The overall assessment before I turned out the bathroom light and left the room, “Not bad, lady, not bad at all.”
Feeling guilty about leaving Lola out overnight, I double checked the doggy door, to make sure it was working properly. When I did, I noticed a toy sitting on the porch that had been in the kitchen just this morning. That little snot had used the doggy door while I was in the shower. She thought I wouldn’t figure it out. I giggled at her little charade. Pissed as Lola was, she didn’t fuss about jumping in the car and accompanying me to work.
I was the last one at the office. Even Nick’s Crown Vic was in the parking lot. My stomach clenched at the thought of seeing him. I was glad I’d taken the extra time getting ready. Oh, hell, who was I kidding? I’d taken the extra time because I knew I’d see him today.
I checked my lipstick in the rearview mirror before getting out of the car. Good thing I didn’t need a touch-up, because Lola nudged my hand with her wet nose as I touched the corner of my mouth.
“It’s not all about you,” I said, as I got out of the car and held the door open for her.
Everyone was in the kitchen when I opened the door. Lola ran up to Charles, put her paw on his foot, and leaned into him. I ignored her and went straight for the coffee pot.
“What did you do to her?” Charles asked accusingly.
“She’s being a diva.” I poured my coffee and added my new creamer concoction. I’d been experimenting; my new favorite was peppermint mocha and white chocolate mocha in equal parts. I turned around and leaned against the counter. Looking at Lola, I said, “Diva.”
She sniffed the air, rubbed her head against Charles, and left the room.
Charles wiped dog hair from his jeans. “She needs to see the groomer, stat.”
Cortnie stood. “Since you’re finally here, let’s get the ball rolling. We’ve already wasted enough time.” She glared at Nick.
Everyone stood, and we walked into the reception area of the Gotcha offices. Cortnie’s eyes were bloodshot, and she had dark circles down to her cheekbones. Nick didn’t look much better, but at least he looked like he’d showered.
Either Cortnie or Charles had put out folders for each of us. From the well-rested, nicely dressed look of Charles, I’d say it was Cortnie.
“I put together all of the information I could find on Lena,” she said, as we all sat down. “I know Charles said she was seeing a married man, but I couldn’t find anything to substantiate this statement.”
“Her mother substantiated it, and that’s enough for me,” I said.
I opened the folder and found more information than anyone should know about a person. Cortnie had pulled records dating back ten years: personal, financial, employment, unemployment, and housing.
Nick opened his folder and shut it again. “I’m sure you all know from the TV shows that strangulation is considered personal and very intimate. Rarely is a person strangled by someone they don’t know, unless it’s a rape.”
Everyone stopped and looked at Nick.
Did I mention how incredible Nick looked? He dressed from head to toe in gray, monochrome right down to the plaid tie, and it matched his eyes so well, I wanted to stop working and stare at him for a few moments. The pants hugged his ass perfectly, I could have looked at him from the front or the back and been easily pleased either way. I shook my head. Given the situation we were discussing, the color of Nick’s clothing was eerily appropriate, and fit the gloom outside, too.
Charles spoke first, “Rape?”
“We did a rape kit, and they had found the presence of semen.”
This shut everyone up. For the first time, I was sure it had to do with the decoy program. I wondered if one of the johns decided to give her what she’d been asking for.
“DNA?” I asked.
Nick leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “Here’s the thing: it might be more than one specimen.”
Cortnie stood and paced the floor. “What are you saying? That she had sex with more than one man?”
Nick nodded.
She stopped and put her hands on the back of the couch where I was sitting. I turned to look at her.
“She’d have had to have had sex with those multiple partners in a very short period of time.”
Nick said, “Within seven days maybe? Up to two weeks.”
“Our kits that we use for cheating wives can detect semen in underpants up to thirty-six hours after sex,” I offered.
“In living victims, motility is about four to six hours, after that it’s a guessing game. In general, the remnants remain in the vagina for six to seven days, anus two to three, and the mouth less than twenty-four. They didn’t find any sperm in those areas.” Nick explained the findings more thoroughly.
“How many are you talking about here?”
“The lab is still working on the evidence, but it looks like at least two specimens with the preliminary tests.”
I cringed. So Lena liked her men. “It doesn’t mean it was related to her death. I mean, she was fully clothed, so maybe she had a couple of boyfriends? No signs of rape?”
“No,” Nick said. “But we have to look at every possible angle.”
Everyone nodded, but didn’t say anything.
I looked at the file again, and there it was, Jane’s murder. “And what about the sister?”
Cortnie said, “I’ve searched all the databases and the details are sketchy at best. She was murdered before the Dahls moved to Salinas, but I can’t find any details related to the crime or the investigation. Not even information about the investigating officers. I’ll try again on Monday if we haven’t found Lena’s killer.”
All attention turned to Nick.
“I’m working on it,” he said. “Let’s get back to the case at hand.”
Charles shook his head. “What are the chances?”
Cortnie resumed her pacing. “I don’t even know where to begin. I’d thought we should take a look at the men she’d gotten arrested. Maybe one had come back to the area and staked us out, looking to see who the decoys were.”
“That’s a possibility,” Nick said. “We need to start somewhere, so I suggest you start there.”
Startled, I said, “You? As in us?”
Nick leaned back in his chair. “I’m flying solo here. Piper is on maternity leave, and I don’t have a new partner yet. We are all working overtime because of the recent rash of gang murders, and I know you’ll be discreet.”
Charles leaned toward Nick. “You’re kidding us, right?”
Nick leaned away a bit. “No. The only caveat is that I need you to report only to me. Any evidence you come up with needs to go through me. I don’t want this to get thrown out of court if it gets to that.”
We’d seen how crazy evidence could be in a previous murder trial, leading in all different directions, so we all understood.
I was intrigued. “So what’s the game plan?”
Nick pulled out some files of his own. He handed a folder to each of us. “These are copies of what I have so far. This is not for public consumption, so I need you to keep this information confidential.”
We all eagerly flipped through the pages of information.
“You all know what I know up to this point. I think it’s best if we work in pairs, so we don’t get caught with someone violent who will add to my body count.”
Everyone looked at one another, deciding who would partner up, but Charles stepped up and took care of that for us. “I’ll work with Cortnie.”
Thump. Yep, that was my heart dropping to the floor. Zing, zing. Those were the daggers I shot at Charles.
Nick stood. “Perfect.” I swear he winked at Charles.
Not so perfect, but I wasn’t going to be a baby about it. It had been a long time since I’d spent time alone with Nick. In a sense, I felt like we were strangers. What would we talk about? Was he dating anyone? I didn’t want the answer to that question.
We’d had a long past, and back when
we were dating again, it all seemed so good, but I wasn’t ready to talk about the past, and I certainly wasn’t going to discuss how he’d broken my heart, again. I had to be strong, show him I could move on. I did it once, and I’d found Dominic. I shook my head, I wasn’t going to think about Dominic, or his family, ever again.
Charles must have seen me shake my head, because he asked, “Is there a problem?”
I wasn’t going to admit right there in front of everyone that I wasn’t comfortable with this situation. What I wanted was secondary. We had a killer to find.
“No problem. Nick, can you lay out your plan, so everyone knows what to do, and we aren’t doubling up and wasting time?”
Cortnie sat down, and Nick took the floor.
“Charles, you and Cortnie can go to the homes, businesses, or wherever you need to go, to question the men who were arrested because of the decoy program. You’ll find everything, including the addresses, in the files, but you probably already have that information.”
Charles said, “And you?”
Nick looked at me. “We’re going to talk to Wilma again, and then we’ll look into this married man thing.” He paused, “I also have to take care of something else regarding your decoy program, so maybe you don’t want to visit with Reginald Wick.”
Charles’s eyes got really big. “You aren’t going to fix that, are you?”
“I couldn’t even if I wanted to. The man solicited a prostitute, and he can go to court if he wants the charges dropped.”
“Who is Reginald Wick?” I asked.
“He’s the mayor’s husband.” Nick looked at his paperwork. “And he was one of Lena’s johns.”
Oh, him.
Absent-mindedly, Cortnie said, “She was good.” Her eyes never left the file she was reading.
Lena had a great arrest rate. I think it was the flaming red hair. Men wanted to see if the carpet matched the drapes, and a few had even said things like, “Hey baby, if I eat your pussy, will the red hair dye come off on my lips?” Yep, one pervert had said exactly that.
“Since Reginald is a more delicate matter, I’d like to handle that one myself.” Nick looked pointedly at Charles.
“What? I don’t want to talk to that snotty family anyway.”
“We’ll worry about that when the time comes. For now, let’s keep this between us,” Nick said.
Cortnie looked up. “Should I ask Gabe to help?”
Nick snapped, “No. I want to keep Vice out of this for now. They currently know nothing about the case. Lena has been listed as a Jane Doe. I have my reasons, and you don’t need to know them just yet.”
Charles perked up. “We do if we’re helping.”
Nick met Charles’s eyes. “No. You. Don’t.”
Before we could finish up and head out, our new receptionist, Uta Huber, walked in. She seemed shocked that we were all there. I’d have to admit, I was surprised to see her so early.
Uta, a sixty-five year old woman who was reentering the workforce, had been hired by Cortnie. We’d been looking for a receptionist, and I’d been too out of it to help, so when the interview process was over, we had a geriatric receptionist.
Hey, all of you twenty-something wannabes out there, you could take lessons from Uta. She could run circles around you!
Uta had short cropped hair, but was in no way a shampoo/set kind of woman. Her black hair was coiffed in a pixie, and combed forward. Her makeup was applied with a light touch, and she wore it the same every day, coral lipstick, barely there blush, and perfectly applied “Marilyn Monroe” eyeliner with thick black mascara. Her skin was so pale, she looked like a delicate porcelain doll.
Professional to the nines, she wore a skirt every day and nude pantyhose. Silk blouses were the norm, and she could type 80 words per minute, even with her fake fingernails.
Her startled look gave way to a smile. “Oh, I didn’t know there was an early meeting. Should I make some coffee?”
“No, thanks. We were just about to leave.” I closed my file and stood.
She looked embarrassed. “I’m so sorry, I’d have been here earlier if I’d have known.”
She was an hour early as it was. “Is this what time you always arrive?”
She nodded. “I like to get a head start before the phones start ringing.”
I had to admit, since she’d gotten the word out about our services via Twitter and Facebook, the phones had been ringing more often.
“I’ll let you get back to your meeting.”
Cortnie, Charles and I exchanged glances. Charles said, “She’s a keeper.”
Back to the case at hand. “Isn’t it a little early to go knocking on doors?”
“We can catch the men on their way to work. Better to talk to them at home than at work.”
Under her breath, Cortnie said, “It’s Saturday.”
“Well, the wives are bound to find out sooner or later.” Nick stood. To me he said, “Let’s hit the road. I want to talk to Wilma first.”
I heard Charles say to Cortnie, “I’d love to be a fly on the window in that car this morning.”
Then I heard what sounded like a punch. Thank you, Cortnie.
98
Charles
Oh, lucky day! I’d be spending at least the morning in the car with a woman who yelled profanities at me the night before, and quit on me. She did quit, right? I’d always have that to throw in her face if she got out of line. Nah, I loved Cortnie, I couldn’t do that to her.
“I’m driving.” Cortnie yanked the keys from my hand. She had the advantage of being dressed in leggings (floral print, not that it mattered) that gave her plenty of stretch if she sprinted. And the oversized sweater she wore could have belonged to a boyfriend, if there was a possibility she spent enough personal time to have a boyfriend. But there was the time she’d been spending with Gabe.
Maybe I could throw it in her face after all. “House rules, if I’m in the car, I drive.”
And just like that, she turned her back on me and left the room. “Bullshit.” And she sprinted. Damn leggings. I had to wear skinny jeans, which were definitely not made for running, though they did look good with my Chucks and the skin tight baby blue tee I had on.
If only we had time to play games, I’d sit in the reception area, or go get coffee until she came back inside. Or, I’d go get in my own car and we could drive separately, wasting gas, and expanding our carbon footprint. For the love of God, I didn’t want to expand the damn footprint. I grabbed my black leather jacket and followed after her.
By the time the meeting ended, the sun had started peeking over the horizon. All of that lovely pollution pretending it was artwork. The chill was still in the air, but this was Salinas, and there always seemed to be a chill, even on the warmest days. What we could really use was some rain.
Playing sullen, I got in the passenger seat of the van without speaking. I buckled up and looked out the windshield. As much as I hated carrying around paperwork, I held the file folder Nick had given us on my lap.
Cortnie put the car in gear, started in reverse, then slammed on the brakes. “I’m not spending my day in the car with a two-year-old. Get out.”
She even leaned across me and opened the passenger door. Her arm brushed across my chest in the motion.
Not moving a muscle, I said, “You just wanted to feel my pecs. Happy now?”
I think I heard her growl as I grabbed the handle and shut the door.
Plastering on my most sincere grin, I said, “Drive. I don’t care. But if we wreck, it’s all your fault.”
“Thank you, Captain Obvious.” She put the van in reverse again and maneuvered out of the parking lot.
Flipping through the paperwork, I saw we had five different johns to chat with. The top file stopped me.
“We can’t go after this first guy.” I started to show her the paper, but she was driving, and if she did wreck, she’d sure as hell blame it on me.
“Read it to me.” Testy, testy.
<
br /> “According to the arrest report, this was a car full of Chinese businessmen. From the transcript, Lena had a hard time understanding them.”
“I don’t care what nationality they are… but, wait… I remember this one. Four men in the car, and even though she didn’t understand them very well, they offered her cash. The passenger opened his wallet and shoved hundred dollar bills at her.”
I read along as she spoke. “Looks like we’re on the same page.”
“What makes you think we can’t talk to them?”
This time I did shove the paper in her face. “They sent an international cashier’s check to pay the fine. From China.”
“Oh.”
“Here’s something strange.” I ran my finger across the page, making sure I’d read it correctly. “Head to North Salinas.”
“Where am I going?” She turned onto Main Street.
“Lena only lived about a block away from this guy, Randy Baxter. Says here that he’s thirty-five, works for the fire department, and lives on Sutter Street. Lena lived on Marin.”
Cortnie stopped at a red light. “Let me see that.”
I handed her the file and watched the light while she read. When the light turned green, I yanked the file back and said, “Green means go.”
She stuck her tongue out at me before stepping on the gas. I swear she was spending way too much time with Mimi. I’d have to put a stop to that.
“Oh, goodness, you should have been there for this one. The guy cried like a baby.”
I stared, incredulous. “A thirty-five-year-old man cried like a baby?”
“Apparently his wife was in labor, and he was supposed to be on his way to the hospital. He decided to take a detour and get a blowjob on the way.” Cortnie’s words expressed the disgust she felt. “Winner.”
“Lucky lady to be married to him.”
“I’m telling you, he begged, cried, and got down on his knees asking the vice cops to write him up for a DUI. The fine is stiffer, but he didn’t care. When they cuffed him and put him in the back seat, explaining that he’d be cited for soliciting a prostitute, he peed himself.”
Gotcha Detective Agency Mystery Box Set Page 72