Murder Under Cover

by Kate Carlisle

  It was the first time I’d heard him call her Mommy, so I knew this was important. We both looked at Lisa, who smiled and nodded.

  “Yes, yes.” Tyler rubbed his hands and bobbed and wiggled in his chair.

  “Tyler, isn’t there something you’re forgetting?” Lisa said, and touched the pocket of her jeans.

  “Oh.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out five wrinkled one-dollar bills. He straightened them, then handed them to me. “This is for you, Miss Brooklyn. You earned it for a job well-done.”

  Pookie wasn’t eating.

  It was early afternoon on Friday, and I could see the reason in her eyes. She’d been here long enough. It was so unfair that she had to stay at my place while Splinters, the sick cat, was allowed to luxuriate at home with Vinnie and Suzie at his beck and call. What had Pookie done to deserve this banishment? Why did she have to be the one to live with me, the human who almost forgot to feed her?

  It happened only once, but I wasn’t off the hook yet. Probably never would be. Cats held grudges; I saw that now.

  Naturally, Pookie didn’t say any of that out loud, but it was apparent every time she looked at me. She wore her contempt for me like a second fuzzy skin. She was the prisoner; I was the jailer. She let me know with each swift swish of her tail that she would despise me to her dying day.

  Or maybe that was just my imagination.

  The fact is, I love animals; I really do. But I was never very good with pets. While I was growing up, there were always animals in the house. My brothers had dogs and my baby sister had a cat. There were hamsters and gerbils and little white mice, but none of them were mine. At age seven, I finally insisted on getting a pet of my own, but my mom drew the line at another furry beast. I could have a goldfish, she told me.

  I was thrilled. Goldfish were so pretty and shiny. I could have a fishbowl in my room and decorate it with colorful pebbles and fake seaweed and a ceramic treasure chest. At the pet store, I picked out the one fish I thought had the best personality in the tank. Shiny and bright orange-gold, she wasn’t the fastest swimmer, but she seemed to like me. And I liked her. I’d already named her in my mind. Goldie. Undulating back and forth near the side of the tank where I stood watching, she seemed to stare back at me, reaching out, calling my name. Take me home, B-B-B-Brooklyn, she seemed to say in her bubbly little voice. I am your fish.

  Who could’ve known that Goldie had a weak gill? It was so unfair. That was why she undulated. That was why she wasn’t a fast swimmer. I came home from school and found her dead, bloated, floating on the surface of the water in her pretty little bowl. I’d had her only two weeks.

  I took Goldie’s death personally. It broke my spirit and destroyed my confidence as a pet owner. Fear and guilt were my new watchwords. I could never ask for another pet after that. For goodness’ sake, I couldn’t take care of a fish. How could I be trusted with a mammal?

  And Pookie knew it.

  I called Suzie to tell her the cat wasn’t eating and she hung up on me. Twenty seconds later, she was knocking on my door.

  “Thanks so much for coming over,” I said as I closed the door and led her into my living area.

  “No worries, kiddo,” Suzie said as she followed me. “Hey, are you okay? Looks like you’re limping.”

  “What? No.” Oh, God, I’d pulled a muscle in my leg the other night when Derek and I were doing research, but I wasn’t about to let anyone know. “I… bumped into a chair. I’ll be fine.”

  “Hope so, but if it keeps hurting, Vinnie’s got a poultice that’ll set you right.”

  “Thanks. I’ll be fine.”

  Pookie came skittering across the floor at the sound of Suzie’s voice.

  “There she is,” Suzie said, picking up the cat and hugging her. “She’s only got two more days left here. Splinters’s medication is finished, but we have to wait until Saturday before the cats can be together again.”

  “She must feel like she’s in solitary confinement over here,” I said, then couldn’t help but smile as Pookie draped herself over Suzie’s shoulder, a boneless, furry lump of love.

  “No, no,” Suzie said as she scratched the cat’s ears. “She likes it here.”

  “Nope. I think she’s had it with me,” I muttered. “She’s ready to go home.”

  “Don’t be cracked,” Suzie said, stroking the cat’s fur. “She loves you. Don’t you, Pookers, don’t you? Yes, you do. Yes, you do.”

  Suzie’s normally tough-chick voice shot up three octaves as she continued crooning to her cat. “Yes, you do. Yes, you do.”

  Pookie’s purrs of sublime love radiated through the room. I could feel her blissful vibrations from several feet away. She never vibrated around me. Of course, that was probably a good thing. Still, seeing the love generated between the two left me feeling bittersweet. Maybe it was time I found an animal of my very own to love.

  “Hello, darling.”

  I lit up like a Christmas tree at the sound of Derek’s voice. As he crossed the living room, I ran to greet him. “You’re home early. I’m so happy. What’s going on?”

  He wrapped me in his arms and whispered, “Maybe I just missed you.”

  “Oh.” I hugged him back, loving the masculine scent of him. Hmm, who needed a cat?

  Suzie sighed. “Sweet.”

  “Hello, Suzie,” Derek said over my head.

  “Hey, Derek. Just visiting my baby, here.”

  “She’s a lovely cat.”

  “Yes, she is,” Suzie murmured, then repeated it straight to Pookie. “Yes, you are. Yes, you are.”

  I chuckled. There was a whole lot of love going on in here. I looked up at Derek. “Does this mean you’ll be here for girls’ night?”

  “Are you serving Cornish pasties, by chance?”

  “God, no,” I said, wrinkling my nose.

  “Then, sadly, I can’t make it,” he said, smiling wryly. He eased back to check his watch. “I’ll be heading out in a while to meet Clive and his partners at Gary Danko.”

  “Wow, how’d you swing that one?” Suzie said, putting the cat down. “It takes three months to get a reservation there.”

  With a brief shake of his head, he said, “Corinne takes care of these things.”

  Suzie snorted and winked at me. “I’ll give Corinne a call next time I’m in a jam.”

  Pookie wandered over to her bowl of mashed salmon and began to nibble.

  “She’s eating,” I marveled.

  “My work here is done,” Suzie said. “I’ll be back at seven for margaritas.”

  “Thanks so much for coming over.”

  “She just needed a little Suzie love,” she said, grinning. After bending to give the cat one more affectionate scratch behind her ears, she stood up and punched my arm. “See you later, gator.”

  As soon as I heard the door close behind Suzie, I looked at Derek. “How long before you have to leave?”

  “Long enough,” he said, grabbing hold of my arms and backing me toward the couch.

  I laughed. “What are you doing?”

  “I should think it would be obvious.” He yanked off my sweater in one brash move. I shook my hair back and watched him watching me, his dark eyes glittering with intent.

  “You’re awfully dressed up,” I said, fingering his tie. “Aren’t you afraid you’ll wrinkle your suit?”

  “No.”

  My knees hit the couch and I fell backward. He followed. I pressed my hand to his chest. “What if I told you I’m not in the mood?”

  “I’d have to call you a liar.”

  Chapter 16

  Earlier that day, I’d made the margarita mix and chopped up all the ingredients for the tacos. Good thing, because Derek had put a wrench in my schedule, so to speak. I wasn’t complaining. On the contrary, I felt like bragging, but I’d never been that kind of girl. No, our afternoon interlude would be my little secret. I hoped so, anyway. Knowing Robin and her big mouth, the whole world was likely to hear the full details if I wa
sn’t careful. I made a mental note to avoid eye contact with her.

  The only thing that had dampened my pleasure was that just before Derek left for his evening out, we heard from Inspector Lee that Galina had been questioned and released. Despite my protests, Lee stood firm. Galina had an alibi for the actual time of death, and her story had checked out. But they would be watching her, Lee assured me. I reminded her that Robin was back in town, and if Galina was free, then Robin was in danger. Lee again insisted they’d keep an eye on her.

  Her word should’ve been enough to ease my worries, but it wasn’t. I would be sure to warn Robin to be on guard.

  The doorbell rang and I ran to the front to answer it. Robin and Shiva smiled as I pulled the door open. Then Robin’s eyebrows shot up in surprise-and a touch of admiration, I’d like to think.

  “Somebody got lucky,” she murmured.

  “Shut up,” I whispered, then quickly smiled at Shiva as they both walked inside.

  As Robin passed me she winked, and we both knew that she knew and wanted me to know she knew. Twisted, but that’s a best friend for you.

  Shiva stepped into my studio and gazed around the room. “Brooklyn, this is wonderful. A truly professional space. You have come so far since your days as Abraham’s pupil.”

  Pleased, I gave her another big smile. I really had worked hard to get where I was now. Nice that someone noticed. “Thank you, Shiva. I’ll give you a quick tour in a minute, if you’d like.”

  “Yes, I would like that very much.” She walked around the worktable, trailing her hand along the smooth wood counter as she took in everything. “Abraham was so proud of you.”

  “Oh, that’s sweet,” I said, beaming. “I really appreciate hearing that.”

  “Mom,” Robin said as she slipped off her coat, “let’s get a margarita and relax.”

  “Of course.” Shiva stared at the shelves as she circled the table.

  “Mom?”

  “What?” She blinked, then smiled. “Yes. Margaritas. Goodness, what are we waiting for?”

  “Let me hang up your coats,” I said. “Then we can go to the kitchen.”

  “I love this room,” Shiva said as I opened the closet door and hung up their coats. “So much creativity. I can feel your energy in here. What are in those cupboards up there? Oh, is this Rajiv’s Kama Sutra? Oh, my.”

  I turned in time to see that she’d lifted the white cloth to peek underneath. Wincing, I said, “I’m sorry it’s in pieces, but that’s the best way to clean and resew it. It’ll be as good as new when I’m finished; I promise.”

  She nodded but seemed not to have heard me as she stared at the book.

  I’d always tried to avoid having my book-loving clients observe my work or witness their property in this broken condition. It was stressful seeing their favorite book taken apart and strewn out over my table. I liked to compare it to seeing a loved one in surgery, although I supposed that was a slight exaggeration. Still, the point was that, intellectually, you might understand what was happening, but in reality, you just didn’t want to have to see it with your own eyes.

  Shiva continued to gape in rapt fascination. She touched the red leather cover tentatively, felt the padding, then started to reach for one of the pages.

  “Mom,” Robin said, jerking her head toward my living area, “Margaritaville is this way.”

  “All right, dear.” She joined us and laughed gaily. “I don’t believe I’ve had a margarita in at least three or four years. I think my mouth is watering.”

  “How did you ever last that long?” I asked.

  She laughed again. “I have no idea.”

  “Oh, here’s Pookie,” Robin said as she entered the living room. “Hello, my feline friend.”

  Pookie wrapped her body around Robin’s legs and purred in happiness. Apparently, I remained the one human being in the world Pookie had no use for at all.

  “She likes you a lot,” I said with a sigh.

  “That’s because I love her,” Robin crooned, and lifted the cat onto her shoulder. “She took good care of me.”

  “Robin, what are you doing?” Shiva said. “You don’t like cats.”

  “I do now,” Robin said, her voice muffled by Pookie’s fur in her face.

  “My goodness, you never wanted a cat,” Shiva said, looking confused. “I think I’ll take that drink now.”

  I couldn’t blame Shiva for her reaction. It was sort of a shock to me, too. Robin had turned into a cat person in her short time living here with me and Derek and Pookie.

  While Robin was staying here, Pookie had seemed to recognize that she was in pain. The cat had comforted her, curling up on the couch next to her and sleeping in the guest room with her. I loved the cat for her natural empathy, even if she barely acknowledged to me.

  “Do you think you’ll get a cat now?” I asked her as I took the pitcher of margaritas out of the fridge and filled three salt-rimmed glasses.

  “I’ve been thinking about it,” she said, grinning at the irony. It used to be that whenever one of us broke up with a boyfriend, we would tease each other about buying a cat to keep us company. Now it seemed at least one of us was seriously considering the idea.

  There was a knock at the door. “That should be Suzie and Vinnie. Be right back.”

  “Hello, Brooklyn,” Vinnie said when I opened the door. They walked in with armfuls of bags that they dumped on the kitchen bar.

  I looked inside the bags. “What’s all this?”

  “Wine and some Thai food leftovers for you,” Vinnie whispered, pointing out the appropriate bags. “And Suzie made guacamole for tonight.”

  “Ooh, yummy,” I said, grinning from ear to ear at the thought of those leftovers.

  “And I brought you a poultice for your bad hip.”

  Robin frowned. “You have a bad hip?”

  “No.”

  “She was limping earlier,” Suzie said.

  “Really?” Robin said, her lips quivering as she tried not to guffaw.

  I ignored her and turned to my neighbors. “Do you both want margaritas?”

  Suzie grinned. “Does a polar bear shi-”

  “Shush, Suzie, you are not to be uncouth,” Vinnie said. “Brooklyn has company.”

  “Company?” Suzie spread her arms wide. “Well, what am I, chopped liver?”

  “She is in a state,” Vinnie said, rolling her eyes.

  Robin grinned. “Suzie and Vinnie, this is my mother, Shiva Quinn.”

  “Oh, hell, sorry,” Suzie said, slapping her forehead. “I’m feeling a little frisky tonight.” She reached out to give Shiva’s hand a rousing shake. “Vinnie’s right; I’m a toad. But it’s great to meet you. Robin’s world-class.”

  “Thank you,” Shiva said, her eyes sparkling with humor. “It’s lovely to meet you, too.”

  Vinnie nodded her head respectfully. “I am Vinamra Patel, and I am so pleased to meet you. We love your daughter very much.”

  “Oh, my goodness,” Shiva said. “You’re Indian.”

  “Yes, madam.”

  Shiva touched her chest with both hands. “I live in Varanasi.”

  Vinnie smiled as she nodded again. “Yes, Robin has told us all about you and your beautiful home overlooking the Ghats.”

  Shiva blinked, then whipped around to find Robin. “You never told me you had Indian friends.”

  “I’m sure I mentioned Vinnie and Suzie.”

  “But I thought Vinnie was a… Never mind. Really, Robin, you should’ve told me.” She turned back and smiled. “It’s my pleasure to meet you, Vinamra.”

  Vinnie’s laugh was melodic. “Please call me Vinnie. I’m so looking forward to hearing about your wonderful life in my homeland.”

  “I would love to share some of my memories with you.”

  I poured two more margaritas and passed all the glasses across the bar. “Here you go.”

  “Awesome,” Suzie said, and took care of passing the other drink to Vinnie, who sat at the dining tab
le with Pookie on her lap. Shiva sat next to her and they chatted quietly. I grabbed my own drink and walked around the bar to join the group in the dining area.

  “Cheers and welcome,” I said, and we all clinked glasses and sipped. I looked at Suzie. “So, why are you feeling so frisky?”

  “Oh, dude, wait’ll you hear.” She wiggled her eyebrows at Vinnie.

  “Wait. Do I really want to know?”

  “Yes.” Vinnie laughed again. “Suzie and I have taken the grand prize in the Stanislaus County wood arts festival.”

  “Hey, that’s fantastic,” Robin said, and toasted them with her glass.

  “Wow, congratulations.” I set my drink on the dining room table and gave first Suzie, then Vinnie a big hug. “That’s wonderful. Was this for the flying pyramid?”

  “Yes.”

  “Told you that piece was a winner,” Suzie gloated with glee.

  “Congratulations,” Shiva said politely.

  Vinnie smiled at her. “Thank you.”

  “What is it you do?” Shiva asked a moment later.

  Robin grinned. “Chain-saw sculptures, Mom.”

  “Oh, my.”

  As I moved back into the kitchen to grab the bowls I’d piled high with chips, salsa, and Suzie’s guacamole, I described the sculpture to Robin and Shiva: a massive wooden pyramid with wings, eight feet tall and nearly as wide, carved from one piece of wood.

  “The detail in the wood is astounding,” I said. “You can see each individual minute feather that makes up the wings.”

  “Sounds awesome,” Robin said.

  I continued to describe the base of the pyramid, where animals, humans, saints, and angels gamboled among the trees and flowers growing up the sides of the pyramid. The apex was crowded with iconic symbols and figures. It should’ve been a train wreck, but instead it was glorious.

  I was pleased that they’d taken their inspiration from photographs I’d brought back from Rosslyn Chapel outside of Edinburgh. The chapel walls and wide stone columns were famous for their intricate carvings depicting the lives of saints and sinners, musical instruments, stars, and flowers. I’d visited Rosslyn a few months back with my parents and Robin while attending the Edinburgh Book Fair.