Electile Dysfunction (Gotcha Detective Agency Mystery Book 6)

by Jamie Lee Scott

  Nick had gone home and changed out of his dapper suit. He now wore navy slacks with a tan shirt and a baby blue tie. He never used to dress this nice. I’m sure Charles’ style was rubbing off on him. They had been spending more time together, especially since Charles was looking for a new car.

  Since we met at the restaurant, I had been waiting in my car. Nick approached and opened the door for me. “Hey, babe, what a day.”

  I leaned toward him and kissed him on the cheek before getting out of the car. “You’re telling me. New case, dead guy, Jackie quit…”

  “What the heck are you talking about? Jackie quit?” He helped me out.

  “You know how I told you she’s been acting so weird since she got back? Well, she and Charles had it out today. After she smarted back to him, she quit.” I shut the car door and we headed to the restaurant. “Then she told me she was pissed because I’d sold half of the business to Charles and not her.”

  “So that’s what she’s been so pissy about since she’s been back?”

  “I guess.” I’d been venting to Nick a lot lately, and was starting to feel guilty about it. Not that it stopped me. He was my sounding board, now that Jackie was off with her new man, and Charles was in his own head too much.

  I wondered how much longer Nick was going to put up with all of my girly crap, but he never complained, and rarely offered advice. Mostly, he listened. I sometimes wondered if he was working out some of his cases in his head, and all he heard was, “Blah, blah, blah.” But I was okay with it, as long as I didn’t actually know for a fact he wasn’t really listening.

  “She’ll come around. Give her time.” He laced his fingers in mine, and we walked down the sidewalk together.

  I hoped it didn’t take a decade or more, and maybe I could try to find a way to patch things up. But I wasn't in the mood today, not after what she said about Nick. I didn’t have the heart to tell him what she said about him. And I didn’t want him to hate her if we eventually made up.

  I know I sound like a lovesick teen, but I loved when Nick held my hand. “I’m not sure what’s going on with her anymore. She doesn’t talk to me, and she’s persnickety.”

  “Persnickety?”

  “You know what I mean.” I grinned.

  Nick let go of my hand and opened the door to the restaurant.

  You know that address in every town that can’t seem to keep a business open for very long? That was the address of the restaurant where I was meeting Nick. In Salinas, that address was on the corner of Main and Market. In the last three years, there had been two restaurants and a gift store in this location, and this fourth business was back to a restaurant again, only this one also had a tiny gift shop. I guess the owner figured she’s making money either way.

  From the Main Street entrance, it was Crooked Bow Thai Restaurant, and from the Market Street entrance, it was Polka Dot Bow Tie Gifts. Whatever floats your boat.

  It’s a tiny, funky place with a few tables upstairs, and a good number downstairs. The booths are mismatched, antique love seats facing each other with a table between them. And all of the tables are different. It’s like the interior designer went to a flea market in Soho or San Francisco, or some wonderful art district, picked out the exact love seats and tables that wouldn’t go together, and yet matched perfectly. The place had the vibe of nostalgia mixed with modern slick art on the walls, and sculptures hanging from the ceiling. Even the lighting was mismatched and works of art. I’d called the place a hipster joint.

  Nick looked around, taking in the colors and shapes as the hostess stepped up to greet us.

  Dressed in a vintage dress, with hair and makeup to compliment her style, she asked, “Upstairs, or downstairs?”

  “Does it make any difference?” I asked.

  “Only the view. And the view from upstairs is pretty freaking cool.” She winked, and I had to admire the perfection of her eyeliner.

  I said, “Upstairs,” at the same time that Nick said, “Downstairs,” so I changed my mind and said, “Downstairs is fine.”

  “It’s just as well, that way you won’t have to wait for a table.” She bounced as she walked us to one of the mismatched booths.

  The menu, a single sheet of paper with print on both sides, was the kind that changed daily, depending on what was available in the kitchen. I loved these type of restaurants, because you knew there was a chef behind those doors, not some teenager warming food in a microwave.

  I looked at the choices for the day, and Nick and I decided to share a platter of fish tacos. They were Asian-fusion, salmon tacos with an apricot and cilantro sauce over shredded cabbage tossed with fried shrimp. The tacos were served on a heaping platter, inside sweet potato and corn tortillas.

  Nick and I chatted while we stuffed our faces full of sweet fish taco goodness.

  “Any lead on Bucky’s murder?”

  “That man had more enemies than he had voters. And the scary part was he probably was going to win another term.” Nick grabbed his napkin and wiped apricot sauce from his chin.

  “Charles and I were talking about it, and we figure that our client is probably a suspect.” I stopped chewing and waited for his response.

  “Who is your client again?” He either didn’t listen when I was telling him what happened that morning, or his head was clouded from everything. Poor guy had caught a murder case on his day off.

  “Skinner Mathis, Bucky Cox’s old rodeo partner, and business partner, too, I guess.” I didn’t know how much Nick already knew.

  “Oh, yeah, him. He was at the house within minutes of your leaving. There to console the grieving widow.” Nick chuckled a little.

  “What’s so funny?” I didn’t get it. Nothing about this was remotely funny.

  “Nothing really, it’s just that the wife is a suspect, and she calls her old boyfriend, who is her husband’s ex-best friend. Not to mention the man has a restraining order against him, and isn’t supposed to be on the property to begin with.” He stuffed another bite in his mouth.

  “Skinner was back at the house?”

  “What do you mean, back at the house?” He stopped mid chew to ask the question.

  Oh, oh. Open mouth, insert foot. “Um, well, uh…”

  “Spit it out, Mimi.” I could see his face turning red.

  “He said he’d gone to look at that horse they were selling. He said he was going to buy it.”

  “Oh, jeez, they’re still screwing around, aren’t they?” Nick slapped his napkin on the table. The sound was loud enough that several patrons looked our way.

  I smiled and reached across to put my hand on his, as if to say, “Please not here.” But I said, “I have no idea, but if they are, then that gives both of them a good motive, now doesn’t it?”

  “I’m up to my eyeballs on this one. Even Gabe can’t believe how many enemies this chap has. I mean we both can’t stand him ourselves, having worked with him via City Hall and the police department, but neither of us obviously wanted him dead.”

  I stuffed more taco in my mouth, so I couldn’t talk. I just chewed and nodded my head.

  “We were able to get into the house for a little bit this morning, go through some paperwork in Bucky’s office, and look through his stuff. But Rayna wouldn’t let us take anything without a warrant. Took a lot of photos. I wonder if there’s any way Charles can get into Bucky’s computer from the outside.” He wasn’t looking at me when he said this. He was looking at the food on his plate and pushing it around, so I didn’t know if he wanted an answer, or he was thinking out loud.

  “Call him,” I offered.

  “I think I’ll stop by and visit him. Is he at the office?”

  “He was when I left, but you’ll have to call and see if he’s still there.”

  “Aren’t you going back to work after lunch?” Nick asked, wadding up his napkin and placing it on his plate. “I’ll just follow you back to the office.”

  Eyes widening, and a big grin, I said, “Nope, I have t
o interview someone, and then I’m going to take Lola for a run.”

  “Isn’t Lola at the office?”

  He had me there.

  “She is now, but I’m not taking her with me to the interview. I’m going back later.”

  I should just tell him that I was going to talk to Skinner’s wife. No, I shouldn’t. Yes, I should. Well, if anything came of the conversation with Skinner’s wife, then I’d tell him. Until then, it really didn’t matter if I was chatting with her. For now, it was just to get a better handle on the stories Skinner had told me this morning.

  “Fine, young lady, I know when you’re not telling me something. To be honest, I don’t want to know. And if it has anything to do with Bucky’s murder, I really don’t want to know. Gabe and I have decided that we aren’t going to get in fights with you and Cortnie over this.”

  I sighed. “Good.”

  “Damn it, Mimi, is it about Bucky’s murder?” he whispered, leaning across the table to get in my face.

  I was completely honest. “Not yet it isn’t.”

  He blew out a breath as he sat up. “Let’s go. I have a long day ahead of me. Gabe is going to take over this evening so I can have the night off, since we have plans. That way we can still spend the evening together.” He pointed his finger. “But I’m warning you, we aren’t going to be working this case together. You aren’t a homicide cop, you’re a P.I.”

  “Yep, that’s what I am.” I wanted to change the subject. “So, what’s happening with the horse auction?”

  “Apparently the show goes on. There will still be an auction tomorrow night at five PM, unless the judge changes his mind before then. At the moment, he’s not inclined to do that. I’m still waiting for details on the court documents. I was looking for papers relating to the LLC in Bucky’s office, but I didn’t see any. Rayna said there’s a safe deposit box, so we’re working on getting into that, too.”

  “Makes sense, I suppose, but what do I know? I would think, for the sake of the investigation, and the parties involved, the judge would rule to postpone the auction.” It only seemed right.

  “The day isn’t over yet.” Nick picked up the food bill and turned it over to read it. His brows raised nearly into his hairline, but he didn’t say anything.

  “What?” I was curious, because he never complained about prices.

  He showed me the bill. The server had left her phone number and a note that said, “Call me.”

  There was a time I would have gone into a jealous rage over something so simple. I did feel a little green monster crawling its way up my throat, about to voice something outrageously immature, but instead, I laughed. “Take a picture. You never know when you’ll be single again and need it.”

  I stood up and headed for the door as Nick put money on the table. I watched out of the corner of my eye to see if he actually did take a picture with his phone. I breathed a sigh of relief when he didn’t. I did turn and wink at the server as we walked out, though. She winked back. Then it occurred to me, she may have left that note for me. Now that was funny.

  Once out on the sidewalk, Nick said, “P.I., not homicide cop, remember?”

  Like I didn’t know. I hated that I had seen so many dead bodies in the last two years or so. Ever since Nick had come back into my life, on the night Esme was found dead in Lauren’s dining room, it seemed like we were butting heads over a new dead body every few months. I was so over it. I wanted to go back to my simple life of spying on cheating spouses, and being a decoy.

  “You don’t have to remind me. It’s not like I go looking for them. I’m a magnet for some ungodly reason. It sucks.”

  “Speaking of sucking…” Nick grinned wide.

  I blushed like a schoolgirl. “And a few other things I had in mind for tonight, so don’t get too distracted.”

  We kissed and went in different directions. I loved him, and I didn’t care what Jackie said, I wasn’t a cow. And Nick would buy the milk. Wouldn’t he?

  I headed to Skinner’s house to see what I could find out from his lovely wife.

  Speaking of cows.

  Chapter 8

  CHARLES

  My day, like Mimi’s, is always made better by seeing Nick. I just like looking at him, and I appreciate his devious mind. We also have an appreciation for the finer things. The difference is that I can afford them, and Nick can’t. That part sucks, but I’m working on it. I’ve been giving Nick investment advice on the sly, and he’s a quick learner. He also learns, by osmosis, style. He’s been looking fine lately, but I liked him better in a suit.

  “I heard you had quite the commotion here earlier,” was how he’d let me know he was behind me.

  “Oh, that. Welcome to working with women all day. Don’t you wish you were so lucky?” I blew it off, because I was pretty sure all of them, with the possible exception of Uta, were on their period.

  “If only.” He laughed, then pulled up a chair beside my desk.

  “Did Uta announce my arrival?”

  I kept working on my project, not looking away from the screen, even though I could appreciate the vision in my peripheral. “Yep.”

  “Did I see the name Cox on your screen when I walked in?” He sounded curious and disappointed at the same time.

  “Maybe.” I wasn’t in the mood for another smack down.

  “What do you have so far?” He leaned in closer to my screen.

  I turned it away from him. “That depends. How pissed are you going to be?”

  “The wife is stonewalling us, so I can’t get into the house to get on Bucky’s computer. We’ve got a tech at City Hall working on his computer there, but not getting much.” Nick sat back.

  Uta walked into my office, handing Nick a glass with clear liquid and ice, then she handed me an iced mocha. Yeah, Mimi had us all hooked.

  Nick asked, “Monster?”

  Uta nodded.

  “You’re the best.”

  She said, “I know,” and blushed.

  When she was gone, I said, “As long as you aren’t going to flip a tit or arrest me, I’ll tell you what I’ve got. But I warn you, it’s not good.”

  Nick took a long sip of his drink and leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees, both hands on his now half empty glass. “Give it to me straight.”

  I turned the screen back toward him, even though he wouldn’t understand anything he saw on it. “I’m not going to tell you how I did it, but I was able to figure out his IP address, then hack in and get past his firewall. I’m telling you, this guy was a doozy. He was blackmailing the mayor.”

  Nick nearly spilled the rest of his energy drink. “What are you talking about?”

  “Easy there.” I hit a few more keystrokes, bringing up some photos I’d found on Bucky’s computer.

  “You have to be joking here.” Nick ran his fingers through his hair.

  “I wish. So bring on one more suspect.” I had to chuckle. “Apparently our mayor likes them young. And he likes his seedy motels. Bucky somehow found out about the mayor’s fetish and started following him, I guess. Anyway, he got into a motel room at least once and took photos of the mayor doing the dirty deed with an underage girl.”

  I enlarged the photo.

  Nick turned away. “I don’t want to see that shit.”

  “The thing is, she’s not really underage. I looked her up. She just looks young. So, don’t worry your pretty little head.” I waited for him to sneak a peek, but he didn’t. “All the same, he wasn’t blackmailing the mayor for money; he was blackmailing him for votes and support.”

  “So, no big deal. The mayor could throw his support behind him. What would it hurt? Not a motive for murder.” Nick defended Bucky for some unknown reason. Well, I guess the reason would be that he didn’t want yet another suspect.

  “There’s more.” I didn’t know how to tell Nick the next part. It was the worst part of all. So, instead of saying anything, I showed him a series of pictures.

  The first photo was of the
mayor and his fifteen-year-old daughter at a charity function. Then a photo of the mayor and his wife, with their daughter. Next was a photo of the mayor’s daughter with Bucky. Bucky lead a horse the girl was riding. The next photo showed the mayor helping his daughter off the horse at Bucky’s ranch, but the mayor’s hand was on his daughter’s butt, and not in a helpful way.

  “I really don’t want to know this.” Nick put his glass on the floor and rubbed his eyes. “Print the photos, and I’ll turn this into family services.”

  “This goes beyond the blackmail. I don’t know if this is an unfortunate photo, or if there is more going on. But if the mayor likes the hookers young, what else does he like?” I hated to be the bearer of this kind of news.

  “I’m so glad I only investigate murders. If I had to investigate pedophiles and child porn, I’d have to be institutionalized. But I’ll make sure this gets to the proper authorities right away.”

  I printed the photos, and Nick folded the papers and put them in his pocket.

  “What else do you have on Bucky?” Nick sighed.

  “That’s all so far. But I was just getting ready to look into his finances. You want I should do that while you’re here?”

  While I was changing lanes on the information super highway, I told Nick about the visit I got from Max earlier in the day.

  “What do you make of it?” I asked.

  “I’m in homicide, and I’m not with the county, or Monterey, so I wouldn’t have heard anything about a sting operation going down over there, but I’d say don’t buy the damn car,” Nick said.

  He drank the last of his Monster, and was jiggling the ice, when Uta came in with another can and refilled his glass.

  “Damn, woman, you are going to be the death of me.” Nick gladly accepted the glass of death by caffeine.

  “I hope not, my bosses wouldn’t be very happy.” She crushed the can in one hand and looked to me. “You need anything, Charles?”