by Kira Chase
His shoulders slumped. “At first it was just a little extra money each month. I gave it to her for her silence. I should have known she’d want more. She became greedy. She wanted more than I could possibly come up with without arousing Cassandra’s suspicions.”
“If you kept the financial records, how would Cassandra have known?”
“I may have kept the records, but Cassandra was shrewd when it came to overseeing the fortune her father had amassed. She faithfully went over the books each week.”
“So you told Chelsea no?”
“Yes. I was flying to California monthly for…well, you know. The affair ended when I refused to give her any more money. She said if I didn’t give her the money she was prepared to tell Cassandra everything.”
“Didn’t you think she was only trying to call your bluff? Besides why would you think Cassandra would have believed her over you?”
“Chelsea had proof of us together.”
“What do you mean?”
“She told me she’d had one of her friends hide a camera in the room and she filmed us in bed together.”
“How do you know she’s telling the truth? Maybe there isn’t any tape.”
“The tape exists. She mailed a copy to my office.” His face reddened even deeper. “I also believe I was drugged. I was doing things, like dancing in the nude, that I’d never dream of doing if I was in my right mind.”
The thought of him in the nude was an image Frankie didn’t want to see. “Why didn’t you just come clean with Cassandra?”
“And tell her what? That since she wasn’t my bedmate anymore, I fucked her sister instead?”
The image of him refused to leave her mind, and as she observed him sitting all stiff and proper in his perfect suit, his naked image dancing all loose and free came into focus. She tried to control her emotions, but instead laughed in spite of herself. “I’m sorry.”
His eyes narrowed. “I’m glad you find humor in my misfortune.”
“I don’t.” She quickly composed herself even though she couldn’t muster even a fingernail of sympathy for him. “What happened?”
“I continued to send what I could without arousing Cassandra’s suspicions.”
“But Chelsea didn’t buy it?”
“No. She came here a couple of months ago bent on telling Cassandra everything. Thank God Cassandra wasn’t here at the time. She was in Philadelphia for a few days helping with a charity organization. I gave Chelsea some money and sent her to The Overlook Motel until I could figure out what to do. I assumed that no one with their clientele would recognize her.”
Frankie squinted. “How was she able to assume Cassandra’s identity?”
“I have no idea.”
“How did Cassandra end up at The Overlook Motel?”
“I honestly don’t know.”
Frankie frowned. “You promised no more games. I want the truth now or I’m done with this case.”
Perspiration broke out on his forehead. “Okay.” he mopped his forehead. “Cassandra wasn’t ill…she left me a couple of months ago. I told the staff she went to Europe, but she said she was taking some time to figure things out.”
“Was it because of Chelsea?”
His face drained of all color. “If it were that I could at least have had the chance to win her back. No, she’d found some discrepancies in the books.” He wrung his hands. “I made a few bad investments and borrowed some money to make up the losses to my investors.”
“I don’t know much about your business, but I’m assuming it could have had devastating consequences for you.”
“That’s correct. I thought she’d be sympathetic, but instead she’d ordered, behind my back, a full auditing of the records going back to when Hyde was still alive. Her lawyer was handling the details.”
“Let me guess…you were doing it then.”
“Look! I’m not proud of what I did but I fully intended to pay every dime back to the investors.”
“But she wouldn’t give you the chance?”
“No.”
“Do you know where she went?”
“No. The night I went to New York, she’d left a message for me saying she’d give me her decision upon my return. I know she’d met with her attorney several times, so I wasn’t anticipating her decision. All I could hope for was an amicable resolution, which would keep the media out of it. But I still was hoping to make amends and not have a dissolution of our marriage.”
“I assume she was driving her car.”
“No. She didn’t want anyone to know that she hadn’t gone on a trip. She took a taxi to the country home. It’s rarely used anymore so I was surprised that she chose to stay there. It’s not in the best of shape.” He paused. “If she’d wanted staff she could have taken some with her, but since she wanted no one to know her personal business I assume she took care of her own cooking.”
“Is it stocked with food?”
“No. A few days before she left she took supplies up there.”
“You do know your affair with Chelsea gives you motive for wanting her out of the way?”
He slumped his shoulders in defeat. “I know, but I’d never harm a hair on her head. She knew that.”
“Have you considered coming clean with the sheriff about everything?”
“No. If I do that it will change the focus of his investigation and the real killer will get away with her murder.”
“When you first hired us it was because you thought she was cheating. Were you lying about that, too?”
“No. I thought maybe she was leaving me for another man. I’m still not convinced she hadn’t cheated.” He twisted his hands together. “She was a knockout and being one of the richest women in the country certainly didn’t hurt. I saw the way men looked at her.”
“Did you see her looking back?”
He swallowed hard, but didn’t reply.
“How did you know she’d be at the mansion the night we staked it out?”
“She’d mentioned she might stop by to get a few things from the garage. She was going to wait until after dark so the staff wouldn’t see her. I wasn’t sure she’d show, but I’d hoped. “
“How was she going to get there without transportation?”
“She didn’t say so I assumed if there was someone else, he would be bringing her. I also assumed that was another reason she didn’t want the staff to see her.”
Frankie tried to process all he’d told her. She’d sort it all out with Johanna and see what she’d learned. “Well, let me run all of this by my partner and we’ll see where to take it from here.”
“Have you found anything that may have indicated she was having an affair?” he asked as he walked her out.
“No.” She looked into his eyes still not trusting him. “My gut instinct tells me that she wasn’t.”
She heard the massive door close behind her. She glanced at her cell phone.
I’m home, babe.
She smiled, relieved.
Chapter 10
Johanna parked her car and let herself into the house. She sent Frankie a quick text, then closed her phone. She hoped Frankie would get home soon. She couldn’t wait to tell her about the conversation with Mary and Bryn. She was just as anxious to find out how her meeting with Graham turned out.
The answering machine light caught her attention as it flashed annoyingly. She walked over to it and pressed play. Trey was returning their call to say that he’d be delighted to come to dinner tomorrow night and was definitely bringing a special friend. She smiled at his joy, which radiated through his voice. She’d asked him once why he never called them on their cell phones and wide-eyed he exclaimed that he couldn’t call one and not the other. He’d never want them to think he was playing favorites since he loved them both the same. To make it easier on himself he used the home phone. They’d laughed at his explanation, but that was Trey. They’d both come to think of him as the younger brother neither had.
She checked h
er cell phone, but didn’t see any messages from Frankie. She was ready to text her again when she heard Frankie’s car door slam. She closed her phone and was walking to the door when she heard Frankie’s key in the lock.
Frankie stepped inside, pulled her close and kissed her. “Have I got news for you!” she grinned as she set the security alarm.
“Me, too. I’ll pour some wine and we can compare notes.”
“Sounds good to me,” Frankie replied as she pulled off her shoes.
“Trey called.” Johanna played Trey’s message.
Frankie smiled as she listened to it.
They settled on the sofa and spent the next hour filling each other in as they sipped their wine.
“So Graham was getting it on with Chelsea,” Johanna remarked, shaking her head. “I personally can’t imagine him getting it on with anyone.”
“Me either.” Frankie laughed. “And to think Hyde Reynolds was accused by his own daughter of molestation.”
“Chelsea’s quite a piece of work.”
“It’s sad, though, when you think about it. All that money, and I get the impression that Cassandra was an unhappy woman.”
“Mary and Bryn were close to her, almost like surrogate mothers. They hadn’t heard from her since she went to Europe a couple of months ago. They were shocked to learn she’d been shot to death at the motel.”
Frankie suddenly sat bolt upright. “Maybe the country house is where Chelsea’s been hiding out.”
“But if Cassandra was staying there.”
They looked at each other. “She was holding Cassandra against her will and forced her to call Graham to tell him she needed something from the garage,” Frankie stated.
“Why?”
“Maybe Chelsea was going to enter the mansion to grab some cash and then changed her mind for some reason.”
Johanna was thoughtful. “Bryn said she pushed her curtain aside when she heard a car coming from the garage. Chelsea went in her place and may have thought about entering the mansion until she saw the light from Bryn’s window. She couldn’t risk it or she’d have some explaining to do about why she was driving Cassandra’s car.”
“How did Chelsea get to the mansion then?”
Johanna’s eyebrow puckered. “Chelsea drove her own car, hid it in the garage after her plan failed, took Cassandra’s Porsche and drove back to the motel, made sure Cassandra was still out, drove to the gym and then drove back to the mansion and retrieved her car. But we didn’t see that because we’d driven by. If we’d waited we probably would have seen her leaving the mansion in her own car.”
Frankie thoughtfully sipped her wine. “Who called her at the gym?”
Johanna sighed. “I don’t know. The only thing I’m sure of is Cassandra was targeted to die that night one way or the other.”
“I agree with you there. Obviously Chelsea wasn’t driving her own car to the gym every night when she was impersonating Cassandra. So either she was taking a taxi or someone was picking her up and dropping her off.”
Johanna nodded. “Besides looking for Chelsea we have to find her accomplice.”
“I think it’s Graham.”
“Why?”
“Look at his attitude. He’s like a trapped animal. I don’t care what he told me tonight. He’s running scared and his alibi is a pile of crap! He wants us to believe he’s the concerned husband. We know that he cheated with Chelsea and stole money for years from the corporation.”
“And he told you so you’d think if he would share that, there’s no way he’d be guilty of plotting to kill his wife.”
“Right. He wanted my sympathy and had to play it to the hilt with his temper tantrums. Once I pried the truth out of him he played the part well with his phony guilt and humiliation. No, he wanted his wife dead because he stood to lose everything…including his reputation.”
“Maybe that’s part of it.”
“What do you mean?”
“He told you he wanted to set things right with Cassandra. I don’t think he was a part of it.”
Frankie looked at her in shock. “You’ve got to be kidding! He’s got motive!”
“So does Chelsea. Her twin had everything she’d been denied. I think she wanted to hurt Cassandra in the worst possible way. Sleeping with her husband was just the beginning. Cassandra still held the purse strings.” Johanna rubbed her temples. “I just need to figure out how Cassandra ended up at the motel.”
“Chelsea must have drugged her and driven her there or had her accomplice do it.”
Johanna stretched. “I think I’ll work on the computer for a little bit to see if I can find out anything about Chelsea. Do you remember that detective, Bob Sloane, who helped us out a few years ago? I’m going to see if he can find anything on her.”
“Yeah, I like Bob. That’s a good idea. Tell him we owe him one.”
“I will. By the way, do you think we should let George in on any of this?”
She shook her head. “Not yet. We’re not hindering his investigation. We’re gathering information on our own.” She smiled. “Besides, we’re private detectives and no one we question is legally bound to tell us anything.”
“But we do enjoy watching them squirm,” Johanna added.
“That we do. I think I’ll sit here, finish my wine and plan tomorrow’s dinner menu.”
“What are you going to make?”
“Lasagna. Trey loves it. I hope his companion does, too.”
“I’m sure he will. No one makes it like you.”
* * * *
Frankie sifted through her notes, then went back to her computer and ran another search. “Chelsea was married for about six months to a drug dealer named Hank Taylor. He’s serving time in a California prison for fatally shooting a cop. He was apprehended while selling drugs to middle school kids and he opened fire.”
Johanna peered over the top of her computer screen. “Sounds like a nice guy,” she replied sarcastically. “Anything on Chelsea?”
“Nope. It appears she kept her nose clean. Did Bob come up with anything?”
“No, but he’s still looking. There’s not even a credit card in her name.”
“Talk about keeping a low profile.” She scratched her head. “What are we missing?”
“The obvious. It’s right under our noses and we don’t see it because we are too close to it.”
“All I know is that first thing tomorrow morning I intend to spend the day talking to anyone who even said hi to Cassandra. Somebody has to know something.”
“We’ve never failed to solve a case yet,” Johanna reminded her.
“Yes, but since we left the police force we haven’t had to deal with murder.”
“Times are changing, babe. I have a feeling this is only the beginning. The world is becoming harsher and murder is as common as breathing anymore.”
Frankie squinted. “Thanks for cheering me up.”
* * * *
Late afternoon Frankie turned off her computer. “I’m going to head home and start dinner. Trey said they’d be over about eight.”
Johanna nodded. “Is there anything you want me to pick up on my way home?” She walked Frankie to the door.
“Just yourself,” she whispered close to Johanna’s ear. “Don’t work too hard.”
“I won’t, babe. I’ve got a couple of bills to send out. And Bickman Law Offices wants us to pick up some summonses to deliver tomorrow afternoon.”
“Want me to do it?”
“I’ll take care of it. It won’t take long.”
She patted Johanna’s shoulder. “I’ll see you later then.”
* * * *
Trey raised his wineglass. “These, Will, are the two best friends anyone could ask for.” With his other arm he patted the handsome younger man’s shoulder. “Can you believe they’ve been together for twelve years? A toast to monogamy.”
Frankie and Johanna raised their glasses to Trey’s. Trey’s date shyly joined his glass to theirs. Will ha
d boyish good looks and seemed mesmerized with every word Trey said. Both men were dressed in casual khaki slacks with Trey wearing a yellow short-sleeved casual dress shirt and Will in a light green one.
“I hope to someday find the same happiness and commitment you two have,” Will said.
Frankie caught Trey’s eye and winked. “If you stick with Trey you have.”
“Trey tells us that you’re going to be working with him, Will,” Johanna said.
“That’s right.” He grinned. “He made me an offer I couldn’t refuse.”
Frankie smiled. “I’ll bet he did.”
Johanna playfully slapped Frankie’s shoulder. “Now behave. You’re embarrassing poor Will. At least wait until he’s been here a couple of times.”
Will laughed.
Trey nudged Will’s shoulder. “I told you they’re something else.”
“I think we’re going to get along just fine,” Will said, as a broad smile covered his face.
“Yes, we are,” Frankie agreed. “Seriously, Trey is the best when it comes to landscaping and the regular upkeep.” She took a small swallow and then set her wineglass on the table.
“I agree,” Johanna said then turned her attention back to Will. “So you’re in the same line of work as Trey?”
“That’s how we met. I’d seen him around, but couldn’t get up the courage to talk to him. I was picking up some supplies for my boss one day when Trey walked in and struck up a conversation.”
“That’s all it took,” Trey interjected. “We’d run into each other several times at the clubs in Philly. I hadn’t gone for a couple of months because in the summer I’m up to my ears in work. Anyway we got to chatting about mutual acquaintances we know from Philly.” He patted Will’s hand. “One thing led to another and I asked him out. The rest is history as they say and I’m hoping this is only the beginning of a long relationship.”
Will nodded. “I’m ready to settle down. I didn’t realize it until Trey and I began dating. I passed the big three-oh a couple of months ago and began evaluating my life.” He shrugged. “I got tired of the lame dates and Trey is like a breath of fresh air.”
“We have a lot of the same tastes,” Trey said. “In fact, it’s uncanny how our interests are so matched.”
