Dirty Devil

by Liliana Hart

  “Excuse me,” Jack said, stepping just over the threshold. “Is there a Kimberly Kloss here?”

  Everyone ignored Jack and kept working as if their lives depended on it.

  “Kimberly Kloss,” Jack said, a little louder this time.

  “José,” a woman yelled from upstairs. “See who that is and tell them to go away, and get these people moving. We’re going to be late!” She had the voice of a bull horn.

  A man in black slacks and a short-sleeved white button-down came from one of the back rooms looking frazzled, and he shot a look of such malice in the direction of the voice upstairs that I involuntarily took a step toward the stairs in case he decided he was going to toss her off the balcony.

  “I’m sorry,” he said, his accent thick. He tried to shoo us back outside, and I raised a brow. “Ms. Kloss and Mr. Donnelly are leaving for vacation.”

  “Well, he’s half right,” I said, looking at Jack.

  “They are late to the airport,” José insisted. “They do not have time to buy whatever you are selling.”

  Jack showed the man his badge, and José immediately stopped in his tracks and his gaze went toward the small woman cleaning the chandelier.

  “We have no problems here,” José said. “Everyone has papers.”

  “I’m not here for that,” Jack said. “We need to speak with Ms. Kloss. And you should probably let her know she’s going to miss her flight.”

  “Mr. Donnelly?” José asked, his brow furrowed. “It’s Mr. Donnelly, isn’t it? I knew something was not right when he did not come home. But sometimes he would stay out for a day or two, just to have some peace and quiet.” He pointed to the ceiling. “You heard her so you can understand why.”

  My mouth twitched, but I managed to avoid a smile.

  “He would usually tell me when he was going to be gone,” he continued. “But sometimes he didn’t.”

  “And you are?” Jack asked.

  “José Sosa. I’m the house manager.”

  “We found Mr. Donnelly’s body early this morning,” Jack said. “We really need to talk to Ms. Kloss.”

  José’s lips tightened and he nodded. “Come with me. It will save time.” We followed José up the rounded staircase to the second level.

  “How long have you worked for Mr. Donnelly?” I asked.

  “Twelve years,” José said.

  “And he would do this often? Just not come home for a couple of days?”

  “Mr. Donnelly enjoyed celebrating his wins in court. And he won a lot. He would usually let me know his plans for the day, but sometimes he would change them last minute. I kept a calendar of his social events and travel plans, but he was a grown man who could come and go as he pleased.”

  “Were his changes in plans ever due to his drinking?” I asked.

  “Mr. Donnelly enjoyed celebrating his wins in court. And he won a lot.”

  “Do you mean his drinking?” I asked.

  José’s lips tightened again. “It’s not for me to say. My job is to manage the household and make sure everything runs smoothly, whether Mr. Donnelly is here or not.”

  “What about Ms. Kloss?” Jack asked. “How long has she been living here?”

  José’s eyes narrowed, and his entire body tensed. “About eighteen months. You can go into the sitting room off the bedroom. Ms. Kloss is still packing, but I’ll make sure she knows you’re here. If you’ll excuse me, I need to let the staff know and make preparations to shut down the house until things can be settled.”

  “I might need to ask you more questions,” Jack said.

  José nodded and reached into his pocket, pulling out a gold business card holder and flipping it open. “My information is on here if you need me.”

  He pointed us into the sitting room, and then went in another door farther down the hall.

  “If looks could kill,” I said, looking around the modern sitting room. Everything was white—carpet, furniture, walls—and I wondered if a room so white could really be lived in. Or maybe it was just me who needed décor that could camouflage the occasional spill or crumbs.

  “Nice view,” I said. There was a perfect view of the golf course and the swimming pool. “How come we don’t have a pool?”

  “Because I’ve never had time to swim,” Jack said. “But if you promise to swim naked I’ll promise to start making the time.”

  “I could agree to that if a hot tub is included.”

  “Deal,” Jack said. “We can have one in before summer starts and kick things off with a party.”

  I squenched my nose. “On second thought…”

  “Too late,” he said, grinning. “What are your thoughts on José?

  “I think there’s no love lost between him and the girlfriend. His attitude shows she’s not the boss. He reports to Donnelly alone.”

  “But if I’m reading him right,” Jack said, “I don’t think there’s any love lost between José and Donnelly either. He’s loyal. But there’s resentment there.”

  The inner door to the sitting room was flung open and whom I could only assume was Kimberly Kloss came in with a flair I had to appreciate. She barely looked old enough to vote, and the thought of her and Donnelly together made my lip curl involuntarily in disgust.

  Kimberly Kloss was about five foot ten, and built like a Victoria’s Secret model. Her breasts were manmade and her hips nonexistent. Her hair was white blond and pulled into a high ponytail that trailed down her back. She wore black leather pants and a red sweater that wouldn’t have kept anyone warm, considering the designer had forgotten to put material on the front and back.

  The angry expression on her face smoothed out when she took her first look at Jack.

  “Well, hello,” she said. “You’ve caught me at a bad time. Maybe we could make an appointment and meet again another time. I’m about to leave on vacation. Though I wouldn’t mind packing you in my suitcase.”

  I was guessing Donnelly’s interest in her was purely physical, because if I had to listen to that voice all day I’d run screaming off the top of a building.

  “I’m Sheriff Lawson, and my wife prefers I take my vacations with her,” he said smoothly.

  “Pity,” she said. “I’ve found wives come and go.”

  “Not his,” I said, taking a step forward.

  She arched a finely sculpted brow and pouted her lips. “Whatever,” she said. “Is this about my parking tickets? I don’t have time for this. Leave your card or whatever with José and someone will get back to you to pay them. My fiancé will be here any minute and then we’re leaving.”

  She turned on her heel to walk back out when Jack interrupted her.

  “Ms. Kloss, John Donnelly is dead,” he said. “You’re going to have to sit down and answer some questions for me.”

  She spun back around, her face leeching of all color, and I thought she might pass out. And then color rushed into her face until she looked like a teakettle about to boil over.

  “Get out!” she screeched. “I don’t know what kind of sick joke you’re playing, but I don’t have to tolerate this. I’ll have you fired. Do you know who my fiancé is? Get out of my house!”

  She took a step toward Jack with her claws out, and he braced himself for an attack. “Don’t take another step toward me or you’re going to regret it,” he said, his voice level and calm. “You don’t want to spend the night in jail on top of everything else. I suggest we sit down and talk things through before you end up in trouble.”

  Her steps faltered, and her gaze narrowed while she tried to decide if Jack was serious.

  “I’m calling our lawyer,” she said instead. “I know my rights.”

  “Clearly you don’t,” Jack said. “Because all I’m trying to do is give you the courtesy of knowing that the man you live with has been murdered. But by all means, if you’d like to call your attorney we can do this in a formal setting down at the sheriff’s office.”

  “I don’t like you,” she said, crossing her arms o
ver her chest.

  “I don’t care,” Jack said. “Now sit down.”

  Jack’s tone must have gotten through to her because her mouth clamped tight and she took a seat in the little white chair by the window.

  “You’re mistaken,” she said, examining her lethal manicure. “John and I are scheduled to be on the five o’clock flight to Aruba. He wouldn’t die right now. He wouldn’t do that to me.”

  I raised a brow but said nothing. I’d never met John Donnelly in person, but I’d seen him in interviews on various networks. He had a forceful, larger than life personality, and he had the kind of charisma that could make you believe white was black, even if you were staring the proof in the face. I couldn’t imagine what John Donnelly and Kimberly Kloss had in common, other than her love for his money, and his need for someone young and pretty to feed his ego.

  “Ms. Kloss—”

  “Kimmie,” she interrupted. “Call me Kimmie.”

  “My name is Sheriff Lawson, and this is Dr. Graves. She’s the coroner for the county. Mr. Donnelly has been dead two days. Is there a reason you didn’t report him missing?”

  Her eyes narrowed again, and I could tell she was getting all worked up. “You talked to José, right? I swear, I’m firing that bastard. I don’t know who he thinks he is running his mouth to the cops.”

  “Why didn’t you report him missing?” he asked again.

  “Because he does this sometimes,” she said between gritted teeth. “Just because José likes to have his nose up John’s ass every second doesn’t mean John doesn’t need a little space now and then. I would too if that nosy son of a bitch kept track of me like that. It’s no big deal. After John wins a case, he likes to unwind for a couple of days. He’ll head over to the Judge’s Chamber for a few drinks, and he’ll usually buy a round for whoever’s there, and then he kind of plays it by ear. Though I thought he’d come home since we’re supposed to leave for our trip.”

  “Where does he stay when he doesn’t come home?” Jack asked. “Have there been other women in the picture? A man like John Donnelly doesn’t seem like the kind of man to go anywhere alone?”

  “Where does he stay?” Jack asked. “Do you suspect another woman in the picture?”

  Jack was baiting her, which was very unlike him, but I had to say I was enjoying it immensely. Whatever his reasons, it was very entertaining.

  Kimmie stood up so abruptly she knocked over the chair. “How dare you? What did José tell you?” she asked. “José!” she yelled. “Get your scrawny ass in here.” Then she started pacing in her skyscraper heels. “Sometimes he’d get a room at the Cromwell. Sometimes he’d stay with a friend. He was not cheating on me, no matter what José says about Julie Burkett. They were together before we met. He ended it. End of story.”

  José took that inopportune moment to answer Kimmie’s bellow, and she had those red nails extended and ready to launch in a flash.

  “Sit!” Jack commanded, and then he looked at José and said, “I’ll follow up with you later.”

  José nodded and ducked back out, but not before I saw the smirk on his face.

  “I’ve had enough of your harassment,” Kimmie hissed at Jack. “Consider your job gone by the time I get through talking to your boss.”

  “Maybe you didn’t hear me say I’m the sheriff,” Jack said, with more patience than I would’ve had at this point. “I am the boss. If you want to have me fired then vote in the next election. And if you don’t start answering questions, I’m going to assume you have something to hide. John Donnelly was murdered. This is my last warning. So sit down and answer the questions.”

  She took a couple of steps backward until she realized she’d knocked the chair over, so she left it toppled and moved to its twin on the opposite side of the window.

  “I didn’t kill him,” she said. “I would never do that. We were leaving for vacation. Why would I kill him and ruin our trip?”

  “You don’t seem very surprised he was murdered,” I said.

  “Are you kidding me?” she asked. “Everyone wanted to kill John. Even his friends. He got death threats all the time. He said powerful men were always a target, and that I’d just have to get used to it. I kind of freaked out a little because I saw this movie once where someone put a bomb under some mobster’s wife’s car and blew her to bits to teach her husband a lesson. But we’ve got real good security here, and we always park the cars in the garage.”

  “Any of the death threats stand out?” Jack asked.

  You’d have to ask his secretary. Mary—Maggie—Martha. Something like that. She keeps a record of that stuff. The only recent one I know about is the delivery he got here a couple of weeks ago with a dead cat in it. I happened to be standing there when he opened the package. John doesn’t want me to worry, so he doesn’t like to bring the troubles from work home.”

  “Thoughtful of him,” I said.

  “But I couldn’t help but see the cat. Its head had been cut off, and I think I screamed. I don’t remember much after that. When I woke up it was gone. John gave me a sweet little diamond tennis bracelet to show how sorry he was I had to see something like that.” She jiggled her wrist and diamonds flashed in the sunlight.

  “When was the last time you saw him?” Jack asked.

  She shrugged and moved to stand in front of the large mirror propped against the wall, checking her appearance. “I don’t know. I got back from Paris Sunday, so I’ve been kind of jet-lagged and sleeping super late. He was finishing up a big trial Monday and Tuesday, so I didn’t see him at all those days because he was working late, but he left a present for me on his pillow with a note Wednesday morning telling me to be ready to celebrate a big win.”

  “The same night as the storm hit,” Jack said.

  She leaned over in front of the mirror and plumped her breasts so her cleavage showed better, and then she dabbed at the corner of her mouth where her red lipstick had smeared. “Yeah, now that you mention it,” she said. “I’d forgotten about that. I hate storms, so I took an Ambien and was out like a light. I didn’t even know about the tornadoes until I was having a late lunch at the club the next day.”

  “Who was here with you in the house?” Jack asked.

  “I don’t know. The house is usually empty in the evenings. The staff only comes during the day, and on certain days of the week. Gardeners, pool guys, housekeepers. The cook comes in every day. And José goes off to his creepy apartment over the garage every night. God knows what he does over there. I was laying out by the pool one day and I looked up, and he was just standing in his window staring at me. I demanded John fire him right away, but John just laughed and told me that was the price of being beautiful.

  “Did Mr. Donnelly ever talk to you about his health?” I asked.

  Kimmie looked confused. “What do you mean?”

  “He was sixty years old,” I said. “Did he have any health problems that you noticed? Did he have regular doctor appointments?”

  “I don’t know,” she said, shrugging. “He’d sometimes get dizzy. He said he’d get these little spots in front of his eyes, and then he’d have to lie down for a few minutes. I just figured he wanted me to pay a little more attention to him.”

  “It was most likely the lack of oxygen getting to his brain,” I said dryly.

  “We didn’t really talk about that stuff,” she said. “He seemed okay to me. Not like a regular sixty-year-old. Most of those guys are old and gross. But I had no idea John was as old as he was when we met. I thought he was in his forties. He was so sexy and commanding. And he never had to take those little pills or anything for sex.

  “I noticed he started getting a little soft around the middle last year, but he’d play golf or racquetball at the club to let off steam. And he was trying to eat better, so he had Maria make low-calorie meals. And a drink every now and then never hurt anybody. The only thing I didn’t like was those stinky cigars, but he’d go out on the terrace and smoke them. You couldn’t ever tell
John to do anything he didn’t want to. He was ninety to nothing all the time. He never slowed down. I had to beg for months to get him to take this vacation. And now it’s ruined.”

  “I’m sure they’d let you change your reservation to one,” Jack said. “Or you could find a friend to go with you.”

  “You think?” she said, completely missing the sarcasm in Jack’s tone.

  “What about plastic surgery?” I asked. “Botox injections.”

  She waved a hand at that and said, “Oh, sure. Everybody does that. Dr. Park takes care of all that. Teddy Park. He and John play golf sometimes. They live directly across from us on the other side of the lake. John said appearances mean just as much in court as good storytelling. The jurors get bored if you don’t keep them entertained.”

  “Our justice system at work,” I said, looking at Jack.

  “Thanks for your time,” Jack said. “We’ll be in touch if we have any other questions. I will ask that you not leave town until I’ve cleared you to go.”

  “I’ll call the resort and have them change the reservation to next week. I’m sure you’ll have it all wrapped up by then. What am I supposed to do about his body? When can I bury him? Who takes care of all that stuff?”

  “I’ve got calls in to his children,” Jack said. “They’re the only next of kin I could find. I’ll let you all know when we’ve released the body.”

  “Next of kin,” she said, shaking her head. “I’m his fiancée. Those brats don’t give a damn about John. But you can bet they’ll be here to loot through the house and steal from me. I’m calling our attorney,” she said, talking to herself more than us at this point. “This house and everything in it is mine. They’ll have to pry it from my cold dead hands.”

  “That should be interesting,” I said under my breath as Jack and I turned to leave.

  “Let’s get out of here,” he said. “My ears are starting to bleed.”