Hardheaded Brunette

by Diane Bator

"That sounds a little optimistic." She laughed. "Maybe he wasn't injured then. Maybe he did something after that. He could have fallen in the shower or something."

  He stiffened. "Maybe."

  When Kane left the school without his usual flirting or interrupting the training session in the other room, Gilda sat back at her desk and frowned. She was sure Gomes hadn't seemed injured at the meet and greet. Not the way he'd stepped in to protect Sanchez and his big mouth at Razi's. His injury had to have happened later. Like when Charlie was killed.

  "Hey, honey." When Mick strolled through the front door, Gilda jumped. Tension was visible on his tanned face, even as he smiled. "How are things going?"

  She met him around the front of the counter. "I'm okay. How about you?"

  "Much better now." He pulled her closer for a kiss. "It's been a crazy weekend."

  "Gomes and Sanchez came in looking for money they think you owe them for the fight being cancelled." She hesitated. "That's why I told them they could train here until you showed up. Razi's keeping an eye on them."

  Mick snorted. "Great. Between the police hovering everywhere I turn and cleaning things up here, I'm just as busy as before the grand opening. We need to take down the octagon and clean up, only the cops have everyone tied up in interrogations."

  Gilda nodded. "Are any of the guys coming in to help?"

  "Razi, Kane, and a few of the jiu jitsu students," he said. "Kane was here a few minutes ago. Unless they arrested him on his way out the door earlier, I'm sure he'll be back later." Gilda grimaced.

  Mick stared. "You think he's guilty, don't you?"

  "We all know he's a bit unstable."

  "Why? Because he practiced with a sword on a public beach?" he asked.

  "No, because Charlie left the party with Mena right in front of Kane." Gilda met his gaze. "I heard how Charlie was Kane's former trainer and they'd had a major falling out. It seems like a reasonable assumption Kane might want him dead."

  Mick paled then grew somber. "After Kane went to Japan a few years ago, the beach became one of his favorite spots to train. It wasn't hard to get him to move here once I told him we had a nice sand beach."

  Gilda sat behind her desk. "If he moved here for the beach, he really is delusional. It's not much of a beach."

  Mick leaned on the counter and laughed. "It seems to me you spend a lot of time there."

  True enough. "Not swinging swords though."

  "No, you're too busy solving murders and harassing the local police force for that."

  She huffed. "Hey!"

  "I'm joking," Mick came around behind the counter and pulled her to her feet. "Babe, I love how determined you become when you're trying to do things. This time, though, I want you to step back and let the cops do their jobs."

  Gilda flinched. "What?"

  He cupped her chin in his hand and gazed into her eyes. "Stay out of their way, Sherlock. I really don't want you to get hurt. A lot of these guys are big, strong, and have anger issues. I just want you to be safe and keep on everyone's good sides."

  "Be a good little girl and don't cause trouble." She sighed.

  "Exactly." Mick kissed her, wrapping his arms around her waist.

  "Fine, but you have to tell me what's going on. No more secrets."

  He tilted his head. "Going on with what?"

  "With Sanchez and Gomes." Gilda hesitated. "Did they have some kind of deal with Kane about their fight on Saturday? Was one of them supposed to take a dive?"

  Mick kissed her nose. "Gilda, you watch too many movies. If you value your sanity, just stay out of things. You have no idea what you're dealing with."

  "Then tell me."

  "The less you know for now, the better." He shook his head. "Let me know when Kane shows up. I'll be taking apart the octagon. Once he and the other students get here, you go home for a while. Take a break."

  He walked away and grabbed his toolbox from the back room. Before long, he'd enlisted Gomes, Sanchez, and Razi to change and start taking bolts and screws out of the octagon. They needed to return it to the friend in Buffalo he'd borrowed it from. Gomes and Sanchez helped out for less than twenty minutes before voices raised and they left, threatening to return in a couple hours to pick up the check to cover their expenses.

  Gilda leaned in the doorway to watch Mick and Razi for a few seconds until the octagon began to sag. She ran to help before anyone got hurt.

  Five minutes later, the front door of the school burst open when Kane stormed back into the lobby. He paused in the doorway looking like he hadn't slept in days. "Hey, homies."

  "Hey, it's about time you showed up." Mick peered out from beneath the octagon.

  Kane flopped onto the mats with a dramatic sigh. "I spent the entire night with Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum in an interrogation room barely big enough for Gilda to change her shoes in. Hard to believe I've only been in town a few days, and I'm already the main suspect in a murder investigation."

  "Yeah, what a shock," Razi said. "At least someone wants you around."

  Gilda raised her eyebrows, surprised by Razi's wisecrack.

  Mick smirked. "Maybe if the cops hadn't seen you swing a sword around on a public beach, you wouldn't interest them so much."

  Kane turned to face them. "You think that's why they're out to get me?"

  Razi snorted. "I am sure that is only one of many reasons."

  Mick shot him a glare but didn't say whether he agreed or disagreed. "Did Thayer or Fabio have much to say about Charlie's murder?"

  "Nope." Kane shook his head. "Just that everyone at the party heard us argue. They wanted me to make a short list of people who'd threatened him lately. It took me fifteen minutes."

  "You and a few others." Fabio limped through the door and seemed to look past Gilda at Razi. "Like Mr. Mauli."

  Mick crawled out from beneath the octagon and sat up. "Razi wouldn't hurt anyone, especially affiliated with the school. He's done his time in hell and isn't going back if I can help it."

  "Perhaps." Fabio kept his gaze on Razi. "But several of the fighters said Charlie confronted Razi earlier in the evening. Apparently, Charlie was in the house when a few of the fighters arrived and he ran into them when he stormed out swearing at the top of his lungs."

  "I was there early and I didn't see that." Gilda turned slowly. "Razi, is this true?"

  He hesitated, his gaze darting to Mick then back to her. "Perhaps I should accompany Detective Fabio and speak with him before I say anything that may incriminate me."

  "Oh, shit." Mick squeezed his eyes shut. "Do you need a lawyer?"

  "No, I have nothing to hide," Razi said.

  Kane scoffed. "Hey, how come you never asked me if I needed a lawyer?"

  Mick managed a small smirk. "We figured you'd talk your way out of the little interrogation room on your own in no time."

  Kane snorted, apparently not convinced. "Look, Fabio, just take me back to the station. I'll confess. Hell, I'll wash your car and dry clean your suits for the next ten years, just leave Razi alone. He couldn't have done this."

  "What?" Gilda was caught off guard by Kane's sudden show of nobility. "Why are you sticking up for him?"

  "Razi may have been a killer in the past, but he's not a murderer," Kane said. "Believe me, there's a huge difference between the two."

  Mick walked toward Razi. "Are you sure about the lawyer? I really don't want anyone at the station to twist your words around and make things worse than they already are."

  "Things will be fine." Razi clapped a heavy hand onto Mick's shoulder. "Thank you, my friend. I must go and make sure they understand the position I am in."

  "What do you mean by that?" Gilda asked.

  Razi nodded to her then walked out without responding.

  She stared at Mick wide-eyed. "What's he talking about?"

  Mick exchanged glances with Kane then pulled Gilda into a hug. "I'll fill you in later. First, I need to call Gary, then make sure Razi has a lawyer on standby. Go take the rest of
the morning off and come back for classes this afternoon."

  "What about Gomes and Sanchez?" she asked.

  "I'll deal with them later."

  "What about the octagon?"

  Mick waved a hand. "We have students on the way. Kane will take care of things here."

  She opened her mouth to argue, but Mick and Kane didn't wait around. Mick pulled out his phone, dialing as he left the school. Fabio was right about one thing: the boys' club was closing ranks, and Gilda had never felt like such an outsider.

  Once several students arrived to help dismantle the octagon, Gilda left the school to walk around Sandstone Cove. She wasn't ready to go home just yet but needed time to think while she moved. While waves of emotion washed over her, she returned to the beach to stare at Lake Erie and breathe. She headed toward her favorite spot, dismayed to notice a familiar figure already sitting on the weathered log.

  "Are you off duty already?" Gilda sat on the log—her log—next to Fabio. "I thought you were questioning Razi?"

  "We're on our way. Razi asked to come to the beach to meditate first so I thought I'd grab a coffee and take a breather." He nodded toward a solitary figure sitting cross-legged on the sand near the water. "I got tired of listening to all of Thayer's conspiracy theories involving Razi, Kane, and the Phoenix school." He sipped from a paper cup, the scent of coffee swirling in the air around them. "What are you up to?"

  She grimaced. "Avoiding the messes in the school and the disaster in my living room I need to clean up. Do you still think my break-in is related to Charlie's death?"

  "Yes, I do. I'm still waiting for matches on the prints Thayer took, but—"

  "Do you know how many people have paraded through that house lately and touched stuff? Mick has broken down the door twice since I've lived there, Gary visited a couple times, I had to get rid of my emergency key Thayer kept using earlier this summer to get in, and Kane…" She blew out a long breath. "Look, if it happens again, then I'll be worried. Maybe it was just someone with some morbid curiosity. Charlie Hunt was a local legend. I'm sure it was just someone who wanted a souvenir and didn't think twice that he hasn't even set foot inside the house in years."

  "I guess." Fabio didn't sound convinced.

  She hesitated. "Did the M.E. say any more about how Charlie died?"

  "Did you even know the guy?" He grimaced then looked at her long and hard.

  "I met him once."

  Fabio shook his head. "You and I both know if I tell you, you'll just start nosing around again. You seem to have some weird fascination with solving these sorts of things. The problem is, if I don't tell you, you'll find out somehow and still find a way to get into trouble."

  "Wow. You're not pulling any punches today, are you?" Face warm, she turned to watch the waves roll in. "You make me sound like a troublemaker or something."

  "Troublemaker? No," Fabio said. "Trouble? Definitely."

  She nodded. "So then, how come you questioned everyone at Phoenix but me?"

  He sipped his coffee. "You didn't even know Charlie."

  "No." Gilda blew out a sigh. "But I do know he and Razi had a heated argument the night he died and that he used to be Kane's coach, who stole a lot of money from him, and that Mena had an affair with him and he made promises to her that he never kept."

  "Tell me something I don't already know, then I'll be impressed." Fabio patted her leg.

  At a loss for words, Gilda sucked in a deep breath. "How well did you know him?"

  He flinched and tightened his jaw. "What did the guys say that they didn't tell me?"

  "Isn't that hearsay?" she asked.

  "Only in court and I'm no judge."

  Her phone buzzed. Mick's text read Meeting tomorrow morning at 8am. Wear something comfortable. Gilda winced. That meant she needed to get organized tonight. With a meeting at eight and Charlie's funeral at eleven tomorrow, she wouldn't have much time to clean house.

  She shifted her feet in the sand. "From everything I read online, Charlie was a real philanthropist and donated a lot of money to kids' charities. He's turned a lot of fighters into stars. Even the fighters who hated him and no longer work with him all seem oddly devoted."

  "Devoted, or is it something else?" Fabio grimaced.

  Gilda's stomach churned. "Why don't you ask them?"

  "I have." He leaned forward and rested his forearms on his knees. "But it's like I said before, you have more clout with the Boys' Club than Thayer and I do. Kane, Mick, and the others aren't talking to Thayer or me, not like before. I've spent hours at my computer digging for clues into their pasts, but all I've come up with is more of the same."

  Gilda took pity on him. "Like what?"

  "The guys who would be at the top of my suspect list were nowhere near Sandstone Cove that night. All the guys who are here owe their careers to Charlie. For all his faults, he had a big heart and a lot of pull in the big leagues. He created a lot of stars."

  "So you've run into a lot of dead ends."

  "Yup." He sipped his coffee. "Some deader than others."

  Charlie. Gilda gulped. "Did anybody have a grudge against him?"

  "All the fighters he never thought would make it big in the octagon. Guys he trained and went to the wall for who couldn't cut it when the game got serious." He hesitated. "Then there are guys like your buddy Kane."

  "You really don't like Kane, do you?"

  Fabio shrugged. "He's an interesting guy. I know he and Mick have been friends for years. I was even part of their circle once. Just do yourself a favor and don't believe everything Kane tells you."

  She hugged her stomach. "Do you think he's a liar?"

  Fabio gave a slow nod. "Let's just say he's good at embellishing the truth to make himself look good. I'm surprised he's told you much of anything."

  "Maybe he's just looking for a friend. You think he was looking for someone who could give him an alibi?" The back of her neck prickled. "Someone like me."

  Fabio shook his head and smirked. "I'm thinking I wish you'd go work at Happy Harvey's instead of the karate school so I don't have to worry about you."

  "I'm not a fan of dealing with drunks," she said.

  "No, just psychopathic killers."

  CHAPTER NINE

  The early morning meeting turned out to be something she wasn't prepared for. Yoga with Mena, who looked at Gilda like something slimy stuck to the bottom of her bare foot. Kane and the other instructors looked as uncomfortable as Gilda felt. At least their assorted cuts and bruises were healing nicely. She struggled to remember who got what wounds at the meet and greet then felt bad for suspecting everyone around her. Again.

  When Razi walked in, he flashed an easy smile. "Good morning."

  Gilda blew out a sigh. "Did everything go okay at the police station yesterday?"

  "As good as could be expected." He patted her arm. "Things are fine. For me, anyway."

  "I'm glad to see you all here." Mick signaled for them to all take their places then paced in front of the class to make a brief speech.

  Kane snorted. "Like we had a choice."

  "No, you didn't." Mick's smile seemed forced. "I decided this would be a good team-building session after all that's gone on lately. Since we have a few new faces in the school, I'd really like you all to pull together as a team and show a united front to the community after Charlie Hunt's tragic death."

  Kane's gaze never wavered off Mick, but he kept his mouth shut.

  "Let's keep things open and positive today, shall we?" Mick stepped to one side. "I'm turning you all over to our new yoga instructor, Mena, who plans to give us a taste of what her early morning yoga classes will be like."

  It was safe to assume all eyes were on Mena long before Mick introduced her. Gilda could have walked in naked and no one would have even noticed. Gilda folded her arms, glad she'd worn her running clothes—capri yoga pants and a tank top beneath a baggy shirt. Being in the same room as Mena, who wore tight yoga pants and a short top that left little to any
one's imagination, was downright bad for her ego. At least she could hide inside her baggy shirt.

  "Hi, everyone." Mena gave a little finger wave as she smiled. "I'd like to take you through a simple flow yoga class today. Slow and easy to stretch out those cramped muscles. I'd love to see you at least two of my classes each week to keep your body stretched and relaxed."

  "Not to mention you get paid if you have students," Kane murmured.

  Razi rolled out his yoga mat between Mick and Gilda. "So will you."

  "Point taken, mate." Kane dropped into a cross-legged pose.

  Before now, Gilda had only ever done yoga at home. She was used to a small space and a teacher she could pause, rewind, or mute on command. When Mena walked toward her, Gilda realized she wouldn't have the luxury of a remote control.

  "If you plan to do my class, I'd appreciate if you don't wear baggy clothing." A smug smile crossed Mena's face. "Yoga is about becoming aware of your body and breath, which is difficult to do when you're doing downward dog and your T-shirt falls over your face."

  "I'd watch that." Kane made her wish she were invisible, especially since she was already self-conscious enough about her body. "Go ahead and take it off, love."

  At least she had Mick and Razi between them as a barrier. She peeled off her larger shirt and smoothed her tank top over her stomach.

  Kane grinned. "Much better, love."

  "Leave her alone." Mick sighed.

  As they began class, Mena seemed to ignore Gilda and focused on helping the men. Gilda was grateful for not being singled out. Before long, the yoga mats on the upper level of the school were slick with sweat from the twenty students, including Gilda and Mick, who were asked to contort their bodies into nearly impossible positions.

  From across the room, someone groaned halfway through the class. "Can we spar soon? This is boring. Remind me again why we're doing this."

  Gilda groaned as her foot slipped out from beneath her. She caught her balance, surprised yoga could make her sweat as much as karate or running.

  "We are supporting our new instructor and getting a good stretch," Razi said. "Be silent and enjoy the class."

  Gilda had to stop herself from bursting into laughter.