Corpse Pose

by Diana Killian

  Chloe drew herself up tall, her face flushed with anger, her eyes bright. “I don’t care what you think anymore, Jennifer. Di was right. You’re a sad, unhappy, lonely person who only cares about herself.”

  Jennifer went rigid. “Oh yeah? We’ll see who’s pathetic when you’re in jail for killing Di!”

  Taking its cue from Jennifer’s agitated voice, Fritz the German shepherd lunged at Chloe. Chloe started back and fell over her beagle, which let out a heart-rending shriek and went scrabbling away, dragging his leash.

  “Jeeeezus,” A.J. exclaimed. She tried to push through the dogs and people toward the quarreling young women.

  Fritz started off in hot pursuit after the beagle, and several of the other dogs decided to join in the fun, dragging their human owners with them. The double doors in the back of the room swung open, and Lily narrowly stepped out of the way as the beagle dived through the doorway followed seconds later by Fritz and a pack of yapping dogs and protesting owners.

  Not that A.J. had time to notice, let alone deal with that disaster, as she was occupied with trying to haul Jennifer off of Chloe.

  Chloe was squealing and writhing while Jennifer swore an ugly stream of invective, grabbing clumps of the other girl’s hair.

  “Are you two crazy?” A.J. tried to pull Jennifer back, ducking as Jennifer turned and tried to slug her.

  “What is going on here?” yelled Lily. One thing for Lily, her voice definitely carried. She’d have been very useful in a riot—which A.J.’s class was quickly turning into.

  Locking her arms around Jennifer, A.J. tried to throw her off, her own back twinging forbiddingly at the unexpected strain. She was so going to regret that move later.

  “Get your hands off of me!” Jennifer screamed at A.J. Lily moved in to try to help restrain her. Jennifer clawed at her face. Lily jerked back.

  “Why, you little—!”

  Sobbing, Chloe scrambled to her feet and ran for the door. Jennifer broke free of Lily’s grasp and sprinted after her.

  “Don’t let her go!” A.J. yelled.

  Students gazed at her in bewilderment. No one tried to stop Jennifer as she pelted through the doors after Chloe.

  Lily, apparently losing interest in Jennifer, swung her sights back on A.J. “Would you like to explain to me what’s going on here?” she demanded.

  “I don’t need to explain myself or my teaching methods to you!” A.J. shot back. Not that she would exactly describe the last fifteen minutes as her teaching method, but—

  “When are you going to face facts? You don’t belong here. You have no right to be here. You’re turning the studio into a joke!”

  “I have every right to be here,” A.J. cried, oblivious to the startled and fascinated audience still in the room. “Whether you like it or not, this is my legacy, not yours. This is what Aunt Di intended—well, not this—but my being here and being a part of the studio. You can’t change that. And if you killed my aunt thinking—”

  “Killed her?” screamed Lily. “Now you’re accusing me of murdering Di? Are you out of your tiny little mind?”

  “You don’t have an alibi, and it’s pretty obvious you’re willing to do anything to get the studio.”

  A.J. knew she needed to stop now. She was one step from getting herself sued for slander. Besides, she had zero proof that Lily had killed Di. In fact, as much as she disliked Lily—which was considerably—Lily was pretty low on her list of suspects.

  “To keep the studio out of your hands. To keep you from destroying everything the rest of us have worked for—everything that Di and I worked for. I loved Di. No, we didn’t see everything eye to eye, but I respected her and admired her and loved her. You know what you’re problem is? You want to push in where you don’t belong and be part of something you have no part of. You’re jealous. You’re a jealous, over-aged adolescent, and it’s pathetic.”

  A.J. froze.

  Jealous…adolescent…

  And what had Jake said the first night they went for dinner?

  Somebody didn’t do his homework….

  Lily stared at her and then waved a hand in front of her face. “Hello? Did you hear me? Did you hear a word I said?”

  “Oh my God,” A.J. whispered. “I think I know who killed Aunt Di.”

  Twenty-five

  “Really?” sneered Lily. “Who is it now?”

  A.J. ignored her, running to the door. “Where are they?” she cried. “Jennifer and Chloe?”

  “They ran out,” Stu answered. Charlayne, stricken-faced, stood beside him, clutching her miniature schnauzer like a stuffed toy.

  A.J. stared at the two of them. “What happened between Jennifer and my aunt?”

  “Why ask us?” Stu returned defensively.

  Charlayne, a younger, slimmer version of her mother, gazed solemnly back at A.J. “It was good. It was great. The best. At first.”

  “At first?”

  Reluctantly, Charlayne nodded. “Jen was always wild. Even when we were kids. She was always doing stuff to try to get her parent’s attention—her mother’s attention: drinking, smoking. She got a tattoo when she was thirteen. She was with a guy before we even started high school.”

  Unexpectedly A.J. felt a twinge for the lost kid Jennifer must have been.

  “Then a couple of years ago we all started taking yoga. Di was the only one who could get through to her. Jen loved her. I mean, she laughed at her and pretended she didn’t take it seriously, but really she loved the discipline, loved the whole tough-love thing.” Charlayne bit her lip.

  A.J. thought rapidly. “But then Chloe’s dad died and Chloe fell apart…and Di started focusing on Chloe.”

  “I think it was that whole thing with Steve,” Charlayne said. She cast her uncomfortable-looking boyfriend an apologetic glance. “She just…went off the deep end.”

  “How off the deep end?” demanded A.J.

  Stu said gruffly. “Be quiet, Charlie.”

  “You think she killed Di, don’t you?” A.J. charged. She stared from one to the other.

  Charlayne’s eyes filled with tears. She shook her head. “I can’t believe that,” she said. “It’s too horrible.”

  It was horrible, A.J. thought, but maybe the most horrible part was that it could have been prevented if Jennifer’s parents had bothered to involve themselves in her life.

  “A.J.!” Lily yelled across the room.

  A.J. ignored her, leaving Stu and Charlayne, and running down the hall past milling dogs and their owners. “Has anyone seen Chloe or Jennifer?” she called.

  Someone pointed down the staircase. A.J. raced down the stairs, coming to a halt as she spotted Jake and a pair of uniformed officers starting up.

  “Jake!” Her relief was cut short when she saw the grimness of his expression as he reached her. “What—?”

  “We’re looking for Chloe Williams,” he said quietly.

  A.J. stared, realizing the significance of the uniformed officers. “No. Listen to me. I think I’ve figured it out.”

  Exasperation tightened his face. “A.J., I don’t have time to argue with you. Is she up there?”

  “I’m telling you, you’ve got it wrong! I’m positive she didn’t kill my aunt.”

  “A.J.” His anger was genuine and startling. “This isn’t up for debate. Do you want me to slap you with an obstruction charge?”

  “She ran downstairs a few minutes ago—with Jennifer Stevenson in pursuit.” Now A.J. was equally angry. “And if you’d listen to what I’m trying to say—”

  Jake’s face had changed before she finished speaking. “Stevenson? The yellow Hummer? She nearly plowed into us as we were pulling into the parking lot.”

  “Was there another car in front of her? A little Toyota?”

  “Yeah,” said one of the officers trailing Jake. “There was a Toyota a few yards ahead.”

  “Jennifer’s chasing Chloe. Don’t you see what that means?”

  “Going which way?” Jake interrupted, turn
ing to the uniformed officer.

  “North.”

  “Away from town—and home?” He seemed puzzled.

  A.J.’s eyes went wide with realization. She sucked in a ragged breath. “Oh God! Chloe must be headed for Starlight Farm. She’s running to my mother. She’s leading Jennifer straight to my mother!”

  Jake stared at her. Then he nodded to the uniformed officers. “Okay, let’s head out to Starlight Farm.” He turned to A.J. “Stay here. I’ll call you as soon as we’ve got them in—”

  “You have to be kidding me,” A.J. interrupted. She moved past him, starting down the stairs. “I’m not waiting anywhere. You’re talking about my mother.”

  “Which is why you’re staying right here.” He grabbed her arm, his fingers hard in her soft flesh.

  A.J. wriggled free. “Look, either I’m going with you or I’m driving on my own, but I’m not staying here when my mother is in danger!”

  After a fraught moment Jake seemed to realize they had reached a stand-off. “All right,” he growled. “Come on.”

  The four of them ran downstairs, past the front desk.

  “Wow,” Suze exclaimed as they rushed past. “Did the class go that bad?”

  Outside, the uniforms headed for their car, and Jake hustled A.J. into the SUV.

  “Buckle up,” he ordered, starting the engine. He switched the lights and siren on, and they tore out of the parking lot, the other marked car in pursuit.

  “Maybe you better explain to me what you think is going on.” Jake had to raise his voice to be heard over the siren. “You think Jennifer Stevenson killed your aunt?”

  “Yes, I do. And I realize that she’s only nineteen and the daughter of one of the most important families in this county—”

  “I don’t give a damn about any of that,” Jake said shortly. “Why do you think she killed your aunt?”

  “I don’t know if she really meant to kill her or only frighten her; maybe she doesn’t even know for sure. I think she was extremely angry with Aunt Di for what she perceived as a final betrayal. She’s horribly jealous of Chloe Williams, both because Chloe ended up with Jennifer’s boyfriend Steve Cussler, and because Di was lavishing so much attention on Chloe, trying to help her stay straight after rehab.”

  “This is very shaky.”

  “No, it’s not. I was just listening to the news this afternoon about a teen shooting in the next county over the same kind of thing. One kid blamed another kid for stealing his girlfriend. It happens. It happens with adults: someone feels jealous or rejected or humiliated and suddenly turns to violence. And, in theory, we’re a lot wiser and have a lot more self-control than an adolescent or even someone in her twenties.”

  “Go on,” he said tersely.

  “I think the final straw was a dress that Aunt Di borrowed from Nicole Manning. She’s the star of—”

  “I know who Nicole Manning is.”

  “Okay. Well, the parcel that was destroyed in the fire at Deer Hollow? That was a designer gown Aunt Di borrowed from Nicole for Chloe to wear to the Midwinter Ball, which Steve—Jennifer’s old boyfriend—invited her to attend. I think Jennifer found out about this damn dress and it tipped her over the edge. I think she was hurt and angry and she wanted to pay Aunt Di and Chloe back.”

  She spared a look out the window as they hurtled down the road. They had to be doing about ninety; it didn’t seem nearly fast enough.

  To keep herself from thinking about what was happening miles ahead of them, she said, “Do you remember the comment you made when we went out to dinner and you told me about whoever killed Aunt Di not having done his homework?”

  “No.”

  “It was the whole overcomplication of the yoga tie around Aunt Di’s neck. She was killed with bee venom, and anyone with half a brain would have to realize that was going to show up in an autopsy, so what was the point of the yoga tie?”

  “I know what you think the point was,” Jake said. “You think Jennifer used that yoga tie to implicate Chloe.”

  “Yes, I do. I don’t think Jennifer cared whether anyone initially believed Di was strangled or not. I think her intent was to put something implicating Chloe at the scene of the crime, because that’s what this was all about. Jealousy of Chloe.”

  “I’m sorry,” Jake said, “but I just don’t see a ball gown as a motive for murder.”

  “I’m not sure it’s a motive the way you or I understand motive, but I don’t understand why a teen would go into his high school and shoot a bunch of other kids. Jennifer’s hatred of Chloe is pathological. I know she blames Chloe for stealing her boyfriend; there may be other injuries real or imagined. She never misses an opportunity to embarrass or humiliate Chloe. She attacked her in class this evening.”

  Jake was shaking his head. “A.J., it’s not going to hold up. If Chloe had been killed, then yes, your theory might make sense, but what was the motive for killing your aunt?”

  “Aunt Di was very popular with these kids, and I think there was a certain amount of rivalry for her attention. If you knew my aunt…She was always on a crusade. Sometimes it was to save a tree or stop kids from drinking milk, and sometimes it was about rescuing a person. I think for a time she was involved in rescuing Jennifer, but then she turned her attention to rescuing Chloe. I don’t know how that changed her relationship with Jennifer. I can’t imagine she stopped caring about her, but maybe Jennifer believed she did.”

  Jake seemed to be listening.

  “Or it could be that she saw Jennifer for the emotionally troubled young woman she is. I’m not sure how that would have played out, but she might have suggested Jennifer seek counseling. She might have discussed speaking to Jennifer’s parents.”

  “This is pure speculation.” Jake tapped the high beams as they hit a dark and desolate stretch of road. It seemed to be taking forever to cross the valley, A.J. thought, gripping her icy hands together. She had to hang on to something besides hope. The girls had at least a five-minute head start. Five minutes was a long time when you were fighting for your life.

  “You must come across stuff like this,” she said, staring at his profile. “You’re a cop.”

  “I’m not a psychologist,” Jake said.

  She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself, to stay focused. “You said motive isn’t as important as means and opportunity. Okay, look at means. Jennifer’s mom is crippled with arthritis. According to Nancy Lewis—Dr. Lewis—she’s tried every cure under the sun. I just read an article this very afternoon about how Dr. Joseph Broadman tried to promote the widespread use of apitherapy in the fifties and sixties.”

  “Apitherapy being…?”

  “Bee products including venom. Bee venom is administered via syringe to the arthritic patient intradermally.”

  Jake threw her a quick look.

  “Bee venom? Are you sure Pam Stevenson is using bee venom?”

  “I’d be willing to bet money,” A.J. said. “And I have a lot of money to bet.”

  Jake’s mouth twitched with reluctant humor. He reached for the radio and made a call requesting backup for a possible hostage situation at Starlight Farm.

  He hung up the mic and glanced at her. “Your mother and her lawyer were at the station this evening. That’s how we discovered the yoga tie belonged to the Williams girl. Meagher volunteered his services on the kid’s behalf.”

  Chloe’s car and the sunshine yellow Hummer were both parked in front of Elysia’s home. The house was ablaze with light as though Elysia were having a party. The porch lamp shone welcomingly as Jake pulled up next to the other cars and turned off the siren. The silence seemed unnatural after the blast of the siren..

  A.J. reached for the door handle. He grabbed her.

  “No, you don’t. This is as far as you go.” He glanced in the rearview mirror as the second cop car pulled up behind them. “Stay put.”

  He got out of the SUV and walked back to the other car.

  A.J. got out and started for the front porch. />
  “Whoa!” Jake caught her up as she reached the stairs. “Where do you think you’re going?”

  “Inside.”

  He was shaking his head. “We have no idea what’s happening in there. We’re going to do this by the book. First we try phoning.”

  “You don’t need to call ahead; she’s home,” A.J. said. She took advantage of the momentary relaxing of his grip to slip free.

  He caught her again as she reached the door. “A.J…. Jesus. Listen to me. If we go rushing in there half-cocked somebody could end up injured or dead.”

  “And somebody could just as easily wind up dead if we sit on our hands out here.” She pulled out her set of Elysia’s keys and inserted the house key into the front-door lock.

  Jake spoke urgently. “Listen to me. A mistake now could be fatal. Do you understand what I’m saying? We don’t know if either of those kids is armed or not.”

  The front door swung silently open. Elysia’s voice, oddly untroubled, drifted to them.

  “Take it from me, sunshine, you never want to look desperate. Nothing is less attractive to the male of the species. They’re like dogs. They can smell your fear.”

  A second voice, Chloe’s, murmured something. She was drowned out by Jennifer’s hysterical, “If I can’t have Steve, no one can!”

  “Well, you certainly can’t have him if you do away with yourself,” Elysia said easily. “Now sit down and let’s think this through.”

  Jake drew his gun and slipped past A.J. She followed him, staying close to the wall as he drew near the arched entrance to the front room.

  Jennifer said with bitter satisfaction, “The yard is full of cops.”

  “Playing to a full house is always gratifying,” Elysia agreed. “Now let’s put our heads together and think of the best way to handle this.”

  “You don’t fool me,” Jennifer said. “You only care about her. Just like Di. You don’t care about the fact that she stole Steve from me. Poor Chloe lost her father. Poor Chloe can’t afford a dress. Poor Chloe can’t afford college. Maybe if poor Chloe stopped spending her allowance on painkillers—”