“Binky, so help me, you need to help us.”
“Actually, I’m out here to pick you all up and take you to the manager’s office. We’ve had more than eight complaints called in in the last ten minutes.”
“What?”
“We had three calls about you trespassing in yards. One of you broke off a plumeria limb in another yard, and golfers are calling to report a bunch of crazy women in baggy pants running around loose on the course.” He looked at them. “That would be you. Have you ladies been drinking?”
“Not yet,” Kiki said, “but I could sure use a martini.”
“We aren’t the guilty ones here,” Trish told him.
Pat held up the duffle. “We have evidence in here that’s going to solve a murder.”
“Three murders,” Kiki added. “So call the police.”
“I can handle this,” Binky hiked up his pants. He pointed to the shield on his sleeve. “In case you haven’t noticed, I’m the police up here.”
“You are a security guard,” Suzi reminded him.
“And you ladies are trespassing on private property.”
Trish was staring in the direction they’d come from. “Oh, no, I think I just saw him over there.” She pointed at some bushes.
“Who?” Binky turned around.
“The murderer, that’s who. Tom Benton.”
Trish was digging in the duffle for her camera. She squealed and jerked her hand out of the bag.
“There’s something furry in there.”
“Wigs,” Kiki said. “Two wigs.”
Trish tried again, pulled out her camera, and hung it around her neck.
A gunshot popped behind them.
Binky turned toward the bushes. “Wow. That really sounds lifelike.”
“That’s because it is!” Kiki dove to the ground. Trish and Suzi joined her. Pat flew past Binky, grabbed him on the way down and shouted, “Heads down! That toad sucker is really startin’ to piss me off!”
45
Kimo to the Rescue
Em called Roland and was forced to leave a message on his voicemail. Kimo asked her not to call 911 until they found out what kind of situation Kiki was embroiled in. Em insisted Kimo take her with him as he headed for Princeville.
“What if she’s in danger?” She had asked him the same thing three times already. They’d just crossed the Hanalei Bridge.
“We’ll know soon enough. Kiki’s got more lives than a cat.”
“I hope so.” Em stared out the window. The sky was clearing toward the south where their weather came from. As soon as they entered Princeville, Em gave Kimo directions to Marilyn’s house. When they arrived they noticed the garage door was up. There was a car inside, and parked crossways on the driveway was Pat Bogg’s SUV.
Kimo pulled into the driveway behind Pat’s car then grabbed the machete he kept in the side pocket of the driver’s seat door and jumped out. He headed up the walk to the front door before Em could stop him.
Before she could talk herself out it, she jumped out of the pickup and ran after him with her cell phone in hand. Beside the front door, Marilyn’s water feature merrily bubbled on.
Kimo knocked twice, raised his machete, and opened the door.
“Now I know how you and Kiki have stayed together for so long,” she mumbled. “You’re both crazy.”
The house felt as empty as a tomb. There wasn’t a thing out of place in the main rooms.
“Kiki!” Kimo hollered as he headed down the long hallway to the bedrooms. Em stayed on his heels. “Kiki, where are you?”
He went through a doorway at the end of the hall and stepped into a bedroom. Unlike the rest of the rooms, things were scattered all over inside this one. A chair was on the floor near the door, the closet door was wide open and items that had been on the dresser—a clock, an empty vase, and a small, framed watercolor of a hibiscus bloom—were on the floor nearby. The window above the dresser was open, the screen was off, and the curtain was hanging half in and half outside.
“Looks like someone went out this way.” Kimo stared up at the window.
“More than just one someone, judging by the scratches on top of the dresser and the marks on the wall.” Em knew the place had to have been pristine before the escape. “At least Kiki isn’t alone.”
“Pat’s car is still here,” Kimo said. “So they have to be on foot.”
“Surely they’ve gotten some help by now. Hopefully they’ve called the police.”
Suddenly they heard a distinct pop in the distance.
“That’s a gunshot.” Kimo spun around and headed back down the hall.
“Sounds like it was close by.”
He jumped into the truck, and as Em closed her door, he was already backing out onto the street.
Em hit 911 and talked to the police dispatcher as Kimo raced down the street.
“Gunshots have been fired near the Princeville Golf Course,” Em said. “Send someone now.”
“Can you stay on the line, ma’am? Where is your location?”
She tried to explain, but they were moving so fast she wasn’t really sure. She gave them Marilyn’s street name but then added, “The shot came from the golf course near that address. You need to send someone over here right away.”
Kimo headed for the end of the cul-de-sac and drove over the curb, barely missed a For Sale sign staked on an empty lot and cut across the golf course. He turned onto the cart path.
When he rounded a curve, they were facing three carts full of golfers coming at him from the other direction. The golfers whistled and waved for him to move over, but he didn’t budge. The cart drivers had to swerve off the path to miss him, and then they went bumping along on the grass.
Em kept her eyes peeled on the edge of the golf course that bordered huge two-story homes.
“There!” Kimo yelled. “I see a security cart. It’s pulled over.” He pointed to a spot up ahead of them. “No, there it goes. Security is headed for the club house.”
“Look,” Em pointed. “Right there near where the cart was parked. Is that them?”
One minute ago the Princeville security golf cart had been there, but then it raced away. Three familiar figures were getting to their feet. The fern fronds bobbing around their heads and their wide-legged pants gave them away.
“It’s Kiki and the others. I don’t know who the fifth one is.”
Kimo strained forward, clutching the wheel. He squinted.
“That’s Binky. He works security up here.”
They hit a speed bump on the cart path so hard that Em flew up off the seat, and her head rammed into the roof of the cab.
“Yikes, slow down, Kimo.”
They reached Kiki and the others, and he not only slowed down, he pulled off the path and headed for Kiki, who was running toward him waving her arms. Her hair had come unpinned and was standing out around her head like a wild nimbus.
Kiki ran up to Kimo’s pickup. She pointed at the cart in the distance.
“Tom’s getting away! Don’t let him. Go after him!”
Kimo paused long enough to let Em climb out, and then he turned back toward the cart path and took off again, bouncing down the narrow road like crazy. Em heard a siren in the distance and thanked God for small favors. Finally, the police were on the way.
Kiki, Trish, Pat, and Suzi crowded around her. A security guard lingered a few feet away carefully studying the shrubbery along the edge of the course. He kept sticking out his chest and pulling in his stomach. Em wasn’t certain, but he sure looked like he was posing.
“Are you all right?” Em hugged each of the Maidens in turn.
“We’re fine,” Kiki said. “No thanks to Binky.”
“What’s he doing?” Em whispered. “Is he all
right?”
“We can’t convince him this is all too real. He thinks we’re shooting Trouble in Paradise and that the cameras are hidden just off the course.”
“Binky’s in for a shock when he finds out Tom fired a real shot into the air. Binky isn’t allowed to carry any bullets.” Suzi suddenly sat down on a lumpy black duffle near her feet. “Whew, I get dizzy just thinking about it.”
“Binky said they won’t issue him real bullets,” Trish said. “Now I know why.”
“Look! Here come the cops.” Kiki pointed toward the main road through the resort that ran parallel to the golf course. Two police cruisers were flying along between speed humps with their sirens on and lights flashing. Kimo laid on the horn in his truck as he followed Tom across the course, quickly closing the distance between them.
Em and the others watched the chase and saw Tom careen off the path, make a wrong turn, and then his cart flew off the edge of a sand trap, was airborne for a second before it dropped, and came to a dead stop. He jumped out of the cart and carefully kept the sand trap between himself and Kimo’s truck as he headed for the clubhouse a few feet away.
“Oh, no,” Em said. “Looks like he’s going to make it.”
Tom reached the Makai golf club and disappeared from view. The two cruisers pulled onto the drive to the clubhouse and turned in.
“I wish we were over there,” Kiki said.
“It’s not that far, let’s walk.”
“It’d be faster if I ran back and got my car,” Pat said. “I think I can cut right through a couple yards back there and end up at Marilyn’s.” She pointed in that direction.
“No trespassing,” Binky said. “No cutting through yards.”
Pat marched over to him until they were standing toe to toe.
“Oh yeah? Oh yeah?” She leaned even closer and whispered, “If you let me go, folks will sure be talking about this episode when it airs. Who knows? You might even get your own fan club.”
Binky hiked up his pants.
“All right, go ahead.”
Pat started to walk away.
He called after her, waved, and smiled toward the nearest shrubbery. “I’ll let you go this time, but make sure it doesn’t happen again.”
Trish rolled her eyes. Kiki shook her head.
Pat had no sooner disappeared between two bushes than Suzi said, “Here comes Big Estelle.”
Sure enough, the white van had turned off the main road and was headed toward the nearest golf cart path. Within a minute Big Estelle pulled up next to them. The side door slid open.
“Don’t get out,” Kiki called up to them. “Take us to the Makai golf club.” She yanked the duffle out from under Suzi, who toppled onto the grass. Kiki tossed the bag into the van and climbed in after it. Trish, Suzi, and Em followed her. Em climbed up into the shotgun seat, and Lars slammed the door shut.
“What’s in there?” Em pointed to the duffle.
“Everything Roland will need to convict Tom Benton. Wait until you hear the whole story,” Kiki said.
They crowded into the van with the others. Little Estelle was in the back, strapped onto the Gadabout. Lars was in the backseat.
“How did you find us?” Trish asked Big Estelle.
“There aren’t a lot of golfers out here in gauze harem pants.” Big Estelle carefully negotiated the big van along the cart path. “What happened?”
Em looked forward to hearing too. Trish quickly filled them in.
“Pat figured out the code and that Kiki needed help. We went back and watched the house, and when we heard Tom’s voice, Pat climbed a tree outside one of the bedrooms and peeked in. Then we heard someone call out to Tom from the kitchen and next thing you know, Tom tossed Kiki in the closet. Can you imagine somebody tossing Kiki in a closet? So we hustled around to a lower window and climbed in and rescued her.”
“And ran like hell,” Suzi said.
“Great idea blocking him in with Pat’s car,” Em said.
“That was my idea.” Kiki looked exhausted, but she was beaming.
“Hand me my bag, Lars, baby,” Little Estelle yelled from the back.
“Ya, Cougar.” He reached over Trish and picked up a canvas purse and handed it back to Little Estelle. She dug around in it for a second and then held up a silver flask and waved it around.
“You girls could probably use a little toot right about now, so here you go.”
They arrived at the Makai golf club before the flask had made it around to everyone.
“We can’t get any closer,” Big Estelle said. “The police have blocked off both ends of the street with squad cars already.”
Em declined the flask when it reached her and looked out the window. Sure enough, the two squad cars had split up and were at each end of the road just beyond the golf starter’s shack.
“Can we get out?” Suzi was on her knees on the seat trying to see what was going on.
“Why not?” Kiki motioned for Lars to open the door. As soon as it opened, she jumped out. Everyone in back followed. Big Estelle tipped the flask up and took a long swig.
“There’s a little left,” she told Em. “Want it?”
“No, thanks. I think I’ll try to keep my wits about me. They’re in short supply around here obviously.”
“I’ll take it!” Little Estelle shouted. “Lower the lift and let me out.”
Big Estelle started to push the button to lower the Gadabout to the pavement.
“Do you think that’s a good idea?” Em asked. “Things could get dicey out there. We might have to take cover.”
Big Estelle turned to Em. “You tell her she can’t get out.”
“Point taken.” Em saw Roland come driving up behind them. He was talking on his radio.
“Go find out what’s happening,” Kiki urged.
“I don’t want to get in the way,” Em said.
After what happened this morning she wasn’t looking forward to seeing him. It was inadvertently her fault Kiki found out about their suspicions about Tom. As she watched two more squad cars pull up, followed by a fire truck and an EMT vehicle, she was fairly sure Roland would no doubt blame her for this whole fiasco.
Kiki was watching her and must have sensed her hesitation.
“Don’t worry, Em. He won’t be pissed long. We flushed out a murderer for him,” Kiki reminded her. “He should be grateful.”
Somehow Em didn’t think so.
Before she had to make a decision, Suzi said, “Looks like he’s coming over here.”
Sure enough, Roland was driving again, headed across the road. He parked near the van and got out.
“I’m going to have to ask you all to move back.” His cool gaze touched each of them in turn.
Em noticed she got no more, no less attention than any of the others.
Kiki stepped to the front of the group. With a huge smile, she handed Roland the duffle.
“There you go, Roland. All the evidence you’ll need to convict Tom Benton.”
His only comment was a shake of his head.
“No need to thank me.” Kiki’s smile dimmed but didn’t fade.
“I should have known when I heard the call that shots had been fired at Princeville you women were somehow involved.”
“All we did was flush Benton out,” Kiki said. “My reputation, not to mention my freedom, was on the line. Turns out he was about to leave the island under an alias.”
“Then no doubt we’d have found out that he was guilty of his aunt’s murder with or without this bag.”
“He confessed to me that he also killed Bobby Quinn and the maid at Haena Bay Resort,” Kiki said. “The disguises he wore while he was hiding out here, while he was supposedly in India, are in the bag along with a pile of credit cards th
at were not issued to him. Again, no need to thank me.”
“Don’t worry. We’ve now got a stand-off and a hostage situation on our hands,” Roland said.
Em’s heart sank.
“What hostages?” Suzi wanted to know.
“Two of the golf starters and a woman who works in the concession stand are trapped inside with him.”
“I hear the chili dogs are great,” Little Estelle said.
“Ya.” Lars nodded. “Goot.”
“If you’re not leaving, which is what I’d advise you to do, then you’ll all have to move back beyond that speed hump behind you. Move your vehicle, too. We’re going to put up barricades back there.” He pointed to a spot a good distance away. “We need to keep this area clear for more emergency vehicles.”
Just then a male voice issued from a bullhorn near the clubhouse.
“Tom Benton. We advise you to let your hostages go and give yourself up.”
Everyone held their breath. Even the breeze seemed to stop blowing. There was no response. Without another word to any of them, Roland shouldered the strap on the duffle and turned to walk away.
“Roland, wait,” Em said softly.
He paused and waited for her. They walked away alone, stopping far enough away that they could speak without the Maidens hearing.
“I didn’t know what they were up to, or I’d have tried to stop them,” she said.
He looked back at the gaggle of women and Lars and didn’t bother to hide his frustration.
Em went on. “Kimo overheard Sophie and me talking last night. He told Kiki our suspicions about Tom hiding the fact he was on island before the wedding.”
“As usual, Kiki decided to take things into her own hands, and the rest followed,” he said.
“She says the proof of his guilt is in that bag.”
“The proof of his guilt is that he’s armed and holed up in the clubhouse. I’m sure he didn’t just hand it over to her, Em.”
“She took off with it after he locked her in a closet and her friends broke her out.”
“So she just went calling, asking for evidence?”
“Well, maybe she broke in, but you can’t blame her for trying to clear her name.”
Three to Get Lei'd Page 27
