Never Con A Con Man (An Arizona High Country Mystery Book 1)

by Suzanne Floyd

  As part of my job, I do a fair amount of research for anyone who needs help. I guess Max thought I could put that knowledge to work for him.

  Max and the town’s money had been missing for three days, and there still wasn’t any information about what happened. People were getting tense. If the bank had found out where the money went, no one was saying anything. Someone at the bank had to know where the money had been transferred to.

  Max hadn’t called me again. Without hacking into the bank’s records, I wasn’t able to find anything. I had promised Drake and myself that I wouldn’t do that. I had found out their security was seriously lacking though. Any teenager with average computer skills would be able to hack into their system. I had told Drake, but he didn’t seem too impressed.

  “Stay out of this, Holly. If you get caught with your fingers in the bank’s business, I’ll be forced to arrest you.”

  “I haven’t done anything illegal,” I bristled. “You aren’t even listening to me. I’m not a computer expert, but if I found out this information, how long would it take for someone with better skills than mine to hack their system? Isn’t it worth looking into? Maybe this is what happened to the town’s money. Max might not have anything to do with it.” The longer he was missing, the more people believed he was guilty.

  “Then why did he disappear? If he’s innocent, why won’t he come forward?” I didn’t have the answers, but I didn’t want to believe Max would do what they were saying. He wasn’t a thief.

  When I got home that evening, my back door wasn’t locked. I’d been in a hurry when I left, but I was sure I’d locked it. Maybe Bill had stopped by, and left the door unlocked, I told myself. Or maybe he was still here. There isn’t a lot of crime in Pine Mountain, at least until recently, I qualified.

  Pushing the door open, I remained outside ready to run if necessary. “Hello? Bill, are you here?” Everything I could see from my vantage point looked as tidy as I’d left it that morning. If someone had been inside, they hadn’t destroyed anything in the kitchen.

  When Max stepped into my line of sight, I sagged against the door I was holding open. “What are you doing here? How did you get in the house?” For some irrational reason I was whispering. My neighbors were far enough away that no one could hear me even if I screamed.

  “I needed to talk to you, Holly. Has Drake figured out who did this? There should be plenty of clues. What’s taking him so long?” He probably hadn’t showered or shaved since this all began, and his clothes were dirty. It looked like he’d been in a fight. He held his side like his ribs hurt, and the bruises on his face looked fresh.

  “Max, what happened to you? Who beat you up?” I stepped into my kitchen, touching his arm gently.

  “Never mind that, I’ll be okay. But you have to find where the money is before they find me.”

  “Who are you talking about? If you know who did this, you have to tell Drake.”

  “No, I can’t do that. With my background, no one is going to believe me. You have to find the guilty party.” He paced around my kitchen.

  “Me? Max, I can’t hack into the bank files. Drake will arrest me.”

  “No, he wouldn’t do that.” He gave an aborted chuckle, grasping his ribs. “He loves you.” That took my breath away.

  “What are you talking about now? He has never said anything like that to me.” We were getting far off track. He shook his head as if to dismiss that thought.

  “Keep looking, Holly. I’ve left a trail for you to follow. I know you can do this.”

  “What trail? If anyone is going to find the money, it will be someone at the bank, not me. I don’t work for the bank.”

  For a minute he looked worried about that. Giving a shrug, he turned back to me. “You’re good with a computer.” He pointed at my laptop on the desk in the corner. “You know how to look for things.”

  “What things? Max, you’re talking in circles. I don’t know what you expect me to do. I’m not with the police. If you know who did this, you need to tell Drake. How did you get in here?” Maybe there were more important matters to discuss, but I wanted to know if he had a key to my house.

  He shook his head. “You really need to upgrade your locks. Anyone could get in with a credit card.”

  “Wonderful,” I sighed. I hadn’t thought it necessary to have locks like those needed in a large city. I turned my mind back to the issues at hand. “You need to turn yourself in. The longer you stay in hiding, the more convinced people are that you took the money.”

  “I didn’t take it. You have to believe me. I haven’t been the best brother, and I haven’t always done the right thing. But I would never do something like this. I’m not like that anymore.”

  He continued to pace. “This wasn’t supposed to happen,” he muttered. “I can’t believe I fell for their con. After everything I’ve done in my life, how could I fall for this? I’m not going to let them get away with it.” As he paced around the room, he kept muttering to himself.

  “Who, Max? Who are you talking about? You aren’t making any sense. Tell me what’s going on. You need to go to Drake.”

  “No, I can’t do that. Not until I make this right. This will be the final con of the game. My last con,” he finished softly. He stopped pacing, and turned to me. His face was intense, but scared. “You always were smart, Holly. I know you can figure this out if you keep looking. I’ve tried to tell you without getting you involved.”

  “But I will be involved if I look into this,” I argued.

  “I’ve stayed here too long already. I really need to go. Thanks for believing in me.” He kissed my cheek, stepping towards the back door.

  I grabbed his arm before he could leave. “Wait Max. What am I supposed to look for? Where am I supposed to look?” He shook his head. Whatever he was talking about, he was afraid to say anything more. “Please, don’t go. Jim is worried about you. If you won’t turn yourself in, call him. Let him know you’re okay.”

  He kept shaking his head. “I can’t do that, not until this is cleared up. Tell him I’m sorry, for everything.” His eyes were moist now.

  “What do you mean, for everything? Did you take the money?” My voice was harsh now. I didn’t want to believe that, but like most of the people in town it was hard for me not to.

  “No, Holly, no, I keep telling you I didn’t take it. I would never do that. But it’s my fault it’s gone. I should have realized what they were doing before it was too late. Tell Jim I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for this to happen. I thought it was just a game. This time the con man got conned. I’ve tried to protect myself as best I could. I won’t let them get away with it, even if it’s the last thing I do. This will be my last con.” He kept repeating that. “You’re smart, you’ll figure it out.” He pulled his arm out of my grasp, and disappeared out the door.

  “Max,” I called after him, but it was no use. He was gone. How was it his fault if he hadn’t taken the money? For several minutes I debated whether to call Drake. I really didn’t have a choice. If he found out Max had come to me, he would assume I was helping him get away. He might even think I was an accomplice.

  Remembering Max’s words that Drake was in love with me caused my breath to catch in my throat. Did he know what he was talking about? I had to put that aside for now. It was more important to find the money, and clear Max’s name.

  “What do you mean he came to see you? Why didn’t you call me immediately?” Drake barked out the questions.

  “I did call you immediately.” My tone was as sharp as his. “He hasn’t been gone five minutes.”

  “Where did he go?”

  “Out the door. It’s dark, and I couldn’t see where he went once he was past the yard light. You do remember that the forest is in my back yard, right?”

  He grumbled some more. “All right, I’ll be right there.” He disconnected the call without another word.

  He showed up at my door a few short minutes later. He must have broken the land speed rec
ord to get here that fast. “All right, tell me what he said. Why did he come to you? Don’t leave anything out this time either.” His brows lowered over his light-colored eyes.

  He already had my back up, and that comment didn’t help. I tried to remember everything Max said, but his attitude wasn’t helping. My mind was in a jumble. “He said he was sorry for everything.” That was my leadoff comment.

  “What does that mean? What was he talking about?”

  “I don’t know. He didn’t explain, he just said he was sorry. He didn’t take the money, but it was his fault. I tried to get him to turn himself in, but he wouldn’t listen to me.”

  “Did he say where he’s been staying?”

  “No, but I think he’s living in the forest somewhere. He hasn’t shaved or showered, and his clothes were dirty. It looked like he’d been in a fight. He kept holding his ribs like they hurt. He knows who took the money, and it has him really scared.”

  “If he knows who took the money, why won’t he come to me with the information?”

  “He said no one will believe him because of his past.”

  “Why did he come to you?” He always circled around to that point like he was jealous.

  “I don’t know.” I shrugged. Drake was pacing around my kitchen the way Max had a short time ago.

  “What’s he going to do now?”

  “I don’t know. He said I was supposed to follow the trail, and I would figure it out. He kept say ‘they’ did this.”

  “What trail? How can you follow a trail if you don’t know where it is? Who is this mysterious ‘they’?”

  “I don’t know. I don’t know. I don’t know. He said the con man got conned. This was his last con.”

  “What’s that mean?” Much the same as Max had done, Drake ran his fingers through his thick hair, mussing it up further.

  “I. Don’t. Know.” I enunciated each word clearly. He wasn’t listening to me. I wanted to take his shirt in my hands and shake him. Or kiss him. Whoa. Where did that thought come from? I took a step back to avoid temptation.

  “What? You remember something.” Drake gripped my shoulders, holding me in place.

  “No. I didn’t remember anything.” Including the fact that I need to keep some space between us, I finished silently. I almost did the unthinkable. “I’ve told you everything he said. I don’t know anything else.” Did Max know what he was talking about when he said Drake was in love with me? I had to put that aside until we could find the money and prove Max was innocent.

  CHAPTER THREE

  Two days later the shrill scream of sirens filled the air as I made my way to the library. Police cars and an ambulance raced past me. Something bad had happened. Probably a car accident, I told myself. Motorcyclists liked to race on the mountainous roads. Sometimes they forgot to slow down when they entered the town. In the short time I’d been back in Pine Mountain, there had been one fatal motorcycle crash.

  Turning the corner to the school parking lot near the library, all access was blocked off. Cars and students were lined up waiting to get into the lot. “Please, God, don’t let it be one of the students,” I whispered. Teenagers tended to think they were invincible, doing all sorts of crazy things.

  Uniformed officers were milling around behind the library. If someone had broken in, as Head Librarian, I should have been called. But if it was a break in, why was an ambulance needed? I had a bad feeling about this.

  Spotting Drake across the parking lot, I stepped out of my car. Walking up to the young officer manning the police tape, I tried to smile, but my face felt stiff. “I’m sorry, Holly, you need to stay out here.” He spoke before I could say anything. He looked familiar, but I couldn’t remember his name. He was about my age. If he’d lived here a long time, we’d probably gone to school together.

  “I’m not trying to go anywhere, I was just wondering what’s going on? Was there a break-in?” The badge pinned to his shirt said his name was J. Babcock.

  “Um, ah, no,” he stammered. His evasive answer caused my stomach to churn. He couldn’t look at me when he answered. With this much police presence, it couldn’t be good. Officer Babcock looked around, hoping to find someone a little further up the food chain to help him out.

  “Did one of the students get hurt?”

  “Um, that’s not it. You need to stay here.” He looked over his shoulder again. Seeing Drake striding across the parking lot towards us, he gave an audible sigh of relief. I thought I might have heard a whispered “Thank God” in there.

  “I’ll take it from here, Jamie.” Drake nodded his head, releasing him from guarding the tape perimeter. He couldn’t disappear fast enough. I wasn’t aware I was so intimidating. Or maybe it wasn’t me. Drake didn’t look very happy. A muscle in his jaw jumped as he gritted his teeth.

  “What’s going on? He said there wasn’t a break-in at the library. Did one of the students get hurt?” I asked him the same question I’d put to Jamie. I was just getting to know the students, but those I had worked with were nice young people. I didn’t want anything to happen to any of them.

  Taking my arm, he led me away from the growing crowd of onlookers. “We found Max,” he said softly.

  “Was he hurt? What happened to him? I told you he was scared.” I wasn’t giving him a chance to answer, but I was afraid of what he was going to say. The look on his face said it all.

  “I’m sorry, Holly. His body was discovered behind the library by two of the students.” I covered my mouth to keep the gasp from escaping. My eyes burned with unshed tears. “It looks like he was recently in some sort of a fight.”

  “I told you he looked like he’d been in a fight.” I couldn’t wrap my mind around any of this. “Did he die from his injuries?” Guilt ate at me. I should have pressed him harder to turn himself in, to go to a doctor.

  Drake hesitated for several beats before answering. “No. He was shot twice.”

  I could no longer hold in the tears that had been threatening. I swiped at them with my hand. Max was his uncle. This had to be harder on him than it was on me. “Does your dad know?”

  He shook his head. “Not yet. I’ve been tied up here. I need to go tell him before someone else does.” He looked over my shoulder, his mind on that hard conversation.

  “Do you know who…did this?” I couldn’t get the word murder past my closed throat.

  “Not yet, but I will find out. I promise. I know you didn’t believe he embezzled the town money, but…” His words trailed off.

  “What? What aren’t you telling me?”

  “He had some money with him, a lot of it.”

  “That doesn’t mean anything. It could be his money, not the town’s. He needed money to survive until he could prove he was innocent.” I didn’t want him to be guilty.

  Drake shook his head. “No, Holly, he wouldn’t have that much cash on him.”

  “How much did you find?”

  “At least ten thousand dollars,” he said on a sigh. “A drop in the bucket when you think how much is still missing.”

  Ten thousand dollars wouldn’t go far to keep the town running. Hopefully, Drake would be able to locate the rest of the missing money before long. “Why did he have that much cash on him?”

  Drake shrugged his broad shoulders. “I don’t have any answers yet. Hopefully, when we locate the rest of the money I’ll have the answers I need.” My heart went out to him. It couldn’t be easy investigating his uncle’s murder.

  “We’re going to be here for a while yet. I’ve already notified the school principal. The students and faculty will need to park somewhere else until we’re done. You can open the library, but everyone will have to stay away from our crime scene.”

  He drew a ragged breath. “I need to go see Dad now.” As he turned away his shoulders slumped with the weight of what he had to do next. I couldn’t imagine having to tell someone his brother had been murdered. Watching him walk away, my heart went with him.

  What was Max doing
with ten thousand dollars in cash? Where would he get that much money? Unless he really had embezzled the money, the thought popped into my head. I quickly shook it off.

  No, Max wouldn’t do that to the town, or to Jim, I told myself. He had been scared when he came to see me. He’d done something he was sorry for, but I didn’t believe it was embezzlement. I was convinced that he knew who took it though.

  Within minutes people began speculating on who killed him. The embezzlement of the town’s money offered a motive. But was it the real thief, or someone angry about the missing money? Wally Miller came to mind.

  A ghoulish excitement settled over the students. The boys who found Max’s body now had a macabre kind of celebrity. Teenagers don’t look at murder and death the way adults do, I guess.

  It was one of our busiest days since I started working at the library. Because I was still considered part of the Cox family, teachers and students alike came to me seeking answers and offering condolences. Unfortunately, I didn’t have any answers for them, but I welcomed the sympathy. When Drake was able to make some kind of announcement, he’d call a press conference, or in the case of our town, a town hall meeting. Until then I was in the dark as much as anyone else.

  Drake came into the library mid-morning to let me know the crime scene techs were leaving. “We’re still going to be working there for a few more hours though. Until I can release the scene, people will need to stay away.”

  “Were you able to find anything to tell you who killed him?”

  He shook his head. “It’s going to take time to sift through everything.” We had gone into the office so we wouldn’t be overheard.

  “This proves he didn’t take the money, doesn’t it?” I asked hopefully.

  He shook his head, causing that lock of hair to fall over his forehead again. My fingers itched to put it back in place. I gripped them tightly to keep them from doing just that. “It just proves someone wanted him dead. Have you figured out what trail you were supposed to follow?”