“Just lookin’ at how she would want it to be if she could relive the past year over agin.”
“You’re probably right. I’m sure that was tough on her, but I’m still going to try and talk her out of it. I don’t know her very well. However, I can’t believe she would feel good about breaking up the Wilson’s marriage.”
“Better ya than me,” Hank said as he began to set out some baking dishes and pie pans.
“Were you able to find out anything from the driver of the limousine?” Jake asked, changing the subject.
“Not much. Tight-lipped man. Probably didn’t want it gettin’ back to his boss he had been talkin’.”
“I think I’ll hang out here on Friday to see if he shows up. Maybe I can find something to do for Kate around here, a little maintenance or something.”
“Why ya so all fired anxious to find out somethin’ about that Geisha House?” Hank asked, as he rolled out some pie dough.
“Just curious. The word in town is, you can’t get in unless the owner calls and makes arrangements with Kuri. I thought I would try to find out the owner’s name from the driver. I would really like to get in there and check out their operation. I wonder if those girls are as good as we visualize them.”
Smiling to himself at his last statement, Jake left the kitchen. He wasn’t about to tell Hank he had done a tour of duty in Japan and had visited several Geisha houses, both in Kyoto and Tokyo, while he was there.
Friday morning came and Jake made sure he was out in the front of the lodge working around the plants and shrubs. He couldn’t believe how much he enjoyed spending time on the grounds and how much satisfaction it gave him to see the improvement just since he had arrived.
He didn’t have long to wait. It was the middle of the morning when the white limousine drove into the driveway and the driver went inside. Casually, Jake followed him in. Kate was at the front desk and he had to smile to himself as she glared at him. He knew she suspected what he was up to.
“Can I help you?” she asked as the uniformed chauffeur stopped in front of the counter.
“I’m looking for a piece of Hank’s pie and a cup of coffee,” he said with a big smile.
She led him into the small dining room and Jake followed. She laid a pie menu in front of the driver and waited for him to make his choice.
“I believe I’ll have the lemon meringue with coffee.”
“I’ll take the same,” Jake told Kate.
“Shall I put it on your bill?” she asked politely, looking at Jake as though he were a stranger.
“No, I think I’ve got the cash to cover it right here in my pocket,” he replied, giving her a mocking smile.
The driver sat down at a table by the window looking out at the mountains and nodded at Jake.
“Mind if I join you?” Jake asked, motioning to a second chair at the table.
“Not at all. I’ll be glad of the company. Rob’s the name.”
“Jake,” he said, reaching out his hand.
Kate reappeared almost immediately carrying a tray with two cups of coffee and two pieces of lemon meringue pie.
“Look at the meringue on that pie,” Rob said. “Must be two inches thick.”
“Can’t beat Hank’s pies,” Jake said, cutting into his.
“You’ve got that right,” Rob said. “No one in Salt Lake can make pies like Hank. The Double Dutch Apple Pie I had here the other day was the best apple pie I’ve ever eaten. I don’t mind the drive from Salt Lake if I can stop by here and have a piece of pie.”
Kate wrote up two tickets and laid them on the table. “You can pay me out front when you’re finished.”
“Quite a rig you’re driving,” Jake commented after Kate had left the dining room.
“Umm,” Rob said, his mouth full of pie.
“I see it around every once in a while. Do you drive for someone here in Mountain Springs?”
“No, I work for a company out of Salt Lake and bring wealthy clients down here to the Mountain Springs Health Spa. You know the old lodge over at the foot of the mountain.” He waved his fork in the general direction, which Jake knew was where the lodge was located. “They like to come for body cleansing. You know sit in those steams rooms, get a massage, etcetera.”
“Really? Rumor here in town says it’s a Geisha House over there, not a health spa.”
Rob laughed. “Isn’t that just like a small town? They’ll say anything just to liven things up. Man, it must be boring here. You couldn’t pay me to live in a place like this.”
Jake smiled but offered no comment.
“Do you live here or are you just staying here?” Rob gave Jake a curious look.
“I’m taking a sabbatical from a law firm in Los Angeles. I’m doing a lot of hiking, horseback riding, and Jeeping in the mountains. As soon as I’ve had my fill, I’ll be moving on. You have some great National Parks here in Utah.”
“We do have and it must be nice to enjoy them at your leisure.”
“It is. The partners take turns with the sabbaticals and while one partner is gone, the others cover his practice. It works well. Believe me, we have no burnout in our firm.”
“I better be getting back to Salt Lake,” Rob said, standing up from the table and taking one of the tickets.
“When’s your next run?” Jake asked in a friendly voice.
“I’ll be back Monday morning, and be sure to tell Hank to save me a piece of pie. Any kind will do.”
Kate watched as Jake followed the driver of the limousine outside and stood talking to him for a few minutes. What is he up to? Probably trying to make some kind of connection with the owner. She had a feeling, that for some reason, he wanted access to the Geisha House. She could only imagine why.
After seeing Dave Wilson with the Asian lady in Cedar National Forest and then overhearing the limousine driver talking to Jake about the old hunting lodge, she never doubted for a minute there was something going on up there.
Really, Kate, she scolded herself. Those Asian ladies probably work at the health spa as maids.
When Jake came back into the lodge, he had a roll of bills in his hand. He peeled a few off and laid them on the counter in front of Kate on top of the ticket she had written.
“What are you up to?” she asked him.
“What do you mean? ‘What am I up to?’” he asked innocently.
“Why so friendly?”
“Just passing the time of day,” he replied.
“I’ll bet you’re trying to figure out some way to get into the health spa.”
“I would think the easiest way would be to do like we do here. Drive up to the front of the spa and walk in.”
“You know that’s not possible since there’s a security gate at the entrance of the property and you need a code to get in.”
“Oh . . . and how do you know?”
“Hank told me.”
“Are you sure you haven’t driven up there to check the place out?” he teased.
“Why would I do that?”
“To see what the competition looks like.”
“What on earth are you talking about? Do you think for a minute I care if there are Geisha girls up there? Do you think for a minute I care if you do find a way to get into the spa?” She glared at him as she fired the questions at him.
He threw back his head and roared with laughter.
She stared at him. “What, may I ask, is so funny?”
“You are.” He almost gasped for breath. “I was talking about the competition for your lodge.”
“Oh,” she said.
He laughed again when she blushed and turned to walk toward the kitchen.
“Don’t worry, Doll, there’s not a woman around who could give you competition w
here I’m concerned,” he called after her.
“That man,” she said to Hank. “He’s impossible.”
Hank didn’t ask who she was talking about and for the rest of the day she did everything she could to avoid further contact with Jake. When he drove off in the afternoon with his music blaring as usual, she couldn’t help but feel relieved. Her feelings for Jake were beginning to cause her a great deal of discomfort.
Kate was a few minutes late coming down for breakfast the next day and when she came into the kitchen Jake was sitting at the table unfolding the newspaper, an empty plate in front of him. A bit hurt because he usually waited for her, she gave her breakfast order to Hank and busied herself around the kitchen until it was ready.
Suddenly Jake let out a sharp expletive. “What the . . .?”
Both Hank and Kate turned to look at him. Without saying another word, he folded the paper and strode out of the kitchen, calling back, before he let the kitchen door close behind him with a bang.
“Thanks for the breakfast, Hank.”
“What was that all about?” Hank raised his eyebrows at Kate.
“I don’t know. Must have been something he read in the paper.”
“Go get another paper,” he ordered. “Let’s see if we can figure what it was.”
She hurried to the office where every morning a delivery man rolled up several daily newspapers and put them in separate slots in a wooden cabinet, which served as mailboxes for the various cabins. A free newspaper was one of the perks of staying at the lodge.
Grabbing one out of the nearest box, Kate hurried back into the kitchen. She sat down at the table where Hank had set her breakfast and opened up the paper.
“Hank,” she exclaimed. “Look at these headlines.”
She moved her breakfast plate aside and spread the paper out on the table as he approached and they both read the headlines together.
WOMAN’S BODY FOUND IN CEDAR NATIONAL FOREST
Kate went on to read the article aloud. “‘A woman’s body was found late yesterday afternoon by one of the workers who are laying the new pipeline through the national forest outside the town of Mountain Springs. The body of the Asian woman, as yet unidentified, would have probably gone undetected and have been buried along with the pipe had it not been for the heavy rain and hail which occurred the previous night.
“‘Al Dickerson, the man who discovered the body, said he was walking along the pipeline checking to make sure it was properly fitted and sealed before the earth-moving equipment would be allowed in to cover the pipe. He said he saw what appeared to be a woman’s hand sticking out from under one section of pipe. He called for help to move it and uncovered the body. He immediately called Mountain Springs Sherriff, Wayne Miller.
“‘Sherriff Miller would only say at this time they were unable to identify the body, but did confirm Al Dickerson’s statement saying the woman’s throat had been slashed.’”
“Guess someone had it in for one of them Geisha girls,” Hank said when Kate finished reading.
“This is dreadful. I can’t believe this could happen in our little town of Mountain Springs.”
“Must have been the article Jake started to read,” Hank said. “Wonder where he took off to in such a hurry.”
Kate couldn’t help but wonder also. But she was more concerned it might have been the woman she had seen with Dave Wilson.
“I hate to throw food away, Hank, but I’m afraid I’ve lost my appetite. I’m going to go clean the cabins.”
“Need your breakfast to keep your blood sugar up,” Hank advised in a fatherly voice.
“I’m sorry, Hank. I’m afraid my blood sugar will just have to drop today. I can’t eat a thing.”
Jake headed down the hill in his Jeep. Mike should have let them raid the place before this happened. Now one of the girls at the spa was dead. Who would have thought this assignment would turn into such a violent one? Where money was concerned, he guessed anything was liable to happen.
He hated to think the murder might have been prevented if he had moved faster, but Mike had cautioned him several times to take it slowly. They needed to find out who was behind the operation of the spa. After they had obtained that information, they needed to find out what organization they were connected with. Someone was bringing the women over to the States from the various oriental countries and it might not be the local businessmen who owned the spa.
Mike did not want one of the locals warning the owner that Jake was asking a lot of questions or his cover could be blown. He had warned him several times to take it easy and play the tourist. So far Jake had been unsuccessful finding out anything by keeping a low profile. Mike had told him not to confide in the local sheriff because he might be on the payroll of the person who owned the spa.
He went to the pay phone he always used to call Mike. It was on the corner of the only service station in town, far enough away from the gas pumps, making it impossible for anyone to hear his conversation. He punched in the number allowing him free access to his boss. The phone was answered almost immediately.
“We have a problem,” Jake said, without identifying himself. “One of the Geisha girls was found dead yesterday. Her throat had been slashed.”
“That is a problem,” Mike said calmly, a little too calmly for Jake’s liking. “I think it’s time we become more aggressive. You know the people and the area, what do you suggest?”
“I think I should go to Lava Cove and talk to the banker there and see if he has any information on the owner. If I get the banker’s name for you, could you run a check on him? See how you feel about letting him know I’m with the USCIS.”
“I can run one, but even if he has a solid reputation, it could still be risky. Lava Cove is a conservative town and he might be loyal to his customers, no matter what one of them might be involved in.”
“I find that hard to believe. The people I have met here are good people. Honorable and high principled.”
“Find out his name and I’ll run a check. How soon can you get back to me on it?”
“I’ll run over to the General Store and find out. Tell Howard I need to have money wired in and my bank wants the name of the banker.”
“Good. I’ll wait to hear from you.”
As was her usual schedule, Kate went to Jake’s cabin first to clean, then continued on down the row of cabins. She was almost finished with the last one when she heard someone step in through the open door. Thinking it was the man who had rented the cabin returning for something he might have forgotten, she turned.
Dave Wilson stood inside the door looking at her, indecision written on his face. She couldn’t help but notice how tired and drawn his face looked, not at all like his usual energetic self.
“Kate.”
“Hello, Dave. What are you doing here? Did you stop by for a piece of Hank’s pie? He’s really getting quite famous.”
He ignored her question about the pie. “I know you saw me the other day up by the water falls and I want to talk to you about it. It wasn’t what it must have looked like.”
“And what do you think it looked like from where I was standing?” she asked coolly.
“I’m assuming you thought something was going on the way you turned and disappeared quickly through the trees.”
“You’re right. I did. From where I stood, it appeared you were kissing her.”
“Actually, she had tripped. I had just reached out and grabbed her to keep her from falling.”
“What were you doing with her, Dave? Showing her property? I don’t think the National Forest Service is selling any of their land.”
“I was looking at a piece of property adjacent to the National Forest. I think I might have a buyer for it. I ran into Kioko walking up the path that goes into the National Forest and I
started talking to her.”
“I see. You were quite a ways from the spa. Is she by any chance the woman who was in the paper this morning?”
“She is, and that’s what I want to talk to you about.”
“Does Stephanie know about this?”
“No, and I’m hoping you won’t say anything to her or to anyone else. I don’t want to be connected with the murder. I swear I didn’t do it.”
“I never thought for a moment you did. I hope I know you better. Although I have been fooled in the past,” she said bitterly.
“Walt, you mean?”
When she didn’t answer, he asked, “Who was the man with you? Do you think he will say anything? I’m sure he got a good look at her. He stayed for a minute after you left and Kioko turned around to look at him.”
“He is one of my customers. He’s an attorney from Los Angeles here on sabbatical for at least a month.”
“Do you think he will say anything?”
“I really don’t know. Why don’t you talk to him? His name is Jake Soubrette and he’s in Cabin Number Three.”
“Did I hear my name?”
Kate turned to see Jake standing in the open doorway with an unlit cigarette hanging out of one corner of his mouth. His dark eyes were curious. He reached up and pushed the gray cowboy hat back on his head.
She hadn’t heard him approach the cabin. She wondered how long he had been standing there. Obviously, he had heard part of their conversation.
“Oh, Jake, you’re back,” she said in relief. “This is Dave Wilson. Remember I told you he was the realtor from Lava Cove who handled the sale of the lodge?”
“Dave,” Jake said, reaching out to shake his hand.
Dave shook his hand, but said nothing.
Murder in Mountain Springs Page 5
