by Julie Ramson
“Big Killer watchdog, huh? Big gun totin’ boyfriend, huh?” Digs was not smiling but his lips were twitching. Suddenly, his eyes were laughing. How could he change so fast? “Yeah, Sean told me about Killer. A real beast. He didn’t tell me about the gun totin’ boyfriend though. In fact, he said you had no boyfriend, no life, no sex. He said I might enjoy this gig, watching over you. He said I might even get lucky.” Clearly, he was baiting me.
“Lucky? Lucky?” I all but snarled at him. “Well, that shows what Sean knows! I have a great life, more than I can handle right now! I am swimming in fun and boyfriends! Believe me, this is the least lucky day of your life!”
Digs lowered his head and smiled then started moving slowly toward me. He never took his eyes off me. Just advanced. Slowly. I backed up toward the wall. Digs kept coming. I kept backing. Oops. Wall there.
I lifted my chin and said, “Stop. No further.” Digs just kept moving. When he got to a few inches from my face, he stopped. He put his hands on either side of my head against the wall and leaned in and spoke softly.
“Sweetheart, you scared me when I got back and you were gone. Someone hurt you yesterday. I’m supposed to make sure no one does that again. This isn’t a game. Sean thinks you need protection and I am going to give it.” He spoke gently, calmly. I was backed against the wall. He was so damn big! And there was a gun in his belt. It felt like a cannon against me.
He held my eyes for a few seconds. Then, he nodded and stepped back. He smiled slightly. “Now, get your coat. I am going to follow you home and then I am going to check out your apartment before I leave you there.” His eyes narrowed and while his stance was relaxed, his posture was tense. I was speechless. And that doesn’t happen often.
This might not be the best time to continue the fight. I got my coat. Digs held the door for me and I walked out ahead of him.....right into Mr. Slick. In all his ponytailed, cashmere sweatered glory. Damn. Was this my lucky day or what?
“Maggie!” He reached out to cup my elbow. Or look down the front of my sweater. Yuch. “My god! What happened to your face?” He looked shocked.
“Small car accident.” Forget counting the lies. I had already exceeded my lifetime limit. “I’m fine.” I tried to pull my arm away. He held on tighter.
“Maggie?” Digs’ voice behind me was mild. Jason turned around quickly. “Are you ready?”
“Maggie, who’s this?” Jason’s voice was sharper.
I stepped back and, assessing the lesser of two immediate evils, slipped my arm through Digs’ and smiled. “I’m sorry, Jason. This is a good friend of mine, Digs. And, Digs, this is Jason. He has the office down the hall.”
Digs raised his eyebrows and gave me a sidelong glance as I hugged his arm and snuggled up to him.
Jason said, “I haven’t seen him around here before.” He sounded like he didn’t believe me.
Digs chuckled and pulled his arm out, wrapping it around my shoulders. He pulled me in very close. “Probably because Maggie and I spend our nights together, not so much the days.” He smiled down at me, then kissed me lightly on the lips. “But really, Maggie, we’re more than just good friends, don’t you think?”
Jason gave Digs a suspicious glance. “He’s not bothering you, is he Maggie? Did you really have a car accident?” His tone was skeptical.
“Well, actually.....” I started.
“She did,” Digs began at the same time. Jason raised his eyebrows.
Digs said, “If you’re thinking I did that to her, no. I only slug men - especially men who try to hit on women I’m with.” He smiled as he tugged me closer and towered over Jason.
I rolled my eyes. Enough testosterone. “Jason, Digs, I’m fine. And now I’m leaving.” I yanked out of his arm, turned on my heel and started to walk away.
Digs took two long steps and caught up with me. He put his arm around my waist and leaned down to nuzzle my neck. I knew Jason was still watching. I smiled up at Digs through gritted teeth, all sweetness. “Get your hands off me this minute or I’ll break them.” I spoke in a low tone.
“Now, Sweetheart, is that any way to treat your boyfriend?” Digs grinned.
“No and if he were here, I wouldn’t.” I smiled sweetly again. I looked back. Jason was gone. “Enough, you big galoot.” I pulled away and strode past him.
Digs didn’t say any more, just kept that infuriating smile on his face. He got in his truck, an older silver Chevy, and followed me to my apartment.
We got to my building and Digs led the way into the elevator. We walked to my door and he gestured me to stand back in the hall. That was fine with me. He threw the door open, his large gun in hand. Damn. I knew he had a gun. I hate guns.
Killer bounded out, feet dancing. Digs raised his eyebrows at me, rolled his eyes and smiled. He patted Killer on the head and Killer’s tail started wagging so hard I thought his whole hind end would break off. Digs just kept grinning, then he and Killer walked into the apartment. I could hear them going from room to room and finally, they returned. “You can go in now,” he said. “Killer and I made sure there aren’t any bad guys.” Still that damn smile.
I walked in and sighed with relief at finally being home. It had been too much. I tossed my jacked on the rack, flopped down on the couch and closed my eyes. Digs stood there studying me. I opened one eye. “Now what?” I asked.
“I want you to stay here. Think you can do that?” He pulled a card out of his jeans. This is my cell number. Use it if you decide to leave this apartment to go anywhere - even the store. I am ten minutes away. Got that?” He eyed me skeptically.
“Thanks, but I really don’t think anyone is after me. I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time and got a little beaned in the process. I probably won’t ever even see that guy again.” I shrugged to show him that I was not threatened by anything. Including him.
He shook his head. “Maybe, but this whole thing has an ugly smell to it. Sean wants me to make sure you are safe and until we have a better idea of what this is about, that means you call me if you leave this apartment for any reason. Any reason!” He again eyed me warily. “Okay?”
“Sure.” I waved a hand at him. “Absolutely. I’ll call. Now go away. I just want to take some aspirin and crawl into bed.” I raised my eyebrows and smiled. Casual, that’s me. No worries.
“Uh huh. Just make sure you call me.” He narrowed his eyes and started to say something else, then stopped. He sighed and turned and walked to the door, Killer at his heels, tail wagging his whole back end. “By the way, nice guard dog.” He grinned and walked out.
I blew out a big sigh. I glared at Killer. “I have got to teach you to scare people. Especially men.” Killer’s head dropped down. He’s a coward, but sensitive. I knelt down and hugged him. “It’s okay, Sweetie.” Then I got up and walked over to the door. I double checked the lock and went into the kitchen. I measured out coffee and water and started the pot going. I sat down at the dining room table. Enough of this. I was going to call Emily, then Sean and go to bed.
I pulled out my cell phone and punched in Emily’s number. Voice mail. I left a message for her to call me as soon as possible and hung up. I gritted my teeth and took a deep breath. I dialed Sean.
“Detective Flaherty.”
“Jerk! How dare you! Sending that big ox to my office! He broke in and scared the shit out of me when I got there! Call him off right now or so help me god, Sean -
“Hi Mag.” Sean said sweetly. “How’s it going? Head hurt? I see -”
I opened Mrs. O’Brien’s cookies - deliberately making noise. I swear Sean can hear, smell or sense cookies anywhere, even over telephone lines, across miles of city streets and probably under water. I picked one up and began chewing.
“Mag, what are you eating? Is that cookies I hear?”
“Yeah. It is. A very nice old Irish lady gave me a whole bag of homemade chocolate chip cookies - with nuts! And sugar cookies. A whole bag. Big. I plan to eat them all. Every one. Well, I might
give one or two to Killer.” I munched.
“Killer! You can’t waste homemade cookies on a dog! Especially not Killer! He doesn’t eat, he gulps! He doesn’t even taste things!”
“Yeah, but I like him. He doesn’t sic overbearing jerks on me without warning!
“That’s mean, Mag. And you'll be sorry.”
“So?” I chomped louder. “Sean, who is this jerk? What kind of name is Digs? Where did you even find this creep?”
“Digs? Who’s Digs?”
“What?” I felt the blood drain from my head as I froze, mid-chew. I had been alone in an office with this guy, had let him into my apartment - oh, god. What had I done?
“I sent Hank. Big blond guy, long hair - “
“That’s him! I think. Who is he?”
“Digs, huh? Must be the name he is using this week. Mag, he’s a real ace, a sharpshooter, smart, tenacity of a bulldog and a really good guy. Give him a break. He’s trying to help.”
“I don’t need help! I don’t want someone following me all the time. This is not a big deal and - What do you mean, the name he is using this week? What name does he usually use? Who is this guy?”
Silence. Finally Sean spoke and he sounded serious. “Mag, this case is more complicated than you think. I don’t know what is going on with the murder of Mrs. Hastings but something is really weird. It wasn’t a typical robbery. We don’t think she had any enemies. I don’t like this case. And I really don’t like that someone was in the house yesterday or that he attacked you.” He sighed.
“I shouldn’t tell you this but another body was found a day after Mrs. Hastings’ in a run-down boarding house in Cicero. Same kind of scene. It’s bizarre. This guy, Louie Bacci, was a low level mob guy. He had the same kind of gunshot wound to the head. And the bullet that killed him matched the one that killed Mrs. Hastings. Came from the same gun. That’s how we found out about the other murder being so similar. The bullets matched. But we can’t find any connection between Bacci and Hastings and it’s driving us nuts. We can’t even find the niece right now and we need to talk to her. I want Hank in on this, Mag. And I want him with you - at least until we figure out what is going on.”
“The niece? Emily? She’s missing? I just saw her yesterday in my office. I tried to call her a few minutes ago. I got voice mail.”
“Do you have her phone number? Do you have her address? I’d like to check them against ours.” Sean’s interest had perked.
“I have her phone number but not her address here. I do have it at the office. I can run over and get it for you.” I heard commotion in the background and Sean started talking to someone else, probably Jimmy. “Mag, I have to go. Don’t go anywhere. I’ll catch up with you later.”
“Sean -” He hung up. I sighed. Why didn’t I feel like I knew any more now than I did before about the case - except that there had been another murder? And I didn’t know any more about Digs, or Hank or whatever the hell his name was either. The conversation left me crabby. I felt like everyone else knew more than I did and I couldn’t even reach Emily to get some answers.
I sat sipping my coffee and eating cookies. Killer sat with a mournful look on his face, watching the cookie, then my mouth, then the cookie, then my mouth. “Forget it, Pal. You get store cookies. I get these.” He sighed and put his head down on the floor, looking bereft. “Okay, okay.” I got up and got him a treat. No, two treats.
He perked up but once they were both gone - about two seconds - he looked at my cookie again and gave me another tragic look. I rolled my eyes. He was hopeless. My guilt won out and I gave him a cookie. I had to agree that it was probably a lot better than a dog treat.
I thought about the murdered man Sean had mentioned. What had he said? He was found the day after Lily’s murder? The bullets came from the same gun. That was weird. What was his name? Bacci? Cicero is a suburb to the west of Chicago, once the home of the mob guys. What was the connection between Mrs. Hastings and Louie Bacci in Cicero? I had to talk to Emily.
I debated my next move. I could just run back to the office for Emily’s address. Maybe run by Mrs. Hastings’ house for a minute. See if her other neighbors were home yet. I should call Digs - but why? That would just make him think I would follow his orders - which was so not true. Plus, I would have to wait for him to get here, tell him what I was doing and probably fight with him about it. The more I thought about it the more I was sure I could just run over there and be back before he even knew I had been gone. It wasn’t like I was going back into Lily’s house.
Grabbing my jacket, I was out the door. I made sure it was locked behind me and climbed into the CRV. I backed out carefully and turned toward South California Avenue. The street in front of Mrs. Hastings’ house was empty and I parked there easily.
First, I walked up onto the porch of the Castelletti house. Still dark, still silent. I crossed over the yard back to the Hastings' house. Nothing had changed. It just looked deserted.
I walked up the front stairs and stood on the porch. Maybe there would be a key. I felt around the frame of the window. It was painted a dark green and the paint looked old with one side peeling. I couldn’t feel anything. I felt around the front door but again, nothing. There were empty flower pots on the front porch, like the back, but nothing about them looked disturbed. I checked under them anyway. No key. I stood looking a bit longer then went back to the car. The upper flats were still dark and there were no names on the mailbox for them at the curb. Mrs. O’Brien said that Lily had stopped renting the upper flats so I guess that explained it.
Deciding that there wasn’t much more I could do there at the moment, I walked back to the car. The sky was still gray, it was still drizzling and I was cold to the bone.
The trip back to the office took longer than I had expected because of the ice and traffic. I tapped the wheel in frustration. I didn’t want to be gone too long or I ran the risk that Digs/Hank would find out that I had left. I didn’t need that hassle.
I got to the office and parked in front of the building. I planned to just run in and grab Emily’s address and go home. I still wanted the nap I had planned on. The wind whipped my hair over my face and eyes. I pushed it back and reached for my keys. I walked through into the building turned right to my office.
The key turned too easily in the office door. I stopped. Damn. The lights were on. I cautiously opened the door and - shit. There he was. The Bad Penny in person. I sighed. Digs stood up. Hands on hips. Lips tight. “Yes, sure I’ll call. No problem. I promise. Sure, Digs.” He said in a falsetto voice. I glowered.
“Just stop Digs. I don’t talk like that. And I did not promise to call you. I just said I probably would.”
“Don’t play word games with me Maggie. I told you to either stay home or call me if you wanted to go somewhere. Where have you been? You’ve been gone a lot longer than a drive to this office would take. No packages so I don’t think you were out shopping. Cut the shit. Where were you?”
“None of your business. And how did you get in? How did you know I was coming here?” I did feel guilty. My defiance was in direct proportion to my guilt.
“Sean called. Said after your call he had a feeling that you were going to come here and get Emily’s address. Said you might even be dumb enough to go to Emily’s apartment. So, were you? Were you that dumb?” He jutted his face toward me, eyes flashing. “What don’t you get? Someone has threatened you - and maybe it was random, but maybe not. And it’s tied up in this case. A murder case. Maybe multiple murders.” He turned away and started toward the door.
Silently, I picked up my purse. I followed him out the door. Maybe Digs did have a point. I didn’t know what this case was about. I was willing to concede it might have been stupid to go back to Mrs. Hastings’ house.
I hate it when other people are right. And I get really cranky when they are right and I have to apologize. And really, really cranky when they are sexy and right and I have to apologize.
Digs was leaning aga
inst my car, arms folded across his chest. I walked up to him slowly and put my head down looking at my boots. “You’re right. And I’m sorry. I wasn’t thinking. I want to believe that it was a random attack and I am not in any danger but that might be stup - uh, wrong. I really am sorry.”
He just stood there. I started to walk around the car to the driver’s side. He grabbed the back of my coat and pulled me to him. He put an arm around me. “I know, Mag. No one ever wants to think that they are in danger but you could be. We can’t find Emily. The last we saw of her was when she left your office yesterday. Sean is worried about you. So am I.”
I was dangerously close to caving in on this. The adrenalin had worn off again, along with my bravado. I blinked hard. I lifted my head to say something just as he was tilting his down and clunk! I slammed into his jaw with the top of my head.
“Shit! Goddamn!” Digs grabbed his jaw. I gasped with the pain too. Hitting the top of my head had sent sharp pains down my whole face and neck.
“Get in your car! You’re a goddam fucking disaster!” Digs backed off and, still muttering and swearing under his breath he stalked to his car and got in. He slammed his door and sat, watching me in his rearview mirror. He was scowling.
I walked over to his side of the car. My head really hurt but the whole thing started to strike me funny. Don’t ask me why. I have a weird sense of humor.
“I’m sorry, Digs. Really.” I bit my lip and tried not to laugh. “And I promise I’ll stay home now. I’ll call you even if I want to just take Killer out for his duties.” I pressed my lips together, trying not to smile.
He smiled grimly, rubbing his jaw. “Oh, no need to call, Toots. I’m going to be on the couch tonight. In fact, I will walk Killer. You’re sorry now but I don’t trust you. Nope. I am right there with you.” His voice was casual but his tone was like steel. No give.
He grinned suddenly. “Good to see you sorry though. With any luck, I can pull this head butt thing out later and use it to get my way with you.”
