Life is Better Brunette

by Diane Bator

She pulled up the search engine once more and typed in Laurel Sullivan, his daughter. Laurel, she guessed, would be in her mid-twenties to early thirties. About her age. So far, she hadn't come across any pictures of either one of Sullivan's kids and only a side profile of his wife. Someone, it seemed, had been very good at protecting their identities, but why?

  While Kane threw punches at one of the heavy bags in the next room, Gilda repeatedly ran into the same dead ends. Robert David Sullivan drove his vehicle off a cliff and was incinerated in the explosion. Few remains were found. From all reports, he'd been depressed, drank heavily, and had been in heaps of legal trouble.

  She made a few quick notes on the sheets she'd printed off before Mick called.

  "Hey, Sherlock." His voice was louder than usual from the partial loss of hearing. "What's going on?"

  "Nothing." Gilda pulled up the spreadsheet again and glanced at the clock. She'd wasted two hours chasing a ghost around the internet. "Not much. I just thought I'd work on a few things before the school gets busy later."

  "Oh. I thought we could meet for coffee. I'll be in town in about an hour."

  "Yeah. Sure." She focused on the screen, frustrated by not being able to find more information. "I thought you weren't coming back until Friday?"

  "It is Friday." He paused. "You sound busy. I'll let you go. I just wanted to call and say I miss you."

  "Aww." She sighed and sat back. "I miss you too. I will definitely have time later."

  "Good. I was thinking I could get Razi to cover my classes for one more night so we can go for dinner," Mick said. "Better yet, maybe we can pick up takeout and go back to my place, sit in front of the fireplace, and have a glass of wine or two."

  "That sounds good too. What should we get for dinner?" Gilda put all thoughts of Sullivan and the Vines out of her head.

  He chuckled. "I'll tell you what, babe. I'll take care of dinner. You just worry about looking good and figuring out how you're going to stay up all night."

  Gilda's entire body seemed to burst into flames all at once. She covered her face with one hand as Kane strode over. "I have to go. Kane's here."

  "So? He can't hear me," Mick said.

  Kane grinned and leaned across the counter. "Actually, mate, I can. So can everyone for a three block radius, and we all hope you get your hearing back soon. Hey, you want me to come over to join you? You may need help with this one. She's gotten a little out of control since you left. You might not be man enough for her anymore."

  "Go away, Kane." Gilda bowed her head. She would have gladly welcomed a sudden burst of rain over her desk with open arms.

  Mick laughed. "Tell him not a chance."

  "I tried, love." Kane threw his hands up and turned but didn't leave like she'd hoped.

  "I'll see you when you get back, Mick," she said.

  "You bet, babe." His voice softened. "We've got a lot of catching up to do. You'd better get some rest while you can."

  She hung up, glowering at Kane. "That wasn't funny."

  "Aww, come on, love. Sure it was." He winked. "Are you feeling okay? Your eyes are glassy, and your face is all red."

  She wadded up a sheet of scrap paper to throw at him. "I said go away."

  "You look like you need to get away from the computer and stretch your legs." Kane handed her a ten-dollar bill. "Tell you what—I'll watch things here. Why don't you go grab me a cup of tea and get yourself a great big cup of coffee so you're ready for your date tonight?"

  "Kane," she groaned.

  He held up his hands. "Hey, it's not my fault your boyfriend has no volume control and can't keep your romantic plans a secret."

  Gilda scowled. Kane was right. Mick's hearing loss had nothing to do with him.

  "I will tell you one thing, though." Kane looked around the room then leaned closer. "If Mick can't keep you happy, love, I'm always ready, willing, and able."

  Her jaw dropped. "Are you crazy?"

  Kane winked again then headed to the back.

  "Hey," Gilda said. "I thought you were going to watch the front counter?"

  He paused. "I will. Do you want all this sexy sweating all over your chair or shall I change first?"

  "Please, go change. I'll wait." Gilda sighed and closed all the windows she'd opened on her screen. Pick up a cup of tea for Kane. That sounded easy enough. The only other thing she had on her to-do list was ask Fabio a few dozen questions about the Vines family and the elusive Robert Sullivan anyway.

  Until she walked out the front door.

  Gary del Garda leaned against his dark blue Buick with a frown, his arms folded across his chest, and a cigarette dangling from his lips. In front of him, Aislin stood, wearing a flowing skirt and a gauzy blue wrap.

  Gilda didn't even realize she'd clenched her teeth until she opened her mouth to speak. "Gary. Aislin. What are you two up to?"

  Aislin spun around in a tornado of hair and fabric. "Gilda. What are you doing here?"

  "Answering phone calls, greeting students, keeping things organized, the usual." She placed her hands on her hips. "Is there something I can help you with?"

  "Oh. I didn't realize you worked here too." Her delicate face grew rosy pink. "I was looking for Kane. He's not answering his phone, and I need him."

  "Yeah, I'll bet you do." Gilda didn't bother to act nice. When Aislin bit her lower lip and shrank back, Gilda regretted her words instantly and sighed. "He's inside training."

  "Thanks." Aislin bowed her head and walked toward the school. She paused at the front door. "Oh, and I hope your friend Marion will be okay."

  Gilda's stomach sank as she met Gary's gaze. "Marion's fine. Why would you say that?"

  "No reason." Aislin reddened then went inside.

  "That's odd." Gilda turned to Gary then shrugged. "Sorry. She seems nice enough, but something about her really irritates me. Maybe because she looks perfect but says weird things."

  "Or because Kane hired her to work in the store he adamantly hated until she walked through the front door." He grinned then butted his cigarette on the sidewalk.

  "You heard about that, did you?" She joined him in leaning against the car, vowing to call and check on Marion after she talked to Gary. "Miss Claudia really seemed to get under his skin when she threatened to shut him down."

  Gary raised his bushy eyebrows. "Miss Claudia? Aislin never mentioned her. Actually, she seemed to think she was the reason Kane decided to keep the store."

  "Yeah, well, Aislin might be a small part of it, but it was when Miss Claudia came in and said she wanted to shut down his place, the smoke shop, and the tattoo parlor, among other stores, that he dug in and refused to back down."

  "That woman had a way of stirring things up, didn't she?" Gary smirked.

  "Apparently. I take it you knew her?"

  "As well as anyone can get to know a nasty badger of a human being."

  Gilda chuckled. "I take it you didn't like her much."

  He held up an index finger. "Not enough to kill her, though. Let's be clear on that."

  "Fair enough." She met his gaze. "How well did you know her?"

  Gary remained silent for several seconds. "Let's just say she created some serious problems for a friend of mine many years ago when she first came to town. She was intent on getting that particular building for her fabric shop, and nothing was going to stand in her way."

  "Nothing?"

  "Not even the guy who owned it. What was his name? Malcolm Vines?"

  As the hairs on the back of Gilda's neck stood on end, she frowned. "Why? What was so important about that particular place?"

  He shrugged. "No idea, but she was relentless. Finally, Malcolm dropped dead, and the building somehow became hers."

  Gilda was pretty sure from the twitching muscle in his jaw he knew exactly how the building came into Miss Claudia's possession. "Interesting. What was in that building before she turned it into a fabric shop?"

  He didn't answer but stared at the pavement as though lost in thought.


  "Gary?" Gilda leaned forward to see his face. "Are you okay?"

  "Yeah. I need to go." He hesitated. "Where did you take off to so early this morning?"

  "I had an appointment." She smiled. "Who was that guy in the white car in front of my house this morning? I don't think I've ever seen him before."

  Gary's jaw appeared to tighten. "He's just one of my boys. He's harmless."

  "That wasn't Adam Vines, was it?"

  He frowned and moved away from her. "I did want to talk to Kane for a few minutes as well, but…I need to go. You'd better check on Marion. Heaven knows what your psychic friend thinks she saw."

  She stared. "Was it something I said?"

  Gary walked around Gilda. "You and I need to talk, just not right now and definitely not here. I'll find you later. When the time is right."

  "Wait. What did you need to talk to Kane about?"

  He paused. "Best I not tell you, or you'll be off on another wild goose chase."

  More confused than before, Gilda wandered up the street to Happy Harvey's Hangover Hut to pick up wine for her date with Mick. Since Happy was on vacation, she didn't have to answer a dozen questions about her love life. She took the long way back to the coffee shop and walked past the fabric shop to double-check the address. Finding the building's history shouldn't be difficult, but if the information wasn't online, she could always go down to town hall and ask questions.

  Gilda brought Kane his large cup of green tea then sat behind her desk to sip her flavored coffee. She drummed her fingers on her desk, her next thought of Marion, who had yet to reply to any of her texts that morning. What was it Aislin had said? "Oh, I hope your friend Marion will be okay."

  She grabbed her phone and hit the phone icon near Marion's name. After six, then eight rings, there was still no answer. That wasn't like Marion. Even while she was at work, she had her calls forwarded to voice mail but would message back right away, especially when Gilda called.

  An uneasy knot formed in Gilda's stomach. The only logical answer was that Marion was with Razi and not willing to tear her attention away from him for any reason. Even her best friend.

  When Razi walked into the school a few minutes later, her fears went into overdrive.

  She took a breath to steady her hands. "Have you seen Marion today?"

  He paused, turning to stare at her as he lowered his dark eyebrows. "Not since last night. Is everything okay? I tried to call her earlier but have received no reply."

  "Yeah, same here." Gilda's head throbbed with the thundering of her pounding heart. "That's not like her."

  "Perhaps she's at work."

  "You don't know Marion. The no-phone rules don't always apply to her."

  "Is there anyone else here?" he asked.

  She swallowed hard. "Just Kane."

  "Kane," Razi hollered through the dojo. "Watch the front desk, please. Gilda and I need to leave."

  "Where are you going?" Kane peered out the doorway, his blond hair disheveled and sweaty. "Hey, can you bring back a case of water? I think we're out."

  "Sure." Gilda's voice crackled as she picked up her purse, her eyes filled with tears.

  Kane lunged across the lobby. "What's wrong, love? Is Mick okay?"

  "He’s on his way. We need to go find Marion. She seems to be missing," Razi said. "Please, just keep an eye on things here."

  "Marion?" Kane frowned. "She stopped by while you were gone earlier. She said she was going to Armadillo Street to do some investigating. I'm surprised you missed her."

  Razi sputtered. "Marion was heading to Armadillo Street? Did she say where she was going?"

  "No." He shook his head. "I didn't ask."

  Gilda pushed past them both and ran out the door.

  "Where are we going?" Razi caught up to her in three strides with his long legs.

  "I figured we'd start with Randy at the tattoo parlor and go from there."

  He did a double take. "The tattoo parlor? Is that somewhere Marion would go?"

  Gilda shrugged. "It's as good a place to start as any."

  They wasted no time getting to Armadillo Street and went straight to the tattoo parlor. Razi held the door open for her, but Gilda didn't bother with niceties. She marched straight up to the front counter and dinged the little bell near the cash register before she pulled up a picture of Marion on her phone.

  Randy appeared around the corner from the back room and seemed a bit anxious. "Well, hey, to what do I owe the pleasure, baby girl?"

  She held out her phone. "This might sound weird, but we're looking for this woman. Someone said she was on her way to Armadillo Street to ask questions about Miss Claudia, and we just want to catch up with her."

  He scowled. "Seen her? Darlin', she's been here for nearly half an hour driving my customers off and making me crazy. I've been trying to figure out who to call to get her sorry butt out of here. She's driving me bananas."

  "That would be Marion." Razi grinned.

  Gilda elbowed him in the ribs then followed Randy into the back.

  Marion lounged like a Roman goddess on the same chair where Gilda got her tattoo. Despite leaning on one elbow, she swayed like she was drunk. "What are you guys doing here? You want to watch me get inked?"

  Razi raised his dark eyebrows. "Have you been drinking?"

  "No," she snorted. "I haven't drunk anything tasty lately, but I sure feel good. After this, I think we should go dancing. I feel like dancing."

  "What exactly did you have to drink today?" Gilda frowned.

  "Just a bottle of water I swiped off your desk the other day after class." Marion ran a hand through her hair and smiled. "You know, when the psychic fairy was there."

  "You took a water bottle off my desk?" Gilda usually set a couple water bottles on her desk before day class for the evening rush. It wasn't the first time Marion had swiped one. "Do you still have it?"

  "Yeah, it's in my purse."

  Randy huffed. "Can you please get her out of here? She's really bad for business."

  Marion pouted. "But I want a tattoo."

  "I am surprised to hear that. Normally, you detest the sight of blood." Razi helped her sit upright. "What type of tattoo would you like?"

  "I want a bunny. Right on my butt, where only my boyfriend can see it. Right, Razi?" She slurred her words and wobbled like she'd fall over any second. "I even showed the leprechaun where I wanted it, but he just laughed and told me to come back when I sobered up." She gave a heavy sigh. "I'm not even drunk."

  Gilda frowned. "What leprechaun?"

  Randy folded his arms across his chest. "She calls me a leprechaun."

  "I think taking a little time to consider something that will mark your body for the rest of your life is a very good idea," Razi said.

  "Do you have any tattoos?" Marion asked.

  Razi turned a rich mahogany. "Yes, I have a few."

  Gilda glanced at Randy. While he certainly did remind her of a leprechaun, the Marion she knew would never drink alcohol so early in the day. Nor would she even joke about getting a tattoo, for that matter.

  "I'll tell you what." Randy scratched his head. "I'll do a sketch of a bunny for you to take home. If you still like it once you sober up, I'll do the tattoo, but only when you're sober. Deal?"

  Marion let out another exaggerated sigh. "I suppose."

  "That is a much better idea." Razi patted her shoulder.

  "But it has to be a cute bunny. Not one of those weird cartoony things." She held up a warning finger and wiggled closer to the edge of her seat. "I want something that looks so real you'd swear you could reach out and puff up its fluffy little tail."

  Gilda bowed her head to hide her smirk.

  Randy rolled his eyes toward the ceiling. "Of course. I can do that. Would you like to wait for your sketch or drop by again later?"

  "I'll wait, thank you very much." Marion leaned back.

  Gilda flinched but was too far away to grab her.

  Razi moved fast enough
to catch Marion before she fell over backward. "Please be careful. Whatever you drank, you seem to have no sense of balance."

  "Oh my." Marion's hand fluttered to her chest. "You saved my life. I could have died."

  Razi shook his head but didn't have time to brace himself before she launched toward him with a hug and slid off the chair. Gilda took a step back, and Randy hopped aside as Marion and Razi crashed to the floor in a wriggling, shrieking heap at Randy's feet.

  Gilda grabbed Marion's arm and helped her sit upright on the floor. "Are you two okay?"

  "Yup, we're good." Marion patted Razi's leg and belched. Her eyes grew wide, and she reached for Randy's wastebasket. "Whatever I had, it's coming back for a visit."

  Randy handed her an unfolded paper barf bag. "Do it in here. I don't need that smell lingering in my shop." He turned to Gilda as Marion threw up in the paper bag. "You need to take that to Doc when she's done with it. I have a bad feeling someone slipped your friend something in her drink."

  The drink she'd taken off Gilda's desk.

  "You think we should have her vomit analyzed?" Gilda asked as Marion threw up again.

  "Yup." Randy nodded. "And while he's at it, get him to do some blood work."

  Razi, still sprawled on the floor, groaned. "What about me?"

  "Nah. I think you're clean." He grinned. "You should get up, though. Lying down there ain't gonna do this lady any good. She's going to need help getting to the hospital."

  "Yes, of course." Razi sat up. "This will certainly be an interesting journey."

  "Here." Randy handed Gilda a clean paper bag. "She may need another one too."

  Gilda and Razi walked Marion to the hospital, one on either side of her. She ping-ponged between them the entire way, babbling about how she was going to sue Randy for not giving her a tattoo and how she planned to track down whoever got her drunk.

  Razi nodded and smiled, humoring her the entire way.

  Gilda, carrying the soggy paper bag inside a plastic shopping bag, had her attention focused on other matters. Namely, who would leave her a bottle of water laced with whatever drugs were currently making Marion sing "Somewhere Over the Rainbow"?

  "Hey." Mick met them at the hospital with open arms until he realized what Gilda carried in the bag. "I'm glad you texted me. How's she doing?"