by anna snow
I could already feel the stink sticking to my clothing and skin. I'd have to burn my clothes and shower for a year to get the smell off me.
The coroner and his assistant came up the stairs a few minutes later with a body bag and gurney.
It didn't take long before the crime scene was crawling with investigators snapping pictures and collecting evidence.
Silas and I made our way to my car to wait for Tyler. About ten minutes later he came down to talk.
"The coroner agrees that it looks like the victim has been dead for about five to seven days."
"So, he died about a week after Tammy," I said.
Tyler nodded. "That's right, but now the question is was this a suicide, accidental overdose, or a staged scene."
"And if it was, in fact, staged, who killed him and why," Silas spoke my thoughts out loud.
"I know you're not going to like what I have to say, but I'm going to say it anyway." Tyler had his cop-face fully in place. "Please drop the case. The dead dancers and now this guy?" He scrubbed his hand through his hair. "I just have a really bad feeling about this one, Barb."
"Absolutely not." I pushed away from where I rested my bum against the car. "This is my case. Detective Ramsey isn't going to do his job, so I have to do it for him."
"Detective Ramsey was just pulled from the dancers' case," Tyler said heatedly.
I blinked with surprise. "What?"
"The captain looked over some of Ramsey's previously unsolved cases and found several inconsistencies." He blew out a breath. "The case is now mine," he said. "You know I'll do everything in my power to find the murderer, so you can stop investigating and get back to prepping for vacation."
"Have you lost your ever-loving mind?" I asked. "This is my case. When have I ever run from a case because it was dangerous?"
"Never, and that's the problem. You take chances you know you shouldn't. The last crazy chance you took almost got you and Silas killed."
His remark was like a slap in the face, but I couldn't deny that what he said was true.
"That's a lesson I learned, and it will never happen again," I said coldly. "There's no way I'm dropping this case, so just can it."
Tyler stepped closer and rubbed my upper arms with his big, firm hands. "I know you're an excellent investigator, and I know you would never intentionally put your friend in danger, but I love you, and knowing you're in danger twists me up inside."
"The same way me knowing that you're in danger twists me up? The only difference is that I've never and would never ask you to quit your job," I said.
His expression softened. "You're right," he said. "It's not fair of me to ever ask you to stop your investigation." He kissed my forehead. "I just need to know you're safe. Promise me you'll be careful and call me if you find yourself in trouble."
"I promise." I smiled up at him. "Are we still on for dinner and a movie?"
"You know it." He returned my smile. "That is, as long as I'm not tied up with this mess." He hiked a thumb toward the apartment building.
"Let's hope you're not. I've got to get going." I tiptoed up and placed a quick kiss on his lips then turned to open the car door, but Tyler beat me to it.
I slid into the driver seat and fastened the seat belt. Silas was already inside with the radio going. Apparently, he was not interested in my temporary relationship drama. Who could blame him?
We waved good-bye to Tyler as we pulled out of the parking area. I noticed that the guys on the corner who had eyed us as we entered the building were long gone.
Imagine that…
CHAPTER SIX
We pulled up next to the curb outside Jackson Investigations, and I killed the ignition.
Mandy and Kelly had already closed up shop.
"Well, this was an interesting day," Silas quipped.
"You're telling me. And I have a feeling this case is only going to keep getting more and more twisted."
"You can handle it," he said confidently as he unbuckled his seat belt. "Will you need my help tomorrow?"
"Honestly? I'm not sure."
"Just give me a call if you do. Be careful getting home. Let me know you made it safely."
"I'll text you," I assured him.
Silas leaned over and kissed me on the cheek then got out of the car and hurried to his. He waited until I pulled away from the curb before he did the same.
On the way home, I stopped and grabbed some takeout for Tyler and me. I was starving.
Old man Kasmire and Buster were staring out the front window of their house, as usual. Each wore their permanent sour expression, so I smiled brightly and waved just to irritate them. It must have done the trick because Kasmire flicked the curtains closed the moment I did so.
He was like a one-man neighborhood watch, and I was the only suspect person on the block.
I laughed as I unlocked the door and went inside.
After setting the food down on the living room table, I reset the alarm then checked Mickey and Blue's food and water. They were good to go, so I kicked off my shoes in the hallway while on my way to the bedroom.
I hurried into the bathroom and took a quick, steaming-hot shower. I'm sure I used a little more body wash than was necessary, but I wanted to make sure I got all the stink off. When I was certain I smelled better, I got out and slid into a pair of silky workout shorts and my favorite old gray Rolling Stones T-shirt then went back to the living area.
It was nearing nine o'clock when Tyler finally showed up.
He kicked off his shoes, settled into the sofa beside me, and dug into his bacon cheeseburger.
"Long day?"
He looked at me and pursed his lips. "Like you don't already know?"
"I really didn't set out to cause you more work." I laughed.
"I know, babe." He chuckled. "But if I want to be completely honest, I'm glad I was put on this case. Now it will be looked at thoroughly."
"Did you find out anything about Gary or how he died?" I patted the cushion beside me.
"I did." He took a drink of his soda.
I rolled my eyes. "Mind sharing?"
He grinned at me. "Yeah, I'll tell you what I legally can."
"How sweet of you," I said sarcastically and laughed.
"Gary did in fact overdose. Whether it was intentional or not, we don't know for certain, but the coroner is saying it looks intentional."
"Maybe Silas was right. Maybe Gary was so obsessed with Tammy that he took his life after he found out she had been killed. Or he killed her then took his own life out of guilt."
"The timeline fits," Tyler agreed. "But Gary didn't have any reason to kill Kiki, so I highly doubt he's the murderer of both women."
"I have to agree." I lifted my coffee mug and drank.
"I found out something else that might be of interest you."
"Oh?" I raised my brows. "I'm all ears."
"We found a book in Gary's house. It appears he was in deep with a bookie, and not just any bookie. Your pal, Dickie Myers."
"Dickie the Bookie?" I nearly choked on my coffee. "Are you sure?" I wiped my mouth on a napkin.
I'd had dealings with Dickie in the past. As a matter of fact, I owed Dickie a favor. Fortunately, he'd yet to call it in. Dickie was polite, a gentleman even, but you didn't dare cross him. Just ask Tommy Two-Toes how he got his nickname.
"Was he into gambling?" I asked.
"It doesn't look like it. From what I could gather from the journal, he borrowed money from Dickie to support his drug habit. He was in deep."
"You don't think Dickie killed him and made it look like a suicide, do you?"
As much of a bad guy as Dickie was, I couldn't bring myself to believe he killed Gary. Staging a suicide just wasn't Dickie's style. Neither was supporting someone's drug habit. What Tyler told me wasn't making sense. It didn't add up with the Dickie I knew.
"No. I paid the bookie a visit, and he assured me he knew nothing about Gary's demise. He was more upset with the fact that he wouldn't get his mo
ney back than he was that Gary was dead."
Now that sounded like the Dickie I knew.
"Wait." I held up my hand. "How did you get Dickie to talk to you?" Dickie wasn't the chat-with-the-cops type.
"I had a warrant," he explained. "He wasn't happy that he had to answer my questions, but he did."
I nodded. "That's Dickie."
As much as I didn't want to, I needed to go see Dickie and have a little talk. It wasn't that I didn't think Tyler asked him all the right questions. Dickie and I had an understanding of each other that led the bookie to talk more openly to me than I was sure he did with Tyler.
Tyler was a cop. I wasn't.
"I can see your wheels turning," Tyler said. "Promise me you won't do anything dangerous."
Setting my coffee aside, I crawled over into Tyler's lap and wrapped my arms around his neck.
"I won't do anything you wouldn't do."
Tyler's eyes widened momentarily. "Oh, no…"
CHAPTER SEVEN
I woke up bright and early the next morning with one thing on my mind.
Talking to Dickie.
In the past Dickie had played a huge role in helping me solve a couple of cases. His goon, Gerald, might have even saved my rump once. Not that I'd ever admit that out loud, especially not to Tyler. He didn't exactly know about my "friendship" with Dickie.
I showered, dressed, and was out the door in record time, all without causing a stir out of Tyler.
He was still asleep when I hit the road before six thirty a.m. He didn't get the chance to sleep often, so I let him be until his alarm went off.
I was speeding down the North Central Expressway toward Jackson Investigations with a caramel macchiato in one hand and the steering wheel in the other. Traffic was light for once, probably because of the still dreary weather and early hour, not that I was complaining. I loved it when it rained, especially in the fall because I was finally able to don my favorite black Henley, distressed jeans, and black leather ankle boots.
Less than ten minutes later, I parked curbside and hurried across the damp, empty street to my office building.
Mandy's eyes widened. "What are you doing in so early?" she asked as she finished making copies.
"Tyler told me Gary owed Dickie a ton of money," I said.
Mandy scrunched up her face. "Don't tell me you're going to talk to that guy."
"I am." I didn't see any reason to hide anything from her. I never did, even though I knew exactly what her opinion and reaction would be.
"Are you kidding me?" She crossed her arms over her chest and scowled.
"I wish I was, but Tyler was put on Kiki and Tammy's case. After Silas and I found Gary Hooper dead in his apartment yesterday, Tyler did a sweep of the place and found a book with evidence that Gary owed Dickie a chunk of money. I have to follow this lead. It's the only real one I have," I explained.
She nodded then took her seat at her desk. "Silas told Kelly all about it, and then she told me," she said. "Well, minus what Tyler told you last night." She tapped the papers on the desk. "This case is getting a little more convoluted every step of the way." She leaned back in her chair. "So where does Dickie come in? I mean, I know Gary owed him money and all, but I thought you said before that Dickie wasn't into drugs."
I sat down in the chair across from her desk. "He's not. Not that I know of anyway, which is why I need to talk to Dickie. I just can't see him handing out money to support someone's drug habit."
"So, do you think Gary killed Tammy?" she asked and tapped her pen on the desk.
"No. I really don't. He was obsessed with her, and he did have a domestic violence charge and a restraining order against him, but Tyler says his death looks like a suicide."
"Are you thinking he killed himself because someone took out Tammy?"
I shrugged. "The cops didn't find anything in his apartment to finger him as the murderer. But at this point there's really no way to know for certain. Not until I go over every avenue available."
She nodded. "I see."
A second later Kelly surprised us all and walked in all bright-eyed and bushy-tailed with coffee for everyone.
"Wow, up and at 'em before nine o'clock. What's the occasion?" I teased as she took a seat beside me and set the drink holder full of coffee on the desk in front of us.
"Very funny." She stuck her tongue out at me. "Silas and I went for a jog this morning."
Mandy and I both froze with our coffee halfway to our mouths and stared disbelievingly at her.
"What?" she asked defensively.
I lowered my coffee and set it back on the desk. "No offense, sugar, but the only time I've ever seen you run was last Black Friday at the buy one, get one sale at Ulta Beauty, and that really was just more of a power walk. We can't even get you to take a yoga class with us, and you went for a jog with Silas?"
She leaned back in her chair and smiled then shrugged.
"It's happened…" Mandy grinned. "Our little Kelly's in looove," she sang.
Kelly actually blushed then waved us away as she changed the subject. "What's on the agenda for today?"
I stood and grabbed my coffee and purse. "I'll tell you on the way." I didn't wait on her to answer because the minute she heard where we were going, she'd have something to say, and I'd already spent more time explaining it to Mandy than I'd intended.
"Why do I have the feeling that I'm not going to like this?" I heard her ask Mandy as I grasped the doorknob.
"Because you're not."
* * *
It only took us about fifteen minutes to reach Lone Star Park, Dickie's favorite place to hang out and bet on the horses, but when we did, the sky had already opened up and rain was pouring down.
I didn't normally splurge for valet parking, but I wasn't too keen on getting drenched, so I pulled to the front of the building and handed the keys over to the young man waiting there. He gave me a ticket then hopped into my car and drove away.
Kelly and I walked under the awning toward the entrance of the building.
"It's pouring. There aren't going to be any races. How are we going to find Dickie?" Kelly asked.
"Just because there aren't any races doesn't mean he isn't here."
Almost every time I'd met with Dickie, he'd been eating. Dickie loved his food, as was obvious by his rotund body shape. I assumed we'd find him in one of the dining areas.
We entered the building, and I approached a young man wearing crisp black slacks, a white button-down dress shirt, and a name tag that read Sam.
I grinned up at the man. "Excuse me. My friend and I were wondering if you could point us in the direction of the best restaurant to grab a bite to eat?"
He glowered down at me. "There are several restaurants to choose from," he said in a bored tone.
I thought maybe if I put on my flirty-girl face and batted my lashes at him, he might change his attitude a little bit. "Yes, but which one is the best?" I asked.
He looked down at me. His expression never changed. He shrugged. "Take your pick."
I was getting irritated. I'd had suspects who were easier to get information out of than this guy. He was supposed to help the visitors of the park. I wasn't sure what his problem was, but he wasn't being very helpful at the moment. I wasn't good at the whole flirting to get my way angle. I was just an awkward duck. Always had been, always would be.
Apparently I was doing as terribly as I suspected I was because Kelly stepped forward and took over the lash batting and smiling. She was a pro.
"We're new in town, and this is our first time here," she explained and placed her hand on his bicep then grinned her megawatt smile.
He took one look at Kelly, and his expression shifted from surly-thirtysomething-man to randy-teen-boy.
I guess petite busty blondes weren't his cup of tea.
"You'll want to visit The Bar and Book," he said with a hint of a smile. "Just follow the signs there and there." He motioned to the right.
"Thanks," Kel
ly said with a wink then linked her arm with mine, and we hurried off in the direction the irritating Sam had indicated.
"What was his problem?" I asked.
"Who knows." She shrugged. "We need to work on your flirting skills when this is all over."
I didn't bother disagreeing.
We entered The Bar and Book and looked around. The interior was an attractive clean affair in neutral shades. There were large HD monitors spread around the sports bar area with a different race or game on each screen.
"Nice." Kelly nodded her approval. "There aren't many people in here this early, and I don't see Dickie anywhere."
I didn't see him either. "Let's look around. If this is the best place to grab a bite to eat, then this is where he'll be."
We made a nonchalant pass around the area, but neither of us spotted the bookie or his goon, so we took a seat at the bar and each ordered a small soda.
Kelly stirred the ice in her drink. "What now?"
"I'm going to call him." I pulled out my phone and was just about to dial his number that I felt wrong for even having when I felt a firm tap on my shoulder.
I turned around and spotted Dickie's goon, Gerald, looming over me.
Gerald was well over six feet tall with onyx black hair cropped close to his head, broad shoulders, and a scar that ran down the side of his face. His nose was a bit misshapen, like he'd been in one too many brawls, and as he worked for Dickie, that was entirely possible. He was large and intimidating and didn't beat around the bush about anything.
He narrowed his eyes. "May I help you?" he asked me in his regular low, slightly irritated tone of voice.
"You're the one who tapped me," I said with a bit more sarcasm than I'd intended and internally cringed. This man could put his thumb on the top of my head and drive me into the ground like a pushpin.
He peered down at me through his small black eyes. "I believe you're looking for someone in particular."
"And if I am?"
"Come with me. And leave the sass behind."
Not waiting for me to answer or follow, he just turned and walked away.
Kelly and I shared a look then hopped off the stools and followed Gerald.
