Life is Better Brunette

by Diane Bator

  Gilda's cheeks burned. "And did you?"

  Another puff of smoke drifted past on the breeze. "Yep."

  "But you can't give me any information." She smirked. "Was that at Fabio's request too?"

  "Nope." Doc patted her hand as he set his pipe on the boulder. "That one's on me, young lady. I have issues with you running around chasing after bad guys and ghosts."

  "Ghosts?" Gilda flinched. "So I take it you already know all about Robert Sullivan then."

  He released a breath and gazed out at Lake Erie. "Huh, so you managed to pry pertinent information out of Fabio. I can't say I'm all that surprised."

  "Even I'm not that good. Actually, he came to see me." She hesitated. "Was Miss Claudia ever one of your patients?"

  "No."

  "Then why would Fabio include you in the case?"

  Doc checked the pipe and shrugged. "Maybe he thought if you came to ask me questions, I could give you answers without you getting hurt or worse."

  Gilda frowned. "Then why would he tell me things to make me more curious?"

  "Because you found Miss Claudia's body, and he knows he won't get rid of you if he doesn't give you some information," he said. "She might not have been the nicest person in town, but the police need to remain impartial to find the truth. With or without you hounding them."

  She pulled her knees to her chest and groaned. "So you think Fabio's feeding me just enough information so I can wander around feeling like I know something?" She paused. "But he did say—"

  "Gilda."

  "—Miss Claudia wasn't who or what she claimed to be."

  "I'm aware of that." Doc sighed.

  "Her real name was Robert Sullivan, who was a wanted felon disguising himself as a woman. Was that because he was on the run from the law, or did he have another reason?"

  Doc rubbed his eyes with one hand. "You need to let that be the end of things, Gilda. Please don't keep digging into this case. You might not like what you find."

  Gilda watched the waves rolling ashore. "Like about Robert Sullivan and how he kidnapped someone and that his trail ends around here where they captured him and where his wife's family lived."

  She'd taken a wild guess but wasn't surprised Doc's cheek twitched as his face paled.

  "You really need to find a better hobby, my dear." He picked up his pipe and knocked it against the boulder to empty the bowl. "You have no idea what you're getting yourself into."

  "But you do, don't you? You know exactly what's going on."

  He turned to meet her gaze. "What I know or do not know is irrelevant. I know you need to back away from this case and stay out of danger. I also know you won't."

  She jumped off the boulder. "If you or Fabio would just tell me what I need to know, I could drop it."

  "You'd stop getting involved in a case like this?" Doc shook his head. "Not likely. We both know you too well."

  When she blew out a long breath, her shoulders sagged. "Kane and every other shop owner on Armadillo Street will be interrogated on suspicion of murder. If you know anything—"

  "Which I don't."

  "—then you should feel obligated to speak up and help speed up the process."

  Doc groaned and turned away. "Gilda."

  "Please." She ran around to face him.

  Doc released what sounded like a low growl deep in his throat. He flared his nostrils and after several breaths said, "Go to the library and ask to see the microfiche. You already have the basics. Maybe there's more you can find there."

  "Are you trying to help or just keep me out of the way for a while?" She narrowed her eyes.

  "A bit of both." He paused. "Whatever you do, my dear, stay out of trouble. A lot of things aren't what they seem. Neither are a lot of people."

  "I've already figured that out."

  "Be careful." Doc pulled her into a hug then turned to pick his way back over the jagged rocks of the jetty toward the hospital. A far more adventurous route than simply using the boardwalk.

  Gilda shook her head and took the boardwalk as she left the peace of the waterfront to go home for a fast shower. Since she wouldn't have enough time to search the microfiche, she decided to head to the school instead. She had a gut feeling all the pieces of the puzzle were in reach. If she could only get someone to give her a straight answer and figure out who had killed Miss Claudia, she could put this all behind her.

  Inside the Phoenix school, Kane instructed a group of women who seemed to spend more time giggling and drooling over him in shorts and a tight shirt than practicing self-defense moves. When Gilda met his gaze and smiled, he winced.

  Mick leaned against the wall across the room and watched the class in amusement. He glanced up, then wandered toward Gilda and kissed her. "Kane was telling me all about your busy few days, Sherlock."

  Gilda clung to his warmth. Finding dead bodies certainly wasn't something she'd ever get used to, but having Mick's arms around her made the sudden chill vanish. "So, how was your doctor appointment? That was the one other thing we never talked about last night."

  He grinned. "True. I have more hearing back, but still not as much as I'd like."

  "That's a start. Soon you'll be able to hear when I whisper in your ear."

  "Not soon enough, babe." Mick held onto her while he glanced back at Kane and his class. "Kane said he's keeping the rock shop and even hired someone to work there."

  Gilda huffed. "Yeah, we've met."

  "Do I know her?"

  "No, she's new in town. Her name's Aislin Chadwick."

  He furrowed his brow and asked her to repeat Aislin's name two more times while he focused on reading her lips. Finally, he dragged her toward the desk and made her write Aislin's name down. "What does she look like?"

  "She's about five feet tall, blonde, and can probably fit through a keyhole. Marion says she looks like a fairy. She also drives a glittery pink car." Gilda hesitated. "Kane seems smitten."

  Mick chuckled and rolled his eyes. "Great. Here we go again. Another girl, another broken heart to help straighten him up after."

  Exactly what Gilda was afraid of.

  "I take it you've met her?" Mick met her gaze.

  She nodded. "Yup."

  "And?" He winced. "Does she seem okay? By okay, I mean, sane."

  "Hard to say. I've only talked to her for a couple minutes." She didn't bother to mention Aislin's predictions about Miss Claudia then Marion.

  Mick turned toward the doorway of the dojo. He leaned against the wall. "Did he even interview her?"

  "Not that I know of. Not unless it was over lunch the day he met her."

  While Kane taught the women how to get out of a bear hug from behind, one woman glanced back at Mick. She flashed a sultry smile and gave him a little finger wave.

  Gilda stepped around in front of Mick with her back to the offending flirt. "You ready to go for that coffee yet?"

  Mick pulled her close. "Are you jealous?"

  "Why would I be jealous?" She feigned confidence. "My boyfriend is Sandstone Cove's most eligible bachelor." Not some lunatic who swung swords on the beach, which was where and how she'd first met Kane. She glanced over her shoulder and caught Kane watching them.

  "And every woman watching us is about to get an eyeful and turn green with envy." Mick smirked, cupping her chin in one hand as he kissed her so long and hard she forgot where she was and who was in the next room.

  Gilda sighed. "Funny, I really don't feel like working at the moment. My legs feel weak, and my heart is doing this weird dance number."

  "Funny, I have similar symptoms." He touched the tip of his nose to hers. "What shall we do instead?"

  "Maybe we need to be quarantined somewhere private," she said, her gaze never leaving his. "I think I forgot something at home that'll make us both feel better."

  "Like what?" he asked, trailing a finger over her jaw.

  "Like to stay in bed this morning." She twirled a strand of hair around one finger. "Can you give me a lift?"


  "Yo." Mick waved to Kane. "We're going for coffee. We'll be back in half an hour."

  "That fast, huh?" Gilda winked.

  "It's quality, babe, not quantity." He took her hand and led her out to his yellow Ferrari for the longest five-minute drive back to her house ever.

  An hour later, flushed and somewhat disheveled, Gilda settled in front of her computer at the school with a fresh latte and a mission: to track down more information about the Vines family. Past and present.

  "That was a pretty long coffee run." Kane stood on the opposite side of the front counter from her and wiggled his eyebrows. "Do I dare ask what you were really doing?"

  She smiled, handed him the cup of tea she'd brought him, and turned back to her computer.

  "Fine. I get it." He sniffed the cup. "I suppose Mick went back to his condo to unpack from his trip to Detroit and take a shower. Just so you know, for in the future, love, I don't feel very safe teaching all those women self-defense without a couple other big, strong guys here for backup. Things can get very ugly, very quickly. Those women tend to get grabby."

  She raised her eyebrows. "I thought someone was supposed to be here to assist you."

  "Yeah, Mick, and you stole him for what I assume were nefarious purposes."

  "Wow." Gilda sat back. "I've never heard you use such big words before."

  "Now that's not nice, love. I use plenty of big words." He pointed his index finger at her. "Just not always in context."

  She brushed him off. "Wasn't Razi supposed to be here to help you today?"

  "Yup, except Marion stopped by as soon as we got here and said she needed a word with him. Then they left."

  "Really?" The hairs on the back of Gilda's neck fluttered. "Did she say anything else?"

  "No, just something about Miss Claudia and that she needed to talk to Razi." He took the lid off his cup and pulled out the bag. "I think she said something about meeting with the police."

  Gilda reached for her phone. Marion was probably at work, but she sent a text anyway to find out what was going on.

  At work, Marion replied. Call you later.

  If Fabio had given Marion the same information about Miss Claudia he told her, she'd be in the best place to look for more clues: both the police station and 9-1-1 offices.

  "Did I say something I shouldn't have?" Kane asked.

  She sat back and closed her eyes. "No, but I think I need to call Fabio."

  He leaned his folded arms on the counter. "Did you remember something more about the crime scene?"

  "The crime scene?" Her jaw dropped. She still hadn't gotten around to searching Miss Claudia's apartment. She sent Fabio a fast text with at least three typos. "Kane, you're a genius!"

  "I've never heard you say that before." His eyes grew wide, and he gawked. "Could you say that again into my phone so I can record it? I want to use it for a ringtone."

  When her phone dinged, she grabbed her latte and jumped to her feet. "No time. I've got to go. Fabio's at the crime scene right now."

  "Wait, you can't leave. You need to…"

  "See you later." She pecked his cheek as she ran past then pushed open the front door.

  Fabio smirked as he stood outside the fabric shop when she arrived with her latte. "Look at you. I think you've been hanging out with us too much, Sherlock. You've even starting to carry the right tools."

  "Very funny." She scowled. "What did you say to Marion earlier?"

  His head jolted back. "Pardon me?"

  "Kane told me Marion stopped at the school to get Razi because she had to go talk to you and probably couldn't reach me."

  Fabio narrowed his eyes. "Why couldn't she reach you?"

  Her face burned. "It doesn't matter."

  "Mick's back in town." Thayer walked past.

  "Ah, yes." Fabio grinned. "Young love. She would have left you a message. Did you think to check your phone for a text or voice mail?"

  "Of course I did." Gilda put one hand on her hip and snorted. "Can we get back on track here, people?"

  "It's none of your business." Fabio turned away.

  She stared. "Pardon me?"

  He glanced back. "Why I wanted to see Marion is none of your business. Just like what I discussed with you earlier is none of her business."

  Thayer halted inside the fabric shop doorway. "Wait, you talked to Gilda earlier? Did you tell her about the shoes?"

  Gilda grabbed Fabio's sleeve. "What shoes?"

  "Miss Claudia's shoes." His nostrils flared as he shot a glare in Thayer's direction. "They were purchased at a small shop in Erie."

  "In Erie? How do you know that?"

  Fabio dragged her into the store, now empty of all fabric, lace, and ribbons and shut the door then paused for a deep breath. Probably so he didn't yell at her in front of everyone. "Because we searched Miss Claudia's apartment upstairs and found a box with a receipt for them, as well as some information for a plastic surgeon who has an office a couple doors down from the shoe store. Is that what you wanted to know, Sherlock?"

  Gilda's eyes widened. "A plastic surgeon? Do you think Sullivan planned to enhance his body to actually become Miss Claudia for good?"

  "What I think is none of your business." Fabio pressed his lips together so hard the lower half of his face turned white. "Go back to work, Gilda, and let us handle the investigation. You have no reason to stick your nose into this one anyway."

  "Yes, I do. Miss Claudia threatened to shut down Kane's store as well as several others. Surely one of them had something to do with her death." Gilda stood her ground as Thayer tried to nudge her toward the door. "I know Kane is a likely suspect, but he's not the only one. I think everyone who works in a shop on Armadillo Street is. So are Miss Claudia's former family members."

  Fabio's jaw dropped before he turned and walked away.

  "Go home, Gilda." Thayer grasped her arm and steered her toward the door.

  "No. I'm not going anywhere until I take a look around Miss Claudia's apartment."

  "Not a chance, Sherlock," Thayer said.

  She broke out of his grip and spun around him to chase Fabio across the shop. "What if the killer wasn't one of the people she'd threatened here in Sandstone Cove, but someone from Sullivan's past?"

  "You just said that." Fabio turned to face her. "It's our job to work our way through the list of possible suspects. Once we find our killer, you'll read about it in the papers. Until then, stay out of our way."

  "Oh, come on. I just want to help."

  "You want to help? Gee, that's a new one." Thayer draped an arm across her shoulders and turned her back toward the door. "Honey, we have more than enough manpower to handle this case. We'll be in touch." He shoved her out of the store then locked the door behind her.

  Gilda huffed and stormed back to work. Back to her computer. There had to be something more they weren't telling her.

  Fabio had also mentioned Robert Sullivan once had connections to Gary. She paused. It might be worth her time to arrange that long-awaited meeting with Gary for after work. By then, she'd have a long list of questions to ask him, probably at least a double-sided page.

  But first, she needed to take a short detour to the public library, then to Miss Claudia's apartment once the police were gone.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  Since she'd found nothing more at the library, Gilda met Marion at the police station after her shift and dragged her down to Armadillo Street on her next mission.

  Marion had no choice but to trot alongside Gilda, who had Marion's upper arm firmly in her grasp. "Tell me again where we're going and why? And for heaven's sake, slow down so I can catch my breath."

  "It's not my fault you wore three-inch heels to work for the first time in known history." Gilda huffed. "I need you to distract any police officers guarding Miss Claudia's apartment so I can get inside and get some answers."

  "Are you crazy?" Marion stopped so short Gilda lurched backward with a squawk. "Why would you want to snoop through a dead person's
things? It's creepy."

  Gilda clapped a hand over her face. "Keep your voice down."

  Marion placed her hands on her hips. "Make me."

  "Wouldn't you feel better knowing Miss Claudia's killer is behind bars?"

  "Hell ya, but I'd feel even better knowing my best friend isn't throwing herself into a killer's path," she said.

  Gilda bowed her head. "I didn't think about it that way."

  "You never do." Marion clapped a hand on Gilda's shoulder. "Sweetie, I'm finally dating the man of my dreams, and here you are trying to get us both killed."

  "I don't want that." Tears filled her eyes. "I just get so caught up in things that I forget someone could actually hurt us."

  Marion hugged her. "Let's go get a coffee and hang out on the beach for a while. After I get changed. Maybe then you'll forget all about…"

  "Gilda?" Shawn, the guy from the smoke shop walked quickly toward them. His hair was disheveled and his eyes wide. "Do you have a minute? I need to talk to you."

  "Oh, no you don't." Marion shoved Gilda behind her. "You stay away from my friend. She's out of the detective racket."

  His face fell. "But it's important."

  "Go away," Marion snarled.

  Gilda bit her lower lip then peered around Marion's torso. "What's it about?"

  "Miss Claudia's family."

  "Stop that." Marion spun around and clapped her hands over Gilda's ears then glanced back at Shawn. "You'll get your scrawny butt out of here right now if you know what's good for you. I do karate, you know, and my boyfriend does krav maga."

  Shawn blanched then ran back toward the smoke shop so fast he tripped over his feet. He stumbled once and fell twice.

  "Marion." Gilda peeled her friend's hands off her ears. "I get that you're worried, but I can take care of myself. What if he had some really good information that could help?"

  She shook her head as she met Gilda's gaze. "Are you for real? You'd rather chase after that skinny creep than listen to your best friend?"

  Gilda sighed. "We found Miss Claudia's body for a reason. I don't know about you, but I need to help track down whoever killed her so I can sleep at night."