Boston Cream Bribery

by Jessica Beck

  “I wouldn’t call it being stuck,” he said with a smile.

  Sitting outside on our cottage’s porch, even though it was summer, there was a slight chilly breeze in the evening air. I didn’t mind, though. It gave us the opportunity to get out a light blanket and snuggle in the darkness, watching the fireflies dance among the trees. It was one of those moments I cherished above all others, a time of peace and total tranquility I could share with my husband.

  Tomorrow would be soon enough to take up our investigation again.

  Tonight was all ours, and I planned on relishing every last moment of it.

  Chapter 12

  “What? You’re kidding me. Okay. I’ll tell her. Thanks.”

  Jake hung up the phone at breakfast the next morning and said, “Suzanne, you’re not going to believe this.”

  “At this point, I’ll believe practically anything,” I said. I suddenly got an ache in the pit of my stomach. “Did someone take another run at Van?”

  “No, but it did involve him. Bradley caught him trying to sneak out of his room at five a.m. this morning. The doctor took away his street clothes so he couldn’t do it again.”

  “Where was he going?”

  “He claimed to be out for a stroll, but it’s pretty clear, isn’t it? He was going after his attacker,” Jake said.

  “The man must have lost his mind when he got conked on the head.”

  “I don’t know. If I were in his shoes, I might have done the same thing,” Jake said softly.

  “You’d try to get revenge?” His statement rattled me a little. After all, I had been under the impression that I was married to a law-and-order kind of guy, not some vigilante.

  “I wouldn’t attack whoever did it, but I would at least want the satisfaction of arresting him myself,” Jake replied.

  That answer I could live with. “Or her.”

  “Absolutely. Attempted murder is an equal-opportunity act,” Jake said. “Let me wash these dishes, and we can be on our way.”

  “Let’s stack them in the sink and save them for later,” I said. “I don’t think we should delay going to the hospital.”

  “Wow, you really are serious about this,” Jake said with a slight smile.

  “You know it.”

  As we drove to the hospital, I said, “I still think Van’s crazy.”

  Jake just hummed a bit in response.

  “He’s not exactly equipped to tackle a would-be assassin.”

  Again, no real response from my husband.

  “I’m going to cut my hair with a dull pair of scissors and dye whatever is left purple and blue.”

  “That would be nice,” Jake said, still lost in thought. Ten seconds later, he asked loudly, “What did you just say?”

  “Never mind. What deep thoughts are you pondering?”

  Jake frowned for a moment before answering. “It was something you said earlier. It was kind of brilliant, actually.”

  “Why do you sound so surprised?” I asked him. “I say brilliant things all of the time. Just out of curiosity though, what did I say? I’d like to repeat it if I can.”

  “I’m not ready to share just yet. There are a few kinks I need to work out first.”

  I’d heard that tone of voice before. It wouldn’t do me any good to push him until he was ready to share, even if I had had a part in his idea’s formulation. “Okay by me. Van has got to tell us what’s going on.”

  “I agree. How do we get him to do that, though?” Jake asked.

  “We’ve tried being nice, and that didn’t get us anywhere. Is there any leverage we can use on him to get him to tell us what he’s remembered?”

  “Wow, you’re starting to sound more like a cop every day,” Jake said.

  “That didn’t sound like a compliment to me.”

  “It wasn’t,” my husband answered. “Suzanne, leave the cynicism and the strong-arming to me. What you bring to the table is your neophyte enthusiasm to figure things out, and your way of getting people to open up to you. Those are two very valuable traits.”

  “Thanks, but sometimes people don’t respond to those methods.”

  “Then you just have to find a way to approach them that makes them want to cooperate with you,” Jake answered.

  “Unfortunately, that’s easier said than done,” I answered.

  “Hey, that’s why you make the big bucks.”

  “I’m an amateur though, remember? By definition I’m unpaid.”

  “Well, at least you’re not unappreciated,” he offered.

  “Yeah, I can live with that,” I said as I pulled into the hospital parking lot.

  Officer Bradley was on the door to Van’s room.

  “Don’t tell me you were here all night,” Jake said with a frown.

  “No, I got my six hours of sleep. I got back here just in time to catch Mr. Rayburn trying to sneak out. He was dressed in his street clothes, but he was holding his shoes. The man’s seen too many cartoons, if you ask me.”

  “Any idea where he was going?” Jake asked him.

  “Not a clue. I don’t buy his story that he just wanted to take a stroll, though.” The officer’s gaze narrowed for a second. “How did you already hear about it, anyway?”

  “What can I say? Word spreads fast in a small town,” Jake said.

  I just nodded, and I was wondering who had tipped Jake off to Van’s attempted escape when I saw Penny Parsons, a nurse and a friend of mine, wink at Jake as she turned the corner. That rat had called my husband instead of me! I had to laugh. At least she’d phoned one of us.

  “May we see him?”

  “As long as he stays right where he is, you’re welcome to go on in.”

  “Aren’t you afraid one of us might be his attacker?” I asked him out of curiosity.

  “The chief gave me permission to let you in. If you conk him again, it’s on my boss’s head, not mine.”

  Jake wasn’t about to let it go that easily, though. “What exactly did you do to merit this duty two days in a row?”

  “I’m not sure what you mean, sir,” Officer Bradley said, suddenly being more formal than he’d been just before.

  “You didn’t volunteer for this assignment. I’ll bet you that much.”

  The young cop just smiled. “I’m sure I don’t know what you’re talking about, sir.”

  Jake just laughed, which generated a chuckle from the police officer, too. “Got it.”

  Before we could go inside, I glanced quizzically at my husband, but he merely shook his head. If any explanation were coming, it would have to be later.

  Right now we had to tackle the assault victim again.

  “Going for a walk earlier, were we?” Jake asked the councilman as we entered the room.

  “I was trying to, but that uniformed Neanderthal out front stopped me,” Van said.

  “I’d hardly call Officer Bradley that,” I said. “How are your doctors going to feel about you taking a stroll around the grounds?”

  “I’m sure they’d be delighted. There’s talk of discharging me later today, or tomorrow at the latest.”

  “Really? I’m surprised,” Jake said. “Especially since you still haven’t gotten your memory back. It is still gone, isn’t it?”

  “I don’t recall a thing about the attack, if that’s what you’re asking,” Van said in an extremely unbelievable way.

  “Really? Are you still trying to sell that?” I asked him.

  “I’m not trying to sell anything. It’s the truth. I have a feeling that whoever did it isn’t very likely to try it again,” Van said.

  “Were you born an idiot, or did you somehow come by it gradually over the years?” Jake asked him in a biting tone that surprised not only the patient but me as well.

  “Watch it, buddy,” Van said. “I’m a
powerful man in these parts. You don’t want to make me angry with you.”

  “I’m not too worried about it, especially since you’re not going to be around long if you don’t stop trying to act like some kind of one-man mob,” Jake said. “I needed to get your attention, so I smacked you around a little.”

  “Well, you certainly got it, but you’re not going to be happy getting it,” Van said stiffly.

  “Listen, and listen carefully. Whoever attacked you, whether you know their identity at this moment or not, isn’t going to give up until you are in the ground,” Jake said.

  It was a side of my husband that I knew was there, but it still startled me when it bubbled to the surface. Jake was in full-on cop mode, and nothing would make him back off.

  “Why would they care so much about hurting me?” Van asked, his tone decidedly less assured than it had been before.

  “That’s the thing. It’s not about the first attack anymore,” Jake explained to him in a nicer voice. “The attacker can’t risk being exposed when and if you regain your memory. That makes whoever did it even more dangerous than before. Whatever their motivation to go after you was initially, it’s been replaced by self-preservation, and I can’t imagine anything good coming of it for you.”

  That seemed to rattle Van a little more. “Even if that’s true, I can’t stay under police protection around the clock. I have a life, you know.”

  “For how long, nobody knows,” Jake said.

  “So tell me, what do I do?” Van asked. His tough exterior was definitely cracking, and I had to wonder if he’d been telling the truth all along, that he had no clue who had attacked him in the first place.

  “I’ve got some ideas, but you’re going to have to follow my instructions to the letter if it’s going to work. Can you do that?”

  “If it means saving my own skin? You bet I can. What do I do?”

  “I’ll get back to you,” Jake said. “There’s just one thing I need to know, and I need the truth. Do you remember who assaulted you?”

  “No,” he said. “Sometimes I get a glimmer of an idea, but then it’s gone as quickly as it came. If I knew, I’d tell you. Okay?”

  Jake looked at me, and I nodded once. I actually believed Van. It had to be scary knowing that someone was out there ready to take another run at him after nearly succeeding on the first pass.

  “Okay. Sit tight, and try not to make anyone else angry for the rest of the day. Can you do that?”

  “I can try, but I won’t make any promises,” Van said. “Sorry, but that’s the best you’re going to get out of me.”

  “Then I suppose I’ll have to take it,” Jake said. “We’ll be back later.”

  “I can’t wait,” Van said sarcastically.

  Once we were out in the hallway and far enough away from Officer Bradley, I asked Jake, “When are you going to share your grand plan with me?”

  “Soon. Very soon.”

  I knew that it was all I was going to get, so I decided not to argue the point.

  I looked around the hallway and saw that it was virtually empty. “That’s odd.”

  “What’s that?” Jake asked as he scanned the halls himself.

  “Where’s Noreen? And how about Vivian? If nothing else, shouldn’t Van’s little toady Buford be around here someplace?”

  Jake nodded. “I didn’t even notice their absence.”

  “It’s kind of tough to miss when no one is shouting,” I said. “Maybe they knocked each other off.”

  “I’m not so sure you should be joking about that,” Jake said.

  “I know you’re right, but I can’t believe how adult women can behave so badly. If it weren’t for Buford, we might have another assault on our hands.”

  “Don’t sound so disappointed. You never know. The day’s still young.”

  “Now who’s acting all cynical and dark?” I asked him.

  “It’s okay if I do it,” Jake answered. “It looks better on me.”

  “Maybe so, but we really need to figure this out, and soon.”

  “We’re doing our best, not to mention the entire police force of April Springs. Somebody’s going to break this case sooner or later,” Jake said.

  “I just hope it’s sooner. I don’t particularly like our councilman, but that doesn’t mean I want to see anyone going after him again.”

  Jake walked back to the officer, who was watching us carefully, all the while pretending not to be. “I’m curious. Has Van’s fan club been here today?”

  Officer Bradley smiled. “They were here bright and early, but Van ran them all off. He told them he needed his rest. You should have heard the grumbling. None of them wanted to leave his side. I don’t know how he managed it, but those three are absolutely devoted to him.”

  “Are they gone for good?” I asked.

  “I doubt it. I heard them promise to come back this evening, no matter how much Van might protest. I expect to see them about the time I get off shift at four thirty. If I’m lucky, anyway,” he added with a slight smile.

  After we stepped away again, I asked my husband, “What do you make of that?”

  “Perhaps we can use the timing to our advantage,” he said.

  “Any idea how?” I asked.

  “I’m working on it,” was all that he’d tell me.

  “So, what do we do in the meantime?”

  “We need to get busy. There are other things we can do to help our investigation,” Jake said as he started off down the hallway.

  “Where exactly are we going?” I asked.

  “I want to see if Bob Casto has gotten over his medications yet.”

  “Even if he has, how are we going to get past his entourage?”

  “Trust me. I have a plan,” Jake said.

  As I followed him toward the businessman’s room, I wondered what it was, but if I knew Jake, it was probably going to be a good one.

  Chapter 13

  As expected, the crowd was back in Bob Casto’s room in full force. Jake didn’t wait for any of them to say a word. “Somebody’s been breaking into cars and trucks in the parking lot. If you have anything valuable in your vehicles, you might want to go check on them. The police are going around making random inspections to make sure that everything is safe.”

  It was actually brilliant. The ones who were innocent would naturally worry about the contents of their vehicles, while the ones who had anything shady in their cars or trucks would want to make sure the police didn’t find anything they didn’t want them to during their “random” searches.

  The room couldn’t have cleared out any quicker if I’d pulled the fire alarm.

  Suddenly it was just Bob Casto, Jake, and me.

  “Is any of that true?” Casto asked Jake once we were alone.

  “All of it, at one time or another,” Jake responded.

  The businessman took that in, and after a moment, he said, “You went to some trouble to get us alone. What can I do for you?”

  “Did you attack Van Rayburn?” Jake asked him bluntly.

  “At least you’re not beating around the bush. No, I didn’t. Does that satisfy you?”

  “As much as we’d like to take you at your word, you don’t happen to have an alibi before you wrecked your truck, do you?”

  Casto frowned. “When are you people going to leave me alone?”

  “When you tell us the truth,” Jake said.

  Casto let out a deep sigh, and then he said, “Fine. I’ll tell you, but if you repeat a word of it, I’ll deny it. Do we understand each other?”

  “Loud and clear,” Jake said.

  “I was with a woman,” Casto said.

  “Why the intrigue, then?” I asked him.

  “She’s married, and her husband has a pretty bad temper. I found that out firsthand.”

&nbs
p; “Tell us,” Jake said.

  Casto looked at me. “Her, too?”

  “If you don’t tell her now, I’ll just tell her myself the second we leave here.” I loved that Jake was willing to forego information just to protect my right to learn it at the same time that he did.

  “Whatever. I was at Maureen Daniels’s place last night when her husband came home unexpectedly. He caught us together, and he threatened to kill me. The man’s been cheating on her for years, but when she slips up once, he goes all crazy.”

  I’d heard stories about Maureen, so I wasn’t entirely sure that this was her first indiscretion with a man she wasn’t married to, but there was no point in bringing it up.

  “Anyway, he started waving a gun around, so naturally, I took off. Most men would have left it at that, but this maniac started after me in his truck, trying to drive me off the road. I was trying to get away from him when my truck spun out and I hit that tree.”

  “And he didn’t even stop to help you when he saw you wreck?” I asked.

  “I was lucky he didn’t hang around and finish the job,” Casto said. “The truth makes me look pretty corrupt, and I don’t want my aunt to think badly of me, so I went along with Wes’s deer-dodging story. Go on. Ask Maureen. Shoot, you can even ask her husband. I didn’t go after Van. Why would I? How would I ever get my money back if I killed him? It just doesn’t make good business sense. Now, you’d better get out of here before they come back. When they figure out that you lied to them, they aren’t going to be too happy with you.”

  “I didn’t lie entirely,” Jake said. “I saw a patrolman out in the parking lot when we drove up, and I doubt your family is going to stop and quiz him about why he’s there.”

  I hadn’t seen anyone, but then again, Jake seemed to have a sixth sense when it came to spotting fellow officers.

  Still, we did as Bob Casto suggested and left.

  After all, if he was telling us the truth, and I suspected that he was, we’d just eliminated another extremely viable suspect.

  That left us with Vivian, Buford, and Noreen.

  Any one of them could have done it.