Murder on the Equator Box Set

by Becca Bloom

  "They do." He pulled out a wallet from his pocket, letting a long string of pictures fall down to touch the floor. "You want to see them?"

  All of the students scooted around to see. Except for me. All I could do was lean forward an inch and try not to wince.

  We saw his daughters and several pictures of his seven grandchildren. They were a handsome family.

  Tie-dye girl said, "Wow, it must be nice to have such a large family."

  "It's nice. We're a tight-knit family. I miss my girls sometimes, but they're always welcome to visit us here," said Esmeralda.

  "Don't you go back to visit them every now and then?" asked another student.

  Hugo and Esmeralda exchanged a look before Hugo answered. "No. We're content with our life here and are too old to become a couple of jet setters." They looked at each other again, making me wonder why they didn't go back to their family if they were so close. Or maybe they couldn't go back…

  I shook my head to clear my thoughts. Seriously, I needed to stop stumbling over dead bodies. I was becoming too suspicious.

  "Did your daughters become teachers like you?" I asked, preparing myself to miss my family all the more on hearing about the Santorinis'.

  "No. All three of them became Realtors. My cousin Vinny has an office and they do well enough on their commissions."

  "Your cousin Vinny?" I repeated because I couldn't help it.

  "Good movie," commented another student.

  "Yeah, like I've never heard that before," countered Hugo, looking up at the clock above his head. "Let's begin our class. Appropriately, our lesson today is about family. Did all of you study the vocabulary before class?"

  I hadn't had the chance, but I wasn't about to admit as much unless someone else did. Not with the way Hugo stared at each of us. The afternoon sun flooded through the front window of the apartment as the clouds parted. I thought for sure Hugo would see the uncertainty in my face with the improved lighting in the room, but it must have blinded him instead. Nobody else raised their hands. I'd just have to curb my participation today.

  My plan worked well. Thanks to my association with Sylvia and her family, I winged it through class without making any obvious mistakes. Of course, with the electricity out and the sun shining through the windows, the inside of the school turned into a humid greenhouse, making it difficult for any of us to concentrate. I fanned my face with my list of "to be" verbs.

  Esmeralda got up, looking worriedly at her freezer, and pulled it open. The cool air must have felt good because she lingered, fanning her face as the cool vapor swirled around her.

  "Honey, don't stand there too long. The carbon dioxide in the dry ice is dangerous in enclosed spaces," warned Hugo.

  My pulse sped up at his comment. I tried to look at him without looking like I was looking at him. His eyes held steady, not shifting around like someone who hid something (like a body in a freezer).

  Esmeralda closed the freezer and joined us. "You're right. No amount of rum raisin ice cream is worth the temporary relief from the heat."

  "For real? I didn't know that," said tie-dye girl.

  "Oh, yeah, it's nasty stuff. One of my other cousins, Carlos, has an Italian restaurant with a big, walk-in freezer. One winter, the whole city had a blackout and a young buck who thought he'd get on Carlos’ good side — you know, maybe earn a raise — was stupid and managed to trap himself inside when he stayed behind to close. They found him the next morning. It was awful."

  So, Hugo had plenty of experience with dry ice. And his family was sounding more and more like "family." Maybe Abuelita was right.

  I wouldn't get involved, but it couldn't hurt to call Agent Vasquez just to ask if he'd checked out the Santorinis. After what I'd heard, I was anxious to leave but also excited that I might have uncovered the clue necessary to solve the case. Maybe, if I helped without involving myself, Agent Vasquez would stop threatening me.

  I thanked Hugo and Esmeralda, content in the knowledge that my next class wasn't until Monday. If they were guilty, they'd be in prison by then. Still, I managed to back out of their apartment without taking my eyes off them as I left.

  Circling back around the block to go through the side door to Adi's apartment, I pulled out my cell phone and dialed Agent Vasquez’s number. After repeating everything I'd seen and heard, I heard him hiss in his breath as if he struggled to control it.

  "Miss James, I sincerely hope this is as involved as you get. I appreciate your call, but allow me to reassure you that I am aware of what you have mentioned with the exception of the Santorinis' first-hand knowledge of the effects of the carbon dioxide in dry ice."

  "So … are they cleared? You checked Hugo’s alibi?" I ventured to ask.

  "I'm not telling you, but believe me when I say that I am making progress in my investigation and have every expectation of making an arrest soon. All I need from you is to wait for my call about the laptop."

  "So Hugo didn't do it?" I pressed.

  "Goodbye, Miss James." The line went dead.

  Whatever. I'd done my duty without crossing the line and I felt good about that. Moving the bridesmaids’ gowns out of the way of my closet, I opened the first drawer and dove my hands through the layers of fabric samples for Victor's laptop. I'd hid it under there, not wanting to be responsible for the theft of his computer if someone happened to break in while I had it. Maybe it was me being too paranoid, but I'd heard stories … and there was a reason I had three keys on my alpaca llama key chain for the three locks on Adi's front door.

  Adi had shown me where she kept her stash of tools. They were in her room in a drawer on the stand she kept her sewing machine on. I hadn't been inside her room before, wanting to respect her space as much as possible during my stay here.

  Her door only opened part way, but I dared not shove against it, not knowing what was on the other side. So I squeezed through the small space and felt my breath catch in my throat at the claustrophobic sight before me.

  Swatting a crinoline out of my way, I moved gowns of silk, satin, taffeta, and every other fabric known to man out of my way in search of the sewing machine. How on earth did Adi find anything in this room? She even had lengths of sequins strung together hanging from her ceiling fan.

  At the same time I was filled with awe at the volume of gowns, trimmings, and bolts of fabric in her room, I was also filled with guilt that she was willing to live this cramped just so I could stay in her spare room. She definitely needed her own studio.

  Wading my way through her room, I finally found the table with her sewing machine. Pulling open the top drawer, I looked for a screwdriver tiny enough to undo the screws holding the bottom casing to Victor's laptop.

  Choosing the smallest tool available, I made it back to the door without stepping on anything important or rearranging her carefully placed gowns. “Carefully placed” may not be the best phrase, but I didn’t want to assume there wasn’t some order to the chaos of her textiles.

  Shutting her door, I leaned against it in relief, feeling as if I'd just traipsed through the jungle and made it out alive.

  Next, I grabbed Victor's computer and placed it on the counter top in the kitchen. The screwdriver did its job and I wrote down the model of RAM so I could see if the computer store down the street had what I needed. If Agent Vasquez called, I'd be ready. His head would spin with how fast I could get the computer to him.

  I put the computer back together and tucked it away in the drawer I'd taken it from. Doubling the paper over, I stuffed it in my pocket and grabbed Lady's leash.

  Together we headed down the main street until we stood in front of CompuMundo, a tiny hole-in-the-wall computer shop crammed with components and accessories within a space the size of my kitchenette in my Portland apartment. The glass door squished between two display cases with a mix of tablets, laptops, and cell phones was open, no doubt to welcome in customers as well as any cooling breeze which might pass by. It was strange to me that in such a hot and humid place
, air conditioners were rare.

  Looping the end of Lady's leash around a statue of Yoda warning off shoplifters with a lightsaber in the doorway, I went inside.

  Chapter 14

  A guy who looked to be in his late twenties or early thirties looked up from his monitor behind the counter.

  "Good afternoon. My name's Diego. How can I help you?" he asked.

  Yay! He spoke English.

  "Hi, I'm Jessica."

  "Jake and Adi's visitor from the States?"

  "That's me," I said, not knowing whether to be flattered or creeped out that people I didn't know knew who I was.

  Diego snickered. "You're not used to small towns, are you? Everyone knows everyone and everything around here. We get a lot of tourists to add some excitement, but all of us locals know what's going on with each other."

  "I guess that's nice."

  "It is most of the time. What can I get for you?"

  I pulled out the paper with the RAM model I needed and placed it on the glass counter. "I have a laptop that I suspect needs a boost in RAM. Do you have this?"

  He glanced down at it, raised his finger in the air, and said, "One moment please," as he turned to go down a short aisle of open shelves loaded with various pieces and components.

  I leaned against the counter and looked apologetically at Lady, who sat in the shade and whimpered if it was time to leave already. It would be a miracle for anybody to find anything on those disorganized shelves. I saw no labels or strategic order. Screens were next to cell phone chargers, boxes of cell phones next to mouse pads, wireless keyboards next to battery packs. Jessenia would have a fit in a place like this. I could see her trying to crawl over the counter with her labeling gun in an attempt to organize the chaos in my imagination, when in reality, the guy returned with the exact piece I needed before I could finish wondering about his messy shelves.

  "Wow, that was fast," I said.

  He laughed. "My sister hates it, but I wouldn't know where anything was if she tried to rearrange it."

  "My older sister was so good at organizing things, I convinced her to turn it into a business. She's doing rather well with it too."

  Diego looked around at his shelves, a look of horror on his face. "She's not going to come visit, too, is she?"

  "No, you're safe," I said, laughing.

  He looked genuinely relieved. "Good, now, tell me what you need this piece for. It's spendy and I don't want you to waste your money when you might need something else."

  I told him about Victor's computer (without naming names as per Agent Vasquez’s instructions) and what Roberto had told me happened when he tried to start it up.

  Diego frowned. "This is for Victor, isn’t it?”

  I started. I hadn’t said that.

  “Small town, remember? Edgar swung by here on his way back from the store with a question about viruses only to return an hour later to tell me that Victor was dead and his computer was missing. He thinks that whatever is on the computer will reveal who the killer is. I agreed with him until now. Well," he stretched forward over the counter, looking up and down the street. Lowering his voice, he said, "If it might help catch Victor's killer, I'll sell it to you at cost. Just don't tell my sister or she'll have my head."

  "That's awfully kind of you, but I'm sure the police division will take care of it. Just please don’t tell anyone I have it. I’m under strict orders not to say anything."

  He looked at me, shaking his head in sympathy. "My lips are sealed. I tell you what. Take the piece and see if the RAM is the problem. If you keep the piece, then I'll only charge you what I paid for it. If it ends up being something else, then bring it in and I'll help you work on it. Although, from the sounds of things, you don't really need my help. I just like to have an excuse to get out from behind the cash register."

  "That's generous. Deal," I said, extending my hand to shake his before he could change his mind or his sister could return.

  It couldn't hurt to install the extra memory in the computer and see if it ran smoothly before Agent Vasquez called. I'd probably be too busy to do it tomorrow if he needed my help anyway. And with Diego's offer, I wouldn't be out any money if I needed to return it.

  I saw Edgar walking down the sidewalk a few paces ahead of me on my way back. His shoulders were slumped and, even though I really didn't want to stop to chat with him, he looked like he needed some good news in a bad way.

  "Edgar," I called, waving at him when he turned around.

  "Hey, Jessica. What're you up to? Have you found anything out yet? I thought I saw Agent Vasquez by the restaurant earlier."

  "No. Nothing. I take it, you haven't heard anything either?"

  If it was possible for him to slump further, he did it. "No. I hate to move on before things have been settled, but I need to find another job. I just feel so guilty. I worked for Victor and his family for so long, and they treated me so well…" his sentence trailed off and he looked absently down the street lined with shops and various eateries. "I went to the store for more cream because Victor had forgotten to call the dairy for our order, and when I came back," he swiped a hand through the air, "he was gone. Just like that."

  “On your day off?”

  He shrugged his shoulders. “Victor was talking about making me a partner. He felt bad relying so heavily on Roberto when he already has his hands full, and I know the business better than anyone else. It was the opportunity I’d been waiting for and I wanted to let him know I was willing to dedicate my time to the improvement of the shop. As it turns out, I’ll have to start from the bottom again.”

  There were more victims than Victor in this murder. Since Edgar brought it up and he was obviously determined to bring the killer to justice, I decided it couldn't hurt to ask a couple more questions. It wasn't investigating. I was just curious.

  "Had Roberto already left when you went to the store?"

  "He left almost as soon as I showed up. I helped Victor load up the rest of the ice cream into the freezer before it all melted. The brick was in the doorway when I left for the store. I wasn't gone for very long. Only long enough to buy the cream and ask Diego at CompuMundo a quick question. When I came back, Adi was sending customers away."

  I was happy to hear he had an alibi. Diego had said he’d seen Edgar on his way back from the store. It made me all the happier to mention the booth. "If you feel up to it, I volunteered to do a table for the fundraiser. I'm going to sell doughnuts. It's not ice cream, but it would be a great opportunity for you to get your mind off Victor's murder and impress the other businesses with your skills. What do you say? Can you help me run the booth for a good cause?"

  His face lit up. "That sounds perfect. Thank you so much."

  We discussed the details as we continued to the restaurant. My morning would begin insanely early to have enough time for the dough to rise twice, but the event didn't officially start until eight. Edgar decided it would be best to show up at seven to make sure everything was set up properly and take orders from early bird customers.

  He was so excited, I had a difficult time separating myself from him. Lady gave me the perfect excuse to dismiss myself when she tugged on the leash and barked toward the restaurant. It was getting close to dinner time and if I wanted to get any work done on the laptop before breaking into Abuelita's house, I needed to get started.

  Raising my brown paper bag on one hand and Lady's leash on the other, I said, "I'd better get going. See you tomorrow?"

  "Yes. I'll be there. Thank you so much."

  Lady dragged me to the metal side door. "Calm down, Lady. What's going on?"

  I struggled to unclasp the leash as she squirmed and tugged. Once she was free, she ran up the stairs, raised up on her hind legs, and scratched at the door, jumping up and down and yelping.

  "What is it?" I asked, pulling out my keys. The locks hadn't been messed with. No windows were broken on this side of the apartment. And then I remembered leaving my bedroom window open. It wasn't the o
ne that faced the street, but the one that overlooked the backyard. It would take an acrobat with a hefty ladder to get in, but I suppose it could happen.

  Deciding it best not to go alone in an apartment my dog was freaking out about, I ran down the stairs toward the kitchen. Maybe Abuelita would let me borrow her rolling pin.

  Bursting through the screen door, I bounced off Jake, losing my footing. I would have fallen backward through the door had he not caught me.

  "Whoa, Jess, what's the big hurry?" he asked, moving his hands to steady me.

  "I forgot to close my window before I left and Lady is scratching at the door and barking like there's something inside." Or someone.

  "You'd better go check it out, Jake," said Sylvia.

  Abuelita grabbed her trusty rolling pin and handed it to him. "Take this. If it a man, hit hard."

  Sylvia, Abuelita, Tia Rosa, and Adi followed us outside, waiting on the flagstones at the bottom of the steps. Adi had her cell phone out, no doubt ready to call the police.

  "You got your keys?" she whispered up to me.

  I answered by pulling them out. Carefully inserting them into the locks, I opened the door as quietly as I could.

  Jake went in front of me, but I stuck to his back, not wanting to stand alone at the top of the stairs and feeling I should offer my support. I was probably more of a liability than a helper, but it's hard to think clearly when you think your apartment has a burglar inside it.

  We stepped inside and something black swooped in front of my face, chirping and flapping its wings. I screamed before I could stop myself. Lady pushed between me and Jake, barking and jumping up at the little bird.

  "Are you okay?" I heard from outside.

  I laughed. "It's only a bird. No wonder Lady was so intent on getting inside."

  Footsteps clambered up the stairs and all four ladies tried to get through the door at the same time. They looked frantic, so I repeated, "It's only a bird. It must have flown in through my window."