Dead Man's Hand

by Lorraine Bartlett

  “Not necessarily,” Margo said. “You could say you met Jimmy while doing some volunteer work. I think it would be good to get Gina’s take on Tony and Jimmy’s relationship.”

  “Just so you know you aren’t the only one trying to find Jamie’s murderer,” Brad said, “Nick went with Seth to his office this morning to poke through old case files. They’re looking for any red flags from Jamie’s rulings that might explain who could have had a motive for killing him.”

  “I know it’s possible, but I simply can’t comprehend why someone would poison Jamie to get back at Seth,” Katie said. “If that was the case, wouldn’t the killer reach out to taunt Seth in some way? What would be the point in using Jamie to get revenge on Seth if the killer never let Seth know why he was suffering?”

  “Excellent point,” Brad murmured.

  “Perhaps, but a person who’d poison another wouldn’t be the most logical, level-headed person on the planet,” Margo said, raising her hands for emphasis. “I believe the lost money might be the better motive, especially if some of the other players truly believed that Jamie had cheated.”

  Brad leaned back in his chair and steepled his hands. “Those are two of the big motives: passion or gain.”

  Katie groaned. “Passion? First, we have Jamie painted as a card cheater, and now we’re going to consider the possibility he was betraying Seth?”

  “Not necessarily,” Margo said. “What if it was unrequited love?”

  “With obsessive people—the type of person who’d poison a man and leave him to suffer for three days prior to his death—a rebuffed overture could be the very thing to set them off.” Brad frowned. “I need to stop watching so many true crime shows. I think they’re starting to warp my brain and fill my head with too much disturbing information.”

  “But who at the poker game could’ve had a crush on Jamie?” Katie wondered.

  Margo leaned forward. “You tell us.”

  “Gina said her husband thought Connor Davis might be gay—but he based that on the fact he owns a flower shop.”

  “Hey, plenty of people thought I was gay when I first showed an interest in baking,” Brad said.

  “And just because Jamie was poisoned the evening of the poker game doesn't mean her was dosed at it,” Margo pointed out.

  She was right.

  Katie realized that tracking down Jamie’s killer—or even discovering a motive for his murder—might prove to be much harder than she’d anticipated.

  The sun was shining as Katie headed back to Artisans Alley, and there was just enough of a chill in the air to make it feel crisp and refreshing. Even though her conversation with Brad and Margo had led to more questions than answers, she thought they’d made some progress—at least, in driving traffic back to the tea shop.

  “Hey! Ms. Bonner!”

  Katie turned to see who was calling to her from the other side of the street. It was Carol Rigby. The detective exited Wood U and was now crossing the parking lot to intercept Katie.

  “Good morning, detective. What can I do for you?” Katie asked.

  The detective’s gaze was positively chilling. “Stay out of my investigation.”

  “Excuse me?” Katie asked, taken aback.

  Carol rolled her eyes. “Ray told me about the stupid stunt the two of you pulled the other night. Pretending to be a married couple and buying into a poker game? Really! Don’t go stepping on my toes again, or you’ll regret it.”

  Katie glowered. “It’s Ray you should be threatening—he got stinking drunk and was practically useless that evening,” she said. “By the way, are you aware that some of the club’s players believe Jamie cheated at the game in order to win? And did you know the dealer at his table that night got fired?”

  Carol’s eyes widened. She hadn’t known.

  Katie pressed on. “And, of course, you know about Tony Solero being one of the players who felt he’d been cheated. Several players there are involved in the legal profession and at least one worked for the medical examiner’s office.”

  Carol clenched her fists. “Just keep out of my way.”

  “Or what?” Katie challenged.

  “Or you could be charged with obstruction of justice.”

  “It seems to me you could be accused of negligence. And how would that look on your résumé?”

  “Don’t cross me again,” Carol grated.

  Katie didn’t bother to reply. She turned and headed for Artisans Alley, but she felt the heat of Carol’s scorching glare on her back the entire distance.

  Chapter 23

  Katie did her best to brush off her unpleasant encounter with Detective Rigby, but as she entered Artisans Alley, her ire at being snubbed by both Rose and Vance the evening before at Tealicious was like a fresh wound. Rose could have made an appearance before going to her new boyfriend’s event. And where had Vance been? Had he neglected to come to the open house simply because he was angry with her over the situation with the Alley’s floor? If so, that was just plain petty. Especially since he knew there’d be free food—and he had a hearty appetite.

  Katie decided to give him the benefit of the doubt—maybe something unexpected had happened. She’d ask. And she wouldn’t go empty-handed.

  After dumping her purse in her office and locking it again, she went to the vendors’ lounge and poured two cups of coffee before heading for the stairs.

  She found Vance staining the floor near Maddie Lyndel’s booth. “Hi. I brought you a coffee.”

  Either he was super-focused on his work, or he was ignoring her. At last, he straightened and accepted the cup. “Thanks.”

  “So, how’s it going?” she asked.

  “Fine.”

  Katie was determined not to allow herself to be frustrated by Vance’s monosyllabic responses. “And did any of the vendors have trouble getting moved yesterday evening?”

  “No.”

  His childish attitude was beginning to annoy her.

  “They seem to be resigned to their assignments. Did anyone complain?” Before Vance could respond, she added, “Let’s see if you can answer that last question with a full sentence rather than some sort of grunt I’d expect from a caveman.”

  Lips tightening, he said, “No one complained—at least, not to me.”

  “Good.” He’d apparently had no trouble getting the vendors moved, so that wasn’t his excuse for not attending the open house. “Brad, Margo, and I missed you and Janie last night.”

  Rather than provide any sort of explanation as to why he and his wife had missed the event, Vance said, “I’d better get back to work.”

  Okay, if that’s the way he wanted to play it, she decided she should probably start coming up with a detailed job description. Sadly, if Vance didn’t want to follow her instructions, it was time to find an assistant manager who would.

  Without another word, Katie turned and marched back toward her office.

  “Oh, Katie!” Rose stopped her at the bottom of the stairs. “Would you like to see how dapper Walter and I looked last night?”

  “No, thank you,” Katie said, her tone icy. “Had you really wanted me to see you, you’d have stopped by the Tealicious’s open house on your way. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to get back to work.” And with that, Katie turned and continued on to her office feeling certain Rose was gaping at her back. She’d never been so brusque with Rose, but at that moment she was afraid she might lose her temper and that would be even worse.

  Closing the office door behind her, Katie slumped against it and let out a ragged breath. How had her entire life gotten so out of control? For some reason, her encounters with Vance and Rose made it easier to pretend to be someone else. Maybe she actually wished she could be someone else for a few moments.

  She collapsed into the chair in front of her desk, picked up her phone, and called Gina Solero. After three rings, Katie was getting ready to end the call when Gina answered.

  “Kelly, hi. How are you?”

  It was ev
ident from Gina’s tone that she wondered why Kelly Ferrell was contacting her so soon after their lunch. Was she afraid her new friend was going to be a nuisance?

  “I’m fine, Gina, and I hope you are.” She forced out a weak laugh. “I’m sorry to call you out of the blue like this, but I had the oddest thing happen earlier today. I took a donation to my local food pantry and ran into a man named Jimmy Solero. I wondered if he’s your in-law.”

  There was a pause, and Katie could easily imagine Gina pursing her lips, gathering her thoughts, and deciding how to respond.

  “Jimmy?” Gina asked. “No. Doesn’t ring a bell. I can ask Tony if he knows him if you want me to.”

  “Oh, no, don’t bother. I was just curious if this guy was a relative of Tony’s.” She offered another feeble laugh. “It was hard to imagine a sophisticate like you—and, I imagine, your husband—with a family member who works at a food pantry.”

  Gina gave a laugh that sounded every bit as contrived as Katie’s.

  “Well, I won’t keep you,” Katie said. “Thanks again for meeting me for lunch yesterday. I thoroughly enjoyed it and hope we can do it again sometime.”

  “Likewise,” Gina said rather coolly—or was it guardedly? “We’ll talk soon,” she said and ended the call.

  Katie put her phone away, feeling the entire episode had left a bad taste in her mouth. From pretending to be as much of a snob as Gina to lying that she’d enjoyed lunch. She was glad the call was over, but she couldn’t help but wonder why Gina would deny knowing Jimmy. Was it possible Tony had shut Jimmy out of his life before he married Gina and had neglected to tell her about his younger brother? Or was there more to the story than that?

  Either way, Katie doubted she’d ever hear from Gina Solero again—which was fine with her. It was time for Kelly Ferrell to disappear. Unless, of course, Seth should need her to make another appearance.

  Realizing she didn’t need to be Kelly Ferrell to investigate, Katie awakened her computer and conducted a search for a poker dealer named Roberts. Her query led her to a forum where local games were discussed. She created an anonymous account and said she was an amateur player who’d recently heard about a dealer with the name of Roberts who’d supposedly been fired for cheating.

  Not sure whether the man’s first or last name is Roberts, she typed, but I’d like to be aware if I find myself at a table with a dealer who is a suspected cheat.

  Within moments the replies began coming in.

  I heard about that, said someone whose username was CRZY4CARDS. Happened in Rochester, right? He and some doctor split a fortune.

  A commentator with the handle DOCH weighed in. The dealer’s name is Ted Roberts. He’s a good person and an excellent dealer. He was falsely accused. Think about it: if he was going to cheat, wouldn’t he do it in Atlantic City or Vegas where he could get a much larger payout?

  I heard he and some guy double-crossed some mobster, LUCKYDOG2 posted. The one dude is dead already—I saw it in the newspaper. Ted Roberts had better sleep with one eye open.

  The rest of the responses either vilified Ted Roberts and speculated about the man’s guilt, or they defended the man. Katie deleted her account, not caring what the faceless strangers believed. She had what she needed—the name of the dealer who had worked Jamie’s table on the night he was poisoned.

  Now how could she find Ted Roberts? She went back to social media and searched for people named Ted Roberts in the Rochester area. When that name yielded too many results, she tried Theodore Roberts. Still too many.

  Frustrated, she called Nick. She remembered Brad saying he was with Seth, but he might have the information she needed off the top of his head.

  “Hi,” Nick said. “What’s up, Katie?”

  “Hey, there. Are you still with Seth?”

  “No, he just dropped me back at Sassy Sally’s. Is anything wrong?”

  Katie explained that she’d learned the identity of the dealer at Jamie’s table on the night he won—the man some of the players thought helped Jamie win. “His name is Ted Roberts, but I’m having trouble locating him. Any thoughts?”

  “Don and I have known Ted for over a year. We met him at a tournament. I can ask him to come here to Sassy Sally’s for a drink.” He uttered a low growl. “Ted’s a good guy, and he’d never cheat. I’m as sure of him as I am of Jamie—maybe more so. I’ll give him a call and ring you right back.”

  Forty-five minutes later, Katie was sitting with Nick, Don, and Ted Roberts in Sassy Sally’s front parlor having a glass of white wine. Ted had a shock of steel gray hair and piercing blue eyes—looking rather Paul Newman-esque, in Katie’s opinion. He also had a built-in B.S. detector.

  “Nick, I know you didn’t invite me here to shoot the breeze,” he said. “Why don’t you tell me why I’m here.”

  “We were friends of Jamie Siefert,” Nick admitted.

  “And he died shortly after eating at my tea shop,” Katie added. “We’re trying to find out who killed him and why.”

  Ted tossed back a swig of his bourbon. “Well, it wasn’t me.”

  “We never thought it was,” Don assured him. “Nor do we think you or he are guilty of cheating.”

  “Ah, you heard about that, too, huh.” Ted offered a half-smile. “You people get around.”

  “I’m sorry you lost your job,” Katie said.

  “It was one of many,” Ted said with a shrug. “But I was—still am—outraged at the accusation.”

  “Why did some of the players think Jamie cheated?” Nick asked.

  “Because he did.”

  Katie’s jaw dropped at Ted’s simple statement, and so did Nick’s. Don didn’t appear to be fazed.

  Regaining her voice, Katie asked, “What makes you think so?”

  “Someone at the table was feeding him information,” Ted said.

  “Who?” Nick asked.

  “I don’t know, but there had to be another player at the table giving him signals. That night, the game was Texas Hold ’Em. I’m pretty sure Siefert and another player were colluding to raise the stakes so that Seifert won substantially more than he would have otherwise.”

  “But Jamie couldn’t have won if he didn’t have winning hands,” Don said.

  “Which is why some of the other players thought I was the one helping him.” Ted finished off the bourbon. “If Siefert had a lousy hand, he almost immediately folded. But if he had something—basically anything—he and the other player would orchestrate inflated bidding.”

  “Ted, you have to know who this other player was,” Nick said, refilling Ted’s glass.

  “I have my suspicions, but I’m not accusing anybody. Having been on the wrong end of a false accusation, I can assure you it stinks.” Ted stared down at the caramel-colored liquid in his glass. “I’m sorry for your loss, though. Seifert seemed to be a nice guy. He tipped me five hundred bucks after the game.”

  “Do you think his partner is the one who poisoned him?” Katie asked.

  “Hard to say. I don’t know why he would. Seifert didn’t strike me as the type who’d welch on a bargain.” He shrugged. “And the newspaper said he was poisoned? That doesn’t sound like a heat-of-the-moment retaliation to me. It had to be planned.”

  The question was … why?

  Chapter 24

  After Roberts left, Nick, Don, and Katie mulled over what he’d told them about someone helping Jamie cheat.

  “Should we tell Seth?” Don asked.

  “Tell Seth what?” Seth asked, entering and overhearing Don’s question.

  Don dropped his eyes to the coffee table, and Katie looked at Nick.

  Nick took the initiative to answer the question. “Ted Roberts, the dealer who worked Jamie’s table the night he was poisoned, told us he believes someone at the table colluded with Jamie.”

  “Colluded with him to do what?” Seth asked. “Cheat?”

  Katie nodded. “He thinks so. He believes this partner and Jamie upped the ante for Jamie to win so they c
ould split the money.”

  “Jamie was the most honest man I’ve ever met—that’s one of the things I loved most about him.” Seth’s expression darkened. “He wouldn’t cheat. I won’t believe it.”

  “Maybe he didn’t consider it cheating if he simply bettered his odds of winning,” Nick said gently. “He seemed desperate to marry you and take you on a romantic vacation. The man wanted to sweep you off your feet.”

  “He already had,” Seth said. “But, yes, Jamie was insecure. He didn’t always feel that he contributed enough financially to our household. Sure, he had those student debts looming over him. I offered more than once to pay them off, but he was too proud to let me do it.” He blew out a breath. “Had I known how badly he wanted to marry me and have a honeymoon, I’d have made it happen.”

  “But he wanted to do that for you,” Don said.

  “I know.” Seth motioned for Don to pour him a glass of wine. “Jamie always felt like he needed to impress me or do something monumental to prove his love. That was so unnecessary. I’d give anything to have him back.”

  Don handed Seth a glass of wine. Nick got up and hugged his best friend while Katie sat there feeling helpless.

  Once Seth had composed himself, Katie asked, “Did you learn anything useful from your files today?”

  Shaking his head, Seth said, “Not really. I had a case last year where I successfully defended a frivolous lawsuit filed by Albert Whitlock on behalf of his wealthy client. The failed lawsuit was pretty much the nail in the coffin for Whitlock.”

  “I remember you mentioning that,” Don said. “But Whitlock had suffered more losses than he’d achieved wins over the past two or three years prior to that lawsuit, right?”

  “That’s true, and he’d been exhibiting diminished prowess in the courtroom as well,” Seth said. “But it was after this case that Whitlock began focusing his practice on wills and trusts. Still, Albert Whitlock is admittedly an expert in those areas, and I’ve even recommended clients to him.”

  “Recently?” Nick asked.