“Hey, Tommy.”
“Yeah?”
“Thanks, I needed an ear, you know?”
“I’m always here for you, brother, now let’s—”
The door to the office popped open and an older cop stuck his head in.
“Great news, guys, Officers Dawson and Chaney just nailed your perp, unfortunately, he took out another victim first.”
Delaney stood up.
“Mike, where did this happen?”
“Near the village,”
Jake stood too.
“Let’s check it out.”
***
Claire Ross entered a trendy clothing store on 58th Street and found that the shop was empty, save for the woman behind the counter, who was looking at her with daggers in her eyes.
“What the hell are you doing here, lady?”
Claire smiled.
“Hello, Amanda.”
“Oh, you know my name now. The last time we talked you called me a conniving bitch.”
“I was very upset then because my daughter was devastated by your betrayal.”
Amanda softened at those words. She was a natural redhead with green eyes and a face that once helped her finish second in a Miss New York State beauty contest.
“How is Kelli?”
“She is in danger of having her heart broken again, that’s how she is.”
“What’s that mean?”
“She and Jake Caliber are back together.”
“Oh, wow, I would have thought she’d want nothing to do with him.”
“My daughter lacks good sense where that man is concerned.”
“I still don’t understand, why come and see me? I’m the last person Kelli would listen to.”
“I have a... proposition for you.”
“Oh yeah?”
“Yes. I want you to break them up again.”
“What? Why?”
“Every day they’re together will only make it that much more difficult for Kelli when Jake finally does cheat on her, and so it’s better that it happens sooner rather than later.”
“We ended as friends, Jake and I, and it’s not unusual for me to run into him since we live in the same building.”
“So you’ll do it?”
“What if he doesn’t want to sleep with me?”
“You’re not my favorite person, Amanda, but you are an extremely attractive woman, and if you assure Jake that it would be a one-time thing with no strings attached, I’m sure he’d jump at the chance.”
“What’s in it for me? I mean besides the sex,”
Claire smiled; she had been waiting for that question. She reached into her purse and took out an envelope.
“Five hundred dollars, and from the lack of customers here, I’d say you could use it.”
Amanda stared at the envelope and then looked down at the counter for several moments, but when she raised her head, she nodded.
“I’ll do it, and I’ll hook up with him tonight.”
“Fine, and I’ll see that Kelli is kept occupied, but there is one thing though.”
“Yeah?”
“I want you to tell Kelli after it’s done. Meet us for breakfast at eight, at that deli near the Caliber building.”
Amanda let out a huff.
“I don’t want to hurt her again, but you’re right, Jake Caliber will cheat on her eventually, and so, in a way, I’ll be helping her.”
“So we have a deal?”
“Yes.”
Claire set the envelope on the counter.
“When you tell Kelli about Jake, make no mention of this, just let them both think it was all you.”
Amanda smirked.
“Who’s the conniving bitch now, hmm?”
Claire looked startled by those words, and then she turned and left the shop without another word.
CHAPTER 13
When Jake and Delaney reached the scene, they were greeted by the old man and Kelli.
Jake had called his grandfather and told him what little he knew, and he and Kelli rushed to the scene.
The cops at the heart of the matter were off limits, but Delaney found one of the officers that responded after the shooting, and he filled them in. The cop’s name was Tomás Rivera and he was a friend of Delaney’s. Rivera spoke with a slight Spanish accent.
“The perp was a homeless guy, real nasty one too from the look of him.”
“Who called it in?” Delaney said.
“There’s a barber shop on the other side of the alley wall, and the owner called in a suspicious odor, said it smelled like something was dead. He was right, it was the second victim.”
“Has she been ID’d yet?”
“Not officially, but they think it’s a woman named Shannon McKeown. She’s been missing for three days.”
“Shannon?” Kelli said, as a shocked look crossed her face.
Jake placed a comforting hand on her arm.
“You knew her, baby?”
“Yes, she went to high school with me, and so did Selina, now that I think of it. But Shannon was never a B-Girl, she was going to be, but then she got a job with Rockport Insurance.”
“When’s the last time you saw her?”
“It’s been maybe two or three weeks. Caliber handles the background checks on their new hires, and sometimes Shannon would stop by to pick up the reports on her way to lunch. The Rockport building is only a block away from Caliber.”
The old man sighed.
“Maybe the perp saw her coming out of the building and assumed she was a B-Girl. Was she good looking, Kelli?”
Kelli wiped at tears.
“Shannon was beautiful, inside and out.”
Delaney grimaced and spoke to Rivera.
“What about the body, were there words carved into her back?”
Rivera returned the grimace.
“They might have been words when they were fresh, but she’s been dead a while, and they just looked like wounds to me, but I guess the ME can figure it out.”
“The perp, was he armed?”
Rivera eyed the Calibers and Kelli.
“Maybe we shouldn’t talk in front of civilians, Tommy.”
“It’s all right, Tomás.”
Rivera nodded.
“Yeah, I guess it is, considering who they are, and yes, the perp had a weapon, but it was a knife, not a gun. Dawson shot him in the leg, but the bullet hit an artery and so he bled out.”
Delaney slapped him on the shoulder.
“Thanks Tomás, and tell Reva I said hi.”
“I’ll tell her, Tommy, and give my best to Jenny too.”
***
The killer watched them from the edge of the crowd that had gathered.
He stared at Kelli while wishing that everyone else would just go away and leave them alone. He had no idea why it took so long for the second body to be discovered, but he assumed it had something to do with the bum that was being given credit for his acts.
It was all a mess now. If the bum took the blame for his acts, then they would know he was innocent once he had paid back this third bitch, and they would keep looking for him as he went after the others.
He smiled.
Let them look. He was too smart for them. Didn’t he already have them looking the right way but also in the wrong direction.
“B,B,B,B,B,” he whispered, “Follow the bouncing B’s.”
A giggle escaped him, and he saw one of the uniform cops that were keeping back the onlookers gaze his way. The officer took note of his disheveled clothes and gaunt look. He sent the young cop a pleasant nod, and when the man looked elsewhere, he turned and scurried away.
Tomorrow, he would take the third B-bitch tomorrow and to hell with the consequences.
Kelli Ross had to die.
***
They had walked over to Tommy’s car to talk away from the scene. Kelli had come along with the old man so that she and Jake could leave the scene together. However, on the way there, Kelli’s mot
her had called and asked her to join her for dinner and a movie, and thereby leaving Jake on his own, and giving Amanda an opportunity to seduce him.
Jake looked at his grandfather.
“What do you think?”
“I think we need to learn more about this perp, and his new victim, the poor girl.”
Delaney spoke to Kelli.
“Did Shannon McKeown have any enemies that you know of?”
“Shannon? No, but then I really don’t know her... didn’t know her that well anymore.”
“I’ll look into it,” Delaney said.
“All right, but I doubt you’ll find anything. Shannon was a good person.”
“Everybody’s got a past, doll,” the old man said, “And you never know what you’ll find lurking there.”
***
“A husband? You were married once before Michael and you didn’t think it was something I should know?”
Velma touched Chris on the cheek tenderly, as she sought to calm him down.
“I was a stupid seventeen-year-old girl when I ran off and married Peter Gates. It’s not something I’m proud of, and so yes, I kept it hidden.”
They were in the short hallway that led to the steakhouse’s office, where Merriweather and Chancellor were watching TV.
Chris was trying to keep his voice steady, but he was angry that Velma had kept her first marriage a secret from him, and so his voice was threatening to grow into a shout.
“I can understand not revealing it to most people, but I thought that we were closer than that.”
“I should have told you, I admit it.”
“What the hell did you see in that guy?”
Velma shrugged.
“Back then, Peter was hot, at least he was to a seventeen-year-old. He had much better hair, a motorcycle, and played in a band. He swept me off my feet.”
“How long were you married?”
“Just a few days, and then I caught him in bed with the motel room maid.”
Chris calmed down, as he saw the look of discomfort in Velma’s eyes. He leaned back against an electrical panel on the wall and sighed.
“You should have told me about him.”
“Yes, and I’m sorry that I didn’t.”
“Do you still have feelings for him?”
“God no, my infatuation with Peter ended before the ink dried on the divorce papers.”
“Is there a husband number three somewhere?”
“No, Chris, Peter is the only skeleton in my closet.”
Chris nodded.
“All right, um, listen, stay here with them while I go speak with the casino’s security chief.”
“Okay, and Chris?”
“Yeah?”
“Are we good, baby?”
Chris kissed her.
“We’re good, I’m a little hurt and angry, but I understand your side too.”
Velma grinned.
“When this case is over, why don’t we stay and enjoy the casino for a day or two? After all, we already have rooms here.”
“Sounds good.”
Velma watched Chris walk away. She then took out her phone to try to track down Peter Gates.
***
Gail returned to her home, and when she entered into the kitchen through the back door, her mouth immediately began to salivate.
Jim Tate smiled at her.
“I hope you like Italian food.”
“It’s my favorite, and it smells so good, what is that?”
“Lasagna, made from my grandmother’s recipe.”
“I didn’t know you could cook this well.”
“We’ve a lot to learn about each other, don’t we?”
Gail smiled. “Yes, we do,”
***
After eating, they sat at the table with coffee, as Tate filled her in on his day.
“I went over the house from top to bottom and I agree with most of that checklist you had from the contractor that looked the place over, plus, I’d like to resurrect that garden area in the back there. With a little work, that could supply you with all the vegetables you’ll need.”
“Have you estimated how much it will all cost?”
Tate removed a slip of paper from the pocket of his shirt.
“I did, I dropped by the home improvement center and checked out the prices, the amount is right there at the bottom.”
Gail looked at the figure and then looked up.
“This can’t be right. It’s less than half of what the contractor wanted.”
“That’s true, but most of his expense comes from hiring labor, and you won’t have that expense.”
“If you can rehab the house for this amount, I’ll wind up owing you money.”
Tate smiled.
“I’m glad you said that, because I need a favor.”
“Yes?”
“That old car in the garage, if that runs, I want to know if I can use it to get around. I had to sell my vehicles along with my other property to pay my legal fees.”
“That’s not a problem, it runs, and I’ve kept up the insurance.”
“I’ll also need money to go buy tools to work with, but don’t worry, I included it all in my estimate.”
Gail looked at him with concern.
“You’ve really lost everything haven’t you? Your career, your reputation, and even your home and transportation.”
“I’ve no one to blame but myself, Gail. But you’re wrong, I haven’t lost everything. I still have my daughter, Becca, and... I’ve made a new friend, you.”
“I’d like to meet your daughter.”
“Yeah?”
“Yes.”
“Good, because I’d like her to meet you too.”
“Jim.”
“Yes?”
“This is going to work out, isn’t it?”
“Yes, Gail.”
“I’m not talking about just the rehab either, I mean us.”
Tate leaned over and kissed her and Gail kissed him back, but a moment later, Tate stood up in a rush.
“I’m sorry. You told me just this morning that you weren’t ready for this yet.”
Gail stood and took him by the hand.
“Jim.”
“Yes?”
She smiled.
“To hell with what I said.”
Tate smiled back, and then the two of them went upstairs hand in hand.
CHAPTER 14
Rayne was drinking warm Pepsi when Carter Hollie returned to his sister’s apartment in a battered old pickup truck.
Hollie was a big man in his mid-sixties with a craggy face and a head of wispy white hair.
Rayne was happy to see that she was right about Hollie living with his sister, and also glad that she hadn’t missed his return. She had been away from the apartment for a time as she went off in search of a toilet.
This surveillance should have been done by two, and normally she would have been teamed with Jake, but the B-Girl case took precedence. Rayne had promised the old man that she could handle it, as she had done many times in the past while working on insurance cases alone.
When the lights in the apartment went out around eleven, Rayne made another quick trip to use the restroom of a nearby gas station, and then settled into her car for the night. Hollie’s truck ran loud enough to wake her if he left before dawn, and so Rayne shut her eyes and drifted off to sleep, while thinking of the man she loved.
***
In Atlantic City, Velma parked outside the motel room of Peter Gates. After taking a deep breath, she left her car and knocked on the door.
She was supposed to be back at the casino hotel catching a few hours of sleep while Chris kept watch, but felt compelled to speak with Gates again. She had called around to different hotels and motels until finally locating Gates, but he only agreed to talk to her if it was in person.
Gates opened the door and sent her a grin.
“You’ve missed me, haven’t you?”
Velma walked into the room
and saw a half-eaten pizza and empty bottles of beer, while on the TV, a baseball game was playing. Velma found the remote and muted the TV.
“What are you doing here, Peter?”
“I’m here to do what everyone else is doing, gambling.”
“You weren’t deliberately looking for me?”
“No, why would I be, after all these years?”
“I don’t know, but I don’t like coincidences.”
“That pretty boy, Chris is it? Are you with him now?”
“Yes.”
Gates moved closer and placed his hands on Velma’s shoulders.
“You two aren’t exclusive though, are you? I could sure use a roll in the hay for old times’ sake.”
Velma blinked rapidly.
“You can’t be serious?”
Gates kissed her, and Velma brought her hands up and pushed him away.
“Try that again and I’ll hurt you.”
“We were good together, Vel. I know that you remember that.”
Velma walked over and placed her hand on the doorknob.
“I’m not the same girl you knew, Peter, and I only came here to see if you were up to something.”
“I’m not, Vel, but I am glad I ran into you.”
“Fine, but try not to do it again; it causes trouble for me.”
“Pretty boy didn’t know that you were married before, did he?”
“No.”
“You weren’t my first wife, or my last, but you were the best.”
“I’m going now. Have a good life, Peter.”
Gates stood in the doorway as Velma climbed into her car and drove off. Afterwards, he walked over to a van in the parking lot and spoke to the man slouched down behind the steering wheel.
“Did you get pictures?”
Trace Pruitt smiled at him, as he straightened in his seat.
“The kiss was good, but you should have tried harder to get her into bed.”
“She’s done with me; I can see it in her eyes, and hell, her coming here was a bonus, right?”
“That’s how I’ll present it to the client.”
“When do I get the rest of the money?”
“Tomorrow, after you speak with the boyfriend one more time.”
Gates sighed.
“Poor Velma, she just seems to be unlucky in love.”
***
Jake returned to his apartment building. As he was about to place his key in the lock, he noticed the light streaming from out of Amanda’s apartment at the other end of the hall.
Caliber Detective Agency Box Set 2 Page 12
