Deception Trail: A Maggie McFarlin Mystery

by Charisse Peeler

  “This is a beautiful home,” Maggie said again, between sips of her coffee.

  “Thanks,” Liza said, looking around before continuing to focus on her phone. “Okay, Angel said we could come over anytime.

  “I would like my friend Mike Marker to go with us if you don’t mind,” Maggie said. “He is the private detective I was telling you about.”

  “How good of a friend?” Liza asked, sitting at the end of her chair as if she was about to hear something juicy.

  “We are just friends,” Maggie assured her sister, wishing that she had the kind of relationship with her sister that she could discuss all the complicated feelings she had for Mike.

  “I don’t mind if he wants to join us, but don’t say anything to Angel about him being an investigator. I don’t want her to freak out or anything. She is kind of a private person.”

  “I don’t think…” Maggie started to say when the loud chime of the doorbell caused her to jump.

  Liza jumped up and ran to the door and as she opened it a huge animal lunged at her. It was a 125-pound harlequin Great Dane. Maggie stood as the giant dog spotted her and decided to investigate.

  “She is friendly,” Liza said as she bent over and picked up a smaller dog. “Well, hello, little Hoss, did you miss me?” The miniature Australian Shepard was busy licking Liza’s face.

  “What is this one’s name?” Maggie asked.

  “Her name is Lila.”

  “Hi Lila,” Maggie said, reaching out to pet the beast who was busy sniffing her. Maggie held the cup away from the animal’s large nose.

  “Hey, Maggie,” Kat walked in the door, lugging a large bag of food and a dog bed into the room.

  “Hey Kat,” Maggie called out to her best friend, “how is Sue’s hand?”

  “Her pinky is broken in two places. They put a cast on her whole hand. I dropped her off at home. She is resting comfortably aided by the pain medication.”

  “That girl has no luck. She has had more stitches, casts, braces. I think she’s lucky to be alive.”

  “Sue is a cat. She has nine lives,” Kat said, as she put the big bag of food down by the couch.

  Liza put her arms around Kat, “Thank you so much for taking care of these guys,” Liza said. Maggie couldn’t help feeling a little hurt seeing the interaction between her best friend and her sister. It was clear. Kat had a significant sister role to Liza ever since Maggie moved away. After all, Kat experienced first-hand the betrayal, the lies, the pain Liza had caused Maggie. Maggie quickly shook off the past and focused on what was going on around her.

  “It was crazy at my house. Three dogs and four cats are too much,” Kat said, “and the cats are not big fans of Lila.”

  “I missed these guys,” Liza said.

  “I had no idea you were a dog person,” Maggie said to her sister.

  “She is not,” Kat said.

  “I am,” Liza narrowed her eyes.

  “Chase gave me Lila as a gift and this little guy,” she said, putting Hoss down, “came from Kyleigh.” Maggie felt a punch in the gut hearing Liza mention Kyleigh’s name so easily.

  “Her apartment complex didn’t allow dogs, so she gave the dog to her grandmother, but Sharron couldn’t keep it because the senior complex charges an extra $200 a month for a dog. Sharron convinced Chase into taking the dog.”

  Maggie looked at the small dog. “He’s sure cute.”

  “Hoss loves his mommy,” Liza said, sitting back into her chair instead of helping Kat bring in the rest of the dog’s supplies.

  “Chase actually bought you a Great Dane as a gift?” Maggie asked.

  “He thought a dog would get my mind off having a baby, but his plan didn’t work. We are still having a baby. Or rather, I am still having a baby.”

  Maggie winced at the way Liza casually spoke of Chase’s death.

  “Are you having a service for Chase?” Maggie asked her sister.

  “I haven’t even thought about that,” Liza said. “Do you think we should?”

  Kat came I the door with the last of the dog’s toys, blankets and treats that she dropped just inside the door.

  “I wish I could stay, ladies, but my house is a mess and I need a long hot shower,” Kat said, standing at the door. Maggie followed Kat out and walked her to her car. Kat looked back at the front door and then whispered to Maggie, “You need to watch your back.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I just don’t want you to get hurt. All I am saying is don’t trust your sister. People don’t change Maggie. They just get better at hiding who they are.”

  “I thought you guys were friends,” Maggie looked at her friend with some relief when she heard the next words that came out of her friend’s mouth.

  “Maggie, the only reason I helped out Liza is for you. You deserve to know what’s going on here. Time to face the past and take your life back. Quit running away.”

  “I…you…” Maggie started but didn’t know how to form a question with all of the information rushing into her brain.

  “Look, I love you and will do anything for you. You know that, right?” Kat had her hands on Maggie’s shoulders.

  “Right,” Maggie nodded her head.

  “Let me go home and clean up. You get your man and meet Sue and me at the Boat Shed for dinner. Let’s get a plan together.”

  “Sounds good, Kat,” Maggie reached out and gave her friend a tight hug.

  “See you at dinner.” Maggie watched Kat back out of the driveway before she went back in to say goodbye to Liza.

  Liza was on the phone and when she saw Maggie, she hung up mid-sentence. “That was Angel. She can meet with us right now. Do you have time?”

  “Of course, let me text Mike.”

  “I will have to meet you over there. I need to stop at the store,” Lisa said. “Let me see your phone.” Maggie tentatively handed her sister her phone. Liza typed with two thumbs and handed the phone back to Maggie. “That’s Angel's address. Meet me there, okay?”

  “Okee dokee,” Maggie said, feeling like she was being dismissed. Maggie sat in her car and fastened the seat belt. She sent a text to Mike, including Angel’s address.

  His response was one letter. K.

  Chapter 12

  Maggie took her time driving to Angels, she stopped for gas and drove through Starbucks for a latte, but she was still the first to arrive in front of Angel’s house. She waited another half hour until Liza finally pulled up.

  Angel lived in an older two-story home on Yantic Street in Bremerton, where all the houses were built during WWII. Maggie followed her sister to the front gate.

  “Where is your friend?” Liza asked, looking around.

  “He should be here anytime. Should we wait?” Maggie asked.

  “Heck no, let’s go in. I can’t wait another minute.”

  When they reached the door, Liza didn’t even knock but twisted the doorknob and went in.

  “Hello,” Liza called out, awkwardly greeting the young woman who was coming in from what looked like the kitchen. She was a beautiful girl with huge brown eyes; her long black hair was loose and reached her waist. Her belly protruded as if she was carrying a basketball under her tight shirt.

  “How are you feeling?” Liza asked as she walked up to face Angel. “This is my sister, Maggie.”

  “I feel okay,” Angel said timidly and nodded her head to Maggie. She moved to close the door but froze with a panicked look on her face as a second car parked behind Maggie’s rental.

  “Who is that?” Angel asked.

  “Oh, sorry, that’s my friend Mike,” Maggie said, going to the door to greet Mike.

  “Why is he here?” the girl asked.

  “That’s Maggie’s boyfriend,” Liza said.

  “He’s not…” Maggie started to say but stopped herself.

  “You don’t mind, do you?” Liza asked but didn’t wait for an answer as Mike entered the house.

  “So, you are Mike. I have heard so much a
bout you,” Liza said, grabbing Mike’s hand, pulling him into the room. Maggie found a seat on the couch and sat while Liza turned her charm on. “Please, sit.” She deposited him next to Maggie and took the chair across the coffee table from him.

  “It is so nice to meet you, Mike,” Liza said. “This is my friend, Angel.”

  “Uhm,” Angel hesitated but finally closed the front door and took the chair next to Liza, keeping one hand on her belly the whole time as if she was protecting the life inside her.

  Liza looked a little too comfortable in the small space. It was she had been here more than a few times.

  The living room where they sat was small, but clean and tidy. There was a large plate glass window in the far side of the room facing the Sinclair Inlet. Even though the mist hung heavy, the navy ships stood proud in the distance.

  “Nice view,” Mike said, following Maggie’s gaze toward the muted lights of the shipyard below.

  “I love it here,” Angel sat finally seemed relaxed.

  “Did you get the sonogram?” Liza asked, bouncing up and down like a little kid at Christmas.

  Angel looked uncomfortable again but got up and went back into the kitchen. She came back with watery eyes and handed the envelope to Liza before once again taking her seat.

  Liza unfolded the flap and carefully removed the thick paper. She looked at it carefully and then looked at Angel. “It’s a girl?”

  Angel shook her head and let a few tears run down her cheek. Liza didn’t seem to notice and stood excited.

  “aA girl! It’s a girl!” She held the sonogram to her chest and twirled in excitement. “I just knew it would be a girl. All my dreams have come true.”

  Except your husband is dead, and you are going to be a single parent with no job, no money, facing life in prison. Maggie thought to herself.

  Maggie smiled but kept her eyes on Angel, who was defiantly clenching her jaw. She wiped away the tears but lowered her head. Maggie looked at Mike, who sent her an unspoken message.

  “Congratulations, Liza,” Maggie said, stood smiling at her sister, who focused on the sonogram,” I guess you were hoping for a girl.”

  “I am naming her Joanne after mom,” Liza said, holding the picture to her chest. “I might spell it with two words instead. Like J-o, space A-n-n-e, it's more modern, don’t you think?”

  Maggie froze, hearing her mother’s name. It was the name of the woman who raised her, but the woman she now knew did not share her DNA. But she was her mom. She had been there when Maggie lost her first tooth, when she got her period and went to her first dance.

  Where was this mother? The woman who shared all the important events of her life. It was almost twenty years since she disappeared and after five years was declared dead, but both Maggie and Liza secretly believed she must have lost her memory and was living a good life somewhere. Their father never remarried but never talked about their mother.

  Maggie noticed that at this moment, Liza looked so much like her mother. Her long dark hair and beautiful brown eyes filled with golden flecks sparkled with excitement at impending motherhood. She could see why they chose Angel to be surrogate. She looked like she could have been Liza’s younger sister.

  “I will send a check next week,” Liza said, ignoring the apparent concern on Angel’s face. Instead, she announced, “I need to go shopping,” and headed out the door, leaving Mike and Maggie alone with Angel.

  “You okay?” Maggie asked Angel, who now stood statue-still.

  “Yes, I’m fine,” she said, forcing a tight smile.

  “Do you mind if I use the restroom?” Mike asked, looking at Maggie with wide eyes. Maggie got the hint.

  “Sure, it’s right down that hall on the left,” Angel pointed.

  “It was very nice meeting you,” Maggie said, and Angel just nodded her head.

  Liza was already gone when Maggie reached her car. She considered waiting for Mike to come out but didn’t want Angel to see her car there. Mike had a plan, and she could take the extra time to stop at the hotel and change clothes before meeting the girls at the Boat Shed.

  She pulled out her phone and typed in a quick text to Mike.

  Meet me at the Boatshed.

  When Maggie pulled into the dirt parking lot, she could see Mike was still in his car. She parked next to him, but he didn’t notice. Maggie got out and knocked on the fogged-up window causing Mike to jump. He was reading something on his phone.

  “Did I scare you?” Maggie smiled when he opened the door.

  “Not me,” he smiled.

  “The girls are already here,” Maggie said.

  “Let’s get out of the cold and let me fill you in before we meet up with them.”

  Mike followed Maggie across the street and down the long narrow stairs that led to the restaurant's entrance.

  As soon as the hostess saw them, she picked up menus. “Two?” she asked.

  “We are meeting two ladies. I believe they have already arrived.”

  “Aw, yes, please this way,” the hostess motioned them to follow her.

  “I have so much to tell you,” Mike said softly.

  “Can it wait until after dinner?”

  “It’s up to you,” he said as they approached a corner table by the windows overlooking the Port Washington Narrows.

  “Ladies,” Mike greeted the two women already sitting. He held a chair out for Maggie before taking his seat.

  “A gentleman,” Kat said.

  “What can I get you to drink?” the hostess asked, handing Mike and Maggie a menu.

  Mike looked at the two drinks sitting in front of the women, “I’ll have one of those,” he pointed to the blended concoction sitting in front of Sue.

  “It’s a virgin,” Sue said, holding up her arm exposing a florescent pink cast. “I’m taking pain pills.”

  “Wow, well, I guess I will have one of those but not a virgin,” Mike smiled.

  “I’ll have what she is having,” Maggie pointed at the glass of red wine sitting in front of Kat.

  “How did you do that?” Mike asked.

  “We haven’t had time to talk privately,” Maggie told the girls. “First, let me introduce you to Kat and Sue.” Maggie pointed to each as she said their name. “Ladies, this is Mike.”

  “Nice to finally meet you, Mike,” Sue said.

  “You’re even better looking than Maggie described,” Kat said, smiling.

  “I didn’t describe anyone,” Maggie said, narrowing her eyes at her friends.

  Maggie described the contents of the shipping container as Mike sat listening carefully as their drinks were delivered.

  “Who else had access to the storage unit,” Mike asked.

  “Chase, or rather me,” Sue said, “Darrel, his deputy, and anyone who went into the key minder and got a copy of the key.”

  “I will check on that first thing tomorrow,” Kat said.

  “How did Darrel and Chase get along?” Mike asked.

  “Is there any reason you would believe Darrel had a motive to kill Chase?” Mike asked Sue directly when the server left the table.

  “I don’t think Darrel is the killer type, more of the tree hugger type, but there was definitely no love loss there,” Sue said.

  “Because…” Mike prompted.

  “Darrel was up for a promotion in Norfolk. He would have had the same position as Chase, only on the East Coast. Chase called the Shipyard Commander and made a case against the promotion promising his retirement in two years. He didn’t want to lose Darrel.”

  “So, Darrel didn’t get the job?” Maggie asked Sue.

  “He did not, and Chase was the one to tell him. He promised he would be the likely pick to take Chase’s position in the near future. Darrel did not take the news very well, especially when he found out it was Chase’s interference that cost him the job.”

  “How did Darrel figure out that Chase went behind his back?” Mike asked.

  “I told him,” Sue said. “The Shipyard Co
mmander’s secretary told me everything. She heard the whole thing. I like Darrel. He is a good guy. He was so depressed when he didn’t get the job. I just thought he needed to know why.”

  “What did he say when you told him?” Mike asked.

  “He said he was going to kill the son of a …” Sue said, “and I don’t blame him.”

  “Have you told this to the authorities?” Maggie asked.

  “I told the navy investigators. I’m sure they are coordinating with the county sheriff. But honestly, Darrel didn’t do it.”

  “Neither did my sister,” Maggie said, looking between the two women sitting across from her, “right?”

  “Chase isn’t the same guy as you used to know,” Kat spoke up. “Darrel wasn’t the only enemy Chase had.”

  “What do you mean by that?” Maggie asked.

  “For the last few years, actually since you left, Chase has turned into a real son of a you-know,” Sue said, taking a sip from the paper straw that was beginning to melt in her drink.

  “There was also an investigation request by the Inspector General when he died,” Kat added.

  “I didn’t hear that one,” Sue said, leaning her ear toward Kat.

  “Yeah, they sent Navy investigators to his house. I am not sure what they are looking for, but it is something big,” Kat said.

  “How did it go with Angel?” Sue asked, oddly changing the subject.

  “Liza is having a girl,” Maggie said. “Angel gave her a copy of the sonogram. She couldn’t wait to go shopping.”

  “That sounds like Liza,” Kat said.

  “Mike came too,” Maggie said, “and he was going to tell me some info he got after Liza and I left.”

  Mike’s face went white, and he froze as he was just about to take a drink. He looked up at the ladies and decided to take a long drink. They waited for him to speak.

  “Are you sure, Maggie?” he asked, focusing all eyes on Maggie.

  “They might be able to help,” Maggie said.

  “Okay, if you’re sure,” he was begging Maggie with his eyes.

  “No, she is sure,” Sue said. “Spill it.”

  “The baby is not Liza’s.” He blurted out.

  “What?” Maggie said too loud, causing people at other tables to look their way.