The Sarah Woods Mystery Series (Volume 7)

by Jennifer L. Jennings

  “It’s possible, but nobody has come forward.”

  “If I may, what was your impression of Blake and Gail as a couple?”

  He paused, eyes narrowing in apprehension. “You want my honest opinion?”

  “That’s why I asked.”

  “I don’t like to speak ill of the dead, but I think Blake saw an opportunity and dove in.”

  “Meaning, he was using her?”

  He nodded. “I never told Gail how I felt, because she seemed so happy with him, but I knew she’d get her heart broken, eventually. Gail might seem like a confident, prideful woman, but underneath that tough exterior, she’s fragile.”

  “Sounds like you’re a little protective of Gail. I think it’s sweet.”

  “We might not be married anymore, but I’m still fond of her. I want her to be happy.”

  I observed his features and decided he was telling the truth. “Whose decision was it to get a divorce?”

  “It was a mutual decision,” he said. “We didn’t even hire lawyers.”

  “Man, how rare is that? I mean, that’s impressive.”

  He deflected the compliment. “It works for us. Believe me, there was an adjustment period, but now we are on the same page.”

  “Getting back to the night of the event, did you happen to notice if Blake seemed distracted or upset? Maybe he and Gail had an argument.”

  “I don’t know, you’d have to ask her. Like I said before, I was busy mingling with the clients.”

  I thought it was a little strange how he felt the need to mention how busy he’d been at the party with his guests. “Did your wife accompany you to the event?”

  “Yes,” he said with hesitation. “She was there. Why?”

  “No particular reason.”

  I sensed that Kevin was growing impatient because he kept glancing at his computer screen. It was time to wrap this up, and I had to make my last question count. “I know you were busy entertaining clients, but did you happen to notice who Blake was talking to most of the night?”

  “No, I can’t help you out there. Now, is there anything else you need from me?”

  “As a matter of fact, I’d love to get a list of clients that attended the event, if it’s not too much trouble.”

  “There were over fifty people. Is that really necessary?”

  “I like to be thorough.”

  He pursed his lips, and I thought he would decline my request, but a few seconds later he nodded. “Fine. On your way out, ask Carla to print out the guest list for you.”

  I thanked him for his time and promptly left his office.

  Back out in the lobby, I approached the woman at the reception desk. “Is your name Carla?”

  She glanced up at me from her computer monitor. “Yes, can I help you with something?”

  I told her about the list, and she agreed to print it out for me.

  “By the way,” I said to her. “I was told that you hired the caterers and the bartender for the event. Could I also have that information?”

  “Sure.” Her expression was strained, like she was trying to be polite, but inside she was annoyed at the inconvenience.

  While she tapped away on the keyboard, I asked, “Did you also attend the event?”

  Without moving her eyes away from the computer screen, she nodded. “I was there to help set up, but I didn’t stay for the entire time.”

  Carla was probably in her mid-forties with graying hair. She struck me as a dutiful and efficient office manager. She could have a conversation with me, while typing a mile a minute on the keyboard with no problem. I wondered how long she’d been with the company.

  Within a few minutes she was handing me the printout.

  “That was fast,” I said. “Thank you so much.”

  “Is there anything else I can do for you?”

  “If I may ask, how well did you know Blake Pratt?”

  At the mention of his name, her expression changed as she nonchalantly glanced towards Kevin’s office. “I’d only met him on few occasions.”

  “What was your impression of him?”

  “I didn’t know him well enough to form an opinion.”

  I took a step back and tried to analyze her vague response. Here was a no-nonsense woman with little time for platitudes. In a way, it was refreshing. However, I also sensed her unease at the questions being tossed at her about Blake.

  I wanted to push for more information, but I could tell she was not receptive. I thanked her for the list and headed out.

  Chapter 7

  As soon as I left the offices of Langdon Insurance, I sat inside my car and studied the list that Carla had given me.

  There were fifty-three guests that had attended the event, including spouses. I lamented the thought of having to call each one of them with questions about Blake.

  I decided to start with the bartender, Adam Carr. I left a brief message on his voicemail, stating the importance of his return call. Then I called the caterer’s, The Divine Chef, and had to leave another message.

  By the time I got home, it was almost eleven and I was starved. As usual, I had forgotten to go grocery shopping, so there wasn’t much to choose from. I found a jar of peanut butter and some stale crackers. As I was making myself a cracker sandwich, the knock on the door startled me.

  “Sarah? You decent? I’m coming in.”

  It was the sound of Jackie’s voice, my old neighbor and wine drinking buddy. As much as I loved Jackie, she had an annoying habit of showing up out of the blue. “I’m in the kitchen. Want a sandwich?”

  “No thanks.” She was practically huffing and puffing when she walked into the kitchen. She breezed by me, plopped down on a chair, extending her legs in a gesture of collapse. “I’m too tired to eat, if you can believe that.”

  Jackie, in the three years I’d known her, had never passed up an offer of food. “Have you been out running? I thought you despised running.”

  The pink jogging suit was a size too small for her plump figure, but that’s how Jackie wore all of her clothing, especially the tops. She liked to show off her impressive bosom.

  “I’m determined to get fit by next summer. Guess why.”

  I sat down at the kitchen table and stuffed a cracker in my mouth. “Just tell me.”

  “I’m going on a cruise next September, and you’re going with me.”

  I laughed, assuming this was a joke. “Oh, really? And where is this cruise going?”

  “The Mediterranean, of course. And don’t tell me you can’t afford it, because it’s already paid for.”

  “How?”

  “I won this raffle at work, which is crazy because I’ve never won anything in my life. Can you believe it?”

  “What’s the catch?”

  “There is no catch. The cruise and the airfare are included, so all you have to do is take a week off and buy a new bikini.”

  “I wouldn’t be caught dead in a bikini, thank you.”

  “Whatever you want to wear is fine with me. In fact, wear a plastic garbage bag if you want. But you can’t say no.”

  Jackie was a perpetually single gal in her forties who didn’t mind being single, most of the time. With her wild black hair and extra gregarious nature, she probably scared most men away. “What about that guy you were dating a few weeks ago?”

  “Larry? We broke up last weekend, remember?”

  “Sorry, I can’t keep track of your love life.”

  “I don’t blame you,” she said. “I can barely keep track of it myself. So, what do you say? Barcelona, South of France, Italy … you can’t pass that up.”

  I was going to suggest that she ask a friend from work, but she seemed so excited for me to go with her. “Can you give me a day or two to think about it?”

  Her shoulders slumped. “Seriously?”

  “OK, fine, I’ll go.”

  She jumped up out of her chair and almost broke the table in the process. “Yes! We are going to have a blast.” She wrapped her arm
s around my neck and squeezed.

  “I hate to kick you out, but I have to get back to work. Not sure how it happened, but I have two jobs I’m working at the same time.”

  “Anything interesting?”

  I decided not to mention the job with Max; she would freak out and demand to know the details. “Not really.”

  “Well, now that our trip is officially happening, I need to go shopping.”

  “Shopping for the cruise?” I said. “It’s a year away.”

  “I like to get a head start.”

  After Jackie left, I could’ve used a nap. Her energy was all consuming and sometimes exhausting. Yet, I had to admit, I was kind of excited for the trip.

  After lunch, I still hadn’t heard back from the bartender so I decided to do a quick internet search on Adam Carr. Thankfully, there was only one guy by that name living in Bridgeport. His Facebook profile picture showed a young guy in his early twenties with blonde spiky hair. His latest post indicated that he had to work an afternoon shift at Appleby’s, but would then be available to party Saturday night. The closest Appleby’s was only ten minutes away, so I grabbed my purse and car keys.

  Chapter 8

  When I got to Appleby’s around two o’clock, I noticed Adam behind the bar, chatting with a customer. I chose a seat at the far end of the bar and sat by myself. Thankfully, the lunch crowd was thinning and I’d soon have an opportunity to ask Adam some questions about the event.

  The opportunity didn’t arise until almost three-o’clock when Adam ended his shift. I was afraid he might leave the restaurant before I had the chance to confront him, but as luck would have it, he took a seat at the bar, two stools away from me, to enjoy a bottle of Corona.

  “Now, you have the right idea,” I said to him with a thumbs up. “There’s nothing better than a cold brewsky at the end of a long shift.”

  He looked up at me and smiled. “You got that right.”

  I left my stool and moved closer to him. The way he eyed me with interest, he probably thought I was going to hit on him.

  “Mind if I ask you a few questions, Adam?”

  He blinked once and tilted his head, eyes scanning me hard, probably trying to figure out if we knew each other. “What kind of questions?”

  “About the event you bartended a few weeks ago at the Bridgeport Convention Center. Langdon Insurance hosted it.”

  “Yeah, what about it?”

  “You must’ve heard there was a car accident that night. A guy was killed.”

  “Yeah, I know about that. The cops already asked me about that Blake guy.”

  “Is it true that he stole a bottle of Scotch?”

  He gave me another trepidatious look. “Wait, who are you, again?”

  I reached into my purse and pulled out my Private Investigator’s license. “Blake’s mom hired me.”

  As he examined the card, his mouth fell open. “Why?”

  I explained how Blake had been sober for almost a year. “So, do you have any idea why he’d steal that bottle of Scotch?”

  “Look, it’s not my fault that he got drunk and killed himself.”

  His defensive attitude was noted. “I’m not saying that you’re responsible for what happened to Blake, but I’m curious; did you leave the bar at any time to give him the opportunity to take the Scotch?”

  Adam took a sip of beer as if stalling on an answer. Finally, he sighed with contempt. “I didn’t leave my post, but I was the only bartender. I was slammed most of the night, and I was too busy to keep track of everyone hovering around.”

  “Was Blake hovering around the bar area while you were making drinks for the guests?”

  “Not a lot. I mean, he came over a few times to get refills on his ginger ale, but I never saw him take a bottle of Scotch.”

  “Yet, you can’t explain why a bottle went missing?”

  “No, I can’t.”

  For a brief moment, I wondered if Adam had stolen the Scotch and found it convenient to blame the incident on Blake. If that were true, he would never admit it, no matter how hard I pushed. Time to change the topic before he got up and left.

  “Had you met Blake before that night?” I asked.

  “Sort of. We went to the same high school, but I was a year behind him. He didn’t remember me, but I remembered him.”

  “Was Blake popular in high school?”

  “Oh yeah. He slept with every hot girl in the school.”

  His tone was a mix of jealousy and reverence, and I wondered if Blake had slept with a girl that Adam had fancied back in high school. “What was your impression of Blake and Gail’s relationship?”

  “I don’t know about Gail, but Blake was talking to some hottie most of the night.”

  “Really? What did she look like?”

  “Blonde hair, long legs, nice shelf.”

  “Shelf?”

  “Boobs,” he said, as if I should know better.

  “Ah, right. So, did you happen to catch her name?”

  “No, but I remember what she was drinking all night. Grapefruit martinis.”

  “Would you say that Blake and this blonde woman were flirting?”

  “Oh, yeah! She kept putting her hands on his biceps and chest, like she was feeling his muscles. It was pretty obvious they were flirting.”

  “Was there ever a point during the night when you noticed both of them gone?”

  He chuckled. “You think they had a quickie in the restroom, or something?”

  “It’s happened before.”

  He shook his head. “I don’t remember.”

  If Gail had noticed Blake’s flirtation with the blonde, that could have sparked an argument and potentially some threats. If she threatened to break off the relationship, that may have driven him to drink.

  Then again, maybe Gail was too busy entertaining her clients to notice that Blake was flirting with a beautiful blonde. Hard to believe, but still possible.

  Once Adam had finished his beer, he declared that he was going home to take a shower. I gave him my card and thanked him for his time.

  * * *

  When I left Appleby’s around three, I headed back to Langdon Insurance with the idea of catching Carla as she was leaving work for the day. I had no idea what time she normally left, but maybe she got out early on Saturday’s. There was only one car left in the lot; an old brown Subaru Outback. I couldn’t imagine it was Kevin’s, so there was a good chance that it was Carla’s.

  I could have gone inside, but I hung tight inside my car in the parking lot for forty-five minutes. Around four-fifteen, I saw her come out of the double glass doors, carrying a worn out leather purse.

  I exited my car and met her at the Subaru. When she noticed it was me, her eyes deflected, as if wanting to pretend I wasn’t there.

  “Ms. Carla?” I said cordially. “I know you’re probably eager to get home, but I really need your help.”

  She opened her car door and tossed her purse inside. “I’m sorry, but I don’t have time.”

  “Just a few questions, I promise.”

  She made an exaggerated huffing sound, to make sure I knew it was an inconvenience.

  “Thanks. I just spoke with the bartender from the event, and he told me that Blake was talking with one of your company’s clients. I’m hoping you can tell me her name. She’s tall, blonde, and I’m told she has a nice shelf.”

  She blinked in confusion. “I beg your pardon?”

  “Big boobs. Anyway, since you were at the event, I figured you might know who the woman was.”

  Her body tensed for a brief moment and her expression deepened into a frown. “Maybe you should discuss this with Mr. Haas.”

  Why would I want to discuss this with Kevin, specifically? Only one reason made sense. “I think I understand, now. The blonde is Kevin’s wife. Her name is Nina, right?”

  Her silence suggested I was.

  “I’m beginning to get the picture,” I said. “Kevin’s wife and Blake were getting cozy wi
th each other at the event. Funny that nobody seems to want to talk about that, and I can understand.”

  “It wasn’t like that. They were just talking.”

  “The bartender claims that the blonde was all over Blake, touching his chest and arms repeatedly. I’ll bet the bartender wasn’t the only person to notice these displays of affection.”

  “It was a hectic night, and most of the guests were drinking,” she said, her tone becoming more defensive. “Everyone was having a good time. That’s what people do at parties.”

  “Do you think Gail noticed the flirtation was going on?”

  “I think you may be blowing the situation out of proportion.”

  “Maybe you’re right. And I certainly can’t ask you to talk behind your boss’s backs. You seem to be a loyal employee, and I admire that. I’m not trying to get anyone in trouble. If Blake drank alcohol before he drove, then he’s the only one to blame for the accident. I just want to help his mom make peace with it so she can move on. You can understand that, right?”

  Her features softened. “Yes, I suppose I can. I have two kids who will be driving in a few years and I worry about that every single day. Now, if that’s all, I really need to head home.”

  “Sure, I appreciate your help.”

  Chapter 9

  I sat in my car as I watched Carla drive away. When I checked my phone, there was a message from Sue-Ellen looking for an update on the case. A pit formed in my stomach as I dialed her number because I still had no concrete answers for her.

  “Hi Sue-Ellen, it’s Sarah Woods calling you back.”

  “Oh, thank you for returning my call. I hate to be a pest.”

  “No problem. I still haven’t found anyone who actually saw Blake drinking that night, but I still have a long list of people to call. However, the bartender mentioned something of interest.”

  “What?”

  “He noticed that Blake was flirting with a woman most of the night. Gail’s ex-husband’s wife.”