by Anne R. Tan
“Poisoned?” He grabbed a small notebook from his back pocket and flipped it open. “Have IT look through his computer. Check his office or home for a planner for his private appointments. And get me his phone records.”
Raina gasped. Eden was right about Holden.
Matthew swung around and glowered at her. “Give me a call back when they’re done processing his home.” He slipped the cell phone and notebook back into his pockets. “You shouldn’t be listening to police business.”
“Then don’t conduct it in front of a private citizen.”
He sighed and mumbled something unflattering about women.
“Excuse me?” Raina said, hands on her hips.
“See what I mean about hunger crankiness?”
She scowled. “How was Holden poisoned?”
“I can’t tell you.”
“Then I’m not going with you. Just ask your questions.”
Matthew lifted a hand and rubbed the back of his neck. She leaned back against her door. She’d learned patience since he’d last seen her. He glared at her and took a step forward.
Raina lifted her chin. A mere four inches separated them. A curl on the side of her face moved each time Matthew exhaled. She flushed. The heady scent of his skin, a combination of sage and clean water, clogged the back of her throat.
His nostrils flared and his eyes darkened. He took a step back and ran a shaky hand through his hair. “Whatever I tell you stays between us.”
She licked her lips. “Yes.” She blinked at the low husky voice. Stop it! This was not the time for a teenage infatuation.
“The initial toxicology tests came back positive. The lab has to run more tests to identify the substance. The location of the toxin in his stomach and liver strongly suggests he was poisoned.”
“He looked fine when I saw him in the morning. Gail mentioned he asked her for Pepto around two o’clock. Maybe the upset stomach he complained about was the first sign of the poison.” Raina froze. What if Holden had already ingested the poison when he cornered her by the vending machine?
“She didn’t mention Pepto in her statement. When did she tell you this?”
“The morning after Holden died.”
“What else did she tell you?”
“Are we planning to share?”
Matthew grabbed her chin and tilted her head until she could count the gold flecks in his eyes. “Don’t. Get. Involved.”
Raina jerked her head loose. “Why would I get involved?”
“You tell me.”
About Holden? Or Sol? Like it or not, she was up to her armpits in muck. Once Matthew heard about the fake pregnancy, she could kiss any affection he might still have good-bye. Not that she still wanted him. She just didn’t want him to think badly of her. “I’m going to stay off your radar.”
“Your curiosity has gotten you in trouble before.”
“I was trying to help you out.”
“And I appreciated it. Just don’t do it again.” His eyes softened. “You know how much I hate playing Superman with you.”
Raina rolled her eyes. “So are you going to buy me lunch or what?”
The corner of his lips curled into a half smile. “Let’s go.”
A few minutes later, he parked in front of the Venus Café on the corner of Main Street and Second Avenue. The olive green bungalow with white trim had been converted into a commercial space more than a decade ago. The cafe featured a large front room with half a dozen small tables and a large fireplace surrounded by cracked leather reading chairs.
Unlike your typical mom-and-pop cafes, Venus Café’s interior walls had floor to ceiling murals of handsome men frolicking with naked nymphs with strategically placed flowing hair or bits of leaves. The town’s elders hated this place, but a thrill ran through Raina each time she stepped inside the cafe. It felt good to be a little naughty, even if it was vicariously through painted women.
They placed their orders at the counter, grabbed their coffees, and found a table in a quiet corner. Sitting a foot from Matthew at a small square table, Raina’s knees kept bumping into his each time one of them shifted. His eyes kept straying to the painted women and they grew wider at each encounter. Every time she brought someone new to the place, they’d had a similar reaction.
“I take it you haven’t been here before,” said Raina with a smirk.
“I’ve been here before the murals. I wasn’t impressed with the coffee then.” He held up his iced coffee. “But this is good.”
So Matthew had moved to Gold Springs before Raina did. Strange her grandma didn’t see fit to mention this tidbit of information before her application to the college. This shed new light on their phone conversations this past year where Po Po regularly asked if she had met anyone interesting.
“New ownership. Brenda and Joe bought the place nine months ago,” Raina said.
Matthew tapped his fingers against his glass. No wedding ring. “I never imagined I would run into you again at a crime scene.” He tore his eyes from the painted walls to study her.
Raina met his eyes and a jolt ran down her spine. A sense of déjà vu settled on her. She averted her gaze, hoping he didn’t notice her reaction. The clink of forks hitting plates and low buzz of conversation faded into a mute din. No, she couldn’t let this happen again.
“How long have you been living in Gold Springs?” Raina asked. “It’s a strange coincidence we both moved to this town. I can’t imagine you being a small town cop after shooting and exploding things for the feds.”
“Almost two years.”
She slumped in her chair. He’d known she was in town and the fact he’d never bothered to look her up pricked at her pride. Not that it would have made a difference.
Matthew smirked. “If I didn’t know better, I’d say you moved here on purpose.”
“What purpose?”
“Me.”
“Get over yourself.”
“You tracked me down by talking to my grandma and moved to town hoping to run into me. And waving a dead body in front of me?” He winked. “That’s prime. You’re good. Real good.”
Raina burst out laughing and shook her head. She had forgotten he could always make her laugh. “It was the cheesecake.”
Matthew leaned back and smacked his lips. “My grandma always had a sweet spot for you. It’s been a while since I had your cheesecake.”
“It’s been ten years.”
“What about Rome?”
Raina scratched her pinkie. “What about it? You left me tied up and naked in a hotel room.”
“You made me do it. I told you not to follow me.”
“I was trying to help.”
“And I didn’t want to see you covered in blood again. I am trained to take care of myself in dicey situations.” He pointed at her. “Don’t make me drag you pregnant and naked back into the cave.”
The jovial mood vanished. The hissing espresso machine and someone’s laughter filled the silence between them. Raina stared at the painted gyrating nymph on the wall closest to her. She needed to stop. There was no point in rehashing old wounds.
Brenda slid a club salad in front of her and a cheeseburger with fries in front of Matthew. The whiff of grease made Raina’s stomach churn. For the next few minutes, she picked at her salad and watched Matthew devour his food with gusto. His appetite hadn’t changed. Good thing her cooking had improved.
Her fingers curled as she fought the urge to reach across the table and wipe the ketchup off his chin. He’d left her brokenhearted one too many times. Melodramatic? Yes, but she couldn’t let the man in front of her charm his way back into her life again. She stabbed at a piece of spinach, twisting the fork until the leaf shredded.
He wiped his mouth and crumpled the paper napkin in his hands. “How well did you know Holden Merritt?”
“He was my adviser for my graduate studies.”
“What were you doing in the building after hours?”
Raina wiped her sweaty palm
s on her shorts. Matthew would find out when he checked the phone records. She blinked, regretting the third pass with the mascara wand. “Holden texted me. He wanted to talk.”
“About what?”
She licked her lips. Stick to the truth. “He owed me money. I’d asked for it back the day before when we met to go over my coursework.” Good thing no one could verify the amount.
“Why did he owe you money?”
“What do you mean?” She shifted in her seat and bumped into his knees. “He needed cash and didn’t have time to go to the ATM. And I had a twenty.” Liar, liar, pants on fire.
Matthew stared at her for a long moment. His face became professionally blanked. “How well do you know Gail Drakos?”
“Why would she poison Holden?”
He dipped another soggy fry into his pool of ketchup. “That’s not my question.”
“We’re friends.” She left off the “sometimes.” He didn’t need that information. “What was Natalie’s reaction to her brother’s death?”
“She answered our questions and then closed the door.”
Raina rubbed her hands on her shorts. “Do you think it would have mattered if he didn’t stay late to meet me?”
He studied her expression and his eyes softened. “Rainy, someone was out to get him. Whether he stayed late or went home wouldn’t change the outcome, just the location of the crime.”
She shifted, her bare knee skimming across the rough fabric of his jeans. A strand slipped from the knot in her heart. Not her fault. Her fake pregnancy and Holden’s urgent desire to talk had nothing to do with his untimely death. She should tell Matthew about the lie. “There’s something I want to tell—”
“Let me take those for you.” Brenda’s hand reached for the empty plates. “Dessert? We’re starting our fall menu early this year.”
Matthew glanced behind her and the moment disappeared.
Raina turned to look at the display cases featuring a dozen baked goods next to the coffee bar. She froze as her gaze swept past the fireplace. Eden and Officer Hopper pored over several pages on the large coffee table. How long had they been here?
“The pumpkin marble coffee cake looks good,” said Raina.
Matthew pushed his chair back.
“No, I’ll get it. You two keep talking,” said Brenda with a warm smile.
“What were you just saying?” Matthew asked.
Raina shook her head. “It wasn’t important.”
Brenda returned and slid a small plate with a generous slice of coffee cake between them. “I brought two forks.” She winked at Raina and sashayed away.
Raina stared at the two forks and heat rose from her neck. Was she wearing a dopey lovesick expression? Why did Brenda assume she wanted to share her cake?
“I can’t say no to two forks,” said a beaming Matthew, lopping off a large piece.
Raina rolled her eyes. Just like old times. She ordered dessert and he finished it off. She wiped her sweaty hands on her shorts again. It was now or never. “What did my grandfather say to you in high school? Before you left…” The “me” hung unspoken in the air between them.
Matthew coughed and reached for his coffee. He took a long swallow before meeting her eyes. “I—”
Officer Hopper thumped her cup on the table and sat on the vacant chair.
Raina wanted to scream at the look of relief on Matthew’s face. She scooted her chair back at the sudden crowd around the small table. A quick glance behind her confirmed that Eden was long gone.
“Chancellor wants to meet with you in an hour.” Officer Hopper grabbed a fork and popped a piece of the cake into her mouth. Her flinty blue eyes slid sideways to Raina and just as quickly dismissed her. “Wow, this is good cake, Matthew.” The fork dangled off her slim hands in the space between Matthew and Raina.
Raina wanted to laugh. So that was it. “That fork fell on the floor. Is that piece of hair still on the tines? I’m waiting for Brenda to bring me a new one.”
Officer Hopper’s eyes widened. The fork dropped onto the table with a resounding clang.
Matthew pressed his lips into a thin line. His eyes were bright with amusement. “Any idea what the meeting is about?”
Officer Hopper flicked a glance at Raina, her scowl firmly back in place.
“Meet you outside in a minute,” Matthew said.
Officer Hopper shoved away from the table and stalked to the entrance, banging open the door.
Right, police business. As if Raina couldn’t find out what the Chancellor said. All it took was a quick phone call to Gail. “Did Officer Cake Snatcher miss a coffee run this morning or something?”
Matthew popped another piece of cake into his mouth. “You can use my fork. It doesn’t have hair on it.”
Raina laughed and grabbed the plate before he could lop another piece off. He handed her the fork, their hands touching. A tingle of excitement ran up her arm. Warmth spread across her chest. The noise of the café once again faded into the background.
Matthew leaned in and tapped her nose. “It’s good to spend time with you again, Rainy. See you later.” He joined Officer Hopper outside.
Raina chuckled to herself and dug into the cake with Matthew’s fork. She made an enemy all right. Officer Cake Snatcher wanted Matthew, but she’d no idea he was just as emotionally unavailable to her as he was to Raina.
10
SEX, MONEY, AND LIES
Raina pressed her back against the rough bark and huddled under the shade of the tree. She’d been sitting here for the last thirty minutes, but time had a surreal quality when her wet T-shirt clung to even wetter skin. Eden was late, as usual, even though her text message had said she was on her way. Waiting outside the freshman dorms in one-hundred-degree heat without a bottle of water wasn’t one of her smarter moves.
The idea to find Cora had seemed brilliant while finishing off her cake at the Venus Cafe yesterday. Any sane person would let the police investigate Holden’s murder. And Raina was normally sane, except Matthew was the police. She couldn’t risk him finding out about the fake pregnancy over the course of his investigation. He’d think she was trying to trap Holden just like his mom had trapped his dad into a disastrous marriage.
She glanced at the names written on the notebook resting on her knee. Olivia Kline and Sol Cardenas. Reluctantly, she added Cora Campos to the list. What reason did any of them have for killing Holden? Even if Olivia was a jealous lover, why would Olivia kill the object of her love rather than her rival? Raina swallowed. She was the rival. Not that she wanted Olivia to correct the situation. Why would Sol search Holden’s office behind closed doors if he had nothing to hide? And how did Cora fit into this? Why did the police seek her out at the bookstore? In hindsight, her reaction yesterday was suspicious.
A clinking noise dragged her attention from the notebook and she glanced at the cluster of two-story buildings. A golf cart pulled up next to the bike racks. Tony came over. “Someone called Campus Security about a woman passed out under a tree.”
Raina gave him what she hoped was her cutest smile. Unbelievable. How could a man just glisten when she smelled like the underside of a moldy mushroom? “Give me another hour. I don’t think I’m ready to swoon yet.”
“It’s dangerous to sit out in this heat.” Tony tilted his head toward the golf cart. “I’ll give you a ride back to your car. By the way, I’m going to have to confiscate your faculty parking pass.”
Raina got into the cart. “It’s too hot to walk from the student lot. I only use the parking pass for the greater good. And it’s not like the faculty lots are full during the summer.” She pulled out her lower lip in an exaggerated pout, blinking her eyes.
Tony laughed. “Nice try, but I’m just doing my job. And stop that blinking. You look more like a toad than a cute puppy.” He weaved the cart around two bikers.
Raina handed over her parking pass when they got to her car. It wasn’t as if she didn’t pay for a parking pass, just that she chos
e to give herself an upgrade once in a while. It was one of the perks of working with computer geeks.
“Why would someone call Campus Security?” Raina asked.
Tony shrugged. “Maybe someone is concerned about you.”
“Who called?”
“Cora Campos.”
Raina sucked in a breath. So she was on the right trail, enough to rattle Cora into calling Campus Security to get rid of her. Now she was more convinced than ever that she needed to talk to the freshman.
The ding on her cell phone distracted Raina from further thoughts about the matter. The text message was from Eden, asking Raina to swing by the newspaper office to pick her up for a little snooping at Olivia’s house. Raina was miffed, but Eden’s plan was more appealing than anything she could come up with at the moment.
A few minutes later, Eden hopped into the car. “Sorry, my desk phone rang just as I was about to leave.”
“How can you be on your way when you haven’t even left the building?”
“I was heading toward the door. Close enough.” Eden pulled out a Starbucks Frappuccino from her purse. “Here’s my peace offering. Ice cold from the vending machine.”
Raina twisted off the cap and downed half the bottle in one gulp.
Eden smirked. “I guess I’m forgiven. Let’s get on the road, Robin.”
Raina pulled away from the curb. “No, I’m Batman.”
“I’m almost a foot taller than you. If we get into a fight, I’d already be kicking butt while you’re still digging around for your pepper spray.”
Raina rolled her eyes. “Fine, you can be the muscle. So why are we going to Olivia’s house?”
“The Dean put her on Admin Leave this morning.”
“Because of the missing grant money?”
Eden shrugged. “Let’s find out.”
Raina parked in front of the single-story ranch-style house. Eden jumped out of the car like she had been ejected from her seat. Raina followed her friend to the front door. She shifted her weight and kicked a few scattered leaves off the porch while the bell chimed inside. In the far corner, there were cobwebs and the giant potted plant had more weeds than flowers. Olivia wasn’t one of those proud homeowners who believed in curb appeal.
