Em drove right on by when Charlotte whipped into Tiko’s empty driveway and went as far as two lots up, then she made a U-turn and headed back. She pulled over on the side of the road and parked in the shade of a huge mango tree. From there she could see Tiko’s vanilla colored house bordered by the gardens around the open lawn. Tiko’s van was nowhere in sight.
If Tiko was in the house and looked out the window, she wouldn’t recognize Louie’s old truck, nor would Charlotte. Em watched Charlotte get out of her car and open the trunk, then she ran up the driveway toward the back of the house and disappeared.
Em picked up her cell and hit Roland’s number. All she got was his voicemail. She left him a message, told him to call her ASAP and shoved the phone into her pocket.
She drummed her fingers on the steering wheel, wishing she had the information Nat printed out for her. Her gaze drifted up the hill to the empty land crowded with wild growth behind Tiko’s property, where countless castor bean plants were probably growing there like the weeds they were. Closer to the yard, the angel’s trumpet was still in bloom. Tiko’s garden was a potpourri of potential poisons.
A fine mist of rain hit the windshield. She turned on the wipers for a second and the moisture was gone. The passing cloud had already drifted by. Suddenly Charlotte appeared in the driveway. Still in a hurry, she was rolling a carry on suitcase. It bumped along the gravel drive until she reached her car and tossed it in the trunk and then ran back toward the rear of the house.
“Call me Roland,” Em mumbled to herself. “If you’re so psychic then pick up on this.”
Em was tempted to move her truck further up the road so she could see down the driveway. Was the carry on Charlotte’s, or was she picking it up for Tiko? If Tiko was trying to leave the island, then Charlotte was an accomplice.
Em pulled her cell out of her pocket, dialed Roland again and left another voicemail.
“Call me ASAP.”
Charlotte appeared again, this time carrying two recyclable grocery store totes that appeared to be heavy. She put them in the trunk with the carry on and closed the lid. Then she looked over her shoulder, scanning the road. Em slumped down, but Charlotte didn’t look at the truck. She got back in the Mustang, started it up and backed out of the driveway so fast that she left a spray of gravel behind.
She braked at the end of the drive, forced to wait for a passing UPS truck, then surprised Em by heading north and not back toward the airport. Em reached over and opened Louie’s glove compartment, ignoring the flurry of old receipts and Snickers bar wrappers that fell out. She looked down as Charlotte flew by focused on the road.
Em started the truck, drove a few yards down the road and turned far enough into Tiko’s driveway to get turned around. Now that Charlotte was headed in the opposite direction from the airport, it was hard to tell where she was headed. Maybe Tiko was hiding out at a friend’s place.
If Tiko was innocent and terrified, she should know better than to run. Neither Tiko nor Charlotte was stupid. Tiko was a savvy entrepreneur. And Charlotte . . . Em realized she didn’t know much about Charlotte other than that she’d just moved back from the mainland and worked for Garden Island Vacation Rentals.
Em slowed down for a truck piled high with green waste, frustrated when the driver continued at a snail’s pace. She drifted toward the center line to see around him and watched Charlotte round a bend in the road. Em was tempted to go around the truck. She took a deep breath and put on her turn signal, but luckily the truck slowed down and turned into a driveway.
She let out a sigh of relief, clutched the steering wheel and went as fast as she dared around a curve and asked herself what in the heck she thought she was doing.
“Go home, Em,” she said aloud.
She still had a lovely bruise on her cheek from Saturday night’s brawl and didn’t need to tempt fate, not while things were calm at the Goddess, and Kiki and the Maidens were still riding high from their triumphant third place award at the competition.
Up ahead, Charlotte had reached a crossroad. Em expected her to turn right and head to Kapa’a, but she made a left and headed inland toward Kawaihau. After hesitating for half a second, Em followed, hanging back.
They just entered a neighborhood when Charlotte made a right turn into a dead end street. Em slowed down. Wood frame homes with carports stuffed with boxes and coolers, toys, surfboards, bikes, and here and there fishing boats on trailers lined the street. Em crept along at a crawl while up ahead, Charlotte pulled over. She parked and hurried into a house in the middle of the block.
Em drove past the house thinking, now what? It was a short block. Em parked on the opposite side of the street behind a boat on a trailer. As she slid down in the seat, she glanced at her watch. Before long Louie would start to worry if she didn’t check in. She pulled out her cell, left Roland yet another message and then dialed the Goddess.
“I’m almost to Kapa’a. I made a couple of detours,” she told Louie.
“We’re doing great. Sophie is here, and Kimo’s got the place smelling like barbeque sauce. Ribs are tonight’s special.” He paused a minute and then said, “By the way, I called the people who booked us for Sunday night. They wanted to know about hiring some hula dancers. They want a fire knife dancer too.”
“Nothing like planning ahead.” She rubbed her forehead and tried to iron out her frown lines with her fingertips. “I’ll see if Roland is free. I’m sure the Maidens will do it if we can’t find a couple of young local dancers.”
She couldn’t book the Maidens without warning the hostess that they wouldn’t be getting what visitors thought of as typical hula dancers. It wasn’t worth risking customers going into cardiac arrest when a bunch of middle-aged haoles showed up in muumuus with stolen shrubbery pinned on their heads.
“Uncle Louie, I’ll take care of it when I get back. I’ll see you soon.”
“Great. Be careful.”
She smiled until she shoved her phone back in her pocket and looked around. Thankfully school was in session, and there weren’t any kids playing on the street and no one was working in any of the yards right now, either. On a dead end street like this one, a haole lady sitting alone in a truck spying on the neighbors was sure to be noticed.
She started up the truck, turned around and headed down the block toward Charlotte’s car. As she cruised slowly by she nearly hit the brakes when she noticed what was parked in the driveway in front of the Mustang.
Jackie Loo Tong’s metallic silver truck.
Kumu Jackie Loo Tong. Mitchell’s rival.
“What the . . . ?” Em pulled over again.
Why was Charlotte here? If she stopped to pick up Tiko, why would Tiko be here? Unless Tiko had been sabotaging her old halau for Jackie’s benefit?
Tiko’s van wasn’t in sight, but it could be hidden in Jackie’s garage.
Common sense told Em she should head home, wait for Roland to call, tell him what she’d seen and let the professionals take over. But by then Tiko might make a run for it. How easy was it for a murder suspect to get off the island?
Jackie had threatened Kawika and now Tiko could be tied to Jackie, but that still didn’t prove Tiko had poisoned anyone.
Em had to get out of the truck, but she needed a destination and to look like she belonged.
She was two houses away from Jackie’s. The house in between had a For Sale sign out front. The yard needed a good weeding. The hedge was out of shape and the faded blooms on the ginger plants needed cutting.
She looked into the small narrow cab behind the driver’s seat. Louie had left a rain jacket with a hood in the car. It was overcast and not too hot, so she might not look too suspicious in a windbreaker. She spotted an old U of Hawaii baseball cap, put it on and threaded her ponytail through the opening in back.
If anyone saw her snooping around t
he house next to Jackie’s, they’d think she was just a lookie-loo, and if questioned she could say a realtor sent her. With luck she’d be able to sneak into the yard unseen and get closer to Jackie’s place by walking around to the back.
Before she got out, she picked up the receipts that had fallen out of the glove compartment. She was about to shove them back in when she noticed one was from Roberts Jewelers. It was a layaway receipt for an engagement ring.
A very pricy engagement ring.
It was dated just last week. Louie had put money down on a ring for Marilyn after he’d supposedly put the engagement on hold.
“Oh, Uncle Louie,” Em whispered. “You can’t afford this.” She stared at the receipt again then shoved it into them all into the glove compartment.
Her hand was on the door handle when she remembered to set her phone to vibrate. Once she was on the street she kept her eyes focused on the house that was for sale and acted as if she were checking out the yard and then walked up to the front lanai. After peering in the windows—the place was completely empty and forlorn—she walked around the side of the house that was opposite Jackie’s and continued around to the back yard.
Once she was on Jackie Loo Tong’s side of the property, she was only eight feet from his open windows and could hear the conversation inside. It definitely wasn’t a happy chat.
“I never made you any promises,” Jackie said.
“No?” The female voice wasn’t Tiko’s. It was Charlotte’s. “What about Las Vegas? You made it pretty clear you were serious about us.”
“If you call that clear then you’d better get your eyes checked.” Jackie laughed. “That was an affair, Charlotte. A-f-f-a-i-r-e. No big t’ing. I have ’um all the time.”
“Yeah, I heard.” Her voice went up a notch. “Tiko told me they hauled you in for questioning on Friday night, after they found you at the Leilani Motel with some dancer from Oahu. I was busting my butt at the festival and you were playing around behind my back.”
Em heard their footsteps on the bare floor as they moved from the front of the house to another room.
Charlotte’s voice sounded desperate and angry. “I quit my job for you, Jackie. I moved back to Kauai for you.”
“I never asked you to.”
“Please, just tell me I’m not wasting my time,” Charlotte said.
“That depends on what you expect from me. You’ve found a good job here and you’re back home. If you want to have some fun, no strings attached, I’m up for that.”
“I had a good job, and I loved Las Vegas. It’s boring as hell here.”
“Then go back.”
“But I love you, Jackie.”
“You hardly know me.” There was a pause. “Look, honey, I’m sorry, but I’m just not a one woman man. Ask anyone.”
There was the sound of an ice dispenser dropping cubes in a glass.
“At least look at me,” Charlotte said.
“Want some water?” Jackie sounded as cold as the ice in his glass.
“No, thanks. Here, finish this if you like.”
“What is it?”
“Starbucks latte.”
Em heard the sound of some liquid being poured and then the tinkle of ice cubes.
“Maybe you can get your old Vegas job back,” he suggested.
“I don’t want my job back. I’ve gone way too far to turn back now.”
“All you have to do is pack up and go back.”
Charlotte laughed again. The sound gave Em the chills.
“I could have done that a couple of months ago, but not now,” Charlotte said.
Em heard Jackie say, “Where’s Tiko? How about I call her for you?”
“Tiko? What do I need her for?
There was a hesitation then Jackie said, “Maybe you need to talk things out with someone. Some girl talk. Advice.”
Charlotte laughed but there was no joy in the sound. “It’s too late for talking. Way too late.”
44
You Can’t Always Get What You Want
There was a plastic chair a few feet away on the lawn of the deserted house. Em tiptoed over, picked it up and set it down without a sound beneath Jackie’s kitchen window. She climbed up on the chair and had just put her fingertips on the edge of the windowsill when she heard a vehicle coming down the street.
She froze and saw a white van go past the space between houses. The engine stopped. Inside, Charlotte and Jackie fell silent. The van door slammed, and then Em heard flip flops slapping against the walk.
Tiko’s voice called out, and there was a knock on the door.
“Jackie, it’s me. Are you in there, Charlotte?”
Em peered over the windowsill. If they were expecting Tiko, they both looked surprised. Jackie, with a glass in hand, was eyeing Charlotte who was next to the kitchen sink.
“What’s she doing here?” Charlotte asked him.
“Heck if I know,” he shrugged.
“Charlotte? I know you’re in there. I can see your car in the driveway.” The screen door banged. Tiko must have walked in.
Charlotte headed for the front room while Jackie trailed along carrying a tall glass full of ice and a short bottle of Starbucks latte. Em stepped off the chair, picked it up and carried to the front window. She climbed up, peered over the windowsill.
Tiko looked frantic. “What are you doing here, Charlotte?”
“How did you find me?”
“I’ve been looking for you since Sunday and put the word out. My neighbor’s second cousin lives a block over. She saw you drive by.” Tiko’s gaze cut to Jackie. “What are you drinking?”
“Latte,” he held up the bottle.
“Did she give it to you?”
“Yeah.” Jackie stared at the glass.
“Put it down,” Tiko said.
Jackie set the glass and bottle on a side table. “Why?”
Tiko’s gaze cut back to Charlotte.
“What’s the matter with you?” Charlotte walked further into the living room.
“I think you know.” Tiko never took her eyes off her cousin. “I’ve been looking for you since I was released. You haven’t been at work, and you haven’t been to your condo. You aren’t answering my calls. We need to talk. Outside.”
Charlotte glanced at Jackie then turned back to Tiko. “What for?”
“I think you know.” Tiko was three inches shorter and twenty pounds lighter, but she wasn’t budging. She walked over to the table where Jackie had set his drink and picked up the bottle.
“What’s going on?” Jackie’s gaze flashed from one woman to the other.
“I came to talk to my cousin. To help her,” Tiko said.
Charlotte lowered her voice, stepped closer to Jackie and put her hand on his arm. “She’s dangerous.”
“Funny stuffs have been going on, you know,” Jackie said to Tiko. “Maybe you ought to take off. If she wants to see you, she knows where you live.”
“I know funny ‘stuffs’ have been going on,” Tiko said. “That’s why I’m here. I need to talk to Charlotte. Alone.”
Em’s cell phone vibrated, and she almost fell off the chair. Catching her balance, her hand shook as she tried to pull the phone out of her pocket. Finally. It was Roland.
“What’s up? I got your messages,” he said.
She whispered into the phone. “I’m at Jackie Loo Tong’s. You need to get over here right now.”
“Address?”
“I have no idea. I followed Charlotte here. It’s way up above Kapa’a somewhere.”
“What’s going on?”
She heard his car door slam and the engine start up over the phone. He was on the move.
“Tiko is here too. And Jackie.”
“Where are you exactly?”
“Crouched down on a plastic chair between two houses. Something’s going on. I thought Tiko was going to leave the island. It’s a long story . . .”
She heard him sigh. “Sit tight. I’ll track down the address. We’re on the way.”
“Thanks,” she whispered.
“Em?”
“What?”
“Don’t do anything crazy.” He hung up.
Em hopped back up in time to see Jackie walk over to a cane bottomed chair near the front door. He sat down, wiped his upper lip and then his brow and doubled over.
“Jackie?” Tiko ran to his side. “What’s wrong?”
Jackie held out his hand. “I’m shaking. My legs won’t hold me.”
Tiko leaned over him, touched his wrist. “Your pulse is racing.” She looked over at her cousin. “What did you give him? What have you done?”
Charlotte grabbed her purse off the table. Em’s mind was racing.
What did you give him? What have you done?
Charlotte had been working the smoothie booth all weekend with Tiko, but that wouldn’t account for Shari and Mitchell’s deaths, unless Charlotte had already moved back from the mainland before Shari and Mitchell died.
Charlotte had access to Tiko’s garden. Charlotte had learned herbal lore from their grandmother too. She’d been working in the smoothie booth the night Kawika was poisoned and was the one who delivered the tainted smoothie to the kumu. Charlotte could have easily put ground castor beans in after Tiko handed it over for delivery.
It was clear why Charlotte was furious at Jackie, but was she mad enough to poison him? And what motive would Charlotte have for killing off members of Tiko’s old halau?
While Em clung to the window ledge, now aware she’d suspected the wrong cousin of murder, Charlotte bolted out the front door.
Tiko stayed with Jackie.
“I’m gonna be sick,” he covered his mouth.
“Can you make it to the bathroom? Try to vomit.”
He got up and staggering across the room. Tiko ran out after Charlotte. Em dialed 911.
Two To Mango Page 25
