by Rose Pressey
“Well, I’ll come over soon and have a chat,” Dorothy said, trying to close the door.
That was her way of getting rid of the neighbor.
“Let me know, dear, if you need anything,” Lorelei said, patting Dorothy’s arm again.
“I certainly will. Thank you, Lorelei.”
Dorothy closed the door when the neighbor walked away.
“Can you believe that? They stuck Morty’s picture on the news already.” Dorothy tossed her hands up.
“Well, I suppose we shouldn’t be too surprised. I mean, he was arrested for murder. Now if it had been for a speeding ticket… but this is a pretty big offense.”
“Yes, but my cuddle bug didn’t do it,” Dorothy said.
“Yes, well, your cuddle bug is in jail right now.”
Oops. I shouldn’t have said that.
Dorothy frowned.
“Never mind that,” I said. “I should be getting out of here. I’ll see you in the morning, Dorothy.”
I wanted to leave before I accidentally said something else to upset Dorothy.
“Do you really think that was a detective?” Dorothy asked.
“You want me to be honest with you, Dorothy?”
“Of course, Maggie, aren’t you always?”
I wouldn’t answer that question. “I don’t think he was a detective.”
“Well, now I’m scared.” Dorothy twisted her hands.
“There’s no reason to be afraid. He’s probably a reporter trying to get more information,” I said as I grabbed my bag.
“I never thought about that,” she said. “You’re probably right. He’s just a snoopy reporter.”
“I should be going now, Dorothy. Are you all right?” I asked.
She stood up straighter. “As a matter of fact, I am all right. I’m Dorothy Rae, and I am a strong woman. I can handle this.”
I pumped my fist. “That’s the Dorothy I know and love.”
Chapter 8
Seconds later I was loaded down with a container of cookies and a bag of peppermint candies. I told Dorothy I would be by at eight o’clock in the morning, bright and early, so that we could get things started. I wasn’t sure if Dorothy would get any sleep, and for that matter, I wasn’t sure if I would either. Nevertheless, I would have to try to catch a few winks because it looked as if tomorrow would be a busy day.
As soon as I got home, I would go straight for my computer to look up more information about the murdered woman. I assumed I would find her real estate listings, but I wasn’t sure I would find much more than that. It was definitely a place to start though. Any social media or address I could find on her would help me get the ball rolling.
A short time later, I pulled up to my apartment and hurried inside. That attacker could easily be somewhere around. The person had better be prepared for a fight though. The pool sparkled, calling out to me. No time for a dip now though. I ignored the lure of the water and shoved the key into the lock on my door. Once inside my tiny space, I grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and sat down in front of the computer. Now I started my search.
As I suspected, Jessica’s listings for homes for sale pulled up right away. I sure hoped this wasn’t the only information I found. Checking out her social media, I noticed pictures of her on a boat with a man. Who was he? I’d have to track him down. The name of the boat was Deck’s Away.
Surely I should be able to locate the boat easily. The man was also pictured on one of the local dolphin tour boats. It looked as if he might be a guide. Jessica mentioned his name in the picture. Joe Delgado. A quick search of his name revealed he in fact worked at the dolphin tour. It looked as if I’d add that to my list of things to do.
Luckily, I had managed to find an address for Jessica Combs. Maybe I could check out the house and speak with neighbors or anyone else I found. I wasn’t picky when it came to clues. But for right now, I supposed I needed to get some rest so that Dorothy and I could get an early start tomorrow.
I’d just gotten under the sheet when my phone rang. I jumped just a bit. Yes, I was a bit on edge. Jake was calling. Maybe he had a good update for me.
I released a deep breath and then answered. “Any new information for me?”
“I know why they arrested him,” Jake announced.
“Don’t tell me they have surveillance video of him actually committing the crime,” I said.
Jake chuckled nervously. “No, nothing like that, but it is perplexing.”
“Well, what is it?” I asked, anxious to hear what he had to say.
“They found his driver’s license under the body.”
“What?” I asked, louder than I had intended.
“Yes, his driver’s license was under the dead body.”
“I have to admit that is strange, but I can’t see where that’s enough evidence to arrest someone.”
“Well, I guess we think differently than the detective and the prosecuting attorney. Because they got a judge to issue an arrest warrant.”
“This is crazy,” I said. “I’ll get a good attorney and I’ll be able to get him out. Is there anything you can do?”
“I’m working on it. Let’s see what I can get done tomorrow.”
“Sorry about tonight. No dinner,” I said.
“We’ll go soon, don’t worry about that,” he said.
“There was never a doubt,” I said.
“What about this lawyer?” Jake asked.
I knew what he was thinking. I had no other choice though.
“Reynold is the best for this case,” I said.
There was a pause and I knew that he didn’t like my answer. Instead I would change the subject.
“Did you stop by Dorothy’s house to talk to her?” I asked.
I already knew the answer, but this was my way of getting more information.
“No, why do you ask?”
See, I’d known he would ask that next. “The neighbor said somebody in a suit and tie came over to Dorothy’s and said he was a detective. Was it your boss?”
“I don’t think so, no. I was with him the whole time.”
“Is there anyone else he could have sent over there?” I asked.
“He would never send anyone over there. He would do that himself.”
“Yes, I suppose that’s true.”
“He said he was a detective?” Jake asked.
“That’s what the neighbor told me.”
This just kept getting stranger.
“I’ll look into it,” Jake said.
“I had hoped you had good news for me when you called,” I said around a sigh.
“Oh, I have good news. The good news is I think you’re fabulous.”
“Well, I appreciate that. It is very sweet of you, but I was hoping for something about Morty.”
“How’s Dorothy handling this?” Jake asked.
“Well, I got her home and I told her I would pick her up in the morning. I suppose if the detective is going to be ridiculous and arrest Morty then I will definitely have to talk with a lawyer.”
Oops. I shouldn’t have brought that up again.
“Maybe that’s not such a bad idea after all,” he said. “I can recommend one.”
Here he went pushing me away from Reynold again. I knew Reynold was the best for the job.
“I was hoping you’d say it wouldn’t be necessary,” I said.
“Until I find out more, I have to err on the side of caution and tell you to go ahead with that. So how about I give you the name of a good lawyer?”
“That won’t be necessary,” I said. “I just don’t understand why he thinks this evidence would point to Morty as the killer.”
“Apparently Morty’s driver’s license under the body is all he needed,” Jake said.
“That makes me mad. I should give your boss a piece of my mind.”
“I wouldn’t recommend that,” Jake said. “You can’t help Morty if you’re in jail too.”
“That’s why I said I sho
uld give him a piece of my mind, but I won’t.”
“Thank you,” Jake said. “Anyway, Morty was arrested because they assume Morty lost the driver’s license in the process of murdering Jessica Combs.”
Honestly, this news still had me shocked.
“There has to be a logical explanation,” I said.
“Well, get some rest and tomorrow I’m sure all of this will seem much better,” Jake said.
“Dorothy’s calling. I should get that.”
Jake sighed. “Good luck. I’ll talk to you soon.”
I was pretty sure he wanted to talk more about Reynold. Jake sure didn’t like Reynold. I thought it was kind of sweet that Jake was jealous though. After ending the call, I switched over to Dorothy.
“How are you holding up?” I asked.
I didn’t want to tell her over the phone what I’d just found out about Morty, although part of me wanted to wimp out and tell her over the phone because I couldn’t handle looking at Dorothy’s sad brown eyes. But the other part of me knew telling her in person was the right thing to do. Yes, I was making the right decision, I reminded myself. I couldn’t tell her right now. She would freak out. I would wait until tomorrow morning when I met her.
“As well as can be expected. Do you think they would allow Morty conjugal visits?” Dorothy asked. “You know, if he ends up in prison for life?”
I’d never forget this question for as long as I lived.
Chapter 9
I wasn’t sure what time I’d finally fallen asleep last night, but I’d woken up still sitting in my chair with a crick in my neck. I’d finally stumbled over to the bed and passed out. There were no other interruptions, like weird noises or knocking at the door. I thought I had heard the neighbors a bit, but I’d been so out of it I wasn’t even sure of that. It could have been a dream.
I hopped out of bed, showered and dressed in my usual attire of shorts and T-shirt. This time the shorts were navy blue and my shirt was white with pink flowers. I picked out my pale pink flip-flops today. After grabbing my straw tote bag, a bottle of water, and a protein bar, I headed out the door. Dorothy would probably be waiting for me. She would be sitting out on the front porch of her house with her pocketbook in her arms already.
With my gun holstered at my side I walked down the path from my apartment building toward the car. It was another bright and sunny day in Miami, and I was ready to get my activities started. No attackers, no weird phone calls, and Morty out of jail. That was my to-do list.
“Excuse me, excuse me,” a woman’s voice called from somewhere behind me.
I spun around, always on edge. A tall, brown-haired woman waved her arms. I recognized her from up in 2A. She was directly above me. She was quiet and I rarely ever heard her.
“Yes?” I said.
“You’re Maggie Thomas, right?” she asked.
“That’s right.”
“I’m Anika from upstairs.” She pointed.
“Yes, it’s nice to see you again,” I said.
“You certainly have a lot of activity going on, don’t you?” She checked her manicure.
I frowned. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
She waved her hand. “It’s just that it seems like a lot of people are always looking for you.”
“I don’t quite understand,” I said.
“I had two people ask about you yesterday.” Anika showed two fingers.
“And who were these two people?” I asked.
“One was a man probably in his fifties with graying hair. Though he was wearing a hat and sunglasses which made it a bit hard to get a full description,” she said. “He said he’s a detective.”
Oh, I thought I knew where this was going. The same guy who had been looking for Dorothy was now looking for me. Something didn’t seem right about this.
“What did he say?” I asked.
“He asked if you were home and if I knew which apartment was yours.”
“Did you tell him?”
“I pointed out your apartment, yes.”
“That’s probably not a good idea. I don’t think I know this person.”
“Well, he said he was a detective, so I didn’t want to cross him.”
“A lot of people can say they’re detectives, but that doesn’t make it so,” I said.
Her eyes widened. “You think he lied?”
“I think it’s possible, yes.”
“What kind of scary stuff are you into?” she asked.
If I wasn’t careful, I would get kicked out of this apartment soon just for bringing around negative people. “No scary stuff, but I am a private investigator, remember?”
She sighed. “Well, I’m sure other private investigators can figure out where you live, so I guess it doesn’t matter if I told someone.”
Okay, now she was being defensive. I didn’t want to get in an argument with the neighbor. For the time being I still lived here and had to be nice.
“Who was the other person looking about me?” I asked.
“A woman probably your age, thirtyish. Taller than you.” She looked me up and down.
That was interesting. I was almost sure the person who had attacked me had been female and probably taller than me. That couldn’t be a coincidence. Had the attacker come here for me? And to actually ask for me? That was brazen. “What did she look like otherwise?”
“Dark hair and big eyes.”
“Did she give her name?” I asked.
The neighbor shook her head. “No, and I didn’t ask. It’s none of my business.”
“Did you tell her where I lived?”
“I pointed out the apartment, yes. I told her to just go knock on the door. After all, I was at the pool and trying to enjoy myself.”
Maybe I should just post a sign on my front door with my name. Apparently I had no privacy.
“Well, thank you for letting me know,” I said.
“You’re welcome. Just be careful.”
“Oh, I’m always careful,” I said.
Sometimes careful didn’t matter though. I could be as careful as ever and bad things would happen. This was certainly a lot to think about.
The woman turned and walked away. It was too bad she hadn’t snapped a photo of these people. I’d seen her taking so many selfies she’d put any Instagram queen to shame. I turned around and looked back toward the pool. Sure enough, Anika was over there taking more pictures of herself. This was so bizarre. How many photos did she need?
Her self-portraits gave me the idea. What if she had been taking pictures yesterday and happened to catch somebody in the background? Sure, it was unlikely, but I could give it a look. Once when I was at the pool I had overheard her once talking with a friend about posting photos there on Instagram. Only I didn’t know her username.
How could I get that information from her without sounding completely weird? I supposed I would just have to act like I wanted to follow her. Now I had to go back and talk with her. This was even stranger. She probably already thought I was weird. Now I would just add to my bizarre behavior, but I didn’t care. I had a case to solve and this could be life or death.
I walked over to the pool and stood at the fence surrounding it. “Excuse me.”
Anika put the phone down for a second and looked at me with a frown. “Did you forget something?”
“Actually, I was going to ask you where you got your swimsuit. It’s adorable and it looks so fantastic on you.”
If I gave her compliments then she couldn’t be mad at me, right?
“Oh, well, thank you.” With wide eyes she looked shocked by my compliment. “I got it from Neiman Marcus.”
“I’ve seen your outfits that you wear around here… when I notice you in passing.” I didn’t want it to sound like I was stalking her, although wasn’t that what Instagram was about? Silently stalking people to see what they posted. “Anyway, do you have an Instagram account? Because I’d like to follow you. You must post some great photos.”
She smiled and giggled. She was too easy.
“Yes, it is fantasticgirl123,” she said excitedly.
“Great. I got it. Thank you,” I said. “Have a great day.”
“You too,” she said as if we were now best friends.
Had I created a monster? Next she would be asking me to go shopping at the mall. I supposed that was all right if she didn’t mind me carrying my gun and almost being attacked.
Of course, I couldn’t wait to get to Dorothy’s to look at Anika’s Instagram account. I had to pull it up on my phone as soon as I got in my car. Sure enough, Anika had already posted one of her selfies from this morning, eating her breakfast of granola and fruit. And then another photo when she was at the pool, a picture of her feet with her new nail polish. And her sunglasses and on and on.
But I wasn’t interested in today’s posts. I wanted to see what she had posted from yesterday. I anxiously scrolled through the photos she’d added yesterday. Wasn’t one enough? Regardless, I checked each photo. And oddly enough there was something that stood out to me. I couldn’t see the person’s face, but it was a shot of the person’s lower body. It had been taken while Anika had been sitting on one of the lounge chairs at the pool. It was better than nothing, but it could fit the description of the man she’d described. I had a photo of his legs? Jake would laugh at that no doubt. I didn’t care. A clue was a clue. Unfortunately, there was no photos showing a woman.
Soon I pulled up in front of Dorothy’s house. Surprisingly, she wasn’t waiting outside. For a moment a feeling of apprehension came over me. What if that door had been opened by an intruder and he’d gotten Dorothy? I’d never forgive myself if I let that happen.
Maybe the man the neighbor described hadn’t been a detective at all and had been some stranger with nefarious intentions. All right, see how easily my mind played games on me? Take a deep breath, Maggie, and just go to the door. Dorothy would answer and all my worries would be over. Well, not all of them, but this one. That was a start.
I got out and hurried to the door, but it felt as if eyes watched me. That creepy feeling made my skin crawl. I glanced over and spotted the neighbor Lorelei. She wore a big floppy hat and gardening gloves. She tossed her hand up and waved the pruning shears. At least it wasn’t the strange man staring at me. I smiled and quickly waved so that she wouldn’t come over for a chitchat. Not to be rude, but I was in a hurry.
