Decaffeinated Corpse

by Cleo Coyle

  “So that’s why you lent him your cell phone?”

  Matt nodded. “Tomorrow I’m going with him to his hotel. I’m checking him out of that midtown location and bringing him downtown, closer to us.”

  “Where exactly?”

  “There are a few hotels I used to use regularly before I moved in here. I’ll find out who has vacancies and check him in under my name.”

  “Who’s after him, Matt?”

  “I don’t know.”

  Matt stalked to the fireplace, grabbed a poker, and adjusted the crackling log. The night was cold, the stairwell downright chilly. I was glad he’d warmed the living room with the modest blaze.

  “Not a clue? Come on?”

  “Ric’s still pretending this is nothing serious, but he admitted to me in the ER waiting room that he felt as if someone’s been following him.”

  “Has he seen anyone? Man, woman, old, young, large, small—”

  “Just footsteps behind him, sometimes he’ll catch a shadow. He’s actually been in the city about three weeks, but it wasn’t until this past week that he started receiving a number of strange calls at his hotel.”

  I sat up straighter. “What kind of calls? Someone with a mechanical voice again?”

  “No. Whoever was calling just hung up when Ric answered.”

  “So someone’s been watching him? Waiting for a chance to strike?”

  “That’s what I think. Even though he still claims tonight was a random mugging, he’s agreed to stay here, as a precaution. He’s had a pretty rough night. I think he’s already asleep.”

  “In your bed?”

  “Yes, of course.”

  I tensed. “And where were you planning to sleep?”

  A year ago, Matt had thought that because we were sharing the same apartment, we would also, when the whim struck us, be sharing the same bed.

  “I’ll be sleeping here, Clare, on the couch.”

  “Oh . . . okay.” My relief must have been more than a little obvious because Matt’s brow knitted.

  “What did you think I was going to say?”

  “Nothing.”

  He studied me a moment. “I see . . . you thought I was going to suggest—”

  “Forget it.”

  I set down the nearly empty bowl of stew, rubbed the back of my neck. The stress of the last five hours—from those bottomless-cup law students to Mike Quinn’s downright torturous flirtation—had tightened my muscles into hard, angry knots. It was almost unbearable and I closed my eyes, dreaming of that jasmine bath I was too tired to draw.

  Matt stepped closer. “You look tense.”

  “I am.”

  He moved behind me, settling his hands on my shoulders. “Are you sure you didn’t want me to suggest some other sleeping arrangements?”

  His voice had gone low and soft, his mood switching from edgy to seductive with the smoothness of a veteran Formula One driver shifting gears on a high-performance sports car. The effect wasn’t aggressive or sleazy. With Matt, it never was. His seductions were always tender and sincere, which is why he always got to me.

  He began a slow, expert kneading. I closed my eyes and my tight muscles seemed to sigh. They wanted more, even if I didn’t—not from Matt anyway. It was Detective Quinn I wanted. The flirting wasn’t enough anymore. Now that Mike was separated, I wanted him to cross that invisible fence we’d both been dancing on for over a year.

  As my mind recalled Mike’s intense blue gaze, his caring touches, my body became more pliant beneath my ex-husband’s hands. I released a soft moan and shifted, leaning forward to give him more access. Matt was familiar and convenient, his warmth a tempting offering on this cold October night.

  His hands moved lower, down my spine. Gently, he pulled up my shirt, reached beneath it to caress my lower back. But as my ex continued to make my tendons sing, it slowly occurred to me that I was doing exactly what Matt had done during our ten year marriage.

  The one-night stands hadn’t meant anything, he’d claimed. They were just physical workouts, temporary warmth on lonely nights, substitutes—apparently—for me.

  Wasn’t I contemplating the same thing now, substituting one man for another? Did I really want to cavalierly sleep with an ex-husband who was very publicly involved with another woman?

  Wake up, Clare!

  I opened my eyes. “No . . .” I said. “I mean . . . yes, Matt, I’m sure you should sleep on the couch.”

  “But you thought of the other option, right?” Matt mellifluously pointed out, his hands continuing to rub. “It entered your mind.”

  The definition for mental health also entered my mind. It did not include walking down the same road and falling into the same hole, over and over again.

  I still vividly remembered the last time I’d fallen into the Matt hole. Yes, I’d climbed out quickly enough the next morning, but this time was going to be different. This time, I could actually avoid the hole altogether.

  “Matt, don’t.” I turned to meet his eyes, make it clear. “We’re partners in business now, but that’s all we are. I’m sure we shouldn’t be sharing the same bed, okay?”

  With a shrug, Matt removed his magic hands from my body. My still-aching muscles immediately cursed me as he turned back to the fireplace, which would definitely be providing him with more warmth than me tonight.

  “Let’s get back to Ric, okay?” I said.

  “What do you want to know?”

  Matt’s tone was even. Good. I quietly exhaled, infinitely relieved there wouldn’t be any residual hostility from my rejection. “I know you’ve known the man a long time, but . . .”

  “But what?”

  “Are you certain you can trust him?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Well . . .” How do I put this? “Mike said a man who doesn’t want to report a crime is usually a criminal himself.”

  “Mike said.”

  I grimaced. One stupid back massage and my guard’s completely down.

  “You broke our deal!”

  “Calm down, Matt—”

  “You told him about the mugging!”

  Yep. He’s definitely over the romantic thing now. “Matt, listen. Mike Quinn already knew.”

  “Like hell.”

  “Tucker told him.”

  “Tucker!”

  “Don’t you remember? When Quinn came in and sat down at the coffee bar? We never warned Tucker not to say anything. He mentioned the mugging. So . . . since Quinn already knew all about it, I figured—”

  “You figured you’d discuss everything with him! What can I expect tomorrow morning, a forensics unit at our back door?”

  “Don’t get crazy. Quinn’s not saying a word. He couldn’t anyway. There’s no mugging if the victim refuses to go on the record that there was one. And I don’t know why Ric is so reluctant to ask the police for help. Obviously, someone means him harm—”

  “You don’t know what you’re talking about, Clare.”

  “Enlighten me then. You’re obviously keeping me in the dark about something, what is it? Tell me, Matt.”

  “Why? So you can call up the flatfoot to discuss it?”

  I might have come up with a decent retort at that moment, but the phone rang. Matt and I had become so used to getting calls on our cells that the land line’s ringing on the end table startled us both into dead silence.

  A beat later, we both reached for it, but I was closer.

  “Hello?” I said.

  “Hello?” Female.

  “Yes?” I said.

  “I’m looking for Matt.”

  The superior attitude (and not bothering to waste any time greeting me) would have told me who she was, even if I hadn’t recognized her slightly nasal voice—no doubt the result of looking down her long, thin nose at nearly everything for decades.

  I held out the receiver. “It’s Breanne.”

  Matt could have stepped away with the wireless handset, but he didn’t bother. He just stood in fron
t of me, close enough for me to hear every word of hers as well as his.

  “What’s up?” Matt checked his wristwatch. “It’s after midnight.”

  Laughter followed on the other end of the line. “Matteo, you’re getting old.”

  “We’re the same age, Bree, and it’s Tuesday night.”

  “Bishoujo is launching a new fragrance. Those Japanese designers really know how to party. The event’s still going strong at Nobu—”

  “Sorry, I’m done in.”

  “Oh, darling, so am I! You know I’m just teasing. How did that little tasting of yours go with Federico?”

  “It . . .” Matt hesitated. “Fine . . . it went fine.”

  “Good. He’s such a charmer, just like you. . . . So you’re obviously free now. That’s why I had my driver swing by to pick you up.”

  “Pick me up?”

  “We’re parked right downstairs, next to the Blend.”

  “I’m not dressed—”

  “Good.” Throaty laughter followed. “That’s the way I like you—”

  Matt glanced at me, his face actually registering a flash of embarrassment. He turned away then, taking the wireless handset across the room. As he continued the conversation (which sounded to my ears more like an argument), I moved to the window, pulled back the sheers, and looked down into the street.

  A black Town Car was parked beside the curb. A tall, blond woman was pacing back and forth, a cigarette in one hand, a cell phone in the other. The editor-in-chief of Trend magazine looked every inch the chic-meister. A stunning claret and black gown hugged her model-slender figure, a sleek sable wrap caressed one creamy shoulder, rubies dripped from her ears, and her upswept hair boasted an elaborate salon-designed tower that shouted labor-intensive do.

  “Bree insists I come back with her,” Matt told me upon hanging up.

  “Well . . .” I shrugged, folded my arms. “You have to admit, a king-size penthouse bed with five-hundred-dollar sheets is a lot more comfortable than a narrow antique sofa.”

  “Yeah.”

  There wasn’t much enthusiasm in my ex-husband’s tone. It sounded more like obligation, and I wondered what was going on in his head. For almost a year Matt had been squiring the woman to launch parties, political fundraisers, and charitable events. Their photos had been splashed in Gotham, Town and Country, and the Post’s “Page Six.” The publicity was a great boost to Matt’s profile as he expanded our business. Yet, over the summer, he’d told me that he and Breanne were just “casual,” and he had no intention of becoming enmeshed in her life.

  As summer turned into fall, however, it seemed to me that Breanne was becoming increasingly manipulative and demanding. My ex-husband may have been using Bree for her connections, but she appeared to be exacting a price.

  After hanging up, Matt went upstairs and returned with a small gym bag. He hadn’t bothered to pack a change of clothes, just underwear and toiletries. Obviously, he had no intention of staying very long at Breanne Summour’s penthouse.

  “See you tomorrow, hon—” he began, then corrected himself as he pulled open the door. “Sorry. I meant Clare.”

  “Matt?” I called.

  “Yeah?” He turned, one hand still on the doorknob.

  “Does Breanne know about Ric and his breakthrough?”

  “Of course, she knows. I introduced them last week.”

  “So you invited Bree to Friday’s launch tasting at the Beekman Hotel, right?”

  “Her magazine is going to cover it. Trend is very influential. One article can have a tremendous impact.”

  Pillow-talk publicity, I thought. “Did she, by any chance, know about Ric coming to the Blend tonight?”

  “As a matter of fact, I was with her when I took the call from Ric earlier today. When he heard about my giving you his beans to taste test with our baristas, he said he wanted to drop by and see what they thought. Bree wanted me to go with her to some launch party tonight, but frankly I was happier coming to the Blend . . . until the mugging, that is.”

  I nodded and began to wonder about Breanne. Could she have set Ric up? Sent someone to rob him or worse? What would be her motive if she had?

  I gave Matt a halfhearted smile as I considered voicing these suspicions. But I knew he’d blow his top before I finished talking. And he’d most likely be right. Notwithstanding my total dislike for the woman, Breanne Summour just didn’t strike me as a criminal mastermind.

  “See you tomorrow,” I told my ex.

  The front door closed, and I stepped to the window, watched the sidewalk below until a dark-haired male head appeared. Breanne wasted no time. She threw her burning cigarette into the gutter. Laughing loudly enough for me to hear three floors away, she snaked her long, slender arms around my ex-husband’s neck and began passionately kissing him.

  Matt’s body remained tense as she ground against him, but he didn’t push her away. His mouth moved over hers, and I knew what I was missing. Matt was an amazing kisser. A piece of me shifted with regret—but only a very little piece.

  When he finally broke it off, he pointed to the Town Car. The two of them disappeared inside, and I watched the vehicle pull away. I continued watching until the misty gray shadows closed like a curtain on the car’s red tail-lights.

  Letting go of the sheers, I frowned, trying to guess Bree’s endgame with my ex-husband. As long as he needed her influence, she could pull his strings.

  But, an annoying little voice nagged in my head, what would happen if Ric’s breakthrough made Matt a fortune? Would he cut those strings completely? Was Breanne capable of quietly sabotaging Ric, just to make sure her prized boy toy didn’t flee the sandbox?

  The hearth’s fire was dying out, and the room had grown colder. I felt almost empty inside, hollowed out and exhausted. Rubbing my arms, I couldn’t help thinking of Mike Quinn. . . . Was he sleeping now? Missing his wife? His kids? His old home in Brooklyn? Could he possibly be lying in bed, thinking of me?

  I cupped my hand against my cheek and chin, where he’d touched me earlier, and wondered if it had crossed his mind to touch more of me anytime soon.

  I could certainly push things . . . but he was a trusted friend, and I didn’t want to lose that. I couldn’t risk misreading him, or—as Matt had advised me about my own daughter—if I pushed too hard, I could end up pushing him away. Then again, maybe Matt was speaking from his own experience with Breanne.

  A sudden yawn put an end to my tortuous conjectures. I picked up my bowl, put it to my mouth, and guzzled the last dregs of Matt’s tangy ragout. Then I took the bowl to the kitchen, wiped my mouth on a paper towel, and headed up to bed.

  At the top of the staircase, I remembered Ric. Quietly I opened the door to Matt’s room. I stepped a little way into the darkness. The light from the hallway splashed onto the bed pillows, illuminating Federico Gostwick’s ebony hair and handsome profile. I could see he was sleeping comfortably. His breathing sounded even, not labored, and I was glad. Then I closed the door and headed down the hall to my own bedroom.

  “Attempted murder . . .”

  Mike’s words came back to me as I stripped off my clothes and pulled the extra-large Steelers T-shirt over my head. I thought again of how much Matt and Ric looked like brothers, and my mind began to worry that fact . . .

  If the person after Ric means to harm him and makes a mistake, could Matt end up in the crosshairs?

  The vision of Ric in the cold, wet alley came back to me then. I saw the man’s slumped over body, but this time with Matt’s face. The image sent a sick chill through me.

  Matt was my business partner and my child’s father. He and I were no longer husband and wife, but after all we’d been through together, I wasn’t prepared for any harm to come to him. Unfortunately, I’d blown his trust this evening when I’d admitted talking to Quinn.

  But I haven’t blown it with Ric yet.

  “Tomorrow morning,” I whispered, settling under the covers.

  Matt will be at Bree�
��s, and I can talk to Ric without interference.

  “One way or another,” I mumbled as my head hit the pillow, “I’m going to get my questions answered. . . .”

  EIGHT

  “HOW about a fresh pot?”

  Ric nodded.

  When it came to mornings, I didn’t consider myself conscious until I’d sucked down at least one mammoth cup of our Breakfast Blend. But Ric was off caffeine. At his request, I was about to brew up a pot of the Gostwick Estate Reserve Decaf in my apartment’s kitchen. Ric said he’d been researching decaf so long, he’d grown to prefer it.

  Since I was going to use a standard drip method this time out, I set the burr grinder between coarse (for French presses) and fine (for espresso machines). I could almost hear Detective Mike Quinn’s voice over the grinder’s noisy whirring—“You know, Cosi, you might want to dial that same setting for your interrogation. Too coarse, you’ll spook the subject. Too refined, you won’t get what you need. Aim for the middle . . .”

  I’d already had hours to think about questioning Ric. I’d been up since five thirty, taking in the day’s bakery delivery downstairs and brewing urns of our Breakfast Blend.

  BETWEEN six and seven, I’d served about twenty customers when the door jingled and in walked a welcome surprise—Dante Silva. The compact twenty-six-year-old strode right up to the coffee bar, looking a little uneasy. “Good morning, Ms. Cosi.”

  “You can call me Clare,” I said, and not for the first time. “What are you doing here? You said you were running a fever last night.”

  “I was, but I stayed in bed, slept it off . . . I’m good to go now, and I thought I’d make up the time by pulling a double shift today. I wouldn’t want to lose this job, you know? Rents are tough around here, even with the three of us in the two bedroom.”

  Dante lived on the Lower East Side near Teany (the recording artist Moby’s restaurant) in a two bedroom apartment he shared with two female friends from college. He said each of the girls had their own bedroom and he spent most of his nights on the sofabed in the living room. “Most” of his nights had a sort of Big Love bigamist ring to it, but I never pried.