“That sounds good.” Maggie sat in the center of the couch and placed her backpack under the coffee table in front of her as Angel disappeared into the kitchen. The room was cozy and warm from a well-established fire in the fireplace. Maggie heard the sound of beans grinding and then the strong smell of coffee reaching her nose.
“Cream and sugar?” Angel called from the kitchen.
“Just black, thanks.”
Soon Angel handed Maggie a nice large mug of steaming black coffee. Angel took the seat across from her with her cup staring directly at Maggie.
Maggie took a sip, “This is good.”
“Thanks, I keep the beans in the freezer,” Angie said, taking a sip of her cup and then setting it on the side table next to the chair.
“I’ll be right back,” Angel stood. “I need to use the restroom.”
“No problem, I completely understand. I had twins and one of them slept on my bladder for the entire nine months.” Maggie smiled at the memory a lifetime ago.
Angel forced a smile and left the room, leaving Maggie alone in the living room. Maggie took the opportunity to take a look around. She stood and walked toward the large picture window. The house was on the hill looking down, the clear day providing a breathtaking view of the Naval Shipyard below.
On the window ledge, Maggie noticed Angel had a collection of antique cigar boxes. Maggie lifted the cover of one, exposing a stack of photographs. “Who prints photos anymore?” She asked herself. Maggie looked around until she spotted the professional camera sitting on the kitchen table. Angel was taking her time, so Maggie picked up the stack and started to thumb through them. By the third picture, she couldn’t believe her eyes. She flipped through a few more and it was more of the same. Angel and Liza were together, embracing each other. It looked like more than friends. The bathroom door opened, so Maggie quickly replaced the photos and stood back, staring out the window.
“You have a great view,” Maggie said, keeping her eyes focused on the giant ships floating in the distance.
“So how can I help you today, Maggie?” Angel looked at the cigar box and back to Maggie.
Maggie turned slowly, maintaining her composure as her brain was about to explode.
“I’m just going to come out with it,” Maggie said, taking her seat to face Angel. “Did you know that it wasn’t Chase’s baby?”
“I’m sorry, I don’t have a clue what you are talking about.” Angel’s face turned pale and she was clenching her teeth.
“You told my friend Mike that you and Chase had an agreement and he was... You told him that Chase was filing for a divorce.” Maggie sat back, keeping her eyes focused on Angel, who was visibly uncomfortable.
“You think you are some sort of Nancy Drew, don’t you?” Angel stood.
“What were you and my sister arguing about the other day?”
“I warned Liza not to trust you. She is such an idiot.”
“You and my sister are more than friends, aren’t you?” Maggie pointed to the box.
Angel leaned forward and opened a drawer built into the side of the coffee table. She reached in and before Maggie could comprehend what was happening, Angel has a gun in Maggie’s face. It all happened so fast; Maggie didn’t have time to react. Angel was holding the weapon in both hands.
“What the hell?” Maggie said, leaning back to create distance from the gun.
“Your sister said you were not going to be a problem, but I think we have a problem, don’t we, Maggie?”
“Are you seriously going to kill me?”
“I don’t know what I’m going to do,” she motioned Maggie to get up using the gun. Maggie stood slowly, keeping her eyes focused on the weapon.
“I need you to back up against that wall,” Angel said, again motioned with the gun to the sidewall between the living room and kitchen. Angel moved into the kitchen, keeping the gun pointed directly at Maggie. Angel walked backward, now holding the gun in one hand, until she was at the counter, keeping the gun level at Maggie as she let one hand dropped and opened a drawer. She looked away for only a moment using her left hand, searching the drawer, finally coming up with a bag of tie wraps.
“Shit,” Maggie whispered.
“Turn around.”
“You don’t have to tie me up. I’m not going to say anything,” Maggie said.
“There is nothing to say,” Angel said, “now turn around.”
“Angel, did you kill Chase?”
“Everything is not as obvious as it seems. I shouldn’t have had to kill him, but I had no choice. Chase was a very conflicted man; he was so depressed that he was going to jump off the cliff.”
“Are you saying Chase was suicidal?”
It took months to set it up just right, a lot of careful planning. There is even a suicide note. It was perfect, except your sister couldn’t do it.”
“What do you mean there was a suicide note?” Maggie asked.
“Chase wrote a suicide note, not long after your divorce. He couldn’t live with himself after Kyle died. He blamed himself but apparently he couldn’t go through with it. Liza found the note and kept it safe for all these years. Liza tried to get him to go to the Steel Bridge, but he insisted they get a picnic and go up to the trail at Staircase. There is the spot perfect if you want to jump, but she couldn’t get him near the edge.”
“So, your saying Liza was going to push him over the edge?”
“He should have just done it himself. Liza was just saving him the trouble. She even gave him the gun hoping he would do it himself.”
“What gun?” Maggie felt a lump forming in her throat.
“The gun that killed his son. I guess he was your son too. The sheriff released it from evidence a few years ago. Liza walked in on Chase with it pointed to his head. If she had just waited a few more minutes, we wouldn’t be in this mess.”
“Why?” was the only thing Maggie could conjure from her racing mind.
“Why what?” Angel pushed her down the hall into a back bedroom. “Sit down.”
Maggie sat at the edge of the bed but kept her eye on Angel’s face, which was looking around frantically for something. Angel kept the gun pointed a Maggie as she opened the small closet door that looked like it would burst; it was so full. Angel found some long elastic workout bands. She held them up with one hand.
“Perfect.”
“How did it end up that you shot Chase instead of Liza’s plan to push him?” Maggie needed to get as much information and distract Angel. Maggie was now wishing she would have told someone where she was going.
“I was there the whole time. I stayed behind, just off the trail. The perfect opportunity came when Chase went to the edge to pee. Liza pushed him but didn’t see the ledge below. He was furious and was climbing back up. I had no choice. I had to shoot him. Honestly, I didn’t even know if I got him. I panicked and ran.”
“But why?”
“Why? Why? Why? Why do you keep asking me that?” Angel’s voice was at a high pitch now.
In as calm a voice as she could, Maggie asked, “I just wonder why you are involved in all of this?”
Angel dropped the elastic bands next to Maggie on the bed and put her hand on her stomach.
“He was going to put my baby up for adoption.” She paused. “This is my baby. We are going to raise her together.”
“We?”
Angel had enough. “Lay down and put your legs together.” Maggie did what Angel told her and Angel secured both her legs with one of the bands. At one point, she put the gun down, but Maggie’s hands were secured with the zip ties, so there was nothing she could do. The bands were thick and didn’t provide a secure restraint, but Maggie was careful not to move and expose her possible escape plan.
“You need to keep your mouth shut, or I will shoot you right now.” Angel stood at the door evaluating the space and staring at Maggie. Maggie kept her mouth shut.
Angel finally slammed the door shut and could hear some loud talking but
couldn’t make out what was said. Angel was on the phone with someone.
Maggie stayed silent, listening to the movements from the next room. It sounded like slamming drawers and then finally the slamming of the front door. She waited for what felt like hours, eventually working her legs free from the elastic bands.
Finally, feeling safe enough, Maggie sat up on the side of the bed. She couldn’t get her hands lose. Then she worked the zip ties loose like she had seen on an episode of Shark Tank when an ex-FBI agent showed Kevin O’Leary how to get out of the same situation. It didn’t work. She felt like crying, but the adrenaline kept her motivated. She needed to get out of there before Angel returned.
Maggie opened the bedroom door slowly and kept her ear sharp. The living room television was still on but sounded hollow in the empty house. The fire had died down and was just embers that didn’t provide heat. The house was quickly cooling down.
Maggie looked into the other bedroom and saw the chaos of open drawers and clothes strung out across the floor. She carefully pushed back the edge of the curtain of the front window with her head. Her car was parked where she left it, but Angel’s car was gone. Maggie felt relief wash over her and took a deep breath. She looked at her backpack from under the coffee table where she had placed it when she first came in. It was gone. She had no cell phone and no car keys, and her hands were still in zip ties.
Maggie looked for a house phone but couldn’t find one. She went into the kitchen and tried to retrieve a knife but couldn’t get it positioned right without cutting her wrist.
She would have to knock on a neighbor’s door and call 911. But just as she was close to the front door, it flew open and now there was another gun in her face.
Maggie screamed but was relieved when it was a deputy.
“She is gone.” Maggie said.
“Stay here,” the deputy motioned Maggie to stay standing on the front porch with another deputy who cut her hands free. As soon as the first deputy yelled “clear,” the second deputy relaxed and looked at Maggie.
“You okay?” he said calmly. Maggie stayed silent, only nodding her head.
“How did you know I was in trouble?” Maggie asked.
“Your friend called.”
“My friend?”
“If you are up to it, I need you to describe everything that happened here today,” he said.
Maggie took her time and carefully described the morning events, only leaving out the discovery of the pictures that seemed to panic Angel. She was at the end of her story when Mike drove up. The sight of his large frame exiting the car set her off and she ran into his chest, almost knocking him over, but he stood firm and wrapped his strong arms around her. She let herself cry, this time not as silent as before. He rocked her silently, let one hand go to touch her hair and smooth it down. She hadn’t realized how scared she had been.
“The gun,” she said, still buried in his chest, “was…”
“I know. It’s okay.” He said into her hair.
“No. It’s the gun that…”
“Ballistics came back this morning. I didn’t have time to tell you,” Mike said.
“How did you know I was in trouble?”
“I must have called 20 times and you didn’t answer. I thought that you might have gone to see Bernice but when I found out you were here.”
“How did you know I was here?”
“I called your friend Dwayne from the airport shuttle,” Mike held out the card that he picked up when they were with Bernice. “I called him, and he used his influence with your car rental company and convinced them to locate you on the GPS. As soon as he read me the address, I knew you were with Angel and I had some suspicions about her anyway, but I called it in when you didn’t answer.”
“You saved me,” Maggie said, smiling.
“It looks like you saved yourself,” Mike said.
The deputies have issued an arrest warrant for Angel and sent a car to Liza’s.
“Mrs. Dawson is missing,” the officer said speaking to Mike and Maggie.
“What do you mean missing?” Maggie asked.
“The suspect’s car is parked in front of the house and the house is cleared out. It looks like your sister is gone.”
“Gone?” Maggie was in shock.
“It appears that way, we need to secure this property,” the officer said moving past Maggie.
“Can I get my coat?” Maggie asked.
“Sure,” he said letting Maggie back in the house. She picked up her jacket and quickly went to the cigar box with the pictures, removed them and put them in her coat's inside pocket before putting it on before walking out of the house.
Chapter 23
Maggie left another message for Liza, but all the calls went unanswered. The phone didn’t even ring; it just went straight to voicemail. Liza’s phone was turned off, probably for good.
“She’s not answering,” Maggie said, disappointed.
“Maggie, you are going to have to accept that Liza was involved in Chase’s murder.”
Maggie shook her head and put her new phone back in her backpack.
“Wait,” she pulled out the photographs she took from the cigar box at Angels and handed them to Mike. “I forgot I had these.”
Mike thumbed through the pictures and shook his head, “We need to turn these into the police,” he said.
“Can we just give them to Trey?” Maggie asked.
“Sure,” Mike said.
Maggie called Trey and told him about the pictures. Maggie listened silently before thanking Trey and hanging up.
“What did he say?” Mike asked.
“He said to drop them off at the office, but he also said Liza missed her weekly court-appointed check-in and there is a warrant for her arrest now too.” Maggie was still holding on to the hope that her sister was taken hostage by Angel, even with everyone around her treating the two missing women as co-conspirators.
“I’m sorry, Maggie, but I’m not surprised.”
Mike dropped Maggie off at the hotel, where she finished packing and checked in for her flight scheduled to leave at 5 o’clock.
Mike was on the same flight, so they agreed to drive to the airport together. Maggie scheduled a drop off of her car at the local rental agency.
Maggie was looking forward to sitting next to Mike on the plane. Her best memory was their first flight together, where he switched seats so he could sit next to her. That was probably the beginning of their friendship.
Maggie’s phone buzzed with a message from Kat. Her two friends headed to Jalisco’s Mexican Restaurant for lunch.
Maggie texted Mike and told him the plan and he was glad to have a chance to also say goodbye to Kat and Sue. He picked her up at the rental place, placing her bags next to his in the trunk.
As soon as Mike and Maggie walked in the door, they saw the two women had taken up residence in a tall booth in the restaurant's bar area. They both had large margaritas sitting in front of them. Sue moved to the seat next to Kat when she saw Mike and Maggie. Maggie slid into the booth across from Kat and Mike next to Maggie.
“Can I get you something to drink?” the waiter asked.
“I’ll have sweet tea.” Mike looked across at the two women who were giving him the eye. “I’m driving.”
“We have regular tea,” the waiter said, looking over the readers that balanced on the end of his nose.
“That’s right,” Mike said, “I’ll have regular tea with sugar on the side.”
“I’ll have,” Maggie paused, looking at the other girl’s margarita, “iced tea also.”
“What?” Sue said. “What did you do with Maggie?”
“She will have one of those,” Mike spoke up.
“Okay, without salt, thanks,” Maggie smiled at the waiter.
“Maggie, I hate to bring this up right now, but I can’t take your sister’s dogs,” Kat said. “I already have a dog and three cats. It’s just too much.”
“I can’t take th
e dogs,” Maggie said, “I live across the country.”
“I wasn’t telling you to take them. I was just saying. I am going to have to take them to the shelter. They are so cute. I’m sure they will get adopted right away.”
“The shelter?” Maggie looked at Sue.
“Don’t look at me. I can’t take them.” Sue took a drink of her Margarita.
Maggie stared at Mike, who was listening but stayed silent.
“I have an idea,” he finally said, “I’ll be right back.”
Mike slid out of his seat and disappeared around the corner. He had walked outside to use his phone away from the loud bar. Maggie saw him outside near his car with the phone against his ear held by his shoulder as he had his trusty little note pad and pencil out writing something.
He came back in and slid into the booth. All three women stared at him until they were interrupted by the waiter who set the tea in front of Mike and an extra-large Margarita in front of Maggie, “Are you ready to order?”
“I haven’t even looked yet,” Mike said. The waiter rolled his eyes and moved to the next table.
Mike smiled and turned his head to Maggie, “Cancel your flight; we are driving.”
“We are what?” Maggie said, tilting her head.
“I rented an RV.” He turned to Kat, “We will be taking the dogs.”
“Perfect,” Kat smiled and looked at Maggie. “You need a dog.”
“I need my head examined if I agree to this,” Maggie said.
“Well, that too,” Kat said, and Sue laughed out loud.
“I love road trips,” Sue said.
“Are you sure about this, Mike?” Maggie asked.
“It’s already done,” he said, opening the giant menu.
“Did you hear they arrested Kevin again,” Kat said, causing them all to put down their menus and lean in.
“What about Sharron?” Maggie asked, “Was she involved?”
“She was working with the authorities. Kevin admitted everything on the phone with her,” Kat said.
“I’ll bet she loved that,” Maggie said.
“She is the talk of the community,” Kat said.
“I wish we could have done something about Bernice,” Maggie said.
Deception Trail: A Maggie McFarlin Mystery Page 17
