The Devil's Spare Change 2 Malone Brothers

by Samantha Cole

  He handed her a heavy folder filled with a thick stack of papers, which she dropped next to her pad of notes. She lifted the top cover and scanned the first few pages. “Is there anything in here about the Philadelphia cases?”

  “Winslow e-mailed me some stuff. It’s in there. She’s overnighting the rest, including an initial profile.”

  Suki glanced at Sean with raised eyebrows. “Who did the profile?”

  He shrugged his shoulders. “Don’t know, didn’t ask. She wanted you at the time, but you weren’t available.”

  Going back to the file, she asked, “What about the autopsy reports and photos of your three vics, are they in here, too?”

  Rafe handed her three more manila files. “Here they are, Dr. Ralston. You should have the reports included with everything Sean gave you, but here’s the autopsy photos along with the crime scene photos.” He grimaced and added apologetically, “I’m sure you’ve seen a lot of nasty stuff working for the feds, but these are more than just a little disturbing. You can hold onto them if you need to—the official ones are on a CD.”

  “Thank you, Detective, but as you know, ‘disturbing’ comes with the job.”

  “I hear you. And feel free to call me Rafe. We’re pretty informal around here.”

  Suki smiled warmly. “Thanks, Rafe. And everyone please call me Suki. My dad’s an internist and every time I hear Dr. Ralston, I look around to see where he is.” Her gaze met each one of the members of the task force in succession. “Thank you all for the update. I’m going to spend the next few hours going through the files and should have a preliminary profile for you in the morning or noon the latest.”

  Brian and Rafe stood and said their goodbyes for the day, although the latter seemed reluctant to do so. The guy hadn’t been able to take his eyes off of Suki. But they needed to check in with their own supervisor. Even though they were on the serial killer task force, they still had other cases they were working on. Until they had some more information or a lead or two, there wasn’t much else they could do at the sheriff’s department. Brian gave his brother fist pump and a wink before walking out the door.

  After they left, Suki began perusing the files and Lynch started entering updates to existing reports on the department computer. Sean opened his laptop and signed on. Once he was in the right database he expanded the parameters for a new search in the FBI system and hit send. While the program was doing its thing, he strolled down the hall to the break room and put money in the soda machine. He grabbed two Cokes for Brad and himself, and for Suki, a diet Coke, her usual. Sean often joked with his uncle that caffeine and sugar were the “breakfast, lunch, and dinner of champions” for almost anyone in law enforcement; they kept you going while doing the boring grunt work.

  Lynch had told them earlier that it was his wife’s birthday and he wanted to leave on time to take her out for dinner. Around five thirty he finished up, said goodbye, and headed out the door, leaving the two FBI agents alone in the room. Suki stood and gracefully stretched her neck and back. “Speaking of dinner, you owe me, and I’m getting hungry.”

  He grinned at her. “When are you not hungry? For a tiny woman, you eat like a linebacker.”

  Laughing, she gathered up her files to place in her briefcase. “I wouldn’t say a linebacker . . . maybe a wide receiver.” She shrugged. “What can I say? I was blessed with a good metabolism. Now, where’s this Sassy’s Restaurant you’ve told me all about?”

  * * *

  Grace flipped through the local newspaper while standing behind the counter of Petals, her aunt’s boutique. The women’s clothing shop was a few doors down from Dan Malone’s hardware store, and diagonally across from Pro-Care. Bonnie was counting the day’s receipts and chatting at the same time. “The warm weather this past week has had a nice effect on my sales. People are taking walks through town and getting ready for spring.”

  “Well, since March 20th was last week it’s already spring,” Grace answered. “Down here you start getting the warmer weather way before New York does. Over a week of temperatures in the low seventies in March is almost unheard of up there. One or two days maybe, but not nine in a row. This would be considered a heat wave.”

  “Are you complaining?”

  She chuckled. “Absolutely not. This is my favorite type of weather, not too hot, not too cold.”

  “Mine too,” said Bonnie. “And not just because it’s good for business, but of course that’s a plus. I had a busy morning and then a pleasant group of women came in after I got back from lunch. They drove down from Newport News for the day just to eat, shop, and walk around. And boy, did they shop!”

  “Shopping is one thing.” Grace raised an eyebrow. “The question is, did they buy?”

  “Between the four of them, they bought over twelve hundred dollars’ worth of clothing and accessories. I told them I was expecting a large shipment of summer clothes within the next two weeks and they’re planning on coming back down to see what comes in.”

  After she finished totaling up the sales, Bonnie put the credit card receipts into an envelope and filed them away so she could compare them to the statements at the end of the month. Then she wrote out a bank slip and placed it with two days’ worth of money and checks into a deposit bag that she concealed in a small shopping bag. She planned on dropping it into the night deposit bin at her bank a block and a half away. Usually Dan, taking along his concealed .38 caliber pistol and Jinx, walked with her every time she went to the bank, to make his own deposits and to ensure Bonnie wasn’t robbed. Even though crime in Whisper was low, one never knew when some creep would try to take advantage of someone in the sleepy little town, he would say. Bonnie always thought her dear friend was overly cautious, but let him play bodyguard anyway. Dan randomly chose when they would make the deposits so there was no pattern to catch a crook’s eye. Sometimes they went in the morning before opening their shops, and other times they went during lunch or after closing. Tonight though, Grace and she would make the drop on their way to dinner.

  It was still a few minutes before the six o’clock closing time, so the two women straightened the clothes on the racks. Bonnie asked, “Did you hire that therapist you told me about at lunch? What’s his name again?”

  “Tom Koppel. And yes, I did. He’s giving the hospital his two weeks’ notice on Monday.”

  “Wonderful. So you’re almost ready to open up then?”

  Grace smiled. “Yup, as soon as all the equipment arrives. The sign looks great; they’re installing it on Tuesday. Oh, and I bought the TV earlier to put up for the patients to watch if they want. It was so nice of Dan to offer to mount it on the wall and run the wiring, along with hooking up the washer/dryer for me. That’ll save me some money. I think I’ll treat him to dinner out one night to pay him back.”

  “Well, not tonight. That stubborn old coot’s been fighting a cold for the past few days and now he’s paying the price. Thank goodness Jimmy Merrick was scheduled to work after school today so Dan could go up to the apartment and get some rest. Honestly, that man pushes himself to the brink sometimes.”

  Grace smiled and again wondered why Dan and Bonnie weren’t a couple. It was obvious they cared about each other and, most of the time, acted like old married folks. “We’ll bring him some soup from Sassy’s after dinner.”

  “Sounds perfect.” Bonnie glanced at her watch. “Well, let’s lock up. I’m getting hungry myself.”

  The two women closed the shop and walked up the street to the bank. While Bonnie was making the deposit, Grace glanced across the street just in time to see Sean walking into Sassy’s with his hand at the lower back of any extremely attractive woman. She was stunned and felt her stomach fall in disappointment. She suddenly realized that in the conversations she’d had with Sean over the past week, she never once asked him if he was seeing anyone special. Apparently he was, she thought sourly as the couple disappeared into the restaurant.

  Bonnie completed her transaction and turned to see her
niece frowning. “Is something wrong, Grace?” she asked, while scanning the area in front of Sassy’s. Nothing seemed out of place to the older woman.

  “Um, no. Nothing’s wrong,” Grace lied and put on a fake smile. “I was just thinking that I’m really not in the mood for Sassy’s tonight. Why don’t we drive over to the Cranberry Inn for dinner?”

  “That’s fine with me. I haven’t eaten there in a while.”

  * * *

  “. . .this is Jessica Daly for the Channel Four News.” Wallace rewound the reporter’s newscast from outside the Dare County Sheriff’s Department and let it play for the fifth time. He could tell the reporter was full of herself and wondered if she’d be so cocky if he cut her down to size. Literally.

  Here comes the best part. The FBI agent. Mister High and Mighty—Not. His deadly work had the local Keystone Kops running around in circles so they’d called in the feds. It didn’t matter though—they were a bunch of inept jackasses and would never catch him. Good ol’ George Wallace had a steady respectable job, helped out his neighbors, and was friendly to everyone he met—well, almost everyone. His coworkers and boss got along with him just fine, and he’d never had any complaints lodged against him at work. He had never been arrested—even his driver’s license was clean, having never gotten a ticket in his life. Shit, he even volunteered every other Saturday afternoon at the local food pantry and drove his elderly neighbor to the library once a month. It was all part of the admirable personae he presented to the rest of the world. People who knew him had no idea what he was capable of, and he was going to keep it that way. Of course, it was a tad disappointing no one knew mild-mannered George Wallace was responsible for instilling fear into the hearts of women living in the area but, ironically, silence ensured his fame.

  Striding into his kitchen, he took his dinner out of the microwave and placed it on a tray along with a knife, fork, and napkin. He carried his meal into the living room, sat back down on the sofa, and hit the rewind button on the remote again.

  CHAPTER

  10

  Grace glanced around the almost full dining room of the Cranberry Inn. Named for its exterior color, it was a beautiful bed and breakfast on the north end of town, which opened its doors to the public from five until nine for supper. The Victorian décor matched the architecture of the grand building and inspired a different atmosphere than Sassy’s did. The restaurant on Main Street was always fun, loud, and boisterous, with the bar area having its regular crowd due to a row of TVs showing current sporting events. The dining area was a little quieter, yet it was still filled with happy chatter. Here at the inn, the environment was more subdued and most conversations were carried out in soft, delicate voices.

  Bonnie gave a small wave across the room to one of her regular customers before turning back to her dinner companion. “Are you all right, Gracie? You’re awfully quiet and you’ve barely touched your dinner.”

  She stopped moving her penne ala vodka around the plate and sighed. “I’m fine, Aunt Bonnie. Guess I wasn’t that hungry after all.” She couldn’t tell her aunt she was upset because the night after he’d kissed the stuffing out of her, she saw Sean out on a date with another woman. It felt like Jessica Winters and the prom all over again. “I’ll take it home for lunch tomorrow.”

  Bonnie was a smart woman. She knew something was bothering her niece, but the girl could be as stubborn as a mule. She’d just have to wait until Grace was willing to open up about it. Instead of pushing Grace to talk, Bonnie waved down their waitress and requested a container of the cook’s delicious chicken and rice soup to go.

  Grace drove Bonnie back to Main Street where the older woman would deliver the soup to Dan’s apartment above his hardware store before going home. After making sure her aunt got inside okay, Grace steered her car west. As she passed Sassy’s, she slowed the vehicle down, looking for Sean’s Mustang. She didn’t know if she was disappointed or not when she didn’t see it.

  Shaking her head, she told herself it shouldn’t bother her that he was out with another woman. They had shared a few meals together since they’d both returned to Whisper, but those hadn’t actually been dates—just spur of the moment get-togethers. It wasn’t as if she had any claim on the man. The kiss they’d shared had obviously meant more to her than it did him. Well, she wasn’t the type of woman who liked to share. If Sean wanted to date other women that was his choice, but Grace wasn’t going to sit around waiting for him. Once her business was up and running she would find a way to meet new people. For now, she’d have to be content with the few she knew in the area. “Maybe tomorrow I’ll go to the shelter and adopt a kitten. At least that would be something I could cuddle up with,” she said out loud, trying to convince herself that would be enough.

  Entering her silent condo finalized her decision. She was going to get a cat. She’d had one when she was little and missed having a furry companion to come home to—someone, or in this case, something to talk to at night when she was alone.

  Turning on the lights, she dropped her bag, hung up her coat, and slid her shoes off. The remaining portion of her dinner went into the refrigerator, and then she walked to her bedroom to put on her pajamas. After getting comfortable on the couch with a few magazines Bonnie had given her, she turned on the television and waited for the ten o’clock news to come on.

  * * *

  Sean showed Suki to her bedroom in the beach house, then went into his own room to change out of his suit as she got herself situated. A few minutes later he walked out to the living room and glanced at his watch. It was a quarter to ten but he knew they would be up for a few more hours going through the case reports. He’d already read the printouts from Philadelphia, but was going to do it again to see if he’d missed anything. Plopping down on the couch, he wondered if it was too late to call Grace. They would have been home earlier, but he’d forgotten to bring his laptop and they’d ended up going back to the station where it was locked in the conference room.

  Standing, he grabbed his cell phone from the dining table and found Grace’s number in his contacts. She’d given it to him the night before as they sat on the couch talking. Leaning against the door jamb between the living room and kitchen, he pressed send and hoped he wasn’t about to wake her up. It rang a few times before going to voicemail and he disconnected the call before leaving a message because he wasn’t sure what he wanted to say.

  “Got a girlfriend you haven’t told me about?” Suki teased as she walked into the room wearing a T-shirt and sweatpants. She strode over to the porch door where she’d left her briefcase on the floor when they first entered the cottage. Grabbing the leather handles, she carried it to the loveseat, which faced the windows overlooking the ocean, and sat down.

  Sean shrugged and tossed his phone on the couch. “To tell you the truth, I’m not sure.”

  “Want to talk about it?” Sean had mentioned Grace several times over dinner and it was obvious to Suki the woman had caught his interest.

  “No, thanks.” He honestly didn’t because he wouldn’t know where to start, so he changed the subject. “We’re going to be up for a while, aren’t we?”

  “I know I am, why?”

  Sean smiled and rubbed his hands together. “I’ve been looking for an excuse to start a fire in the fireplace. What do you say?” He pointed at the stack of dry wood set neatly to the right of the brick hearth. Although the days had been warm, the nights were still chilly, especially on the beach.

  “Great. I’d love it.” She stood and stepped toward the kitchen. “You wouldn’t happen to have some hot chocolate in here, would you? Can’t have a fire without some cocoa.”

  “Look in the cabinet next to the fridge.” He began putting some logs and crumpled newspaper into the fireplace. “There should be some for the Keurig machine. Make mine a cappuccino, please.”

  “Sure thing. By the way,” she said turning around to face him from the doorway, “you never told me you were working with a bunch of hunky guys on
this. You could have warned me you know.”

  Sean rolled his eyes. “Sorry, but checking out guys for you is not my thing.” He paused and peered at her over his shoulder. “Which one caught your eye?” He didn’t really want to know, but curiosity got the best of him.

  “I’m not sure yet, but when I figure it out you’ll be the second one to know.” Suki raised her eyebrows several times in rapid succession and chuckled. “Maybe the third.”

  Sean laughed and shook his head at the profiler; she was a hoot. Ten minutes later, the fire was roaring and they were sipping their drinks. Both were immersed in their individual files—Sean on the sofa, Suki on the loveseat. She continued to make notes on her pad, and Sean knew her well enough not to interrupt her as she created the profile. He’d have to wait until morning and hear her analysis along with everyone else.

  Around midnight, his eyes were blurry and watery from so much reading. Standing, he shuffled over to the hearth and secured a metal cover to the front of the fireplace. The fire had faded down to glowing embers because he’d been too engrossed in his reading to stoke it.

  He sat back down and stretched out, leaning his head on the back of the couch, thinking of Grace. He wanted to ask her out on an official date since they hadn’t been on one yet. Maybe he should talk to Uncle Dan and see if he thought it was a good idea. Sean hadn’t asked the older man for advice on women since he was a teenager, but Grace was special. It was something he felt in his gut. The woman was damn special.

  Closing his eyes, he thought about those wicked, hazel eyes and her blonde hair. He loved it when she took down her ponytail as she had the night before. Her hair was long and straight, making him want to wrap it around his hand and wrist, and pull her to him. She had been dressed in jeans or sweats the few times he had seen her, and he wondered what they were hiding. If he invited her to the Cranberry Inn, maybe she’d wear a dress or a skirt. He’d bet everything he owned her legs were fucking knockouts.