5 Highball Exit

by Phyllis Smallman

  She nodded and looked around the kitchen. “So, house on the beach—I suppose that means you have lots of money?”

  My laugh was a bitter sound. “You know better. This place is on loan until December when the real owners show up.”

  “And that rich man you’ve been dating . . . Is he going to help you save the Sunset?”

  I kept my mouth shut. Clay had lost nearly everything in the housing collapse. The penthouse was gone, as was his real estate company, and all he had left was his failing development in Cedar Key and the ranch, which wasn’t worth what he paid for it.

  “Everything’s going good for Sherri Travis, is it?”

  There was no turning away from her piercing gaze and no lying. “This isn’t the best time for us. I’m behind on the mortgage on the Sunset and I’m working from when the Sunset opens until we close. I already told you I can’t help you.”

  Her face grew sunny. “Now perhaps we can help each other.” Planting her hands on the table, Aunt Kay pushed herself to her feet. “Where’s the bathroom, dear?”

  She’d baited her hook and now she was going to let me swim around looking at the lure, getting hungry and ready to bite at anything. But I knew her well enough to look for the barb in the delicacy she dangled in front of me before I nibbled.

  I pointed. “Down the hall, second door on the right.”

  She walked slowly and carefully away from me. Time had been unkind to Aunt Kay. The edges of her shoes cut cruelly into her flesh and her movements were old and cautious. When had she aged? I suppose it was when I stopped watching. Did she notice the same changes in me?

  My cell phone rang and I warily checked the number. My chicken supplier, as desperate as I was, had taken to calling at odd times of the day and night in his pursuit of payment.

  The call display said it was from Isaak, the Sunset’s chef. “Why are you calling? You’re on holiday. What’s wrong?”

  “No ‘hello’? No ‘I missed you’?”

  “Somehow, Isaak, I don’t think you called to say you’re missing me and I don’t think you’ve spent your time in Washington thinking about the Sunset.”

  He sighed. “Chérie, I’ve been offered a job here.”

  There it was, the final black line under “the end” for me and my dreams. Looking out the window, the sea grapes grew bleary.

  I was still standing at the window, staring out with unseeing eyes, when Aunt Kay said, “Sherri.”

  I jumped.

  “Sorry, sorry.” She reached out a hand. “Are you all right? You look . . . well, sort of funny.” She canted her head to the right and considered me. “Things really aren’t going well for you, are they?”

  I crossed my arms and leaned back against the counter. “What were you saying about us helping each other?”

  She turned away and went to the table and eased her backside down on a chair. “It’s Angel.”

  She smiled up at me and gave a little nod of confirmation, knowing she’d hooked me. “I want to know Holly’s baby is safe.”

  “Maybe the baby was another of Holly’s fantasies.” The betrayal and resentment I felt after Isaak’s phone call was now directed at Holly. “She was always making up stories about famous people she’d met, always exaggerating the truth.”

  Aunt Kay shook her head. “That baby was no fantasy. I saw her . . . lovely red curls.”

  “Maybe it was someone else’s baby.” She glared up at me. “You think she could fool me?”

  “Nope, none of us ever could.” I pushed away from the counter. “Who’s the father then?”

  “That’s the second problem.”

  The worry in her voice galvanized my attention. “Problem? How?”

  “At the morgue, I asked who found Holly.”

  We stared into each other’s eyes and I waited for the next piece of bad news.

  “I was told that it was a policeman, an Officer Raines.” I sighed with regret and slumped down at the table to listen.

  CHAPTER 5

  Dan Raines lived next door to Aunt Kay and found his playmates among the clutter of toys and kids in her yard.

  “Holly lived two doors down from Dan,” Aunt Kay said. “She worshiped him and told everyone she was going to marry him someday.”

  “If he found the body, why wouldn’t he identify Holly?”

  “Exactly.”

  “Did you tell the other policeman, the one who picked you up, about Dan?”

  She looked uncomfortable. “I thought it would be best not to until I knew why Dan hadn’t told them. He must have had a reason not to admit he knew Holly.”

  “Maybe it was another Officer Raines; maybe there are two cops with the same name.”

  She gave me the dimwitted-child look I often got from my teachers.

  “How likely is that? In any case, if it was a different police officer, Dan will have to be told about Holly.”

  Dim but not stupid—I knew when I was being set up. “You can just call and talk to him. You don’t need me for that.”

  “This isn’t something you can do over the phone,” she protested. “I want you to go up to Sarasota and talk to him face to face.” She frowned. “I’d go with you but you’ll do better on your own. He’ll be more honest with you.”

  “Look, Aunt Kay, I know you’re upset about this, even feel some kind of responsibility, but you shouldn’t. Let the police sort it out.”

  “Won’t you amuse an old woman, an old friend?” She looked at me with such great sincerity that I almost expected her to put her hand on her heart. I already assumed her talk of being ill was a lie to get me to go along with what she wanted.

  She spread her hands wide, palms up. “I was looking at Holly, lying there all bruised and battered, and I could only think of one thing: where’s her baby?” She leaned towards me. “There are so many questions I need answers to. Does Holly being beaten have anything to do with Angel being gone? Who’s looking after Angel and is she waiting for her mother to come for her?”

  “Speak to the police.”

  “I did. The police didn’t pay any attention to me. I told them about the baby, tried to get them interested, but they aren’t going any further because Holly left a suicide note. It’s closed. They’re going to do an autopsy but they’re sure she took her own life. That ends it for them.”

  “So what do you want from me exactly?”

  “I want you to help me find Angel.”

  “You might just as well ask me to find a cure for cancer. I wouldn’t know where to start.”

  “But you’re smart and you understand people. They trust you, always have. They open up to you and they tell you things. I can’t drive anymore, because of my condition, but I’ll go with you.” Her face lit up at the prospect. “People ignore old ladies. And they don’t care if we ask stupid questions. We’ll find Angel.”

  “I have to warn you, I haven’t a lot of time for this.”

  She picked up a spoon, turning it over between her fingers. “Oh, yes . . . time . . . well, I haven’t got a lot of it myself.”

  “And what makes you think I’ll give in to blackmail?”

  She smiled. “Because you were always compassionate and because I’ll pay you . . .” she stopped and considered the amount, watching me and assessing what would tempt me, “. . . three months’ mortgage for one week of your time.”

  She had my attention now. “Really?”

  “Really. I go in next week for a little procedure, so you see both of us are running out of time.”

  Maybe it was even true or maybe she just wanted to convince me, but either way she needn’t have bothered. She had me with three months’ mortgage.

  CHAPTER 6

  “One week of my time for three months of mortgage?”

&nbs
p; “Exactly.”

  “That’s crazy.”

  “Remember when I was saying I didn’t know what to do with myself? Well, this is what I want to do. I don’t want to go on a cruise, don’t even want to go to a resort, but you wouldn’t think it was wrong for me to spend money on that kind of thing, would you? I want to find Angel and I want to know what happened to Holly to make her take her own life.”

  “Why don’t you hire a private investigator?”

  “And sit at home waiting for news? I want to be there.” I started to speak but she held up a hand to stop me. “I have another reason. My sister committed suicide. It’s a terrible thing.” Her voice was soft. “For those who are left behind it’s never-ending pain.” She looked down at the table and watched her forefinger go round and round in tiny circles while she took deep breaths. “The anger and the guilt never go away and you never understand. Please, Sherri, help me.”

  “You’re paying me a lot of money.”

  “Money isn’t my main concern at the moment but . . .” She raised a finger to stop me from speaking. “I want to make sure you’re committed to this. If you think you can go into this half-hearted, making calming noises while you go on worrying about your restaurant, think again. I’m going to give you a postdated check and if I think you aren’t paying attention, not putting your brain into this, I’ll cancel it.”

  I bit back angry words and took a deep breath. “It hurts me that you don’t trust me.”

  For the first time she laughed. “I’ve known you since you were five. You’re never more sincere than when you’re lying or when you have no intention of doing what you’ve been told to do. I’ve watched you say, ‘Yes, Auntie,’ and then go right on doing what you wanted to, the very thing I just told you not to do.”

  She leaned towards me and pointed her finger at me. “I want you paying attention and concentrating on this.”

  “What exactly do you want me to do?”

  She started counting off the steps on her fingers. “First, go see Dan and find out if he was the one who found Holly and if so, why did he find her? Seems like a big coincidence if he was the one who discovered her. See if he knows anything about what happened to Holly over these last few months. If he doesn’t know, maybe he can find out.”

  “Clay is coming home today, the first time he’s been back in two weeks. Can it wait until tomorrow? I’m all yours then.”

  Her lips pursed. “See, that’s what I mean.” For a moment I thought I’d already blown it. At last she gave me a little nod. “Tomorrow I think we should go see the apartment where Holly died. It’s up in Sarasota. The nice policeman gave me her address. It’s in a section of town where the streets are all named after tropical fruit.” She opened her handbag and pulled out a slip of paper and read off the address.

  “Wow, that’s an upscale place. How could Holly afford to live there? I thought she was an esthetician at a downtown spa.”

  “Yes, that is a problem, isn’t it?”

  “Ah, so you already knew she was living beyond her means.”

  “Perhaps she was looking after the apartment for someone.”

  “You might not like what you find. You better be prepared forthat, Aunt Kay.”

  She folded the paper and put it in her purse. “Not knowing is always worse than finding out the truth. After we go to the apartment we have to locate the people who worked with Holly. Those are the ones who’ll know what happened to her after she left Jacaranda.”

  “You’ve really thought this through, haven’t you?”

  “It was a long drive back from Sarasota.”

  “And do you think Holly’s death has something to do with Angel disappearing?”

  “I don’t know.” It was the shift in her eyes that told me she was lying.

  CHAPTER 7

  The parking area at the Sunset was nearly empty but across the road the public lot on the beach was quite busy. Hopefully a few of them would come in for lunch. I wouldn’t even insist on shoes and a coverup. The fear of impoverishment was making me real tolerant.

  The Sunset is on the second floor of an old hotel with a panoramic view over the beach to the Gulf of Mexico. There’s a tiny elevator that takes customers up to the dining room in what was once the ballroom with an outdoor porch. It’s the best place on the whole West Coast of Florida to watch the sunset. And that’s not just me bragging but an actual quote from a Florida living magazine review, which I framed and hung in the elevator.

  I don’t like elevators so I took the outside stairs at the north end. As I stepped through the door into the foyer my cell rang.

  I opened the glass door to the bar, once a private club and my favorite part of the Sunset, as I answered the call. In the bar soft blues played in the background and huge ceiling fans, still run by the original pulley system, stirred air smelling of expensive perfume and very old scotch.

  Clay said, “Hello, darlin’.”

  A tingle of desire ran down my spine . . . well, at least somewhere in that direction. A man who could lead a saint down the road to perdition and have her saying, “Thank you, Lord,” when she got there, Clay could pretty much set everything on me vibrating.

  But even as his velvet tones caressed me and turned my insides to jelly, his next words froze my heart.

  “Sorry, babe, I’ve got bad news.”

  “Well, tell me quick so I can get straight to calling you a bastard.” There had been too many last-minute cancellations, so manymissed dinners that our long-distance romance was surviving on memories alone. But I was crazy enough about Clay to put up with just about anything, including neglect.

  “I can’t make it home.”

  “Bastard.”

  “The guys from North Star Construction are coming in tonight to look over the project and they want a meeting first thing tomorrow.”

  “Will you be home after the meeting?”

  “Only if it doesn’t go well.”

  “And if it goes well?”

  “I’ll be home next weekend for sure.”

  I bit back sharp words while my brain called me a fool. I’ve got a real bad habit of hanging in too long, long after the party is over, and maybe I was doing it again hoping things would get better.

  He sighed.

  That sound set my heart fluttering. What hope did I have if just the sound of his sigh could warm me up enough to shed my clothes . . . along with my already very low standards? A kiss and I’d forgive him anything.

  “I can’t stand it,” he said. “One way or another I’ll be home in a week.”

  One more deadline, one more line in the sand.

  What with the story about Holly, Isaak leaving me and Clay not coming home, I’d had all the bad news I could handle, but my already miserable day was about to get worse. Her name was Nora Simpson and she was one of Jacaranda’s gentry. With two friends in tow, she walked into the foyer where I was standing in for the hostess. She smiled at me like she had a bug in her sights and was about to stick a pin through it. My worry meter cranked up to the danger zone.

  Nora was Laura Kemp’s best friend and Laura was Clay’s ex-girlfriend, the woman everyone was expecting Clay to go back to the minute he came to his senses and dumped me.

  Laura’s clique never set foot in the Sunset so just coming through the door meant Nora Simpson was there for a purpose—and it wasn’t to make my day better.

  “How lovely to see you, Sherri.”

  “Likewise.” My mouth stretched in an imitation of a smile every bit as sincere as hers.

  She jutted a hip and looked me up and down. “I must say you’re taking it well.”

  Having no idea what she was talking about, I gave a slight lift of my shoulder and said, “No problem.”

  “Really?” It was a long-drawn-out mocking soun
d. “I thought Laura being in Cedar Key with Clay would be a big problem for you.”

  I picked up three menus. “A table for three, is it?”

  Nora glanced into the restaurant. “And that’s not a problem either, I see.” She gave me another faux smile. “I’m so happy you’ve managed to stay in business. I’m sure this is a terrible time for you, but then breakups aren’t good at anytime, are they?”

  I bit back, “You should know, bitch.” No way was I going to drive away customers. She could dump on me all she wanted as long as she paid the bill, so I refrained from telling her that her own husband was having an affair with one of the ladies she was lunching with.

  I tried another smile and said, “This way.” I led them to a spot by the windows and set the menus down on a table with a pillar blocking the view. “Enjoy your lunch, ladies.”

  I walked away with my head high, telling myself if Laura was in Cedar Key there was a perfectly reasonable explanation. Trouble was, I couldn’t think of it.

  My experience with men wasn’t encouraging. Jimmy Travis, my no-good dead husband, hadn’t kept his marriage vows long enough for the wedding bouquet to wilt. For Jimmy, cheating was just a game and one he played with great delight. But Clay wasn’t like that. At least that’s what I told myself over and over. Repetition didn’t seem to make it truer.

  Nora wasn’t done wielding the knife. I had just hung up from taking a cancellation when she came out to the foyer on her way to the ladies room. She stopped in front of me and said, “Don’t worry. I’m sure you’ll land on your feet, or in your case, your back.”

  “Thank you for your confidence in me.” I turned away from her to greet two people getting off the elevator.

  After I seated the new arrivals, I went into my office to make a call, intending to ask some pointed questions, like why is Laura Kemp in Cedar Key and is she the reason you can’t make it home?

  Clay and I are equal partners in the Sunset. If he wanted out of our relationship and our partnership—well, there was no use considering that situation. I sucked in some deep breaths, telling myself, “Don’t start screaming before you know there’s a fire.”