Reservation with Death

by Diane Capri

  Could the figure have been Daniel Evans? I hoped it wasn’t.

  I glanced down at the ground around the spotlight of yellow from the streetlamp—maybe there were footprints in the dirt. No footprints, but I did see a cigarette butt. A Marlboro. And it was still smoldering.

  Chapter 10

  The next day, I was dragging at the concierge desk. I stifled yet another yawn. It was only ten o’clock in the morning, and I was fighting to stay awake.

  I hadn’t slept at all last night. After seeing the man watching me from the dark path, I had turned off all the lights in my suite and then grabbed a blanket. I sat on the sofa staring at the balcony doors, phone in hand and a knife nearby.

  In my small kitchenette, the best weapon I could find was only a bread knife, but wielded properly, I knew I could do a lot of damage. Scout and Jem thought we were having a slumber party, so they joined me on the sofa. I knew I should’ve closed my eyes and slept, even for a few hours, but after finding the dead body and the threat I sensed from the unknown watcher, my sleep would’ve been nothing but nightmares anyway.

  No stranger to all-nighters, when the clock hit four a.m., I did some gentle yoga, jumped in the shower, then popped several B-12 tablets and some ginseng. By six, I was ready to go to work.

  My determined enthusiasm hadn’t lasted long. Lois tracked me down, still annoyed at my interference in the sheriff’s investigation. She’d instructed me to organize fifty gift baskets for the guests from the conference who had been inconvenienced last night. I guess she’d found out about my appeasement gift to Mrs. Lowry and thought it would be a great idea for all the guests. Though she didn’t say so. I added a trip to the village to get gifts for the baskets to my list of things to do.

  Before I left, I helped a couple book a romantic dinner cruise around the island. The couple thanked me and went about their day. Ginny shuffled up to the concierge desk a few minutes later.

  She looked like she’d done an all-nighter at a rock concert. Her blond hair was shaggier, and the smoky green eye she usually applied with a deft hand was more smudged than normal. Combine that with the pattered tunic and flared pants, and she could’ve easily graced the cover of any boho magazine.

  It had always bothered me that she could be scraggly and unkempt and simultaneously gorgeous. Whereas, right now, I looked like I hadn’t slept in a week. Because of my pale skin, the bags under my eyes looked like steamer trunks. Blondes might have more fun, as the old hair-color commercial claimed. But our skin showed the world every little thing, too.

  Ginny yawned. “So, I guess I’m your basket-making partner for the day.”

  I tried not to laugh. “Your mom’s punishing you because you hired me.”

  She gave me a tired smile and nodded. “She’s perfected the art of passive-aggressive behavior over the years. Dad used to say she had a PhD in paying penance.”

  “Yeah, speaking of your dad…I saw Lois in the hallway last night, and she was, uh, having a chat with him, I guess you could say.”

  Ginny rolled her eyes and gave a half smile. “Normal. For her. She just can’t let go. I think it soothes her to feel like she is still connecting with him in some way.”

  “Actually, that makes perfect sense,” I said and gave her a hug, even though it didn’t make much sense to me that Lois was talking to a ghost.

  Ginny didn’t want to walk down to the village, probably because her three-inch platforms hurt her feet. She commandeered one of the hotel’s golf carts, which weren’t supposed to be taken off the grounds and definitely not driven into the village. Lois would not be happy when she found out.

  Ginny drove too fast, and I was sure we were going to tip over when she took the turn at the bottom of the Park Hotel hill too quickly. We didn’t, and she jerked us to a stop on Market Street in front of the Frontenac Island Bubbles Soap Co.

  When we went inside the cute store, a bald man with a handlebar mustache came out from around the front counter and beamed at Ginny. He opened his arms to her. “Gin! I’m so happy to see you.”

  I rolled my eyes. I really disliked when someone shortened an already shortened nickname. It would be like if someone called me An, instead of Andi, which was already short for Andrea. It was a pet peeve of mine. When did we get tired of using syllables?

  Ginny hugged him and then turned to me, gesturing first toward the man and then toward the shop. “Andi, this is Ben. He owns this place and handcrafts all the soap himself. Best soap on the planet, bar none.”

  She giggled at her own pun, which was also the shop’s catchphrase and was plastered everywhere on the walls, the labels, and the products.

  “Nice to meet you, Andi.” Ben shook my offered hand. “Well, not all by myself. Corey does help once in a while.”

  The aforementioned Corey, I assumed, flounced out from the back room. He was definitely one of the most flamboyant men I’d ever seen, and I’d lived in California for many years. His jet-black hair ran down his back in a gorgeous braid, and he wore the prettiest silk scarf that looked hand-painted.

  He offered a big grin and a wink in my direction. “I’m the genius behind this operation, and don’t you forget it.”

  “Never.” Ben grabbed Corey’s hand, pulled him close, and gave him a big hug. “You wouldn’t let me, even if I tried.”

  Corey laughed and then turned to me. “Girl, you have the most flawless skin. What are you using?”

  “Thank you.” His abrupt switch in topics had me flustered. “I use Neutrogena products.”

  “Mmhmm, I’ve heard they’re the best for fair skin. Nicole Kidman swears by them.” He nodded. “Do you know Nicole Kidman?”

  “Ah, no.”

  “I thought you were some fancy LA lawyer or something. That’s what Gin’s always telling us.”

  I glanced at Ginny, who looked a bit sheepish. “I didn’t say you worked with celebrities or anything. Just that you were a big-shot lawyer in California.”

  Corey waved his hand at me. “You know, you should set up shop here. There are lots of people you could help.”

  “Yes!” Ben chimed in. “The guy we use now is a complete waste of space. I swear he got his law degree in the bottom of a donut box, he eats so many.”

  “Besides that,” Corey added, “he’s definitely a bigot.”

  That piqued my interest, and I took a step toward him. “Is he? How? Did he do or say something to you?”

  “There, that’s what we need. Someone who takes an interest.” Corey clapped his hands in delight. “You’re ferocious, like a posh tiger.”

  The adrenaline rush quickly faded when I remembered that I couldn’t practice here or anywhere for that matter. I wasn’t licensed in Michigan, for one thing. And I couldn’t get licensed anywhere while I was suspended and under investigation in California.

  I sighed. “Yeah, I can’t…I’m not practicing law right now.”

  Ginny must’ve picked up on my distress because she directed the conversation elsewhere. “So, can we get that soap order Lois phoned about? You know how she is if something can’t get done.”

  “Oh, don’t we know it.” Ben laughed. “Let me go get it together.”

  When he had vanished through the beaded doorway to the back, Corey leaned on the front counter, a gleam in his eyes. “So, tell me everything about this murder. I mean, I can’t even believe it.”

  “Yeah, it’s a bit of a mess at the hotel right now. Andi was right in the middle of it. She knows more than I do.” Ginny glanced at me. I gave her a tight-lipped smile.

  “I need coffee. I’m just going to pop in next door,” I said. I’m not a gossip. And lawyers are trained to keep secrets. Just because I’d vowed to solve this murder, it didn’t mean I was going to blab everything I knew to every busybody on the island.

  Without waiting for a response, I left the shop. Once outside, I took in a deep breath of fresh air. The overwhelming combined scents of all the soaps had given me a headache. On top of all that, I didn’t really want t
o relive the story about how I found the body. It was still too fresh in my mind. When I closed my eyes, all I saw was the sallow, gray face of Thomas Banks.

  I walked down to the corner and into the café. It was buzzing with activity inside. Lots of tourists but locals, too. The Weiss Strudel House café, I was told, was famous for pastries, strudel in particular. At the counter, I ordered a latte and an apple strudel. I took my order outside to get away from the constant gossip about the murder at the Park Hotel.

  I sat on one of the decorative cast-iron chairs at a small, round, white metal table. It was very European and quaint. As I sipped on my coffee, I looked up, eyes closed, and let the sun heat my skin. Since finding the body, I hadn’t been able to get warm. I was constantly shivering and rubbing my hands together as if I might start a fire with them.

  “The way Lonnie tells it, the guy had it comin’.”

  I opened my eyes to see the two old men Ginny had pointed out playing chess at the dock the day I arrived. JC and Reggie were sitting at the next table drinking coffee and eating pastries. Reggie had flakes all over his chin from the strudel.

  JC, cap skewed to the side, shook his head. “Still no reason to be happy the man is dead.”

  “Lonnie’s not happy. He’s just sayin’, that’s all.”

  “What’s he just sayin’, then?”

  “That this guy was a two-bit crook. Into all kinds of criminal stuff. Lonnie owed him some money, and he nearly took a bat to Lonnie’s knees when he didn’t pay up right away.”

  “Did he finally pay the man back?” JC asked.

  “You know it. And you can bet that my Lizzie had a hand in that. You know that girl takes no crap from Lonnie. I didn’t raise her to be no doormat.”

  “Well, regardless, Lonnie’s right. Sounds like Thomas Banks had it comin’ to ’im.”

  I shoved the last of my pastry into my mouth as I got up and scurried back to the soap shop.

  Chapter 11

  When I reentered the soap store, Ginny, Corey, and Ben were still gabbing.

  Ginny smiled. “Hey you.”

  “We need to get back to the hotel.”

  “We still got some time, I think. Nicole said she’d cover for you for a couple of hours.”

  “No, we need to go now.”

  She frowned. “What’s going on?”

  “Nothing. I need to get back to the desk.”

  “Really? I would’ve thought you needed a break from everything.”

  “I did. I’ve had it, and now it’s time to get to work.” I grabbed the big bag of soaps for the gift baskets. It weighed a ton, and my arm nearly pulled out of its socket. I nodded to Ben and Corey. “Nice to have met you.”

  Then I was out the door and jumping behind the wheel of the golf cart.

  Ginny climbed in, frowning at me. “What’s going on?”

  “Nothing.” I started the cart and did a U-turn, nearly toppling us, and then I was racing up the hill back to the hotel. “Lizzie is one of the housekeepers, isn’t she? I met a Liz or Lizzie yesterday, I think.”

  Ginny frowned. “You have that look on your face.”

  “What look?”

  “That one you always get when you’re determined to get to the bottom of something. Usually something you should’ve let go of before it bit you in the ass.” Ginny paused. “Lois won’t like it if you keep poking your nose into this murder, Andi. She’s already warned you more than once. You could be on your third strike already.”

  I shrugged. “Maybe I’m just pumped about making complimentary gift baskets for the guests.”

  “Andi, you’re my best friend. I know you better than I know my brother, for Pete’s sake. Confess.”

  We crested the hill, and I parked the cart in the designated spot near the golf clubhouse. I grabbed the big bag of soap. “Okay. I overheard Reggie and JC at the café talking about Thomas Banks.” At her confused look, I added, “The dead guy.”

  “Oh, right.”

  “So, I guess some guy named Lonnie—”

  “That’s Lizzie’s husband.”

  “I guess he had some shady dealings with Thomas Banks.”

  Her eyes widened. “You’re not saying that Lonnie killed…”

  “No. I just want to talk to Lizzie and see what she knows about this Thomas Banks. Could be helpful.”

  Ginny sounded just like her mother when she said, “Please, Andi. Stay out of this. I know you’re curious by nature, and I’ll admit that you’re good at uncovering facts and putting them together. But you don’t need to be involved in a murder investigation. Let the sheriff and his deputies handle it. I’m sure they’ve already questioned Lizzie. Leave it alone.”

  “But what if they haven’t? Could be crucial evidence.”

  She shook her head at me as we walked into the hotel.

  “What?”

  “You need to get some sleep. This really has affected you.”

  “Look, I know I’m not a cop or anything, but…I don’t know…I really need to help with this. I found him, Ginny. I feel like it’s my responsibility somehow, to help solve the case.” I didn’t say that I wanted to do for Thomas Banks what no one had done for me: find justice. She’d have thought I was crazy. And maybe I was.

  Ginny put a hand on my arm. “You are not responsible for what happened to Thomas Banks, nor are you responsible for solving his murder. You are a concierge. Your responsibility is to help guests have the best stay they can possibly have at the Park Hotel. If you want my mother to keep you on the job, you need to remember that.”

  Chapter 12

  Ginny was right. I knew she was right, but that didn’t stop me from wandering down to the basement when I had a ten-minute break from assembling the fifty gift baskets. The laundry was a huge open space with six industrial washing machines and a giant-size drying and folding machine. There were several folding tables as well and, of course, plenty of shelves covering one whole wall.

  The Chamber Crew, as others around the hotel called them, consisted of four very close-knit women of varying ages who worked in housekeeping. When Ginny had introduced me a few days ago, I felt a bit intimidated. Especially by their leader, Nancy White.

  She was the oldest of the four women and the most experienced and definitely the one who called the shots. She had an air of authority about her. I respected that, partly because she looked like she could bench press me and then toss me to the side without breaking a sweat.

  Nancy was the first to greet me when I came through the door. No smile. Just a flex or two of her muscular, tattooed arms. “What can we do for you, Ms. Steele?”

  “Call me Andi, please.”

  She crossed her arms, leaned against one of the folding tables, and waited for me to answer her question.

  “I was wondering if Lizzie was around.”

  Another of the crew, one of the younger women, Tina Smallwood, came to stand beside Nancy. It was almost comical how diametrically different these two women were. Nancy was short and squat, with cropped blond hair that was more gray than blond, while Tina was tall and willowy, petite really, with long, straight, black hair that she came by honestly, I assumed, from her Ojibwe ancestry.

  “What do you want with Lizzie?” Tina asked, also folding her arms and leaning on the table. They were obviously a united front.

  “Just wanted to talk to her about something.”

  “This about the dead guy in the pool?” Nancy asked.

  I considered lying, but I sensed she would see through it, and I gambled that she would appreciate honesty. “Yes.”

  “Shawn already talked to us,” Tina said.

  “Shawn?”

  “Deputy Crowder.” She gave me a Hello, stupid look.

  “Oh, right, of course. Well, I just had a couple other questions.”

  Nancy narrowed her eyes at me. “Lizzie’s not here. When she gets back, I’ll tell her you’re looking for her.”

  “Right.” I knew she was lying, but I didn’t blame her. I was an out
sider and had yet to earn her trust or respect or anything really. “Thank you.”

  I turned to head to the exit. As I passed the other folding tables, my gaze skimmed over a stack of papers. I recognized the format of a legal document. Pretending to wipe something off my pants, I quickly skimmed over the particulars. It looked like Nancy’s ex-husband was trying to force her to sell the house she lived in, claiming it was his before they were married. I could work with that.

  “Are you having legal troubles?” I asked over my shoulder.

  Nancy pushed off the table and came toward me. She scooped up her papers. “It’s none of your business.”

  “I’m a lawyer, and I could help you.”

  She frowned. “I thought you were the new concierge until Casey came back.”

  “I am, but I was a lawyer back in California. I can’t practice law here, but that doesn’t mean I’ve forgotten everything I know. I’ve handled cases involving disputes over marital property before.”

  “Her stupid ex is making her sell her house,” Tina offered. “He can’t do that, can he? She’s been in that house for thirty years.”

  “It depends. Did he buy it before you were married?”

  “He did, but I helped pay for it. I put almost every cent I made into that mortgage.”

  “Then I can help you. We can prove your contribution and see what the judge has to say about it.” I made serious eye contact with Nancy. I wanted her to know that I could fight for her.

  She looked at me for a long moment and then nodded. “Lizzie’s in the break room.” She pointed to the door on the far side of the room. “Tell her I said it was okay to talk to you.”

  “Thank you.” I smiled. “Tomorrow, bring all your bank statements, and I’ll help you build a case against your ex. He won’t have a legal leg to stand on after I’m done.”

  Nancy gave me a huge grin, revealing several stained teeth. But it was warm and inviting, regardless. “Hell, yeah,” she said.