve.

  She shrugged. “It wasn’t me. I got all my money back and then some, but I think that li’l ol’ fellow across the table-the skinny little guy from Texas?-I think he was the big winner. At the end of the evening, he said something about his take being somewhere around fifty thousand.”

  “He put in twenty-five and he left with fifty.” So far, so good. The facts were lining up with my new theory. “So when you played, Norman… back when you won the money to open Très Bonne Cuisine… how much did you have to have for a stake?”

  Norman still wasn’t following, but I could tell Jim and Tyler already saw where I was headed. They leaned forward, their gazes trained on Norman.

  And I did, too. Which was why I noticed that he didn’t have to think about it. Not at all.

  “One hundred and fifty thousand,” Norman said.

  “And where-” I could tell Tyler was about to interrupt so I shot him a look. This was my thought, my theory. I got to ask the question. “Norman, you sure didn’t make that kind of money putting dishwashing soap in a bottle and calling it a miracle cleaner. Where did you get the one hundred and fifty thousand dollars?”

  “Oh.” The truth dawned, and, slowly, Norman sank back into his chair. Just like that, though, he discounted everything I’d said. “No way.” He shook his head. “That has nothing to do with what happened to Greg. It couldn’t.”

  “Because…?”

  I allowed Tyler this bit of a question before I took over again.

  “Why, Norman? Why can’t it? Where did you get the money in the first place?”

  While Norman gathered his thoughts, I reached for the legal pad and pen I had left near at hand, and when he started to talk, I took notes.

  “It was back in prison,” Norman said. “You know, in Nevada. I told you all about that.” He looked around the table, confirming that we all knew the story. “My cellmate was a guy named Howard. Howard Fish. He was a crusty old goat. A small-time con who’d been in and out of the system all his life. We didn’t get along well at first. I mean, Howard, didn’t appreciate having to share his space with a first-timer like me. But after a couple months… well, Howard, he found out he had lung cancer, and I guess that sort of softened him up. He talked, I listened.” Norman shrugged. “You know how it is with older people. They like telling stories.”

  “And this Howard, he told you how you could steal a hundred thousand dollars?”

  I took offense at Tyler ’s question. Norman didn’t.

  “It was nothing like that,” Norman said. “It was legit. Really. One day they decided Howard would be better off in the prison infirmary. He was pretty weak by then. In fact, he died just a couple days later. But right before they came for him, he told me how much he appreciated having me around when he was sick. Then he started talking about a cabin he owned up near Pyramid Lake, and Howard-he said when I got out, I should go up there and look under the loose floorboard near the fireplace. I mean, it sounded like something out of a movie, right?” Norman laughed, ill at ease. “But hey, once I was out, I wasn’t sure where to go or what I was going to do. I remembered what Howard said, and I went up to Pyramid Lake. There was the cabin, just like Howard said. And the key was under a big chunk of granite near the front door. He told me that, too. So if all that was right, I figured what he said about the floorboard was, too. I pried it up. That’s where I found the hundred and fifty thousand dollars.”

  We all sat quietly, thinking of the implications, but I was the one who asked, “That was before you ran all those other scams, as Fred and Bill and all those other folks, right?”

  “Well, I knew a hundred fifty thousand wouldn’t last forever, and a man’s got to make a living. I invested the money,” Norman explained. “Because I knew I wanted to do something with food. A restaurant, a gourmet shop… I was looking around, considering my options. But the money, it wasn’t adding up fast enough. So when I met some people who knew Victor and they said they could get me into a game…”

  In a not-so-good imitation of a Vulcan mind meld, I stared at Norman, and when he still didn’t get it, I laid it on the line.

  “The hundred and fifty thousand, Norman. Have you ever wondered where Howard got it?”

  He shrugged. “Don’t ask, don’t tell. Nobody else knew the money was there and I figured someday, somebody might buy that cabin and find it. Or somebody might buy the land and knock the cabin down and find it. Either way, I had as much right to that money as they did. More, seeing as how Howard told me I could have it.”

  “Yeah, but don’t you get it?” Tyler had kept silent as long as he was able. “If Howard got that money illegally-”

  The truth was dawning. I could tell because Norman ’s face went from pale to ashen. Because I couldn’t stand to watch him suffer, I leaped out of my chair, checking the clock above the kitchen sink as I did. “I’ve got just enough time to hit the library before it closes,” I said. “I’ll meet you all at Bellywasher’s this evening.”

  “But, honey…” I was already at the front door when Eve found her voice and called after me. “What on earth are you looking for?”

  Jim knew. I could tell from the look he gave me when I turned around. Of course, Tyler did, too. Norman would figure it out himself eventually. So I told Eve, “I’m going to find out where a small-time con like Howard Fish got a hundred and fifty thousand dollars.”

  THE NEAREST BRANCH OF THE ARLINGTON PUBLIC LIBRARY closes at five on Saturdays so I didn’t have much time. I raced through my research, then raced over to Bellywasher’s, copies of the microfiche pages I’d discovered in hand.

  By the time I got there, though, Saturday evening dinner pandemonium had started, and I had to squeeze my way through the line outside the door. Jim was behind the bar mixing martinis. Eve was busy making sure a table of eight near the window was happy and comfortable. Tyler was nowhere to be seen.

  Neither was Norman.

  I pushed through the swinging doors that led into the kitchen and found Marc and Damien slammed with orders and Heidi, our one and only waitress, busy loading plates onto trays. She was frazzled and I instantly felt obligated, so I stowed my notepad and microfiche copies in the storage room where we kept the clean linens and did the only thing I could do-I pitched in and helped.

  By the time there was enough of a lull for me to ask about Norman, my T-shirt was dotted with marinara and so were my hands. I grabbed a towel to wipe them clean, retrieved the papers from the storage closet, and headed out to the alley behind the restaurant where (Marc and Damien assured me) they’d last seen Norman.

  Sure enough, there he was, sitting on an overturned fruit crate and admiring Jim’s motorcycle.

  I didn’t waste any time.

  “Who was the other guy?” I asked Norman.

  I was hoping for more in return than a blank look, but since a blank look was all I got, I had no choice but to work with it.

  I waved the copies under his nose. “I found an article about Howard Fish. When you knew him, he was in prison for a bank robbery.”

  That got Norman ’s attention. He looked a little green around the gills. “Does that mean I’ll have to pay the money back?” he asked.

  “That’s the least of your worries.” I slapped the copies down on the lid of a nearby trash can and paged through t
hem until I found what I was looking for. “One guy-Howard-went to prison for the robbery,” I told Norman. “But see here…” I pointed, but I never gave him time to look before I forged on ahead. “Two guys. Two guys, Norman.” I stabbed a finger at the article. “Two guys were accused of the robbery. That means-”

  All the green drained from Norman ’s face. “I never knew,” he breathed. “That means there’s another guy out there.”

  “Yeah, and something tells me he’s looking for his money. I don’t know what the cops are going to say about you paying back this money, but I know one thing. That guy who was Howard’s accomplice, he’s convinced it’s payback time, Norman.”

  Sixteen

  OF COURSE THE BIG QUESTION WAS WHAT WE WERE going to do about all this.

  It says a great deal about how baffled I was (not to mention how worried I was for Norman’s safety and how much I wanted to see justice done for Greg), that I realized beyond the shadow of a doubt that at this stage of the game, there was only one person who had the answer.

  But when I left Norman in the alley and went into my office, I didn’t expect to find him sitting in my desk chair.

  I closed the door, blocking out the hum of voices from the restaurant, and turned to where Tyler sat. “Howard Fish had an accomplice,” I told him.

  He didn’t look surprised. Honestly, did I expect him to?

  Tyler leaned back and made himself comfortable. “I know that. Guy by the name of Matt O’Hara. I went back to the station and made some calls after we left your place. That’s how I know. And before you can ask, no, I don’t know where this O’Hara character is. He’s had a couple run-ins with the law, I do know that. He’s got a record in Arizona and Texas and a couple other states. He just got released from prison in Alabama. I’m having some files faxed over and with any luck, Norman will recognize his picture. O’Hara might be the guy we’re looking for.”

  “So the question now is-”

  “You might as well know this right away, I’m not here to talk to you about Norman.” Tyler ’s a well-chiseled kind of guy. Angular face. Angular body. He folded his arms across his broad chest and stared at me the way I imagined he’d stared at hundreds of perps over the years. I knew how they felt, too. Just looking into Tyler ’s icy blue eyes made my stomach jump and my blood whoosh inside my ears. “You don’t like me, Annie.”

  I was prepared to talk about the case, and what we should do, and how we could assure Norman ’s safety. I was not prepared for a heart-to-heart. When it comes to Tyler, I don’t think I’ll ever be.

  I wasn’t prepared to get too close to him, either, which was why I stayed put near the door instead of sitting down in my desk chair. I eyed him up, and I suppose I was trying to gauge his mood as well as his sincerity. I should have known better. Cops-especially cops like Tyler -don’t give away their thoughts. Not easily. And not to just anyone.

  But remember, I’d known Tyler for a long time. I also knew he was the kind of cop-and the kind of man-who appreciated hearing the truth. The simplest course of action seemed to be to cut to the chase.

  “You broke Eve’s heart.” I shouldn’t have had to point this out, but since guys can sometimes be unconscious when it comes to emotions, I figured it wouldn’t hurt. “You called off your engagement to her. Now you show up and-”

  “You think I’m going to do it again.”

  “I think a guy who’s already engaged should remember he’s already engaged and not hang around the woman who he used to be engaged to before he got engaged again.”

  The fact that he followed my logic says something about Tyler. I’m not sure what, but something.

  “Kaitlin and I… we’ve called off the wedding.”

  This was news to me, and I suspect Eve didn’t know it either. Not yet, anyway. If she did, I would have heard all about it. I thought through the implications. “You called off your wedding because you’re seeing Eve?”

  “Kaitlin and I called off the wedding because we don’t want to get married. We should have realized it before, but, well…” His shrug spoke volumes. So did the level look he aimed my way. “You know how it is, Annie. Sometimes these relationship things, they get out of hand. Then things just don’t work out.”

  At least he didn’t say Peter’s name. Then again, Tyler was more subtle than that. Just so he knew that I knew it, I looked at him as carefully as he was studying me. “Are you going to ask Eve to marry you again?”

  He didn’t answer right away. I would have felt better if he did. Yes or no, get it over with and let me deal. Don’t leave me wondering-and worrying. He knew it drove me crazy. Which was exactly why he was doing it, and why he sat back and stretched out his long legs. “Me and Eve, we’re not anywhere near that stage in our relationship.”

  “Which means you’re going to string her along for a while before you break her heart again.”

  “You think?” He stood, and suddenly my small office felt even smaller.

  Like a best friend would let something like a little unspoken coercion stop her?

  I raised my chin and, though I was tempted to take a step back, I stood my ground. “I can’t stand by and watch you hurt Eve again,” I told Tyler.

  “Admirable.” The expression that sped across his face might have been mistaken for a smile by someone who didn’t know him. “But I have no intention of hurting Eve.”

  “Yeah, I remember. Just like last time. Let’s see…” I pretended to think about it, but let’s face it, I didn’t really have to. Just like a best friend stands up for her best friend, a best friend never forgets. “That time when you didn’t hurt her, that’s when you made her feel inferior, right? You said she wasn’t smart. And that she wasn’t career-minded so she couldn’t possibly understand how important your job is to you. You told her that she wasn’t successful enough to satisfy your perverse need to have a woman on your arm who can impress your friends by more than just her looks. You were cruel to her, Tyler. You hurt her. Bad.”

  “I know.” Something very much like regret softened his expression, but I wasn’t about to be fooled. Remember, I said I’d known Tyler a long time. “I’ve told Eve I was wrong,” he said. “I’ve told her I’m sorry.”

  A better woman would have taken the comment at face value, and maybe even softened a little. I wasn’t about to let Tyler off the hook so easily.

  Even though there wasn’t much room to move, I took a step forward, just so he’d know I wasn’t going to fold like an origami stork. “So that apology of yours… you telling Eve you’re sorry… that’s supposed to make everything all better?”

  “No. But it’s supposed to start to make everything better.”

  I had another opportunity to be charitable. I chose not to take it.

  “So Eve is just supposed to forgive and forget, that’s what you’re telling me?” The very notion offended me so deeply, I nearly choked on my words. “You can’t just break a woman’s heart into a couple million pieces and then show up again and expect her to pretend it never happened. You hurt her too deeply. You disappointed her. She trusted you. She depended on you. She thought you’d be there for her and-”

  “We’re talking about me and Eve, Annie. Not about you and Peter. What he did to you, don’t take that out on me.”

  Tyler ’s words hit like a slap, and I found myself staring at him, wishing I could find a way to tell him he was wrong, and knowing it was impossible. See, for the first time in his hard-nosed, strong-armed, one-upmanship life, Tyler Cooper was absolutely, one hundred percent right.

  “I’m sorry.” OK, so it wasn’t the most eloquent way to let him know, but it was sincere, and, for all his faults, I think Tyler appreciates sincerity. My laugh was both embarrassed and uneasy. “I guess that’s what some shrink would call transference. You’re hanging around. Peter’s hanging around. And I’m just sort of taking what I feel about him and piling it onto you.” I took a step away from Tyler, a symbolic way of letting him know that if he was genuine, I was will
ing to back off. “What Eve and you do, it’s none of my business.”

  Like I said, he’s subtle. At least he didn’t come right out and call me an idiot. Instead, he rolled his eyes. “Of course it’s your business. You and Eve are best friends. But Annie…” Tyler reached for my hand and gave it a squeeze. Just as quickly, he knew he’d gone too far in exposing his softer side and he dropped my hand like a hot potato. “I don’t know if we’ll work it out,” he told me. “But I do know I’m going to try. It would be easier if I didn’t find you gunning for me around every corner.”

  “It’s that obvious, huh?” I tried for a smile.

  So did Tyler. “Look, if you see me stepping out of line… well, I guess if you see me stepping out of line, I can be pretty sure you’ll call me on it.”

  “I will.” My nod reinforced my answer. “And if you see me sticking my nose where it doesn’t belong-”

  “I’ll tell you that, too. And you won’t listen.”

  I might have taken offense if Tyler didn’t grin.

  And if it wasn’t true.

  “Speaking of that…” We weren’t, but this seemed as good a time as any to talk to Tyler about what I wanted to talk to him about in the first place. When I sat down near my desk, he took the guest chair. “What are we going to do about Norman?”

  Tyler scrubbed his hands over his face. “Wish I knew,” he said, and I realized that, like Tyler, I appreciated the truth. Even when I didn’t want to hear it. “Seems like all we can do is wait for the killer to come after him again.”

  A shiver snaked up my back. Telling Norman he could start leading a normal life again, then hanging him out to dry, didn’t seem like a kindness. “There’s got to be a better way. A way to bring the guy out in the open and still maintain some control,” I said. “You know, a way for Norman to expose himself-you know what I mean,” I added when I saw a smirk on Tyler ’s face. “A way for him to come out in public and for you to be there to make sure he’s all right.”